What's the difference?
The Nissan Z is a real blueblood.
With Datsun, Nissan introduced the world to Japanese cars via a gruelling round-Australia rally in 1958 that had the country captivated. Within 10 years the 1600 made them respectable, but it was the 240Z of 1970 that also made them desirable.
Seven generations later, today’s RZ34-series Z – along with the Toyota/Subaru GR86/BRZ and Mazda MX-5 – embodies that nation’s tradition of affordable yet charismatic sports cars.
They’ve always been ripe for modifying as well, with Nissan leaning on its performance arm Nismo for 40 years. Which is exactly what the Z Nismo is all about, stepping up to take on the Toyota GR Supra, BMW M240i and Ford Mustang GT.
The old 370Z Nismo was a true corker. Let’s find out if this one does the family proud.
Zeekr is making waves in Australia at the moment but it's not because of the car you see before you.
Nope, it’s the 7X mid-size SUV that’s captured a heap of attention and a whole lot of sales. In fact, of the 1832 sales the brand has managed over the first three months of 2026, just 54 were for the X.
But that was the old X and this is the new one. With more power, more performance, faster charging and a whole heap of pretty special equipment, especially for the small SUV segment.
So, is that enough to finally put the X on the map?
The Nismo turns up the wick just enough to justify its $20K premium over the brilliant regular Z.
Visual changes inside and out are one thing, but with tangible boosts in performance, handling and braking – with no detriment to ride quality or comfort – as a result of properly engineered upgrades, the RZ34 version deserves its place in Nissan’s sports car hall of fame.
Note, though, that good as it is, the Nismo is also a potent reminder of how solid a foundation the standard Z also is… especially in manual gearbox guise.
It's a good thing in a small package, this Zeekr X, and there are a lot of things I like about it. In fact, the only sticking point for me is the price. But that's all about perspective. If you see this as a newcomer Chinese brand, then yes, there are a lot of more affordable options out there. But if you see it as a premium player, it's really a more affordable version of a Volvo.
Note: The author, Andrew Chesterton, is a co-owner of Smart As Media, a content agency and media distribution service with a number of automotive brands among its clients. When producing content for CarsGuide, he does so in accordance with the CarsGuide Editorial Guidelines and Code of Ethics, and the views and opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author.
Reinterpreting a classic via retro styling isn’t always successful – hello, 2001 Ford Thunderbird – but what Nissan has achieved with the RZ34, given it’s a pastiche of several Z greatest hits from the ‘70s, ‘80s, ‘90s and today, is truly masterful design.
Take the cab-backward silhouette, long nose and short wheelbase; it somehow manages to deftly capture the spirit of previous Z generations, without looking like a bad caricature.
Points especially go to the stunning nose and tail treatments that evoke both the ‘70s 240/260/280 as well as the sadly long-forgotten Mid-4 II concept car of 1987.
Slightly longer than the regular model, the Nismo’s nose is meant to evoke the early ‘70s Japan domestic market Fairlady ZG, with the G denoting “Grand Nose”. Fun fact: Fairlady first appeared on the 1960 Datsun roadster as deference to the Broadway musical (and later Audrey Hepburn film, presumably) ‘My Fair Lady’.
Anyway, besides scraping speed humps and driveways, the Nismo’s elongated front bumper promotes improved engine cooling and better aero flow, as do the side sills, larger wraparound three-piece spoiler and redesigned rear bumper/diffuser. The wider-yet-lighter back wheels are 10mm wider. And a glossy red stripe runs along the underside like Anna Nicole Smith’s lipstick.
Does it all look better than the simpler, purer regular Z? No. But they perform better. And isn’t that the point of a Nismo?
The visual changes aren’t massive. This AWD version welcomes a couple of new exterior colours, including the 'Matt Khaki Green' of our test car. It also gets the two-tone black roof and there are new 20-inch alloy designs.
Elsewhere, it's the futuristic-style of design we’re used to which differentiates the X from its Volvo EX30 twin under the skin.
Inside, this is a seriously well-equipped and polished-feeling small SUV, and — unlike some of the newcomer brands to Australia — it all feels very high quality and well put together. And that includes the material choices.
