The *REAL* official 370Z test drive thread

[Brandon26pdx]

I tried out a yellow 09 touring last week. Had 6mt but no sport package so unfortunately didnt get to see the Syncro-RevMatch in action (They didnt have a 6mt/sport on the lot)

Coming out of my 08 6mt the car's controls felt eerily similar so it was a snap to jump into and drive off in without hiccups. (The first time I drove a manual 350Z was pretty hilarious...these cars have much touchier controls than average.) The clutch engagement was much more abrubt than my car, but a lot of that probably had to do with the fact that it had 8 miles on it The pedal was definitely not any lighter than in my car though...if anything a tick heavier. The transmission felt very similar but seemed to shift smoother into 2nd than my car does, but maybe I just got a notchy transmission and this one was unusually smooth...hard to say on that. I didn't get to get on it much but I goosed it once in 2nd gear at about 3500 rpms...definitely more thrust at throttle tip-in with this engine, and noticably louder compared to my car, which can be good or bad. I like loud when it's a good loud...I liked it. Not as sophisticated as, say, the blatt of a Porsche flat-6 or as awsome as the roar of an Aston Martin V12, but not nearly as dissapointing as it's been made out to be. I liked the engine sound better than my car.

The interior on a 370Z touring is pretty exciting compared to my base 350Z. The materials seem much higher quality...borderline luxurious compared to a 350Z. Doors close with a more reassuring "thunk". Alcantara seat/door inserts and keyless push-button start are hot. Leather on the seats was soft and not at all cheap feeling (ie. light years better than cheapass feeling leather you get in a Honda) The guage cluster has less of a low rent feel to it. The digital fuel level gauge was probably trying a little too hard, but it's interesting and colorful to look at nonetheless. You sit much lower in the car compared to the 350, so it's more difficult to see over the hood if you're vertically challenged When I got back in my car I felt like I was sitting on the roof, which is really saying something, considering you already feel like you're sitting in a bathtub in a 350Z a little bit!

The only thing about the exterior styling I though was a swing and a miss was the sideview mirrors. Big. Gaudy. Not nearly as attractive as the svelte 350Z mirrors. Otherwise the exterior is much more grabbing to look at IMO. The 370 will turn heads than might not have noticed a 350 and as well as *almost* any P-car.

Overall, easily the best true sports car you can buy for the money now. A 2010 Cayman S is better. A 2010 Corvette with Grand Touring package is (probably) better (havent driven one). But, those cost $20-30k more. All depends on what you're comfortable and able to spend on a car.

[370Zsteve]

Good honest post +1

[Z_U_later]

I went to my local Nissan dealer last week to test drive the new 370z roadster and had one of the worst test drives of my life. Fist of all the sales person I got did not know a thing about the car, she couldn't find the gas pedal in an automatic to pull the car out of the parking structure. I got to take it on the freeway for a bit and boy it has great pick up. We got off the freeway and I was about to turn in to the dealership she asked me if I wanted to see how it handles on the side street so we went for a ride around the block and this is where the fun starts. I make a right turn to go back to the lot and a 100ft after the turn the engine cuts off and I turned into a side street. I tried starting the car again but no luck. At this point we were in the middle of the road on a small street and cars were going around us in both directions. Not wanting to get read ended, I had the sales girl get in the driver's seat and steer the car out of traffic while I pushed it. Once we were safe I went back to figuring out what had happen. Well after a few minutes of looking around I found out what the problem was, the car was out of gas. The sales girl contacted the dealership and they sent someone out to fill the tank. Apparently this was the sale's girl 3rd on the job which explains her lack of knowledge of the car and that this dealership has a system of informing sales people weather a car has enough gas for a test drive. If the wipers are up that means that the car needs gas if the wipers are down then the car has gas. The wipers were down on the roadster we took so she thought it has gas. Well after the horrible experience I had you would think they would give me a deal on the car, they didn't. I told them that the car guy at my credit union was going to get it for me for 45K and if they can beat that I would go with them but she said the sales manager wanted 2K over invoice so I thanked them for the test drive and left. One good thing came out of this, at least I know the car is light enough for me to push by myself LOL. Anyways my roadster should be coming in by the first or second week of December.
P.S. I got the automatic because I live in So. Cal. where the freeways are known as parking lots.

