By Mike T Allen

The Japanese automaker Nissan has announced that the new Fairlady Z Roadster is already on sale in the sports car’s home market. Intended to be a convertible from day one, Nissan’s engineers designed the 370Z in a way that the loss of structural rigidity and added weight of a retractable canvas roof would have no effect whatsoever on the drop top Z car’s performance. Their goal was to blend the pure exhilaration and sporting appeal of the Z34 and seamlessly combine it with the excitement of open air driving by offering the same high performance power plant and curvaceous body lines that make the fixed roof Nissan 370Z such a desirable sports car.

Just like the Fairlady Z Coupe, the new Z Roadster features a shorter wheelbase and an increased track to make the sports car more nimble while at the same time keeping the weight down. The same 3.7 Liter V6 engine that propels the standard vehicle to the tune of 330 HP and 270 lb-ft of torque also powers the Nissan 370Z Roadster. By combining the high performance VQ37VHR with the Z34′s dynamic chassis, Nissan has instilled the 370Z Roadster with remarkably high levels of acceleration and handling, while providing a quiet and comfortable interior even with the top down.

It is a tall order for a design team to build a convertible that looks just as nice with the top up as it does down. In most cases it looks like a vehicle’s designers decided to focus on only one of the drop head’s personalities; either by leaving the car with a bulky looking roofline or like there is just too much junk in the trunk when it is retracted. However thanks to careful planning and some very intuitive foresight, the hamburger logo has been able to once again avoid turning one of their premier sports cars into a cow of a convertible with the Nissan 370Z Roadster.