I don’t even hate the fact that most of the functions are controlled via this screen, thanks to the little shortcuts glued to the home screen. I do, however, hate the fact that there’s no easy way to change the wing mirrors or shortcuts for toning down some of the safety stuff.
That aside, though, it’s a nice and high-quality feeling space.
So, just as the exterior is an anthology of past Z car stylings, the same also applies inside.
A mishmash of new and old as well, they also marry together harmoniously – after you’ve bent and contorted yourself inside nice and snug, on the racy yet not-too-unforgiving set of Recaro bucket seats.
The Z’s signature sloping roof and rising window line; a trio of dials that have been a hallmark of the series since the 240Z, a thin three-spoke steering wheel; a physical hand brake and a pair of old-school seat base angle adjuster knobs just like in sports cars from 20 years ago betray the Nissan’s ageing DNA.
But they set the mood, like hearing a favourite old track, though one remixed by a contemporary DJ to a modern beat.
Which means that you’ll be able to view whichever artist you like through the 8.0-inch touchscreen, either via Bluetooth audio streaming, Spotify or some such app.
Easy to decipher and simple to navigate (though no imbedded GPS is fitted), the Z’s dashboard also offers the essential surround-view parking camera (given how limited vision is as you’re sat so low with not much glass to peer out through), amongst a host of vehicle functions. You’re also privy to extremely useful blind-spot alert thoughtfully placed inside the car by the mirror mounts, four cupholders if you count the door-sited ones and surprisingly generous storage. Practicality, thy name is Fairlady.
For lightness and sensible packaging, we understand why Nissan’s sports coupe is strictly a two-seater proposition – and certainly a roomy enough one for the lucky pair at that.
However, it’s a shame Nissan doesn’t offer a 2+2-seater option in the form of a pair of occasional jump seats behind, as per the old Datsun days, as there seems to be just enough space for smaller folk – though as a pair of shelves, that area did prove very useful during our week with the Nismo.
Issues? Along with a sheer lack of grace entering and exiting the Z, poor overall vision and 350Z-era switchgear that are now old enough to drive themselves, finding the right driving position eluded this particular 178cm tester. The seats do a great job keeping you firmly fixed in place, and of course the wheel tilts and telescopes, but those pair of knobs were forever being twirled and fiddled with.
Oh, and simultaneously unlocking and opening the doors was also confounding, due to exterior door handles and pressure sensor not designed for Homo Sapien hands.
Further back, and as in the two previous generations Zeds, a brace bisects the luggage area. Rated at 241 litres VDA, it is wide and flat but a wee bit shallow. At least it adds another level of practicality and is big enough for those weekends away.
There’s no cover (though seeing what’s inside isn’t easy) and no spare wheel of any size is fitted.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the Nismo…
You know you're in a small vehicle when you can't fit two large (not those crazy American-style jumbo cups, just normal coffee-shop takeaway) coffees in the cupholders, but so it is with the Zeekr X.
The small SUV's 4432mm length, 1836mm in width and 1566mm height doesn't leave much room to spread out up front. There's ample room for driver and passenger, of course, but we are talking about a small vehicle here.
Clever storage helps to mitigate that, though, especially the super-deep storage space in the centre console and the very clever fridge that separates the driver and passenger seats.
Weirdly, though, the space doesn’t feel overly tight in the back seat. We had a massive baby seat in there, and that fit without issue. And full size humans can genuinely get pretty comfortable. I'm 175cm, and I had enough knee and headroom.
In the boot, there’s 404 litres of volume with the rear seats upright and 1247 litres with them folded flat. And it’s worth pointing out this isn’t intended to be a family car, but there’s certainly enough space for the shopping... and a pram.
Nismo is short for Nissan Motorsport. It’s like what AMG means to Mercedes or HSV was to Holden. Which means, of course, that Australians love this sort of thing.
Last year, as limited editions, the first 100 Z Nismos sold out in under an hour, according to Nissan. Now it’s back more permanently, still from $94,000 before on-road costs, but without quite the exclusivity.
