What did the X signify at the end of the 300ZX name? Was it just marketing, sounds better, sounds more expensive, rolls off the tongue easier? If so, why not
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03-04-2021, 02:53 PM | #16 (permalink) |
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What did the X signify at the end of the 300ZX name? Was it just marketing, sounds better, sounds more expensive, rolls off the tongue easier? If so, why not call it the 300ZX again instead of just 300Z? Toyota brought the Supra back from the 90s, now why wouldn't Nissan do the same with the 300ZX, especially with those tail lights?
I guess the question to ask, and I am sure this is what is going on in Nissan focus groups right now. If you owned a Z35, would you prefer to say to your friends or that cute girl "I have/drive a 300Z" or "I have/drive a 300ZX"? |
03-04-2021, 03:35 PM | #18 (permalink) |
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So then you can argue the new Z is Z33.5.5
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03-04-2021, 03:36 PM | #19 (permalink) |
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I don't dislike that idea
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03-04-2021, 04:09 PM | #20 (permalink) |
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Nissan has been known to assign a new chassis code to a warmed-over refresh.
I had a 1997 Maxima, "A32". I bought a 2004 I35, "A33.5" as a swap donor to get a VQ35DE into that older Maxima. Very convenient that Nissan kept 95% of the car the same over the years for my swap shenanigans! |
03-04-2021, 06:31 PM | #21 (permalink) | |
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03-04-2021, 06:37 PM | #22 (permalink) |
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If you tie it to displacement you run into all sorts of issues. From a marketing standpoint they always want to increment higher. Having a brand new car named exactly the same as a car from the 80s or 90s doesn't make too much sense.
If you tie it to HP you run into all sorts of issues. What if it has 436hp? Are we calling this thing the 436Z? Z or 400Z. Both work, but if they go with 400Z they should probably increment upward for each new model ... 400 -> 450 -> 500 -> 550Z something along those lines. (though personally I prefer just Z with some internal code) |
03-04-2021, 08:58 PM | #23 (permalink) |
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During the "ZX" years, Datsun/Nissan literally used the "X" to denote "luxury".
Even though the Z32 300ZX was more of a return to performance, with models being available with T-Tops (an original "X" feature) and leather, Nissan continued with "ZX". For Nissan to name the new Z "400Z" would be wildly arbitrary. A confident product could easily pull-off a back-tracking from 370 to 300. We aren't such simpletons! I highly doubt ANYBODY who was considering a new 300Z Twin Turbo would have a hang-up over the name! I mean, Toyota went ahead and had BMW make their Supra, they didn't feel people would have a hang up over BMW making it! |
03-05-2021, 01:35 PM | #25 (permalink) | |
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And on the supra thing. Toyota has been rebadging Subaru's for years now so rebadging a BMW was less surprising than dusting off their halo nameplate for use on the BMW. They should have put their V6 into the FRS and called it a supra, at least it would have a toyota engine. |
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03-05-2021, 02:20 PM | #26 (permalink) |
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It would be different if it was the Nissan Z with a 3.0 badge, but the way Nissan does it is different as it's actually part of the naming convention itself. To compound on that it has essentially always risen with each model. It would be an interesting marketing exercise to release a name that goes backwards and is essentially named after pre-existing model.
240Z 260Z 280Z 300Z 350Z 370Z 300Z again? That's why coupling it with displacement is challenging. HP is no different as things can get awkward quickly. |
03-05-2021, 05:03 PM | #28 (permalink) |
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This thread suggests otherwise though...
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03-05-2021, 07:51 PM | #29 (permalink) | |
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03-05-2021, 08:05 PM | #30 (permalink) | |
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350ZX and 370ZX just sounds horrible, which is why I am sure they didn't go with that. But for the number '300', it's a unique situation where ZX just goes better with it than Z. Thus 300ZX just sounds better than 300Z. I understand the X denoted luxury, and I know some people here see the Z35 as a more return to form of the original 240Z, but let's be honest the Z35 has more luxury than the Z32 could have ever dreamed of. Last edited by viiv; 03-05-2021 at 08:11 PM. |
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