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  To be honest, the new Zed does not feel all that different to the old car. Photo Gallery

Paul Gover road tests and reviews the Nissan 370Z.

Driving a Z car is always fun. Truthfully, my fun run goes all the way back to the seventies when my mate Jim Darling sometimes asked me to do the designated-driver deal in his 260Z after a tough deadline night. But that's a history story and the 370Z is here and now.

The latest Zster was updated last year with a tauter new body and a significant quality upgrade in the cabin, a bigger engine and a bunch of other mechanical tweaks, but zero softening of the driving genes which have made it a global hit since it came back from the Datsun graveyard. If anything, the 370Z is intended to be sharper and more responsive.

It faces a tough job, not just because of its history, or opposition that runs as tough as the Mazda RX-8 and BMW's pocket rocket 135i, but because it now sits in the same garage as Godzilla. Comparisons with the GT-R are inevitable.

Just to get it out of the way, I much prefer driving the Z. It doesn't have the shuttle launch blast of the GT-R but it's a car which is more in tune with real driving in the real world, and still mightily brisk.

The price is better than it was, starting at $67,990 as a manual to undercut some significant rivals.

I first saw the new Z at the opening of the Los Angeles Motor Show last year, when the chrome yellow coupe up under lights looked hot and happening. The body was pulled tighter around the wheels and Nissan people talked about more performance from the bigger 3.7-litre engine and a lighter car.

Me? I looked inside to see if Nissan had answered complaints about the Tiida-style cheapie plastics and see the answer is a tick.

So, what about the new 370Z? The Z is into its 40th year and the new car is shorter, wider, lighter and quicker than the 350Z it replaces. And there is a Roadster coming in 2010.

"The new 370Z builds on the best features of both the first and last generations of Z car; respectful but not retro, simple yet sophisticated, and unmistakably Z," says the managing director of Nissan Australia, Dan Thompson.

You can argue the new Z is really just a major facelift of the previous car, a pattern repeated for a good result with the latest Murano SUV, and it's hard to argue against the grain despite a new mechanical platform. After all, even if 35 per cent of the engine is new there is a lot of carryover, even outside the powerplant.

But power is up to 245 kiloWatts and torque is also boosted to 363 Newton-metres, with a revised six-speed manual and a seven-speed auto, the cabin has been made more friendly with a luggage tray in the rear _ remember it's only a two-seater _ and even extra carrying space in the tail after the elimination of intrusive strut braces on the rear suspension.

DRIVING

To be honest, the new Zed does not feel all that different to the old car.

Yes, it looks sharper in the driveway, but once you are behind the wheel it's a familiar place with a familiar V6 engine sound and feel, and a taut rear-drive chassis. It's a bit faster and a bit sharper, but not giant steps.

But that's not bad. You get what you expect after the 350Z, with more usable power across a broader spread and a chassis with huge grip from big tyres and big brakes. The previous model split is gone, and with it the Track pack which was too much of a track thing on Australian roads, so now you just have a choice of manual or auto.

The test car is an automatic but comes with paddles on the steering column and an artificial system to create a set of 'gears' for sports motoring. It's a good deal with a great spread of ratios and instant response to the paddles, although the system sometimes upshifts when you want it to hold a gear.

The brakes are excellent, and there is huge grip from the big wheels and tyres, although you pay a penalty in growling road noise that can become a roar on some surfaces.

The seats are great with real support, the leather-wrap wheel is chunky and user-friendly, and there is better space for nic-nacs and serious luggage under the rear hatch.

But I find the instrument layout too busy and _ with the giant tachometer dead-ahead _ the speedo is too small and too hard to see when you're judging the difference between 55 and 65km/h in the city.

The engine gets going so well it's easy to make a mistake and a digital readout would be welcome in Australia.

It's good to have satnav and a big central display, but I would prefer two cupholders in the console, even if the one it has is thankfully deep enough to prevent spills during cornering.

The quality upgrade is obvious inside with softer padding and a console design that's thankfully missing the hard, nasty, scratchy plastic of the previous car. It feels more luxurious and a nicer place altogether.

The new Z copes well with all roads and all conditions, and even going slowly. Judged against its rivals it comes up well, even if the BMW 135 is my personal favourite in the class. It's more usably sporty than the RX-8, more classy than the Alfa GT and more rewarding to drive than the Audi TT. And please don't get me started on the GT-R.

Basically, the new Z is a winner. It’s a car you want to drive, and that's getting rare in 2009.

Verdict: 78/100

Nissan 370Z
Price: $70,990 as tested
Engine: 3.7-litre V6
Power: 245kW/7000 revs
Torque: 363Nm/5200 revs
Transmission: Six-speed manual, seven-speed auto
Economy: average on test 13.6litres/100km
Rivals
Alfa Romeo GT 72/100 (from $49,990)
Audi TT 76/100 ($79,500)
BMW 135i 80/100 (from $72,800)
Mazda RX-8 74/100 (from $51,440)