2023 Nissan Z - 400hp, 6MT/9AT, $40k USD

[Tornado]

C8 is for old men

Even with substantial price increases vs the C7 before shortages and dealer scumbaggery, last year was the best sales year the Corvette has had in the past twenty years; and more importantly GM has repeatedly noted that the C8 isn't bought overwhelmingly by old white people retiring from their 50 year career as cops who were born viewing "Corvette" as meaning "I made it in life." All the sales information GM has released about the C8 to this point has suggested that the thing GM wanted to do with the C7 by making it an overstyled mess but changing little else actually worked with the C8.





The model that is increasingly being snapped up by people who want something that they can drive a couple times before dying is pretty much just the Mustang now, a trend that's sure to accelerate with Ford refreshing the Mustang to capture the same sinking ship that GM targeted with the Camaro in 2016.

 

[McLaren]

M2 is embarrassing to be seen in

And yet, like the strong critique its CSL sibling faced, it's one of the best sports cars on the market.

 

[Eunos_Cosmo]

For $5k more I'm getting a base Boxster with a manual.

 

[Venom800tt]

IMO Nissan should have aimed much lower, price wise for the base Z and the Nismo. In that price range, there are a LOT more options, most of which are generally better drivers cars. Previously mentioned Boxster, the C8, Supra... all better at being fun to drive from what I have seen. I mean, that is literally twice the price of an ND Miata or GR86, yet probably isn't as fun as either to drive in anything but a straight line. Nissan really could have done better, even with the current Z34 platform honestly.
(I at least have driven a couple different Z34's myself)

 

[Eunos_Cosmo]

IMO Nissan should have aimed much lower, price wise for the base Z and the Nismo. In that price range, there are a LOT more options, most of which are generally better drivers cars. Previously mentioned Boxster, the C8, Supra... all better at being fun to drive from what I have seen. I mean, that is literally twice the price of an ND Miata or GR86, yet probably isn't as fun as either to drive in anything but a straight line. Nissan really could have done better, even with the current Z34 platform honestly.
(I at least have driven a couple different Z34's myself)

The lack of any meaningful development over the entire Z34 lifespan boggled my mind. Other than a very mild facelift and a meager amount of cosmetic-only special models, we got nothing. If it was spell-bindingly brilliant, it would have made sense. But the 370Z was merely decent at best and nearly everyone who drove one complained about either the at-limit behavior, lack of engagement and lack of refinement and their inability to cope with hard driving. At best, it was a tuning platform...but a pretty expensive and heavy one with pretty poor heat management, and so-so controls, meaning a lot of work was needed to get them even on par with something like a Cayman or GT86 from a driving pleasure point of view. I always wondered why Nissan didn't at least try to improve the thing over it's incredible thirteen year run. When that car came out, the Mustang still had a solid rear axle and 305hp.

 

[Venom800tt]

The lack of any meaningful development over the entire Z34 lifespan boggled my mind. Other than a very mild facelift and a meager amount of cosmetic-only special models, we got nothing. If it was spell-bindingly brilliant, it would have made sense. But the 370Z was merely decent at best and nearly everyone who drove one complained about either the at-limit behavior, lack of engagement and lack of refinement and their inability to cope with hard driving. At best, it was a tuning platform...but a pretty expensive and heavy one with pretty poor heat management, and so-so controls, meaning a lot of work was needed to get them even on par with something like a Cayman or GT86 from a driving pleasure point of view. I always wondered why Nissan didn't at least try to improve the thing over it's incredible thirteen year run. When that car came out, the Mustang still had a solid rear axle and 305hp.

Totally agreed. What sucks is that platform has/had potential to be better than it is, but I guess no one within Nissan cared enough to do anything with it. That or they lacked the funding to do anything...

 

[Eunos_Cosmo]

Totally agreed. What sucks is that platform has/had potential to be better than it is, but I guess no one within Nissan cared enough to do anything with it. That or they lacked the funding to do anything...

The last significant development that seemed voluntary was the VQ35DE -> VQ35HR upgrade for the 2007/2008 350Z. Pretty well coincides with the great financial crisis which seems to have hobbled Nissan more than any other manufacturer.

 

[Keef]

 

[Veinz]

66k (88k cad) for a tiny bit more hp, more weight, a body kit and an automatic. Lol, ya ok.

Best Nissan in a decade isn’t saying much…

 

[Eunos_Cosmo]

Best Nissan in a decade? Ok but what other Nissans even came out in the last decade? It feels kind of like a throwaway statement. In 2013 the GT-R and the 370z were already 6 and 4 years old already, respectively.

Curious that Matt does not mention the Cayman and/or Boxster in his review, because they seem right in the money to compare. A Cayman T costs just $1k more than the Nismo...and can be had with a manual...and has adaptive dampers...and is mid-engined...and weighs SEVEN HUNDRED pounds less... While the Cayman has considerably less power, the weight difference is massive and they seem just about even, acceleration-wise (a Cayman T will run an 11.9 quarter mile with the PDK).

 

[Veinz]

They just say Best Nissan in a Decade to make sure they still get invited to these press events in the future.

 

[ROAD_DOGG33J]

The end of the message doesn't jibe with the title.

 

[DC5Remy]

66k (88k cad) for a tiny bit more hp, more weight, a body kit and an automatic. Lol, ya ok.

