Originally Posted by KCZ

It's not a luxury sports car. Those are Porsche, Aston-Martin, Mercedes, etc.
It's not a muscle car. Those are Mustang, Camaro, Challenger, etc.
It's not a tuner car, like a Civic, although it can be tuned extensively.
It could be considered a "regular" sports car, although that's a pretty broad term and the 370Z really doesn't have a lot in common with a Miata. This may be the reason the general public gets confused.