Advice on whether 370Z is the right car for me...

gomer_110 · 01-03-2013, 06:54 PM

While I'll probably get flamed for suggesting this, but if you considered the miata, what about the FR-S or BRZ?

Felix 808 · 01-03-2013, 07:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JungleZ

Never driven stick wants zo6 or porshe. Get the gtr! Haha

You might want to slow down & read the OP's post before bashing. He knows how to drive a stick, never owned one. He souds like he's going abouit it the right way & doing research instead of just dropping $60k+ & crash landing in a sports car.

To OP, there are drivers courses you can take with cars available. It could make for a nice vacation

Here is just an example of such a school in FL Sports Car Driving Experience Racing School Cars | SportsCarDrivingExperience.com

Adam_W · 01-03-2013, 08:06 PM

Felix - I've heard people recommend that school, and am considering that one - in addition to Ron Fellows/Spring Mountain (NV) and Bondurant - for later on if I still want to get a Z06, since those schools use Corvettes to teach. Those schools also tend to cost over a $1000 per day, so I wanted to "get up speed" with shifting comfortably, heel toe, finding "the line" or correcting early apex, etc etc before I attend those schools.

As for BRZ... I've seriously considered that, only thing is that they're all either new or being sold at near-new prices. I don't want to be the one to take the up-front depreciation hit when I sell it in a year.

I suppose I should seriously consider going the beater route... I guess I just had it in my head that if I bought used a 2007 350Z or 2010 370Z and drove it for a year (not really tracking per se, just one or two HPDEs where the guy sits next to you, and autocross a couple times) , that I could still sell it for maybe 3K less than I bought it for (e.g. pay $25K for a 2010 370Z now ---> sell for $22K at the end of this year), on top of cost of tires and other maintenance costs.

280z/300zx · 01-03-2013, 08:28 PM

The 370z is not HPDE ready. You will need to spend a decent amount on brakes, tires, fluids, oil cooler, etc. Auto-x is no problem. I've done multiple events in my stock Z. It's the HPDE where you are going to have to pay to play.

My thoughts are buy an old car, not a beater per say. You can buy a nice condition 240z/280z/280zx/300zx (80's) for 5k or less. Spend another 1-2k in prep work/parts and have a nice good to go car. Other options are older supras and corvettes. You can get a decent condition C5 Vette for less than a used 370z and for the same price as a used 370z you could get a C5 Z06. Vettes are a lot better preped track wise than the Z is but being that they are used brakes and tires will still be an issue BUT they won't require an oil cooler like the Z does. Personally I'd probably buy a C5 Z06. Vettes are cheap to maintain and fix (relatively) compared to other cars in it's class

That being said, if it were me I'd probably just buy the new car I want and learn driving it. It will have a higher learning curve but it will also be cheaper in the long run rather than buying one car now and another later. Remember, the money you spend on tires/brakes/fluids/oil coolers/etc won't be recouped when you sell.

OldGuy · 01-03-2013, 08:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Adam_W

hi,

I'm about to buy a used 2010 370Z and suddenly thought, "hey, maybe I should ask some people who actually know something about these cars."

So here is my situation: I've recently gotten "into" the idea of owning - and being able to drive well - a sports car. I think the car I want is a Corvette Z06 (please, hear me out!) , but I'm not dogmatic; could go for a used Porsche 911 or GTR. I don't want to drop $60K+ while being fairly ignorant of sports cars or how to drive them.

So I thought I would start with the "driver mod" first. I know how to drive stick but have never owned one, so I don't know how to drive one "well" or with skill.

I want to buy a stickshift sports car to learn on, take a course at Skip Barber, go to autocross a few times, get into HPDE 1 and 2, and then by the end of this year, decide what sort of car do I really want and then know how to drive it well at that point.

I started with the idea of getting a Miata until I found out that for HPDE, I'd need a rollbar (convertible), and probably remove foam from the seat for a 6'1'' person like fit with a helmet (head must be beneath level of rollbar).

Wanting to learn on a rear-wheel drive car - and being unable to find a decent 240SX in my area - I thought I'd get a 370Z for 23-25K and then sell it after a year.

Questions:
1. Is the 370Z a good car for my purposes? Since it's newer, I was thinking it would sell better than a 350Z, i.e. I would not lose as much money.

