370z rates nearly last on CR's owner satisfaction survey

Zipper 104

OK, I'll play......name 'em for me.
Remember, same price range.....apples to apples.

104

Fuzzzy

Really? I guess I haven't given much thought to people with little or no experience driving RWD cars.

I learned to drive pre-Olds Toronado in RWD cars and largely on dirt or gravel roads--at least until I got my driver's license. One of the main reasons the Z appealed to me was RWD. FWD cars are so boring by comparison.

Good luck in finding something you are happy with. Life is too short to be driving cars you don't enjoy.

Duc_Z09

Looks like you no longer want a true sports car, so what's your point? Go buy a WRX.

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Dcocci

Yeap. After reading more about the next gen Z speculation, it sounds like a v8 is out. So instead of going after the mustang GT, it looks like they may dial it back and build the next Z to take on the FRS/BRZ? Think of it as a S car/Z car mix maybe? We'll see. I hate speculating about these things, I'm more of the "I'll believe it when I see it" type.

VCuomo

The rumored multi-engine design (gas/electric) could have more than enough horsepower and (especially) torque to go after the Mustang (and many other high-horsepower cars).

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Dcocci

435hp. we'll see. hope youre right

Z Ninja

This article just appeared on CNN related to Nissan's abysmal ratings.

Nissan gets slammed in Consumer Reports - Dec. 14, 2014

The Nissan Sentra ranked last in owner satisfaction among compact cars in Consumer Reports most recent owner satisfaction survey.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)
Looks like something's wrong at Nissan because, according to a recent Consumer Reports survey, a lot of Nissan owners don't like their vehicles very much.

For that matter, neither do the people who work at Consumer Reports.

In the influential magazine's latest customer satisfaction survey, Nissan finished third from last in the overall brand rankings, just ahead of Mitsubishi and Daimler's (DDAIF) Smart, which sells just one super-tiny car. Added to that, Infiniti, Nissan's luxury brand, tied with Buick as the lowest-ranked luxury brand.

Of 22 Nissan and Infiniti models included in the survey, 14 of them ranked last or second-to-last-in their respective categories. In two categories -- luxury SUVs and pickups -- Nissan (NSANF) and Infiniti products ranked both last and second-to last. This wasn't always the case. Just two years ago, only three Nissan products fared so badly in this survey.

The problems stem from Nissan's most recent round of redesigns, Consumer Reports' car testers say. Starting in 2012, many of the latest generation of Nissan products haven't performed particularly well in the magazine's tests. Now owners are basically seconding what Consumer Reports' testers thought.

"They only wish they'd found out ahead of time," said Jeff Bartlett, an editor with Consumer Reports.

As CNNMoney's car critic, I'd noticed the same troubling trend. Some recent Nissan cars I've driven have seemed sadly cheaper, less refined and less enjoyable than the cars they replaced.

Nissan is addressing the criticisms, Nissan spokesman Dan Passe said. For instance, among other subtle tweaks, they're changing the computer programming that runs the transmissions in order to give the cars are more natural, responsive feel.

"Customer satisfaction is of the utmost importance to Nissan, which is why we encourage consumers to utilize the many third party resources available when researching automotive brands," Passe said in an email. "While we will study Consumer Reports' annual owner-satisfaction survey to look for areas to refine and improve our products, we also take great pride in the many other positive 3rd party assessments of our product lineup."

Nissan performed much better in market research firm J.D. Power and Associates' owner satisfaction survey. In all, seven Nissan models ranked among the top three in their respective vehicle categories in J.D. Power's survey. That's better than Honda or Toyota.

There are big differences between the J.D. Power and Consumer Reports' surveys, though. One is that J.D. Power surveys owners after just 90 days of ownership. People responding to Consumer Reports' surveys have lived with their cars much longer.

"Our respondents owned their vehicle from one to three years," Consumer Reports spokesman Matt Fields said in an email. "The honeymoon period is over."

Consumer Reports is generally considered the most influential publication among car shoppers. Owners of 350,000 cars were surveyed, including 17,500 Nissan products.

Nissan's problems with Consumer Reports readers don't seem to be hitting sales yet. Nissan's market share has actually increased somewhat this year, according to data from industry analysts at LMC Automotive. Meanwhile, Nissan's spending on financial incentives to spur sales has gone down and is now below the industry average, according to data from Edmunds.com. (Nissan still spends more than its Japan-based competitors Honda and Toyota, though.)

