So I just bought a 370Z...

bitemarks · 08-16-2011, 03:00 PM

I've been watching videos like crazy, looking at pics and reading countless articles in anticipation. That's actually what lead me here. I get the car either tonight or tomorrow, they're just finishing up the undercoating. I'm so excited, I feel like a little school girl. I live in Canada and the car is damn-near impossible to find here. There were 14 new 370's available in the country, only one of which met the specifications I was looking for so I jumped on it. White, touring + sport package, manual, coupe. This is also my first manual car. I've always known how to drive one but just in theory. I've been practicing on another car in the meantime and I'm finding it fairly easy and a lot of fun. If anyone has any tips for a newbie about either driving the a manual transmission or just about the car in general, I'm all ears! Otherwise it's great to be a part of the community and I can't wait to experience this amazing ride for myself!

Vaughanabe13 · 08-16-2011, 03:26 PM

You will NOT be disappointed with the touring + sport. I absolutely love my touring and the synchro rev is a MUST have with the manual. Congrats and post pictures when you get it! Check out my "manual noob" thread since I literally just went through learning manual on the Z with very little experience. You will get the hang of it in a couple weeks and it just keeps getting better and better. The biggest thing is just practicing your first gear starts and 1-2 shifts (which tend to be pretty jerky if you're not careful). The clutch has very little "feel" in it so you have to let up really slow to start out with so you don't overshoot the engagement point and stall it. The clutch seems to be very "on/off" at that point so just take it slow and get used to driving on flat ground before you tackle hills. Make sure to give it enough gas when you're letting the clutch out - unless you're going downhill it can be a little tricky to get a "no gas start" on the Z34, at least from what I've noticed. If you're on a slight incline, letting the clutch engage drops the RPM to nearly zero so you will stall for sure without a little throttle. Good luck!

bitemarks · 08-16-2011, 03:50 PM

Thanks for the tips! I can't wait. If I get it tonight then it's pretty much a guarantee that the rest of the night is going to be spent cruising my neighbourhood. I really want get behind the wheel so I can start to get a feel for it.

Vaughanabe13 · 08-16-2011, 04:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bitemarks

Thanks for the tips! I can't wait. If I get it tonight then it's pretty much a guarantee that the rest of the night is going to be spent cruising my neighbourhood. I really want get behind the wheel so I can start to get a feel for it.

Don't feel bad if you stall a ton. I learned manual on a crappy old Ford Taurus so I figured it would be easy to learn the Z but I found myself stalling quite a lot on the Z before I got the hang of it. And then from there it took a while to get smooth. Just don't be hard on yourself if you don't get it right away and try to stay calm and don't panic if you stall in traffic.

newyen27 · 08-16-2011, 04:47 PM

Don't get discouraged if you don't get it right away, and take your time. There is no shame in taking a few practice laps at the dealership either!

Also, you should know that the 370z has a very noisy transmission, so don't freak out like I did when you hear little clicks and clanks in the lower gears thinking you messed it up somehow.

mjg · 08-16-2011, 05:08 PM

I learned on 02 maxima when I bought it new. Brings back memories of me trying to drive home from the city, and being all confused and stalling out with tons of annoyed people behind me LOL.

Take the car out to a very big parking lot, and practice from a stop getting it to a roll, then in second.

If you could find the clutch engagement point, and train your foot to feel it, get the car to a roll from all clutch, or keep the car still (just by using clutch), and really get used to how the engine sounds / feels when it wants gas, it will start to click. Once you get pretty good you won't really even need to look at the tach to shift, you will just know when it's time from how the engine sounds.

bitemarks · 08-16-2011, 11:30 PM

thanks guys, I appreciate all the advice. Sadly the car won't be ready until tomorrow night but that didn't stop me from taking a drive to the dealership to admire her. I plan on spending a great deal of time figuring out the ins and outs of the car. I'm free this coming weekend so there's a ton of driving to be done.

WAGAWAGA · 08-17-2011, 12:52 AM

my tip for driving the manual Z is to press the clutch just pass the engagement point, makes shifting a lot easier. So dont press it down to the floor because the engagement point is pretty high. Or you can just take out the clutch helper spring and be fine. Clutch pedal too soft/no feel? Remove the helper spring! this thread.

doda74 · 08-17-2011, 02:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WAGAWAGA

my tip for driving the manual Z is to press the clutch just pass the engagement point, makes shifting a lot easier. So dont press it down to the floor because the engagement point is pretty high. Or you can just take out the clutch helper spring and be fine. Clutch pedal too soft/no feel? Remove the helper spring! this thread.

Yes, either remove the spring or replace it with a softer spring. There are several threads out there about this and at least a couple members planning more group buys in the near future. This is a must do mod for manual Z's that will make smooth shifting much easier like it should be.

