Item: Nissan 370Z
Rating: 2
Author: What Car? Team

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Introduction

Performance & drive

Interior

Passenger & boot space

Costs & verdict

Every 370Z comes with alloy wheels, powered seats, climate control, keyless engine starting, automatic xenon headlights and a socket for an MP3 player. GT models add 19in alloy wheels, heated leather and suede seats with lumbar support, a 7.0in touchscreen infotainment system with sat-nav, a Bose audio system with eight speakers and the option of a seven-speed automatic transmission.

The more powerful Nismo model receives mechanical upgrades over the standard car, including lightweight 19in Rays wheels, a Nismo dual exhaust, lowered suspension and an extra 16bhp from the 3.7-litre V6.

All versions of the 370Z look fairly good value for money considering how much power you get. However, this is a seriously pricey car to run; its V6 petrol engine promises just 26.6mpg officially and you won’t get anywhere near that if you regularly put your foot down. High CO2 emissions mean you’ll be charged a fortune for road tax, too.

The 370Z has not been subjected to the rigours of Euro NCAP crash testing due to the expected low sales. However, Nissan hasn’t scrimped on safety kit. Stability control, front, side and curtain airbags, as well as active anti-whiplash head restraints are on hand in case of a collision.

On the security front, deadlocks, locking wheel nuts and an alarm make life difficult for thieves. No wonder security experts Thatcham Research awarded the 370Z five out of five for guarding against being stolen and four out of five for resisting being broken into.

The 370Z is too rare to have featured in our reliability survey, but Nissan as a brand performed poorly, finishing in 29th place out of 32 manufacturers.

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With each consecutive update (the 370Z has been around for the better part of a decade), Nissan has attempted to improve refinement by fitting things such as thicker carpets and extra sound insulation – but you wouldn’t know it. The 370Z still feels like you’re driving a mobile boombox, with the cacophony of noises alternating between pervasive engine burr, transmission whine at low speeds and distracting tyre noise at higher speeds.

A very heavy clutch and a gearshift that’s short-throw but also clunks through the cogs only emphasises the sense that the 370Z is something of a dinosaur by modern sports car standards. Yes, you could argue that this kind of blatant mechanical feel and bruising approach is a good thing, but it’s enormously wearing unless you find a road that the 370Z really suits.

Unfortunately, those roads are rare. Your average winding B-road won’t do, never mind a motorway or urban route, where the 370Z is all hard work and no reward. You need a specific kind of fast, smooth, winding corner before you discover that there is a modicum of poise and satisfaction to be had from the heavy, consistent steering and taut suspension.

In tighter bends and quick direction changes, the 370Z feels heavy; while the steering weight is good, it can be tricky to sense whether you’re nearing the limit of grip from the rear tyres.

It’s also difficult to find enough open road to really stretch this 3.7-litre V6. It’s a coarse engine that doesn’t feel particularly smooth and needs to be stretched well beyond 6000rpm before it hits its stride. That means most of your time is spent in the gruff dregs of the rev range, where it's punchy enough but doesn't sound very good.

The drivetrain dominates the driving experience even more so in the Nismo model, thanks to a sports exhaust. However, the small increase in power (up 16bhp) barely makes any difference in reality, cutting just 0.1sec in the official 0-62mph run to 5.2sec. And despite feeling slightly more eager at higher revs, the engine’s ever-present sound and vibrations are much the same as in the standard car.

Both the standard 370Z and Nismo don’t ride too badly for a car of this ilk, but they’re far from comfortable. Undulations make the body bob up and down, so they fidget incessantly around town, and mid-corner bumps unsettle them enough to occasionally cause a loss of traction – and not in a good way.

So, overall, the 370Z works in a very narrow operating window, making it a tiring companion on most journeys.

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If there’s any car out there that should fly the flag for Japanese sports cars – a cult breed in the UK not so long ago – it should really be the Nissan 370Z.

