Philippe transfers to Hasemi Motorsport, 2007-model Z utilizes normally-aspirated V8 engine

NISSAN Motors and NISSAN Motorsports International (NISMO) announced at their headquarters in Tokyo on Friday, February 9th, their global motorsport activities for the 2007 season.
The SUPER GT series will once again be the company's main focus this season. Everybody who appeared on the stage, including Managing Director Mr. Kazuhiko Toida showed their motivation towards regaining the GT500 class title in SUPER GT, and pledged to rise to the challenge of taking the title back.

NISMO will continue to run the SUPER GT-spec Fairlady Z, but the 2007 model will utilize the new, normally-aspirated VK45DE 4.5 liter V8 engine, the same unit used in the Infinity M45.
Mr. Kunihiko Kakimoto, Managing Director of NISMO and also Team Representative of the NISSAN teams, told the assembled audience that the new car looked strong for the season ahead, with increased straight-line speed, while maintaining its characteristic strong point, high cornering speed. "We have maximized the merits of the new engine, and focused on the car's aerodynamics." he said.



Historically, NISSAN's cars haven't been famous for their straight-line speed, but the company has high expectations for this year's challenger.
However, they announced that the assembly of the Fairlady Z's new engine has been delayed. Due to this, the two factory NISMO cars will use the new N/A powerplant from the opening round, but the three privately-run teams will continue to use last season's turbo units for the first two races, switching to the new N/A engine from the third round of the season.

In terms of driver lineup, Sebastien Philippe, who piloted an NSX for the past six seasons, joins Hasemi Motorsport alongside Masataka Yanagida, who himself has transferred from KONDO Racing.
Team Director Masahiro Hasemi: "Last season, GT500 was a first-time experience for both of the drivers we ran. However, this year we have two experienced drivers, including Sebastien Philippe, who battled for the championship title in 2006. Therefore, we have high expectations for the season ahead, and the team is gearing up for the challenge we face. We would like to exceed the expectations of our rivals."
Transferring from Hasemi Motorsport, Brazilian driver Joao Paulo de Oliviera now joins Seiji Ara at KONDO Racing. On the NISMO side, the same four drivers will represent the factory team, though the combinations of driver pairings has been changed. Michael Krumm now sits alongside Tsugio Matsuda in the #22 MOTUL AUTECH car, while the 2004 championship-winning combination of Satoshi Motoyama and Richard Lyons are once again reunited in the #23 XANAVI NISMO machine.
NISMO Team Manager Mr. Yoshitaka Iijima showed his eagerness towards regaining the title, saying: "These are four fast, stable, top drivers, and they'll create a serious challenge for the task at hand."
At TEAM IMPUL, the driver lineup remains unchanged, with Benoit Treluyer leading the charge alongside Kazuki Hoshino.

In GT300, NISMO will provide technical support to teams running the Fairlady Z. It was announced that two teams, running three cars, will participate this season.
Mr. Yuichi Sanada, President of NISMO, said: "This year's GT300-spec Fairlady Z is a very aggressive machine, and performs extremely strongly. This year's car is a major evolution from last year's machine."


Teams - From Nissan Press Release(http://www.nissan-global.com/EN/NEWS/2007/_STORY/070209-01-e.html)
No.
Entrant
Manager
Driver
Car Name
22
NISMO
Yoshitaka Iijima
Michael Krumm / Tsugio Matsuda
MOTUL AUTECH Z
23
Satoshi Motoyama / Richard Lyons
XANAVI NISMO Z
3
HASEMI MOTOR SPORT
Masahiro Hasemi
Sebastien Philippe / Masataka Yanagida
YellowHat YMS Moba HO! TOMICA Z
12
TEAM IMPUL
Kazuyoshi Hoshino
Benoit Treluyer / Kazuki Hoshino
CALSONIC IMPUL Z
24
KONDO RACING
Masahiko Kondo
Joao Paulo de Oliveira / Seiji Ara
TBA