The Evolution of the Fairlady Z

In 1969 we got the first Nissan Fairlady Z, the 240z, and nearly 51 years later, the new 400z has come out. There have been many changes to the legendary sports car, both good and bad. The iconic look of the Z is still going on and has been for over 50 years and I will going over all of these looks and generations.

The 240z, 260z, 270z, and 280z are all very similar cars, They were all referred to as “Z30” Cars. The 240z and 260z are technically the first-generation cars, they just have a different engine. The 270z and 280z are facelifted 240zs but they are considered second-generation cars. The first and second-gen body style never gets old. The body lines have made the car have a silhouette only a legendary 60’s sports car could have.

The next car would be like every other 80’s car ever made. Very boxy. It would still have that iconic long nose look, just with a lot more sharp edges instead of smooth curves. But, instead of the dinky underpowered inline 6, the new Fairlady came with a twin-turbocharged V6!!! This engine was possibly one of the greatest Z engines ever. The Z31 would be called the 300zx, but its successor would also be called the 300zx.

The Z32 300zx would definitely be on my top five list for most advanced cars at the time they came out. The headlights were so good that Lamborghini stole them for their new Diablo at the time! The engine was very similar to the Z31, but had many more advancements. For example, the Z32 has one of the most sophisticated and accurate VVT (Variable Valve Timing) systems even to this day. In the Z32 there was one of the most powerful 4-wheel steering systems ever. One big downside to all of the super hi-tech components was that the Z32 was super hard to work on due to all of the tight spaces and number of components. This would become the most advanced (and in my opinion, best looking) cars when it came out.

The next car is possibly the most known Z ever. The Z33 or 350z. The new sports car would be loved by almost every car enthusiast. This car was super reliable and didn’t seem to have any issues. There is a lot of aftermarket support for this car, so lots of tuners love them. They are also super easy to work on, which makes modification super easy to do. The engine was a 3.5 liter V6, that made quite a bit of horsepower considering how light the car was, 287hp to be exact! They’re super cheap and make amazing project cars.

The next Z would be very similar to the 350z. It was called the Z34 or 370z. It had very similar styling to the 350z but with more aggressive bodywork like fenders and bumpers. The engine would be pretty much the same, but it had been bored out to 3.7 liters. The Z34 was honestly just a bad copy of the Z33, it was pretty boring and was in production for over 12 years before its replacement was announced the other day.

The replacement of the 370z was just announced the other day and, I have to say, it looks really, and I mean really, good. They have taken the original body style and modernized it. The wheels may be some of the coolest production wheels ever. The only things I don’t like about it are how the tires say Nissan instead of Dunlop (which in my opinion looks better because Dunlop is a name brand tire) and I don’t like the big ugly grill that kind of ruins the front of the car. It will have a twin-turbocharged V6 engine, making nearly 500 horsepower. It will also have an amazing weight balance and be way cheaper than its Toyota Supra A90 competitor.

The Fairlady Z has come a long way from the ‘60s wannabe sports car. The Z has developed a community and fan base that revolves around a couple of cars. The reason everyone loves the Z is that it’s just so good that there are no other cars quite like it. That’s why the Fairlady Z is one of the greatest car families of all time.