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The Nissan 350Z is a coupé and roadster built by Nissan. It was introduced in August 2002 and is the fifth generation of Nissan's Z-car line, carrying the chassis designation Z33. In the Japanese market, the model is named "Fairlady Z". The 350Z is Nissan's first sports car in North America since the 1998 discontinuation of the 200SX, 240SX and 300ZX.
After the Z32 was withdrawn from the U.S. market in 1996, Nissan initially attempted to keep the Z name alive by re-creating the 240Z the following year. The car was conceived by Nissan's North American design team in their free time, and the concept was introduced in a four-state Road Show in July 1998 to various car media, dealers and employees. Yutaka Katayama, regarded as the "Father of the Z", unveiled the Z concept sketch to the public when he received a motor industry award at the Ritz-Carlton hotel. The design, representing a modern vision of the 240Z, did not please the original 240Z designer Yoshihiko Matsuo, who compared it to the Bluebird and Leopard[2][3]
The first concept model was produced for the Detroit Motor Show for the following January then later at the Los Angeles Auto Expo. Nissan was unhappy with the first design. They felt that the original 200 bhp 2.4 L engine (known as the KA24DE) that was going to be assigned made the car more underpowered. They also felt that the car was considered too "retro" or too "backward" to resemble a futuristic 240Z, thus a redesign was under way. During a press conference in February 2000, President Carlos Ghosn gave the car the green light, as he felt the car would help to assist the company's recovery.[2]
The redesigned model, now known as the Z Concept, which was similar in body shape but with a redesigned front end, was unveiled at the Detroit Motor Show two years later. The car then underwent a minor redesign and was eventually assigned the VQ35DE engine, and the car became known as the 350Z. The car would break tradition by being the first Z not to be produced at the Shatai plant.
Released on August 20, 2002, the 2003 350Z coupe was available in the U.S. in 5 trim packages, including the Base, Enthusiast, Performance, Touring, and Track Editions. In Europe only the Base version and a GT pack were sold. The GT pack had leather seats, Bose stereo system, and cruise control over the Base model. Nissan's performance tuning division, Nismo, began producing modified versions of the car shortly after its introduction, although in the UK these were only available one year after the car was launched.
In 2004 Nissan introduced the 350Z roadster featuring an electrically retractable soft-top hood. The car came in 2 trim packages (Enthusiast and Touring) in the U.S. market, and the Base and GT packs in Europe.
In 2005 Nissan launched a 35th Anniversary edition, which featured options such as "Z" emblems and 5-spoke wheels. The 2005 35th Anniversary edition 6-speed manual and 2005 Track trims both produce 300 hp and 296 torque (224 kW). In addition, The 35th Anniversary and Track 350Z also included revised pistons and camshaft profiles, and a new type of control to the variable valve timing. Although there were increases in power, the changes lead to a decrease in peak torque in the vehicle.
Nissan also added the Grand Touring trim to the Roadster trim packages for 2005. Since the anniversary edition all 6-speed models produce 300 hp / 260 ft·lb (224 kW / 353 N·m).
For the 2007 model year, the 350Z was moderately revised. The VQ35DE V6 was replaced with a new 3.5 L VQ35HR V6. It produced 306 hp at 6800 rpm with 268 lb-ft at 4800 rpm. The front bumper, hood, and headlamps were also revised with the hood featuring a bulge reminiscent of the original 240Z. Trims levels were also narrowed down to 350Z (base), Enthusiast, Touring, and Grand Touring.
The British Motoring magazine Top Gear voted the Nissan 350Z "Car of the Year" in 2004.[9]
The 350Z was also featured on the Top Gear TV program, where it was driven around the test track in a time of 1:31.8 - putting it level with the BMW M3 and the Mazda RX-8.
The car was also the vehicle driven by the villain "DK" in the movie The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift, where it was styled with a VeilSide body-kit.[10]
The 350Z has also appeared in numerous motoring-based video games including: Need for Speed: Underground (in which it featured on the TV advert), Need for Speed: Carbon, Project Gotham Racing 2, Forza Motorsport (it features on the box cover), Sega GT2002 (also appears on the box cover of the Japanese version), Juiced, L.A. Rush, Test Drive Unlimited, Gran Turismo 3: A-Spec (as a concept car), and Gran Turismo 4 - of which a special, limited "Nissan 350Z edition" was released.[11]
The roadster 350Z is also driven by Edie Britt (played by Nicollette Sheridan) in the TV show Desperate Housewives.
The Autobot known as Prowl transforms into a Nissan 350Z in the 2006 Transformers: Infiltration comic.
Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nissan_350Z |
