Name change for new Nissan Z

The new 2022 Nissan Z will almost certainly lose its numeric naming convention, waving goodbye to the outgoing 370Z badge and eschewing the widely reported 400Z moniker.

Our sources – along with reports from the key US market and various leaked images of the production car with no ‘400Z’ or similar badges – indicate that Nissan’s new Z35-series sports coupe will simply be called the ‘Z’.

Nissan revealed a new retro-styled Z badge in early 2020 and it will grace the seventh-generation model’s C-pillars, but there will be no ‘400Z’ badge to replace the numerical 370Z logo that appeared on the rear-end of the outgoing Z34.

The 400Z name was widely expected since the Z35 will come with an Infiniti-sourced 3.0-litre twin-turbo petrol V6 packing around 300kW – or 400hp. Along with about 500Nm of torque, it should bless the new Nissan Z with Toyota Supra-rivalling levels of thrust.

It’s understood a 300Z badge – to reflect its downsized engine capacity – would have been perceived as a backwards step from both the current 3.7-litre V6-powered 370Z and the 3.5-litre 350Z that preceded it.

While the simplified Nissan Z name is all but certainly locked in for the US market, it’s highly likely this new naming convention will be adopted globally as well.

Interestingly, however, the name change also leaves the door open for a larger-capacity NISMO flagship model potentially powered by a bigger, more powerful engine and possibly hybrid tech as well.

However, at present there appears to be no suitable engine for this application within the Nissan parts bin, other than the GT-R’s 3.8-litre twin-turbo V6. Logic would suggest an all-new engine could be used, or perhaps one jointly developed with alliance partners Mitsubishi and Renault.

More leaked images of the new Nissan Z have been leaked online recently, including fresh photos acquired by CarBuzz.com, in which only the Z badge is covered up.

It’s understood there are now several pre-production 2022 Nissan Zs in the USA as part of a hype campaign to get dealers excited about the new Japanese sports car. There’s even a new interior image showing the Z with a bright blue two-tone interior colour scheme, which could be reserved for a special launch edition.

The rear-drive Nissan Z will be offered with both manual and automatic transmissions – unlike its arch-rival, Toyota Supra, which is an auto-only sports car.

The two-seat Nissan Z coupe will also be a more affordable performance car, tipped to sit in the $60,000 to $70,000 bracket in Australia, and could also outpace the 285kW Supra with its circa-300kW V6.

Likely to be unveiled at the 2021 New York motor show in August, the new Nissan Z is expected to go on sale in the US later this year, and then in Australia from early 2022.