2010 Nissan 370Z Nismo

I'm not saying all this to be contrary or cute. I have personally logged over 1,500 miles in a couple different 370Zs and, to be honest, the experience wasn't much different than the over 1,500 miles I have traveled in various Infiniti G37s. Not that there is anything wrong with the Infiniti, but the Z should be a sports automobile, not a luxury tourer. That is why it was such a breath of fresh air – both literal and otherwise – when they got our hands on the 370Z Roadster. It was like going from black and white to color. Eventually, the new Z was fun, engaging – thrilling even. Trouble was, they knew the Nismo was coming and had that stuffy roof. Yeah, we'd go quick for a week, but I feared being ultimately underwhelmed. Well guess what? Not so with Nismo.

There's no safe way to say it: this blogger doesn't like the 2010 Nissan 370Z much. Sure, it is a fine sporty automobile that goes about its business quickly and competently, but it leaves me cold. Yes, it can hit 60 mph in 5 seconds, hold 0.99 g on a skid pad and get around a track faster than a Porsche Cayman, but it doesn't rocket to 60 mph in 5 seconds like Wile E. Coyote shot from a greased Acme canon. Nor does it tenaciously hold 0.99 g like a kid possum gripping onto mama during a lightning storm. And yeah, you guessed it, I'd much get there a second or eight late in the mid-engined Porsche. Or, more appropriately, a 2010 Mustang GT. Long story short, the 370Z is a little dull.

Meet the 2010 Nissan 370Z Nismo, far and away the best Z ever. This is the automobile enthusiasts have been hoping for ever since they learned that Nissan would be chopping eight inches out of the Z's wheelbase and bumping the displacement by 0.2-liters over the outgoing 350Z. But the Nismo's even over that. , the Nismo is the sports automobile the 370Z should have been right out of the box, but for various reasons is not. One of those being that marketers have to hit their price points. Meaning that if the Z's competition (i.e. Mustang GT) sells for less than $30,000, Nissan has to sell something as cheaply. This leads to all sorts of ironies, like oil coolers, big brakes and LSDs being options on supposed "sports cars." But the other reason is that the Nismo is not for everyone. In fact, you probably would not like it. Us? They love it.

Before they get to why we are so smitten, let's talk about what $40,000 gets you. On the outside you get a new, low-riding front clip that is missing the fish-fangs, a Porsche GT3-look spoiler, rear brake vents and 19-inch forged Nismo wheels. Inside, you get aggressive-look red stitching and cloth (hurray!) Nismo seats that are devoid of power adjustments. Trust us, you'll live. There is also a Nismo plaque on the door sill. So far, no big deal, but underneath is where the real magic happens. Thanks to an ECU re-flash and thicker-diameter H-pipe exhausts (as opposed to the X-pipe in the standard), the Nismo makes 18 more horsepower (for a total of 350 hp) and 4 extra torques (276 lb-ft). The Nismo also gets all new shocks, springs and sway bars, and an LSD, lots of coolers and upgraded brakes. Add it all up and the sum is flippin' spectacular.

First of all, puttering around the block you notice that the Nismo feels like a sports automobile. You have to shove the stick into gear. The linkage is finicky – maybe even a touch temperamental. It creaks, too. In fact, the whole automobile is constantly groaning, clanking and straining – exactly the way big brother GT-R does when driven slow. In the age they find ourselves in – where engineers are nose-led by marketers to focus groups and remove all NVH – it is refreshing to get vehicles with an "imperfection" or eight. The Nismo has not been sterilized, homogenized or pasteurized – i.e. it is raw, and most definitely bad for you. Well, your driver's license at any rate.

Then there is the ride. If Nissan would have named it the "370Z Kidney Smasha" they would not have been far off. Brutal, punishing, like roller blading over a diamond patch – you get the idea. And the road noise is immense. On top of that, you are seated inches above an exhaust-pipe, so besides the mechanical roar and buzzing of the 3.7-liter VQ, you can actually hear the spent gases coming out the back. Maybe the best part is that after the brakes, clutch and fluids have all been stressed and superheated by a lively romp across your favorite road, the Nismo smells like a sports automobile. To imitate our New York friends: there is no Infiniti to be found here, son.

We are sure because of its extra grunt that the Nismo's a tick or eight faster than the plain elderly 370Z in all the relevant performance metrics. Long story short: on paper there is not much difference. But the eight feel worlds apart. Aside from straight line speed, the new spine-snapping suspension setup trumps the regular automobile in terms of capability. With the regular coupe, you sort of absently go about your business until you reach the car's limit and put a few wheels in the dirt. But the Nismo gives you options. Should you be on your best SCCA/NASA behavior, you can achieve all your braking in a straight line, rheostat the wheel to the desired angle and sit in amazement at how such a heavy automobile (relatively speaking) carries so much speed so smoothly around a corner.

But maybe you have been watching too much Top Gear and what you need is to toss the automobile hard into a corner, hoping to induce some smoky oversteer and let the rear wheels power you on out. Not a problem, as somehow the limited slip differential is able to overcome the gross amount of inherent stickum and dorifto dawg the rear finish around a bend. a little, but it is . Let's say you need a third path – some one of a kind combination of techniques (in my case, trail braking and incompetence) – the Nismo's nice with that, too. few cars exhibit a better combination of manners and capabilities on tortured and crooked roads, and if they do they either cost a whole lot more or have names like Miata or RX-8 R3. But even still, handling prowess is not what makes the Nismo so special.

It took us two days and over 750 miles with the 2010 Nissan 370Z Nismo to eventually put into words what makes this brute so dang special, even though they sensed why after a few miles. You know how you always read automobile reviews that say stuff like, "Even though [whatever] can hoof it around the Nürburgring in less time that it takes you to blink, it is equally happy limping around town in second gear?" Well the Nismo is totally unhappy to limp around town in second gear. In fact, it is miserable and it lets you know how displeased it is by the aforementioned grunts, groans and clanks. They are like a warning chime, "Please sir, you aren't flogging me hard ."

And it is not only that. They found it impossible to be in the Nismo and be behind another automobile. You simply have to pass them. Likewise, it is impossible to obey posted speed limits. The Nismo won't let you. You have to push it, step on it, abuse it – the Nismo forces your hand (and foot) into constant acts of hoonage. And the world, or at least the roads, are a better place for it.

So says us. And they know we are in the minority, but they need cars that demand to be punched in the face, that leave their driver with no choice but to go for that extra tenth while shedding that extra second and melting more rubber. They believe they are called sports cars. While sadly a dying breed in Japan these days, the 2010 Nissan 370Z Nismo fits the description perfectly.