370z Roadster 7AT
Touring/Sport/Nav
Black w/ wine interior
Bordeaux Canvas Top

[antbear]

Will it be a 2009 or 2010?

You will love the AT. With the AT all attention can be devoted to making those corners work for you. For that reason...AT's seem are showing up in the best cars these days..Tokyo 2009: Lexus reveals $375,000 LFA supercar...finally [w/VIDEO] — Autoblog

[Z_U_later]

Originally Posted by antbear

Will it be a 2009 or 2010?

You will love the AT. With the AT all attention can be devoted to making those corners work for you. For that reason...AT's seem are showing up in the best cars these days..Tokyo 2009: Lexus reveals $375,000 LFA supercar...finally [w/VIDEO] — Autoblog

Picked my 2010 Roaster on Monday and have been taking the long way back and forth to work
2010 370z Roadster
Magnetic Black
Wine interior bordeaux top
Touring\Sport\Nav packages
7AT

[smashbar]

Originally Posted by Z_U_later

Picked my 2010 Roaster on Monday and have been taking the long way back and forth to work
2010 370z Roadster
Magnetic Black
Wine interior bordeaux top
Touring\Sport\Nav packages
7AT

Congrats! A/T is the way I went too... I'm relatively young but I've got bad hips and I can't imagine being stuck in traffic with a manual car anymore.

[antbear]

"Picked my 2010 Roadster on Monday and have been taking the long way back and forth to work : driving"

That's the way it is...........these are sooo much fun to drive you hate to get to where you are going!

Congrats. for getting your Z. Any................

[Z_U_later]

Originally Posted by antbear

"Picked my 2010 Roadster on Monday and have been taking the long way back and forth to work : driving"

That's the way it is...........these are sooo much fun to drive you hate to get to where you are going!

Congrats. for getting your Z. Any................

Here are some pics

Picasa Web Albums - Ryan

Picasa Web Albums - Ryan

Picasa Web Albums - Ryan

[antbear]

That's a good looking mOchine! Now it is time to start the mods.

The only thing I don't like about the 370 roadsters is that antenna. I don't understand why Nissan could not have used the same antenna on the roadsters trunks as are on the hard tops.

Having no windshield wiper on the rear window and no stick up antenna sure cleaned up the lines of the 370 when compared to the 350. I have noticed pics of some 370's with the rear wiper......so what's with that? Are these European models?

[Horseface]

I finally took a test drive in a touring model and found a car very different from my expectations. I've hardly seen any of these cars around in LA. Just two of them, so I spent a good long time just looking at the thing. Even better in person. I like the little roof bubbly bits and subtle lines in the hood. The rear end is really pretty. Nice and wide. The front will probably grow on me. Overall, the car does the 350 right. I always thought the 350z to be too long, with a lot of dead space and wheels that looked out of proportion. The 370 fixes every reservation I had on the 350.


Just sitting in it and closing the door, the car immediately feels very, very solid. Something like a newer Mustang GT or Corvette, but driving along, there seems to be a floaty detachment from the road through the steering. Not sure how else to describe it. It's very 'modern', but I was expecting something a little more engaging. Or something.


The car also feels pretty heavy, which again, surprised me. I was expecting something more nimble. Pushing the gas gave a nice muscular growl which almost seems a little out of place in such a seemingly small vehicle. It's a rough and raw sounding thing which I didn't dislike - I'm used to the polite sound of German vehicles. Welcome change. The actual power of the car isn't immediately apparent, which is somewhat strange. I can easily see why people say that you can speed without being aware of it. Very easy drive. Amazingly low revs and refined when just ticking along, sudden burst of angry wasps when the foot goes down.