Disappointed owners could hurt that sales momentum down the road, though. Consumer Reports' survey asked owners if they'd buy the same vehicle again and a lot of Nissan customers have said, basically, "I'm not so sure."

At least Consumer Reports' car critics say they've been impressed with two of Nissan's most recent new products, the Rogue and Murano crossover SUVs. For the time being, though, Nissan's product line-up is, at best, inconsistent, said Gabriel Shenhar, senior auto test engineer at Consumer Reports.

"For any brand, it's important to have a clear definition," he said. "For Nissan the only thing they're known for now is they're unpredictable."

NoLaKrewe

Bought my Z today. I'd buy another one every day for the rest of my life if I could. This fresh car smell. My car has an ***

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Benibiker

The Mini's not even on the list, that's what I had before my Z. I think it's just the Z is in it's final run before a redesign and people are bored with it. Newer cars have more technology like lane departure, blind spot, back up camera, eco/sport modes, turbo, blue tooth, Pandora, Facebook and more stuff as standard equipment.

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2017 Pure Red 6MT 370Z Touring

Jordo!

They didn't say the Nissan needs a V8, just that a lot of American consumers want one (which seems to be the case...). They did say the next gen needs to have a bit more punch to compete with the more torque cars, which is undoubtedly true.

The 2+2 thing isn't a deal breaker for me personally, but again, I can see where this will be fine for someone pre-family and then not so good after.

I dunno, all in all, I think those three points are all fair.

If they make the Z a 100 lbs lighter, notch up performance a smidge with either a turbo 4 or NA 6, add two faux rear seats. and keep the price in the same ball park, I think it will be a winner.

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7speed

As most of us know, Nissan/Infiniti also needs to work on reliability.

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09 370z 6spd traded 1/12/15 for 15 Challenger RT 6spd

SlowRollin

I'm probably still in the honeymoon phase, but I want to keep the Z as my second car instead of trade it in when I move to another vehicle. It's just so damn pretty.

ltullos

Late to the party here, but gimme a break - it's Consumer Reports. No self-respecting car enthusiast reads or gives half a sh** about anything CR has to say about cars.

On the other hand, I'm sure there are plenty of [fill-in the blank] who bought a Z for all the wrong reasons, decided it wasn't for them, and who do read and respond to CR surveys.

Perhaps a poll of who here reads CR for what they have to say about cars is in order.

Self disclosure -
Previously owned 240Z, (2) 300ZX 2+2;
Currently own 300ZX-TT & 370Z 40thAE

RN SHARK

It could be worse folks. Could be like me who has a '14 Grand Cherokee SRT, is twice as expensive as my Z, and is ranked much lower than Nissan in this survey. It's my first American car. Oh well! I've already been sent 4 recall notices for little things.
Oh, and I love my Z, but I wouldnt get another. It's a stepping-stone sports car.

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'09 6sp/Z1/PowerTrix/SPL/Swift/SRP/Whiteline/F.I.LTH&CBE/UpRev by Seb/CJM/Stillen/Ings+1/RJM/TrackSpec/Sparco/Motul/Wavetrac/Coolerworx/Verus/CraftSquare
'14 SRT Grand Cherokee; '08 TL Type-S

edconline

100% would buy again. It's cheap and easy to make the car faster if that's what you're after. (relative to the cost of upgrading to something like a 911.) Don't like the ride? Coils are cheap too. You get the idea. The one thing that is hardest to change, is the thing Nissan absolutely nailed. The overall look. Nothing even remotely touches it anywhere near the price. Yeah, the Mclaren P1 and some of the Pagani offerings do more for me than the Z, but let's get back to reality.

Even if down the road I want to get into a v10 R8, or a 911 Turbo, no way I would sell the Z. Yeah, it already has over 20k into it since purchase, easily another 20k to go just making it my own. But so would a 2015 5.0 mustang, or a C7 Z06 for that matter. Difference is, when it's all said and done, the Z still looks nicer than both of those.

I get wanting to try something new, start a new project, etc. But (at least for me) that doesn't replace the Z at all, it means you need a bigger garage. So if I had to start all over, you better believe buying the 370 again would be the first step!



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