#NissanZ

After more than 15 years, the R35 Nissan GT-R is reaching the end of the road, but there’s good news for fans of the iconic sports car. At this year’s New York auto show, an official from the automaker told Motor Authority that the GT-R and Z names would be sticking around but also noted that it could be some time before they are reborn.

Today we bring you a literal barn find: A 2005 Nissan 350Z Anniversary Barn Find.

Today we take you back to the days of my youth and present this 1986 Nissan 300ZX Turbo.

Today's UCOTD is a1980 Nissan 280ZX that's a 10th anniversary edition and wearing the black and gold.

I recall reading reviews of the Nissan GT-R back in 2008 when it debuted - holy crap, that car is STILL being built! - where it was labeled a digital car for the PlayStation generation. This was often ascribed to the big screen in the center console which allowed for the tweaking of various settings. Reviewers often lamented these changes as a drift away from a traditional enthusiast vibe. It’s funny to see that nearly every sporty car on the road has followed this path of high-tech performance.

And, indeed, there remains a big screen atop the dash in the 2023 Nissan Z. Yet I feel this is perhaps one of the last genuinely analog sports cars around. In a world dominated by ones and zeroes, there are still those who prefer to indulge in film cameras and vinyl records. The Z is a trip to a time when holding something tangible was worth something, and embracing imperfections was better than chasing theoretical perfection.

Nissan pulled back the curtain on the new Z Nismo, officially showing the car that so many have speculated about in recent months. It gets a tiny bit more power, some handling upgrades, and one fewer transmission choice: It's automatic only.

A report is suggesting, based on order guides, that the next Nissan Z NISMO will be automatic transmission only. Say it ain't so.

The Nissan Z returned last year, bringing unique retro-inspired styling and a powerful twin-turbo V6. Though it’s still fresh and difficult to find on dealers’ lots, Nissan is unsurprisingly working on a hotter NISMO version of the car.  A new teaser video gives a great look at the car, but sadly no details came with the film.

The SEMA news comes unabated. Add Nissan to the number of brands that took the wraps off some new hotness in Vegas.

Look, we knew there was a lot of hype around the new Nissan Z. Rightfully so, as our first drive showed. And we know that quantities of any new model from any brand are usually limited at launch in a normal year -- and supply-chain problems across the industry, along with the pandemic's lingering effects on production, have made 2022 anything but a normal year for autos.

Still, the markups being charged for Nissan Z Proto Specs strike us as absurd.

Meet the new Nissan Z. Same as the old Z.

Well, sort of.

Nissan has worked hard to hype the new Z – yet it’s an open secret that the new car shares some of its bones with the previous-generation car.

Which isn’t necessarily a bad thing.

Nissan has delayed its planned successor to the 370Z , citing the now-familiar “unforeseen supply chain issues.” Originally planned for a spring launch, the next Fairlady Z won’t be having her coming-out-party until this summer.

A Nissan dealership employee shared what appears to be a presentation slide of the upcoming Z’s launch timing.

If true, it confirms that the car will go on sale in June.

Nissan sold the 280ZX version of the famed Z-Car here for the 1979 through 1983 model years, right up to the end of the Datsun era and the start of the “Name Is Nissan” period we’re in today. These cars don’t have the maniacal following of their 240Z/ 260Z/ 280Z predecessors but sold well when new, so I find the 280ZX to be reasonably easy to find in the big California car graveyards I frequent. Here’s a well-equipped ’80 in Alpine White paint, showing off its T-tops in a San Francisco Bay Area yard a few years back.

Since last night’s unveiling of the 2023 Nissan Z, I’ve been chewing over my thoughts on the car. Is it good, or is it another misfire from a brand that’s struggling to recapture glory days?

After exerting far too much brainpower on the question — I’d rather ponder what’s for lunch — I’ve arrived at my answer.