My Z Love Affair
Today, I headed over to the Nissan dealership to check out the 370z. One thing you should note, I’ve been a Z fan for a long time. I love the look, the sound, and the culture. Z’s are all over the drifting scene and after going to Formula D a few years back when it first debuted here in the states, I fell in love with the sport. Considering all of this, I had high expectations for the 370, but I had one major concern.

No Clutch for You
If you had caught me 3 years back, you would have heard me say “I’ll never drive one of those crap-tronic transmissions. Manual trannies all the way!” That of course was before I went over to the VW lot and tried out the DSG transmission. The car salesman did what all car salesman do, he started selling me on his product, in this case the new VW DSG(Direct-Shift_Gearbox) transmission. I was skeptical, but I gave it a shot. Fast forward two years later to now and in my garage sits a GTI MkV with a DSG transmission. Yah, it’s that good. For those of you unfamiliar with the DSG here’s the description straight out of Wikipedia, “[The DSG is a] Volkswagen Group developed electronically controlled multiple-shaft dual-clutch manual gearbox – without a conventional clutch pedal, with full automatic, or semi-manual control.” In plain english, it’s a crap-tronic transmission minus the “crap.” OK, back to the Z. Now, since owning the DSG I’m pretty high on dual-clutch gearboxes. The Nissan GTR has one, and the new Porsche PDK is the new dual-clutch tranny in the new 911s. The 370z however does not have one. I opted to find out if perhaps the 370z Auto could match my GTI’s fun factor without a dual-clutch tranny.

Not the Ultimate Driving Experience
Let me preface this next section by saying, I’m sure the 370z with a manual transmission is a great car. Now with that said, I would never buy a 370z with automatic transmission. The paddle shifters were just silly. When I put the stick into manual mode, i felt like I was driving a sedan. The visceral sensation i associate with the Z was no where to be found. Some cars should just not have an automatic option, and this is one of them. That is the enthusiast in me saying that, since from a sales volume perspective that is likely a wildly wrong statement. It wasn’t just the transmission though, when I got on the freeway I punched it and I didn’t feel the acceleration I was expecting. Granted it is a new car, and it has less torque than my APR tuned GTI, but I was expecting more punch than I got. Instead, I just got a pretty fast steady increase in speed, *yawn*. However, there were a few highs during the test drive. First, the handling was great. The wheels were responsive to my every turn with the wheel, even more-so than in my GTI. The brakes are beefy and more than adequate to stop on a dime. It was nice not having to deal with the torque steer of a front wheel drive car for a few minutes, although I was able to get some oversteer getting on exit ramp.

The Verdict
If you are looking for a sports car for 40K or less that looks great and handles with competence, then this Z is for you. However, if you are like me and the first thing you think about after leaving the office is getting into your car and blowing off some steam, get the manual or don’t get the car. I want a car that performs, has a comfortable interior, but overall it needs to be FUN! This experience definitely left me wanting. I couldn’t wait to get back to my DSG after it was all over. I’d love to get the manual version to a track and get it sideways, but until then the only thing from Nissan that I’ve got eyes for is the Z’s big bro, the GTR.

Highs:

• Excellent looks
• More HP and lighter than its predecessor
• Precision handling
• Great stopping power

Lows:

• Boring automatic transmission
• Poor visibility out the rear window, huge blindspot
• No telescoping steering wheel
• No dual climate control
• Power delivery too tame