Hope Nissan is watching this...

cmdjing

I think the fundamental problem of the 370Z is a matter of timing. Nissan could not have picked a worse time than early 2009 to release a new sports car. Considering overall car sales were down nearly 40% on average, two seater discretionary vehicles at the 30k price point were going to get creamed even more.

In 2008 it would have been competitive. Things all went pear shaped though with the arrival of the new Camaro, Genesis Coupe, and most importantly of all the 2011 5.0L Mustang GT. Z fans may say that they are not really comparable but they most certainly are. The majority of people shop on a budget will compare equivalently priced vehicles even if stylistically they are somewhat different. The 332 hp from the 3.7L V6 is still respectable and better than the competition, but the competition is considerably cheaper and two of the three are packing 400+ hp V8's.

I agree with the earlier post in that the biggest hindrance to the 370Z lies in the engine which may or may not be deliberate. If the engine is upgraded, it diminishes from Nissan's halo car, the GT-R. To keep the vehicle competitive with the other vehicles given Nissan's desired pricing, the 370Z will need an engine upgrade within one or two years at the most.

To keep the Z and the GT-R both on track, both will need engine upgrades soon. The VQ-37HR will need to be downsized to a smaller displacement direct injected turbocharged engine. The VQ engines have gotten coarser as they have grown and Nissan needs to realize that this is a problem. Downsizing to a 3.5 or even a 3.0L with direct injection and even a single twin scroll turbo can yield equivalent or better power than presently with better fuel economy. A scaled down VR series engine would be beastly, but it maybe too expensive.

The GT-R will need to head in the opposite direction to keep competitive. Given it's portly weight, the 3.8L V6 will simply not be enough as there is a limit to how much power you can squeeze from it and it really should move up to a twin turbo V8 to retain its supercar status and differentiate itself from the souped up Z.

280z/300zx

Very well put and I couldn't agree more. Nissan needs to downsize the engine of the Z and go back to FI. My next car will be a Corvette unless Nissan gets back to FI. Don't get me wrong, I love my 370z, but being only 2 years old I feel it's outdated in the performance area considering the 5.0 and whats on the horizon.

As for the GTR I disagree slightly. I think they would do better shrinking the cars size and weight rather than messing with the engine. The motor is quite capable of going into the 600hp range in the future but they would do better making the car smaller and lighter. There is no need for the GTR to be as massive as it is.