Ingredients such as a big-hearted 3.7-litre V6, a six-speed manual gearbox, rear-wheel drive, a low-slung driving position and that classic long-nosed, wide-hipped coupé shape scream proper emotive muscle car and a visceral alternative to super-polished German rivals such as the <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/bmw/2-series/coupe/review/n17235">BMW M240i</a>, <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/audi/tt/sports/review/n17215">Audi TT RS</a> and <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/porsche/cayman/coupe/review/n17361">Porsche Cayman</a>.

<iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/5pEM8Tsx2Ng"></iframe>

So to find out how the 370Z handles, rides and what’s it like inside, read on.

And if you do want to buy one, head on over to our <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/new-car-deals/nissan/370z/coupe/">new car deals page</a>, where you could get yourself a discount off the list price.

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The driver's seat is well bolstered and models with leather upholstery have suede-like seat centres to stop you from sliding around during hard cornering. The instrument dials move in unison with the steering wheel, ensuring a clear line of sight. However, it’s not all good news, because the steering wheel adjusts for height only (not reach) and over-the-shoulder vision is poor.

And, disappointingly, the 370Z feels cheap for a car nearing £30k. There are swathes of scratchy-feeling plastics around the gearstick, handbrake and glovebox area, while details such as the dated-looking fuel gauge and odd blanking plates on the centre console hint at cost-saving.

Having said that, the Alcantara steering wheel in the Nismo is ideal. That model’s more heavily bolstered Recaro seats, while slightly limited in their range of movement, are supportive and comfortable even for long journeys, providing you’re not extremely tall, in which case you might want the seat to go back farther.

You have to step up to GT trim to get the NissanConnect Premium infotainment system with a 7.0in touchscreen. It comes with Bluetooth, sat-nav and a 9.4GB hard drive for music storage. However, it’s not the most responsive system in the class and the graphics look very dated when compared with similar systems from Audi and BMW.

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Coupe

Nissan turned up early to the SUV party, with its Qashqai paving the way for the countless models we see today. The Qashqai continues to sell in big numbers in the UK, too, and was also our overall Car of the Year in 2014.

Don’t think Nissan is just about SUVs, though. As well as the Qashqai, the smaller Juke and the larger X-Trail, the Japanese brand has the Micra hatchback, GT-R sports car and Navara pick-up truck.

Nissan was also one of the first big car makers to launch a fully electric car, with its latest Leaf being one of the best on the market.

Despite being based in Japan, Nissan has long committed to building cars in the UK, making several of its best-selling models at a huge factory in Sunderland.

NISSAN

370Z

On paper the Nissan 370Z offers plenty of performance for a competitive price but a gruff engine and poor ride corrupt the experience

The 370Z is strictly a two-seater, but there's plenty of head and leg room. There are several useful cubbyholes, including bins behind the seats. However, the boot itself is unusually shallow and impaired by a big suspension brace, so you'll have to pack light.

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On paper the Nissan 370Z offers plenty of performance for a competitive price but a gruff engine and poor ride corrupt the experience

<h2>What we're looking for:</h2><ul><li>Ride comfort shouldn’t be sacrificed at the altar of handling sharpness</li> <li>Plenty of power from a melodic engine</li> <li>Handling that doesn’t come at the expense of a back-breaking ride​​​​​</li> <li> Practicality is not essential but nice to have </li></ul>

Driving fun is right at the top of any sports car buyer's priority list, and every one of our award candidates has backroad entertainment coded into its DNA.

The Mazda MX-5 embodies sports-car spirit without wearing an exotic price tag, and has deservedly gained a strong following over the years. Much newer to the scene is the mid-engined Alpine A110. It may carry a name from the past, but this potent, mid-engined sports car was designed with the very latest lightweight thinking.&nbsp;

Rounding off our shortlist, though, is a name that'll be familiar to even those to whom sports cars hold little interest. The Porsche 911 was born an icon in 1964, and the latest generation bridges the gap between sports car and supercar. Yet, somehow, it manages to preserve a distinctly civilised character.

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