Nissan in an announcement last week said it plans to merge its in-house tuning divisions Nismo and Autech to form the new company Nissan Motorsports & Customizing Co.

The new company, which will start operating on April 1, 2022, is being established to improve synergies between the two tuners.

Many readers may not be familiar with Autech. It specializes in custom parts for Nissan cars and in the past has even developed fully customized cars, such as 1989's Autech Zagato Stelvio AZ1.

Autech's focus has tended to lie on the Japanese market and a handful of additional Asian markets. By merging with Nismo, Nissan said Autech's products and know-how can be expanded to more markets by leveraging Nismo's global recognition. The new company will have around 600 staff.

An early form of this collaboration can be seen in Nissan's 370Z Nismo which featured upgrades developed by both Nismo and Autech. Don't be surprised if the two work together again on a high-performance version of the redesigned 2023 Nissan Z.

“Autech, with its wide range of expertise, is a pioneer of customized vehicles, and Nismo, through motorsports and enhanced driving pleasure, is a symbol of the spirit of challenge in Nissan cars,” Ashwani Gupta, Nissan's chief operating officer, said in a statement. “We are confident that the integration of these two companies will bring us even closer to the pinnacle of exciting mobility we are aiming for.”