"S65" (granthp)
09/15/2016 at 11:45 • Filed to: S65's Thoughts, Nissan Murano, Nissan 370Z, 370Z, COMPLAIN
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"S65" (granthp)
09/15/2016 at 11:45 • Filed to: S65's Thoughts, Nissan Murano, Nissan 370Z, 370Z, COMPLAIN | 0
| 15 |
Welcome to S65's thoughts where I make a post about something usually just crossed my mind. Let’s talk about a pointless Nissan and a slightly more relevant Nissan that will soon probably cease to exist.
Why on earth did Nissan decide to build the Murano CrossCabriolet? Which executive approved this for production? Why not update the 370Z? It’s been lagging behind since 2009. Not even a facelift? Nissan what is this? I haven’t heard any plans to update it or anything, I know the Nismo got a facelift in 2015 ( !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! ). For the price of a base 370Z ($29,990) I’d rather get a freshly facelifted BRZ which gains 5 horsepower and 5 lb-ft of torque over the outgoing model,or a new ND Miata. For the price of a 370Z Touring ($37,970) I’d get a used !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! . !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! . I’d bet the 370Z will either get facelifted soon or put out to pasture. Why even build a convertible Murano? It seems like such a compromise between a somewhat practical crossover and a “meh” V6 Mustang or Camaro. Who even bought those? What was the point?
Has the 370Z reached the end of it’s term? Did anybody really even want a Murano Crosscab? Why does it even exist?
Daily Drives a Dragon - One Last Lap
> S65
09/15/2016 at 11:48 |
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I like the CrossCab.
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S65
> Daily Drives a Dragon - One Last Lap
09/15/2016 at 11:51 |
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Explain
Ash78, voting early and often
> S65
09/15/2016 at 11:55 |
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I see 3-4 CrossCabs around town and have come to appreciate the quirkiness. But in a larger sense, I tend to agree — manufacturers spend countless dollars chasing weird market segments that wouldn't even exist had they not invented them. Every dollar you spend on a successful car, a certain number of cents are going to failed or under-selling projects. Why not eliminate those and make your current, established cars better and/or cheaper?
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Daily Drives a Dragon - One Last Lap
> S65
09/15/2016 at 11:55 |
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It’s funky, weird, and no focus groups were called to see what people wanted. They made it. Yeah it sucks as a convertible and sucks as an SUV and as a car in general, and it’s that not caring that makes it epic.
jimz
> S65
09/15/2016 at 11:56 |
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Why on earth did Nissan decide to build the Murano CrossCabriolet?
They were so preoccupied with whether they could, they never stopped to consider whether they should.
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S65
> Daily Drives a Dragon - One Last Lap
09/15/2016 at 11:58 |
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Very well
Alex Zapata
> S65
09/15/2016 at 11:58 |
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There is a new Z coming, with the introduction of the new TT 3.0 V6, it will move a bit more upmarket, I think Nissan is just dumbfounded by the Supra and lack of information on it, so they’ll probably try to benchmark the new 300Z to it.
I read somewhere they are hinting at making Z a sub-brand and that the first child of it will be sort of a big Juke and probably after the release of the Supra they’ll decide whether to make a new sports car or not.
That’s Nissan for you, they always take a legend and make it for too many years until people are sick of them and then they will make another crazy new car, eg. the old 300Z, the 3 pre-R35 GTRs, the Silvia/180/200/240SX and 350/370Z and R35 now; they all ran on the same engine, same platform for ages, by the end they were old-fashioned and considered old for the times.
Edit: I can also imagine taking the roof of the Murano is a lot cheaper than making a new-gen Z.
RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht
> S65
09/15/2016 at 12:00 |
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I think the basic idea of the crosscab wasn’t such a total miss, but execution was a little mescaliney. Consider: four seat convertible (which the Sebring/200 and the PT Cruiser convertible showed was a viable sector, to a point), built nicer than either, built on an existing platform with minimal change ($), and that platform being a tall platform to favor the seating and convenience preferred by the elderly - prime consumers of things which are nice and the Sebring/PT convertibles.
Sure, it’s not a huge market, but on paper it gets you a sure minor hit with minimal investment. What they were looking for was this:
plus this:
What they got was this:
As to the Z, they might have an increase in sales with a facelift, but I don’t know that it has a big enough profit margin to make it really worth it, and it’s not a huge seller in the first place.
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S65
> Alex Zapata
09/15/2016 at 12:04 |
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Edit: I can also imagine taking the roof of the Murano is a lot cheaper than making a new-gen Z.
I know, I was going to touch upon this.
I think Nissan is just dumbfounded by the Supra and lack of information on it, so they’ll probably try to benchmark the new 300Z to it.
Wouldn’t the R35 be closer to a Supra than a Z?
That’s Nissan for you, they always take a legend and make it for too many years until people are sick of them and then they will make another crazy new car, eg. the old 300Z, the 3 pre-R35 GTRs, the Silvia/180/200/240SX and 350/370Z and R35 now; they all ran on the same engine, same platform for ages, by the end they were old-fashioned and considered old for the times.
Yep
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S65
> RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht
09/15/2016 at 12:08 |
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Would n’t the Altima/Maxima be better for a four seat ‘vert ? What about the Nissan Fuga/ Infiniti M/ Q70/ Mitsubishi Dignity/ Nissan Cima?
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RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht
> S65
09/15/2016 at 12:15 |
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No. It makes far more sense (on paper) to use the Murano for two reasons - oldsters dig having minivan/crossover height seats, and if you make it out of the Murano you can call it a “truck” and play games with CAFE. Also, it’s not any easier to make a two-door crossover out of a two-door midsize or fullsize than it is to make a two-door version out of a four-door crossover - and you want the two door configuration because that way you can have the body stiffness you need for the convertible and big doors which you need for oldsters.
In practice, having a four-seater is much more about having enough room for Aunt Enid to bring her grandkids along than for everybody in the bridge group to have an easy entry, so reduced access to the back seat isn’t a big thing. See: Toronado, Eldorado, Regal, Lincoln Mark series...
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RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht
> Ash78, voting early and often
09/15/2016 at 12:18 |
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weird market segments that wouldn’t even exist had they not invented them
eliminate those
YOU SHUT YOUR WHORE MOUTH
IanZ - limited-slip indifferential
> S65
09/15/2016 at 17:15 |
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I adore the Crosscab. We need more weird and pointless stuff like it, because why not? I also really like the design of that gen Murano and don’t even think the Crosscab is that ugly. As to the 370Z, I really can’t say. Rumor was a while ago they were going to turn it into a CUV, which thankfully hasn’t happened...yet.
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S65
> IanZ - limited-slip indifferential
09/15/2016 at 17:17 |
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I’m glad you were able to find something positive about the Crosscad, I’m not sure how I would feel about a crossover Z
Axial
> Alex Zapata
09/15/2016 at 23:01 |
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I swear to fucking Oprah, if they put a goddamn piece of shit CVT in the new Z...I can’t be held responsible for the consequences.
Fucking Nissan and their obsession with CVTs.