370Z, anybody drive one yet?

[Jeff G 78]

I can't imagine that the driving experience of a 350Z or 370Z can be nearly like any S30. Can it? I need to try it myself, but I would be very surprised. I am not saying one is better than the other. I just can't imagine them being remotely similar, asides from the front engine RWD layout, characteristics.

As an auto development engineer, we did a drive back in about 2004 with many sports cars and I was shocked at how similar the 350 was to the S30. The C6 Vette was actually lighter than the 350, but felt huge and heavy compared to the Z33. The other cars on the drive were all bigger and heavier (M5, GTO, CTS-V, GT500, etc.) and the Z was in a different league. It rode worse than the rest, but it had that driver connectivity that the S30 has in spades. The rest of the cars felt too isolated. When I drove a 370 on a similar drive last summer, it felt way more similar to the big, heavy cars. It was much more refined that the 350, but for me, that was a bad thing. I'm sure it's a better car to live with everyday than the 350, but for me it was a step in the wrong direction.

The 350 got panned by the S30 faithful when it came out for being too big and heavy and built off a sedan platform. After driving one, I was a believer. It felt more like an S30 than anything else I had ever driven. That's why I was disappointed in the 370. Great car, but it lost that raw sports car feeling.

Maybe with more time in the 370, I'd have a different opinion, but it just didn't do it for me.

Edited December 2, 2010 by Jeff G 78
typo

[cygnusx1]

Thanks for the synopsis Jeff. Very interesting.

[sdaughtry]

I owned a 370Z Touring Edition for 6+ months; extremely fast car with great cornering (once I figured out how the car dug in and pivoted in tight corners). Gorgeous blue paint; loved the rims. Very difficult to put in an aftermarket audiophile quality stereo system (limited space); horrible seats (e.g. if you pressed your head backwards into the head rest the middle of the seat would buckle backwards; very thin padding) that became very painful after 120+ minutes of nonstop driving. Very noisy interior that droned on highways; I ended up driving with my left arm on top of the door panel - my elbow ended up creating a permanent dent in the door panel that would not pop up. I had memorized every bump in the road on my daily commute to / from work. The decision to trade her in was when I purchased a new vacuum cleaner from Costco and the box simply would not fit in the car..

Car & Driver / Motor Trend usually beat up on the 370's V-6 as sounding like a tractor engine - I didn't think it sounded that bad (a bit thrashy at upper RPM levels), and the exhaust note was pretty good for stock exhaust system. Very crowded engine compartment.

Beware of the car's pitiful resale value - even though the car's Kelly price was decent, I took a BATH on that car - every dealer in Albuquerque would not go higher than $15k trade-in on that car - the local Dodge dealer finally agreed to $16k that I demanded... a far cry from what I paid for her. And that car sat on the Dodge dealer's lot for 3+ months before it was finally sold... the local Nissan dealer's laughed when Dodge offered the car for them, as they can't move new 370's in the local market.

[5thhorsemann]

How many miles did you put on it in those 6 months?

[sdaughtry]

I would guesstimate probably 7k miles at most... if it was a weekend toy I would have kept the car, but as a daily driver it became almost unbearable and very inconvienient. At least Nissan improved the cargo storage space compared to the 350Z <g>.

[5thhorsemann]

Well, I went and did the test drive this afternoon, here are my thoughts on the car.

Power is much better than the 350, lots more torque, and the car feels quicker too.

The tranny is cool, downshifting is the difference. It is a little hard to get used to when you are looking to slow going into a turn, you will need to use more break, as the motor revs a bit when you downshift. The stick and clutch feel about the same.

The car does feel heavier, I think because the suspension is a little softer then the 350 and you get more dive and roll when turning and breaking. It still has a sportscar ride though, I like the way you can feel the road through the car and the wheel. Good feedback on the break peddal as well.

The interrior is somewhat plain compared to the 350, I like that too, but I don't think it will hold up as well as the 350's. I think I would be fine driving the car coast to coast,but I like a hard ride.

The handeling is about the same as a 350, aside from the body roll, I can hardly tell the difference. It does exactly what you expect it to.

It is in no way shape or form an S30.

It's a silver car, like my 240Z, I want a blue one, and based on what I've read here I think I'm going to have a dealer friend of mine scout the Manheim auction for a blue sport or Nismo model. I talked to him last night and he tells me he has seen quite a few of these cars come across the block, and since I'm paying cash, I will get a better deal there. There is one more auction this year and the december auctions have the best prices of the year.

[Kathy & Rick]

Would you believe that even as a 40-year Z owner , I am so stuck in

my old deep rut that I haven't driven any Z Car newer than a 79 ZX?

FWIW,................All Z Best,...................Kathy & Rick

[SteveJ]

Would you believe that even as a 40-year Z owner , I am so stuck in

my old deep rut that I haven't driven any Z Car newer than a 79 ZX?

FWIW,................All Z Best,...................Kathy & Rick

Aww, man, you're missing out. Did you hear they had a turbo version of the ZX?

While I've only owned a Z for 17 years, I never have driven in one later than that 81 turbo. It was a nice car, too. A friend of my dad owned that car, and he let me drive it to put air in the tires. He wouldn't even let his own kid drive it. But I digress.

Anyway, yes, the 370Z is interesting to me, but I just can't see myself parting with the $$ to buy one.

[5thhorsemann]

I have a 240 now, had a 260 years back, sold that, have driven a 300, had a 350 that got crushed and just drove the 370 yesterday. Man, you have got to drive a 350 or 70. They are screamers.