autoweek october 9, 1989

8/12/2019 Autoweek October 9, 1989

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Twin urbos and rear-steer feature render Nissan 3 ZXthe most futuristic among the world s leading sports carsB y Kevin A. Wilson

F um th slnted intercooler air in-1:lke.s in its front air dam to itsh,-spoilered tail, from its 3 hp,~ ; ~ r i a b l ealve timing. twin-turboV6 engine to its electronically~.clnlrolled ws system. the new Nissan3 UW Turbo is arguably the world's mostthoroughly modern sports car.Some baditionalisw might say that it is.instead, th world's most mndy sp ns carFor the W urbo hardly misses a technc-logical trick--excluding 4wd and a Nin-tendo-game dashboard-in its bid to lureenthusiasts of the high-performance persup-sion back into Nissan's fold.And therein lie both the car's greateststrengths and its debatable weaknesses.The big differences between the 33.000Turbo model and the S27,Waplus normallyaspirated 300W that drew widespread ravereviews earlier this year arc just whereyou'd expect to find them: under the hood

and in the rear axle. where Nissan's Super-HlCAS 4ws is standard equipment. Lesssignificant departures include those air in-takes in the nose. the rear spoiler (a lift-can-celing necessity at th T W s higher topspeed, it doesn't harm the 0.32 Cd), andstandard driver-adjustable shock absorbers.LH's get to the engine first, and pick upthe rest later. Twin inlmooled turbos boostth normally aspirated twinsam. 24-valve3.0-liter's Z22 hp to an even I00 hp per liter6MO pm in manual transmission form, or

28 hp (93.3 hp/liter at the same revs) withthe four-spacd automatic. In bdh variatiom.distinguished by differmt variable valve tim-ing camshafts and fuel management pro-pans. toque is 283 lb ft at 3MO rpm.The water- and oilsooled turbos. specialGarrett AiResearch models with T25 im-

pellers coupled to T2 turbines (a combina-tion chosen to deliver the required boostlevel with minimal spool-up time). are fedfrom new cast-iron cxhaust manifolds.Internal engine changes include a lowercompression rntio (from 10.5 to 8.5:l-pre-mium unleaded is still required). a newcast-aluminum piston with moly-coatedsk im and an internal cooling channel.and both connecting rods and exhaust valvesmade of sterner stuff than in the base en-gine. Rounding out the package is an exter-n l oil cooler with a high-rpm bypass cir-cuit, a fuel pressure tank to aid hot-enginescans, and an electronic governor to limittop speed lo 155 mph (250kmIh).So much for tech-talk, how's it wo rk?Splendidly.Nissan says mph will take 5.5 seconds and th qu mr -mi le post should d p paFtthe window in 14.0-seconds fliu or less.What those numbers don't tell you is hatnubo lag is minimal, power delivery remark-ably smooth and quiet, th engine a tractable.willing accomplice whether you're feaher-fmting it through a s ml m e r exploringth exterior envuons of h e envelope.Olhers may o ffer us 300 hp or more i n thenear future. but at higher prices (BMW's850i. expected to cost W.WO is one ex-ample ), It's hard to imagine, though. thatanyone will soon make a V6 engine sostrong and yet so user-friendly. (Unlessyou're a mechanic--excuse us. servicetechnician-in which case one glimpse intothe stuffed-to-the-edges engine bay couldinduce n i g h t m s for weeks).With either the five-speed manual or thefour-speed automatic. the drivelrain isbeefed up from normal W pecs, and thefinal drive ratio is a little longer-legged

