The Seventh Generation Nissan Fairlady Z Is A Triumph Of Design And Good Cost Control

September 16, 2020 in Automobiles

I want to share what the good car company in Yokohama just shared with the world. This is the seventh generation Nissan Fairlady Z, a car that shouldn't exist in today’s automotive market.

Chief engineer Hiroshi Tamura and the chief designer, Miami-born Alfonso Albaisa, have given the world a new (the last?) Fairlady Z. The 2-door Japanese sports car market should have died when the domestic bubble economy burst in 1991. So many marques disappeared after 1991. Some came back (GT-86, Supra). And some special cars, like the Honda S2000 attempted to bring the segment back. A lot of credit needs to be given to the rear-wheel drive Japanese sports cars that never left, the Mazda MX-5 and the Nissan Fairlady Z.

In the 4-door market, Subaru and Mitsubishi emerged as all-wheel drive performance leaders after 1992. Honda and Acura dominated the front-wheel drive 2-door and 4-door market after the bubble as well. As the 2-door Japanese sports car market collapsed, we also saw the fall of the Japanese 2-door luxury sports coupe. The Toyota Soarer, Nissan Sylvia and Nissan Leopard are gone. The European luxury sports coupes would follow 30 years later. Only now is Mercedes killing most of its flagship luxury sports coupes - the cars that really make Mercedes what it is (or was).

The market for 2-door sports cars in Japan faded as soon as the bubble burst. But we Americans -we consumers- who helped make 5 of the 6 major Japanese carmakers successful, kept the MX-5 and Z (and now the Supra and GT-86) alive. America also got the latest Nissan Skyline, another car that shouldn’t exist. Our passion for a lost, 20-year era of automotive history has established some options for those with decent disposable income to get into the game.

In the last two decades, annoying, vaping young men in cities like Los Angeles and Queens who bought Infiniti G35 and G37 coupes kept this segment alive. I want to believe that they knew the history of these cars, far before The Fast And The Furious: Tokyo Drift. These are the sport and luxury/sport coupes that salarymen bought when they moved up the company ladder. Many might have been girl-shy, but they could get a car called the Fairlady (ha!).

I will refer readers to the awesome crew at Japanese Nostalgic Car for a detailed analysis of the latest Z’s design. Oh, and Jason Torchinsky of Jalopnik just published an even better design review! I will leave my casual observations here.

I think Nissan has hit a home run. These design looks close to production-ready. It’s not too retro and it looks mildly post-modern. And while it has cutting edge rear LEDs, they are not too wild to manufacture. The interior has climate control knobs and door release handles out of the Nissan parts bin (those door handles are the same as those found in the discontinued Nissan Cube and Skyline Crossover). This tells me that this is very close to being production-ready, and the team was okay with dipping into the parts bin to save on costs. The polyester (alcantara) suede covering the center gauges is keeping with trends from last decade, and yet it works. After all, who is going to buy one of these aside from older drivers who want a little Japanese bubble era (Showa Era?) nostalgia and the younger drivers who have kept the Z alive?

Gimme the boost: The seventh generation Z will have a twin-turbo V6.

Back to those rear taillights, I love how the insides of those clusters resemble the bubble-era twin-turbo 300ZX (Z32). That’s a clear call to those who love the Z to come back (or stay loyal, if they already own a current generation 350Z or 370Z. The rectangular grille in the front is also a nod to history. The Z has not had fancy shaped grilles. It has kept it simple and rectangular for decades. It looks really good and clean.

Nissan is a corporation in trouble. They have bled cash, jobs, car models and market share. They didn’t have to do this. They need to sell crossovers and SUVs in North America, Europe, South America and Australia in order to fund fun projects like this. They failed to deliver the exciting, super cute, electric IDX coupe, which they unveiled as a concept in 2013. This new Z makes amends for that. It gives enthusiasts a new platform that can be used for cruising, commuting, or at the track, much like the Ford Mustang. It has the potential to be an affordable alternative to a Jaguar coupe, which was the styling intent of the original Z.

I’m excited about this car. It shouldn’t exist. Assuming this goes into production, it will be a sweet bonus - the continuation of the Z, which anchored Japanese sports coupes in North America for over 20 years.

In Defense Of The "Boring" Cars At The NYIAS: Part 1, The 2013 Toyota RAV4

April 14, 2013 in Automobiles

Car Shows are not really necessary, not in this day and age. The automotive press has shrunken in size. Manufacturers could simply stage events, like Apple or Samsung, and car fans will turn up to see it on the Internet, blogs, news sites, and all kinds of social media.

But car shows are fun. Exotic or hand built cars bring in a lot of ticket paying visitors, while dealers, parts suppliers, and the press all catch up with the latest selling points and automotive technology and marketing. That last bit is key. Going to an automobile show to see the press events is a window to how the vehicles are marketed.

Car design is almost always driven by marketing. Even manufacturers that make cars that put an emphasis on performance, are driven by marketing. BMW's reputation as a performance vehicle, as well as Mazda's reputation as being fun to drive, are shaped by marketing. It's almost all marketing, so as a regular attendee to these shows, I have learned not to get too excited by any car. Most cars aren't collected. They are utilitarian and help compliment an owner's lifestyle or personality. As passionate as I am about cars, I try to block out the highly seductive advertising and promises that come with them.

A few weeks ago, before the New York show, I saw Jalopnik's first impression of the 2013 RAV4. Travis Okulski called it a “sleeping pill.” Zac Estrada simply called it "boring" when it rolled out in LA last fall. Based on Toyota's track record since the Celica and MR-2 were discontinued, I was inclined to agree. Toyota sells a lot of cars by being mechanically reliable, and by playing it very safe (mostly). In many respects, Toyota has become one of the most conservative car makers in the world. They make cars you want to drive for five years and then get a new one without skipping a beat. That's the twentieth century American car marketing and manufacturing model, right?

