Car Reviews: 2005 Nissan 350Z

The Nissan 350Z recaptures elements of the original Datsun 240Z. It's fast, it's fun, it's pure sports car. And, like the original Z, it's affordable, or at least attainable.

This year Nissan commemorates 35 years of Z production with a special anniversary edition coupe, and there's much more to the model than just the unique badging. A significant dose of performance has also been added, including a bump in engine output to 300 horsepower, big Brembo brakes, 18-inch five-spoke alloy wheels and improved aerodynamics. There's also a new, very special high-chrome pearl Ultra Yellow pigment on the color chart.

The coupe, introduced as an all-new model for 2003, and the convertible, which debuted last year, get important upgrades, new features and revised transmissions. All 350Zs share the same sports suspension and Nissan's superb V6 engine, which punches out 287 horsepower and strong torque. Both models come standard with racy hardware: a six-speed manual gearbox, carbon-fiber driveshaft, drive-by-wire throttle, anti-lock discs vented front and rear with electronic brake-force distribution. Add the convenience features that come standard, such as automatic temperature control and a premium stereo, and the price of the Nissan 350Z is compelling.

Coupe or roadster, the 350Z delivers racecar handling, rear-wheel drive, and thrilling acceleration performance. The suspension keeps the tires glued to the road through fast chicanes. Bounce over the curbs on a road racing circuit and the Z will hold its line. Styling details like the controversial industrial-design door handles ensure this car will never be called bland.

Nissan says the 350Z was designed to be a sports car an enthusiast can live with every day. While its firm ride, abrupt throttle response, and awkward cup holders don't make it a great place to drink coffee, eat doughnuts, and make phone calls on the way to work, it is a comfortable car with usable cargo space, and getting in and out isn't impossibly awkward. Order a version with the excellent five-speed automatic, and you'll have a better commuter for the daily stop-and-go.

Bottom line: The Nissan 350Z is no poser. It more than delivers on the promise of its stellar looks. It's a real sports car with serious GT performance. The Roadster adds wind-in-your hair freedom.

Nine variants of the Nissan 350Z are available: six coupes and three roadsters. All come equipped with the same 3.5-liter V6 engine.

Differences among them lie primarily in trim. Different size wheels and tires, however, give the models distinct personalities. The exception is the Track model, which features higher spring rates and shock damping along with bigger brakes.

All models for 2005 get several new standard features, including a Tire Pressure Monitor System, a driver's seat front and rear lifter, heated outside mirrors and a faster processor for the optional navigation system. The clutch effort for manual transmissions has been reduced, and automatic transmissions now come with rev-matching blips of the throttle on the downshifts.

The base Nissan 350Z ($26,500) comes standard with 17-inch aluminum-alloy wheels, vented front and rear disc brakes with ABS, Electronic Brake-force Distribution, dual stage air bags, seat belts with pretensioners and load limiters, automatic temperature control, 160-watt AM/FM/CD with six speakers, power windows (with auto-up/auto-down on both sides), power door locks, power mirrors, remote keyless entry, vehicle security system, a leather steering wheel and shifter boot, comfortable cloth seats and pre-wiring for satellite radio. It comes with a six-speed manual transmission.

Enthusiast ($28,450) is the most popular model. It adds xenon headlamps, HomeLink universal transceiver, cruise control, traction control, viscous limited-slip rear differential, aluminum pedals, day/night rearview mirror, dual illuminated visor vanity mirrors. The Enthusiast model is also available with a five-speed automatic transmission with a manual mode ($29,450). The Roadster Enthusiast ($34,150) reverts to the 160-watt stereo and fabric seats but keeps the four-way power driver's seat and two-way power passenger's seat. Neither the seats nor the mirrors get heaters.

The Performance model ($30,650), available only with the manual gearbox, adds 18-inch wheels and tires, Vehicle Dynamic Control (an anti-skid system), and a tire-pressure monitor.

The Touring model is available with manual or automatic transmission. The Touring automatic ($31,800) comes with leather-appointed seats with a four-way power driver's seat, a two-way power passenger's seat, and seat heaters, heated mirrors, and a 240-watt Bose CD6 with cassette and seven speakers. But it does not come with Vehicle Dynamic Control or the aluminum pedals, and it's fitted with the 17-inch wheels. Order the Touring model with the six-speed manual ($33,400) and you get all the luxury stuff plus VDC, 18-inch wheels, and the aluminum pedals; it's a Performance model with leather and other luxury goodies, in other words. The Roadster Touring models add supplemental side airbags.

