I’ve been reading a lot of press about the 350Z and most of it is good. For the most part, all articles I’ve seen are very positive and has put the Z on the top of my list as my next car.

Yesterday, I found the November issue of “Sports Car International” at Barnes & Noble (I’ve never read this magazine before) and it has a pretty good article on the Z. But, one thing disturbs me and I’d like to get feedback from those of you who own the car.

The author of the article titled “Styling Analysis” is calling the Z a “hybrid of sports car and SUV”. Man, talk about two opposite ends of a spectrum! He goes on to say that the Z is taller than most sports cars with a high seating position. If this is true, then I would be very disappointed. A sports car should feel low and close to the ground and not tall and boxy like a sedan.

So what say you folks who own a Z? Is the author nuts?

Thanks, Fred

 

I thought the same thing. I guess opinions are like a__holes everyone has one. I love the look and can't wait to get mine.

 

The seating position on my 350 is higher than on my 300. However, the 350 has wider door sills than the 300 so it's equally as a pain to get in/out of the car.

The height of the 350 is very close to a Porsche 911 (i.e. > 50"). Consequently, there is more headroom my 350 than 300.

Michael.

 

I would believe the guy when he said it's taller. I'm a tall guy, and don't fit in most sports cars... that's why I couldn't pre-order the Z. I was beyond surprised when my local dealer got one in and I fit! I placed my order and am now anxiously awaiting it's delivery. I've been wanting to buy a sports car for years, but have had to settle for sports sedans at best due to height restrictions.

Kudos to Nissan for finally building one I can buy! December won't be here soon enough!

 

I drove the car two days ago and was very surprised how comfortable the driving position was and how much room I had. I am 6' 3" tall and weigh 235. Although I only drove the car a short distance it felt great.

 

WHAT?! SUV AND 350Z SHOULD NOT BE USED IN THE SAME SENTENCE!

 

I dont think the Z looks anything like an suv. maybe he got the car confused with the new mitsubishi autox concept car. damn crack smoker.

 

The guy is moron. He said the rocker panel looked like SUV body cladding. What????

In a separate article in the same issue, he raved about the timelessness of the Z32 styling, yada, yada, yada, and that the Z33 was "timely instead of timeless." It must be nice to be able to look into the future and know how things will be perceived several years from now.

All I can say is that for eight years I had a Z32 in my garage, and the Z33 that has replaced it looks a helluva lot better sitting there. Of course, I don't write for a magazine, so I must be wrong.

 

We should be open-minded about this opinion. I read the article a little while back and I have to agree with him completely.

Imagine a family touring about town for their latest big-*** haul-a-herd-of-buffalo SUV. After stopping by the Ford dealership, spending all of Saturday, then going back the following Saturday for the other half of their selections, they make their way to Toyota, only to discover another dozen varieties.

Eventually, in a month, they end up at Nissan. Well, they are confused, because the base prices of identical vehicles are exactly the same! The salesman offers to help, and realizes their mistake. "Oh, yes, well, this one here is a Pathfinder, and that one is the new 2003 Z." The wife tries to see the difference, but cannot, until her son points out the little Z markings on the sides of the car.

The father suggests that the salesman tell them about the advantages of this Z over the Pathfinder, if they are so lucky to have more than a couple little letters on the vehicle. So they are informed:

- Do you like SUVs because of their high off-road capability? What we've found is that 95 per cent of drivers don't even take these things off-road, ever. So what we've done is created a new SUV where we offer 18" wheels shod with 45-series wide summer tires, in order to help with handling on the road. We also have deleted 4 wheel drive in favour of rear wheel drive. Who needs the complication of having two extra driving wheels?

- How about the high perch of an SUV. You feel like you can see into the next county over the horizon. But everyone else has the same height, so you only get in each other's way. With the Z, we've created a low-down seating position, to help you see underneath all the other huge vehicles on the road. Not only that, but we've created blind spots and an almost dangerously low visibility out the back.

- So are you going to use this to take your kids and their friends, and your dog, and your sports equipment out and about everywhere? Well, the Z actually is great for that. We have taken out the back seats, so that you will have to buy several of these cars for your family. Not only that, but we've designed an intrusive, permanently fixed strut brace smack dab in the middle of the only cargo area in the vehicle. This way you will be very much challenged to fit two sets of golf clubs in your car. And in case you were counting on a glove box for your cds, insurance, and manual, we've eliminated that too.

So there you have it, today's new SUV! Since everyone is buying these, I feel pressured to do the same. I am so happy to have finally found the perfect one!

 

LOL! Where do these reviewers come from? This is almost as funny as the LA Times review.

Enforcer

 

The guy isn't a crack smoker, Ajay Panchal hiself said that the Z wasn't derivative of most sports cars, he said the lines are more "tall and verticle, than low and long" like an SUV. Look at the old (bad) FX45 concept, and you will see what the guy is talking about.

That being said, the Z doesnt look like an SUV (though he never said that), but it is a new kind of sportc car. Its small, and fairly low, but it doesnt have the feel of your early 90s sports car, long and short. It looks awesome IMO.

 

I saw that article a week ago and thought the guy was smoking CRACK, it looks nothing like an SUV, I tried to see it, but couldn't.

The ONLY resemblance it has to a TT is the high waiste line and many Zs happen to be silver, as do many TTs. oh, and the aluminum accents, but cars such as the is300 has those, and I don't hear that compared to a TT???

 

I haven't read the article, but the excepts you referenced may be accurate when comparing the Z to other sportscars. It is tall compared to the Z32 (at least the roof is tall). It is also 10" taller than the original GT40. But if you compare it to just about any other car on the road, tall is not a description that will spring to mind. The seating position doesn't seem tall to me, but I'm used to Pickups. I think that if you are looking for a sporty feel, you won't be disappointed. Using an SUV as a comparison seems to be greatly exaggerating the Z's size and height, but I guess we can chalk it up to poetic license on the author's part.

-D'oh!

 

Even bright, knowledgable, experienced people occasionally get it completely wrong.

Remember that interview with Peter Brock on the new Z (I think it was in SCI last year)? He was convinced that the Z aerodynamics would suck, make lots of turbulence and drag, and have lift problems. He was looking at a pre-production body shell, but he was sure Nissan couldn't make it work, and Peter has more street cred than most.

What we got is reasonably slippery and has virtually no lift at any speed.