nismo Vs base/sport

chii370

ok, im sure you have all read the billions of sites that have done the infamous 370z nismo reviews. You have probably all also been keen enough to notice they all "cleverly" pit it against its base/sport/touring brethren. Im by no means a professional car reviewer, but i know what im talkin about. The main problem with these stupid reviews is one key element, they have the car for about 1-3 days, track it, run the standard gauntlet of 0-60, handling, braking, blah blah blah we all know...... and they move on to the next car. I have been the fortunate owner of all but the touring model of the 370z. thats right, i started with a PG 2009 6MT base, then "upgraded" to a black 2009 6MT sport, and now the car i have is the red 2009 6MT Nismo.

first thing i would like to put to rest is this ******** rumor that the base and sport can romp the nismo both on a circuit and in a straight line. having owned all 3 cars for around 6k miles on each respectively...... no they do not. and trust me, by no means am i justifying my purchase of the nismo, since im just as quick to pick out its obvious flaws.

obviously, being 25, one of the first things i did was take the car to the track after they got some miles on them "4k or so". Im not a professional race car driver, so i cant consistently run +-.05 seconds of the same time every time, but i have a general idea of each car after the sum of each runs average.

The base and sport ran about the same, felt EXACTLY the same except for hte launch. sport seemed to actually start to move instead of sit and spin. but they consistently ran 13.6 average over and over again with a few shitty runs of about 13.8.

This is where im surprised every time by reviewers. I ether A: have a freak nismo, or B: actually know how to drive...... because the nismo gets 13.4s on average if i get a good launch. 2 problems i noticed, you CAN NOT launch the cars the same, the nismo will not squat down, transfer weight and dig in unless you really heated the tires OR your running softer ones "im running
Bridgestone Potenza RE050A * Rear: 285/35R19
Sidewall Style: Blackwall
Serv. Desc: (99Y)Load Index 99 = 1709lbs (775kg) per tire
Speed Rating "(Y)" = 186+mph (300kph)
UTQG: Treadwear: 140
Traction: A
Temperature: A
140 A A
which is not stock, but is also not a whole lot different ether. but if you dump it in the 4800-5k range like the sport of base you will just sit still and spin...... FOREVER. and you will destroy your run. But if you ease off the line "looks lame BTW" and then just power out, it goes. trust me. The nismo is a lot more responsive with the throttle more "snappy" is a good way to put it. my old sport and base had this weird lag time when you smashed it to the floor, but the nismo does not.

As far as the circuit track goes? honestly i think its all down to driving style. you cant be *** aggressive with a car that has such a stiff suspension and weighs 3400lbs, this isnt a lotus exige its got a fat ***. so honestly? its ability to lean and sway more with the loose "er" suspension on the base and sport is an advantage IF YOUR TRYING TO DRIVE THEM THE SAME WAY. you cant get in a corvette and take a corner expecting it to handle like your WRX, ok so thats a big difference. but a difference is a difference, and to accurately say one is better then the other you have to first drive them correctly or at least take the time to learn the car. And thats something these reviews have not done, 3 days and your still learning to shift it right....... thats a far jump off from "knowing" the car.

I hate my suspension on every day road driving, and sometimes find myself wishing i could go back. But thats pretty much the only thing about it i dont like. Every other aspect has been an improvement. And i think once time wears on and more people just get there own damn car, instead of listening to some over paid twat on motor trend to tell them a car is good or not, i believe the nismo will start to shine more.

ok, so you dont get all the bells and whistles of the others in the nismo.... but what do you want? a nicer looking car with slightly higher performance? or a comfort mobile? personal :P being 25 i choose the first lol, but not everyone likes that so maybe a nice touring model is for you. there all beautiful cars, and im not real sure why its competing against itself lol. so can we just all get along? hop in our Z, and go chase down some lame mustangs, camaros, and challengers?

like i said, non professional review/opinion from a non professional owner of all 3 cars.

GZ3

Only if you plan on keeping your Nismo stock forever vs other base/sport pkge stock forever Z's would this even have a little merit. Its the SAME ENGINE with a little more free flowing exhaust and a light tune. Its a drivers race man, SORRY... There also plenty of WAAY better exhausts and suspension mods out there than can be had then what the NISMO is equipped with...they are on the same playing field...like it or not... you paid a ton of extra cash for for sup par exhaust, tune, suspension tweaks. Most people who REALLy want to turn the Z into an all out track car dont go for the Nismo, they get a base and build...

__________________
09 GT-R
12' 370Z 7AT HANDED DOWN
12'+13' 5.0 SOLD

Cell

Don't be ignorant about it. Just about ALL nismo owners bought the nismo because of the different look, not the exhaust, tune and suspension tweak. Just about all of us can care less for the exhaust, tune and suspension tweak.

People that plan to heavily mod the exterior should buy a base or touring and those who aren't modding the exterior has the option to buy the nismo. I love how the nismo looks. It is ten times better looking than the base. Of course looks is very subjective. Not just that but I and many other Z owners would never go for aftermarket body kits considering all the fitment issues you get. Nothing beats factory fit and finish.

