|
The all-new Nissan 370Z Roadster provides a huge amount of open-top motoring for a very small outlay. Around $80,000 puts one on the road, making it about a third of the price of a Porsche 911 cabriolet.
While the Japanese sports car isn’t as fast or as refined as the German one, it isn’t as far behind as you might think. However, the 370Z simply doesn’t have the same cachet as the 911 – and no amount of money can increase the image of any product, no matter how hard the marketing guys work at it. Visually the Nissan Roadster looks the part, even with the roof up. The soft top roof line has a cantilever appearance which enhances the car's already tough road stance.
The Roadster has a one-touch fast-folding lined roof for the first time; the just superseded 350Z's roof had to be manually locked in. The deployment time for the roof is around 20 seconds so you can go from topless to fully closed while stopped at a red light, letting you keep it down even when the weather looks as though it's about to break.
Nissan tells us the 370Z has a larger glass rear window than the 350Z, however rear vision is poor. That’s aggravated by large areas of rear three quarters on the soft-top. Driving isn’t a problem if the door mirrors are correctly set to cover the so-called blind spot. However parking, and un-parking, can be a real hassle. The 2010 Nissan Roadster has an identical mechanical package to the 370Z coupe that was launched in May last year. At the heart of the Roadster is Nissan's 245 kW, 3.7-litre V6 engine. There's 363 Nm of torque on tap at a peak of 5200 rpm, but this doesn’t demand that you have the engine spinning at big speeds because there's a decent amount of pulling power from around 2000 revs.
There's acceleration to back up the appearance. At 5.8 seconds to 100 km/h for the seven-speed automatic that we tested, the hot Nissan shows it's not only about looks. It's not in supercar territory, but isn’t all that far short. This Nissan engine is a free-revving power plant that’s as happy to run at the top end of the tacho as in the mid range. Some may find it harsher than they like when it's nearing its rev limit, but we feel this is part of the character of a sports car and is perfectly acceptable.
Typically the new 370Z Roadster will use about nine to ten litres per hundred kilometres on the open road if it's driven moderately, and 11 to 13 litres per hundred around town. Both the coupe and convertible have a 100 mm shorter wheelbase than the 350Z cars they replaced. This gives the car a flatter, wider stance and makes it more nimble in the twisty bits. To reduce weight the 370Z has an aluminium bonnet, doors and boot lid. Nissan’s engineers have added extra structural integrity to the 370Z Roadster with reinforcement over and above the 370Z coupe. This is in the A-pillars, the doors, boot opening and side sills. This body stiffening has resulted in negligible scuttle shake - the scourge of many convertibles - even over rough roads.
Handling is sharp and precise with plenty of feel through the steering wheel and the seat of the pants. Due to the size and weight reduction programs its quite nimble on the road and more than willing to change direction mid corner. Rough roads create a real racket in the way of tyre noise on rough roads (sealed, not dirt roads). But otherwise the interior is generally a relaxed place to be during quiet cruising. The seats are comfortable and hug the passengers in a supportive way without squeezing them when the driver does become enthusiastic. Wind noise is well controlled with the roof down, even at speeds in excess of 100 km/h. The wind deflector that sits just behind the head-rests does its job well.
This Nissan sports is strictly a two-seater, the purest form of sports car. The interior has ample space for the fortunate two, and there's a reasonable amount of stowage space in the door pockets and the centre console, with small bins behind the seats that can cope with handbags, camera cases and the like. The boot is small, as you'd expect, but Nissan tells us it can take a full size golf bag, plus some extra soft luggage. We did a weekly supermarket shopping trip for two and found there was more than enough room.
Nissan has simplified the 370Z line up into a single, highly-specified model. The main choices are transmission type and colour. The manufacturer's list price is $74,990 for the six-speed manual and $77,990 for the seven-speed automatic.
MODEL RANGE AND PRICING
Nissan 370Z Roadster 3.7-litre two-door convertible: $74,990 (manual), $77,990 (automatic)
FEATURES
ABS Brakes: Standard
Air Conditioning: Standard
Automatic Transmission: Standard
CD Player: Standard
Central Locking: Standard
Cruise Control: Standard
Dual Front Airbags: Standard
Front Side Airbags: Standard
Stability Control: Standard
Traction Control: Standard
SPECIFICATIONS (Nissan 370Z Roadster 3.7-litre two-door convertible)
ENGINE:
Capacity: 3.696 litres
Configuration: V6
Head Design: DOHC, four valves per cylinder
Compression Ratio: 11.1:1
Bore/Stroke: 95.5 x 86.0 mm
Maximum Power: 245 kW @ 7000 rpm
Maximum Torque: 363 Nm @ 5200 rpm
DRIVELINE:
Driven Wheels: Rear
Manual Transmission: Six-speed
Automatic Transmission: Seven-speed
Final Drive Ratio: 3.6923:1
DIMENSIONS, WEIGHT AND CAPACITIES:
Length: 4250 mm
Wheelbase: 2550 mm
Width: 1845 mm
Height: 1315 mm
Turning Circle: 10.0 metres
Kerb Mass: 1555 kg
Fuel Tank Capacity: 72 litres
Towing Ability: Not recommended for towing
SUSPENSION AND BRAKES:
Front Suspension: Double wishbone, multi-link, anti-roll bar
Rear Suspension: Independent, multi-link, anti-roll bar
Front Brakes: Ventilated disc
Rear Brakes: Ventilated disc
PERFORMANCE:
0-100 km/h: 5.8 seconds
FUEL CONSUMPTION:
Type: Petrol 95RON
Combined Cycle (ADR 81/01): 11.2 L/100km
GREEN VEHICLE GUIDE RATINGS:
Greenhouse Rating: 5/10
Air Pollution Rating: 6.5/10
STANDARD WARRANTY:
Three years/100,000km |
Print Article
Submit Feedback
Email This Article
