Roughly 160 million years ago, dinosaurs and the Nissan 370Z roamed the Earth together, in harmony. The dinosaurs have since died out, but the 370Z persevered. But its time might soon also be drawing to a close. New rumours have emerged about its successor, which I’m still personally doubtful will actually happen. But I digress!
Nissan, apparently, is working on the next-generation Z car and it will feature a “heritage-inspired design,” according to Autoblog, which spoke to unnamed sources who have laid eyes on the car at dealer meetings. It’s unclear if “heritage” here means the same car we’ve had for a decade because I’d certainly consider that “heritage” at this point.
From the story:
The silhouette and general shape is similar to the current Z, but the design is all new. The front end mimics that of a 240Z with a square mouth and near-round headlights. Its rear taillights are meant to follow that of the 300ZX from the 1990s.
Furthermore, the interior is allegedly going to see some changes. Currently, the 2019 Nissan 370Z Heritage Edition, one of the most recently released 370Zs you can buy, does not have a modern infotainment system, let alone a screen. (There’s a storage cubby in that space instead).
It looks like this:
Admittedly, I’ve not been a fan of the increasingly screen-heavy interiors of the modern era. I actually prefer a simpler, less fussy design such as this, but you’d have a hard time convincing actual buyers this is good and competitive. So, the upcoming Z will reportedly have an interior that’s similar to the Altima and Sentra and will finally “get a real infotainment system.”
Power-wise, the new Z car will also reportedly get the 3.0-litre, twin-turbo V6 that’s found in the Infiniti Q50 and Q60 400 Red Sport. Presently, the 370Z uses a naturally aspirated, 3.7-litre V6, called the VQ37VHR. We’ve actually seen a VR30DDTT twin-turbo V6 version of the 370Z, but it was a SEMA project car.
And finally, there could be a Nismo Z. I’ll let Autoblog take it away:
As for a possible Nismo variant in the future, one of our sources also tells us it’s likely that we’ll see this version join the next-generation Z car eventually. Close to 500 horsepower is rumoured for this specific flavour of Z.
OK then! A new Nissan [SOME NUMBER]Z with a twin-turbo V6, a contemporary interior and a 500-HP Nismo version? Is this the future we can all hope for? Should I go back to hoping someone will fix Anthem?
A Nissan spokesperson, when tapped for comment, could not confirm any details from Autoblog’s story.