Picked up my 2012 370Z

Locrain

Hi All

I picked up my new 2012 370Z last weekend from Melbourne with only 20kms on it. I live in Adelaide so spent the next 3 days driving along the coast back home. The Great Ocean road is a blast even if I couldn't take the car past 4,500rpm.



So here's my short review of the first 1 week and 1200klms driving. I'd like to just describe my previous cars so you know my history.


Last car, Alfa GT Cloverleaf. Very noisy, crappy ride, always faulty. Worse car I've ever owned.

BMW M3 E46 cab SMG. Probably the best all round car that I've owned. No faults, great engine, nice interior.

Noble M12-GTO3R. Brilliant performance car. Can go, stop and turn better than any other car I've owned. The BMW may be the best all round but this was my favourite, if that makes sense.

Celica GT-4. Modified to 303bhp. First introduction into real performance.


Firstly, before buying the car I read lots of posts on here so my expectations were set regarding the good the bad and the ugly. Obviously my view of the car depends on whether it exceeds my expectations.

The dreaded road noise. One poster said that he couldn't have any type of conversation because of the noise. Not so in my 2012 370Z. In fact it's no noisier than any other car that I've owned. The Alfa being the noisiest by far.

Poor ride. I don't think so. The ride in the M3 was so bad that I couldn't listen to a CD without it jumping (the cd that is, not the car). The Alfa felt like someone was kicking you in the back. Noble was superb though.

Engine note. I'd admit that this is a bit industrial, kind of raw. My Noble was raw but that was it's appeal. I don't mind raw.

Fuel gauge. What's that about?

Vibrating gear stick. Yep it does.

So, not as noisy or harsh as i'd expected.

Onto the good. The engine has about the same amount of power and tourque as the M3. However, the M3 couldn't pull the skin off a rice pudding below 4000rpm. The 370Z can pull from much lower down the rev range. I'm not saying it's a better engine, it isn't, but there are benefits.

Handling. I must admit that this took me a bit by suprise. Better than the M3, only second to the Noble. Rides very flat and is very confidence enspiring.

Well that's it for the time being. Looking forward to chatting to you all in the future.

John