Buying a used Nissan 370Z (2009-2013)

Fifty years ago a 'sports car' was most likely to be built in England with two seats, suspect reliability and a folding top guaranteed to leak. Then, in 1969 Nissan announced its 240Z with two seats, a fixed roof with hatchback access and all the durability needed to win multiple rally titles. Sports cars would never be the same again.

Various incarnations of the Z Car followed, but it took until the appearance of the 370Z in 2009 for Nissan to recapture its original concept.

With North American sales clearly in its sights the new coupe was 100mm shorter in the wheelbase than the 350Z it replaced, lighter but also wider and with more rubber on the road.

A glance inside confirmed that this was a very uncompromising two-seat sports car intended to be driven by people who put enjoyment first and practicality well down on their list of required attributes.

The V6 gained marginally in capacity and considerably in power over the preceding model. With 3.7-litres and significant mechanical strengthening the engine produced 247kW and could be hooked to a six-speed manual or seven-speed automatic transmission.

Unlike the preceding 350Z there was no choice of Track and Touring in the 370Z range. A single specification coupe was available to Australian buyers, with 2009 prices starting at $67,990. The automatic added $3K, but for their money 370Z buyers would enjoy climate-control air-con, heated and electrically adjustable leather seats with suede inserts and a high-end Bose music system with speakers everywhere.

The auto, as expected, included a 'Sport' mode and paddle shifters that moved in unison with the steering wheel. The manual shift was good too; slick and precise with a clutch designed by performance transmission specialists Exedy.

However, the feature that achieved disproportionate media comment was 'Synchrorev'. It automatically detected when a downshift was being made and would mimic the rev-matching throttle 'blip' employed by keen drivers in an old-style manual car.

Proper sports cars seemingly must have a topless version, so early in 2010 Nissan added a Roadster to the 370Z range. Being minus a chunk of its expensive bodywork didn't slice anything off the price, with the basic cost in fact jumping by $7000.

Looking at the range of occupant protection devices fitted to the 370Z, Nissan has obviously been diligent in its approach to safety. However, we have no data against which to judge the car's behaviour in a crash and it hasn't scored a high grading score for this important attribute, as such.

Given the small volumes sold in Australia it's fair enough that ANCAP have not have crashed a 370Z but we thought that the USA or European testing agencies would have slammed a few into concrete walls. Apparently not and we can only surmise that a car with all of the Z's air-bags, stability control, Xenon headlights and belt pre-tensioners would warrant at least a four-star rating.

Mid-life crisis, what crisis? A decade after the first 370Z was previewed, Nissan recently released the latest Nismo model, so demand is still there. The current car also costs far less than the original and that is putting pressure on the used market to deliver barely-used coupes at half the cost of a 2018 version.

If you're buying a 370Z purely for the style then that's OK. However the engine is such an involving device it seems a shame not to indulge every so often. The Nissan V6 produces its peak torque at a quite extraordinary 5200rpm and having reached the point where the car feels like it's working properly you then want to keep it howling all the way to 7000rpm where the power peaks.

In a manual the stumpy gearshift is enormous fun to use, but then the practicalities of being stuck in weekend, beach road traffic jam surface and you decide to give the seven-speed auto a try. Not quite as tactile to be sure but faster when you need to drop a cog and jump into that rapidly-closing traffic gap.

The leather/suede seats are pliant enough to provide a comfortable perch for long-distance travellers and there's enough room in the footwells for most people. The seats don't try to crush your ribcage like those in some performance cars and we suspect you would need to be pushing 1.0g or better on a race-track to find any flaws in their lateral grip.

Being wider than a typical sports car the 370Z can provide decent levels of elbow and shoulder room and still have space for a decent-sized centre console. Only issue here is the odd placement of the handbrake way over on the (in RHD cars) passenger side.

The pillars which contribute to overall strength and roll-over protection in the Roadster are chunky and in such close proximity to the door mirror that other vehicles and pedestrians can be obscured. Rear vision when reversing is awful and an after-market camera makes sense.

A US magazine testing a 370Z in Sport mode found it would run 0-60mph (0-97km/h) in a withering 4.6 seconds and slap down a standing 400 metre time of 13.1. Both times were faster by a couple of tenths than the manual car could manage.

Fuel consumption figures will be of little interest to the owners of cars that barely use a tankful of Premium per month. If you do intend using your 370Z more regularly though, a claimed 10.6L/100km (combined) figure for the manual variant and real world average of around 14L/100 aren't too shabby.

These are cars built with smooth surfaces in mind – even if those surfaces belong to a race-circuit. Away from that kind of environment the 35-Series rubber and firmish suspension won't be in their element, however if you do head for the distant hills, make sure your roadside assistance is valid.

The temporary spare wheel looks better suited to a motor scooter, and luggage space at the rear is so tight the passenger may complete the journey cuddling a hefty wheel and smelly flat tyre.

>> Many cars suffer failures due to excessive use, however 370Z buyers may find the reverse. Cars that are close on a decade old and have travelled minimal distances can still need significant money spent to rectify the ravages of age. Suspension bushings, brakes and underbonnet plastics will display the most obvious signs but look also at tyres that may only be half worn but hard as bricks and starting to crack.

>> Nissan's recommended 10,000-kilometre service interval might be way too long between drinks (of lubricant) for a 370Z. Check the service history to make sure that the car has visited a workshop at least every 12 months. Neglected servicing can allow oil sludge to form and cause very expensive mechanical damage.

>> These cars sit low and Australia is a generally unfriendly place for them. Even before sending your chosen Z for a full mechanical inspection, get down low looking for damage to the sump, exhaust and vulnerable front air-intake.

>> Have the roof on Roadsters lowered and raised a couple of times in succession, watching for any shuddering or binding or untoward noises. Look for marks where the rear cover might have been hitting the bodywork.

>> Check the inner edges of tyres in case the car has been running for some time with poor alignment. Remember that the tyres are not interchangeable front to rear.

Used vehicle grading: 
Design & Function: 16/20
Safety: 12/20
Practicality: 12/20
Value for Money: 12/20
Wow Factor: 16/20
Score: 68/100