I never liked the RAV4 very much. The first two generations won accolades for being small and fuel efficient. Motor Trend even called the first generation the best SUV of 1997. It accomplished what the Suzuki Samurai and Daihatsu Rocky couldn't, which was to bring better reliability and comfort to micro SUVs, thereby firmly establishing the segment in the USA. And yes, the RAV4 is credited with being the breakthrough hit that allowed the compact SUV market to flourish in the USA. The Samurai and Rocky were very popular in Africa, Sotheast Asia, and the Caribbean, but it was the RAV4 that made it into big American cities. When you see a Honda CR-V, Ford Escape, Hyundai Tucson, Chevy Captiva, or Kia Sportage, you are seeing a vehicle that is following a path that the RAV4 began.

Quick bad analogy, but here goes. Citizen Kane is boring for most people, but it is historically significant. That's the RAV4. Sort of.

But a funny thing happened when I checked out the RAV4 at the New York show this past month. I liked it. I like it better than any previous generation of the product. I like it's Scion-like quirks, such as the asymmetrical placement of the cup holders, or the faux carbon fiber in the center stack. I like the faux leather on the dashboard (which Toyota calls SofTex). I like the six speed automatic transmission and part time AWD.

Sure, I know, we have the right to like anything. The young writers at Jalopnik have the right to call it boring. But I was looking at the new RAV4 as a vehicle that has a little something for everyone. It is a family vehicle, for sure, with a lot more interior room than the Camry just three years ago. And it has classic Toyota touches that I haven't seen in a Toyota for a while, like a row of switches and buttons low on the center stack (that reminded me of every generation of the Land Cruiser since the 80s).

It has a little bit of quirkiness. The wedge front end took me back to the 80s a bit (anyone remember the Corolla FX-16 or the third generation Celica with the headlamps sloped back? This wedge is way bigger, but it made me think of those). And the standard, running board / side skirt on the premium models seems functional, like kids will use it to help them stem into the vehicle. So it's both a ground effect and a practical part of the car. That's 80s, too, I think. It made me wonder if any of the Toyota designers made intentional design winks to the cars that Toyota's customers grew up in. I'd like to think so.

But obviously Marketing drives the RAV4. Who is it for? Young families that need more space than the Camry or Corolla, and want the higher ride height. But it can't be priced higher than the Prius wagon or Highlander. So it's the one Toyota that offers a ton of interior room for the money. That's notable. And that's why I think this latest RAV4 will be remembered fondly out of all the others that succeeded that small, plastic coated SUV 16 years ago. This is the bang for the buck choice in the Toyota lineup.

Subaru Impreza And WRX To Split Into Two Platforms

September 02, 2011 in Automobiles

We Subaru fans must have seen this coming following the April debut of the 2012 Impreza. While we applaud the longer, roomier, smoother, and hopefully, more marketable Impreza for young singles and families, the new Impreza strays away from the rally car architecture from which it was born.

And so, the Impreza and WRX will go their separate ways this fall. It is for the best, I think. While I really like the current generation Impreza. It is for the best, as Subaru just can't continue to neglect or alienate its performance fans. Subaru means different things to different people. In New England, it is the only car some people want to drive. But in the hills of New Jersey and Pennsylvania and the desert roads of Nevada and Southern California, the WRX and STi are the only cars some people want to show off, modify, and burn rubber in.

So the Subaru roadmap looks lik this: The third generation Impreza will continue to be sold worldwide in its WRX and STi versions only. The fourth generation Impreza will arrive on the streets of Japan, Australia/NZ, Europe, and North America this November. Both cars will continue to be built in Subaru's plant in Ota (Gunma), Japan.

As for which new platform the all new WRX will ride on, no one knows. Subaru has a history of releasing concept cars to a hungry press and fan base, which end up being models for the Japanese Domestic Market (JDM) only. At this weekend's Frankfurt Auto Show, Subaru is revealing its latest car, the XV Crossover. There has been speculation that it could be the platform for the next generation Impreza. But one look at the car, plus a visit to the Subaru Australia site reveals that the XV is what we Americans call the Outback Sport. It's a raised Impreza with slighty more rugged bumbers and fender flares, plus a roof rack, which has proven to be a sales hit thanks to its sub $20K sticker price. So for the record, the XV is a taller fourth generation Impreza.

Meanwhile Subaru is readying its new coupe, based on its joint project with Toyota, the FT-86 (which is it's Toyota chassis code, maintaining a naming convntion that goes back to the 1970s). That coupe might be sold under the Scion brand in North America as the Scion FR-S. Subaru will sell a varient called the Subaru BRZ, which is making its debut at the Frankfurt show this weekend. It is unknown if the BRZ will be sold globally, or if will exlcude North America in order to bolster Scion sales.

The Subaru fanboys and fangirls waiting for the next all new WRX will just have to wait, which they should be used to, given that the first generation WRX was on the market for nearly eight full years (1992-2000). Besides, the current generation has been refined just enough to compete well against the Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution. It's still a great car, and it has the full support of the Subaru tuner community, led by aftermarket performance component manufacturers such as Cobb Tuning.

Toyota F1: All Fired Up For 2009

March 17, 2009

Jarno Trulli is one of the most-liked and friendliest drivers in Formula One. He has earned the primary driver spot at Toyota. And the team has built him what they feel is their best car yet. This is a very well-produced promotional video for Toyota's 2009 season. Turn up the volume and check it out.

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