finally got around to test drive the new 370z.
test drive provided by Nissan @ waltham abby (the nearest manual 370z )
was well worth the journey though. and nice weather too to push it around a bit
.
first impression sadly is " I didn't think WOW like when I first saw the 350z in the flesh". in fact the front looked to me.
the rear end however, was less of a disappointment. decent stance looking from the back but the front headlights needs something done to them and to say the front bumper is hidious is an understatement.
the interior of the car is much better than the 350z but I wouldn't say it's infiniti finish at all. looked quite ordinary compared to TT or boxter's but much better than the 350z.
push the start button and first thing I noticed is that the engine/exhaust is very quite. too quite but to be fair I might be carried away by the sound of my K1 every morning .
even at the rev limiter, you only hear a screaming V6 but no exhaust note what so ever.
of we go, the power increase is noticible, especially on 1st and 2nd gear. accelerating from 40MPH on 4th gear I couldnt say it has more torque than the current car at the low end.
coming to the round about, try to take it very tight and fast but to my shock there was a fair bit of understear. I needed to make few corrections to the steering wheel (after the test drive I took my 350z around the same round about, similar speed, no hint of understear at all). on top of that the steering had to much assistance and less feedback (compared to the 350z). another dissappointing finding was the amount of body roll the car had. the suspension is set up so soft you feel like your in an Audi A6 but that translates to too much body roll when your cornering. mind you, the car was on poxy bridgestones as well.
on the up side, the traction control is far less interusive then the 350z, I could just feel it working in the background.
another thing that Beavis has mentioned in his review, the 370z hardly gets any attention on the road. I drove both the 370z and my topless 350z through waltham abby and the 370z hardly gets any looks while every one checks out the 350 roadster.
I think Nissan is trying to make the car appeal to a wider consumer base (which is fair play) but in the process made a much softer Zed. having said that, I think there is big potenial for modding the 370z to become the car I would like to own.
coming to park the car, the bonnet bulges started to annoy me a bit. it could be something you get used to with time but there is no way I could see the front end when parking or even guess where it is.
I like
creature comfort
more playfull TC
potential to mod
Synchro Rev Control manual gearbox
Dont like
steering wheel feedback not as good as the 350z
front end (all of it)
tyres
wheels
very soft suspension
silent exhaust
bits of the dash still look cheap (that orange illuminting thing to the left of the rev counter )
generally speaking, I think the new Zed is a softer machine thats meant to attract new customers. its not what I would call a huge leap foreward and I am not placing any orders at all. I am sticking with my top less azure for the time b. when the soft top comes out, and provided I have an extra £10k to mod the car, I might re think.
to further cement my impression, the guy testing the 370z after me was an oldish guy who looked at my car parked next to the 370z and said with a grin " I bet your ordering one now" I go: I dont think so. then I saked him, do you have a 350? he goes: NOOOOOOOOO. I couldn't live with one of them.
YOU GET MY DRIFT