You should all have been at Steve Lack's Kent Group Meet on Sunday - a representative of Nissan Ancaster (Penge) brought a blue metallic Fairlady Z auto 350 for us to paw and prod (and sit in).
I have some quite cynical observations as a result, concerning Nissan's plans for the U.K. version and the changes inflicted on this car by SVA testing:
1. The prediction is that 60% of sales will be auto (because this is the figure from the Z32 sales).
2. The front indicator strips and bumper repeater strips may not be legal for U.K. / Europe: this example had them disabled and an orange bulb stuck in the upper part of the headlamp. Also, the wings had been drilled to fit some tacky side repeaters under the Z emblem.
3. We can't have Xenon headlamps unless at least washers are fitted - cue two ugly blobs on the front bumper.....
4. Although Japanese cars made in the U.K. and Japanese home market cars have the indicator stalk on the right, Nissan plan to swap the 350Z one to the left. Also, apparently cars for U.K. / Europe made in Japan have this feature.....
5. The standard brakes look like recycled 280ZX units - please let us have Brembos......
6. The jewel-like Z logo rear strut brace has already been toned down to a matt alloy finish and may have to go altogether. Complaints apparently of reflected Z logo in rear view (pretty cool, I'd say!<img src="http://www.zclub.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt='
'>. If golf club toting executives had their way, the strut brace would be removed entirely (can't get the golf bag in the back).
7. Already the "Nissan cheap plastic" jibes are starting and there are complaints that there is no glove box - despite cavernous storage bins behind the seats!
8. Paint quality was dubious with poor colour matching of fuel filler and bumper / bonnet / wing lines.
9. SVA speedo conversion had disabled some trip computer gauge functions and made two buttons inoperative.
10. U.K. cars will have a restyled (read big and ugly) rear number plate indent and probably separate inserts for rear fogs. This car had the worst SVA fog lamp conversion (bar the "Halfords dangler") - a bit of red plastic stuck on the outside of one reversing lamp.......
Personally, I'm still very impressed by the car, but would be very choosy about spec. I'm not convinced that U.K. cars are going to be right (somebody please prove me wrong!!!!<img src="http://www.zclub.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt='
'>. The interior is wonderfully tactile for all the driver bits, seating position is excellent, the tilt wheel perfect, the plastic is quite acceptable, even the wobbly centre bin lid (Sat-Nav cover on fully equipped cars) is fine as long as you don't deliberately bash it about like most motoring journalists seem to.
I still want it, but the higher import specs look much more appealing than a base model Fairlady Z. Are the importers providing the information on options to prospective punters? £31,700 would be a lot to pay for a base model car.......