2. Is it true that the 2009 370Z "burns oil" and should be avoided?

3. Do you think I'm going to lose a lot of money when I sell the car, e.g. I buy a 2010 370Z with 30K miles, in good condition, for $25K and then in 12 months I sell it? Would be losing a 2-3K or are we talking losing more than 4K?

Thank you!

I've owned my '09 370 for over 3 years now and it doesn't burn or use any oil. It has been trouble freee for me. That said, I'd start out with something a bit more modest. Z is a lot of car and ties up a lot of money for an "experiment." I also own a Miata which has been been perfect since its purchase new in 1995. Get a used Miata to own as you "find yourself" automotively speaking. Much more modest investment and a lot of fun, as well.

Zoren 370 · 01-03-2013, 08:52 PM

If your primary purpose is to sharpen your skills in driving inside the track or do autocross. Might as well get a cheap beat up Miata or an RX8 do mods to be track ready, then sell after a year. Your loss will not be as much since you started cheap.

Once you have the skill and still have the money then go for your best dream sports car and keep it. A 911 GT3 would be a nice sports car to keep. IMHO

ZMan8 · 01-03-2013, 08:57 PM

if you just want to learn...get a NA Miata. (90-99) they are relatively cheap, have very little issues/maintenance and parts for them are as cheap as for a civic. For around 5-6k (3.5-4k for car + brakes, seat/harness, suspension, wheels/tires, etc) you will have a track car. Then when you have learned what you need either sell it, or just keep it as track only.

scope22 · 01-03-2013, 09:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by OldGuy

I've owned my '09 370 for over 3 years now and it doesn't burn or use any oil. It has been trouble freee for me. That said, I'd start out with something a bit more modest. Z is a lot of car and ties up a lot of money for an "experiment." I also own a Miata which has been been perfect since its purchase new in 1995. Get a used Miata to own as you "find yourself" automotively speaking. Much more modest investment and a lot of fun, as well.

I 2nd that..my 09 is perfect...The real question is how much of a car you can afford to have fun with, if you're ok with tracking 370z and potentially crashing and losing 25K then i say go for it. get the best car you can afford to lose.

6MT · 01-03-2013, 09:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Adam_W

hi,

I'm about to buy a used 2010 370Z and suddenly thought, "hey, maybe I should ask some people who actually know something about these cars."

So here is my situation: I've recently gotten "into" the idea of owning - and being able to drive well - a sports car. I think the car I want is a Corvette Z06 (please, hear me out!) , but I'm not dogmatic; could go for a used Porsche 911 or GTR. I don't want to drop $60K+ while being fairly ignorant of sports cars or how to drive them.

So I thought I would start with the "driver mod" first. I know how to drive stick but have never owned one, so I don't know how to drive one "well" or with skill.

I want to buy a stickshift sports car to learn on, take a course at Skip Barber, go to autocross a few times, get into HPDE 1 and 2, and then by the end of this year, decide what sort of car do I really want and then know how to drive it well at that point.

I started with the idea of getting a Miata until I found out that for HPDE, I'd need a rollbar (convertible), and probably remove foam from the seat for a 6'1'' person like fit with a helmet (head must be beneath level of rollbar).

Wanting to learn on a rear-wheel drive car - and being unable to find a decent 240SX in my area - I thought I'd get a 370Z for 23-25K and then sell it after a year.

Questions:
1. Is the 370Z a good car for my purposes? Since it's newer, I was thinking it would sell better than a 350Z, i.e. I would not lose as much money.

2. Is it true that the 2009 370Z "burns oil" and should be avoided?

3. Do you think I'm going to lose a lot of money when I sell the car, e.g. I buy a 2010 370Z with 30K miles, in good condition, for $25K and then in 12 months I sell it? Would be losing a 2-3K or are we talking losing more than 4K?

Thank you!

I think that if you need to ask.... It's not right for you.

KERMIT · 01-03-2013, 09:55 PM

Smells trolly

DEpointfive0 · 01-03-2013, 10:04 PM

OP, sent you a PM if you wanna meet up and talk and maybe get a feel for my car

Zenmaster · 01-03-2013, 10:04 PM

get a ford pinto

Adam_W · 01-03-2013, 10:56 PM

DEpointfive0 - thanks for the generous offer. Replied to PM.

