CP shares two days of the life of motoring
journalist Paul Frère testing the Nissan 350Z
So, you think motoring journalists have a good and easy life,
don't you? I did, and when friends at Nissan invited me to test
drive their new 350Z on German roads with a few selected French
writers, I looked forward to an enjoyable time.
When I arrived at the Paris Charles de Gaulle
airport to meet with the group, the first I saw was old acquaintance
Paul Frère. I have known Paul for forty something years.
I was a young enthusiast and he already an accomplished racing
driver and an established journalist, and I had written him to
ask if he would take me with him to the Turin Motor Show. In those
days, the Italian show was a yearly event held in November and
it was a fascinating place where all local coachbuilders displayed
their latest creations. Against all odds, two days later, a telegram
arrived at home. Paul, who had never heard of me, suggested I
call him to make final arrangements and indeed, he took me to,
and back from, Turin in his Fiat 2300S Ghia coupe. It was an unforgettable
experience, the best part being the Alpine passes (there were
no tunnels yet) covered with snow, for they revealed the performance
of a talented driver in full control of his car, as Paul was.
Paul was not happy after having spent a night
in a Parisian hotel arranged by Nissan which was clearly below
his expectations. The chartered, cramped, twin-prop KLM plane
that slowly transported us to Nürnberg did not improve his
mood. The unpalatable food served on board finished to lengthen
his face. Could it be that I was wrong? Was the press not as nicely
looked after as it used to be? Had the budgets become that tight?
Or had Nissan so much trust in the qualities of their new car
that they did not feel the need for other treats? On top of everything
else, the weather was against us and we landed under heavy rain.
Just outside of the airport, fourteen cars exactly
were waiting for their drivers, half of them in a metallic amber
colour, the other half in a less flamboyant but more elegant,
at least we judged so, silver grey. Paul most kindly offered to
share a car with me, and I was delighted because it was bringing
back so many nice memories. We had made plans last year to travel
together to the Turin Motor Show again to celebrate the 40th anniversary
of our first encounter, but the show was cancelled and so was
our trip. This now proved a welcome compensation. After a short
brief from the Nissan men in charge, off we went, Paul at the
wheel and me with the road book on my lap.
To say that I felt totally confident would be
overstated. I had no fear but, perhaps, a trace of doubt. After
all, Paul Frère, at 86, is no young man anymore. I had
known him at the peak of his driving art, would I not be disappointed
now? And would he not commit something silly, I even asked myself?
It did not take long to realise that my questions were unfounded.
The first portion of the road was mostly free
Autobahn, and gradually, as he rejoiced and understood
the car better, Paul increased our speed to well over 200 km/h
on a soaked wet surface. Sometimes, given the poor visibility,
I felt we were nearing the slower traffic ahead of us at high
speed, but there was never a moment of surprise nor the hint to
an hesitation. Without any doubt, his eyesight was clear and his
judgement sharp. At one moment, he shouted 'brake test' and slammed
the pedal. I had a short spell of dizziness. How many g's did
we take? His guess was about 0.7. Would he perhaps be in better
condition than me, I wondered? I announced that we had 52 more
kilometres before leaving the motorway. He said with a smile 'I
hope we don't leave it before'. We then had a stint on little
country roads. His pace was fast, his line smooth, his precision
diabolic, his concentration total. We had been amongst the last
to leave Nürnberg and were amongst the first to reach the
coffee break inn.
It was my turn to take the wheel. There I was,
a Grand Prix and Le Mans winner sitting next to me and reading
the map for me! Paul remarked that he always tries to have a car
to himself because he had made some bad experiences in the past
with other people wanting to impress him. Such was not my intention
and I felt relieved when he commented that he was perfectly at
ease with my driving. He just observed that I was changing gears
more often than he did, which he felt was not necessary because
of the rather generous torque developed by the engine. Right.
