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Roadster's growth to 370Z leaves Nissan icon in place
By John Gilbert Last Updated: Monday, September 07th, 2009 02:54:22 PM SAN JOSE, CALIF. ---As automotive icons go, Nissan's Z ranks right up there with the Corvette, the Mustang, and precious few others, maybe the Mazda Miata. The difference for 2010 is that the Z is now the 370Z, and its flashy new, and shorter, body bristles with driver-enhancing technology. With either the 6-speed manual or the 7-speed automatic with manual-override paddles on the steering wheel, the new engine's 332 horsepower bring to life a coupe or roadster that is imperturbable on the twistiest roads and handles better than ever, even for a car that has always taken pride in its handling. If the name 370Z doesn't sound all that familiar, maybe it's because that's a new designation for a car that began with enormous popularity as the 240Z, then the 260Z, 280Z, and 300Z as the numerical designation rose with its 6-cylinder engine's enlargement, and the Z had grown a rear jump-seat to become a 2+2. The 300ZX was a roadster, but the Z went away after a run from 1993-96, as 2-seat sports cars waned in popularity. When Nissan brought back the Z for the 2004 model year, it resumed its position as the corporate signature car, but Nissan also needed to provide an entry-luxury car for its Infiniti branch, so Nissan got the 350Z 2-seater and the 2+2 model went to Infiniti as the G35. On the Infiniti side, the G35 added a 4-door sedan to the 2+2 coupe, and the tandem of the G35 (now G37) coupe and sedan have been the bread-and-butter entry-luxury stars of the Infiniti line. In fact, during five years of refinement in the extremely competitive luxury sedan class, the G37 with its all-wheel option may now be the most attractive entry-luxury sport sedan as the G37X. If you include the controversially redesigned Acura TL, along with the Lexus ES, and whichever competitive BMW, Mercedes or Audi you want to put against it, the G37 Infinitis are elevated from rear-drive challenges to all-wheel-drive delights as year-round stars, even in Minnesota winter. At the same time, the iconic 350Z has matured into its newest iteration with no pretenses it is a rear-wheel-drive sports car that is the best ever, having grown with the additional pop of Nissan's 3.7 V6. Nothing wrong with the 3.5 V6, but Nissan makes better and more expansive use of its refined V6 engines than any manufacturer, and Nissan officials tell me that even though the 3.7 has significantly increased power, there are no plans to discontinue the 3.5. Instead, the 3.5 will power front-wheel-drive cars, such as the Altima and Maxima, while the 3.7's extra power is better-dispersed through rear- or all-wheel drive platforms, which are basically Infinitis. With its lighter and more rigid aluminum front suspension cradle, with new double-wishbone front and 4-link rear suspension, and high-response shock absorbers, the new 370Z is a driver's delight, a three-season specialist that sticks to any curving roadway. It competes well against the Porsche Boxster, BMW Z4, Mazda Miata, Honda S2000, and even those other icons, the reborn Mustang and Camaro. A new competitor is the well-done rookie, the Hyundai Genesis Coupe. This trip, however, was highlighted by the superbly refined new 370Z roadster, the open-top 2-seater that puts the finishing touch on the car's summertime sportiness. Nissan considered a foldaway hardtop, but went for the lighter fabric top that ducks under the formfit hard shield behind the cockpit at the touch of a button. Everything about the new 370Z is lightened and strengthened and, believe it or not, shrunk. In this era when it seems that every car has been lengthened and stretched at every opportunity, the 370Z is 2.7 inches shorter 167.1 inches), with a 4-inch shorter wheelbase (100.4), and is 0.3-inches lower (52.1). It is widened by 1.3 inches to 72.8 inches. The shorter and wider car is significantly stiffer than its predecessor, and broken down, it's 40 percent stiffer in front body torsion, 10 percent stiffer in front body lateral bending, 45 percent in rear body torsion, and 60 percent increased in rear body lateral bending. Altogether the tally is 150 pounds lighter at 3,400 pounds. In the 370Z, Nissan shows off its technical expertise. At 3.7 liters, the V6 complements its 332 horsepower at 7,000 RPMs with a solid 270 foot-pounds of torque, peaking at 5,200 RPMs. The general limit for supplying power to a front-wheel-drive car seems to be 300 horsepower. Anything over that, and it's preferable to go to all-wheel drive, or rear drive. So you can see Nissan's logic in sticking with the very fine 3.5 for front-drive cars, while letting the power flourish with the 3.7. The 3.7 has 35 percent new parts compared to the 3.5, with a taller cylinder block, and variable valve-timing and lift control. Redline is 7,500 revs, and fuel economy is estimated at 18 city and 25 highway, identical with either the stick or automatic. The 7-speed automatic is smooth as silk, and can be instantly controlled with those paddle-switches on the steering wheel. But a subtle and surprising feature puts the 6-speed stick into a class of its own. In traditional sports car driving, the proper technique for high-performance driving is that as you go hurtling into a tight curve, you instinctively do a little heel-and-toeing. You use your right foot to brake, of course, but it's also important to blip the throttle to get the engine revs up in the vicinity of the lower gear you are about to engage. It's fun and it's fairly easy, but it does require a delicate touch to blip the gas with your heel, while getting on the brake pedal as hard as necessary with your toe at the same instant. With the new 370Z, forget about heel-and-toeing, because the car does it for you. If you're in the sport mode, you come in hard to a curve or corner, and as you downshift, the computerized engine-management system calculates your downshift and automatically blips the throttle to precisely match the necessary revs for an ideally synchronized downshift.Running hard through some California coastal mountain roads, I kept saying to my co-driver: You hear that? I didn't do that, every time the car brought its own revs up.
Convertibles are always a bit heavier than coupes because of the reinforcement needed to the body, but the 370Z is still a hot performer at 3,400 pounds. The roadster I test-drove looked particularly good in gleaming white, especially against the blue Pacific. The car attracted some attention in California, because its restyled body and mean-looking headlight and taillight lenses will not be seen in showrooms until mid-September. The Roadster will have a base price of $36,970, which seems moderate, compared to its loftier rivals. The Touring Roadster, with the sport package's Synchro-Rev Match, 19-inch instead of 18-inch wheels, can boost the price, but in any form the Z lives up to its reputation as an affordable icon. Nissan also rolled out the Nismo performance upgrade version of the 370Z coupe, which manages to extract an additional 18 horsepower (to 350) and 6 foot-pounds (to 276) out of the 3.7 engine. It has firmer tuned suspension settings and a lower-slung, racy look, with a broad rear-deck spoiler making it look race-track-ready. Nismo is Nissan's hot-rod division, and while it seems difficult to appreciate, they find ways to make even all-out fun cars like the 370Z more fun, and the Nismo Z's sticker is $39,130 a decided bargain for all that potency. The difference between the Z Coupe and Roadster is interesting. In demographics, Nissan says the composite Coupe buyer is a 32-year-old male who is single, technology oriented, makes $75,000 a year, and will use his Coupe as his primary vehicle; the Roadster buyer is a male, 43, married, with dual income of $175,000 a year, is stylish and expressive, and will make the Roadster the third family vehicle. Whether the Z is bought for track-day fun or highway cruising, or running down the boulevards, the new car doesn't lack for technology. While the roadster's top goes up or down with push-button ease, it also has Bluetooth hands-free phone, and streaming audio, with an 8-speaker Bose system, iPod interface, and smart-key entry and push-button start. It also has available a navigation system with XM NavTraffic and NavWeather, so it can direct you where you want to go and also advise you on traffic and weather conditions on the way there. |
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