Introduction

The Nissan 350Z was extensively upgraded for 2006, and for 2007 Nissan turned its attention to the engine, which has been redesigned for substantially more power. This brought a styling bonus. Because the more powerful engine needed better breathing, the 2007 Nissan 350Z gets a new hood and front fascia that sucks in more air. The new 3.5-liter V6 engine is used in all seven models of the 350Z. Something like 80 percent of the parts in the engine are new for 2007. On paper, the 2006 engine was rated 300 horsepower. For 2007 the output has been raised to 306 hp, but the increase is more than 6 hp because beginning in 2007 there's a more stringent industry standard for measuring horsepower, as determined by the Society of Automotive Engineers. The Nissan 350Z is fast, fun, and pure sports car. It costs about 10 times as much as the original 240Z, which went for about $3500, but in today's dollars that's only twice as much (as calculated by the Consumer Price Index). But you get about 10 times the car, so you're still way ahead. Improvements for 2006 included upsized alloy wheels, tighter rack-and-pinion steering, bigger brakes, better headlamps, and a higher quality sound system. For 2007, side-impact air bags are added as standard equipment to the Roadster, and two Coupe models get the Bluetooth Hands-Free Phone System with steering wheel-mounted controls. When you consider components such as a carbon-fiber driveshaft and drive-by-wire throttle, as well as the convenience features that come standard, such as automatic temperature control and a premium stereo, the price of $27,900 for the Base Coupe is compelling. Of course, the other six models escalate in price, to $41,250 for a Grand Touring Roadster with optional five-speed automatic transmission. But they all come standard with that 306-hp engine and six-speed manual transmission. The 350Z is a true-blue sports car with creature comforts. Its firm ride, abrupt throttle response, and awkward cup holders don't make it a great place to drink coffee and make phone calls on the way to work, but there's a lot of cargo space for a sports car, and it isn't awkward to climb in and out. The excellent optional five-speed automatic makes a civilized commuter car, while still making you happy during a weekend run down a racer road. The Nissan 350Z delivers more than the promise of its powerful looks. It's a visceral sports car with serious performance that you can live with every day. The Roadster adds wind-in-your hair freedom.

Walkaround

Not much has changed with the looks of the Nissan 350Z in recent years. But for 2007 there is one distinctive and telltale feature: a big hump in the hood. That was necessary to make room for the new engine, which has a taller cylinder block and longer connecting rods, among other things. The new engine gets more air without any changes to the grille opening, which contains horizontal bars. There are three new colors for 2007: Solar Orange, San Marino Blue and Carbon Silver. The Roadster gets an optional gray convertible top, for 2007, replacing the high-profile blue one; basic black remains standard. The massive vertical bi-Xenon HID (high-intensity discharge) headlamps produce a white light, and the new LED (light emitting diode) taillights provide quicker response for the brake lights than filament bulbs. The bulging fenders and fastback and short front and rear overhangs give the Coupe its aggressive stance. This taut body layout, coupled with weight savings gained from a carbon fiber-reinforced, plastic driveshaft and an aluminum hood (and on the Roadster, a plastic trunk lid), balance the Z well for responsive handling. The Coupe's sleek shape helps the Z slice through the air with a minimum of drag: 0.29 Cd on the Grand Touring. The Roadster's cut-off backlight (rear windscreen) isn't nearly as slippery, attaining a drag coefficient of 0.34 Cd. Underbody airflow is managed well, with zero lift on the front, and zero lift on the rear of the Coupe Grand Touring thanks to new diffusers.

Interior Features

The Nissan 350Z cockpit is designed for driving, helping the driver quickly become one with the car. Cloth or leather are good choices in this car. The cloth seats are form-fitting, supportive and comfortable, made of a soft, carbon-fiber colored material that grips the body in the corners. The driver's seat bottom features a mound in the center at the front to restrain the driver from sliding forward under deceleration, known as submarining. Aggressive side bolsters grip the waist to hold the driver in place, especially in the Roadster models, which give the driver a more aggressively bolstered seatback. The leather seats in the Touring model feel firmer than those in cloth, and are available in charcoal, burnt orange or frost. The supportive seats and a driver's dead pedal mean you never feel like you have to hang on. Our Roadster Grand Touring came with the mesh seats, which are the only seats that lack adjustable headrests. We can't see the tradeoff for ventilation being worthwhile. Also, the leg bolstering dug into the sides of our thighs. We haven't noticed that with the regular leather seats. Once underway, however, we forgot about that initial discomfort. We drove some 700 miles in the Roadster GT, almost all of them on two-lanes while cornering, accelerating and braking hard (we used the dead pedal a lot), and the seat didn't wear on us as much as we expected it to. But we still think cloth might be better than the mesh. The seating position should be good for drivers with long legs, though the steering wheel felt a little close when the seat was adjusted for the legs of a six-footer. The Roadster boasts an inch more headroom than the hatchback, thanks to the articulation of the top's various mechanicals. Tilt the steering column and the main pod of gauges moves with it, ensuring a clear view of the instruments for drivers of all sizes. The instruments consist of a big tachometer and flanking speedometer, fuel and temperature gauges. Nestled in three pods on top of the dash are a voltmeter, an oil pressure gauge and a digital trip computer. Reminiscent of the original Z, they look retro-cool, but reading them requires more than a glance. Two toggles to the right of the steering wheel operate the trip computer, used to check outside air temperature, distance to empty, speed, average mileage, and average speed. It has a stopwatch function (to check out 0-60 times or lap times on a circuit or maybe for running a Monte Carlo style rally), and a tire-pressure monitor. With the Trip Computer, the driver can program a shift light to come on at a certain rpm. The small red indicator on the tachometer begins flashing about 500 rpm before the preset engine speed is reached, whereupon it comes on solid. You can program it for the ideal shift points for acceleration or for fuel economy, then let your peripheral vision pick up the indicator, which might prove more precise than using the seat of your pants. We've seen race cars with this feature (though the red shift light in those is sometimes as big as a golf ball). If you don't like this feature you can turn it off. The interior of the Z suggests the carbon-fiber tub of a prototype racecar. The material surrounding the shifter and forming the center dash looks like carbon fiber. Likewise, the large expanse of gray material lining the door panels suggests carbon fiber in appearance. The quality of the materials is okay, though some of the pieces would never be allowed in an Audi. It looked austere at first, but grew on us. Stylish interior touches, such as the inside door handles integrated into aerodynamic pods for the side vents, give the Z a racy, modern look; with the AC at work on hot days, the handles chill to fit their frosty look. Passengers often grope for the door release the first time they try to get out, distracted by the big grab handles adorned with genuine aluminum and relieved by the Z's dot motif. Audio contr