It seems hard to believe but for 40 years, petrolheads across Britain have enjoyed the thrills of Nissan’s Z line-up. To celebrate this milestone – and to make it clear that turning 40 does not mean slowing down – Nissan has released a limited edition, race-themed, GT-edition 370Z Coupe for the UK market. The Z cars are to this day performing solidly in Japan’s Super GT and the GT1 World Championship.

The good news is that it is on sale now and it is priced from £35,000.

There are three colour choices complete with grey side stripes – a nod to the 1970s GT racing heritage of this little demon. The colour choices are Pearl White, Kuro black (a lovely metallic, mind you don’t scratch it…) and Black Rose, an exclusive shade for this model. Also on the cosmetic front, the GT Edition features darkened 19-inch alloy wheels.

But the real proof is in what lies beneath and it looks like the GT Edition will not disappoint those serious about power and performance – the Bedford-based boffins at the Nissan Technical Centre Europe have been very busy indeed. The main mod is a retuning of the dampers to provide a balance between ride comfort and agile, high-speed handling – well, once you’ve turned 40, you might still want the thrills but you don’t want the lumbago.

There are a few more Captain Sensible touches added for the 40th birthday celebrations – a rear parking camera so you don’t kerb it, tyre pressure monitoring (well, we get forgetful in our old age and little things like checking the tyres might slip our minds…) and a sat-nav system as it is impossible to look cool if you’ve gotten lost.

Clutch-and-stick purists may howl, but there is also the option of an advanced seven-speed automatic with a snow mode which sets the car off in second gear and controls the revs so you don’t spin out when it gets slippery. Hey, the weather may be nice at the moment but have we already forgotten about the impromptu roadside ski trips that befell many a hapless car last winter?

And if you haven’t got £35,000 to spend on a car at the moment, you can still get yourself some Z action in the virtual world. The Gran Turismo 5 game for PlayStation 3 features the 370Z and gamers have been competing with each other in cyberspace to win a drive n a real 370Z GT4 cup car. Virtual champs have already made their racing debuts in the 2011 GT Academy series and it will be interesting to see if any of these drivers can make a successful transition from gaming to the track.

Pearl White Nissan 370Z GT Edition

The original Z car, the Datsun 240Z

By Georgia Lewis

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