---
title: "This May Be the Production 2022 Nissan 400Z, With a Factory Ducktail Spoiler"
description: "There's even an interior shot that shows a cabin almost identical to that of the Z Proto."
date: "2021-03-23"
modified: "2021-03-23"
authors:
  - name: "James Gilboy"
    job_title: "Contributing Writer"
    link: "https://www.thedrive.com/authors/james-gilboy"
url: "https://www.thedrive.com/news/39896/this-may-be-the-production-2022-nissan-400z-with-a-factory-ducktail-spoiler"
categories:
  - "News"
  - "News by Brand"
  - "Nissan News"
tags:
  - "Nissan"
  - "vintage"
---

# This May Be the Production 2022 Nissan 400Z, With a Factory Ducktail Spoiler

![](<https://www.thedrive.com/wp-content/uploads/images-by-url-td/content/2021/03/nissan-z-proto-new-photos-ducktail.jpg>)
*\<em\>www.thedrive.com\</em\>*

Every sighting of a new Nissan Z prototype is a chance to figure out if the execs were joshing us when they said [the Z Proto was pretty much the final design](<https://www.thedrive.com/news/37025/nissan-z-proto-will-reach-production-pretty-much-unchanged-says-nissan-executive>), or if we've got a whole other thing coming our way. This time, our look at the next Z apparently comes straight out of the factory that makes the current one, where someone photographed or a pair of test cars with new colors of paint and some fresh design details.

This collection of images spread via [NewNissanZ.com](<https://www.newnissanz.com/threads/grey-nissan-400z-spotted-at-nissans-tochigi-plant.304/>), which appears to have captured some of the images from an unattributed Instagram video. The forum's administrator claims the images were captured at Nissan's Tochigi Plant in Japan, though [a post shared by Z1Motorsports](<https://www.instagram.com/p/CMu8oT6LBg0/>) says they were shot in the United States. Regardless, they show a pair of cars, one in silver with a black roof like the original yellow Z Proto, and one in grey with a color-keyed roof.

![message-editor%2F1616450693971-nissan-z-grey-japan-2-jpg.1151.jpeg](<https://www.thedrive.com/wp-content/uploads/content-b/message-editor/1616450693971-nissan-z-grey-japan-2-jpg.1151.jpeg>)
*New Nissan Z prototypes in Tochigi, Japan, *via NewNissanZ.com**

Both cars feature ducktail spoilers; a detail not shared with the original Z Proto, suggesting that the Z's design tweaks from here on out may be less inventive than iterative. One clear interior photo was captured as well, showing a near-perfect resemblance to the Z Proto's interior—minus of course the automatic shifter and paddles, replacing the concept car's [all-but-confirmed manual transmission](<https://www.thedrive.com/news/36265/it-looks-like-the-next-gen-nissan-z-will-get-a-manual-transmission>).

![message-editor%2F1616450710406-nissan-z-grey-japan-1-jpg.1150.jpeg](<https://www.thedrive.com/wp-content/uploads/content-b/message-editor/1616450710406-nissan-z-grey-japan-1-jpg.1150.jpeg>)
*New Nissan Z prototypes in Tochigi, Japan, *via NewNissanZ.com**

![message-editor%2F1616450720969-nissan-z-grey-japan-3-jpg.1152.jpeg](<https://www.thedrive.com/wp-content/uploads/content-b/message-editor/1616450720969-nissan-z-grey-japan-3-jpg.1152.jpeg>)
*New Nissan Z prototypes in Tochigi, Japan, *via NewNissanZ.com**

Nissan stated with the Z Proto's reveal that an approachable automatic was in development and such development was likely straightforward given it already has a performance automatic compatible with the platform. The Infiniti Q60 Red Sport's seven-speed is a likely candidate, and one made more favorable still by its compatibility with the new Z's rumored engine, the Q60's 3.0-liter, twin-turbo V6.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CMu8oT6LBg0

![message-editor%2F1616450739661-z1.jpg](<https://www.thedrive.com/wp-content/uploads/content-b/message-editor/1616450739661-z1.jpg>)
*New Nissan Z prototypes in Tochigi, Japan, *via NewNissanZ.com**

![message-editor%2F1616450758253-z2.jpg](<https://www.thedrive.com/wp-content/uploads/content-b/message-editor/1616450758253-z2.jpg>)
*New Nissan Z prototypes in Tochigi, Japan, *via NewNissanZ.com**

![message-editor%2F1616450752106-z3.jpg](<https://www.thedrive.com/wp-content/uploads/content-b/message-editor/1616450752106-z3.jpg>)
*New Nissan Z prototypes in Tochigi, Japan, *via NewNissanZ.com**

This engine or a dead ringer for it was [photographed under the hood of the original yellow Z Proto](<https://www.thedrive.com/news/39074/it-looks-like-the-new-nissan-z-will-have-infinitis-twin-turbo-3-0l-v6>) in January, as it was being loaded into a display case in Tokyo. It could produce the 400 horsepower and 350 pound-feet of torque it generates in the Q60 Red Sport, or if you put much stock in the Z Proto's specs in *Project Cars 3*, [up to 444 horse](<https://www.thedrive.com/news/39673/new-nissan-z-appears-in-project-cars-3-with-444-horsepower>). The racing game also outlined a curb weight of 3,252 pounds, establishing a second field in which Nissan's iconic sports car could upstage Toyota's divisive new GR Supra.

Old bones or no, the new Z is shaping up to be the car people have been waiting for. Just waiting perhaps a little too long if you ask them.

*Got a tip or question for the author? You can reach them here: james@thedrive.com*

## Author
James is a former staff writer for The Drive. He has changed the conversation around electrification, debunked misinformation online, and become a prominent hunter of what he calls "automotive cryptids."

### Author social links  
[Instagram](<https://instagram.com/jamesgilboy>)