There is no doubt to this. The yen burned Nissan. Unfortunately it still won't change the sales numbers for the past few years.

The Z is at a crossroads. Nissan has some real decisions to make on the car. I don't think they want to get into an HP war, it would be smart to avoid it. But they have to compete with the pressure from strong competition.

I think the Toyobaru twins showed there is a strong market out there for sporty cars. And there is big price gap ($10-$12k) between where they sell and where American V8s sell. Nissan can split the difference. Make a small, light, fantastic handling car. Make sure it has a low compression V6, with a small turbo on it, with ok HP, and sell it for $35-$36k. Then basically set up the aftermarket for incredible sales. Give the line a Nismo model that competes with American V8s on performance, more engine, more turbo, more tire, to show the aftermarket what the platform can really do.

I love NA, but the aftermarket is FI. If they go that route, I think that they would have something.

Excuse me while I don my asbestos suit http://ts1.mm.bing.net/th?id=H.50647...55784&pid=15.1 but the more I hear of the next Z speculation (That is all it is at this point in time) the more I have to think how viable is the idea of the next Z? I love my 370z, but let's be honest. Nissan is a company that does not even own itself. Renault owns almost 1/2. Every time I think of this it reminds me of the disastrous LeCar http://www.gixxer.com/forums/images/smilies/piss.gif & Daimler AG owns a piece. Hitachi is also mixed in there somewhere (just read your throttle bodies) Makes me fear a future Car-B-Que down the road :ugh:. Numerous factors fall into why the 370z sales slumped. The biggest is the global economy. Most people do not have the disposable income they had almost a decade ago when the 350z came on the scene. How practical is a 2 seat sports car anyway when tight budgets need a family car or better gas mileage? The improved competition & an increase in price point for the Z are factors as well. Every single competitor has a back seat making it more practical. NO I DO NOT WANT A 4 SEAT Z! The Z is also rather long in the tooth for a model designation 40+ years on & off. It would not surprise me if corporate pulls the plug on the Z all together in the next year or 2 until the global economy improves. People say, but Nissan needs a sports car that buffers between the GTR. price point :rolleyes: What Nissan needs is a car that sells in large quantity & unfortunately the 370z is not meeting that goal :(. For Nissan to dump untold millions $$$$$$ into developing a new engines, chassis & such that do not share an already common platform to help with return of investment for a car that has been so far behind the sales quota would not be a wise business move for an already struggling company.

Personally I am very happy with my car & intend to hold on to it many year as I do not car hop every couple of years so a new model for me, is one less they will sell.

:twocents: YMMV

Why would I want to drive something as common as a rustang, crustaro, or a POS toyobaru? I really don't care if the sales are good. I'd rather they be pitiful. I'd rather drive a nice car that is rarely seen and appreciated when it is seen than a dime a dozen car. Their profit margin isn't my concern nor will it ever be. If it's a crap car I won't buy it. If it's seen on every street corner I won't buy it. I prefer a somewhat exclusive selection at a justifiable price. If 5K is too much for you to handle then why are you guys here? You obviously made the wrong choice.

I'm not trying to be inflammatory, I'm just blunt.

Idk about you guys but i'm very glad that everyone can't afford this as easily as lets say a frs/brz/genesis etc.

Makes owning this car special that i only ever spot another 370Z once every month or so, and thats philadelphia, Harrisburg, baltimore and all the areas between..

You do realize that they'll kill the car if it doesn't make them money, right?

Agreed....could not tell you last time I had pulled up to another 370z, just don't see a lot around here...Makes me feel special!!!:tiphat:

Yeah, That's why Toyota and subaru are smart. They are selling us a car that's worth about $20,000-$24,000 for $25,000-$31,000 even though this current market can sell the FR-S/BRZ much cheaper. But if there's a sudden spike in the Dollar/yen exchange. They always make money.

