Quote:
Originally Posted by Chuck33079
Yes. This isn't news. The enthusiast market is completely irrelevant from a profitability standpoint, because they don't buy cars in an amount large enough to move the needle. I'm still shocked that people expect a new z. Why? No one bought the Z34 in any meaningful numbers. Even if we get a new Z, there won't magically be 50k+ people who suddenly decide that a small two-seater makes sense. You're not getting a big share of the Vette market, and few people are cross shopping a Z with a 911.
So what's the play for the Z35 - move upmarket with more power, and hope that people buy a $50k+ Z, or move it downmarket and try to steal buyers from the rapidly shrinking GT86/BRZ market? It's a dead end, and I'm shocked they haven't just put a bullet in the Z34 and moved on. Killing it for 5-10 years would be a smart move, since that way they could at least build up enough demand to have a big first and second year pop like the 350 had.
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Debbie Downer. But right on all counts.
Problem with enthusiast buyers isn't that we're, um, "enthusiastic" about the product. It's that we tend to buy and hold it. Nissan would far prefer you buy a new Altima every three years, over still owning a 2010 Z in 2018. But we tend to not put miles on these cars (half of the continent finds it hard to do in the winter months, anyway), and invest heavily in aftermarket goodies which are not conducive to selling or trading (or removing). So, despite there being a lot of us still out there, we don't represent a lot of yearly sales.
Of course, the bad news does rely on the notion that a new generation Z would fall into the same price, practicality, and performance category as the current model. In which case, it's doomed for financial failure off the mark. The Z34 works as the elderstatesman in the market of Toyota 86 / Miata / Fiat 124 / and a few hot hatches. Prettier lines than most, but far less practical than many and is losing the performance war every year. An engine transplant might have done it a few years ago, but by now the platform is so long in the tooth that such a move would be slaughtered by the automotive press. They know nothing, but buyers still read their drivel.
So, it might be better to re-invent the car the way the Corvette or higher end Camaro's have done to pull closer to the Cayman / F-Type benchmark for performance, slap an Infinity badge on it for brand cachet, and sell it at a considerable premium over the present model.
But then, we'll hear moaning and groaning from the "purists" on this board that Nissan left them out in the cold with the new car...
Truthfully, Nissan cannot win this one for trying. Which is likely whey they aren't.
That, and the fact that each Z34 that they move contributes to the bottom line. All development costs have long been covered.