Sporty's 350Z thread

[CALL_911]

Hell yeah, I've always been a fan of the 350Z.

But please don't get the V2 bumper.

[12,000 RPM]

Oh, the irony...

Calm down

[12,000 RPM]

I don't know your situation, but, IMO, buying a relatively high performance, oldish, high mileage car on a budget when you have a family is dumb.  Get something cheap and reliable for the short term until you get nice and settled.  Then buy a money pit or a new Cayman or something.  Besides, wifeys turn into mommys pretty quick.

Another thing that sucks about buying on a budget and scouring used cars is that you'll never be happy with your choice.  If you had just waited one more month, if you had just spent an extra $1000, if you had just drove those extra 50 miles you would have gotten xyz better car, etc.  All stuff that would drive me crazy.

We have a few years before we have a family. And unless I am super duper rich I don't think I will ever buy a brand new car. Everyone has a budget, not sure what your second point is.

[GoCougs]

Pics! Raza will be offended but there's something deeper there that has nothing to do with the 350Z.

[Payman]

I don't know your situation, but, IMO, buying a relatively high performance, oldish, high mileage car on a budget when you have a family is dumb.  Get something cheap and reliable for the short term until you get nice and settled.  Then buy a money pit or a new Cayman or something.  Besides, wifeys turn into mommys pretty quick.

Another thing that sucks about buying on a budget and scouring used cars is that you'll never be happy with your choice.  If you had just waited one more month, if you had just spent an extra $1000, if you had just drove those extra 50 miles you would have gotten xyz better car, etc.  All stuff that would drive me crazy. 

Disagree. There'd be zero issue if he bought an Accord on an $8000 budget. It's just him and the wife, so why not a sporty car? Like you said, wifeys turn into mommys. Have fun as a couple while you can. Your 2nd point is nonsense. Buying on a budget is a no-brainer, and I'm not seeing why you'll never be happy with the car you bought on that budget.

[GoCougs]

What Xer0 is basically saying is your dollar goes further with a more normal car - a $9,000 2008 Civic w/50k miles is going to be much cheaper/easier to own than a $9,000 1999 M5 w/175k miles - and it's not a bad idea to buy the Civic now and buckle down for a few years and THEN buy something more sporty, but newer. I think he's completely right. The 350Z is pretty plebeian though so if the miles aren't insane and it was taken care of it probably won't be as cheap/easy to own as said low mileage newer Civic but it ain't going to be a nightmare like the said M5.

[Payman]

What Xer0 is basically saying is your dollar goes further with a more normal car - a $9,000 2008 Civic w/50k miles is going to be much cheaper/easier to own than a $9,000 1999 M5 w/175k miles - and it's not a bad idea to buy the Civic now and buckle down for a few years and THEN buy something more sporty, but newer. I think he's completely right. The 350Z is pretty plebeian though so if the miles aren't insane and it was taken care of it probably won't be as cheap/easy to own as said low mileage newer Civic but it ain't going to be a nightmare like the said M5.

Yeah, an M5 would be a stupid buy. That's not what he bought though. He got a reliable sporty car for him and his wife to enjoy while they are still a couple, on a budget he could afford. Your last sentence agrees with me more than it does Xero.

One more point: a 2004 Nissan 350Z has pretty much hit depreciation bottom at $7-8000 (unless Sporty trashes it). In 2-3 yrs it might still be worth $6-7000, versus half that for an '08 Civic.

[12,000 RPM]

Yea my car retails for ~11-12K and I got it for 9. I don't think it was a bad deal.

Window motor went out on the way home Very common problem + cheap/easy fix I will deal with tomorrow, just a pain that it happened right at that moment. It was working fine earlier in the day, I did my due diligence. The 03-04 OEM window motors were trash, the new ones are much better.

I went to pump gas after I left the dealership, some middle aged lady asked me if I was single

[FlatBlackCaddy]

Congrats, I like the newer z's throw some pics up when you can.

[SVT666]

On street tires it's a wash

Not true.  When I had my SVT Focus I would catch up to and pass superbikes on twisty mountain roads.  They would catch up and sometimes pass on the straightaways (most of the time they don't pass because they know they will just have to pull to the side to let me pass after the next bend), but I would walk away in the corners.  Even my buddy with a Honda CBR600RR couldn't keep up in the corners.

[12,000 RPM]

They prob suck as riders or didn't want to push 100%. Bikes can generate the same lateral grip as cars and can outbrake cars as well. There is just the whole self-preservation thing. You push too far in a car, esp a FWD car, tires squeal. You push too hard on a bike (on the street) you die. Plus there is way more technique to getting 100% out of a bike than a car. Car you just turn the wheel more. Bike is way more involved.

[Cookie Monster]

Congrats dude! We demand pics.

[SVT666]

They prob suck as riders or didn't want to push 100%. Bikes can generate the same lateral grip as cars and can outbrake cars as well. There is just the whole self-preservation thing. You push too far in a car, esp a FWD car, tires squeal. You push too hard on a bike (on the street) you die. Plus there is way more technique to getting 100% out of a bike than a car. Car you just turn the wheel more. Bike is way more involved.

Then it's not awash is it.  If the road is table top smooth and as clean as an operating room and the rider has balls of steel, then I can see it, but otherwise bikes suck compared to cars in cornering and braking.