And the way they made appealing to buyers was through sponsored corporate hype, making the american market think they were getting the best car on the planet by adding the worst tires possible and controlling the car with nannies. lol

We bought it up. The FR-S is as good as a Ferrari for $25k. lol American media are evil geniuses. It works on 80% of the population whenever they throw it, most people eat it even if it's sitting on shyt. Thats why every 6 months the news tells you broccoli causes cancer and between that they tell you about broccoli's anti-oxidants and phyto cells blah blah blah... may prevent cancer. So we can go on forums and debate if broccoli is healthy or causes cancer. Same shyt in the car game. Media hype and Forum debates.

confused?


:roflpuke2:


The Z needs to have an s30 style chassis and a Z32 style motor. Everything else in the middle can be worked out if nissan really wants too?

This **** looks like some matchbox type stuff. :rofl2:

Wack design, and even wacker people behind the scenes. :icon17:

To me the new design looks too tall in the roof line. It takes away from the sleekness the car has now. Could just be the concept rendering, but I hope it's lower to the ground than this.

I hope you're right. It need to be GTR-like not by competing with the GTR segment (super cars) but GTR-like because they figure out how to make it perform best in it's own segment (sports car/coupes) while still being less costly.

Evolving from these ideas and our current looks would be a huge win.

:roflpuke2:

Exactly. I hope the render and the rumors are way off.



Tapatalk2 ...

Yeah, the Z doesn't need to copy Mustang, Corvette or any American cars like so many suggest. We don't need to copy, drive or feel like them behind the wheel. We just need to look in our own Z history and see what worked in the best Z's and combine it.

If people think the Z should beat stangs etc... I think people should plan on buying stangs etc in their future.:tup:
Just remember this is a Z forum when you go on the other side... :tiphat:


I think that render is a massive fake. I think C&D's info is unimpressive, false "gahbidge".

Its all about price. 370z came put right during the recession with a price increase. Majority will agree that they love the car and the looks but its just expensive. Look at the BRZ/FRS market. They are slow as hell, cheap interior but very stylish exterior. Cheap price and they are flying off the lots. I bet if the z is 20k, it would easily beat camero/ mustang sales.

But I do love the exclusivity. Its just a nich market, either they cant afford it, or if they do.... perfer more high end market.

My boss bought a fully loaded, auto 350z back in 2003 for 29k out the door. I fully loaded 370z in 2009 was 40k. The target market changed quite a bit and affected sales. Most 370Z owners are older guys with money. But, its the young guys that are buying car's by the butt load. Unfortunately, not many young guys can afford in the 30 to 40k price range and the ones that can are buying Evo's and STI's.

You can't really compare someone getting a great deal with MSRP. In 2003, MSRP for a fully loaded 350 was about $36-37k iirc.

The VQ 3.7 has no displacement increase, they got the .2liter increase through a longer stroke. Picked up some top end horsepower along with the coarseness, but no troque increase which is a common pickup in V8s

yeah, gonna have to disagree with you as i am one of those young guys and would much rather have the Z over those other two options. As far as the 350Z when it came out in 2003 the fully loaded MSRP was around $36k so i'd say thats not very much of an increase for a fully loaded Z, your boss was just good at minipulating the dealer is all to get that $29k price he did. one interesting thing i did note however when reading a motortrend article for the 350Z when it came out was that even back then they were complaining about the interior noise on the 350Z lol.

Found a little bit more news to fuel the fire here, Bank of America/Merrill Lynch car wars analysis forecast just came out and while the main parts of the article are about the upcoming mazda3 they do mention redesigns of the GT-R and Z as coming out in 2017, here's the link to the article for anyone who wants a quick read: We Hear: 2015 Mazda3 Accidentally Revealed? - WOT on Motor Trend

Do people that keep bringing up base prices of 350z vs 370z have an understanding of the global economy and what has happened to the yen over the years? It seems the vast majority of people think Nissan just throws an arbitrary price on the Z and calls it a day. Keep in mind this car is not built in the US and how that impacts pricing compared to a Mustang...

You're asking people to think man. Shame on you!!:shakes head:

LOL, jk, but nissan still has some control and in a couple of areas can do a better job for the price. Look at what features make it over in luxury company brands that start in the mid $30's. Nissan can still invest another $1,000-1,500 in the cars and still turn a good profit

I would pay between $50K to $60K for a 400+ hp Z that weighs close to 3100 lbs and can compete with a 911 Carrera S. I wouldn't mind paying more for a little more exclusivity and performance.

I don't think Nissan wants to target the 911 with the Z.

Agree, they can tweak some things but its still a great package out of the box for the price.

Imagine if the Z dropped 200 lbs and picked up a few ponies and torks, all while shifting some of it's nose weight back on the chassis... that would be huge!

The 240Z did a killer job of targeting the Mustang and Camaro...that path has worked well for Nissan and I expect they will continue.

What do you mean with the bolded part?


It may have become one, but it wasn't historically. Nissan estimated sales of 30K per year with the 370Z and targeted 45K. They certainly didn't build it to be a niche product, even if that is what is has become.




Since when are Akebonos an upgrade from Brembos?

http://www.naijatori.com/wordpress/w...where_am_i.png

A turbo AWD 4 banger from Subaru costs $24K, not almost $40k.

The additions to the top-tier Subaru and Mitsubishi are real cost-add items like Recaros seats. They may not have value add to everyone, but they affect the bottom-line and there are plenty willing to pay for them.

Would you really? That Z better change to an MR platform for that kinda money. You're buggin!!! PDK and other upscale tech is a huge reason for porsche upcost. We don't have tech like that to be paying that much money.I think the american car market proved you can have over 400hp for 33k. Add Z quality to it. $43k

Ughh... The Z benchmarks as a budget Cayman, not 911.

I was referring to the STI model. The $25k WRX is minimalistic to say the least, that's base cost without floormats.

Mine included seat heater and heated windshield wipers at 24.7k OTD


The STI, as I mentioned, includes quite a bit beyond the 370z, like real differentials (vs the WRX which has a viscous like the Z). These things add cost.

Isn't a base 305hp WRX $35000?

That's the Sti. THe WRX is 265 hp if I remember correctly.

Ah, ok.

I was encompassing the AWD system, diffs and all with my comment. From a drivetrain and powertrain standpoint, it delivers a lot, but TBH, there isn't a lot outside of that. People don't buy an EVO or an STI because it is pleasant inside.

I was actually just in my friend's new Evo MR and was surprised how nice it was inside. Not like, "oh my god this is nice" nice, but "holy crap this is totally not a cheap pos like I expected" nice. And the seats are great. :tup:

Ain't that the truth. Mine didn't even come with a radio.

I don't think anyone buys any of the cars in this segment for their interior.

There's plenty of give and take between the cars, and everyone will have their preferences. I happen to like the Subaru interior, except for the POS door panels.

I can definitely agree. I do enjoy my base Z interior for what it is though. I just wish it had bluetooth as a standard feature. I didn't buy the Z for it's great audio system I'll tell you that. They stick the deck in the Versa and the NV200 cargo van.

Dude... swap the head unit... NOW. Makes a world of a difference. Stock speakers are not all that bad (if you're not an audiophile.)

I have this: Amazon.com: Pioneer AVH-X5500BHS Multimedia DVD Receiver with 7" Motorized Touchscreen Display: Car Electronics

Which I actually only paid $360 for on Amazon a month or so ago.

I am fairly minimalist with interior myself. I drove my buddy's new-to-him 2011 M3 last Friday and was in shock about how rough the interior looked at 33,000 miles. My Altima Coupe at 44k miles looked brand new compared to his, and his was MUCH more expensive.

I would rather have something simplistic that will last over something flashy looking that looks like the bottom of a bottle of Armor All in a pocket of denim jeans through one round in the dryer. That really bummed me out to see it considering how overall badass the bimmer was to drive.

Regarding the WRX - I very much like the seats and its interior. It is right on par for where a $26k vehicle should be, especially given its performance capability.

I'm still waiting for confirmation are they really going lighter and leaner , the head Nissan guy admitted the 370z was a fat heavy pig to jay Leno.

It's not light, but it's not that heavy. It needs to lose around 300 lbs. with a bump in hp. Any lower and you're sacrificing size/cabin room and increasing the price by using more lightweight materials. It definitely needs to be a tad leaner, but as the GT-R proves, it's not always about weight. Granted it's not nor should it be awd, but some of that GT-R wizardry has to be somewhat usable in a rwd setup.