Well I had the opportunity to drive a Chicane Yellow Touring 370Z yesterday evening. I will preface the review by saying this....the 370Z is in all aspects an improvement over the 350 (with exception of the exterior as many seem to dislike it...however I like it).

I first want to touch base on the interior as many people are wondering if it is really that much better than the outgoing 350. And the answer, at least in my mind is a big YES. The materials feel much more upscale, with no real prominence of the old hard feel plastics. Pretty much everything is a soft touch plastic. The gauges are easy as all heck to read at night (as it was dark out when I drove the car.) The audio and HVAC controls are pretty much in the same location as the 350 so it was easy to find and use them. The center stack is much more intelligently designed and laid out. The faux leather trim/stitching on the center is a nice touch, though personally I felt it was not necessary. The arm rests on the doors are finally adequately padded. My two complaints about the interior are the lack of sunglass holder and the aux. plug-in location which is literally on the head unit itself, not in the console. I'd rather not have cables going all over the interior.

The sound system was the "Premium" Bose unit and to be quite honest...it sucks. I currently drive an 07 Lexus IS with the standard Lexus (Pioneer) premium system and it is hands down far superior to the Bose. I think the issue has to do with the lack of speakers in the 370 (only 4). The speakers that used to be behind the headrest are gone leaving only one in each door and one in the dash at either corner. I can only imagine how bad the base audio system in the 370 is.

Now, onto the fun stuff. The salesman I dealt with was one I have purchased from in the past, very good guy and if anyone in AZ is looking for a new Nissan just PM me and Ill get you his info. He simply handed me the keys to this brand spanking new 370 and said "just dont put too many miles one it" and off I went...alone. The push button start is a nice touch...simply depress the clutch and hold the button and the motor comes to life with a nice rumble. Shift easily into first and I was off. The clutch is quite smooth and the catch point was very easy to find. The shifter is still a tad notchy but not nearly as bad as the '04 350 I had. Seating position in the car is very good and I was a fan of the larger mirrors since the blind spot in the 370 is quite large, especially with the smaller c-pillar windows.

I turned out onto a nice road with some nice gradual turns in it that I could push the 370 though quickly. The increased power is definitely noticeable and the car will take off in a hurry with no problem. In fact there was one area on the road when you have to make a sharp 90 degree right followed shortly after by a 90 degree left....then a nice straight. I cruised around the right at about 25-30 in second...floored it and shifted into third, then quickly downshifted to 2nd and applied ample brake going into the hard left. Coming out of the turn in 2nd I stomped the gas to the floorboard and the car took off like a bat out of hell and within seconds I was in 4th going in excess of 90. Man was it good to drive something like that again. I will say this...the Syncro rev matching system is by far the sickest feature on the car. Whether you are simply slowing down for a red light or flogging the ever loving crap out of the gears it matches the RPM's perfectly and downshifts are extremely smooth. I would have the exhaust note is a tad odd. It does not remind me of the 350 at all...not necessarily a bad thing as it does sound good...though maybe a tad bit higher pitched. However I would have preferred something more like the 350's Nismo exhaust note on the 370.

Finally I took the car onto the freeway for a nice cruise back to the dealership to reluctantly hand the keys over. In all the ride is great...quite a bit more compliant and smooth over the 350, however it still handles wonderfully. Road noise is less and this was with the 19's. Interior quality and comfort is great. Driver position is perfect...and I love how the hood looks from inside the car. In all the car performed very well and is definitely an improvement in pretty much every aspect. I intend on getting one...however I will need to wait a few months as I have a wedding to fund...yay! lol! Anywho, hope this was helpful to some of you.

 

Good but not good enough to buy now. That seems to be the common response.

 

Everything I read says the 370z is a much better car than the 350z.
It certainly has more electronic toys.
They say the interior is better.
I just can't get past the look. It's smaller and has those goofy looking head and tails. Well, they aren't goofy but they seem out of place. They made both the wheelbase and size of the car 3 inches smaller! That's a lot. I can't wait to see one in person...probably looks like a Tonka Toy.

 

Nice write up. Good luck on the wedding.

 

It actually looks quite proportionate, IMO. But I agree with you, I'm not so keen on the looks.

 

that just means theres more that could go wrong

 

More stuff we have to have to figure out how to disable. I mean soon the Z will drive itself.

 

thanks man.

 

I agree with a lot of you on the front bumper...but the lights actually look good in person. Im sure there will be PLENTY of aftermarket bumpers out sooner enough.

 

I would buy it now if the darn thing was less expensive. A new one with the Sport package is 33k. Im not willing to drop that kinda cash on a Nissan.....with exception to the GT-R. I'm simply going to wait until I can get one slightly used. I assure you...if you or anyone is in the market for a new Z and is on the fence...one spirited drive in the thing will push you over the edge and you'll be signing the paperwork.

 

Are you comparing the 370 to the '04 you had?

I'd also be interested in hearing a comparison with someone who has spent lots of time in an '07-'08 350.

 

Im comparing it to my 04 and an 08 I had driven.

 

Thanks! Every new model/iteration should be a chance to improve things, so it's good to hear Nissan is moving forward, at least interior/engine/handling-wise. Like most, the exterior has bummed me out a bit, though I look forwad to seeing a modded one. But that's just it... I think the look of the Z33 looks great right off the showroom floor, whereas the the Z34 may need some exterior modding to help its cause. Then again, I hate change anyway...

 

I drove it. It IS a better car. IMO its just NOT that much better. I have a lean 05 Touring with bolt-ons and great tires. Very sticky. And quite honestly there was NO difference off the line. High 2nd gear, low third you can feel the difference in power. Id almost go as far to say "slight" difference. Apart from the interior, which is the biggest improvement IMO, I cannot see spending $37,000 on a car ALMOST like my current one. Not to mention the absurd, I say should be ILLEGAL $46,400 sticker price at Sutherline Nissan in Ft Myers. I'll wait for 2nd or 3rd year, prices drop, engine improvements or walk across the street and get a Vette for $40K OTD.

 

the touring which only has the bose upgrade is supposed to have 8 speakers and the base has 4..it's on the nissan website. were you in a touring with sport package or a base with sport package? if it had power leather seats you were in a touring with the 8 speaker bose.

 

It seems to be the case that some people struggle, through no fault of their own, with abstracting how the three dimensional design of the headlight makes it lay on the fenders. There are few angles that it is clear from a photo. Go see it in person. It will make more sense. That's not to say you will like it, but you will see what they were going for and achieved.

 

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It was a touring with leather seats and sport package as it had the synchrorev, however I could only see 4 speakers. Regardless it was not all that great. Maybe the 8 speaker one would sound better....Im sure it would.

 

well if you were in a touring then there were 8 speakers.sometimes the front subs are enclosed with another speaker in the door but it looks like one.they probably are hard to find..only the base non touring has 4 speakers.

 

My local dealer had a 6 speed touring in the showroom. Has an MSRP of $37.400 without the sport package!! With the sport package, the touring will be over 40K!!!!
Wow. Probably won't be any deals for the first 6 months to a year either.

By the way, I have an 08 6 speed touring with 6k miles, perfect condition and the dealer advised he would give me 19K in trade!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I thought Jessie James wore a gun.