Erik Comas' Street LEGAL 1000HP Le Mans R390 GT1
The Man Behind the Machine
Erik Comas is best known for his exploits in the Japanese GT racing scene, where he became a household name in the late 1990s. He clinched the prestigious JGTC GT500 championship twice: first with the R33 GT-R in 1998, then again a year later during the R34 GT-R’s debut, both times in the iconic Pennzoil livery. Comas’ transition to Japanese motorsport followed a successful Formula 3000 campaign and a remarkable, sometimes turbulent Formula 1 stint, including a harrowing accident in 1992 at Spa where Ayrton Senna personally aided his recovery at the trackside—a story Comas frequently credits as life-changing.
From Le Mans to Street
Among the handful of Nissan R390 GT1s built for homologation and endurance racing at Le Mans, only a single example was ever intended for the road. But Comas’ personal connection with the car—having piloted it at Le Mans in 1998—sparked a long-held ambition: to restore and convert his actual race chassis into a fully road-legal machine. After years of negotiation, and with the support of Italdesign and a dedicated technical team, Comas launched a meticulous restoration project between 2019 and 2022, culminating in the R390’s transformation into a street car.
Pennzoil Livery: A Nod to JGTC Glory
While the Pennzoil yellow-and-black livery never appeared on the R390 GT1 during its period race career, Comas’ choice to apply it to his restored car is deeply symbolic. The livery is synonymous with his greatest moments in Japanese GT racing—evoking nostalgia among fans and signifying his personal journey from Europe’s Formula circuits to Japanese tin-top legends. The street R390 now wears this livery with pride, instantly recognizable and resonating with the Nissan enthusiast community.
Technical Marvel: The Road-Legal R390 GT1
Bringing a Le Mans prototype to the road is no simple feat. The R390 GT1 features a mid-mounted 3.5L twin-turbo V8, capable of producing 1,000 horsepower in race trim. Comas’ example remains essentially a pure race car, with only the minimum necessary changes made for homologation. The car retains its single-seat layout, period-correct electronics, carbon-fiber architecture, and even the characteristic high-mounted shifter on the right. Luggage space was ingeniously integrated to meet GT1 regulations—a quirky design feature that adds a touch of real-world practicality to this otherwise uncompromising track weapon.
The Driving Experience
Filmed in the Italian Alps, the video documents the unforgettable experience of taking the R390 GT1 onto winding mountain roads, accompanied by a Nissan GT-R50 for a truly exclusive convoy. The sounds of the turbocharged V8, the sheer presence of a Le Mans car amongst regular traffic, and the incredulity of onlookers all combine to capture the surreal nature of the event. Comas himself makes no compromises to comfort or noise: “I don’t know the meaning of quiet!” he jokes, as the car’s dual exhausts and wastegate pipes soundtrack each brutal acceleration.
Homologation Oddities and Le Mans Legacy
Part of the intrigue of the R390 GT1, and similar GT1 homologation specials, lies in the creative interpretation of race regulations of the 1990s. Required to include a luggage compartment, Nissan engineers devised a 100-litre space under the bodywork for the race car; the restoration preserves such details, offering a window into a golden age of GT racing where road and track still overlapped.
A Lasting Legacy
Erik Comas’ R390 GT1 remains the only known street-legal example to have raced at Le Mans—a true unicorn in the automotive world. The passion and determination behind its preservation underline both Comas’ racing pedigree and his commitment to keeping motorsport history alive in a tangible, drivable way. For Nissan fans and collectors, the car not only symbolizes a high-water mark of Japanese GT engineering but stands as a monument to the enduring allure of turning race cars into road-legal dreams.