We love a good Z car. In fact, we have a 350Z of our own that we use as an autocross and track car. Naturally, we were excited to get our hands on the newest edition of the 370Z Nismo, their even sportier version of this sports coupe.
This trim level starts at a good $42,000, which isn't cheap, but you also get a 350-horsepower engine wrapped in a 3,346-pound shell. The 2015 model year also comes with a bodywork redesign that gives it a little more of a wild look.
...Automatic? Why?
Good question. It's just what the press car company had on hand I guess.
Automatic because it is much more likely to get mentioned in multiple threads by people bemoaning the automatic than it would if it has a manual.
If they had stuck a dual-clutch in there from the GT-R, it would be epic.
Yeah, sadly we don't get to spec out the press cars. What is in the fleet is what we get.
Brett_Murphy wrote: Automatic because it is much more likely to get mentioned in multiple threads by people bemoaning the automatic than it would if it has a manual. If they had stuck a dual-clutch in there from the GT-R, it would be epic.
That would have been pretty cool. I will say, this was one of the nicer torque converter automatics experienced in a while.
I keep waiting for those headlights to grow on me, they still havent. I love everything else though
Why does it weigh more than my Cherokee?
Swank Force One wrote: Why does it weigh more than my Cherokee?
Because it's a car from this current malaise era of affordable japanese performance cars.
Awsome! 25 more horses and 100 lbs lighter than my 10 year old Mustang!
Hey, wait......
I got a chance to spend a little time with the car in question---- but didn't contribute to the online comments.
Would it be "epic" with a dual-clutch? (ala GT-R) Well.....yes and no.
There isn't a problem with power--- as this version of the VQ makes plenty....lots of torque too. The engine sounds good at WOT, but drones at regular speeds. With a rapid-fire dual-clutch it would be a faster car, but not necessarily a more fun car. For me, the problem with this car isn't in the trans (although a manual would have been nice) but in the steering.
Nissan must be using some sort of variable assist with this Z's steering. It feels ok at slower speeds, but as velocity increases, it gets twitchy, heavy, and non-communicative. This is exactly what you DON'T want as things start coming at you fast. Instead of building confidence as speeds increase, the Nismo 370z gets more nervous and darty as speeds get serious.
It's a shame really, because otherwise this is the best "new" Z car yet. The interior is improved, the seats grippy, even the horrible 3/4 visibility seems a little less confining with the subtle design changes. They also struck a good ride/ handling balance, as it doesn't beat you up, even over longer distances.
Overall it's a good car, but not a great one. The Z has become long in the tooth, as it's competition gets tougher. As it is now, price-wise it is knocking on the door of our M235i project car--- which is a superior machine in almost every way. (and the M235i isn't perfect by any stretch)
Still no good on the rear view eh? I sat in the 350 when it first came out and you can't see anything out there.
Harvey wrote: Still no good on the rear view eh? I sat in the 350 when it first came out and you can't see anything out there.
Karacticus wrote:Harvey wrote: Still no good on the rear view eh? I sat in the 350 when it first came out and you can't see anything out there.
That is so true--until you're trying to change lanes on I-95.
The Nismo 370Z is still available with the man pedal Nissan just decided to offer the 2 pedal option in the 2014 and 2015 models to appeal to amputees and wives 
The Nismo 370Z is a much different approach than the Nismo 350Z. The Nismo 350Z focused on reducing weight (although not a lot), stiffening the chassis and adding aero. The Nismo 370Z seem to focus more on dress up and add power. Not thats it's a huge power boost but it's easier to sell the sticker bump when it has a measurable power addition instead of saying it's faster because it's lighter.
The 350Z rear quarter visibility is a bit worse than the Z32 but not as mush as people make it seem . And yes it's still a bit of a porker and I'm not sure why, the only heavy thing I have found on the 350Z is the transmission. The diff while heavy is typical for beefy the R200 they have been putting in Z's since 75.
Hard to say from the pictures, but it looks like they cleaned up the rear fascia from the boy-racer, dorky look of a year or two ago.
When I click 'Read the rest of the story' it sends me back to this thread 
No interest until they bring back the Turbo Z, a la rwd GT-R for drift competitions ;D
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