Amen to that.

I would love to see a V8 Z. It'd be better able to reach to torque and power levels of its closest competitors across all RPM ranges. Forced induction would be nice too, but it would probably limit either low or high end power. In order for the Z to be dominant on higher speed tracks it will need a bump in engine capability, so that race teams can really have some room to increase power before thing like rods get bent and bearings spun.

Forced injection:

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4071/...968afb8174.jpg

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA :icon18::bowrofl::roflpuke2:

I think the 370Z looks 100x better...
Very ugly looking especially that 300zx back.
Yuck! *spits*

It's even possible the next Z will be a hybrid. . .

It is, but nothing from Nissan yet.
If you look at Nissan's line up they have a lot of small engine/displacement with turbo options which could be the future of the Z. Yet you also have the fully electric leaf, which gets 100 miles per charge which could bring an electric/petrol setup.

I still think they will use a smaller displacement V6 with a turbo more than anything else, the CAFE standards are no
joke and other than a few cars Nissan is not very fuel efficient as a brand.

Although, the LEAF is probably helping and might prevent the next gen Z from getting de-powered.

There has never been a 4 cylinder Z car, right ?

i found this at nissan website,,here is link

http://nissannews.com/newsrelease.do?&id=2255

this car look really similar to z!!

if u read the article it says two door electric sports car!

Eh, I love the idea of electric cars, but even the newest ones are a bit dodgy in terms of range and make very little power.

I think we're still a ways away from a really good tree-hugger version let alone one that will also run hot laps at the track without running out of power after 10 seconds.

I'd be down with a nice hybrid one, hopefully with some sort of FI involved.

That said, if the new model will be released within the next 2-3 years, I'd guess regular gas engine, possibly with an option for something that has a little less displacement, but a turbo as a few other folks have mentioned.

Correct, what you will most likely see is maybe a return to a 3.0 V6 turbo possible. Nissan has been working hard on turbos (Juke and a few others coming soon), which can be carried over to the V6 engines. This will give them greater fuel efficiency and power output they want.

I think a turbo 6 is a realistic possibility. With popularity of turbo motors finally picking up in North America (largely due to the US OEMs utilizing turbo motors), it might finally make sense for Nissan to offer a turbo 6 as an option again. They'd have to do it in a way as to not encroach on GT-R territory though, so it'd probably be drastically detuned if they ever did come out with a turbo 6.

I highly doubt they'll ever go to a 4 cylinder motor though, as it's just not in the Z's heritage and would probably upset a lot of purists.

Well, with Nissan bumping the GT-R power lately and more improvements to come I think there is plenty of room for a turbo V6 motor. They can easily put it at 350-400HP from factory and keep it under the GT-R.

If Nissan can keep the car light and nimble, it will keep its separation from the GT-R and become more competitive against cars in its bracket.

The rear of that pic reminds me of the 240 tail lights. Could be the new 240SX, and compete against the FT-86, who knows....

What...S16!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :stirthepot:

I'd say straight 6 turbo'ed Z and a V8 TT GT-R :tup:

or how about a small displacement, high revving turbo V8. When I say small i mean in the 3L or less range. If they built it to rev to about 8-9k rpm they could still get a good bit of power out of it while keeping it reliable.

Displacement and cylinder count is going backwards now. Forced induction proves that V8s aren't necessary to make power. I think the next Z will probably still be a naturally aspirated V6, with a horsepower bump. Turbo is also popular, but Nissan will want to distance the GT-R from the Z and the Z from the next S-chassis car.

"light and Nimble" is where a 4 cylinder could come in and further separate it from their supercar. .

Most likely a smaller V6 though, I agree. Nissan makes V6 engines very well.

Well, remember engine weight between a 4/6/8 are very similar today. I have seen an LS motor put into a s2k and only gain a couple pounds.
The issue with the Z though is the 'size' of the car and safety requirements just add weight, but Nissan could lower it with better material and technology but might raise the price more.

I don't see them going down in displacement. They'd have to change their whole numbering scheme. Turbo or hybrid, who knows. This is even if they make a new Z (hopefully they do). Of course they have to be mindful of the cost, as they got into trouble with the 300zx (which paritally led to the Z cancellation). I wonder what impact a hybrid would have on sales for a sportscar..

I could see them going back to a 3.5L v6 TT... they do the turbo thing so very well as has been stated before...
I don't see them dropping all the way down to 3.0L UNLESS they have been retooling the VG30DETT in secret to make a VQ30DETT... but who knows those guys at Nissan are a wiley bunch!

