Try and convince me back

[Strife]

No problem, just be sure if you do get something it'll be something you love! Z3's are nice but aren't for everyone. It's always worth a shot checking it out and who knows you may love it.

[Captain Snooze]

Get an ice-cream scoop.

[nikitopo]

Originally Posted by Braeden

Appreciate the real response. Unless the 2017 models just "wow" me I am almost dead set on a 2012~ nismo. But that being said a family member is looking to find a new home for his 2002 Z3 M with randy forbes modifications. Pretty tempted to look into that because I would only have to pay up $12k and its only got 50k miles. The thing flies too. Pretty sure the S54 engine was rated at 320~hp.

have a lot of choices to make but either way thanks again for the info.

Buy the 2012 Nismo and keep it as much as stock. You'll have most of the things you want from the factory and peace of mind. We were expecting something more with the 2017 refresh, but it looks that the differences are small. First reviews already came out and the most noticeable change seems to be the more intervention of the electronics. No major differences in suspension or handling and the powertrain. Maybe not even noticeable in day-to-day driving.


I wouldn't go with a 2002 Z3 M (too old), but it is your decision.

[31x86]

I'm a former Z owner (300ZX) and I was looking to get into a 370Z but then I drove the FRS. I wanted something different after owning nothing but Z cars the last 8 years.

Pros - Power, good bang for the buck

Cons- aftermarket selection not as vast as twins. More of a headache to mod, and heavier.


------—-------—-------—--------—-----—
Instagram: Vangloriousm
Twitter: vanivglorious

[nikitopo]

Unfortunately, if you don't have power you cannot do a lot. Have you checked the latest Pikes Peak International Hill Climb results? There was a Japanese rally driver competing with a Toyota GT 86 14R60 car. This is a kind of dream car for many of us, since it is modified directly by the Toyota racing department. In fact this car was produced in very few pieces and it is supposed to be a collector's car. Do you know what place finished in its class? 5th place in a total of 6 cars. Actually the last car (a '16 Ford Mustang) didn't make to finish, otherwise the chances would be that the 14R60 car would be the last one in its class!

I don't want to start here a disagreement about the values of our cars. I fully understand that there were supposed to offer the joyness of a sports car of the '80s and be closer to the driver. However, even this is starting to change with the greater usage of electronics in the newer version. What I am just saying is that we are missing now a "S" version. Original specs 4-5 years ago were not so bad. For example, the power-to-weight ratio was very close to an entry level '09 Porsche Cayman. Now competition is far far away and is laughing to us.

[wbradley]

So, OP found a 2012 Nismo used at a dealer and plans to buy it in Sept?

I guess the dealer promised to hold the car for you a couple of months without a deposit until you make up your mind..? Didn't think so.

[strat61caster]

Originally Posted by wbradley

So, OP found a 2012 Nismo used at a dealer and plans to buy it in Sept?

I guess the dealer promised to hold the car for you a couple of months without a deposit until you make up your mind..? Didn't think so.

Is it the last 370z ever going up for sale used?

[wbradley]

Originally Posted by strat61caster

Is it the last 370z ever going up for sale used?

If you want to be sarcastic, are there a bunch of people with 2012 Nismo Z's waiting to sell in Sept? They sure as hell aint common in my area.

[strat61caster]

Originally Posted by wbradley

If you want to be sarcastic, are there a bunch of people with 2012 Nismo Z's waiting to sell in Sept? They sure as hell aint common in my area.

There are currently 89 Nismo 370Z's listed on cars.com, 11 of which are <$26k. The price of airfare is cheap compared to getting exactly the car you want.

There's even 3 on carmax which will ship the car to you for a fee.

[Ashikabi]

I thought the idea of this thread was about a brand new Z

[DAEMANO]

Originally Posted by nikitopo

Unfortunately, if you don't have power you cannot do a lot. Have you checked the latest Pikes Peak International Hill Climb results? There was a Japanese rally driver competing with a Toyota GT 86 14R60 car. This is a kind of dream car for many of us, since it is modified directly by the Toyota racing department. In fact this car was produced in very few pieces and it is supposed to be a collector's car. Do you know what place finished in its class? 5th place in a total of 6 cars. Actually the last car (a '16 Ford Mustang) didn't make to finish, otherwise the chances would be that the 14R60 car would be the last one in its class!

I don't want to start here a disagreement about the values of our cars. I fully understand that there were supposed to offer the joyness of a sports car of the '80s and be closer to the driver. However, even this is starting to change with the greater usage of electronics in the newer version. What I am just saying is that we are missing now a "S" version. Original specs 4-5 years ago were not so bad. For example, the power-to-weight ratio was very close to an entry level '09 Porsche Cayman. Now competition is far far away and is laughing to us.

Godzilla Facepalm

You didn't even look at the results did you?

