Coupe or Convertible

LisaZ

Hello, I am new to the Forum but not to owning a Z. I am looking to trade a 09' 370 Z touring coupe for a 10' touring convertible? Any advice or comments would be helpful!

Ommateal

They can look pretty rad! But are heavier. Depends on what you are looking for in the car. Also verts in general require some extra care when dealing with the tops... DOnt want em to get messed up...

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Trips

The convertibles have an inherent issue with the top after a while which tend be very expensive to deal with it without a warranty.

I personally would shy away from a conv unless it's new or warrantied.

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SouthArk370Z

370Z verts are great ... until you have to have them worked on. Repairs can be very expensive and few shops know how to work on them.

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KCZ

You'd lose a fair amount of cargo space, if that is important to you.

Driving a convertible/roadster is a very different experience than a coupe. I think you need to decide how much opportunity you will have to use the car with the top down, and if that outweighs any inconvenience and the expense of trading.

P.S. I wouldn't get a roadster if you intend to track the car. Various organizations won't allow them on the track.

gr8-wrx

Like KCZ mentioned, it's a very different experience driving the roadster compared to the coupe. I love driving my ZR, but don't park it in certain areas (like all day at the train station) because of the top.

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OldGuyFla

Don't let all these people scare you away from a roadster if that is what you really want. Like Trips said just make sure you have an extended warranty that covers the top. I've had mine for just under three years & have zero problems with anything at all. Top included.

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gbhrps

LisaZ,

OldFloGuy and I agree on most things about the Z Roadster model, but here I have to disagree with him.

You are trading an 09 for possibly a 2010 Roadster ...... that tells me that you don't have deep pockets (read lots of money), or you would be in the category of purchasing a newer car, say a 2016 or 2017. There is a big difference in the pricing of 2010 to 2017. No surprise there.

Here's what you need to know:

The 370Z Roadster's top mechanism is perhaps the most intricate system of any convertible top system for any car sold in North America. It has 8 hydraulic rams, each with two sail switches (tell how far the ram has extended), the plumbing for all of those plastic pipes and wiring, a hydraulic pump, computer modules, bungee cords in several locations, and many pivoting arms and frames, all of which must work flawlessly.

Very few Roadsters are sold, so very few service techs will ever work on one often enough to be really efficient at diagnosing where and what needs fixing. That leads to hours searching through the service manuals at over $100 an hour. It adds up quickly. So some say take it to a specialized convertible shop, where they will have the same track record with 370z Roadsters. There just aren't that many out there.

If after several hours of diagnostics they find the issue, now you have the cost of the parts issue to deal with. Be aware, that if one of the rams goes south, it is not a part that Nissan will sell you. You will have to buy an entire top system. You can send it to Oregon (TopHydraulics will rebuild each ram at $200 each) for a fix but doing all 8 sits at $1600 before shipping, etc.,etc.

The present price for just the complete hydraulic system, no wiring, no frames, no cloth, etc.(sold not by parts, but only entirely as one unit) is $6 917.13.

When things go wrong, badly wrong, Nissan's solution is to just replace the entire convertible top mechanism and cloth assemblies in one swoop ... at nearly $13 000.

If you are prepared for the possibility of this kind of cost, however remote it might be, then buy the Roadster. But if, as I suspect, you aren't in the position to foot such a bill, I'd advise you to pass on the Roadster until you can.

OldFloGuy and I are in our late 60's, have no mortgage, lots of pension and retirement funds, and in my case, I have 55 years experience of working on cars and convertibles, and will fix the top on my Roadster myself after the warranty expires, because I can, and I won't have to take it to Nissan for big bucks. That's one of the reasons I bought the car.

To get a better feeling for what I'm suggesting, go to the Roadster section of this forum and search through 10 or 12 pages of the issues roadster owners are having with their tops. That should help you make your decision.

The Best, which ever choice you make! And I apologize for spoiling your dream, if indeed I have.

Gene

Cyber370

I'm not as old as OldFloGuy and Gene but I have owned so many cars that I have lost count. I learnt from the mistakes I made and I repaired my own cars. My '16 Nismo is probably the closest to a new sports car I have ever owned.

The best advice I can give you is:

1) Buy what you like. This is extremely important. If you do not, you will regret your purchase. If you want a roadster, get the roadster. As long as you know what you're getting into, you'll be OK. Just look at the Ferrari guys. They all end up with hefty repair and maintenance bills sooner or later but they rarely regret their purchase. Why? Because they wanted a Ferrari and nothing else would do.
2) Have the car checked by an independent mechanic PRIOR to making your purchase. Do not take anyone's word that the car is in perfect shape not even a dealer and not even if a warranty is offered.

Good luck on your choice.

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danegrey

I always bought what I wanted, but I also watched to what it might cost to repair it...
just keep that in mine,

Good luck

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HEK

My son lives in Princess Island SC. I had a Jeep Wrangler with both soft and hard top. I went to visit him at work in Paris Island and had the top off and actually had to put on the AC once I got to the base. Same here in Massachusetts, I took the top off the night before I went to work, put on the heat and by 430 I had to actually put on the AC when the top was still off....never again will I but a convertible, just my 2 cents

Duc_Z09

IMO the lines on the Z look horrible without a roof... and that's without taking into account the increased maintenance, increased cost, increase in aerodynamic drag, road/wind noise, weight penalty, loss of structural integrity, etc. etc. that comes along with not having a vital piece of the car. Better off with something that was designed as a roadster from the start, like a Miata or Z4. YMMV.

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b15

I'm not a big fan of the Z Roadster but have to admit, they look pretty good with the top down. Touring models have cooled seats too!

Personally I wouldn't make the trade though.

zeeder

I'm pretty sure I read, back in the day, that the 370Z was designed with the convertible model in mind.

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