Nissan has introduced its new vehicle proving ground located in Yokosuka City, Tokyo, given name Grandrive which has been designed to support vehicle evaluation and testing for engineering development and to showcase the driving dynamics of Nissan products to employees, dealers and other stakeholders.
The Grandrive project started building in May 2006 with an investment of 2.7 billion yen ($23 million). The four-kilometer course conjure up a assorted range of driving conditions from rough surfaces to rough terrains to expressway roads, allowing drivers to experience the handling, control and vehicle dynamics that Nissan’s is renowned. The course embraces a slippery road segment and a new versatile 100m-diameter drive-pad.
The Grandrive multi-purpose complex permits for vehicle technical evaluations and hospitality events such as technology exhibitions and test drives. Nissan has three other proving ground facilities in Japan and a hot weather test facility in Arizona, USA.
Nissan will move its headquarters to Yokohama in the Kanagawa prefecture by 2009. The backdrop of the Grandrive adjacent to its Oppama Plant is yet another long-standing investment by Nissan in Kanagawa, in addition to the Yokohama engine plant, the Nissan Technical Center (NTC) and Nissan Advanced Technical Center (NATC).
The Grandrive road-courses:
• Tokyo expressway uneven section
• Unmaintained road (partly cracked surface)
• Road noise section
• Curvy road
• Up and down corners
Courtesy: Nissan
