Nissan 360 in photos, and more

The Nissan Leaf Nismo RC, an all electric race car.

The Nissan GT-R GT3. One fact race car

The Nissan GT-R, or Godzilla. Need I say

Last week, I took part in Nissan 360, a gathering of every product offered around the world by Nissan 360.

The event, which last a month and took over an abandoned U.S. Marine base in El Toro, Calif., gave journalists and Nissan personnel from around the world a chance to see and test the company’s latest products. With vehicles sold exclusively in Europe, Japan, South America and other markets on hand, it was a rare treat for Canadian journalists like myself to see what else the company has to offer.
Not only that, but the company was showing off some of its latest technologies and innovations, including the Direct Adaptive Steering on the Infiniti Q50, autonomous driving in a Nissan Leaf and a bonafide race car – the all-electric Nissan Lead Nismo RC. That’s right, an electric car that can more than hold its own on the track. Having had the opportunity to be taken around a track in it and drive it myself, I was blown away by this vehicle. And instead of the quiet associated with electric cars like the Leaf, this thing sounded like it had a jet engine attached!
Then there was a hot lap with a race car driver in the GT-R GT3, a car that literally left its mark on me when I accidentally rubbed my leg on the hot exhausts. Who need a tattoo parlour when the GT3 did the work for me!
Here’s a story I wrote off the event, after testing some European Nissans and speaking with the president of Nissan Canada, Christian Meunier.