NISSAN’S huge DeltaWing party has arrived at Le Mans and taken up residence in one almighty pop-up hotel.
The huge 400-room temporary building is home to a large swathe of the world’s media for the duration of the famous race weekend.
Nissan has invited a large cross section of the media to France to witness its DeltaWing project take to the track, including (as we reported yesterday) a large British contingent.
Friday morning saw the UK journalists rendezvous with five teams from Nissan GB, just outside Le Mans for the final drive down.
These teams had dressed a variety of Nissan cars – including a Juke, Qashqai and NV200 – as replica DeltaWings. One team had even dressed up as Batman(men).
But the moment everyone was waiting for was the unveiling of the DeltaWing replica, built by car modifying genius Andy Saunders. You can see it pull up in the video below.
To Le Mans
After a photocall, the Nissan convoy headed to Le Mans. The manufacturer has huge branding around the circuit and has used the event to publicly unveil its Juke Nismo production car for the first time.
The Juke Nismo will be arriving in showrooms in January and journalists were told by the head of Nismo, Miyatani-San, that it will be the first in a whole range of performance models.
Nissan Europe general manager Darren Cox said the car was unveiled at Le Mans and not a motor show because they wanted ‘to give something back to the fans’.
‘We’re doing lots for the fans at Le Mans including mobile discos in two Jukes which have huge speakers in the backs,’ he explained.
Hopes for the DeltaWing in the race are high too, but even top executives admit it’s unlikely to last to the end.
‘It showcases Nissan’s innovation and has got people talking,’ added Cox. ‘And that’s very important.’
Nissan is planning to film the DeltaWing’s first lap via crowd sourced video too. It has asked fans to film the car as it laps and the footage will be stitched together for a special film. ‘It’s just another thing that shows Nissan’s innovation,’ said Cox.
Journalists also got the chance to chat to some of the drivers competing in Nissan powered racers, including Martin Brundle and his son Alex, who are racing an LMP2 car.
Brundle senior (in right of picture) said: ‘The track, the ambience, the titanic challenge – you versus the track and the elements – the complex challenge, all makes Le Mans special. We’re really looking forward to the race.’
You can follow the action from Le Mans from 2pm today on Eurosport and, of course, on Nissan Insider!