Best Nissan in a decade isn’t saying much…

Legit shocked at the new car prices.

 

[Joey D]

$66k? For $1,000 more you can get a C8 Corvette. Plus, the dealer markups on the NISMO will probably put it in high $90k's.

 

[Keef]

For $1,000 more you can get a C8 Corvette.

Watch to the end of the video lol.

 

[Tornado]

What exactly are Nissan doing with the 4 extra gear ratios in the Mercedes slushbox for the fuel economy to be that trash?


Autopian gave the car the writeup it deserves, to be honest (though to be fair they didn't get one to test):

The Nissan Z Nismo Costs $66,085, Here's What You Could Get Instead - The Autopian

With a price tag just north of $66,000, the 2024 Nissan Z Nismo plunges deep into BMW M2, Chevrolet Corvette, and fast Mustang territory.

www.theautopian.com

Best Nissan in a decade? Ok but what other Nissans even came out in the last decade? It feels kind of like a throwaway statement. In 2013 the GT-R and the 370z were already 6 and 4 years old already, respectively.

 

[Keef]

What exactly are Nissan doing with the 4 extra gear ratios in the Mercedes slushbox for the fuel economy to be that trash?


Autopian gave the car the writeup it deserves, to be honest (though to be fair they didn't get one to test):

The Nissan Z Nismo Costs $66,085, Here's What You Could Get Instead - The Autopian

With a price tag just north of $66,000, the 2024 Nissan Z Nismo plunges deep into BMW M2, Chevrolet Corvette, and fast Mustang territory.

www.theautopian.com

I’ve never trusted the fuel economy numbers that journalists publish. They’re car people, they don’t drive like normal people and they certainly don’t drive in an efficient way. In almost every rental or car I’ve actually owned I’ve consistently bested both journalist numbers and EPA numbers. It’s not hard to be efficient.

That said, tires and alignment are huge factors in fuel economy. I remember when the 350Z came out, the Nissan dealer was replacing factory tires at 15,000-20,000 miles. The car performed well but the tires were super abrasive and the alignment was not zeroed out from the factory. That’s likely the case with this car as well but the tires are that much stickier and high friction.

 

[Tornado]

Holy 🤬!:

They do exist in the IRL. And they look great in person! Though I don't know if those wheels are factory but the rear offset is horrendous.

 

[Eunos_Cosmo]

Rear offset reminds me of the base model 370z...so totally believable that they are OEM wheels. I still haven't seen a single one.

 

[05XR8]

I’ve seen another one, but at this stage, there are probably more on the track, in GT4 guise.

 

[ROAD_DOGG33J]

I had my doubts, but nope these look like the stock wheels on the base model.

 

[Keef]

Rear offset reminds me of the base model 370z...so totally believable that they are OEM wheels. I still haven't seen a single one.

Those wheels are from the base model, however in videos of the base model the rear offset doesn't look that bad.

 

[TrdScionxB2]

I got to see the new Z in person but it was a heavily modified one.

 

[Eunos_Cosmo]

I'm calling it now. The new Z is a prodigious fail. I still haven't seen a single one. I've seen three Cybertrucks. I practically trip over GR86s, Civic Type Rs, and MKV Supras. They sold less new Zs in 2023 (the first full year of production) than 370zs in 2020. That is an alarming statistic because it allows that the Z might be selling better if they didn't refresh it.

The Z is far too expensive for what it is, and I think the market is confirming that. The only way to save the Z, IMO, is to price it aggressively. Base model for $32k, Nismo for $45k. (tbh, even $45k seems too much for the Nismo considering there's nothing particularly special about it, and the engineering for the chassis and engine go back literally decades)

 

[Neddo]

I think that a lack of Roadster reduced sales too. Even Targa would add like 5-10%. I would absolutely like to see RZ34 Roadster, maybe even Speedster for a change to Nissan.

 

[05XR8]

I'm calling it now. The new Z is a prodigious fail. I still haven't seen a single one. I've seen three Cybertrucks. I practically trip over GR86s, Civic Type Rs, and MKV Supras. They sold less new Zs in 2023 (the first full year of production) than 370zs in 2020. That is an alarming statistic because it allows that the Z might be selling better if they didn't refresh it.

The Z is far too expensive for what it is, and I think the market is confirming that. The only way to save the Z, IMO, is to price it aggressively. Base model for $32k, Nismo for $45k. (tbh, even $45k seems too much for the Nismo considering there's nothing particularly special about it, and the engineering for the chassis and engine go back literally decades)

Had to revisit Z pricing. Uh yeah… Take that hit and drop those prices to the “original” Z33 $29,999. Holy guacamole.

 

[Tornado]

I've now actually seen two at work. The black one from earlier and more recently a blue one with the delightful blue interior.



On the other hand I've also seen at least a dozen different C8s so...

 

[Eunos_Cosmo]

View attachment 1328428

Had to revisit Z pricing. Uh yeah… Take that hit and drop those prices to the “original” Z33 $29,999. Holy guacamole.

I'M GONNA BBQ YOUR ASS IN MOLASSES!

 

[Darla Starch]

I'M GONNA BBQ YOUR ASS IN MOLASSES!

 

[Eunos_Cosmo]

A Florida Nissan dealership put up a brand new Z performance 6 speed on Bring-A-Trailer.

The bids did not reach MSRP. Nissan...you really ****ed this up.