ZEEGNITION / Ishaan Rastogi
The engineering behind the creation of this year’s Nissan Le Mans entrant called the GT-R LM NISMO created a lot of buzz among racing enthusiasts. We take a closer look at the science behind its unique design
In the company of its superstar rivals, Nissan holds its own in the world of road-worthy speed machines. Where most manufacturers strive to build exorbitantly priced pieces of art that encase throbbing powertrains that deliver ludicrous quantities of power, Nissan has steadily gone about designing cars that epitomise engineering over other factors. A prime example of this would be the superb Nissan GT-R which is not only a technological masterpiece but is relatively light on the pocket as well.
The GT-R was created with the help of the company’s racing division, Nissan Motorsport or NISMO as it has come to be known. This year, the same maniacal group of engineers that helped sculpt the GT-R created an equally astonishing product for the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The Nissan GT-R LM NISMO was Nissan’s entrant for the top LM P1 category in the historical race, and history it did make! The GT-R LM NISMO is a front mid-engine mounted, front wheel driven car, a first of its kind layout in the P1 category. The state-of-the-art hybrid sports a 3-litre twin-turbocharged V6 petrol engine with an output power of 507PS which is coupled with a mechanical flywheel kinetic energy recovery system (KERS). This system harnesses kinetic energy lost during braking thereby providing the driver with a whopping 760PS of additional power.
Nissan’s reasoning behind such a radical design change is based on solid science. By placing the engine up front, the centre of gravity was moved up-front as well. This demands the centre of pressure to be right above it to prevent understeer. In the case of its competitors, the bulk of the weight lies on the rear axle so manufacturers are forced to try and push the centre of pressure backwards for a more balanced drive. Trying to attain this is difficult given the rear end restrictions enforced on all cars. By creating a long bonnet, the engineers at Nissan were able to comfortably and accurately position the GT-R LM Nismo’s centre of pressure because the front end is more open to aerodynamic modifications without breaking the confines of the rulebook. Another advantage of having the drivetrain up-front is that it allows for a vast rear diffuser rather than twin side diffusers. This enables the air coming up from the front diffuser to go straight through the vehicle which in effect creates a smaller and more efficient front profile as compared to the other LMP1 vehicles in which air is forced to escape from the sides.
Although the GT-R LM NISMO was unable to hold a flame to its competitors in the P1 category at the 2015 Le Mans race, the new kid on the block definitely found a way to make racing more interesting by getting a lot of engineering enthusiasts talking about NISMO’s black sheep approach. Time will tell if they’ve learnt from their mistakes but one clear inference that can be drawn is that Nissan has a feverish desire to stretch automotive engineering to its absolute limit and will continue to do so in the future.
