Nissan 370Z Forum - View Single Post - Build Quality: Miata MX-5 PRHT v. Nissan 370Z

FairmanZ · 04-12-2009, 02:02 PM

I never owned a Nissan in my life before, the 370z will be my first, if and when I buy it. But I have owned a few Mazdas, including a Miata. I bought a brand new '93 RX-7 Twin Turbo back in the day, its realiability was a little below average and I'd rate its build quality as sub par. On the other hand, my 2004 Mazdaspeed Miata Turbo has been flawless, without a single major problem. It did have a minor problem with a squeaky window, that was fixed under warranty. Other than that it has been flawless.

I can't speak about the latest '09 MX-5 from ownership experience. But I have test driven one and looked it over carefully. If you follow the Miata.net boards the '06-'08 seem pretty solid. The '09 has a new face lift, which I like much better style wise, but it's the same platform so it should be quite reliable by now. The build quality on the new '09 model is improved vs. the '06-'08, with much nicer cockpit materials. Similar to how the 370z is improved over the 350z.

In my case, I've already decided the 370Z is the car I want. It's build quality looks to be as good if not better than the MX-5 PRHT. Reliability is an unknown still, because the car is quite new. The issues I've been watching here include:

- High oil temps : Will Nissan have a fix for 2010?
- Loose driver's seat, moves under aggressive cornering, seems to be only a problem on the manual cloth seats, not the power leather seats.
- Some cars have minor rattles in the back hatch area

This is all pretty minor stuff, except for the high eng. oil temps. But that's only a problem for people who track their cars. It isn't an issue for daily driving. But Nissan really needs to have an oil cooler option for those who do track their cars. IMO, the oil cooler should have been standard. The Miata has an oil cooler btw, in fact my old FD RX-7 had dual oil coolers. Why didn't Nissan put one on the Z??!!!

I've also thought about the Cayman S myself. A year ago, buying one or even a 911 or a GT-R might have been doable. But I'm not willing to spend that kind of money in today's crappy economy. A used Cayman S could be an option. But for me, I'd really prefer a new car, so the Z is the one.

04-12-2009, 02:02 PM	#3 (permalink)
FairmanZ Base Member Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Paradise Posts: 133 Drives: Z34 future owner Rep Power: 16	I never owned a Nissan in my life before, the 370z will be my first, if and when I buy it. But I have owned a few Mazdas, including a Miata. I bought a brand new '93 RX-7 Twin Turbo back in the day, its realiability was a little below average and I'd rate its build quality as sub par. On the other hand, my 2004 Mazdaspeed Miata Turbo has been flawless, without a single major problem. It did have a minor problem with a squeaky window, that was fixed under warranty. Other than that it has been flawless. I can't speak about the latest '09 MX-5 from ownership experience. But I have test driven one and looked it over carefully. If you follow the Miata.net boards the '06-'08 seem pretty solid. The '09 has a new face lift, which I like much better style wise, but it's the same platform so it should be quite reliable by now. The build quality on the new '09 model is improved vs. the '06-'08, with much nicer cockpit materials. Similar to how the 370z is improved over the 350z. In my case, I've already decided the 370Z is the car I want. It's build quality looks to be as good if not better than the MX-5 PRHT. Reliability is an unknown still, because the car is quite new. The issues I've been watching here include: - High oil temps : Will Nissan have a fix for 2010? - Loose driver's seat, moves under aggressive cornering, seems to be only a problem on the manual cloth seats, not the power leather seats. - Some cars have minor rattles in the back hatch area This is all pretty minor stuff, except for the high eng. oil temps. But that's only a problem for people who track their cars. It isn't an issue for daily driving. But Nissan really needs to have an oil cooler option for those who do track their cars. IMO, the oil cooler should have been standard. The Miata has an oil cooler btw, in fact my old FD RX-7 had dual oil coolers. Why didn't Nissan put one on the Z??!!! I've also thought about the Cayman S myself. A year ago, buying one or even a 911 or a GT-R might have been doable. But I'm not willing to spend that kind of money in today's crappy economy. A used Cayman S could be an option. But for me, I'd really prefer a new car, so the Z is the one. Last edited by FairmanZ; 04-12-2009 at 02:05 PM.