We’ve already seen what happens when the 2023 Nissan Z takes on the Toyota Supra in a drag race. But what happens when you put some twists and turns in the way of these (more or less) Japanese sports cars? You’re about to find out, both in terms of sheer numbers and, more importantly, regarding the driving experience provided by the coupes.
Sure, we’re all car lovers here (or did you land on this page because you were out shopping for a reliable JDM machine for your commute?). But, in today’s world, where carmakers are becoming technology companies and official presentations are leaning more towards terms like “user interface” than [insert favorite mechanical fetish here], you’d better leave no room for illusion.
It’s a tough world out there: the Mk V Supra is, mechanically speaking, a BMW, and—spoiler alert—the 2023 Nissan Z is significantly slower on the track, even in fair auto vs. auto battle with pro driver Randy Pobst behind the wheel of both—he should be pretty familiar to BMWs given his “Trans Am Bandit” X3 M.
Nevertheless, taking any of these two cars to the circuit and expecting to beat the lot around you in stock form is an illusion itself. And this is why the lap times are just a tiny piece of this comparison, which sees Jason Camisa acting and producing under the Hagerty umbrella.
Underneath the brilliant humor, tech and economic insights, and camera work you’ll find plenty of useful conclusions about how the “400Z” drives. And the whole thing feels honest. And if you want proof, consider this: in a video released on the YouTube channel of an insurance specialist, the host talks about the lack of feedback mostly dictated by the now-electrically-assisted power steering, predicting this will cause many drivers to spin the Nissan sports car.
Then again, Pobst, who spends an important part of the video chasing Camisa in the Supra 3.0, make it clear that the rear end of the Toyota doesn’t inspire confidence either. In fact, you shouldn’t particularly bash any of these two-doors for the lack of sideways control. This is an issue that many, if not most, new performance cars have and it’s mostly owed to the sticky, wide tires required in today’s big-power, performance numbers-obsessed world.
Ferrari-inspired boost strategy
But enough about the unpleasant parts. It’s time to also praise the 2023 Nissan Z, because it has plenty of assets that deserve it. For one, in this complicated era of turbocharging, Nissan has taken a cue from Ferrari. As such, the Infiniti-borrowed twin-turbo 3.0L V6 of the “400Z” delivers boost gradually, bringing the driving experience closer to what you’d get in a high-performance naturally aspirated engine.
By contrast, the Supra doesn’t necessarily invite the driver to take it to the redline, since it offers all of the bost it can the moment this is available. And this is a characteristic that’s also found in much more expensive cars, with the new McLaren hybrid, the Artura, sharing it.
At least for the first year of production, the new Z starts at about $10,000 below the straight-six Supra. And that’s not a defensive stance. Instead, all we can think of is using that money for mods. For the record, the sheer presence of these RWD coupes in today’s crossover-dominated market is enough of a reason to jump for joy.
The fight between the Z and the Supra is not over, though. For one, now that the Toyota has received a six-speed manual for 2023, we need to see this being thrown at the six-speed Z. Then there are the rumors talking about the Supra GRMN with its M3/M4-borrowed twin-turbo straight-six. And we have no reason to believe Nissan won’t take the Z higher courtesy of a Nismo model.
