Nissan hints at new Nismo performance products currently reserved for the virtual racetrack

By Nick Jaynes February 22, 2013

2013 Nissan Juke NISMO — Image used with permission by copyright holder

Nissan has made a bit of a cryptic announcement this morning, foreshadowing the unveiling of some new Nismo products.

Nismo is Nissan’s performance arm, much like AMG is to Mercedes-Benz and M is to BMW. As it currently stands, Nismo offers a couple slightly souped-up Nissan models including the 370Z, the LEAF, and the Juke (pictured). It appears, though, that Nissan is prepared to take Nismo from a side hobby into a heavy-hitting sports tuning entity.

On February 25, Nissan will be opening a new Nismo factory in Japan. This much larger factory will undoubtedly mean more significant offerings from the brand-owned tuner.

The Nissan press release indicated that the announcement will “reveal a new direction for Nismo’s core mission. This – to us – means Nismo will actually begin building some noteworthy offerings. Aside from its JUKE NISMO, the performance turner’s vehicles have been rather lackluster up to this point. A perfect example of which is the recently unveiled LEAF NISMO, which is mechanically identical to the standard LEAF but with some fancy body bits bolted on.

Nissan Z Nismo — Image used with permission by copyright holder

What could Nismo have planned for this global unveil? It’s not yet clear. The press release, however, has given one significant hint: “and for its millions of global gaming and virtual fans, NISMO products are about to become much more of a reality.” To us, this means vehicles formerly only found in the virtual gaming world will become a showroom reality.

What would we like to see? Nismo versions of the Altima Coupe for starters. The Altima is already one of the best family sedans on the market, and a muscled up coupe version would be extremely enjoyable.

Be sure to check back next week for a full breakdown of the new Nismo products. Until then, perhaps revisit some of your favorite racing games for a future Nismo product lineup.

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Former Digital Trends Contributor

Nick Jaynes is the Automotive Editor for Digital Trends. He developed a passion for writing about cars working his way…

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