The 2022 Nissan Z Debuted August 17. Here's Everything You Need to Know

After making the Z Proto concept a staple of those Brie Larson commercials for months now, Nissan has confirmed when and where we'll all meet the production version: August 17th, 2021, in New York City. Originally, this date was pegged to the 2021 New York International Auto Show; that was cancelled due to the resurging coronavirus, but while other carmakers quickly followed suit in axing their NYC events, Nissan is staying the course and doing an in-person reveal from Brooklyn. (You can watch the live event here on the evening of 8/17.)

Nissan has gone on record saying the Z Proto concept car seen here, which previews the 2022 Z, uses a twin-turbo V6. That likely means it's getting the twin-turbo V6 from the Infiniti Q60 coupe. That car has a 300-hp base model and a tuned-up 400-hp Red Sport model; as the new Supra shows, both power levels would suit the new Z car.

Many car racing games aim to be as realistic as possible — so a recent leak from Project Cars 3 detailing the Nissan 400z's apparent specs gives us reason to be excited. The video game listed the sports car as packing 444 horsepower and a curb weight of 3,252 pounds — thus making it lighter and more powerful than the Toyota Supra.

While the Nissan Z Proto concept car (seen in this gallery) is expected to be almost identical to the production 400Z, recent spy photos posted by The Hoonigans Instagram account seem to suggest the production car will bisect the giant grille of the concept with some body paneling, reducing the size of the maw. (For what it's worth, we think that's a great move.)

We assumed the production version of Nissan's new sports car would look an awful lot like the Z Proto concept, and based on these leaked images that purportedly show a production car, it looks like we were right.

But regardless of how much the 2022 Nissan Z makes, the version that comes a year later could make even more. As Autoblog reported based on rumors from Japan, Nissan is allegedly developing a sportier NISMO version of the new 400Z that will show up in calendar year 2022 which will pack additional power — and even run in Japan's Super GT racing series.

The biggest question mark around the new 400Z (or, as it may be called, just Nissan Z) is when exactly buyers will be able to place their orders and take one home. A recent report from the newnissanZ.com forum claims that, according to an anonymous source inside Nissan, the order books for the new Nissan Z won't open until November 15th. (Here's hoping they're wrong.)

Nissan showed the Z Proto with a six-speed manual, with an automatic option "under development." It would make sense for the Q60's seven-speed automatic to be the other option.

How old is the Nissan 370Z? It's one of the few new cars you can still buy that doesn't offer an infotainment screen. The Z Proto has one — and we would strongly bet one ends up in the production car. We also expect it to be compatible with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

A poster from the 400zclub.com forum who claims to have inside info about Nissan's new sports car suggests it could be delightfully affordable. According to the anonymous source, the 400z will start at $34,995, giving it more bang-for-the-buck than the Toyota Supra.