Nissan 370Z facelifted for 2018… sort of

Nissan has announced it will give the 370Z a facelift to “set it apart from the previous iteration.”

The facelift includes smoked front and rear lights, smoked paint finish on door handles, and a new design for its 19-inch alloy wheels.

It is also now available in Cherry red rather than the slightly darker Bordeaux Red.

And that’s it. That’s the whole visual facelift.

These changes happened in the US market in mid-late 2017, but the facelifted models will now be seen in Australia.

With this small change it seems Nissan has implied that there will be no new generation of the Zed car for some time, if at all.

The 370Z was introduced in 2009, after seven years of the 350Z. Since 2002, little has changed across both cars, leaving a car that is essentially a decade-and-a-half old.

Between 350Z and 370Z, the wheelbase was shortened and engine stroked, but not much else has been altered.

The facelifted 370Z’s engine still has the same 245kW/363Nm output as it had previously, though one mechanical change that has been implemented is the use of a high-performance Exedy clutch, which Nissan says “makes it more responsive and fun to drive.”

Thankfully, Nissan’s recently lowered entry price of $49,990 for a manual coupe remains, with the most expensive model still being the auto convertible at $63,490.

Also unchanged is the pricing for the sharper Nismo 370Z at $61,990.

But that will likely remain the status quo, given Nissan hasn’t released a Zed concept (the bizarre snowmobile-like 370Zki aside) for some time.