Nissan has had an on-off relationship with open-air driving over the years and some enthusiasts were concerned that there might not be a roadster version of the 370Z.
But there is - and it's due in South Africa in May 2010.
Nissan's convertible connection dates back to the first Fairlady sports car of 1961 but soft-tops vanished with the 240Z of 1970 - although T-tops with removable roof panels were later introduced - and only returned with the slightly awkward-looking 300X of 1992.
Nissan's latest convertible, which has a slick electro-hydraulic soft top, is clearly related in its lines to the coupé version, but in fact the Roadster is a different car from the windscreen backwards, an indication of the re-engineering needed to successfully morph from coupé to convertible.
It's a more graceful and integrated design than either the 350Z or 300X, which some complained looked more like afterthoughts.
Nissan has also managed to keep the weight down to only 49kg more than the coupé thanks to a range of weight-saving features - and it would have been lighter without safety-related stiffening in the sills and A pillars.
Many convertibles only look good with the roof retracted but the 370Z looks great either way. With the soft top in place, its profile is slightly reminiscent of the old James Dean-era Porsche convertibles.
The top is well-finished inside and provides good outward vision. Its cloth roof has a fabric inner liner that improves the ambience of the cabin and is said to cut noise. The glass rear window is bigger than that of the 350Z and has a demister.
The top is stretched over a weight-saving magnesium frame and takes 20 seconds to open or close. It vanishes under a hard tonneau cover and, thanks to a re-design of the roof and its components, boot space is better than its predecessor and will take a golf bag or several bags of moderate size.
Nissan says the roof can be opened or closed while the car is moving - but we're talking slowly. It's operated by either a chromed switch on the centre console or a button on the door release.
The Roadster shares the same over-designed fascia as the coupé, with an odd covered box in the centre where the satnav should be; the Nissan system won't yet work in South Africa. Ironically, a crumpled map of the launch route was shoved in the "satnav" box of the car I drove in New Zealand.
WIND NOISE
Hidden from view is a new type of curtain crash bag that deploys vertically from the top edge of the door. It's a complex and sophisticated mechanism that could provide added difficulty for servicing in-door items such as the window-winding mechanism.
On the road, the grippy 19" Bridgestones quickly show their weakness. They're really noisy on the coarse-chip roads common in New Zealand, drowning the engine whenever it's not under heavy acceleration. But that's easily fixed. Lower the top and wind noise quickly drowns the noise of the tyres!
That's not a criticism; even the most expensive roadsters can't fully tame wind noise and some owners wouldn't want them to - it's part of the experience. Driving a 370Z with the roof down is pleasant at legal speeds; press too far beyond and the airflow becomes blustery and buffeting.
Whether the top is up or down a fixed glass wind deflector behind the seats that's there to lessen cabin turbulence serves as a constant reminder the 370Z is a convertible. - New Zealand Herald