Crossovers and SUVs that take cues from a sports car or have sports car-like inspirations can be a good thing. If they’re done right. Chevy does it with the Blazer and its Camaro design cues. Nissan knows this better than anyone with the old Infiniti FX crossovers. I guess that’s what students at Nissan Gakuen — Nissan Technical college in Japan — had in mind when they decided to make a Z Crossover called Fairlady X.
#愛車の右斜め前嫌いな奴いない pic.twitter.com/9EEVbRq8qb
— 日産京都自動車大学校 カスタマイズ科 (@Nissangakuen_cz) December 20, 2022
Honestly, for this to have been done up by a group of students, it’s not bad. Up front the students threw on nearly the entire front fascia from the new RZ34 Z. According to Carscoops and a rough translation by YouTube on a video uploaded by the school, the students used the hood, headlights, and grille from the new Z. Around back, the car uses Z taillights. Other small Z design details include Z badging on the C-pillar and Fairlady Z on the back spoiler.
But if the proportions look a bit off to you, there’s a reason for that. While the front comes together rather nicely, the side profile and rear view are where things get a little… interesting. The rear looks like it has both a hatch and a trunk. This can all be explained by the vehicle the students used as a base: the second-generation Nissan Murano. The generation that gave us the Murano CrossCabriolet (which I actually like).
Not much of the interior was shown, as it still looks like the students are working on it, though one shot does show Recaro sport seats up front. We’ll get to see more of this thing at the upcoming Toyko Auto Salon in 2023 where it’ll make its official debut.