Follow your head, not your heart. Your heart will get you in trouble every time. In more ways then one. :eek:

Definitely, the decision has been made! No Z for me until I'm no longer upside down on my GTI, and possibly until it's paid off!

The wife's uncle was rolling over the wives or cars? :)

Sage advice, sir.

The cars. Part of was his wife's fault too. She was the same way with cars. Uncle Jim and Aunt Polly. What a pair. They was met for each other. :rofl2: He get her drunk in the evenings to shut her up. :rofl2: I asked her where the grease fittings are in her jaw one time. That went over her head thank God. :rofl2:

OP,
I came from a 2010 GTI and I'll be honest, I still miss my GTI even though I love my Z. Plain and simple - the GTI is a really good car. My advice would be to invest in a downpipe and go stage 2 tune on it - I would say a good tune from APR and you'll love the GTI since it will be pushing quite a bit more torque and HP than what comes standard from the company - enough to keep up with a stock Z.
Regardless, good luck and I think you should keep any car if you are upside down and like others have said - the longer you wait, the better prices you'll find on a used Z.

If you're set on a Z, get a lowish millage 2010-2011. There is no point in a newer car if it's not your DD, it's not under warranty, and it's a financial stretch.

An older Z would be just as reliable as a 2013-2014 but save you ~$8K, or roughly $150 a month on a 5 year loan.

Take your time and search for a deal. I looked nearly daily for my current car and am on a 6 year loan for a used car paying $780 a month (yes really, lol). But, I got such a good deal that it's resale is still what I paid for it over 1 year 10k miles ago.

Take your time, find an older Z, avoid depreciation.

Even though I made the decision to wait on a Z I test drove the car today as I wanted to try out the automatic. I have to say I thought the shift speed between the DSG in the GTI and the 7AT in the Z was negligible. Also, the paddles are far superior and I like that they're column mounted. Lastly, the rev match was also nice since it was less jerky on 3-2 downshifts where the revs can jump a decent amount.

The GTI is definitely more comfortable as the seats in the Z put a bit of pressure on my hips that would make long drives uncomfortable. Nothing that a 100 pound weight loss on my part wouldn't fix lol. The difference in power delivery was also interesting as the low end torque when the turbo comes on gives a more exaggerated shove in the GTI. The rear wheel drive of the Z was awesome and something I really miss.

I learned that I am, in deed, still smitten with the Z and that I still could daily one if I wanted to. I wish it had telescoping steering wheel but it wasn't horrible. It'll give me something to look forward to in a couple three years and possibly a little motivation to drop some more weight to fit in the car a bit better.

I've definitely been thinking about the tune thing but haven't decided if it's worth the risk of voiding my power train warranty. In the research I've done it seems that some of the turbos are a little iffy on 2015's. The thought of an extra 100+ hp and lb-ft is enticing though! :yum: