BMW 3 Series vs Nissan 370Z

What's the difference?

Back in the day, the 3 Series sedan was often the entry to the brand for first time BMW owners, and for good reason. They offered practical interior space without compromising on engine performance.

And they simply looked good, no boring nanny design elements. Then the 1 Series came along and price points bumped up, so how does the ‘entry’ BMW 320i M Sport live up to its long-standing reputation?

With an updated dashboard that brings the interior and tech up to market and a sharper exterior design, it more than holds its own at the table of luxury sedans, despite hard competition from the likes of the Audi A4, Mercedes-Benz C200 and Jaguar XE.

However, if the Merc is a placid and well-behaved mare… the BMW is the barely-broken-in bronco and it takes a certain kind of ‘rider’ to enjoy what the 320i has to offer.

I’ve been discovering just that this week with my family of three. What did we find out? Read below!

Road testing the Nissan 370Z in 2011, I noted it was getting on. Yes, the rear-wheel drive two-seater had been given a design freshen up and a bigger engine a couple of years prior, but the 350Z it was based on had hit the local market way back in 2003. And it wasn't unreasonable to expect replacement or retirement in the not-too-distant future.

Okay, so that was seven years ago, which means if you (like many) consider the 370Z to be an update of the 350Z (the transition happening in 2009), this car has been on sale for 15 years straight. Can you imagine Apple trying to sell any one product without entirely reinventing it for that long?

You might say that makes it a modern classic; so good it's only required an occasional touch up to keep it on the Sports Car Most Wanted list. And in recent years, a consistent average of 30 Aussies a month have slotted a shiny new 370Z in their driveway.

But a less-charitable type will tell you time waits for no car, and with arch rival Toyota about to lob a Supra-shaped hand grenade over the parapet, this enduring campaigner is under the pump.

So, Nissan's reached into its bag of tricks and given the 370Z yet another cosmetic tszuj-up and added a high-performance clutch to the manual version.

Is it enough to keep Nissan's eternal Z-car flame burning?