THERE'S A NEW U-TURN DRAG RACE - THIS ONE STARS THE BMW M2 AND THE NISSAN Z NIZMO.
We’re fans of cool and awesome things here at SXdrv, which is why we subscribe to the Edmunds Cars channel over on the YouTube. The team does things differently from the rest when it comes to testing cars. The vast majority of motoring review sites and channels either get a car to test and review and pit it against the clock over a predetermined distance. Other channels get a pair of cars, usually direct market competitors and they unleash them on a test strip or racetrack to be able to pick which one is the best car. The racetrack stuff is usually reserved for the top-tier motoring journalists and reviewers though because there are different costs and insurance and liabilities involved, so the majority of these tests are done over the world standard of a quarter mile. That’s great for testing acceleration, traction, throttle control and some onboard driver-assist tech. We all know there’s a lot more involved in a car test, like handling and arguably the most important part, braking. The chaps at Edmunds Cars created a new way of testing cars that maximises the data collected while minimising risk to the cars and makes the entertainment value rise considerably compared to a normal heads-up drag race. Enter the Edmunds U-Drag race - this way of testing sees both cars heading down the track just like in a regular drag race but things change at 402 meters. Instead of climbing on the brakes to scrub off speed and then coasting until the return road, it’s a case of jumping on the clamps hard to scrub off enough speed to be able to turn the car 180 degrees and head back to the start line which then becomes the finish line. This way tests all aspects of the car, it’s like a track test but not.
The cars in this fight are the new BMW M2, a car that’s already received worldwide acclaim from every kind of motoring media there is thanks to it being the consummate all-rounder and the Nissan Z in Nizmo guise. While there are loads of Nissan fanatics here in SA, the Nissan Z won’t be coming to our shores, the power that be seems to think that no one will buy one and that Nissan in SA is all about bakkies. In fact, Nissan only offers 4 SUVs and 3 bakkies in SA - that’s it. Sad really. The Nissan Z features a twin-turbocharged 3.0 litre V6 powerplant from its VQ60 series, and it makes a respectable 294 kW and its main rivals have been touted as the Toyota GR Supra and the BMW Z4, both of which cost several thousand dollars more, but now that the BMW M is here, it could sort of run in the same class. We love us some proper JDM Nissan stuff, one of our favourite cars to date is the 350 Z (and the follow-up 370 Z) and so we were rooting for the car to be the winner in this weird drag race comparison. The fact of the matter is that the BMW M2 is just too damn good at everything which makes it hard to beat in any proper comparison test. It even punches above its weight and can hold its own against cars in higher-up segments. Even before clicking on this video, we though the BMW M2 would be the clear winner - were we right?
Take a look at the YouTube video showing off the latest U-turn drag race that pits BMW's stellar new M2 against Nissan's Z car, the Nizmo Z. We haven't driven a Z car, and probably never will, but we have driven the M2 and it really is all that and a bag of chips: U-DRAG RACE: BMW M2 vs. Nissan Z Nismo | Quarter Mile, Handling & More | Edmunds Cars
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News Nissan Z Z Nizmo Nissan M2 BMW BMW M2 Drag Race U-Turn Drag Race U-Turn SXdrv Edmunds Cars