bender

iTrader: (3)

lol at all the comments about it's appearance.... ITS A MULE!!!!!!!!!!!

skaterbasist

iTrader: (3)

Exactly

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tekk

i find it very interesting that it has such a shorter wheelbase.
on the one hand, yes this could be a lower end model... but i have two problems with that:
1. why chase it with a cayman s and 350Z? why would they build a lower end model to compete with the 07Z?
2. do they really feel that their low $20k sub-Z level coupe will match the Cayman S? If so, what do they see the Z as matching? I hope not the 911S.

i recall many commenting that the cayman is a more dynamic and better platform vs the 911 line. so although i havent driven either... i find it hard to believe that they'd set such a target at $20k...when I think the Z would have a hard enough time achieving that.

zland

Its appearance is relevant due to issues related to possible shorten wheelbase. I guess me having to explain that will not help since you did not pick that up in the thread.

vaughn1576

iTrader: (3)

Your right. There's nothing to see here. Normal black Z. Nothing notable.

It must be someone heres Z! Who did this to their Z?

RedBullRR

iTrader: (7)

I think its just a mule to test for a motor and stuff for a new 240SX.

SnakeBitten

iTrader: (8)

Braille battery: $200 / 11-21 lbs

Spearco Sprint Seats x 2: $600 / 18 lbs each

JWT flywheel: $400 / 14 lbs

JWT clutch: $400/not sure of any weight savings so may not be needed

Amuse R1 Titan[full titanium]: $3100 / 19 lbs

Project U lightweight brake kit: $2450 / 7 lbs each

Ultimate racing high flow cats: $500 / gotta be lighter than stock..not sure weight

AME circular spec R rims: $3000/ 20lbs

KW variant 2[substitute your coilover of choice]: $1700

Quaife Diff: $1460



Add it all up and it comes out to $13,810 on top of the $26,000 price of a base Z....Thats what I would pay to have those parts not including the shipping costs..So I would end up with a car around the same price of a NISMO Z but with better performance parts and lighter weight..Base Z is around 3180lbs....Swap these parts and Im sure you will have over 120lbs savings..

Buying these items in bulk would be substantially cheaper per product and those savings would be passed on to the consumer ....So Nissan could concievably do this for the NISMO Z while keeping the car affordable[40k still undercuts the Cayman by quite a few thousand]....This would be for just the limited Nismo version.......

The only thing stoping Nissan from doing this are the bean counters.....These parts per would be a little more expensive compared to what Nissan is using on all the other Z's bulk for bulk...But I believe it would be absorbed by the overall profit of the Z/G platform....Im no financial guru just an enthusiast with time on his hands to daydream at work....

TheProfessional

iTrader: (14)

Bean counters keep businesses from going out of business... we lost the 300ZX for years because of this thinking. The Z got too expensive for it's intended consumer. It came back better, faster, and cheaper by a much stronger company. I am all for better, faster, cheaper but not at the expense of losing the Z again or the GT-R.

Choose your battles wisely and take one dream at a time, Get the GT-R to the US and in the hands of the average Nissan enthusiast at a fair price... THEN update/revise/release another version of the best Z of all time.

I still don't agree with the Altima coupe strategy. It caniblizes the performance coupe segment that Nissan dominates. Nissan should know better by learning from the release of the Xterra and the detriment on Pathfinder sales because of the similar/nearly identical market segment.

Get those Navistar engines in the Titan, take out Ford/Chevy by dominating the fullsize truck market, , improve the build quality of the Murano, and continue offering competitive financing to new buyers.

mchong75

iTrader: (6)

I see a hole/mount on the rear back of the driver side for antenna, when will they integrate antenna on the back window..........

skaterbasist

iTrader: (3)

What's so hard to understand about a test mule?

Can you see whats underneath it? Can you hear it? Know the specs?

No...

If you do, please tell us something we don't know.

This "Black Z" can be anything in disguise. It should not be so hard for people to comprehend... or atleast I thought so.

.

