J Ritt

iTrader: (4)

I like Car Magazine a lot...Evo as well. They don't pull punches. They just drive the snot out of a car, and tell what they think. It definitely was a flattering article. I have the copy of Car Magazine when they first tested the E46 M3 (same issue that they tested the new version of the WRX)...they praised the M3 a ton. For them to compare the 350Z favorably to that car is a big accomplishment for Nissan, and it bodes well for us! I have faith that this car is going to be amazing.

goofyZ

bueaty is in the eye of the beholder. they mention that the interior is VW-like quality. Funny how alot of the gripe are about the interior quality being poor.

6kLaunch

The Article states that they would like to see a larger fuel tank? It would seem that a 20 gal fuel tank is on the large side for a sports car! 20 gals at 20 MPG produces 400 miles per tank, that seems to be a very respectable range. (I used 20MPG just because I feel confident that the Z could at least attain 20mpg average)

He also states that the tranmission gates are poorly defined. This isn't the first review that I have heard that mentioned. Another reviewer had difficulty shifting from 4th to 5th and 5th to 4th. I hope Nissan fixes this before we get our cars.

One other thing that he mentioned is that the air conditioner was not sufficient. One thing that really bothers me about a car is insuffient air conditioning. I had a BMW that I loved, except for the air conditioning was weak. I ended up selling the Bimmer prematurely after taking it back to the dealer several times to unsuccessfully fix the air. Maybe the test z he used in this article had AC issues that could of been repaired. I will keep my eyes open for other reviewers on this AC issue as it is a deal killer for me.

Drive tight lines !

3rdpower

Ahhh... the beauty of living in the Puget Sound (Seattle), you don't give a flying foogy about AC! As long as the thing has a decent heater I'm all good! ;-)

That tank issue is strange isn't it? A larger tank then 20 gallons... interesting... maybe it is different pre-production versus production? Something to note about the shift gates... I guarantee you every car has its qwerk and it would be highly noteable if you drive a LOT of cars like reviewers do. Over time I highly doubt that over time you won't get use to the different shift gate.

J Ritt

iTrader: (4)

I was thinking the same thing about the gas tank...20 gallons is big!!!

The guy in the video from Sport Z magazine said the car blows a ton of air...i think he even called it a hurricane or something. In the video, you can also hear the damn thing pumping....sounds like a wind tunnel to me.

My Type R that I've been driving for 3 years doesn't even have AC, so I'll feel spoiled even if it is a gentle breeze of cold air blowing on me.

6kLaunch

I know I sound kind of jaded, but I drive from Huntington Beach to Lake Havasu about every weekend in the summer, which means driving in 100-115 degree weather for about 5 hours. So, as long as the AC can beat the heat, I will be a happy camper.

Pork Chop

Did anyone notice this one page 3?

"...we drove the top-of-the-line track model which is equipped with 18-inch wheels and Bridgestone Potenza tyres, Brembo brakes with golden calipers, tauter springs and dampers, subtle spoilers, a limited-slip differential and electronic stability control (VDC)..."

Did I miss something here? I thought the springs and shocks were the same for all models?

silvrz5

I got car mag like Wed. at Boarders. I just love the pages, I thought i had 2 stuck together every time i turned the pages. Plus they are sooooooo glossy! But I hate converting pounds to dollars, and what the hell is 22p per litere, tyres, ect. Plus they talk funny?
I also hate the right drive cars.. They look soooooo silly.

Good read thou.