The interior is very, very comfortable. The touring seats feel great. Lots of grip. I can easily see myself taking this on a long road trip and not being too sore. It reminds me of a bigger, beefier, more comfortable BMW Z3. I immediately felt at home.


Rear visibility was a real concern. I found that little window absolutely useless and was scared to death of merging on top of somebody. I wonder if this is something I could ever learn to live with.


Storage space seems ample for my needs. I like all the little cubby holes throughout, but the glove box is a sick joke. Maybe it's meant for just gloves?


The one thing that bothers me is the busy looking interior and dash. It's got all manner of little attention grabbing buttons, lighty up bits, trim and doo-dads everywhere which reminds me of a boom box aimed at teens. It doesn't feel well thought out, even though I assume it really *is* well thought out. Although it feels so cosy in there with materials that feel solid and expensive, it just looks somewhat (whisper) tacky.


Other than that, I kinda like it. Problem is, I don't *love* it like I thought I would. I admit, I've not really ever been 'into' Japanese cars and didn't know what to expect. I've always unfairly dismissed them as being somewhat soulless. This was absolutely terrible and wrong-headedly snobby of me, but The 370z and the new, new BMW Z4 are the only cars that I've been interested in recently. Everything just seems to be getting uglier and uglier. The 370 and new Z4 really stand out.


If I can get past the interior and rear/side visibility, I might just find myself picking one up. I will do a Z4 test drive and see how that feels, then make my decision.

[amill94]

Took out a Touring Sport 6MT last Monday. I've liked the look of the 370 since it was revealed. I have an RSX Type S with i/h/e and ecu reflash that I'm going to replace. The 370 will not be daily driven except in the spring and summer. Local dealer had 7 09's and only one that was 6mt. The sales guy was new which I didn't mind since I knew all about the car before I showed up at the dealer. I just wanted to drive it. Got to take it on a 20-25 minute ride of back roads and highway which was great. The car felt very solid throughout the drive. The s-mode rev match feature was pretty cool. The car felt pretty quick and had a nice low rpm pull, which coming from my Acura I really wanted. The best time I personally ran in my car was a 14 flat at 100mph. This car felt quicker and was ALOT more responsive in handling.

I'm going to drive the Camaro SS and see how that compares. I already know the Z will come out on top. The Camaro has a worse interior imo and is ALOT heavier so handling will not be in the same league as the Z, but I still have to drive it.

My only gripe was the blind spot when merging, but that is to be expected with the profile the car has. I was kinda hoping that if you upgraded to the touring you'd get the lcd screen w/ out the nav function like the G37 coupes. I really liked my friends G and the ipod integration. But if I get a base with the sport package I can swap the stereo for an aftermarket double din Navi unit.

After the drive I browsed the web for 370 forums and found this one. I was very surprised to see the benefits of bolt ons with the VQ. I didn't expect to see the gains these cars get. My RSX benefited heavily form the cold air intake and header in similar gains to the Z, so that's good to see. Overall I'm impressed with the car and will probably pick one up this spring in Pearl white or Platinum Graphite.

Been reading alot the past few days and appreciate all the info found here.

[Horsie]

Test Drive: NISSAN 370Z Roadster - 2010
- Autoevolution.com



Actually, the tested car was mine.

As you can see, it has some mods:
- painted parking sensors
- smaller antenna

A lot of pictures!

[Hithere]

I'm impressed with 370Z after my first test drive. Coming from a 6.0litre V8 manual, I wasn't sure if the auto really could live up to the high praise. I've heard people talk about the cabin noise as well as quiet engine.

There is a 'hum' inside the cabin like any other moving car but nothing too loud. I could hold a conversation with the sales guy at a normal talking voice cruising at 70kms/h on a sealed road. It was not intrusive, and at no time, did I think, "gee, the cabin noise is too loud!" To me, the noise level was no more than inside a sedan.

As for the exhaust sound. None existent! There is no way anyone can buy this car as a "sports car" and not change the exhaust. Stock Holden VE SSV has more note. And that is saying something. BUT once you put your foot down, and the Z down shifts to an optimum gear, boy does the cabin fill with ROAR! Bordering on too loud. It is not a nice sound but it is not a bad sound. It is pure and simply described as ROAR!

