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Originally Posted by UNKNOWN_370
2+2 cars will always outsell 2 seaters.... And you gotta think. The Z is truly the poor man's "dedicated" sports car. Most people that shop in the Z price range are looking for practical or versatile performance. Most people whohave the income to buy a Proper Z with SP or Nismo. May not be able to buy tires, pads, and other types of real sports car maintenance.
A car like the vette starts at a price where you have another tier of buyer. One that drives a nice car but is practical enough to want the most performance for the best money. If a higher tier purchaser is looking at the Z and the vette. He'll choose the vette.
The Z represents a balance of car with a tiny market. The 350z was also $25,000 to start vs the 370 being 30,000. At 30,000 in a 350 you had a well appointed car for the coin.
The 2009 370z was now a $40,000 car well appointed. So the way packages were done, you were jumping into an extra $7,000 of car compared to a comparable Z 3 years earlier. That's over $100 a month payment. And as stated. It happened during a recessio.
I think the Z power is fine for what you get. I would love to see the more powerful turbo but power would be on the bottom of my complaints.
But America is mostly about horsepower wars so the Z once again narrows the customer base by being ultra niche.
The populous for our cars in this income bracket is dismal. But that's EXACTLY what makes the Z so special. Most problems are small in the solution but huge in the ideology of being a competitive sports car. And it's because Nissan ignores the small things. Irs why the Z still suffers in sales right now.
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While I agree with you on a lot of points and the overall theme of your opinion, I disagree that it is today's poor man's sports car. Assuming with thinking about 2 seat coupes and not 2+2 (disqualifies BRZ/FRS), that pretty much puts the latest (ND) and last generation (NC) miata as the crown holder. Say what you want about it, but it's the most affordable sports car you can buy new in dedicated soft top or a hardtop/hybrid couple both countering regular and convertible Z.
You allude to it as well, but the Z is pretty pricey for the target market it is trying to appeal to, which is the affordable sports car buyer. Parts (maintenance and aftermarket), insurance, and fuel consumption do not favor it against other cars said buyer could choose instead.
Personally, I think 1-2 year old prices of these Zs are truly where the price market should have been new. I've purchased a new Z in the past (2010 sport+touring) and a 1 year old used Nismo (2016 tech). It's no surprise that I got way more car for nearly the same cash.
That's probably what hurts the Z the most. A lot of people in this segment have to make a choice rather than have multiple vehicles and lots of other choices have far more practicality, affordability, and/or power for around the same cash spent.
Keep in mind, I love my Z and I'm glad I was able to pick one up before they change from the traditional NA 6 cylinder coupe I find makes it different than my other cars (turbo hatch and a boosted miata coupe), therefore worth having to me.
Again, I agree with you on a lot of points, especially about cars having more than enough power for the street. I personally find any car below a 13Lbs/1HP ratio to be plenty fun for the street. My cars range from 7.9 to 12.8 at this point, so I have a good idea about what's probably too much to fully use around town.
I personally hope the Z evolves and continues to stay relatively attainable and a fun to drive. I find it hard to justify shelling out more than $50k for a loaded car, but I'm obviously spoiled by today's cheap speed options. :-)