SnakeBitten

iTrader: (8)

I agree with you but they gave us the NISMO Z which shows they are thinking like we are...And for 1 focus model its feasable...Thats what Im refering to...I guess I wasnt clear enough...My first post wasnt for the entire Z model line up. Keep that the way it is to ensure the Z's life span..Just the NISMO version would get the proposed parts...As you can surmise from my parts list the resulting car cost would be right around NISMO msrp if the actual parts amounted to $13,810 per car.....The bulk rate would be substancially lower then the $13,810 so the actual cost using my parts list would be cheaper....this is just wishful thinking as I stated but its very doable and would hardly put the Z line in jeapardy as the rest of Z/G gets the standard parts...That alone would more than make up for a few hundred/thousand focused Z's.....

The 350 isnt close to the 300zx in terms of luxury so its not apples to apples...

TheProfessional

iTrader: (14)

My point was the 3 (expecting 4) slight model changes from 06-07-08 and 09 (next generation) Z. Kaizan is in play, I like continuous improvement... but engine changes each year hurt the consumer in absorbed R&D costs and higher costs of specific year parts in lieu of generation (2 years or more) parts.

Personally, I think a better choice would be to manufacture a base model and touring model from the factory, then allow a licensed 3rd party such as Mine's or Tommy Kaira to provide the "tuner" model at the premium price in the dealerships.

vaughn1576

iTrader: (3)

OMG, I said you were right.

The headlights aren't sticking out, and the body and roof isn't chopped. The wheel base isn't shorter by 7 inches with G37 brakes, and the hatch and spoiler are the same as on my car.

...and it doesn't have 4 Z's and other key Z competition in tow. Gosh! What don't you understand! It's stock 07. Nothing to see here folks. No biggie...

Why would anything lower down the food chain get the Akebono brakes from the G37 anyway? If it was anything less than a Z on this platform you would not see so many existing Z spec parts on it the would test the dynamics with parts closer to what the final model will be. Look at the NSX and GTR mules you posted. They have so little in common with the G35 and S2000 you'd be blind and stupid to think that was what they were. That's not the case here. The whole world knows that mule is the NSX replacement and we can't see what's underneath and don't know the specs! I just really not seeing your point that there is no interesting information to be gained from a mule.

Maybe its a Nissan Cube. They said that was coming over here.

SnakeBitten

iTrader: (8)

I see where you are coming from but we aint talking about replacing engines just better supporting products to "one" variant to allow it to be more focused.... No R&D necessary as the products are already in existance.....My list isnt necessarily what Im expecting them to use just similar affordable products that would easily reduce weight with very little additional cost if any...Its just a choice that can be made if the right person is calling the shots.....Its very financially feasable to do as the NISMO Z's existance proves....Im pretty sure if we tried to buy the Nismo stuff it may come out to around the same money as the stuff on my list....

BTW that idea of a 3rd party is nice but I doubt they would since they have NISMO as there inhouse tuner...Would love to have something like the Mines Z as a purchase option though.....

TheProfessional

iTrader: (14)

Nismo is not treated very well at all, per the information from 2003 when the Z was available in the US and Nismo was not even allowed a Z model from Nissan to fab prototypes with. Nissan Motor has kind of capitalized on the semi-legacy Nismo has built with their limited resources.

You can purchase Tommy Kaira and Mine's cars from dealerships in Japan, but not here. Nismo is more of a proprietory marketing gimmick here. I would actually prefer that they sell "Calsonic" 350's to Nismo... hell my wife's pickup is a "Nismo" Frontier.

skaterbasist

iTrader: (3)

I have a really hard time seeing when your serious or being sarcastic.

(You jump from soudning cynical to serious in no time )

I think I'll just drop the subject.

.

Hybrid90

If you look at that pic,, the black Z is two times bigger than the current model. It's going to be geared towards soccer moms.. it's an SUV Z.. it's going to be called the SUZ.. get it get it? This is all fact cuz I work at Nissan and the design engineer is my dad.. thanks

skaterbasist

iTrader: (3)

Hybrid, like someone already stated, that picture is obviously photoshopped.

In reality, closer objects should be larger in relation to perspective; but the opposite seems true in this case.

Bad photoshop is you ask me. It makes the gray "little" Z look like if its using 13 inch wheels compared to the black Z test mule and red 350Z.

I think this is the only photoshopped picture though. The others look legit.

.

vaughn1576

iTrader: (3)

It's both.

05-Z

iTrader: (4)

I'm waiting for the GTR vs 911 and Z vs Cayman S magazine comparo....