Living with the 370Z

There was a lot to like about the 350Z, and it was a huge success for Nissan when the brand and the company really needed one. I liked that it was a real two-seater, rear drive, and packed a lion-hearted motor. At the same time, to me, it was never fully baked. The styling was clunky, the interior was cheap, and the car had a heavy "muscle/sports car" kind feel that was contrary to its mission as a road missle. Nissan has put its sports car back in the oven, and the result is the new 370Z.

By now, you know the basics, and you've probably read Ron Kiino's first test story as well as Arthur St. Antoine's blog entry, here on MTOL. So here's my nickel's worth. Overall, the new car is an improvement over the model it replaces. It's faster, better looking, structurally stiffer, has a much improved cabin, higher limits, and some trick new technology. The 370Z is a squeege shorter and wider than the old one, and really looks the business.

The 370's face, with its overstyled headlights and "fangs" in the grille, resembles a catfish, but otherwise, the Z offers an arresting shape, especially in this brilliant yellow paint color. It's too bad the front end is so low, as the lower front fascia scrapes on everything, even moderate speed bumps.

The 350's door handles were strange-looking and felt unnatural to use. The new ones are still an obvious styling statement, but look better to my eye and feel better to the fingers.

Things inside move well upscale, yet is still businesslike and focused on driving. One touch that St. Antoine griped about is the "glowing dots" readout in the left IP pod for the temp and fuel levels. I agree. Besides looking contrived and asymmetrical, these gauges are hard to read. It's like the whole thing was done for styling sake, with no real benefit. Function shouldn't follow form.

My old friend, Nissan's VQ family V-6, is more powerful than ever, but it's also gotten noisy and harsh in its old age. Rev it to 5000 rpm and hold it there, and it'll vibrate your fillings. And it's not a pretty noise -- its just noise, like an industrial blender with bad bearings. This engine was creamy smooth at 3.0-liters, still nice from an NVH standpoint at 3.5, but unacceptable in this configuration, at least in this car. Nissan can and should do better.

Our tester had the optional 19-inch rolling stock. These forged alloys are light and beautiful. The low profile rolling stock adds an element of road rumble to the mix, but its the same in other cars, and it's likely that the person who wants max performance and orders this package knows what they're in for. But it works well in the grip, response, and braking standpoint. The Z is a performer, no doubt.

I'm not yet ready to order a Z for me. I (selfishly) hope that Nissan will address these issues with the 370's mid-life update a few years down the road. Then it will be the Z I know it can be, and will once again have this portion of the marketplace largely to itself. The '09 model represents an improvement after after the Z's time in the fire, but in my view, detailed recipe adjustments, and yet more bake time, are required.

Photography by the author