But, don’t worry. You still get the Nismo body kit and leather/Alcantara-clad cabin treatments, stronger performance and track-focused chassis upgrades, which include extra bracing, sharper steering, beefier suspension, bigger brakes and GT-R-spec wider wheels, compared to the regular Z. More on the engineering changes later on.
There are also Recaro sports seats, Nismo-branded digital instrumentation and steering wheel, additional drive modes and red trim highlights.
These come above the regular Z items like keyless entry/start, an 8.0-inch touchscreen, surround-view reverse camera, (wired-only) Apple CarPlay/Android Auto, Bluetooth connectivity, an eight-speaker Bose premium audio, active noise cancellation tech, dual-zone climate control, artificially amplified exhaust note and wider-yet-lighter 19-inch alloy wheels.
Note, however, that going Recaros means ditching the regular Z’s seat heating and electric adjustment including lumbar support. And there’s no spare wheel in either grade… just a tyre-repair kit. Boo.
For your $100K-driveaway, from an equipment perspective anyway, the Nismo does stretch the value argument almost to breaking point, so it’s a good thing that the Z still looks so good. And there’s lots of beautiful engineering underneath that pretty skin too.
This is a small SUV with a LOT of stuff. There are two trims in the Zeekr X range – the entry-level rear-drive model is $48,900, drive-away, while the all-wheel drive version we've tested is $57,900 on the road.
The obvious comparison is to the Volvo EX30, which shares its platform with the Zeekr X through both brands' Chinese parent company Geely.
As of right now, the cheapest single-motor Volvo is $56,051, drive-away in NSW, or $49,990 plus on-roads, making the Zeekr version much, much cheaper.
Anyway, outside there are 19- or 20-inch alloys, though our test car is fitted with the optional 20-inch black alloys, paired with a black-with-red-highlights interior treatment, which adds $2000 to the price.
Ours is also fitted with the electric front doors which open or close at the push of a button, and back doors that unlatch, but don’t fully open, the same way, which adds another $2000.
Both trims also get heated and cooled front seats, and heating in the rear window seats, but this AWD version also adds a massage function for front seat riders.
There’s also wireless charging, a 13-speaker Yamaha sound system and — very cool, literally — is the little drinks fridge between the front seats in the AWD variant.
Tech is handled by a 14.6-inch touchscreen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto and there’s a head-up display for the driver.
Nissan sure knows how to make a great six-cylinder engine.
The Nismo’s internal combustion engine in question is the VR30DDTT – a twin-turbo V6 making four per cent more power and around 10 per cent more torque compared to the one found in the regular Z.
Power jumps 11kW and torque a handier 45Nm to 309kW @ 6400rpm and 520Nm between 2000rpm and 5200rpm respectively, providing extra punch as well as a slightly superior power-to-weight ratio of around 184kW per tonne.
That’s up 2kW/tonne, despite the Nismo gaining around 50 kilos, to 1680kg.
This has been possible thanks to extra turbo boost, revised ignition timing, improved cooling systems and updated engine management software.
Driving the rear wheels is a Mercedes-Benz based nine-speed torque-converter auto. Upgraded and retuned for track use, it includes a Sport+ mode providing speedier shift responses. Aided by the new launch control function, we managed a tidy 4.5 seconds from standstill to 100km/h.
Sadly, though, there’s no manual option as per the regular Z.
What else is unique here? Underneath, the platform might date all the way back to the 350Z of 2003, but Nismo has really worked some of its magic.
Along with the retuned dampers, everything else has been stiffened up – including the anti-roll bars, springs, bushes and even the steering rack mounts – to help deliver more controlled and linear steering. There’s extra underfloor bracing at the front, centre and rear of the car, thicker brake rotors and model-specific Dunlop SP Sport Maxx GT600 tyres that are wider at the back, on gloss-black RAYS alloys.
Continuing to use a double-wishbone front and multi-link rear suspension set-up, the Z’s front/rear weight distribution is 56/44 front/rear.
Now, the Nismo was our favourite version of the previous 370Z by some margin. How does it all square up in RZ34 guise?
The big news here is a more powerful rear motor – meaning you get more grunt whether you opt for the rear-wheel drive or this all-wheel drive.