(3 6921 vs. 4.083:l). Themanual transmission has sec-ond and fifth gearsets built oftouzher material and a bee-ier clutch plate (vacuum-as-srsted operation makes thepedal feel l~ gh te r, f any-thing). and the optional( 800) electronically controlled a u io~e a r i~works with the engine management systemto reduce torque input during shifts.As in th n d l y spirald car, fifth gearon the pattern requires a definite upover-upmotion. Depending on your viewpoint. this iseither the one awkward element of a fineshiner, or a simple reminder lo reserve that0.752 overdrive for cmising and lo hold ontodirect-drive focuth to maximize w i n g abil-ity. It's not m t tipping into th thmnle infifth at highway speeds reveals any defi-ciency, just that it lakes a moment longer tobuild boost Leave it in fourth and you mightbe fagiven for no nuticing any lag at all. thecar leaping forward with an alacrity thatbelies its 3474-pound curb weight (187pounds heavier than in non-lurlm form).Despite that mass and a nearly 170inchlength. th W Turbo. unlike. say, a Corvelteor Polsche 928, doesn't ovemhelm th driverwith the sense ofpilaing a large. heavy high-performance car. The ride. m i t e stifier suspension bushings and bigger, lower pmfik2-rated t i m at th rear, is only slightly firmerthan in th non-Nrlm car, th nks in part tothme adjustable shock abrmtrers. And han-dling well. th ZX cenainly feels like asmaller, nimbkr machine than you'd expectm ~ en a par with th four-inch nanower.675-pwnd lighter Mazda RX-7 than with lonly slightly larger Corvette.

f we have rexwations about the ZX


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Swadngrpirdlwbos In comb~oat~on ith a slightly quickermd lnmwnlmwih s oaiag ratm (14.8:l. 2.4 hn. lock-wid.hO@d m)-ahP hp. 16.8and2.8),wefamdthefesnncmadcb o r ~ ~rhonaw.3QOD Turbo the Turbo c r feel a bn nervous. witchymn, compved to the n o d l lmi senw o n eraduallv eroded as we meat m mtigJI18, the turning circle at low t i m bePhiod th w k l . andu f i t s t h e s a m c 3 4 . 1 - f m o ineonarsecnrkmva led ihcawnisd im~i i i or bolh Ws); boih tability in high-speed aa ur in g.fmot and rrar wheels point in We ll reserve final jud gm nt until we vethe swr hstiw n d y ll had more seat l i m in a full-productionWeircumstanm. i ne ex- Turbo, but arr nitial im pxssion is mat thetion: A CP. h l s m all f w uadc-offor those 4w s benefits is non-linear

Tub U K N ~ ~ hey center on a mapr reasonLa~i . lh .b leJensat ion .andacnbdelcnwtdhadli: ltenng feel. This r due mI*gnr ne o the supa-WCA S rear sbxh.y aa.orec cap fat hose wbo ve nam 4w ecfimlogy Nissan s ap~ d l l k n f r n a ~ o f H o n d a o r M a z d ai cnhiced toward mcdtum- anda@ stability benefits rather than

-mwll mntuuvaabilily.So there s no counter-steer feature to

r h c d s i n t h e s a m e d n s l i o n a linitid turn-in u,a corm t ke asideways stcp thal feels eerie tomoSe ~ccustomcdo the mnebaditional way of doing things.To offset this. Nissan s engi-neers have programed SuperHICAS to give brief, ti-action-of a second of rear omiwsieerwhen you first turn the stgring wheel, befmthe nar wheels turn to point in the same diRcbonasthefmnb. I tthussiwlstestheyawand pitch we ve cane to ssoci te with di-rrctiondrangs in 2ws cars.Under full electronic governance, fed bysensors for s taring w k l angle. speed andaczekRtion and vehick speed, the systcmcan turn the rear wheels up to l.Odegreeeither inphase or cwnmphase. but nor-d y ses m more than 0.4 of a d c p c .

sw rin g response and somewhat artiticialsteering feel. This may be F l y blamed onthe speed-sensitive variable power-assiststeering we ve critiqued in the p t AW,June 19). But there s also that mom entarycounter-phase rear-steer, which creates asense of demonic Nrn-in that isn t sustainedl h m u ~ u the cornering maneuver. It takesa lot of wMds lo explain, which may over-emphasize its impo- the m d it san occasional minor annoyance, a defi-ciency only in comparison with otherworld-class spom cars pdcula r ly the 30-percent more expensive Porsche 9 S2.On the plus side. we ve no doubts th lSuper HlCAS works as N i ays it does.which we suspst might be a d y a d v mtage. partifularly f a less expa ia red driverswhormklbewawklmdbyihenu.lixZXW s igh roadholding limits N i


