Inside Line 370Z Long Term Wrap-up

[Indyzed]

They were less than satisfied with their Z. Their comments about the 350Z are un-called for. Maybe they need to stick to testing Pick-up trucks.

 

Ajay Panchal's geometric theme for the fifth-generation Z-car's bodywork had become a little familiar, and the interior's drama continued to be undercut by all that plastic. Even the VQ-Series 3.5-liter V6 now seemed a bit breathless.

 

If the 350 is familiar, why do wide-eyed people constantly ask me what kind of car I'm driving? 306 hp is breathless?

 

http://www.insideline.com/nissan/370z/2 ... -test.html

[Ekona]

I don't get it: They don't slag the 350Z off at all...?

 

 

Seems fair comment to me, despite Edmunds reputation. They weren't testing it as a one-off how fun is it, but as a long term drive. NVH is bad which is almost expected, a few bits and pieces needed attention which is not unheard of in a brand new car (let's not forget that journos aren't exactly careful with these things) and they have different size gallons over there so that the mpg with a pinch of salt. They're saying it's a good sports car, but not a good all round car that you can happily commute in.

 

Each to their own though, but it seems a fairly balanced article.

[cookiemonster]

Got to say i think the comments are fair, they agree that it has all the right aspects for a sports car its just that with the market the way it is, it might not be as popular to people who also need to communte long miles or have a family that can only afford only one instead of two cars etc.

All the problems are pretty solvable, use different tyres and get an aftermarket exhaust to improve the sound of the engine. done

[lrh]

Bias? Here's Autocar and AutoExpress making exactly the same complaints about road and engine noise:

 

http://www.autocar.co.uk/CarReviews/RoadTestsHistory/Nissan-370Z-3.7-V6-GT-Auto/241917/

 

http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/carreviews/grouptests/240601/nissan_370z.html

 

More worried by the random brakes, as per Car&Driver's Nismo crash

[Chris`I]

Admitedly the road noise is quite high in the car, but that just makes it more fun as you can head the car. Would be far more boring to have a dead quiet cabin like an Audi.

 

The one big thing that Nissan missed a trick on was the exhuast. Its a shame you pretty much have to change it from new as its just far too muted

 

Also wouldnt read much into their Nismo crash, everyone on the US forums (loads over there and proper track 370z) say that it must have been driver error as the pads go off just as normal as with any other car, the driver should have felt it first. They all agree it must have been pilot error

[Indyzed]

This is by no means a scientific opinion but it just seems the 350 and now the 370 take unfair hits over their cheap bits. Boxsters have cheap bits galore and can cost nearly twice what a 370 costs. Take the RX-8 for example. All the periodicals lauded its high quality interior. I had one for four years. The interior is hardly any better than the 2006 and up Zeds. I'll give the haters their points that the first couple years of the Zed were cheaper inside but Nissan addressed that.

[bronzee]

Only one thing, surely the 370z is the 6th Generation of the Zed, if you don't count the 1966 Roadster.

240z, 260z, 280z/zx, 300zx (Z31), 300zx (Z32), 350z, 370z = 6 (or do I need to go back to school).

[Chris`I]

Only one thing, surely the 370z is the 6th Generation of the Zed, if you don't count the 1966 Roadster.

240z, 260z, 280z/zx, 300zx (Z31), 300zx (Z32), 350z, 370z = 6 (or do I need to go back to school).

They were talking about the Z33 at that point as they mentioned Ajay Panchal who was the Z33 designer, and also mention the 3.5l lump in the same bit

[lrh]

To say droning tyre noise is desirable on a sports car is a bit of a stretch At least Nissan does listen and a facelift will improve things... Just like the 350Z facelift addressed the common complaints (heavy clutch/gearshift, low redline, plasticy centre console).

 

Worst thing is Nissan want £1,900 more than the 350Z 18 months ago, despite throwing out the Brembo's, oil cooler, and even the spare wheel. Porsche prices have actually come down a little in the same period.

 

In the UK at least, a GT Roadster is now virtually the same price as a Boxster. Sure it's not quite as quick and lower spec, but a lot of people would sacrifice a little speed and a few toys to have a Porsche for Datsun money. Not to mention a Boxster/Cayman is cheaper to tax (£215 vs £405), insure (18 vs 19), more economical (30mpg vs 27mpg), and will hold it's value better.

 

Come on Nissan you can do better

[Trev-the-Rev]

Not to mention a Boxster/Cayman is cheaper to tax (£215 vs £405)

 

The Generation 2's and generation 1 non-S are lower band, the Gen 1 S is same as the Zed.

[Chris`I]

I liked the heavy clutch in my MY03 Zed, the new light clutch takes away some of the feeling IMO. Also didnt say road noise was desireable, but more the lack of sound deadening, which lets you hear the exhaust note more. The Cayman I drove around Thruxton sounded a lot more muted than a Zed, and also dare I say it, boring. Its almost too good at what it does.

 

I agree they are looking at pricing themselves out of the race though. If it wasnt for this place I may well have gone for a Cayman over a 370z

[lrh]

I don't think I could ever go for the obvious German rivals myself (335i, TT, SLK, Boxster, Cayman). Every house in my street has at least one Porsche, BMW, Audi, or Merc

 

But even after 8 years of Nissan loyalty (Almera GTI, S14a, 350Z) neither the 370Z or GTR appeal... and I'm probably in their #1 target demographic

[Chris`I]

Going by the fact that you dont want a German car, I'd say you're not in their new target demographic, they are after the people after those cars named above

[lrh]

If they're going after the German rivals they better improve the daily-driver refinement pronto!

 

To be fair most new Z's are second/weekend cars that only do 5-10k miles a year, so I can understand them not worrying too much about ride/noise on the 370. But at the same time they're "bigging up" the automatic and Sat Nav as if it's a daily GT

 

Surely the G37 is meant to be taking on the Germans, but it's optimistically priced and ridiculously heavy at 1.7 tonnes. I'm waiting to see what the Hyundai Genesis brings... It should be a more practical daily-driver and yet it only weighs a touch more than the 370. Brembo's and a Torsen LSD as well... Take note Nissan

[Trev-the-Rev]

To be fair most new Z's are second/weekend cars that only do 5-10k miles a year, so I can understand them not worrying too much about ride/noise on the 370. But at the same time they're "bigging up" the automatic and Sat Nav as if it's a daily GT

 

That's a fairly bold statement to make. My Zed was my daily drive and I know of quite a few on this forum alone that also use them every day.

 

Don't get me wrong, I agree entirely that they need to up their game if they want to take on the Germans, but for the money the Zed is still good value.

[lrh]

That's a fairly bold statement to make. My Zed was my daily drive and I know of quite a few on this forum alone that also use them every day.

I spend 1-2 hours a day commuting in my 350! But if the first couple of owners used it as much it would have done 60k miles rather than the 32k actual.

 

Looking at AutoTrader, 75% of 350's still have less than 40k on the clock. For other cars up to 7 years old:

 

BMW M3 -------- 52%

Audi TT -------- 57%

Mazda RX8 ---- 60%

Impreza ------- 63%

Honda S2000 - 67%

Merc SLK ------ 71%

BMW Z4 ------- 72%

Boxster ------- 73%

911 ----------- 75%

Evo ----------- 76%

Elise ---------- 95%

 

OK the imports will distort the figure a little, but Z's are as likely to be tucked away in the garage during the week as any Porsche Even if most do go out every day it can't be very far or for very long.

 

But the US is by far the biggest Z market (at least 2/3rds I think) so they should really have thought more about long distance refinement.