In rear-drive form, that boosts your outputs from 200kW to 250kW, dropping the sprint to 100km/h to 5.6 seconds. In AWD guise, your new outputs are 365kW (up from 315kW) and 573Nm, and your sprint to 100km/h falls to 3.7 seconds.
Not surprisingly, the Z Nismo needs to drink from the 98 RON premium unleaded petrol fountain.
Nissan reckons owners should expect to average 10.4L/100km (for 242 grams per kilometre of carbon dioxide emissions) on the combined cycle (and 15.0 and 7.7 L/100km for the urban and extra-urban ratings respectively.
This figure is almost half a litre worse than the non-Nismo Z’s 9.8L/100km result, but still substantially better than the six-speed manual base grade’s 10.8L, despite the latter being some 33kg lighter.
With a sizeable 62L tank, you might be able to average just under 600km between refills.
For the record, we achieved 11.9 litres per 100km in a mix of urban, freeway and performance driving which is not too bad at all given how often we fanged this thing.
This is where it starts to get weird. The rear-drive Zeekr X is fitted with a 61kWh LFP battery, which can accept up to 230kW DC fast charging, taking you from 10 to 80 per cent charged in just 18 minutes. Total claimed range is 405km.
The flagship AWD, though, charges at a slower rate. It gets a 66kWh NMN battery and can only be charged at 150kW, meaning the same charge takes 30 minutes. Zeekr is promising a 415km driving range between charges.
Nissan does plenty of things really well, and the Nismo is no exception.
Firing up the VR30DDTT 3.0-litre twin-turbo V6 is also a reminder of how brilliant the brand’s six-cylinder engines are. They tingle all the right sensory areas, starting with the baritone rumble at idle.
What a portent of what’s to come!
Nismo’s massaging of the engine, combined with upgraded clutch packs and a retune of the nine-speed auto’s software, results in stronger, hungrier and angrier acceleration, no matter which of the three driving modes you’ve selected. Even in Normal, the Nissan leaps off the line. In Sport, its appetite for speed is palpable. In Sport+, this thing is eating up the tarmac. Somehow, in an EV era where 4.5s to 100 is ho-hum, the (electronically enhanced but who cares) guttural exhaust bellow seems to amplify the action and thrills.
And spills. For five of our seven days together, the heavens poured. Now, in Normal mode, the Nismo was as benign and controlled as you’d hope in wet conditions, the driver-assist tech metering out just enough torque and braking to seamlessly keep the car humming along. Ever-present but always nuanced, they’ll help make your commute a safer and more relaxing one.
Selecting Sport loosened things up markedly, with the driver needing to be ready to counteract with steering, seating and throttle, though still with a safety net to keep the car from going totally out of whack; Sport+, meanwhile, is not for amateurs or the distracted. This is serious, tail-wagging waywardness that should only be fully explored with experience and care.
Later in the week, Launch Mode in Sport+ on cold but dry bitumen also requires super concentration, as we discovered attempting to extract the fastest acceleration time. Sideways in a straight line at 100km/h-plus is not for the faint hearted.
Beyond all-out performance and drama, the Nismo soars with weighty yet linear and precise steering, resulting in satisfying, hunkered-down handling that is the hallmark of a great sports car. Really tight turns can be taken at impressive speeds, but there’s about 1.7 tonne of muscle to manipulate, so the real fun can be found blasting along a snaking set of more open corners, where the Z’s inherent thrust, poise and grip come into play, all to the symphony of that bi-turbo V6.
That the suspension can feel both firm and supple at the same time is another arrow in the Nismo’s bow.
Nissan isn’t pretending this is anything but a rousing and rapid grand tourer with track aspirations, so the fact there’s also comfort and sophistication to be enjoyed just shows the sheer bandwidth of this particular Z.
Downsides? There’s always a wall of sound, be it mechanical or noise intrusion from the rubber and/or bitumen. The Nismo is rarely quiet. The extended front spoiler seems to summon up speed humps and bumps you never knew existed. The adaptive cruise control’s inability to resume in heavy stop/start traffic betrays this car’s 350Z-era tech. And the lack of a manual transmission, we reckon, is a missed opportunity for an even greater degree of interactive sports car driving.