BigBadBuford

I just picked up an issue over lunch and thought it was a great article. Overall they loved the car, and the praise for its chassis and brakes was great to hear. I was also surprised by the comment that the track model had a different suspension setup than the lower models, but that is good news to me since I got the Track model. I was also glad to hear they liked the interior, and the pic of the Carbon interior was the best one I've seen.
I was glad to see they only had a few gripes and they were for things I don't think will be major problems. I've heard other Nissan shifters being called vague (S14 240SX), but to me they were great. I've also hear some people say that Nissan A/C units are weak, while other people say they are great. I guess those things are all subjective. But, overall, I was very pleased with the review and the fact that it looks like the Z will be a serious handler.

rep15

If guys come over from England to test the car in KY, VA, TN etc. no amount of A/C will be enough for the heat and humidity in that part of the US for their cold-climate bodies!

rai

The gas tank at 20 gallons sounds more than sufficent, figure 300-500 miles range depending on how hard you drive. I was reading about the SVT cobra in sports Car international and they said it had like a 15 gallon tank and they were only getting like 150-200 miles per tank. That would suck.

raceboy

I think we are only going to know for sure about the suspension when we get a chance to look at the parts microfiche and see if the part #'s are actually different.

tbcz

It's funny because the only two bad things I can say about the Z3 I have now is that the air conditioning sucks major league as well as the fuel capacity (like 12 gallons). It'll be great to have a twenty gallon tank, and there ain't no way the A/C is any worse than what I already have.

roberto350z

looking at the interior pics, it makes sense to me that the vent openings could be too small, inhibiting proper flow. "Car" guy says its weak, maybe cuz of blow restriction. The guy in the video I think mentioned that the system was loud, which would also indicate that there is a flow restriction.

Note that these things do not in anyway indicate the "coldness" of the system.

I am thinking that the small round vents and the two half vents in the middle will contribute to less than ideal a/c performance, but I will take the video guys word that the system is cold and prob. at least avg if not better.

ps VW like plastics? that indicates to me that the interior has quality!

Flyingscot

Nissan's priorities are obviously different than Toyota's. Looks like the Z will be my third Nissan that had a wimpy A/C and wimpy heat. Even our top-of-the-line 96 Maxima with digital climate controls still wimps out. Thank God for it's heated seats!

On the other hand, my experience with Toyota's A/c and heat is the opposite. If you wear a hair piece then stay clear of Toyotas.

BTW: Glad my English comrads can serve you up a good read. We truly are more performance car crazy than the average Joe. There's nothing like passing a cop car doing 100+mph and see them look the other way. BTW: The 80's were much friendlier, so please don't try this while on vacation in the UK.

goofyZ

I sympathize with the desert dwellers.. live in phoenix..hello 115.
have had diverging experiances with nissan a/c.. a maxima which cooled down rapidly. and a 2002 infinity Qx4, very slow to start up, can do decent job after a while.(I'll give it a C-), but don't sweat it. hehehe

EnthuZ

iTrader: (2)

I enjoyed the most positive article yet about THE Z. Agree with all posts above(below ). Found it odd that the Brit's would complain about the poor "Cool Breeze"(an expression I picked up when I lived in Hot 'Lanta). Maybe he didn't know how to use reserculation(sp)? Most 2 seaters use Ceedan HVAC components, so the Z Should "Blow Snowballs"! Interior volume is, what 54% the siZe of the G35. Sorry, make that 51%.

I drive a VW, and using the resurculation(sp) makes a MAJOR difference! I can get 32 degrees in the vents! on a 90 degree day.

But what I really liked was how they thought:

"the movements of the chassis are emphatic rather than dramatic"

Etc. Etc. Etc!!!!!!

I'm so pumped, I can hardly wait!


Lets get real people. 97.63% of the press has been positive, why ***** about the little sh#t!

VandyZ

iTrader: (2)

Ok, so I re-read the real article now that I have my own copy and I started to read the whole magazine. I found a paragraph on page 15 about Georg Kacher, the writer of the Z article. It seems to make the article even better . . . I will share.

"CAR's European Editor takes a drive in the 350Z; a car that Nissan hopes will stave off some of the accusations that they make boring transport. It'll have to be good to impress Georg; he's one of the sternest critics of new cars we know. It'll also have to be quite big, the little known fact about Georg being that he is, in fact, over 17 feet tall with his feet the size of small villages in Hampshire."


Ok, ok, he is only 6'7" or 6'8" but I went back to read all of his articles after I met him a month or so back. He is a great car critic and freely expressed his opinions. I think this is by far the best article yet.