Would I be happy with Nismo
 

What up fellas,

I had to sell my E46 M3 in order to buy a house. I can afford both the house and M3 but $800 M3 payment(financed it on 36 months) didnt help my DTI(debt to income) when it came time to buy a house. Houses in Seattle are still expensive, so gotta shell out $300k for a house here which is where DTI came into question.

In all fairness, do any of you see Nismo as an upgrade over my heavily modded M3? I know that interior might be slightly better in M3 but im not too concerned about that. M3 was well balanced which is what i really liked about it, will Nismo provide that "well balanced" factor?

I do like to MOD and mods for Z seem to be a lot cheaper so that should be better.

Im hoping for some honest opinions/feedback and by any chance has anyone here gone from an M to Nismo?

Thanks,
Mookie

Here is a quick shot of previous ride:


http://i604.photobucket.com/albums/t...oksM3/Hmmm.jpg

Since you like to mod I would say no, as your primary 'differences' are:
-Upgraded suspension
-Wheels/tires
-Exhaust/tune
-Body kit

All of which can get higher quality or better performance from the aftermarket and if you do end up modding the car and replace any of those components then you spent money for nothing. I would lay down a plan on what you want to do with your Z, just minor bolt on upgrades, maybe better brakes then a Nismo would be a nice option to get. If you want a full change, suspension, brakes, exhaust, etc. then a normal coupe might be the best option.

Good point, what i have planned so far for the Z:

Lower it, mild drop
FI long tube headers, high flow cats and FI exhaust
CarbonSignal fenders
Spacers but stick with stock rims

Down the road:
AP 6/4 BBK
GTM S/C

Nismo you can just order springs for a nice mild drop
FI long tube headers with FI exhaust sounds great (I have had that combo but you cannot have HFC if you have LTH)
Curious how the fenders will look with a Nismo kit but should be very good

The rest are solid upgrades not destroying the extras you get with the Nismo, so I see it as a valid option to buy straight away. Plus you get a unique body kit from factory.

Maybe I am just a noob but how can you have high flow cats plus long tube headers? I thought the long tube headers deleted the cats all together?

First off Mookie, welcome to the forum and sick PW M3. I wouldn't see the Nismo as an upgrade over the M3 since both are excellent cars. With the M3, you have the edge in terms of power. The Nismo will most def be cheaper to maintain and to mod than the BMW. It also does well in the looks and value department. You certainly don't see as many nismos as you do M3 though the former is almost half the price of the latter. I have most of what you listed in planning mods, see journal thread for what it'll look/sound like. Johnnydrama had the FI LTH, Toxik had the Brembo brakes, Kirkster has the GTM S/C. Check out their thread for reviews of those mods. Once again cool M3, sucks you have to move past it.

They do, you could technically modify your exhaust to support a HFC after the LTH but would require a good bit of custom work.

You can't have both, either LTH or HFC :tiphat:

My bad on exhaust, i'd have whatever i can have but im set on FI headers and exhaust.

off the line id say they are pretty similar in terms of power. i had one tailgate me for miles on a local road. and when we came to a freeway onramp i gunned it, and gained probably half a car length before i hit speed limits (not street racing, i only went from 0-70)

maybe he was just a noob driver, but he did a ricer flyby after i hit 70, he just kept going. anyway..go test drive one and find out!!

x2 to both of the answers above.

PS--great looking M3 you had btw. :tup:

Since your last car was white, you should get a Black nismo just to mix things up a bit. :happydance:

I'll tell you what, Mookie. I am slated to receive my 2012 NISMO towards the end of October. I shall let you know how I like/LOVE it. :happydance:


-Glenn

Heyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy I see what you did there :icon17: White FTW.

Honestly I'm not sure it would be an upgrade but you wouldn't really be sacraficing much. My friend has a slightly modded M3: headers, exhaust, intake, lowered, sway bars, body kit.

Against my NISMO which only has a FI CBE (which is only about a gain of 10whp over a stock NISMO) we are neck and neck. From a dig it's all about who gets the better launch. From a roll we are litterally right next to eachother the entire way. Auto-x is the only time I see a difference. Now it could be his driving skill but he is no newb to cars. Typically when we auto-x I post a 1-2 sec better time than him. Having driven his car I would say the Z is easier to turn in and at it's limit the Z is more predictable.

The M3 is a very nice car and your car in particular looked very nice. I would say a NISMO won't leave you dissapointed but it won't really be an upgrade either. I think the E46 and 370z are very similar in that mod for mod they will perform similarlly.

:tiphat:

You found a house for $300k in Seattle?

Hi Mookie,

It looks like you really kept your E46 clean.

Both of the cars will be front engine- rear wheel drive. BMW's have a different driving feelcompared to a Nissan. It won't exactly be an upgrade, but a chance to drive something new and learn from it.

What do you like best about the Nismo ?

I test drove a Nismo on Saturday. Biggest issue for me is that i couldnt see well out of it, especially when merging to the left...Suspension was harsh and i'd wanna go lower so it'd only get worse...other than these two complaints i loved the car.

Was it a new nismo that you test drove? If so then there is a high chance it still has the spring spacers up front which makes the car ride like it has no springs. Without the spacers, it feels 100 times better. It is still rough but still better.

As for blind spots, adjust the mirrors and you shouldn't have a problem. When I drive in the z I would lean forward a little to look out the left in order to make sure I can change lanes. As for the right side, I would have the passenger seat adjusted just right so that when I turn my head I can see through that little window.

Car was a 2009 with 12k miles
*** 2009 NISSAN 370Z *** (only 11104 miles)

Suspension i can handle, i dealt with a slammed M3.

On the blind spots, i did adjust the mirrors to the best i could before i took it out for a drive(any car i drive i adjust mirrors first). I didnt try your trick of leaning forward which might be a good solution. Mirrors are never to be trusted 100% so i like to look over when im merging.

Uh oh.......More of the white stuff. Dsmn they are running rampant with the color.

Anyway, I am sure that the more you drove it, the more the smile would increase. All I had before I deployed was F.I. TDX and the car was a blast. Good luck with whatever you decide......

:icon17: that's how we roll 24*7 Rob.

Good point about the spacers Cell.

What exactly is a spring spacer?

A spacer on the springs for shipping, it allows the car to sit slightly higher and not 'move' while being transported.

Here you go, read this thread: http://www.the370z.com/nismo-370z/12...ere-first.html

From the looks of it, it may still be on the spacers lol... Maybe I am wrong but it looks like the car is quite high.

Oh yeah.............and it's Red. You should get it dude! :stirthepot:

Guys,

With all your help i have made my decision to go with a Z

http://i604.photobucket.com/albums/t...3/48991472.jpg


Wait, thats a wrong Z eh?

Well, i picked it up today, 2009 with 3800 miles:)

Congratulations!

Since you've decided? No need to keeping your threads open.

Post up some pictures in the other cars section.