08-16-2011, 03:00 PM	#1 (permalink)
bitemarks Base Member Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Canada Posts: 12 Drives: Nissan 370Z Rep Power: 14	So I just bought a 370Z... I've been watching videos like crazy, looking at pics and reading countless articles in anticipation. That's actually what lead me here. I get the car either tonight or tomorrow, they're just finishing up the undercoating. I'm so excited, I feel like a little school girl. I live in Canada and the car is damn-near impossible to find here. There were 14 new 370's available in the country, only one of which met the specifications I was looking for so I jumped on it. White, touring + sport package, manual, coupe. This is also my first manual car. I've always known how to drive one but just in theory. I've been practicing on another car in the meantime and I'm finding it fairly easy and a lot of fun. If anyone has any tips for a newbie about either driving the a manual transmission or just about the car in general, I'm all ears! Otherwise it's great to be a part of the community and I can't wait to experience this amazing ride for myself!

08-16-2011, 03:26 PM	#2 (permalink)
Vaughanabe13 Enthusiast Member Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Iowa Posts: 387 Drives: 09 Nissan 370Z M6 Rep Power: 14	You will NOT be disappointed with the touring + sport. I absolutely love my touring and the synchro rev is a MUST have with the manual. Congrats and post pictures when you get it! Check out my "manual noob" thread since I literally just went through learning manual on the Z with very little experience. You will get the hang of it in a couple weeks and it just keeps getting better and better. The biggest thing is just practicing your first gear starts and 1-2 shifts (which tend to be pretty jerky if you're not careful). The clutch has very little "feel" in it so you have to let up really slow to start out with so you don't overshoot the engagement point and stall it. The clutch seems to be very "on/off" at that point so just take it slow and get used to driving on flat ground before you tackle hills. Make sure to give it enough gas when you're letting the clutch out - unless you're going downhill it can be a little tricky to get a "no gas start" on the Z34, at least from what I've noticed. If you're on a slight incline, letting the clutch engage drops the RPM to nearly zero so you will stall for sure without a little throttle. Good luck! __________________ 2009 Nissan 370Z Touring, w/sport, 6MT, chicane yellow/black. Last edited by Vaughanabe13; 08-16-2011 at 03:32 PM.

08-17-2011, 12:52 AM	#8 (permalink)
WAGAWAGA Base Member Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: riverside Posts: 155 Drives: 2010 370z Black Rep Power: 15	my tip for driving the manual Z is to press the clutch just pass the engagement point, makes shifting a lot easier. So dont press it down to the floor because the engagement point is pretty high. Or you can just take out the clutch helper spring and be fine. Clutch pedal too soft/no feel? Remove the helper spring! this thread. Last edited by WAGAWAGA; 08-17-2011 at 12:54 AM.

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08-16-2011, 03:50 PM	#3 (permalink)
bitemarks Base Member Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Canada Posts: 12 Drives: Nissan 370Z Rep Power: 14	Thanks for the tips! I can't wait. If I get it tonight then it's pretty much a guarantee that the rest of the night is going to be spent cruising my neighbourhood. I really want get behind the wheel so I can start to get a feel for it.

08-16-2011, 04:47 PM	#5 (permalink)
newyen27 Base Member Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Massachusetts Posts: 94 Drives: 11 370z BS Sports M6 Rep Power: 14	Don't get discouraged if you don't get it right away, and take your time. There is no shame in taking a few practice laps at the dealership either! Also, you should know that the 370z has a very noisy transmission, so don't freak out like I did when you hear little clicks and clanks in the lower gears thinking you messed it up somehow.

08-16-2011, 05:08 PM	#6 (permalink)
mjg Base Member Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: nyc Posts: 243 Drives: 13' GT 500 Rep Power: 16	I learned on 02 maxima when I bought it new. Brings back memories of me trying to drive home from the city, and being all confused and stalling out with tons of annoyed people behind me LOL. Take the car out to a very big parking lot, and practice from a stop getting it to a roll, then in second. If you could find the clutch engagement point, and train your foot to feel it, get the car to a roll from all clutch, or keep the car still (just by using clutch), and really get used to how the engine sounds / feels when it wants gas, it will start to click. Once you get pretty good you won't really even need to look at the tach to shift, you will just know when it's time from how the engine sounds.

08-16-2011, 11:30 PM	#7 (permalink)
bitemarks Base Member Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Canada Posts: 12 Drives: Nissan 370Z Rep Power: 14	thanks guys, I appreciate all the advice. Sadly the car won't be ready until tomorrow night but that didn't stop me from taking a drive to the dealership to admire her. I plan on spending a great deal of time figuring out the ins and outs of the car. I'm free this coming weekend so there's a ton of driving to be done.