Nothing like a positive bit of sports car news to brighten up a miserable Monday morning, is there? Today that comes from Nissan (or, to be specific,
Autocar
), with confirmation emerging of a car to replace the 370Z. As discussed in our first drive of the
model year 2018 car
recently, that's probably not before time...
The car, known only at the moment by its Z35 internal code, will be the sister model of the Infiniti Q60 - a similar arrangement to recently, of course, where the 370 and Infiniti 370/Q60 shared a great deal of parts. The biggest change now will be the switch to turbocharging, with the Zed likely to use the Q60's twin-turbo 3.0-litre V6, plus the potential of four-wheel drive for the NISMO flagship. Autocar also expects the next Zed, which could be called the 400Z, to be larger than the current car, at more than 4.5m long.
Other than that, details are predictably scarce. You can see in Autocar's rendering a car that mirrors the silhouette of the current moswl, with its cab-rearward stance, minimal overhangs and aggressive details - we would expect a similarly punchy look from the production car. Because what's a Zed without a bit of attitude? It has been suggested that the concept of this car will be shown at the Tokyo show this year, with the production version due at LA in 2019. Doesn't seem all that far off...
And what an exciting time it could prove to be for rear-wheel drive sports cars. Not so long ago it felt like the genre was dead and buried, but this time next year there will be a new Supra around, potentially a new Nissan Zed as well, plus Alpine A110s in the UK too. Could even be a new Elise on the horizon... More on that Nissan as soon as we know it!
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