I also had a chance to drive a base/auto with sports package. The feel is totally different from the nismo when it comes to turning and handling. As for the auto transmission, that thing is horrid with it's 2 second delay in response.

GZ3

Not being ignorant, just real about it. Its a nice looking body kit, i'll agree, but there are plenty of aftermarket companies that have exceptional fitment on body kits...this is not specific to the NISMO's body kit. Never drove the auto so can really comment on that. But other than the #plate, the exhaust, tune, bodykit, suspension tweaks...its still a 370Z nothing special out of the ordinary...all the above listed that make the nismo what it is can be had for thousands less and better performing. Its not like there is a real substatial difference in the car like there was in the 350z vs 350z Nismo where it actually had re enforced body panels and frame structuring...NO...just add ons to a normal 370z

__________________
09 GT-R
12' 370Z 7AT HANDED DOWN
12'+13' 5.0 SOLD

Cell

Just like I said though, none of us cared for the performance that we got from the nismo. We all know it is minimal. Aftermarket parts can increase performance by much more. We all know that.

I only paid about 6k more over base+sport for the great rims and body kit. Just going aftermarket for great rims +tires + body kit + painting + lowering it just to make it look right cost way more than 6k. 6k is worth it for me for a better looking car. If it was 15k more for all that then I would of never bought a nismo and just gotten a corvette.

Nismoracer

13.4 average in the 1/4 and that's bone stock no drop ins nothing? Well that's bout right with a good launch. I agree the Nismo feels different than a regular Z. I drove an auto with the paddle shifters and for some reason the engine noise was way louder than the Nis. Don't know why. I can't get to the track as much any more but I do have a Gtech pro. Like you said if you get a good launch feather the clutch it goes. My best 0-60 4.9 sec. My average 5.3 sec. Still trying to master the little things to know how she likes it. I raced a non nismo rolling not from a dead stop. I smoked him bad, several car lengths. We went again, pulled ahead and stayed ahead. We went one more time he jumped ahead and I could not catch him. I noticed he had no mufflers on. It wasn't that loud. I thought it would be way louder with no muffs.

280z/300zx

Owned a touring sport 6-speed up until it was totaled. Would have got another one but couldn't find one in the right configuration and couldn't wait 3mo for a special order to come in so I went with a Nismo. At the end of the day, in a perfect world, I would rather have a touring sport over the Nismo. Mainly because I actually like the regular 370z look vs. the Nismo (although it's still nice). Also I enjoyed all the bells and whistles that my touring had. Now taking out the bias I have towards each car I will give my quick overall review

Touring sport: A lot more comfortable and easier to live with as a DD. Doesn't feel as quick as the Nismo or have the snap that the Nismo has. Also, while it sits overall higher than the Nismo I had more problems scrapping the front spoiler compared to my Nismo. Going to work in my touring sport there were certain driveways that no mater what angle or how slow it would still barely scrap; in my Nismo these same driveways aren't a problem at all.

Nismo: Really rough ride compared to the regular 370z, to the point it's almost annoying. Now I'm not a wuss, I've owned a 280z with upgraded suspension, no sound deading material, bare bones for the last 10 years. I used to drive this car as a DD in the past for several years. I don't think I would mind the roughness of the Nismo if it wasn't for the added rattles that came with it. Car is perfectly quiet but hit some rough road and the trunk goes a rattling. The car is also noticeable quicker on the butt dyno. I honestly didn't think it would based off everything I read but after I test drove it I was really surprised. It's not a big enough difference to make you go wow but it's noticeable. I'll also add that after adding exhaust the Nismo is even more noticeably faster. On my touring sport I had the FI 18" CBE w/ CF mufflers. Made a huge difference. Luckily I was able to salvage the exhaust and transfer it to my Nismo. Man did the car wake up. On a performance level I would take my Nismo with exhaust over my touring sport any day. In a perfect world I'd like a touring sport with the performance of the Nismo from the factory.

I have to agree, you can get a regular 370z and add equivalent mods to the Nismo and come out cheaper as well as better. But for someone like me who doesn't like to go crazy on mods anymore and would rather have something out of the box, the Nismo is great. Saves you the hassle of having to add a body kit, find a reputable body shop, hope the pait matches, hope the panels line up, etc. Saves you the hassle of finding a tuner and hoping he knows what he is doing. Saves you the hassle of worrying about warranty, etc. Also, if you were like me, you didn't really pay too much more for the Nismo. A touring sport would have cost me 35k (basically invoice), I got my Nismo for 37k. Not bad considering. Both are great cars in their own respect, I honestly think it comes down to what the owner is looking for.

