We have some good news and we have some bad news. The good news is that Nissan will apparently produce the split grille fascia for the new Z first presented at the 2022 Tokyo Auto Salon. The bad news is that the grille has only been confirmed for the Japanese market at this stage.
Nissan unveiled the split grille with the special Fairlady Customized Proto but initially didn’t intend on bringing it into production. However, it was well received by the public and the media alike and this likely prompted the automaker to reconsider.
A report from Japanese Nostalgic Car claims that Nissan will make the new fascia available as a dealer option starting in mid-2023. We have no idea how much it will cost but have a sneaking suspicion that it could prove quite popular given the transformative effect it has on the overall look of the sports car.
Read: Nissan Issues Stop Sale On Automatic Transmission 2023 Z Due To Roll Away Risk
It appeared obvious that Nissan wasn’t planning to keep the new fascia in the concept realm for long after spy shots emerged in August 2022 that showed a prototype testing in the U.S. with the same split grille design. It’s possible that Nissan was simply testing the grille for the Japanese market but there’s also a chance it was testing it in the U.S. because it also intends on offering it Stateside.
The aforementioned prototype also appeared to be rocking the same Recaro bucket seats as the Nissan 370Z Nismo, prompting speculation that it could have been a tester for the forthcoming Z Nismo. If true, then it’s possible the grille could come standard on the car’s high-performance variant.
As for the availability of the production version of the Proto that’s called Z Customized Edition in Japan and/or the split grille as an option in the States, we asked Nissan and a spokesperson told us the following: “At this time, we have not publicly announced the availability regarding the Z Customized Concept front fascia nor any info regarding the vehicle itself.”
