350Z
This is something that I drive on a daily basis, so getting into
any of the three 350Zs were like fitting into a set of old
shoes. I was immediately familiar with the controls and
ergonomics, so familiar that as I pulled off the track, I turned
off the car and almost took the key with me as if I'm getting
out of my own car. So familiar that, half a lap in with the 350Z
I had already picked up enough speed to scare myself. I'm not
going to bore you with what the stock 350Z can do, but I'll
share with you my thoughts regarding the S-Tune 350Z and the
R-Tune 350Z.
The modifications on the S-Tune 350Z is very similar to what is
in the phase I of the FreshAlloy Club Project 350Z. Intake, exhaust, springs, and
dampeners. In fact, the FAC Project 350Z currently sports the
NISMO S-Tune suspension. Comparing to the stock 350Z available
for us to drive, the S-Tune 350Z has significantly better turn
in, much better weight shift, and seemingly more torque and
power coming out of corners, as to be expected. What surprised
me, was that several laps and sessions in, I realized I had
forgotten to turn off VDC, and the S-Tune suspension was
perfectly compliant and never once triggered the VDC. Maybe it's
my driving skills. Or maybe that whole hogwash about the S-Tune
suspension interfering with VDC operation is just an old-wife's
tale.
Now, the R-Tune stuff is what I'm really interested in. More
aggressive camshafts, headers, better LSD, lightweight flywheel
and high performance clutch plates…Every thing a grown man needs
on his track car. Very first thing I noticed, is the improved
clutch action. And I'm not talking about slight improvement. It
was NIGHT AND DAY better.
Although I almost stalled the
car pulling out of the spot in the hot pit, I immediately
fell in love with the sharp, instant clutch pick-up and
quick response of the lightweight flywheel. And unlike most
other aftermarket flywheels, this one is QUIET, none of the
tell-tale rattle-y noise of a lightweight flywheel. Then as
I approached my first braking zone, I was given my second
surprise: The NISMO brake pads were incredible. Direct pedal
response coupled with excellent brake torque, I found myself
OVERBRAKING the first couple of corners and quickly adjusted
to the characteristics of the pad. I must say, I've used a
lot of different compounds and this is one of the better
track pads I've seen, and I was very surprised that this
comes directly from Nissan.
The camshafts were definitely an improvement
as well, although I was far more impressed with the clutch and
brake pads than I was with the engine modifications. After all,
the 350Z is already pretty competent under the hood. What it
lacks is clutch feel and braking power. Unfortunately we were
only allowed 3 laps per session, I would LOVE to see what the
fade characteristics of these NISMO pads would be over say, a
half hour session or even a full track day. You guys hear this
over at Nissan?
Summary
Overall, I am quite impressed with Nissan's current line-up of
performance vehicles and the available NISMO parts for each
vehicle. In ranking all the cars I drove today, the R-Tune 350Z
easily stood out head and shoulders above the crowd. Needless to
say, I'm very impressed with the R-Tune parts. Next is the
S-Tune 350Z, although on paper similar to the FA Project 350Z
in phase I, I would have loved to pit the S-Tune against our
350Z as it stands. Too bad we couldn't clear insurance waivers.
Third on the list, and not too far behind, was the R-Tune Sentra
SE-R. While down significantly in power, it nevertheless offered
up gobs of track fun with its lightweight chassis. Slotting
between the R-Tune Sentra and the S-Tune Sentra was the stock
350Z, although my opinion here is heavily biased since I drive
the FA Project 350Z on a daily basis. Next up, and this is a bit
of a surprise, was the R-Tune Altima 2.5. Sure, it lacks power,
and it's not the most nimble of the bunch, but it was a lot more
fun to drive than the rest of the Altima pack. Although, after
driving the R-Tune 350Z, I was very disappointed with the 2.5's
clutch feel, but hey, you gotta do what you gotta do for the
consumers who buy the 2.5. I wish they would offer up a
flywheel/clutch combo for the Altima as well.
Although the remaining cars round up the bottom of the list,
they are only near the bottom because they're up against stiff
competition. Clearly, the S-Tune 3.5SE had a lot of things going
for it. The R-Tune 2.5 beat it out by a slim margin, and if
you're looking for a daily drive and a very occasional spirited
run through the canyons, this is certainly a better package than
the R-tune. The Altima 3.5SE and SE-R are both wonderful cars,
but on the track you need some work to coax the best out of both
of these cars. Again, I wouldn't mind either car as a daily
driver, they both offer plenty of sporty performance for the
street.
By the way, the drifting demonstration they set up was way too
cool.