Now to the all important 7 speed auto tranny. It is pretty good. Actually, very good. The demo car had 18" tyres so it might not be as grippy as 19" but it had no plates so I think the engine was still new and tight. If it was, I didn't feel that. Initially, I left the auto in full auto mode and drove. While cruising at 40kms/h, I put paddle to the metal and held it there for 2 full seconds. And guess what? Nothing happened! I kid you not! I thought that was odd. I tried again the second time. This time, gears kicked down and it took off with almighty roar. It felt fast! VDC kicked in as the car started to wheel spin as it accelerated. Nice!!

For the rest of the test drive, I had the car in manual mode and just used paddles behind the steering wheel. Unless you kick down couple of gears, the rev does not rise high enough and therefore I could not tell if the gear has changed. Once I started to down shift two gears and started to play, it was a different matter.

Upshifting with manual paddles, it shifted overtime as quickly as I expected. When downshifting, when I pull the 'down shift' paddle, I hear the engine rev up first instantly and but the actual shift does not occur for about 0.3 seconds from the moment you instructed Z to shift. I know, 0.3 sec does not sound like a long time but it sure isn't instant. Having said that, if driving a manual, I'm not sure if I could shift it quicker manually.

My wife and I are thinking of going to a single car family and auto is the tranny of choice for my wife. This test drive is to see if I can live with an auto. My veridic is still out. I'm just not 100% if I can live with an auto.

Stuff I noticed about the rest of the car is how flat the Z corners. Suspension felt firm but not rock solid (but I was in a car with 18" wheels).

I was able to take the car to the back streets and test out the cornering in the industrial estates. Nothing crazy! Just open 90 degree corners, one after the other and one dead-end court for a tight turn.

The Z stayed flat in every corner but I was disappointed with the grip of the Z (with 18" tyres). As I performed a U-turn at a reasonable speed, VDC kicked in to guide the car. Tyres obviously lost traction. Even with open 90 degree corners, VDC kicked in to save the day. I negotiated these corners as the speed I could take in my commodore with OEM tyres so I'm not sure what the deal was with those 18" tyres. I just expected Z to stick to the road better. Of course the road was dry and it was beautifully 22 degree day.

Conclusion. I like it, I want one. I'm just not sure if I can live with an auto but it is one of the better autos I have driven.

[NoZYet]

I finally got to test drive a 370Z yesterday. Me and the wife went down to the local Nissan dealer and saw them up close and personal. This may sound strange but I have never even sat in a Z car except for my 1972 Datsun (loved that car, should never have sold it) and I've always loved the Z's. Anyway, after owning mostly SC v8 cars, I was alittle skeptic about the 330hp V6. I drove the 2010 with the 6 spd, big brakes and Rays. They had a Nismo on the lot but it was well guarded in the showroom area
Long story short, I enjoyed driving it, high revs, tight cornering and cool cabin made it a must have. Only thing I will really need to get used to is that damn blind spot

[chompy]

I test drove a 2010 base model MT in Pearl White and it was what I was looking for in a sports car. Bought it on the spot after haggling it down to 28,250 without registration and tax. It is a step up from my 04 VW r32 (I'm used to driving awd) with 100 more horses to 2 wheels instead of 240hp to 4 wheels. The suspension is much more comfortable to drive. The clutch feel is a little soft but engages properly. Steering wheel is not as stiff compared to a German car, but is very responsive and the car goes exactly where I want it to. Great Bose sound system

However, there are more blind spots than I am used to in this car, and the rear-view can be a little tricky to spot cops when driving faster than normal. Trunk space is almost non existent compared to my r32 hatchback, but enough for groceries.

Next step I would like to start modding my car, but my friends over at a performance shop advised me not to start modding until warranty is over. I only have 350 miles on the car and I'm still breaking in the engine, but sometimes I can't help but let it rev up to 6k.