I really hope to see a new motor from Nissan, the VQ is becoming a bit old and a new design could really boost the Z forward.

there is no VQ30... so it would be a new motor in an old family...

or they could come up with a new naming scheme... VRXXDETT, or something like that lol

Nissan did the VQ30 already. It was the motor for the Maxima about 10 years back. They also had a turbo version - VQ30DET - which was on a few luxury cars in Japan.

They also did the VQ30DETT already; it was the motor used in the R34 and Z33 Super GT cars for a little while.

V8 or TT please:tup:

orly? neat info!
well then, it's time for a new VXXXDETT

no V8... that would be as blasphemous as sticking a I4 in the Z

TT sounds real nice tho

i spoke with someone recently "in the know" at length about the possibilities for the next generation Z and those that follow. Nissan lost it's *** with the Z32 TT. it was too expensive, too complex and too costly to fix under warranty repair for them to justify at the Z's pricepoint (currently between $30-40k). they will be happy to sell a person who wants a twin turbo Z car a GTR all day long. the Z will remain a 6 cyl front engine, NA, RWD car for the near future according to this person. i tend to believe that. i would imagine direct injection will be next on Nissan's "to-do" list for the "Z35" along with continuing to lower the weight where possible and reduce emissions. i would expect the next Z to have somewhere in the neighborhood of 400bhp (at least the next nismo model) and hopefully drop a few lbs, not that the 370z is heavy by any means. i would also expect a good 10-15% bump in fuel economy and hopefully a true manual option as well as a DCT automated manual trans if the cost can come down enough.

They lost there *** on the Z32 because it wasn't the time for it..
now days, even with the economy as is. they could make their fair share back..
I could see a dumbed down version of the GTR motor in the next Z... it's feasable..
I mean look at the crazy ish they are doing with the JUKE.. not that that will ever see production.. BUT, it's them seeing whats really possible...



the next Z on the Juke platform... :stirthepot:

what do you mean by "true manual"?

making the Z forced induction would raise the price significantly, figure somewhere between the $50-60k range, especially with a big robust hunk of aluminum like the VR38 block. also keep in mind the VR block was specifically developed to be in the GTR and was never intended to be bolted to a transmission (the GTR's is in the back of the car). the Z powertrain is relatively inexpensive and easy to repair. why was the Z32 "not feasible" to go forced induction? it had an overbuilt chassis with a beefy transmission, engine and axle. it still had it's issues and owners who destroyed components.

the juke w/ the GTR motor is just a pipe dream "can we do it?" test. no way in hell it will ever see the light of day in showrooms

three pedals

don't we have that already?

yes, i was saying i hope that continues instead of just being a DCT style transmission like the GTR where no 3 pedal option is offered (tho it is a great transmission)

gotcha!

did you read a word I wrote?
I already stated that the Juke R was just a fun thing they were doing. and that it wasn't headed for production.. BUT, perhaps they are doing it for more then a can we... the Juke platform for the next Z? possible.. yes.. likely, probably not.. but perhaps they are seeing what is viable..

I really don't know where you get your numbers from, but adding forced induction doesn't have to raise the price to high 50's low 60's.
especially if they are using technology already in use, and adapting it to a new model. I don't get your why was the z32 not feasable to go FI.. because it was FI.. and it was full of cool stuff like HICAS(which is admittedly garbage... ) I dog my Z32 auto TT and it runs strong, aside from the weak alternator, but its an OEM alt from 91...
my Manual TT is being rebuilt, but there wasn't really anything wrong with it.. just wanted MORE out of it..
:stirthepot:

That would be the new S car. :P

why would the next Z be based on a FWD SUV platform like the Juke? the price of the Z would have to raise to the 50-60k range for F/I because of the added cost of the extra components as well as the ability to give it at least the standard warranty. that's what killed them. they sold the Z32 very close to what it cost them to make it (which was very expensive for the time). when people started trashing transmissions and rear axles it cost them a lot of money to replace those parts under warranty. now they could release a TT Z again and do the GTR method of "if you break it, you fix it but we'll cover everything else" but that would only make a bad situation worse. it's much easier for them to warranty an N/A car and they are happy to let companies like Stillen and GTM develop forced induction kits to put on the cars for the owners who want them which takes the liability of the warranty off the car. that's basically what it comes down to and that's straight from the "source" i talked to