Well, the first 350Z in Texas has arrived at the National Convention. (Well, actually, we found out it's been in hiding at Courtesy Nissan for the last week or so in a back room under lock & key!)

These are the pictures I took this afternoon....

"The similar looking Skyline was found to be more ricee than I thought."

While I am not in love with the R35, the previous interpretations of Skyline have left little to want in terms of clean, simple, mean sports sedan. But I have to take exception to that statement. To me, saying the Skyline looks 'ricey' is kinda like saying a '69 Barracuda looks 'hot-roddy' or a Bentley looks 'capitalist'. IT'S SUPPOSED TO! The Skyline is the car they are all trying to emulate! And it certainly doesn't have to be Japanese to be riced. Anything new will be riced--including the 350. Focus, Saturn, BMW...anything. I just don't think it's fair to characterize the 350 as ricey. It's from the originators of rice and hey, it's what people want now! Remember, they have to sell them! In the late 60's, people wanted a personal GT car. Nissan made one. It was "low and swoopy". It's just our concept of 'low and swoopy' has changed a bit with styles and technology.

steve77

Well, the first 350Z in Texas has arrived at the National Convention. (Well, actually, we found out it's been in hiding at Courtesy Nissan for the last week or so in a back room under lo THANKS FOR THE GREAT PICTURES..... STILL DON'T KNOW IF I WANT ONE BILL COFFEY c

I really have tried to like this butt ugly thing but to no avail. there are two things that I do like about the car the wheels and the duel exhost . I still think they really blew it big time , if you like round and the new vw beatle ,OK . It looks like a custom beatle , chopped top and lowered. reminds me of a joke , If I had a dog as uggly as that I would shave its a$$ and make it walk backwards. I shure hope my 240 will go another 200K

that car is awsome!!!!! One day you guys will all own one! I plan on picking mine up in November of 2003. I like the rear strut housing, makes a nice sign board/coat rack:)

Tony

Alright...

I think this is the same car they had at the Northeastern Z Adventure in Syracuse, NY last month. Auto, Same color. I really expected the first one I saw to be either that burnt orange or silver, but the blue is very pretty, not for me but pretty.

I did not like the car that much 'till i saw it in person, and then it was breath taking. And for a pre-production model the quality and fit-n-finish was premium. I got to "kick the tires" on a pre-production BMW "Mini Cooper" and the build quality could not compare!

To each his own, although I'm not gonna run out and get one anytime soon, It will certainly catch my eye in passisng. Of course it would look great in black w/tinted windows!

My favorite feature on the car was the fact that the gauges move up and down with the steering wheel when you tilt it. This way the wheel never covers up the gauges...Thoughtful!:beard:

Nate

I agree the 350Z will be an eye full and most likely a car that many will desire. Personally though, the standards have fallen from the great 240Z. I know they kept the general design, but for me it isn't enough of the original. Main reason classics are so saught after. "They dont make them like they used to."

My jury is still out on the 350Z and I guess I will always be slightly non-commital about the car. I'm sure it will be a solid performer but not spectacular - similar in a lot of ways to the previous 300Z.

I was disappointed that Nissan did not go with a retro shape to the car, like the new Tbird, mini or VW. But given the fact that it was designed by committee (a very large committee by the sounds of it) I am not surprised. You know what happens when a committee gets involved in something:disappoin lots of compromises.

If only Nissan had put me in charge, I would have at least tried to implement the following changes:

(1)Stick an RB drive train in it to reduce costs and keep parts compatible

(2)Keep the weight down - maybe it doesn't need all those extra electrical devices

(3)Insert round inset headlights instead of celica headlights

(4)Move the cabin back and make the nose longer (you know what I'm talking about)

(5)Do something about the look of the rear end

(6)Oh yeah, did I say try and keep the cost down - see (1) and (2)

Well thats my two cents worth (which in Australia rounds down to zero).

What would you guys have done ?

I definitely feel that one of the most important aspects of a Z is the long hood in relation to the rest of the body. Z's need to have aggressive noses and short rear hatches with a sharp dropoff at the tail. Kinda like a 240!

The other thing that I really like about my 240 is that I fit in it without any problem. I am 6' 1" and have plenty of headroom and legroom in my Z. I haven't sat in a new one yet but I would be highly disappointed if it was cramped.

Guys, let's face it... Nissan is in business to make money. They totally re-designed the new 'Z' to fit what they thought was "Todays Market"..... I don't blame them.

From what I understand, the new design is completely new but has 'retro' features that were added to remember the original.

Although they do say that they produced an inexpensive sports car to match their goals in the '70's.... I think they missed that mark.

"Todays Market" sucks.

:sick:

To some the cabin feels cramped, the seats feel narrow and there's not much room to store things,

But in my option it in a way feels like sitting in a 240z again.

The narrow seats hug the body tightly(I'm a pretty big kid and it feel fine in it) allowing more stable postioning durning hard corners (Trust me I know). In the matter of cup holders it clear that there are actually 3 cup holders(one where the usual dash is and two in the center console.

The navagational computer uses a DVD-ROM and navagational DVD, sadly enough we couldn't play any DVD movies in the car(don't know if you really can or can't)

The looks can be improve like the short nose and rear, but talks of next year is to bring in a convertable in and possibly a turbo version in a year or two.

The ride in the car is great. The drive by wire along with traction control ruins the fun of the car, the delayed reaction in acceleration with traction control on is very dissapointing, but great when off. 350z that come with a shift light built in the tach(manual only) can be adjusted from about 3000rpm to 6500+rpm, eliminating the need for a bulky shift light.

With base models going in the range of 26,000 of base(no automatic available), 28,000 for enthusiast, 31-35000 for touring, and look for the track version to hit about $36,000+.

Many dealers are on strictly look don't touch attitudes on the 350z giving driving access a rare thing.

As far as weight they are around 3,800 pounds with the aluminum suspention part carbon fiber wrapped driveshaft.

Dont' look for the glove box in it usual place, the glove box is now located behind the passanger seat. The only way the drive has access to this compartment is to a) have the passanger step out for a second and have then pull the seat forward or have no passanger and pull the handle up on the back of the passanger seat(locted in the center of the seat.)

Actually Nissan opted to go with the V6 used in the entire line of nissan cars, trucks, and SUV's. This elimated the high cost of rare or uncommon parts.

We have seen guys larger then 6 feet fit in the car, personal preference come into play here, some say you sit to low to the ground that way, some say you feel as if you are really close the the pedals and some people like that kind of feeling, but being 5'6" I don't feel as if I have to sit really close to the wheel.

Thanks for listening to my ramblings us corse you will have different felling about the car as you do, but once you see it up close and personal some fellings just leave once you drive.

-Shiin

"Todays Market" sucks.

Think about 1969/70 when people were seeing the 240 for the first time and said "Todays market sucks. What happen to the good ol' 49 Mercury?":tapemouth

A little different yes, but still the same thing. Times change but the art of buisness hasn't. A company doesn't under normal conditions build a car for a few people that lament the past but for people who admire the past and embrace the future.

The T-bird is kinda of an exception. But they don't exactly sell them like hotcakes either. Who would buy a $40,000+ Ford anyway. The only people I've seen with them are Retirees. At $26,000 It's not really that far outta reach for most people. Same price range as a Mustang GT. If you can't afford the GT than you can't afford the Z---same performance class.

Here's something else to think about. Remember about 7 years ago or so when Nissan was buying up old Z's and Refurbishing and selling them at their dealerships? How many other car companys have done this???

Thats my dimes worth...........$.10

Nate:cross-eye