BY HARRY KIRSBAUM I PHOTOGRAPHY BY ANGIE BAAN

The Z Factor

0

n one of the last "top down" kinda' days until next May, Cool
Runnings took a drive in the 2006 Nissan 350Z.
Match a curb weight of 3,600 pounds to a V-6, 3.5 liter,
DOHC 24-valve, 300-horsepower engine with 260 lb-ft of
torque at 4,800 rpm, and the equation adds up to a whole lot of power in a
small, light car.
This car is a racehorse, meant to be "rode hard and put away wet."
Sure, when the ragtop and windows are up, the street noise seeps in,
but who cares — you can still blow the doors off most any other car at a
stoplight.
The standard Z coupe with a 287-horsepower V-6 engine had a base
price of $27,650, and was named by Road & Track magazine as the best
car under $30,000. The Touring Roadster I took out cost $38,515, with a
base price of $37,450, and it came with Vehicle Dynamic Control, leather,
power-heated seats and a Bose
audio system with a six-CD
changer, MP3 capabilities and
seven speakers — not bad for a
car with only two seats. The Z
gets 19 mpg in the city, and 25
on the highway.
In 1970, the Datsun 240Z
was the first "cool" car to come
to the United States. Thirty-
six years later, the Nissan
350Z remains the king of
Z0000M. 1-1

Thanks to Nissan Tamaroff in
Southfield for letting Cool Runnings
put the top down one more time.

16 •

DECEMBER 2006 JNPLATINUM