--- title: "Here’s Why Deeply Discounted Nissan Zs Are Going Away—Maybe for Good" date: "2025-11-21" modified: "2025-11-21" authors: - name: "Joel Feder" job_title: "Director of Content and Product" link: "https://www.thedrive.com/authors/joel-feder" url: "https://www.thedrive.com/news/heres-why-deeply-discounted-nissan-zs-are-going-away-maybe-for-good" categories: - "News" - "News by Brand" - "Nissan News" tags: - "sports car" --- # Here’s Why Deeply Discounted Nissan Zs Are Going Away—Maybe for Good ![2026 Nissan Z]() Nissan's about to take a page out of Porsche's playbook with the Z. *\[Editor's note: The quotes below were edited for clarity and readability.\]* Thursday at the 2025 Los Angeles Auto Show, Nissan SVP Michael Soutter exclusively told *The Drive* that, for the Z sports car, "probably in the future, we'll see more of a build-to-order as opposed to a build-to-stock." Why? "Because it is lower volume. When we have a Kicks or Frontier, Pathfinder, Rogue, we have the liberty or flexibility to build what we think the market will sell. On this, if we get the color wrong, or we get the interior wrong, or we get the object package wrong, it's just gonna sit there, and we end up, putting extra VME incentives \[on them\]." Soutter said. "So having a more of a pull strategy is going to help \[with\] volume, actually, to get the right car in the right place at the right time," Soutter said. When asked why Nissan didn't just launch the most recent Z with this strategy Soutter said, "Hindsight? 20/20, you know?" "Let's get the dealers what they want—what they need. It doesn't have to be an order tied to a customer," Soutter said. If a dealer thinks they can move a particular color or configuration, then so much the better, in his estimation. By why not just lower the Z's price point to attract customers to the lots the old-fashioned way? "For the most part, in our lineup, we have a high cost structure that we're working on," Soutter explained. "Our fixed costs—our overhead in the company—is extremely high. We're rationalizing our capacity, closing plants, getting rid of head count. Once the fixed cost is put into alignment with where we should be—kind of a north star—the cost per unit comes down." Until that happens, Soutter said, a lower price point is simply untenable. "Right now, it's just not possible. Tariffs \[are\] another part of the equation," he elaborated. " We're trying to offset and mitigate all the tariffs. We really don't have a lot of pricing flexibility right now. Once we get our cost per unit down, I think it's gonna be an option that we can explore." "I'm not suggesting we're going to do it," he quickly added, "but it becomes an option." Vehicles like the GT-R can subsist on incredibly low volumes thanks to their knock-on marketing benefits and their incredibly high per-uit margins, but even then, profitability is rarely the point. Could the same be done with Z? Yes and no, Soutter says. "The volume does help us determine whether or not something lives or dies. but at the same time, we also have to have some DNA and legacy and everything else," he said. "Our CEO is a huge Z fanatic, and GTR fanatic. Big fan," Soutter continued. "Having this in our portfolio is a kind of a halo. You see, it's pretty impressive, and it's kind of our whole DNA around the powertrain, fun to drive, adventure, everything else. The volume is not the core determinant on this thing." It seems the Z is safe despite all the changes taking place at Nissan, but the automaker's making immediate, and possibly future, changes to ensure it stays that way. And screaming deals on a new Z? Those are about to come to an end it seems. *Got a news tip? Let us know at tips@thedrive.com!* ## Author Overseeing what you see, read, touch, hear, and interact with from the vast lakes of Minnesota, Joel Feder shapes how The Drive looks and operates as the head of content and product initiatives. On a daily basis, Joel leads the newsroom and editorial staff playing point on both short-term coverage and long-term strategic plans. His mission is to help ensure The Drive shapes the future of automotive media by helping the team execute original reporting, breaking news, and exclusive opportunities. Regarded as an industry insider and recognized by colleagues, fellow journalists, and manufacturers as a point-person and leader in the industry, Joel owns and runs the largest automotive professionals group on Facebook in an effort to serve and help others. Joel serves as a juror for the World Car Awards. In addition, he is the board chair and chair of the governance and nominating committee for Move Forward MN, a local non-profit that helps at-risk youth with barrier-free mental health and housing services. While you’re reading this he’s either on his computer or iPhone chasing the latest news or drafting a story. ### Author social links [Instagram]() [LinkedIn]() [Bluesky]() [Email]()