TOKYO — The Nissan Z car, a 400-hp, twin-turbo symbol of the struggling Japanese automaker’s revival, is the latest product launch to be derailed by global supply chain woes.
The Z was expected to land in the home market in June, but Nissan Motor Co. confirmed April 27 that the Japan-market launch “will be changed to this summer.” The company declined to be more specific.
The Nikkei reported the launch would be pushed to between July and September.
Nissan blamed the delay on the “ongoing semiconductor shortages and supply chain disruptions from the spread of COVID-19.”
The U.S. launch was originally planned for this spring. Nissan declined to comment on the launch timing for other markets. The overhauled Z car targets mainly the U.S. and Japanese markets.
Nissan announced separately on April 27 that production in Japan plunged 44 percent in the month of March, compared with a year earlier, as the global supply chain crisis dragged on.
CEO Makoto Uchida unveiled the redesigned Z prototype in September 2020 to much fanfare.
The retro-styled sports coupe is a key nameplate in the company’s “Nissan A to Z” product blitz, which aims to rejuvenate an aging lineup with a steady stream of new offerings.
The A stands for the new Ariya electric crossover, and the Z is for the new sports coupe.
The Ariya’s arrival has also been thrown off schedule.
Deliveries of the full-electric SUV are starting to trickle out in Japan, but the Ariya won’t reach the U.S. until the autumn.
Nissan doubled down on the 2023 Z, making the seventh-generation the most powerful in the line’s history, a fire-breathing, twin-turbo 3.0-liter V-6 speedster that delivers 400 hp.
Both the Ariya and the Z are made at Nissan’s Tochigi assembly plant north of Tokyo. The Ariya is made on a line that was completely revamped to manufacture electric vehicles. The Z is made on a separate line that also churns out the GT-R sports cars and sedans for Infiniti.
Also on April 27, Nissan announced Japan-market pricing of the upcoming Z.
The car will start at ¥5,241,500 ($41,100), including consumption tax, and top out at ¥6,966,300 ($54,600) for the top-grade Proto Spec, with a nine-speed automatic transmission.
