- Nissan’s new Frontier ‘Tarmac’ concept throws back to ’80s street trucks—and we dig it
- The automaker’s bringing the build to SEMA 2024, along with others like a lifted Kicks
- The aftermarket parts extravaganza that is SEMA runs this week through Friday
With the SEMA soirée scheduled to kick off this week in Las Vegas, companies are using the occasion to show off concept vehicles — some of which are true flights of fancy, and some of which are simply vehicles showcasing every single accessory available in the catalog. Nissan is appearing with a selection of each, it seems.
It all starts with the Tarmac concept, a Frontier pickup truck serving as a collab between Nissan Motorsports, Nissan Design America, and Forsberg Racing. A new Roots-style supercharger and intake-exhaust mods crank the wick to 400 horsepower, to say nothing of its slammed Nismo suspension and wide-body styling hewn from carbon-fibre, plus 20-inch tires on a 315-mm section.
“The floor at SEMA used to be filled with low-slung, high-performance midsize trucks,” said Nissan Motorsports team member Kevin Lutz. “So, it’s easy to imagine a return of that trend.” Be sure to check out the tremendously retro seats in the gallery below.
Sticking with trucks, Project Trailgater (a portmanteau of “trail” and “tailgater,” which this writer continually reads as “trailgrater,” as if someone is trying to shred a trail into fine cheese) is built in partnership with an outfit called Music City Trucks and is based on a 2025 Nissan Frontier Pro-4X. It raids the Nismo Off-Road catalog for a lift kit, cargo cases, lighting, and 17-inch bead-lock-capable wheels. Then the crew literally added the kitchen sink and a pair of weatherproof 43-inch televisions.
A pair of concepts using the new Kicks as their base also appear, including a yellow Beach Patrol variant which reminds some of us at a certain age of an unnamed California beach drama in the 1990s. It has custom suspension lift, 18-inch Nismo wheels, and Yokohama Geolandar off-road tires. Meanwhile, you can probably guess that the Urban Shadow takes an opposite tack, with a custom coilover suspension enabling a lowered ride height and a Nismo cat-back exhaust.
Finally, a Nissan Z Legend is a throwback to the limited-run Z Heritage trim which debuted, um, one year ago. Is it a throwback if the inspiration is younger than some of the shirts in our laundry? The Legend package adds vintage-look wheels, a carbon-fiber rear spoiler, over-fenders, and other decals.
SEMA is an industry show intended for aftermarket companies to display their wares, but has turned into something of an unofficial auto show for OEMs to display accessory-laden or one-off concepts vehicles. It starts this week and runs through to Friday.
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