2016 PPIHC - Class - Time Attack 2 Production.

Driver - Car - Class Place - Overall Place - Time
Nick Robinson - #173 2017 Acura NSX 1 20 10.28.820
Kevin Wesley - #22 2016 Dodge Viper ACR 2 23 10.39.964
Stephanie Reaves - #8 2016 Dodge Viper ACR 3 29 10.56.876
Jeff Denmeade - #16 2006 Mitsubishi Lancer EVO 4 58 11:32.243
Fumio Nutahara - #230 2015 Toyota GT86 5 69 12:33.139
Kash Singh - #78 2016 Ford Mustang 6 DNF DNF

Obviously Nutahara had zero designs on winning this class. None. The top 3 finishers are absolute monsters. This was an engineering exercise for Toyota. In any case, a NA GT86 is not going to compete at a hill climb that starts at 9,390 ft - and finishes at 14,110 ft. Especially vs these cars. The fact that Nutahara was even 30 seconds behind that 2006 EVO (Turbo/AWD) at PPIHC actually say very good things about the 86. Personally I don't know of any other major races run at this elevation. Sorry man, but If you think Toyota is designing this car to run in these conditions as a measure of competitiveness, you should really re-think your benchmarks.

http://www.ppihc.com/wp-content/uplo...ll-Results.pdf

[nikitopo]

Originally Posted by DAEMANO

Godzilla Facepalm

You didn't even look at the results did you?

2016 PPIHC - Class - Time Attack 2 Production.

Driver - Car - Class Place - Overall Place - Time
Nick Robinson - #173 2017 Acura NSX 1 20 10.28.820
Kevin Wesley - #22 2016 Dodge Viper ACR 2 23 10.39.964
Stephanie Reaves - #8 2016 Dodge Viper ACR 3 29 10.56.876
Jeff Denmeade - #16 2006 Mitsubishi Lancer EVO 4 58 11:32.243
Fumio Nutahara - #230 2015 Toyota GT86 5 69 12:33.139
Kash Singh - #78 2016 Ford Mustang 6 DNF DNF

Obviously Nutahara had zero designs on winning this class. None. The top 3 finishers are absolute monsters. This was an engineering exercise for Toyota. In any case, a NA GT86 is not going to compete at a hill climb that starts at 9,390 ft - and finishes at 14,110 ft. Especially vs these cars. The fact that Nutahara was even 30 seconds behind that 2006 EVO (Turbo/AWD) at PPIHC actually say very good things about the 86. Personally I don't know of any other major races run at this elevation. Sorry man, but If you think Toyota is designing this car to run in these conditions as a measure of competitiveness, you should really re-think your benchmarks.

http://www.ppihc.com/wp-content/uplo...ll-Results.pdf

Of course I saw the results and that's why I mentioned that it finished 5th in class. What did you want to say? That it finished overall 69th and almost in the end of the list? I don't say that it had a chance to win, but the result was very disappointing. The overall difference from an '06 EVO car is more than a minute which is like a century in racing. Don't forget that the 14R60 is the productive version of the Griffon project. It is very far from a day-to-day car. All I'm saying is that focusing only on handling leads to such results. This is the only race result we've seen. Everything else was marketing photos and a running video in Nürburgring. In fact Nutahara said that next year will go with a different car. Obviously he made a bad decision this year.

[wbradley]

Originally Posted by strat61caster

There are currently 89 Nismo 370Z's listed on cars.com, 11 of which are <$26k. The price of airfare is cheap compared to getting exactly the car you want.

There's even 3 on carmax which will ship the car to you for a fee.

y I live in a country with 1/10 the population of yours with a larger land area. It didn't occur to me those cars were common in the US. They aren't common here, AFAIK.

Then again I'd never notice a 370Z (pronounced three seventy ZED in Canada) regardless Nismo or otherwise.

[DAEMANO]

Originally Posted by nikitopo

Of course I saw the results and that's why I mentioned that it finished 5th in class. What did you want to say? That it finished overall 69th and almost in the end of the list? I don't say that it had a chance to win, but the result was very disappointing. The overall difference from an '06 EVO car is more than a minute which is like a century in racing. Don't forget that the 14R60 is the productive version of the Griffon project. It is very far from a day-to-day car. All I'm saying is that focusing only on handling leads to such results. This is the only race result we've seen. Everything else was marketing photos and a running video in Nürburgring. In fact Nutahara said that next year will go with a different car. Obviously he made a bad decision this year.

In what universe is a 2700 lbs NA RWD coupe with ~200 WHP finishing PPIHC in 12:33 a disappointment? There's a gap in understanding here. A guy like
Nutahara can get a raw estimate of course time given known variables with a spreadsheet. There's little chance he was surprised or disappointed by the car's course time as you were. He was likely sponsored (heavily) by Toyota to both promote the 14R60 and/or validate some part(s). Neither Nutahara or Toyota expected a class win, place or show against the new NSX or couple of Viper ACRs. No disrespect, I'm trying to think of a nice way to say this. You don't seem to understand this car's presence at the PPIHC very well.