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SPECIFICATIONS.......................................ma: mmo-1m) ........................................0.5m wMm m: 119.5110,sM e w : .....................................174Amk .Oh . .ci.r d 3.DCIlIDm w, mwM m Q b M W i pn Z P b t ~ =mrpn~ ~ ~ n m m4 m):............................................. 561,.pdtn*u: .......... ..........lss~ Jw.lmoqmm*r: ................................ampmdo : M ~ ~mqrg...qua- . r m m m n r m m~ a u ~ . u l o Y L w . n r 4Inr .............. v m m k a M I . * ( L 8'h .............PYSO I R I 6 ~ . 2 4 Y4 SZ R1 6 I I

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spolln(ebour),ml0n d lnhkuInnew (farM lal ingulsh~ u r t mO nbriar ( inurnu l n b u a M , e x m p U n g b w aw a nrpwdonwtw ( lop Wl ial acquainlance to be an aston-ishing car. particularly for itscombination o f performance andvalue. One might prefer thenearly one-third less powerfulPorsche 944 S2 for i t s steeringclaims 0.930.94 ) will rarely be encwn- and handling. Another might opttered on the sweet, but wr track experience for a similarly priced base Cor-suggests remarkable near-limit stability. vetle's less-spacey looks and V8

Credit not only Super HICAS, but also grunt (the L98 may have "only"the wider rear tires, easily modulated thmt- 245 hp. but holds a b ig torquetle. quicker overall steering ratio. the multi- advantage over the ZX Turbo atl ink suspension and the viscous. limited-slip lower revs). Bu t taken as adifferential for the car's easily managed package. the ZX s not only thecharacter. Its handling is more neutral than most modem sports car around.in the plow-prone normal ZX. and drastic an identical 125-foci6 topping distance. but a stunning achievement worthy of men-throttle inputs in a 300 hp car induce the I t takes sharp eyes to spot a Turbo from lion in the same breath with the world'sexpected oversteer. but recovery is easy and the front--the three-slot air d m "gills" re leading performancecarsfree of unwarranted drama. H ow much the only clue. At the rear the Turbo's spoiler Its 4ws system makes i t a more intensecredit for those good manners goes to the is the easiest means of distinguishing it from variation on the theme expressed in our I4ws and how much to other design features its lesser sisters. but i t prompts a styling de- at the normally aspirarcd modcl: a sense thatwe may never know-Nissan doesn't offer W . To us. it makes the rear quatters look the W s a digital rendition o f a sports car.the ZX Turbo without Super H lCAS and shorter, not a good thing on the two-seat while the likes of the 944 are d o g ars.there's no switch to turn i t off. body. the mil o f which verges on looking Just as (digital1compact discs arc replacingIn most other regards, you may safely m- stubby even without an appendage. (analog) vinyl in the r e c o d music world, itsider the Turbo the same car as the nor- Overall. we find the 300ZX Turbo on ini- seem likely that cars like the ZX Turbo wi l lma1 ZX AW. Feb. 6 . There's the same replace the 944 and its ilk, at least in the m sswonderfully organic interior laywt. the samelack o f a cargo hold cover. The same comfy.suppalive seats. the same poor re r thnequarter and straight-back visibility. The sameawful optional climate control system. thesame slandard manual N C . a betler choice.In wr pre-productionsample. we also heard acargo hold rattle, just as in our normallyaspirated MOW his despite the same tautfeel, the same sense of solidity in the chassis(even with the standard T-tops).

One other shared feature: four-wheel discbrakes and standard ABS. The Turbo modelgets thicker rotors. but no increase in diame-ter or swept area.The result. says Nissan. is

market. On paper i t looks as though the ZXTurbo has surpassed standards set for a 33.-sports car; in reality y w find that "sur-pass" isn't quite the right word, lor what i tdoes i s redefine the genre, just as CDs did forrecording. And just as there are some audiuphiles who complain ih c CDs sound wi-t i z e d and anificlal, there are car enthusiastswho prefer the mne traditional appmach.We often f ind ourselves within the lattergroup. To those o f like mind. we say the3WZX Turbo is worth a test drive. just asCDs are worth a listen. You may opt fortradition. but you should do so only afteryou know what you're giving up.

autoweek october 9, 1989

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