:gtfo2:

Well thats just not right. LOL Im sure they do have some type of expensive toy tho.

Haha but it's so true. We have so many loaded clients that drive beaters... they really don't care about cars at all. Some guy who's probably worth $12-14m bought a new car about a month ago...

A freakin' Civic EX. :rofl2:

It just goes to show you that you can never judge a book by it's cover!

I bet his wife is sporting 100k in jewls every time she steps out of thier mansion.

I've been having this same debate but 370 vs GTR. I mean it cost like 20k to do a proper TT setup and i just wonder if i should just take that 20k+trade in my 370 and get a GTR.

My setup goes like this, prices include install and tax: 370z 6MT, sport, touring ($40k), Supercharger, lightened flywheel and clutch ($9k), Headers, cats, exhaust ($2.7k), coil overs, camber plates, aligment, 305 RE11 tires in the back, 275's in the front (3k).

The differences on my 370z vs GTR: $55k vs. $80k. 6MT transmission with lightened flywheel vs SMG. 2 seater vs 4 (shorter wheel base). 530hp vs 480. 3250lbs vs. 3850 lbs. 305 & 275 width RE11 Bridestone vs 285 and 255 width RE050A runflat Bridgestones. Coil over manual adjust shocks with racing springs vs. electronically damped shocks with street springs.

Over all, my Z should be faster than a GTR at anything other than 0-60, but who knows.... it's just speculation. What I can tell you is that I don't really care for the heavy feel of the GTR, the lack driving involvement, the boxy looks, the larger over all size and the lack of raw grip. I like cars for how they drive and how they make me feel when I'm alone on a winding road with no one else around. I don't really have the desire to impress people with how much I can spend. That's why why I drive a 370Z. :-)

There isnt a better performing car on the road for the money than a C6 Z06. That's what i'd be driving if i made bout 20% more than what I make at the moment.

although i am a self proclaimed nissan nutswinger, the GT3 is one of the purest driving experiences that you will ever have (yes i have driven one, an 08 997). it's fast, handles amazingly when driven properly, fairly rare, not much more expensive to maintain than a GTR, and makes a sound that can only be described as God's own 6 cylinder engine.

see this:
Sights and Sounds: 2010 Porsche 911 GT3 - Motor Trend Video

might wanna get some tissues in case you start crying or worse...

:iagree:

My last car was a c6 with bolt-ons and z51 suspension. The engine is fantastic. The transmission is crude and requires brute force. The steering is numb. The interior - especially the seats - are inferior to every other world class sports car. The transverse leaf suspension just doesn't cut it compared to a good coil over suspension. The clutch takes over 100 pounds of force to operate and the engagement is all in aboout 2" of travel. It's good for road racing, but hard to launch well. Over all, it has a high 'hooligan' fun factor, but not a car you enjoy spending a weekend away with.

A 370z with suspension mods and supercharger is 20k cheaper, performs better (than the Z06) and is actually fun to drive.

Keep the Z and buy an Ariel Atom for the track. It will smoke just about anything on the track.

Get the GT3, but only if you promise to drive it like this: (and get his exhaust...)

^^Scandanavian flick! I would do that all day if I had the skill.

as an avid track day photographer, all i have to say about that is i wish i could get that close to the cars... corner workers at the tracks i've been to have a heart attack and kick me off if i get within 100 yds of the track, and that's with a media jacket, it's worse without!

So what car did you get?

Going to stick with the Z for now :)

:iagree: You can get a great deal on a '07 Z06 and put a few mods on it and smoke both cars at the track and have money to spare. Ask me how I know :tup:

:tiphat:

Im thinking of trading in the Z for the GTR in about 6 months. Wife got a new job making twice what she was so I may be getting close to having my semi dream car.

GTR and a chip and exhaust and she will fly.

/jealous

It will still be a house payment tho.

Ill be back there at Gordon for another 2 week class on the 26th Ill stop by.

Maybe one day my wife will make twice as much as she does. Oh wait, 0 x anything = 0.

Thats funny bad man, hope she doesnt see it. Hope for the lottery then.

I totally agree. If money is an issue and you want fast lap times, there is no better way to go than a lightly used Corvette Z06. Just add intake, camshaft, valve springs, headers, exhaust, coil over suspension and sway bars and you've got a 625 hp track car with an incedibly sexy sound track. It's still crude though: steering, shifting, clutch, interior, seating.