The Track model ($34,300) gets vented Brembo brakes, 18-inch rubber mounted on lightweight aluminum wheels, and front and rear spoilers. It comes with the cloth, but is equipped with VDC, the viscous differential, xenon headlights, tire-pressure monitor, HomeLink, aluminum pedals (of course), the electrochromic mirror, and illuminated visor vanity mirrors (to ensure your hair is safely tucked under your helmet).

A side air bag and curtain air bag package ($569) is optional on the hatchback and a very good idea, as is the supplemental side air bag option ($250) on the Roadster Enthusiast. A DVD-based navigation system ($2,000) is available.

No sunroof, no T-top is available on the hatchback, so if you like high-performance, top-down motoring, your choice is the roadster. Nissan says high-performance parts will be available from Nismo, the company's racing division that competes at Le Mans and other sports car venues. Look for engine, suspension, and body bits.

The 350Z looks aggressive with its bulging front fenders and fast back. The shape of the Z suggests a mid-engine design. The engine is in fact in front of the driver, but it's behind the front axle. That's why Nissan calls it a front mid-ship placement (somewhat similar to the Mazda RX-8 design).

The Z shares its underbody architecture with the Infiniti G35 coupe and sedan. Moving the engine rearward evens out weight distribution, which improves handling balance. The Z Roadster adds more than 200 pounds to the hatchback's 3,200 pounds, but the weight front/rear weight split remains at 53/47 percent. It's balanced well for accelerating out of corners.

An extremely short front overhang and a short rear overhang make for agile handling. It also means you don't scrape driveway transitions like you do in a Corvette. Bulging fender flares make the Z look like it's ready for the racetrack, which it is.

The hatchback's shape helps the Z slice through the air with a minimum of drag (0.29 on the Track model). The Roadster's more traditional coupe outline isn't quite as slippery, attaining a drag coefficient of 0.34. (But what do you care when you've got the wind in your hair?) Underbody airflow is managed well, with zero lift on the front (and zero lift on the rear of the Track model). All this math adds up to relatively low levels of wind noise, even in the Roadster with the top up, and a stable sports car at high speeds.

With the top down, conversation in the Roadster required only slightly raised voice levels; the stereo did, however, have to be cranked up a bit.

forward, but re-reclining the seatback requires holding the button during the entire process, often leaving you with a somewhat cramped arm. Also, in the admittedly unlikely event the car's battery dies or becomes disconnected, you're stuck with whatever you locked up securely out of your reach, too. A smaller bin is mounted higher and somewhat more awkwardly toward the center in the hatchback that could hold a map, checkbook, PDA or cellphone. Identical bins on the driver's side in the hatchback are accessed when standing outside the car by flipping the driver's seatback forward.

Cargo in the hatchback rides in an hourglass-shaped well, squeezed in the middle by the shock towers and the big strut-tower brace that ties them together. (That cross brace is functional: hatchbacks flex and the Z's chassis engineers wanted to ensure a rigid monocoque.) The Z offers more cargo capacity than a Mazda Miata, but less than a Porsche 911 or Boxster. We're comparing small boxes here. An avid golfer at Nissan swears two golf bags will fit in the cargo compartment, if you pull the big woods out of the bag and load them separately. Nissan says fitted luggage will be available for the Z. Coming up with your own system to compartmentalize the cargo area might make it better for carrying stuff. The same holds for the Roadster's trunk, which at 4.1 cubic feet is the smallest of the lot. Nissan promises accommodations for a golf bag, however, posting a diagram on the underside of the trunk lid depicting which end of the bag to insert first.

The Roadster's power top operates similarly to that of the Boxster's. Prepping for windblown hair is a simple matter of pressing the foot brake and working a flat, toggle-type switch in the lower dash to the right of the steering column. Manual manipulation of a latch mounted in the center of the top's front bow is required to latch or unlatch it. The top stows in a recess occupying the upper part of the trunk and is covered by a cleanly sculpted body panel that opens and closes as needed, avoiding the hassle of dealing with one of those detachable covers that many people throw into some dark corner of the garage.

Turning the key and hearing the engine roar to life is the first indication the Nissan 350Z is no poser. Turning onto a winding road proves this beyond a shadow of doubt. Sharp steering, terrific handling, and excellent grip make it a real driver's car. This car is very fast with brilliant acceleration. The Roadster's additional weight, a result of the platform strengthening to increase rigidity, no doubt adds a tick or two to the 0-60 measurement but isn't noticed in everyday driving.