Still, the Nismo delivers exactly what the brand promises, and continues to improve a firm favourite for speed and drama.
But the gap between Nismo and regular model is smaller than the one that existed in the preceding 370Z, which means that – if $100K driveaway is too steep – you’re already driving something elevated in the standard Z. Particularly if you yearn for a manual.
It’s all good.
Short answer? Pretty good, with some caveats.
I'm partial to a firmer ride. I find some Chinese car companies can feel like they get their suspension bits from Captain Snooze, such is the soft, pillowy ride served up. And to be honest, it makes me a little seasick at times.
The Zeekr is not like that. It has firmness dialled into the ride equation and can feel harsh at times, but also improves the drive experience, delivering connection and engagement at the cost of some sharpness on the wrong road.
It's also faster than the model it replaces, but it's also one of those cars in which the real-life feeling doesn't quite match the on-paper promise.
This thing serves up supercar speed, but it doesn't feel like it from behind the wheel. Instead, the acceleration - especially from a rolling start - feels potent, but not biblical.
From a standing start it pauses for a moment, almost like an internal-combustion vehicle might, before delivering a quick (but not stratospheric) flow of power. None of that is a bad thing, by the way. Who wants their small SUV to accelerate like a supercar?
It's otherwise an entirely pleasant drive. The cabin is serene and quiet and it's a small car that doesn't feel like one. There's nothing light or tinny about the drive experience, instead there's a heft and quality.
There is no Euro NCAP or ANCAP crash-test rating for the Nissan Z Nismo
Standard safety features include AEB with pedestrian detection (though no operating parameters could be found about this system), 'Predictive Forward Collision Warning', lane departure warning, blind spot warning, rear cross-traffic alert, high beam assist, tyre pressure monitoring sensor, traffic sign recognition and adaptive cruise control with full-stop (but no resume) functionality.
What’s missing? There is no active lane-keep assist tech to nudge you into line, and you won't find parking sensors nor a front-centre airbag.
But the Z does have dual frontal, side chest and head-protecting airbags, a surround-view camera, anti-lock brakes with electronic brake-force distribution and brake assist, stability control, traction control, hill-start assist, front and rear parking sensors, LED headlights with light sensitivity and rain-detecting wipers.
There is also a child seat tether point on the passenger seat, but the Nismo ditches the other Z’s ISOFIX alternative.
The Zeekr X wears a maximum five-star ANCAP safety rating, earned in 2024, which means the long list of required active safety stuff is present and accounted for, all wrapped up in what Zeekr calls its 'Intelligent Driving Assist System'.
There are five cameras, five radars and 12 sensors, which is a crazy number for a car this small.
And this is also not a car in which I was desperately trying to figure out how to deactivate any of the active safety systems – save the overzealous over-speed warning – which is a win these days, too.
There are also seven airbags, including a centre front airbag.
The Zeekr X is fitted with ISOFIX anchors on the rear outboard seats and top tether anchorages for all rear seating positions.
Your wallet’s pretty secure as well.
Like all Zs, the Nismo is subject to a warranty period of five years with unlimited kilometres, while service intervals are fixed at every 12 months or 10,000km – whichever occurs first. There is also five years of roadside assistance.
Nissan also provides pre-paid maintenance plans that can save up to $245 over three years, as well as capped-price servicing. At the time of publishing, the capped-price service appointments cost between $347 and $950 depending on the year of ownership.
Zeekr's coverage is an underwhelming five-year, unlimited-kilometres, while the drive battery is covered for eight-years or 160,000km. There’s five years' of roadside assistance thrown in, too.
Service intervals are 20,000km or 12 months, with five years' of ownership setting you back a hefty $3072; an average of $614 per workshop visit.
There are currently 16 Zeekr dealers in Australia - two of which are 'pop-up' sites rather than full retail centres.
Multiple locations in Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane with the ACT, Adelaide and Perth also covered. Others include Geelong and the Sunshine Coast but so far you're out of luck in Tassie or the NT.