In 1984, Nissan named the California-based Electramotive Engineering as its official North American racing development arm, with a mandate to build a serious GTP contender that would showcase Nissan technology in the United States at a time when the company was phasing out the Datsun brand. The car took its name from its shared engine architecture with the Nissan 300ZX production car — the turbocharged VG30ET V6 — though the racing version was extensively modified for competition duty.
Nissan and Electramotive commissioned Lola Cars International to build the initial chassis, designated T810. The first two cars were completed in early 1985 and used primarily for development. As Electramotive progressively modified the Lola tubs to suit IMSA's shorter tracks and sprint format, the cars evolved sufficiently to be renamed GTP ZX-Turbos. A third Lola T810 chassis was subsequently built and sold to Japan. From 1988, Electramotive began constructing its own chassis tubs to replace the Lola foundations, completing five in-house chassis that year. In 1990 Electramotive was renamed Nissan Performance Technology Inc. (NPTI), and the GTP ZX-Turbo was succeeded by the purpose-built NPT-90.
The first car made its competition debut at Laguna Seca in 1985, driven by Electramotive founder Don Devendorf and Tony Adamowicz, finishing eleventh. The 1985 and 1986 seasons were characterised by ongoing development and reliability problems; Nissan deliberately skipped several major rounds, including the 24 Hours of Daytona and 12 Hours of Sebring, to concentrate resources. The car showed glimpses of potential — a third place at Portland in 1986 with Geoff Brabham was the most encouraging result — but mechanical failures remained frequent. Nissan finished seventh in the 1986 constructors' championship.
Lessons absorbed during testing over the winter allowed Electramotive to arrive at the 1987 Miami season opener in significantly improved form. The GTP ZX-Turbo delivered its maiden victory there, defeating a Porsche 962 by eleven seconds after three hours of racing — the first time any car had beaten the dominant Porsche in IMSA's GTP class. Further wins did not materialise in 1987 due to a clutch failure and accident at subsequent rounds, but the breakthrough had been made and Nissan's commitment to the programme deepened.
Expansion to a two-car programme in 1988 coincided with a major step in competitiveness, driven by developments in turbocharger technology that gave the VG30ET-based engine an advantage over naturally aspirated rivals. Beginning at Road Atlanta, the GTP ZX-Turbo defeated the factory Jaguar team by four seconds and proceeded to win at Palm Beach, Lime Rock Park, Mid-Ohio, Watkins Glen, and Road America. When the second car joined the programme at Portland, the two Nissans swept first and second.
Nissan won nine of fourteen GTP-class rounds that season. However, the decision to skip Daytona and Sebring — where Porsche could accumulate championship points — allowed Porsche to take the constructors' title by a single point. Geoff Brabham won the drivers' championship by a wide margin.
Determined not to repeat the 1988 points error, Nissan contested both Daytona and Sebring in 1989. Neither car finished at Daytona, but at Sebring, Chip Robinson, Geoff Brabham, and Arie Luyendyk took a surprise overall victory by two laps. The car then won at Road Atlanta before going on another winning streak: Lime Rock, Mid-Ohio, Mosport, and Road America all fell to the GTP ZX-Turbo. Ten victories from the season gave Nissan the constructors' championship, the first time any manufacturer other than Porsche had won it since the GTP class was created in 1983. Brabham secured his second consecutive drivers' title.
As defending champions, NPTI (the renamed Electramotive) entered 1990 with the ageing GTP ZX-Turbos while their replacement, the NPT-90, was being completed. The older cars continued to win — Miami for the third consecutive year, Sebring for a second successive time, and Road Atlanta. The NPT-90 made its debut at Topeka before progressively taking over. The last GTP ZX-Turbo in the works lineup was retired at mid-season once the second NPT-90 was ready. Combined points from both cars, plus performances from privateer teams, secured a third successive constructors' championship and Brabham's third drivers' title.
The GTP ZX-Turbo arrived at a strategic moment for Nissan's brand-building in North America, as the company completed the phase-out of the Datsun name. Its racing successes featured prominently in Nissan television and print advertising, and the car's visual connection to the 300ZX showroom model made the link between racing technology and road cars explicit. The GTP ZX-Turbos also appeared in a Miami Vice episode built around the IMSA Miami Grand Prix, extending the car's cultural profile beyond motorsport audiences.
The Nissan GTP ZX-Turbo broke Porsche's monopoly in IMSA's premier class and established Nissan — and the renamed Electramotive/NPTI organisation — as a genuine force in North American endurance racing. Its run of success from 1987 through 1990 prefigured the wider assault Nissan would mount on international endurance racing with the Group C R90C programme in Europe and the All Japan Sports Prototype Championship. The VG30ET-based racing engine's sustained competitiveness demonstrated that a turbocharged production-derived V6, properly developed, could defeat dedicated racing machinery.