I appreciate the voices of wisdom here and will take the collective advice and not buy the 370Z for the time being. I'll do some more research on other cars, and look harder for older Miatas.

I appreciate everyone's advice and will let you know if I have any other questions. 370Zs are beautiful cars and I'm kinda sad I won't be getting one (was going to get the black 2010 370z at Hardin Hyundai in Anaheim).

For those who've been less than helpful, I suggest you ponder how you respond to newbies on the forum. As with all things in life, everyone has to start somewhere, and the guy you offer help to today might be the same person who is able to teach you something in a couple of years. Such is the meaning of Community.

dP3NGU1N · 01-03-2013, 11:04 PM

3-4k sounds about right for a track beater... A buddy of mine bought his for 2k and has been beating the hell out of it ever since. Then he bought a used mustang for about 12k and he's happy.

37ZERO · 01-04-2013, 06:28 AM

The thought that appears to me would be to split the 60k you want to spend into two different cars... Hear me out - you've no experience in a manual or driving a car on a track, there is no way on this earth I would be taking my 60K daily driver and modifying it to suit that purpose and inevitably damaging it at some point.

My money would buy a open wheeler for the track (built for that very purpose!) and either something like the Z or a different daily driver option. That way you have something with brilliant power to weight setup to suit track only and a comfortable undamaged/abused daily.

01-03-2013, 06:54 PM	#16 (permalink)
gomer_110 A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Perrysburg, OH Posts: 17,992 Drives: '11 Nismo #528 GM Rep Power: 36941	While I'll probably get flamed for suggesting this, but if you considered the miata, what about the FR-S or BRZ? UNKNOWN_370 and raymondo510 like this. __________________ '11 370Z Nismo #528 Fast Intentions \| Stillen \| Motordyne \| Uprev \| CSF \| Zspeed \| Z1 Motorsports \| AST \| Swift \| SPC \| SPL \| Whiteline \| Hotchkis \| Bride \| Schroth \| Robispec \| Cusco \| Nismo \| Volk \| Forgestar \| Hoosier \| RJM '17 Titan Bone Stock

01-03-2013, 08:06 PM	#18 (permalink)
Adam_W Base Member Join Date: Jan 2013 Location: Irvine Posts: 11 Drives: old honda accord Rep Power: 13	Felix - I've heard people recommend that school, and am considering that one - in addition to Ron Fellows/Spring Mountain (NV) and Bondurant - for later on if I still want to get a Z06, since those schools use Corvettes to teach. Those schools also tend to cost over a $1000 per day, so I wanted to "get up speed" with shifting comfortably, heel toe, finding "the line" or correcting early apex, etc etc before I attend those schools. As for BRZ... I've seriously considered that, only thing is that they're all either new or being sold at near-new prices. I don't want to be the one to take the up-front depreciation hit when I sell it in a year. I suppose I should seriously consider going the beater route... I guess I just had it in my head that if I bought used a 2007 350Z or 2010 370Z and drove it for a year (not really tracking per se, just one or two HPDEs where the guy sits next to you, and autocross a couple times) , that I could still sell it for maybe 3K less than I bought it for (e.g. pay $25K for a 2010 370Z now ---> sell for $22K at the end of this year), on top of cost of tires and other maintenance costs. Last edited by Adam_W; 01-03-2013 at 08:32 PM.

01-03-2013, 08:57 PM	#22 (permalink)
ZMan8 A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Oct 2011 Location: Chicago, IL Posts: 5,844 Drives: 10 370z 40th M6 Rep Power: 659	if you just want to learn...get a NA Miata. (90-99) they are relatively cheap, have very little issues/maintenance and parts for them are as cheap as for a civic. For around 5-6k (3.5-4k for car + brakes, seat/harness, suspension, wheels/tires, etc) you will have a track car. Then when you have learned what you need either sell it, or just keep it as track only. __________________ 2010 370Z 40 Anniv., 6 MT \| Fast Intentions \| Swift Springs \| SPC \| Z1Motorsports \| JWM \| Redline Oils \| 35% Window Tint 2015 Mazda6 \| 370ZChicago: Chicago Area Cars & Coffee

01-03-2013, 09:55 PM	#25 (permalink)
KERMIT Enthusiast Member Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: Republic of Wadiya Posts: 301 Drives: Ms. Daisy Rep Power: 14	Smells trolly Akmcmahon likes this.