FL 4Motion

This is a great thread, lot's of new fresh info and opinions here....

chii370

yeah, i would have to agree about the suspension and noise level of the car. i have found myself muttering to myself about how i would like a smoother ride especially out in guam where the roads are rough as hell..... you would think there made for horses. Cell has the right idea about the vast majority of nismo owners i think, i didnt really buy the package for the performance upgrade, i just didnt want to deal with all the BS that comes with body work since i like the more exotic look the nismo provides. The base and sport Z look to me more like the standard "nice/rich rice" and after you put body kits and stuff on it, yes its NICE but its still got that...... weird aftermarket look, like it doesnt belong you know? the nismo has a more elegant, exotic look that looks RIGHT, as though it was actually ment to be made that way by a team of developers or something.....cough cough..... and to me it makes the car look a little more "high tear" like a porche or a ferrari. Im not trying to sound high brow, but you know the feeling you get when you park next to something that you feel outclassed by..... everyone knows what i mean lol. well i dont get that EVER when im in my nismo. personaly i paid 37850 for mine, and i paid 33550 for my base when i first got it......... i got lucky, it was an 09 still sitting on the lot RIGHT at the start of 2010 so they dropped the price on it. so i didnt pay that notorious 7k+ more for the nismo. I plan to put a GTM TT S2 in probably in the next year, but i got the car mainly for its looks, and exclusivity. Theres a bizillion normal Z's each year, but a limited amount of "actual" nismos.

she may not be the fastest thing out on the track :P but you can be damn sure its the prettiest and will be turning all the heads. very few aftermarket builds that i have seen really "wow" me, its a personal thing. when you build your car you build it for YOU, and to you its the coolest damn thing on the road. but when its factory. they have hundreds of engineers scratching there heads thinking "what will make this car looks awesome to EVERYONE" and thats a really hard thing to pull off, different strokes for different folks. thats why i always prefer factory, it seems to have natural flow instead of a forced look. really hard to explain what i mean lol. im a personal lover of the clean, sleek elegant look that many high end exotics have and i think thats what they were trying to mimic in my opinion.

but the whole thing that brought this about was my original fascination with all the reviews that blatantly stated outright "the base/sport perform better then the nismo"..... i just cant get over that, having thoroughly experienced all 3 models "touring doesnt count, its ether a base or a sport with nav/interior upgrades" the nimso just outguns them in every aspect but comfort lol. the numbers dont lie. and besides, there taking these cars out to the track with what..... 80 miles on them and expecting them to perform to the max at which they ever will. anyone who knows anything about that..... knows your car goes through a curve throughout its lifecycle. the performance increases for a while, until it hits its peak "broken in" and then after it starts getting old it goes back down. thats why i didnt really run my cars until they had over 4k miles on them. its not out of fear of breaking something, who ******* cares there covered :P. its because its not going to perform close to what it does when its broken in properly, tell me you havent noticed a slight increase in "peppyness" of your Z *** you add miles? if you havent been paying attention, start lol you will notice. If i were to blame any one thing on these reviewers bashing the nismo, its because of the price difference. there trying to justify the hike, personaly i didnt pay that much...... so i dont see it that way, but for those of you that paid 40k for it..... yeah its questionable but still better regardless.

buddy of mine has a white 2010 sport, bought it about the same time i bought my nismo. he went with me the first time i ran the nismo at the track...... what was the first thing we did? race each other. if this isnt definitive..... guess who won every single time by about 2 car lengths? the nismo. now i wanted to be sure, and i asked to switch drivers to make sure it wasnt just him sucking..... but we both kinda had a mutual discomfort with the other dragging each others brand new Z lol so we agreed to leave it at that. but ive had numerous occasions to race other 370s and even old 350s and the result was always the same..... except for the moded ones lol. then i just looked stupid :P

Shamu

I bought my new 2010 Nismo for $36K last week. That was over $4K under MSRP. I had been looking at used Porsche Cayman S and BMW 135i. The Nismo was far better value and the car feels more like a purpose built track going car than any of these other cars.

Clearly the dealers have ability to discount Nismo's a little more than standard models. I'm not sure what average discount on standard 370Z has been but no way could I have bought a Standard 370Z and did all the modifications my Nismo has for cost difference. Additionally Nismo team designed and tested all components together to put the entire car together. It shows in the Nismo's out of the box handling. I ont have to mess with the car at all. Probably one of the first cars I have owned where thats been the case.

Im also financing that additional cost over standard car with 3.75% loan. Not spending money out of pocket. And anyone who thinks upgrades are all trouble free are fooling themselves. I have enough experience with after market suspension systems, body upgrades, etc to know there are always potential issues to deal with. Resale of an aftermarket modded car is not going to be good either.

I dont like the catfish whisker face of the standard Z and I like all the styling cues of the Nismo. Also consider that if you were to total your car its unlikely your insurance will ever pay you for all the additional add ons on a standard 370Z. Youre going to get settlement in most cases for cost of a standard 370Z.

Overall this car at mid thirty K range is an awesome deal. I'm still grinning! Warning suspension in the Nismo isnt for sissies! I love it!

Nikkolai

The reason that it was substantial on the 350Z is because of the body from factory. The 370's whole chassis rigidity has been increased compared to the 350Z so there was no need to go extra on a Nismo model.

Nizmo0533

people aways put the nismo sticker on the base model ^_^ why?? because they want a nismo !

Nismoracer

mick

imo, let's say you are cruising in a base model and enjoying the scenery and suddenly, a nismo model appears on the next lane. if you don't feel anything then the base model is what you should get since it makes no difference to you, visually speaking

fuct

holy sh1t guys give it a break! another one of these threads???!!!