Is the 370Z a suitable sports car alternative? - Nissan 370Z Coupe

Nissan is the only Japanese car maker with a consistent heritage of sports cars – its lineage of Z cars started as the 240Z which evolved into the 260Z, 280ZX, a few generations of 300ZX, then 350Z and now 370Z.

The Nissan 370Z replaced the 350Z in 2009, so with quite a few used car examples on the market, has it stood the test of time?  As with cars of this nature, the first year or so sees strong sales, as it’s all new.  Thereafter the sales numbers drop.  At launch in June 2009 the 370Z coupé manual was priced at R 499 000 and the automatic at R 516 200.  Today we browsed the Auto Trader website and found some 2010 examples at dealers from just over R 299 000. 

370Z had a facelift in 2013, which saw the deep front air intake with “vampire fangs” in the front bumper replaced by a cleaner flush-fit look, and vertical LED daytime running lamps were added.  The 370Z Roadster, introduced here in May 2010, imports were stopped by Nissan SA in 2013, due to slow sales.

Nissan’s design aim with the 370Z is to continue its Z line by making it a striking-looking and exciting-to-drive yet not too expensive sports car.  It also wishes to offer a proper mid-size sports car as alternative to the mostly German cars – against sloping-hatch 3-door coupés like Audi TT coupé (the new TT just arrived), Mercedes-Benz C-Classs coupé and Porsche Cayman, and to a lesser extent also 2-door coupés with normal boot lids such as BMW 4 Series coupé and Audi A5/S5.  There is also the Infiniti Q60, as Nissan’s luxury brand, though aiming more at comfortable luxury than sports car.

So with such stiff competition, can it compete in today’s market?  The engine has given the Nissan Z car its name:  a 3.7-litre V6 good for 245kW at a high 7000 rpm sounds exciting, but the torque of 363Nm only arrives late at 5200, which can be felt when driving – acceleration and overtaking is strong, but in either manual (0-100 in 5.3 seconds) or automatic (5.6 sec) the low-down grunt we’ve come to expect from big engines or turbos are not felt strongly in the naturally-breathing 370Z.  The engine can rev high, but feels noisy and coarse, which is not what you want in a sports car.  Considering Nissan’s award-winning V6 engines of 3.5-litre capacity is one of the silkiest available, it is strange.  What’s more, its 350Z predecessor had a howling unique V6 identified by anyone from teenagers to retirees, but the 370Z is not distinctive at all.

The gearbox options are 6-speed manual or 7-speed automatic – both have some talking points… the manual has a pleasant mechanical proper sports car gear shifter, and has a neat trick up its sleeve:  when changing gear in a manual, it is not always possible to get the revs and gears perfectly matched, whether changing up or down, so in the 370Z manual the car does it for you.  Syncro Rev technology means the car will automatically adjust the engine revs when you start moving the gear lever – perfect shifts are no longer reserved for skilled drivers.  The benefits are a smooth and sporty driving style, complete with throttle blips (without need for heel-and-toe driving techniques) which was previously the reserve of electronically-controlled automatic cars.  The 370Z automatic has some massive blade-style paddle shifters, which onlookers comment about.  Off the line acceleration, due to a very short 1st gear, is a proper launch, but unfortunately under any hard acceleration or when using the paddles, the gear changes are harsh.  Normal driving sees smooth enough gear shifts.

Some other notes on the 370Z is that, due to its short wheelbase, it can quickly turn around on you when sprinting off the line at an intersection, or when turning in a corner.  Having travelled on a variety of road surfaces, the 370Z coupé also feels quite unrefined as there seems to be insufficient cabin sound insulation, and excessive tyre roar.  Its main competiting cars are much more refined.

The interior has a nice snug sports car feel, where you sit low for more speed and car-movement sensations.  The seats have partial leather and suede-cloth inserts which are luxurious and grippy (for those cornering moves).  The boot space is shallow, with only flat bags or suitcases and some smallish shopping bags can fit into – fortunately the boot is no longer obstructed by the cross-brace that was in the 350Z.

If you like Nissan’s approach to a sports car – a husky V6, something with daring styling, as the only mid-size Japanese sports car to compete with the Germans – and you don’t want the obvious or more refined alternatives, then the 370Z can suit your wishes.