I'd be mad at something that is superior in every way too...

I think you'd be more at home in a civic or integra forum

 

hahaha the car is slow

 

That logic works for those it describes but not everyone is necessarily trashing the 370 simply because they own a prior model. I've gone into great detail about my feelings in several posts. For some of us, the aesthetics just aren't there and there are enough people making similar statements who do or do not own a prior model to support my claim.

Nissan had an opportunity to do something unique with the next Z and now the die has been cast, so we have what we have in the 370. It's a shame they didn't include their customer base more in the design stage before making a commitment. It would have been interesting to see what the overall sentiment was prior to starting production. They could have submitted several ideas for feedback that would all have worked on the new platform.

 

That's just my observation over the years on car forums. And another observation I have is a lot of people hate it at first but change their mind when they see the car in person or when they see what after market did to the car. And there are also people who some how change their mind over time because it grew on them.

I think Nissan did the right thing on making the car shorter, lighter, and more powerful. I was like going from 260Z back to 240Z, I'm glad they didn't make the new Z fatter and fatter.

 

I wish I could nominate your post for "Thread of the Year".

BTW, I love it how newbs join the forum just to post in this 370Z folder and antagonize the
350z owners with their love of the 370z. I bet you 90% won't even buy one.

350z FTMFW...

 

Man! I must say, I love your comebacks!

 

+1

I also bet you 90% of them don't even own a 350z.

 

Hmm, what if the majority of "their customer base" actually like the 370Z and you are in the minority? If this is in fact true then it would seem Nissan went the correct direction. I think there was even a poll on this very forum in which over 70% liked the new design. Actually here is a (unscientific) poll where only a small percentage doesn't like the 370Z. https://my350z.com/forum/2009-370z/3...r-yay-nay.html

So should Nissan have listened to the minority that does not like the new design? What type of business strategy would that be to try to satisfy a minority that has their own taste?

 

I'm pretty sure the 350 will be owned by this new, atrocious beast.

 

Look at it this way.... 370Z comes out, 350 parts go down in price

 

The resale value of the 350Z should drop quite a bit.

 

Just remember... the opposite of "love" is not "hate"... it's indifference.

 

buddha.

 

I do agree that the 370Z has too many things going on at the same time.

I saw it in person at the LA auto show and I still dont quite like it. The interior is way nice though.

 

WOW. Are you an Industrial design student? I was. I feel you hit it on the nose when you say that the individual parts of the car were assigned to different students.

I was one of the guys that loved the first Nissan leaked photo. The Dark silver one shown lower front 3/4 view. And every time a new photo comes out, I hate it, I like it again, I hate it, I like it again. And recently I like the new JDM pics that are shown.

To me, angles and camera tricks help it a lot. This car is a bunch of cool design ideas put into one body. To me, it is never a whole design.

And yes I've seen it in person.

And of course this is IMHO.

And yes the 370 makes the 350 look dated. But so does the new TL vs the last gen as does the enzo vs the F40. I hope you get my drift.

And I've since graduated from art school and am making a fine living making things look pretty =)

Oh yeah, and this is just purely aesthetics, the 370Z is gonna own the 350 all day in term of performance.

 

I don't think that's always the case. New gens don't always look better. The newest TL, the G37 coupe, the new STi...all examples where previous gens actually looked better. So far I'm liking the 370Z though...not bad.

 

The 350Z design is very basic and elementary. Just a bunch of continuous arcs. The 350Z is "safe". The 370Z has a sexier sculpted body. The 370Z pushes "design" to the next level , away from simple geometry. That is why many are saying it looks as if the Z when "upmarket". It looks more expensive now. Design is very subjective. But the bottom line is if the majority of people like it, it is a success.

 

Oh nooo another design student, I was a design student as well but that was 9 years ago. I am making a fine living making things work well not just look good. Form follows function. The overall design of the 370z is pretty tone down, you can tell by front bumper below the headlights. I'm not a huge fan of the lights and the rear lower fake diffuser but I do think shapes of the car, the profile, and proportion is much better than the 350. Short back long hood, back to basics of the Jaguar D and E Type. I like the overall design improvement but some detail I could do without. I got to give nissan props for going with a head light design like that, it's ballzy.

 

We can do the "what if" thing all day. It's only speculation. But here's something to think about. The Z is a niche market and the car is not in the same class as something like a Corolla which is intended as a mainstream car to meet the needs of a large cross section of the population. All companies have cars of this type.

So...since the Z is not your average car and the number of owners a minority; why didn't Nissan include its customers in the design phase? Not from an engineering perspective naturally but at least release some of their early ideas of what direction they were planning on taking and get some feedback. As it is, they have taken the car and said, "Here's what we decided you will like."

I don't think it would have been that difficult and I certainly don't think it would have opened a Pandora's box. If anything, it would have made A LOT of people feel like Nissan cared about their loyal customers. Right now, I've lost my trust in the company. I've decided to wait for the next gen if one comes out but I have to tell you even that thought has me full of doubts. What if they make it worse?

Just as an afterthought...how many here are familiar with how the previous Eclipse was received back in 2000? It was essentially the same situation. The car looked like a Buick and many people posted side by side comparisons to demonstrate the fact. Now look at the current Eclipse, it's been totally redesigned, so in my view Mitsubishi heard their customers and responded in kind.

 

i agree with OP. Even though the 370 is clearly the better performing car. This new design takes away everything i loved about the 350 the FIRST time i saw it. the ridiculous head lights, tails, front bumper fang design all look out of place and just thrown together.