2025 Nissan SEMA concepts go desert, river and racetrack
Nissan is back at SEMA with four builds that pull the brand in three directions at once: deep sand, fast water and hot laps. The 2025 Nissan SEMA concepts orbit familiar nameplates — Armada, Frontier, Z and Patrol — but they’re fitted with an unusually complete mix of NISMO Off Road hardware, prototype wheels and motorsport pieces. None of these are production models, of course, yet the parts catalog story behind them feels intentional. They’ll be on display at the Las Vegas Convention Center, booth #21521, Nov. 4–7.
Nissan Dune Patrol
Built from the Armada’s PRO-4X playbook and tipping its cap to the Patrol’s desert heritage, the Dune Patrol is a purpose-built support rig for punishing off-road events. The highlight is a custom long-travel racing suspension paired with widened fenders and prototype NISMO 18-inch AXIS beadlock wheels wrapped in 37-inch Yokohama Geolandar M/T G003 rubber. That footprint, plus the extended suspension geometry, hints at real speed over chopped-up whoops rather than just mall-crawl stance.
Armor and recovery gear are thorough. High-clearance bumpers integrate a swing-out carrier for the spare and a mount for traction boards. Frame-mounted rock sliders and full skid plating protect the underbody. Extra lighting sits low and high, there’s a roof rack up top and a cat-back exhaust out back. Storage solutions stack everywhere — roof-mounted cases, MOLLE panels for fuel and water canisters, and an on-board air compressor to air back up after dune running. A long-range radio antenna anchors the support-vehicle theme.
Design-wise, it wears its width proudly. Squared-off arches, a tall ride height and the spare hanging off the back give it a rally-service vibe. If there’s a question mark, it’s weight. Add long-travel hardware, armor and 37s to a full-size SUV and you start to wonder about payload and cooling on 110-degree days. Still, the execution looks cohesive.
Nissan Frontier Rapid Runner
Project Trailgater returns with a different hobby in mind. The 2025 Nissan Frontier Rapid Runner flips the script from tailgate party to white-water chase truck. A NISMO roof rack and bed rack haul multiple kayaks, while prototype NISMO 17-inch ASCEND wheels on 37-inch Yokohama Geolandar X-MT tires bring serious bite. To make the stance work, the build borrows suspension components and axles from the Nissan Titan, widening the track for stability with those tall tires.
The exterior leans into the adventure-truck look with one-off tubular doors that open up the cabin, custom-fit front and rear bumpers, and widened fender flares for debris protection. Inside and around the bed you’ll find paddle and wetsuit storage, a rack-mounted portable shower and solar panels to recharge cameras and comms. Covercraft waterproof seat covers and lined floors are there for the inevitable soggy mess when the run is over.
Visually, the Rapid Runner reads like a rolling river map — bright, busy, totally on-theme. The open-air doors look fun off-road, though you won’t be driving those to a state inspection. For paddlers who chase remote put-ins, the combination of racks, storage and power management feels thoughtfully laid out. PowerNation TV is documenting the four-episode build on “Dirt and Trails,” starting Nov. 7.
Forsberg Racing NISMO GT‑Z
The most track-focused of the 2025 Nissan SEMA concepts starts life as a Z NISMO and heads straight toward grid time. Forsberg Racing owns and developed the NISMO GT‑Z with a plan to compete in the GRIDLIFE GLGT series in 2026. The build leans on the NISMO performance catalog — suspension pieces, exhaust kits and assorted go-fast hardware — to show how the showroom Z NISMO can be transformed into a serious club racer without reinventing the car.
Expect the familiar heart: the production Z NISMO’s twin-turbo 3.0‑liter V6 is rated at 420 hp and 384 lb‑ft in stock form, routed through a strengthened nine‑speed automatic. Nissan hasn’t published track-prep output or lap numbers here, but the factory baseline puts the Z NISMO in the low‑four‑second range to 60 mph with a 155‑mph limiter. The GT‑Z’s stance is lower, its aero add‑ons cleaner, and the livery looks like it belongs under pit lights. At the booth, a custom Podium 1 simulator with a dedicated race seat lets showgoers virtually sample the car.
One nit: the catalog-first approach is practical and smart, but devoted time-attack crews may still want more extreme aero or a different brake package. That’s the point, though — a platform to build on, not a spec series car.
Forsberg Racing Patrol
Old iron, new thunder. Forsberg’s other project reimagines a Y60-generation (1990) Nissan Patrol with a turbocharged TB48 4.8‑liter inline‑six, heavily massaged to an even 1,000 horsepower. Power routes to the ground through NISMO 17‑inch AXIS beadlock wheels wearing 35‑inch Yokohama Geolandar tires. Suspension and wheel upgrades stay in the Nissan/NISMO family, keeping the theme consistent.
The look is gloriously square — short wheelbase, tall sidewalls, and retro motorsport graphics that could have rolled out of an old rally raid paddock. It’s a smile-maker. Whether you can truly put four digits of power to dirt through 35s without turning them to smoke is another matter, but the engineering flex is the show here.
Spec context for shoppers
Because concepts rarely come with window stickers, here’s a quick reference for the production models underpinning these builds in the U.S. market. The Z NISMO lists at about the high‑$60,000s and delivers 420 hp and 384 lb‑ft; figure roughly 0–60 mph in the low fours and a governed 155‑mph top speed. The Frontier PRO‑4X sits around the low‑$40,000s with a 3.8‑liter V6 good for 310 hp and 281 lb‑ft, typically mid‑7‑second 0–60 mph performance and a top speed near 112 mph. The Armada currently on sale packs a 5.6‑liter V8 rated at 400 hp and 413 lb‑ft, with sub‑7‑second 0–60 mph capability; Nissan has not detailed powertrain changes for the Dune Patrol concept. The classic Y60 Patrol wasn’t sold here, and the 1,000‑hp restomod is a one‑off. Your numbers will vary — and many of the parts shown are prototypes or intended for off‑road or track use only.
Design notes in a sentence each
Dune Patrol: wide-body desert rig with tough, clean lines and the sort of purposeful roof-and-bumper lighting you’d expect to see idling at a rally checkpoint.
Frontier Rapid Runner: open-air truck with vivid graphics and kayak-hauling racks that make the function impossible to miss.
NISMO GT‑Z: low, taut and neatly aero’d, with a livery that nods to Nissan motorsport without feeling like cosplay.
Forsberg Patrol: old-school box with new-school muscle, sitting just right on beadlocks and fat sidewalls.
Where to see them
The 2025 Nissan SEMA concepts — Dune Patrol, Frontier Rapid Runner, Forsberg Racing NISMO GT‑Z and Forsberg Racing Patrol — occupy booth #21521 at the Las Vegas Convention Center from Nov. 4–7. Nissan is also showcasing a Podium 1 simulator that puts you in the GT‑Z’s virtual cockpit.
Why these builds matter
SEMA thrives on big ideas, but Nissan’s 2025 lineup isn’t just for shock value. There’s a throughline here: show how far the current Armada, Frontier, Z NISMO and even a heritage Patrol can stretch using NISMO Off Road and performance parts. Some pieces are prototypes, some are pure race kit, and a few (like those tubular doors) are for the trail only. But for owners eyeing their next weekend project, the menu is getting longer — and sharper.