01-03-2013, 10:56 PM	#28 (permalink)
Adam_W Base Member Join Date: Jan 2013 Location: Irvine Posts: 11 Drives: old honda accord Rep Power: 13	DEpointfive0 - thanks for the generous offer. Replied to PM. I appreciate the voices of wisdom here and will take the collective advice and not buy the 370Z for the time being. I'll do some more research on other cars, and look harder for older Miatas. I appreciate everyone's advice and will let you know if I have any other questions. 370Zs are beautiful cars and I'm kinda sad I won't be getting one (was going to get the black 2010 370z at Hardin Hyundai in Anaheim). For those who've been less than helpful, I suggest you ponder how you respond to newbies on the forum. As with all things in life, everyone has to start somewhere, and the guy you offer help to today might be the same person who is able to teach you something in a couple of years. Such is the meaning of Community. Last edited by Adam_W; 01-03-2013 at 11:25 PM.

01-03-2013, 08:28 PM	#19 (permalink)
280z/300zx Track Member Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Nevada Posts: 689 Drives: 280z, 300zx, Vette Rep Power: 273	The 370z is not HPDE ready. You will need to spend a decent amount on brakes, tires, fluids, oil cooler, etc. Auto-x is no problem. I've done multiple events in my stock Z. It's the HPDE where you are going to have to pay to play. My thoughts are buy an old car, not a beater per say. You can buy a nice condition 240z/280z/280zx/300zx (80's) for 5k or less. Spend another 1-2k in prep work/parts and have a nice good to go car. Other options are older supras and corvettes. You can get a decent condition C5 Vette for less than a used 370z and for the same price as a used 370z you could get a C5 Z06. Vettes are a lot better preped track wise than the Z is but being that they are used brakes and tires will still be an issue BUT they won't require an oil cooler like the Z does. Personally I'd probably buy a C5 Z06. Vettes are cheap to maintain and fix (relatively) compared to other cars in it's class That being said, if it were me I'd probably just buy the new car I want and learn driving it. It will have a higher learning curve but it will also be cheaper in the long run rather than buying one car now and another later. Remember, the money you spend on tires/brakes/fluids/oil coolers/etc won't be recouped when you sell.

01-03-2013, 08:52 PM	#21 (permalink)
Zoren 370 A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Mar 2012 Location: FL Posts: 11,018 Drives: 11 Nissan 370 M6 Rep Power: 1913654	If your primary purpose is to sharpen your skills in driving inside the track or do autocross. Might as well get a cheap beat up Miata or an RX8 do mods to be track ready, then sell after a year. Your loss will not be as much since you started cheap. Once you have the skill and still have the money then go for your best dream sports car and keep it. A 911 GT3 would be a nice sports car to keep. IMHO

01-03-2013, 10:04 PM	#26 (permalink)
DEpointfive0 A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Jan 2012 Location: SoCal Posts: 14,824 Drives: a lot Rep Power: 17152	OP, sent you a PM if you wanna meet up and talk and maybe get a feel for my car

01-03-2013, 10:04 PM	#27 (permalink)
Zenmaster Base Member Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: North Carolina Posts: 68 Drives: 10 370z M6 40th Rep Power: 14	get a ford pinto

01-03-2013, 11:04 PM	#29 (permalink)
dP3NGU1N A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: Irvine Posts: 1,682 Drives: 13 PW sport 6mt Rep Power: 19	3-4k sounds about right for a track beater... A buddy of mine bought his for 2k and has been beating the hell out of it ever since. Then he bought a used mustang for about 12k and he's happy.

01-04-2013, 06:28 AM	#30 (permalink)
37ZERO Base Member Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Burradoo Posts: 26 Drives: --- Rep Power: 13	The thought that appears to me would be to split the 60k you want to spend into two different cars... Hear me out - you've no experience in a manual or driving a car on a track, there is no way on this earth I would be taking my 60K daily driver and modifying it to suit that purpose and inevitably damaging it at some point. My money would buy a open wheeler for the track (built for that very purpose!) and either something like the Z or a different daily driver option. That way you have something with brilliant power to weight setup to suit track only and a comfortable undamaged/abused daily.

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