We arrived in Pegnitz where Nissan accommodated
all of us in the Pflaums Post Hotel, an amazing place run since
over three hundred years by the same family and part of the Relais
& Châteaux chain. All rooms are different and have a
modern 'design' atmosphere. The keys were in a large bowl at the
reception desk and it was to everyone to pick his at random. I
loved the place and so did Paul. We were also given a pair of
very nice driving shoes. Our barometer climbed. Drinks were served,
coming with delicious cheese quiches, and a few Sony Playstations
were available for entertainment. Paul, a newcomer to the game,
learned quickly and was soon taking maximum revs.
Before dinner, a formal presentation of the 350Z
was organized by the Nissan staff, including a few Japanese executives.
They explained their goal had been to produce a car performing
like a Porsche Boxster and to sell it at the price of an Audi
TT. How successful they had been was for us to decide. They also
developed a theory that, thanks to the 'central front' engine
layout, their front/rear weight balance of 53/47% was ideal because,
with the transfer occurring under acceleration out of a bend,
it became the perfect 50/50. I looked at Paul with questioning
eyes and he said 'clever marketing explanation'. Finally, they
pointed at the fuel consumption, supposed to average around 12
l/100 km. We had achieved 15.7 l. An engineer in awe wondered
at what speed we had been driving. Were there any questions? Sure
enough, Paul was the first to raise his hand: 'Do you have a figure
for the torsional stiffness of the car?'. There was a blank. French
Nissan staff looked at European Nissan staff who, in turn, looked
at Japanese Nissan staff. Torsional stiffness … the car
certainly was stiff, but how stiff exactly, nobody had a clue.
They said they would find out and, unless it was a secret, they
would come back to him. Paul knows by heart the measures for many
cars including the Rolls Royce Phantom which, with 40 000 Nm/°,
is the stiffest, but also the heaviest, of them all. By comparison,
a good roadster would achieve about 1/3rd of such numbers. Paul's
curiosity is insatiable and his memory unbeatable. During the
day, he had looked at the engine bay and asked me if I could find
the ABS calculator, which he did not see. We discovered it, under
a trap housing the brake master cylinder. Then I spotted him lying
down, looking at the aluminium suspension elements. No wonder
his reports are factual. Would you call this professionalism?
The four-course dinner was truly excellent and,
by the time we had eaten too much, we had forgotten about the
miserable start of our day. The next morning, our team was officially
confirmed and there was a large label 'Reserved Frère-Philippsen'
on the windshield of our car which had been cleaned overnight.
The roads were now dry and I was happy to let Paul do the driving.
We took a more leisurely pace, enjoying the quite stunning Bavarian
landscape. Much to Nissan's relief, our consumption fell to 11.7
l/100 km.
So, after nearly 300 km, what did Paul actually
think of the 350Z ? 'A lot of good' he replied. He liked the car,
believed it offers great value for money indeed. The engine felt
powerful and produced a nice sound, both inside and outside. The
6-speed gearbox was commendable for its short travel between the
gears, though it required muscled action. Same observation for
the steering, which was incisive and gave a good feedback, but
was heavy at low speeds. Will the 22% female buyers targeted by
Nissan agree? Brakes, suspensions and road manners were beyond
reproach for what we could observe, but only a track test will
tell all the truth. Both Paul and I would have liked to sit a
bit higher. We were told the seat adjustments were not definite
and more flexibility would be offered in the production cars.
Paul also thought the footrest next to the clutch pedal should
be raised for more comfort. I noticed the lack of a handle inside
the trunk lid to grab and facilitate its shutting. What else?
Oh yes, there was only minimal storage space in the cabin, with
the absence of a glove box in the dashboard. There was a generous
box behind the passenger seat, but it was unreachable whilst seated
and thus not practical for maps and guides. There was a cup holder,
a Bose radio system and a screen for a GPS, all of which we did
not try.
Our time was over and the car had to be turned
in for the next group of journalists. We had a delicious closing
lunch in Der schwarze Adler near the airport in Nürnberg
before checking in and flying back to Paris in the same KLM plane
we had arrived in. It felt more spacious though, because some
had left us as they had moved on to attend another presentation
in Germany. We did not care about food anymore, we had had more
than enough. Paul and I said good bye to each other in Paris as
we had different schedules from there on. I had had a lovely time
with a truly impressive man, a most desirable car, and concluded
that, after all, motoring journalists don't have it all that bad.
July
2003
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