out on a limb here about new model
 

With goverment regulations and everything about gas mileage coming soon.

and if ford can put a v6 turbo bost in its new f150 trucks and from what i've read it's a kick xss engine that can compete with big v8's.. maybe thats the way nissan will go with the new Z. makes more sense than trying to cram
a v8 and extra weight into the car......just saying...

I agree Sonic. The move is towards hotter 6's. Look at the HP that Ford is getting out of it's 6 cylinder mustangs (over 300 HP), and as you mentioned, it's trucks. With the technology in place now, a 6 cylinder can crank out some real HP with turbos and superchargers. I cannot see cramming a big 8 under the hood of the Z. I am not really impressed with the VVEL. I really hope that Nissan retires this engine and moves in a new direction. In fact, they are going to have to avoid status quo if they want to remain competitive with their future Z's...there is way too much competition. I know that the 5.0 Mustang is an 8, and concede that it is really more of a muscle car, but it's 5.0 is one of the hottest engines going right now, IMHO. I test-drove one last weekend just for the hell of it...UNBELIEVABLE. But I still love my Z!

totally agree there.. putting a v8 in a z would change everything weight is what almost 50/50. v8 would change all that.. even handling would be effected... some kind of boosted v6 could be bad xss in a Z. and could stand
toe to toe with the 5.0 and the v8 camaro

to be honest, a force inducted v6 can weigh, and probably will way more than a v8..sh!t, especially an LSx those things are crazy light for the power..truly amazing..a vq with 2 turbos oil lines, front mount etc etc there's a lot of weight right there and weight distibution is off as well..just saying

Sure it can compete power wise, but it's not really any more economical and the turbo V6 engine is even more expensive to produce than the simpler V8. As Dan pointed out the weight difference isn't all that much once you look at the totals. The V6 will have the slight advantage weight wise and economy wise if you can keep it out of the boost but it isn't that much.

Theres no way a tt v6 weighs more than a v8. all your adding is turbos, charge piping and an intercooler along with misc. fittings etc. Can't count the weight of the manifolds, because they are there whether its n/a or not.

:iagree:

OEM setups can weight a good bit because of standards and environment items they must follow. Also, cost becomes a factor so adding a bit of weight to save X amount plays a big roll.

To guess at what Nissan will do next to keep up with the gov requirements and more so it's compitition you need to look at what nissan is doing now and has done in the past.

First the 35 MPG is a fleet average not for each car. So the higher bulk cars like the altima 2.5 that gets better mpg than the Z helps nissan to meet that mpg goal. So Nissan doesn't need to change the Z at all if it puts out other new models that get more MPGs.

Second the Z has always been a V6. With an occational TT on special models. Don't believe I've ever heard of a Nissan built V8 in a Z. So I don't think they will start now with the new MPG guidelines, that would hurt the average. Unless Nissan has a V8 that gets better MPG than the V6 and cost about the same.

Third with Nissan going to turbos in other cars like this juke that are going to sell more bulk. I think this would help Nissan get turbos into the Z. The more uses you have for the turbo the more you make or buy the cheaper they are. But in a Z there will be more than just turbos.

Turbos make more since to me in a Z than a V8. Just might take some time for Nissan to get the a better bulk rate on the parts.

If sales continue to be good I think nissan will stay with the normally aspirated engine. If toyota decides to come out with a sports car again with a power adder then expect the same from nissan. Just like they did in the 90's. I hope this does happen again IMO.

V8's can be light. Aluminium block LSX w/ 6 speed trans is 12lbs LIGHTER than a KA24 w/5 speed in a 240sx.

I don't think Nissan wants a Z car that is too fast. Who would buy a $90K GTR when a $30-40 Z car could hang with it?

If Mazda and Toyota come out with a budget sports car that man handles the Z I think it might some some significant hp increase but until then I doubt it. The Z top of the line Z has always been in the 300ish hp neighborhood and will probably stay there. The next gen's base model may have 350hp like the nismo now but I wouldn't call that a dreastic increase.

I thought I heard about some legislation a while back that was going to change way the EPA tested for MPG so it would be more real world, and it was going to require a set MPG rating per model of car instead of by brand. The requirement would be set according to wheel base. Long wheel base trucks get lower standards than short wheel base cars. The example I heard was by the new rules the Corvette would have to get 34mpg.

for people who say dont add a heavy engien to the front or whatnot.. uhm im ok with that...
because..
they can move the whole tranny to the rear to offset the weight.

Too bad Nissan can't get the TT RS's turbo 5 cylinder. Light and powerful.

My prediction is 2.4 turbo 4. Rebirth of the 240z, smaller and lighter too

could switching back to an inline 6 help anything? I know its still a 6 but it does seem like inline 6's have a power advantage over the v-6. I just dont want them to go to a 2.0T like everyone else.