The ZEOD RC was designed by Ben Bowlby. Bowlby had worked for DeltaWing LLC, a
Chip Ganassi company created to develop a concept race car for the
IndyCar Series' post-2012 chassis. When
IndyCar awarded the tender to the
Dallara DW12, Bowlby - working for DeltaWing Project 56 LLC, a consortium led by
Don Panoz - adapted the
DeltaWing design to race at Le Mans.
Nissan Motor Company provided an engine for the Le Mans-specification DeltaWing, and received naming rights on the car, which raced as the Garage 56 entry at the
2012 24 Hours of Le Mans race. During 2013, the
Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO) announced that Nissan had been granted the Garage 56 entry for 2014 in its own right. Nissan unveiled their car for the race, known as the ZEOD RC, during the
2013 24 Hours of Le Mans weekend. The ZEOD RC utilized a hybrid electric drivetrain with
lithium ion battery packs in a chassis similar in design to the DeltaWing. In a 22 June 2013 article at Autosport.com, Bowlby said: "This is a new car, but it uses the narrow track technology of the DeltaWing and that gives us great efficiency. It is something we understand and it is an efficient way of getting around Le Mans." At the
2014 24 Hours of Le Mans, the ZEOD RC's first and only race, the car had to retire during the race's early hours due to a gearbox failure. However, it managed to achieve its goals of reaching a speed above 300 km/h and completing a lap at
Circuit de la Sarthe (Le Mans) using electric power only. ==Drivetrain==