2023 Nissan Z reborn with nostalgic styling and 400 hp

The Nissan 370Z was conceived more than a decade ago. The little sports car was playing the baby brother to the R35 Nissan GT-R for a long while now. After years of yearning for it, the Nissan fans finally have an answer to their pleas. Nissan replaces the 370Z with an “all-new” sports car, the 2023 Nissan Z.

All-new is a relative term though. While every bit of the car appears to be new, including the turbo powertrain, the new Z shares the same wheelbase and roofline as the 370Z, pretty much confirming that the platform remains largely the same as the old model, albeit with upgrades. However, having secretly seen the prototype way back in 2019 on a trip to Nissan’s Japanese design facility, we can confirm it looks amazing in person.

Teasing us with a concept back in 2020, the Nissan Z breaks cover with looks that are almost completely carried over from the concept. The pointed nose, square-shaped grill, and teardrop-like headlamps are inspired by the original Z, the Fairlady. The rear takes inspiration from the 300 ZX, with a gloss black part running across the width of the car and the horizontal LED tail lamps embedded in it. There are dual exhaust tips, housed within a pronounced gloss black diffuser. The Nissan Z gets two models, Sport and Performance, separated by some visual elements including different sized wheels and a rear spoiler.

The interior is also a nostalgia fest. The Nissan Z welcomes you with GT-R inspired seats that are swathed in leather in the performance trim. The Sport model gets cloth upholstery. There are dash-mounted analog dials, a throwback to the 240Z,  reading out turbocharger boost, turbine speed, and a voltmeter. Modernizing things a bit are the two 8.0-inch screens for the infotainment and Driver Information Display. This will grow into 9.0-inch units in the Performance trim.

Now, to the interesting end. The power for the 2023 Nissan Z comes from a new twin-turbo 3.0-litre V6 that churns out 400 hp, making it more powerful than the BMW Supra. The power is accompanied by 475 Nm of torque, driving the rear wheels. A standard six-speed manual is offered, with a high-performance clutch and rev-matching capabilities. The performance trim gets launch control as well. The optional transmission is a nine-speed automatic which too gets the Launch control and rev-matching. It also gains a limited-slip differential and aluminum paddle shifters, the latter only offered in the Performance trim.

The Nissan Z gets more improvements in the form of tweaked suspension, electric steering, and an overall increase in structural rigidity. To keep the new Z safe, Nissan throws in lane-departure warning, adaptive cruise control, rear cross-traffic alert, blind-spot warning, automatic emergency braking with pedestrian detection etc.

For the early birds jumping in to buy this car, Nissan has a special offer – a limited run of Nissan Z Proto Spec trim. This specific trim is limited to 240 units and features many traits of the concept from 2020 – the yellow brake calipers, bronze 19-inch wheels and yellow accents in the interior.

Expect the new Z to reach our UAE and GCC shores by late summer next year.