[Laconian]

Excellent! Miatas and G37s are the only cars that anybody should ever buy, ever. 0-60 in 3.1s, really safe for the onramps.

(congrats!)

[Cookie Monster]

Then it's not awash is it.  If the road is table top smooth and as clean as an operating room and the rider has balls of steel, then I can see it, but otherwise bikes suck compared to cars in cornering and braking.

It depends on who's the better driver/rider. So it is a wash because it's easier to be a good car driver than a good bike rider.

[12,000 RPM]

Pics coming. I have to fix the window regulator and the subwoofer first (both easy fixes)

And yea thecarnut said it. On a track with a rider + driver of equal skills things will match up. If you put someone's grandma in a LaFerrari that doesn't make it a slow car all the time.

[Gotta-Qik-C7]

Then it's not awash is it.  If the road is table top smooth and as clean as an operating room and the rider has balls of steel, then I can see it, but otherwise bikes suck compared to cars in cornering and braking.

Compared to vehicles 99% of the public drive bikes (especially race replicas) outperform cars in EVERY WAY!

[SVT666]

Compared to vehicles 99% of the public drive bikes (especially race replicas) outperform cars in EVERY WAY!

On tracks, sure.  But not on real roads.

[GoCougs]

Yeah, an M5 would be a stupid buy. That's not what he bought though. He got a reliable sporty car for him and his wife to enjoy while they are still a couple, on a budget he could afford. Your last sentence agrees with me more than it does Xero.

One more point: a 2004 Nissan 350Z has pretty much hit depreciation bottom at $7-8000 (unless Sporty trashes it). In 2-3 yrs it might still be worth $6-7000, versus half that for an '08 Civic.

Good point about the depreciation curve...

[12,000 RPM]

On tracks, sure.  But not on real roads.

Naw, hes right. (Standard and sport) bikes are blindingly quicker than pretty much anything on the street. A "lowly" 600 runs a mid 10 second quarter mile with a heavy bias towards street speeds (i.e. they only top out around 170 whereas a car that fast would prob top out at 200). Plus people who can ride can place bikes way easier than a 6' wide car. Bikes are way faster than cars but counterintuitively their performance is way more accessible/usable.

[MrH]

Even on super bikes, I haven't met one on a track that could hang with a car.  They can theoretically pull a little over a G like a car, but I'll be damned if I've ever seen one do it.

[Raza]

Pics! Raza will be offended but there's something deeper there that has nothing to do with the 350Z.

Sporty, it's a great looking car, and I hope it does you well. 

[Onslaught]

Good pick for that kind if money.

[Raza]

They prob suck as riders or didn't want to push 100%. Bikes can generate the same lateral grip as cars and can outbrake cars as well. There is just the whole self-preservation thing. You push too far in a car, esp a FWD car, tires squeal. You push too hard on a bike (on the street) you die. Plus there is way more technique to getting 100% out of a bike than a car. Car you just turn the wheel more. Bike is way more involved.

Pretty common experience.  I used to catch motorcycles a lot in my Jetta on the windy roads outside of State College.

[Raza]

Good pick for that kind if money.

For what he's looking for, it's a pretty good choice, I agree.  Reliable, good looking, practical for a two-seater, comfortable, and with decent gas mileage. 

[FlatBlackCaddy]

Pretty common experience.  I used to catch motorcycles a lot in my Jetta on the windy roads outside of State College.

Well, it's a fucking jetta....what did you expect. Cut the riders some slack, there are only a few rare Ducati's that would even be a match for a jetta.

Edit:

Then of course there is your unmatchable skill level as a driver, forgot about that.

[SVT666]

Naw, hes right. (Standard and sport) bikes are blindingly quicker than pretty much anything on the street. A "lowly" 600 runs a mid 10 second quarter mile with a heavy bias towards street speeds (i.e. they only top out around 170 whereas a car that fast would prob top out at 200). Plus people who can ride can place bikes way easier than a 6' wide car. Bikes are way faster than cars but counterintuitively their performance is way more accessible/usable.

Sure....in a straight line cars are no match for a bike.  But unless you're on a track, a car will walk on a bike when there's corners.

[Xer0]

Disagree. There'd be zero issue if he bought an Accord on an $8000 budget. It's just him and the wife, so why not a sporty car? Like you said, wifeys turn into mommys. Have fun as a couple while you can. Your 2nd point is nonsense. Buying on a budget is a no-brainer, and I'm not seeing why you'll never be happy with the car you bought on that budget.

My point isn't that it's on a budget, it's that it's on relatively small budget in a not so hot used car market.  Hes mentioned plenty of times how far anything half desirable is and the distance plus budget really limits what you can buy.  I'm glad that he ended up with a relatively newish 350, but in the beginning he was looking at 15+ year old BMWs.

[SJ_GTI]

Congrats on the car, definitely need to post pics. 

[12,000 RPM]

Sure....in a straight line cars are no match for a bike.  But unless you're on a track, a car will walk on a bike when there's corners.

Meh... looking into it, on a track too.

Car vs Bike (Nissan GT-R vs Ducati) by autocar.co.uk - part two

But they can def pull a g, even more depending on the track/road.

Fastest motorcycle lap of the Nürburgring. 7m10s BTG Yamaha YZF R1.

But Im not sure why we are discussing this anyway. I don't really care what is faster. Bike is cheaper to build up and do track days on and I enjoy riding it. Z is just for taking wifey places and eventually getting to work.