No corvettes until I'm bald, fat and pushing 60yo. I don't care if it's a ZR1. Still a piece of $hit Corvette. I'd have to gut the interior if I ever got stuck with one.

The GTR is forever enticing but long-term review after review suggests that it's not driver-engaging. That would be a big upset for me. I like to feel in touch with the car and have the charisma of a manual transmission. Just going fast on a track isn't good enough unless I was actually wheel-wheel racing. Hell, if I was to get a 911 turbo, I'd still get a manual transmission. I'd rather go moderately fast and have a ton of fun doing it, then go really fast but just turn the wheel and push two pedals. Even driving the flappy paddles isn't as fun as rowing a 6MT.

You may want to consider an Exige S260. Reasonably priced. Lightweight with a SC 4cyl Toyota engine.

Here are some sample pics of a S220, another S220 and S260 in order of pic:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v7...%20S/Exige.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v7...n20Standby.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v7...xige_260_1.jpg

The Exige is nice, priced well, and certainly capable and fun. But it can't hang with the big dogs.

Funny that the GTR overheats. Nissan doesn't do well with cooling their products.

Statements like this help restore my faith in humanity. It's refreshing to know that at least not everyone is dumb as a box of rocks. You like my self understand that being the “fastest” doesn’t by default equate to being the “most rewarding to drive, etc, etc.”

:tup: Unless you are in competition, being the fastest doesn't mean anything. Track days are all about fun!

Exactly! Plus what are you proving if you beat someone who's driving a slower car? All it proves is that you won because you had an advantage not because you were necessarily the best driver. I find it more fun / rewarding to win against an even playing field and I doubt I’m alone on that. Regarding the Audi R8 and Porsche GT3; the R8 would probably be the car to have if it were your daily driver and the GT3 for a track toy.

Maybe you should look at long term reviews from actual owners? People go too deep into this auto versus manual debate and miss the exhilaration of taking a line around a bend that would put one of the competition in the grass. Maybe in an ideal world, you'd have a manual R35 to get everything you desire, but the reality is the majority of highly satisfied owners find other driving aspects overriding the lack of a clutch pedal.

I'm sure the GT-R is great for some people. For others that really want that direct manual transmission feel, it's just not going to be a car for them.

But I do think that once you get up into that supercar performance territory whether you are driving a paddle shift car or a full on manual doesn't really matter at that point, as you start to concern yourself with more important things... like how ridiculously fast you are going!

Well, actual owners will be biased as with anything else people are invested in. I've heard stories of people selling their GTRs because they didn't like the lack of involvement. I'm sure there are plenty more diehard owners who love them (yourself included :)). The short of it is that I'm not competing in races and the fun for me is the act of driving. I like a manual and this car will be used both street and track. Getting groceries in a GTR would be a bore while it's still fun to drive a 6MT 370Z even on the short grocery trips. If I was competing on track as a profession, the GTR might look a lot more appealing. Again, it's just my opinion on the matter. Car ownership and that inherent 'relationship' one develops with the car is a complicated dynamic that is different for everyone.

The lack of driver involvement concerning the Nissan GTR goes far beyond just the lack of traditional manual transmission. You don't have to be a good driver to run fast lap times in a GTR. That just goes to show how computer / electronic driven the damn car is and of course GTR owners will be biased, they just dropped 80k+ on the damn thing! Just go drive pratically any Porsche and then a GTR and you'll see what I'm talking about.

Just to be clear, you haven't driven a GT-R have you?

I have not but I did stay in a Holiday Inn Express last night.

Another good point actually. How the hell does a potential buyer get to drive one? People are nuts to plunk down that kind of change on a car they've never driven. Nissan won't let you drive one even if you wave a wad of cash under the dealer's nose as a serious potential buyer.

It's really not a car you need to test drive to know you want. :tup:

yea until you get a chance to drive the cars in question, hard to give an honest opinion on what's best. i've never driven an R8 but i have gotten the opprotunity to drive several GTRs and taken a 997 GT3 out (with the owner) and run the piss out of it, at least as much as possible on empty public roads. the GT3 is better by far for a driver's car but the GTR makes a better daily and a good choice for someone who hasn't spent a lot of time on a real road course. the GT3 will give you that "little bit more" when driven properly but it's real easy to loose it and i wouldn't have it any other way. the GTR doesn't have the driver involvement of a 6 spd manual 997 turbo or GT3 but it is exhilarating to drive and suuuuper easy to drive stuuuuupid fast. in that way, it may be better depending on what the person is looking for

x1million :tiphat: