im sure the front and rear body dampers will be available anyways, at a steep price.

90% track / 10% road -- get the Nismo
10% track / 90% road -- get the Touring with SP

The rear suspension of the Nismo is incredibly stiff and might be too punishing for some. Furthermore, I noticed the leather on the steering wheel of the Nismo is much smoother to the touch vs the standard Z, I find this strange since it's less "grippy" than the standard wheel.

No.

OK, how about "has a similar effect as a stiffer chassis" as in less body lean during cornering, etc, better?

Chassis-stiffness != suspension-stiffness.

I think everyone's taking this too technical. The thing is stiffer. No, it is not seam welded and the chassis is actually the same. But everything else has been changed to stiffen up the car as much as possible. Who cares anyway? If you want the Nismo get it. If you're upset because you didn't hold out stop crying. It doesn't matter.

Ha ha this is not a pissing match CB... And the reasons forums exist is to devle into whatever technical limits we can...

And yes - chassis stiffness is ENTIRELY different than suspension stiffness... one affects the compression rebound body roll while the other affects lateral torque and front / back flexing of the body of the car...

I'm just upset that I'm still driving a 2006 350Z. :(


:D

Wow! A lot to address. Body Dampers, of which in total there are six, do make a difference in chassis rigidity.

the 90-10 comparison is completely subjective. I drive 99 Road and >1% track. The Nismo is simply more fun to drive, better to look at, and all around a better sports car. If you are scared of a few more bumps, don't buy one. I enjoy them because I see both sides of the compromise.

Personally, I like my sports cars to over-steer just a bit rather than plow like both the base and sport 370s do. I also addressed that the only performance difference between my base touring and a sport were the differential and the brakes (I had 285s r and 245s f). The brakes, as we all know, will certainly make the car stop shorter, but also act detrimentally to the handling of the car.

No offense to Edmund's or Car&Driver, but I had 22K miles on my first Z a 350 and 22K on my first 370. As well as countless thousands behind the wheel of the following: C6 'Vette, C6 ZO6, Turbo IS300, and Mazdaspeed 6. No one can tell me that I am not qualified to judge if one car is superior to another.

That being said I don't doubt at all that a base 370Z 7AT could marginally win against me in my Nismo at a drag strip. If you buy any Z to drag you bought the wrong car.

The last time I was in NC, the roads were smooth as babys bottom so nismo might be ok for you. Just trying going to one of your neighboring states, with it, VA or SC.

Good question. :)
I just don't see how an 8 extra inches help the car.
Don't really care about 20 NISMO MONIKERS.
And that extra .01G comes from wider tired only judging by mod specs!
The 18hp is good but wat does it translate in rwhp.
7400rpm reflash is ok but how is it aiding in better track times?
See the NISMO is not quite stock. Its facory mod. Which is a middle ground.
It can be challeged by mildly modded vehicles as well as stock.
The nismo has alotta cool stuff but just doesn't seem to be projecting superiority over the sport package.
What NISMO COULDA USED.
Stiffened chassis
More weight reduction. Should be 50lbs lighter not 80 heavier.
Headers shoulda been in the package

Truth is. Nismo doesn't have a competitor at 35 to 45k
So it gets its respect in the general auto market.
BUT IN HOUSE. Z AGAINST Z.
It doesn't prove itself a worthy contender at 6 to 7 more grand.
I DO BELIEVE BY 2011 OR 2012 IT WILL BE. WHAT IT SHOULD BE NOW THOUGH!
I have faith in Nissan to improve its flaws. They always do though its never as fast as we like it 2 b. Lol
I think the 370z is better than the 350. But I think the 350 NISMO WAS A MUCH MORE SERIOUS TRACK CAR.

Lol... a lil over emotional bro.
Look, in the end if u r happy in ya Nismo is all that matters.
I don't ride the drag strip. I just used it as an example.
N uwith very similar power.
Your only chance of winning a race is pure skill. Not that yours is a nismo n the other guy has a sport. I use to illegal race for a long time. I seen some miracle wins in my day.
Vettes gettin blown out by modded integras. 5.0 stangs blowin porsches.
It all translated really to skill. Cuz once the horspower is at the wheels. Its all on u to handle it properly. I got 90k miles in a fully modded 93 rx7 n 60k in a mildly modded g35.
Not to mention grand nationals, silvias, corvette. Protoge fully modded n a few other cars I had the pleasure of driving. Both fwd n rwd.
N really all I'm saying is I expect a base 370 to be inferior. It better be with $10k between base n nismo. Remember. The touring doesn't mean nothing. Its just interior amenities that u opted to pay for n has nothing to do with performance.

It's not clear that the NISMO is heavier. In fact, it may be lighter than the Base MT + Sport, or Touring MT + Sport. According to this article a Touring MT + Sport is at 3,373 lbs (3,278 + 95). This would make the sport package about 95 lbs. If so, a Base MT + SP would weigh 3,327 (3,232 +95). The NISMO is listed by Nissan at 3,300 lbs.

I have and I drive 110 miles a day on some of Virginias worst. The ride is no problem unless your a pussy. :D

great review-thanks!