Bad News: Nissan Kills the GT-R. Good News: There’s a New Edition of the Nissan Z
Coincidence? We doubt it. Nissan’s announcement Friday that the company will “sunset” its GT-R model in October, followed by today’s announcement that Nissan will offer the Z Heritage Edition, paying homage to the original Datsun 240Z, is likely the company’s way of saying that it’s time to take your eye off the GT-R, and pay more attention to our other sports car, which will be sticking around for quite a while.
We knew the news about the GT-R was coming, and last month, we told you about the new colors that are being offered on the 2024 Takumi (Bayside Blue, $151,090) and Skyline (Midnight Purple, $131,090) editions. The only fresh information offered on Friday was that the GT-R, which debuted in the U.S. in 2007, will go away in October after 17 years of loyal service. No word on a replacement yet, but don’t hold your breath.
The Z Heritage Edition, though, is kind of interesting: The return of Nissan’s Z hasn’t had the impact the company hoped it would. It debuted in the summer of 2022 to mixed reviews, with some saying its performance is less than anticipated. To answer that, Nissan added the NISMO Z for 2024, which added 20 horsepower to the car, for a total of 420, plus other performance enhancements.
This new Heritage Edition Z is painted in the iconic shade of New Sight Orange used on a hefty percentage of the original 240Zs. It also gets, says Nissan, “a new front fascia with more rectangular grille openings, 19-inch alloy wheels and fender extensions at each corner, all harkening back to the look of the historic 240Z.”
The engine is the base twin-turbo, 3.0-liter V-6 with 400 horses, mated to a six-speed manual or a nine-speed automatic transmission. It also gets a black hood decal, bodyside decals and exclusive Heritage Edition decals around the Z emblems behind the quarter windows. It’s based on the Z Performance spec, getting that package’s red brake calipers and a mechanical limited-slip differential. Manual-adjust Recaro seats mean you’ll have a comfortable place to sit.
The Heritage Edition goes on sale, in “limited quantities,” this summer with a starting price of $59,135. The NISMO Z, available now, starts at $65,750.
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Sad to see the GT-R go even if it has sold so poorly in the last years.
The Z isn’t selling well due to price and the competition it faces as well as in my area crappy Nissan dealer experiences who want to price this thing extra silly with their markups. Nissan lost any performance image it had years ago with me and many others.
Price it at $40K where it ought to be at best. Any V8 Stang will leave it for dead. And I’m a former Z car owner and fan. Car hasn’t been right since the 90’s edition-which was great. I had a 280ZX which was a bit of a boulevardier, but with T-tops off on a nice day who cared. The SHO’s that followed it in the 90’s would have also left it for dead….
Price, Price , Price… You have two ways to manage interest and competition: Value and Cost. Unfortunatley for Nissan, the Z image has always been linked to “affordable sports car”. Nissan has tried to erase it form our memory for generations but it has stuck.
The Z has always kept it’s value image amongst enthusiasts that really move towards it in the used car market, where it can be aquired, competitively. Nissan has kept pushing for higher and higher prices forgetting what the Z idea was originally and loosing many enthusiasts along the way.
Example, Miata MX5… It has tried to hold true to the original formula fos as much as possible and the package is mostly the same…
The Z has become heavy and slow…forgetting its true roots and pricewise it has also become unreachable to them that COULD afford it… Nissan has shot itself on the foot … Return the Z to its rightful place and we will follow.
Previous Z owner of a 280Z 1978, before it started to become overweight and full of fashion…
The new Z in automatic form has been clocked by reviewers as low as 3.7 seconds to 60. Hardly slow. I wouldn’t pay $60k either for one though.
Illogical… I have yet to see a new Z on the road: and I’m in socal. It’s sort of DOA. But I’ve seen plenty of new GTRs, mind that numerous mk V Supras.
I had a a 1991 300zx twin turbo & a 1995 twin turbo , & people forget they rear steering & didn’t cost alot to Dyno over 650 -700 hp without NOS , they were singing to drive & I use to pull anything next to me on the road , including Supra’s ! Wish they’d bring them back ! Lol I had a 1993 Mazda RX-7 also & it was fun to drive but nothing handled & grip like the Z T.T. !!
Sorry spellcheck got me on a few words 😂 ugh