'Nissan Z' Name Rumoured For 370Z Replacement, Will Cost $35k And Up

We’ve been using the name ‘400Z’ for the next-generation Nissan Z car since the thing was first rumoured (many) years ago, but it looks like the manufacturer is going a different way. According to a substantial leak on the 400Z Club, it’ll simply be called the ‘Nissan Z’. Unless that is, you live in Japan, in which case it’ll be the ‘Fairlady Z’.

In the US, the starting MSRP for the most basic version will apparently be $34,995, undercutting the entry-level 2.0-litre Toyota GR Supra by $8000 and the 3.0-litre version by a whopping $16,000. The Supra is well equipped as standard, though, and it sounds as though you’ll need to pay a lot more than $35k to get a Z to a similar spec level.

An S package focusing on performance-oriented items like bigger Brembo brakes and beefier anti-roll bars is said to weigh in at $5000, while the similarly priced T package focuses on luxuries like heated and cooled electric leather seats. ‘ST’ includes both and will require the buyer to part with $10,000.

None of these options changes what’s under the bonnet - a 3.0-litre ‘VR30DDTT’ twin-turbo V6 producing around 400bhp propels all derivatives. Power will go to the rear via either a six-speed manual or a nine-speed automatic sourced via Nissan’s strategic cooperation with Mercedes. Every model will also get the fixed rear ducktail spoiler seen in the recently leaked photos.

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The engine, currently found in the Infiniti Q60 and Q50 (known as the Skyline in the JDM), won’t be the only borrowed element of the Z. It’ll reportedly sit on an evolved version of the FM platform used for the 370Z and various Nissan/Infiniti models going back 20 years. It won’t be an especially light car, with an expected dry weight of 1475kg.

The Z will almost certainly be revealed at some point this year, but there’s a question mark over the USA on-sale date, with various reports out there suggesting both late 2021 and spring 2022. It won’t be coming to Europe at all due to strict emissions rules and the poor state of the sports car market here. Boo.