Mounted longitudinally and driving the rear wheels is Nissan's excellent VQ V6 engine. It's smooth and sounds like a big sports car engine. It generates lots of torque at low rpm, pulling smoothly from about 2000 rpm. Maximum torque of 274 pound-feet comes at 4800 rpm, tapering off as 287 horsepower is reached at 6200 rpm. The engine is still pulling smoothly as the rev limiter steps in somewhere just north of 6500 rpm, but this engine is more about low-rpm torque than high-revving horsepower. Nissan's Continuously Variable Valve Timing Control System helps the V6 produce a nice, linear band of torque. Drive-by-wire technology reduces mechanical weight and complexity.

The short-throw shifter feels good and it's effective. The six-speed gearbox shifts quickly and deliberately. It feels perfectly synchronized, making shifting easy and enjoyable. Clutch pedal effort has enough heft to remind the driver that this is a serious sports car. With the Roadster's top down, the exhaust tone is music to the driver's ears, rising and falling melodiously and crisply as the gears are worked through the turns on a twisty road.

The automatic transmission works great, really smooth and responsive, and it didn't leave us feeling like we were missing out by not having the manual. The Touring model with the automatic and 17-inch wheels felt like the perfect combination for hurtling down New York's Taconic Parkway. With manual mode selected, the automatic holds lower gears right up to the rev limiter, upshifting only when the driver desires. Downshifts are electronically managed to ensure an overly rambunctious pilot doesn't over-rev the sweet V6. The delicious exhaust tone is wasted on Roadsters fitted with the automatic, though, when it wanders almost aimlessly up and down the scale as the engine slips seamlessly amongst the gears.

Handling feels taut and well controlled in both hatchback and Roadster. These cars really stick through fast sweepers, allowing the driver to keep the throttle down. The steering is sharp and accurate and the Z changes directions brilliantly in transient maneuvers, without excessive understeer turning in or sloppy oversteer coming out. Cornering is flat, without much body lean. The 17-inch tires generate lots of grip, even when driving in a rebellious manner. It's hard to imagine using it up outside a competitive event or emergency maneuver. The 17-inch wheels offer a better ride than the 18-inch wheels. In either case, the ride gets jouncy on bumpy roads, most noticeably when cruising slowly, but it doesn't beat you up and we expect a firm ride with a sports car like this.

Buffeting at highway speeds with the top down was much less than we expected, thanks to the tempered glass deflector mounted between the rollbars behind the seats and to racy body panels tapering back from each of the seat positions. Anti-flap seatbelt retainers further reduce the perceived buffeting effect. Rear side vision loses little to the convertible top, as the hatchback's quarter panel already blocks a sizable area of blind spot.

The brakes are easy to modulate, fun to use, and do a good job of stopping the car. Electronic brake-force distribution (EBD) and Brake Assist come standard on all 350Zs. Just like it sounds, electronic brake-force distribution improves stopping performance by dynamically balancing front and rear braking forces. Brake Assist is a mechanical system that applies full braking if it senses an emergency-braking situation where the driver has not stepped hard enough on the brake pedal to engage the ABS. Push the car too hard into a corner or find yourself on a slippery surface and Vehicle Dynamic Control (VDC) and traction control come to the rescue by reducing power or applying brakes at individual wheels. All of this stuff helps the driver maintain control of the car at the limits of the tires.

If you like to drive on racetracks, then you should select the Track model for its Brembo brakes. The weight of the Z challenges the stock brakes when they are used over and over, lap after lap. Also, the Z understeers when driven to the limit, meaning you need to get it slowed down a little more for the corners, then use the torque to power out. The big Brembos probably won't significantly reduce stopping distances, but with dual-piston calipers and bigger discs, they should resist fade better than the standard brakes, an advantage when turning laps on a racing circuit. The Track model may be a bit much as a daily driver, however. For daily driving, we recommend one of the other models.

The Nissan 350Z stands alone in its price class. This is the car for drivers who want serious sports car performance in a GT body without shelling out the big bucks. And Nissan has added a truly sporty variant to the mix with the 35th Anniversary Z.

Its rear-wheel-drive chassis is rigid and its suspension is taut for excellent handling. The V6 engine delivers lots of torque for strong acceleration performance. Whether you opt for the six-speed manual gearbox or the five-speed automatic, there are no dogs in the lineup. The interior is the weakest link here, but it grows on you with a little time spent living with it.

New Car Test Drive correspondent Tom Lankard is based in Northern California. With Mitch McCullough in Los Angeles.