ZED FEST MAKES HISTORY AT SILVERSTONE

Filed under: Classic News |
ZED FEST MAKES HISTORY AT SILVERSTONEOn Sunday 3 June, the Nissan Z Club celebrated its 30 th anniversary with a record breaking parade lap of the historic Silverstone circuit. 167 Datsuns and Nissans, the most Japanese cars ever recorded on the circuit at any one time, circled the track ranging from the iconic 240Z through to the latest 350Z. The Nissan Z club, which started back in 1977, took the opportunity to celebrate in style by linking in with the 2007 Japanese Tuning show. The day also included a round of the European Drifting Championship and Time Attack Series*. Zed enthusiasts travelled from all over the UK to attend the event to display their pride and joy – concours and tuned versions of the 240Z, 260Z, 280Z, 300ZX and 350Z were all there, ranging from one of the first Zeds to ever enter into the UK to the very latest 350Z with its 80% new engine and bonnet bulge reminiscent of the 240Z. Guy Ainsley Category Manager for sports cars at Nissan Motor (GB) Limited said: “To see such a collection of Zeds all together was truly remarkable, the workmanship that goes into these classic cars is just outstanding.” He continued, “Being involved in the parade lap was something that will stay with me for a long time. It enforces my belief that the passion shown in design and engineering with Datsun in the early days has been continued and reinforced within Nissans of today.” Nissan’s presence at the show didn’t end there. Numerous examples of the Skyline GT-R, SX (S13 and S14s) and Sunny GTi-R were lined up in the enthusiast enclosures. Plus out on the track in the European Drifting Championship, the line up was dominated, as always, by highly tuned Nissans with a 200SX S14 driven by Maciej Polody winning the day. Silverstone is a relevant venue for such a celebration as this is where the original Samurai 240Z racing team set up shop back in the seventies developing some of the most famous racing Datsuns of all time. The most famous of all became known as ‘Big Sam’ and took on the likes of Porsche and TVR to win the 3-litre class of the 1974 BARC Modified Sportscar Championship. Thanks to a restoration project the vehicle is still being displayed at shows today.Tags: