The long-awaited Nissan 370Z Roadster is finally available to order, and the final prices and specs have been announced. Prices start at £29,900 making the Z nearly £4000 cheaper than a Porsche Boxster and over £7500 cheaper than an equivalent Mercedes SLK.
According to Nissan, the 370Z was designed with a Roadster application in mind, meaning minimal strengthening was needed when removing the tin lid. A total of 61kg has been added to the weight, including the roof mechanism, bringing the kerb weight up to around 1586kg.
Both roadster and coupe versions of the 370Z receive a slightly tweaked version of the 3.7-litre V6 engine for 2010, but sadly this is just to get them to comply with Euro 5 emissions standards, and performance appears to be unaffected. Nevertheless you're still left with 323hp to channel through either a six-speed manual or, for the first time on a European 'Z', a seven-speed paddleshift automatic gearbox, and 0-60mph should still be managable in under 6 seconds.
Standard equipment on the 370Z Roadster is pretty generous, with a body-coloured solid tonneau cover, electrically adjustable air-conditioned seats, Bluetooth connectivity, steering wheel controls, bi-xenon headlamps and a set of bespoke 18-inch alloys.
There is a luxury option called the 'GT Pack', which adds black suede and leather seats, posh Bose stereo, cruise control and bigger 19-inch wheels, but it'll set you back a hefty £3300. Sat-nav adds another £1550 to the list price, and £1400 for the auto 'box for those that way inclined.
For those feeling really flush, the £1500 'Connect Premium' pack from the GT-R can now be ordered with any 370Z. The package brings a high-resolution dash-mounted screen, uprated sat-nav, a DVD player and USB connectivity.
Orders for the 370Z Roadster are being taken now with deliveries due to start on 1st March.