Are subtle upgrades such as lighter tires and exhaust worth the money?
 

Good afternoon everyone. New member here looking for some advice. Let me start of by saying I currently drive a G37 Sedan. I really wanted a Z, but I needed passenger seats and a bigger trunk so I ended up purchasing the next closest thing. I finally paid off the car and have some money laying around to customize my car and make it more unique or a little bit better than the rest of the crowd. I was planning on getting some 17 inch Enkei RPF1s in black for my first upgrade. I read that they are lightweight and have the ability to make the car perform better and get a bit better fuel mileage. I also love the looks of the RPF1s compared to the rest of the Enkei line up. My next upgrade would be exhaust. I really want the HKS exhaust because I read it will also reduce weight and improve the flow which would give better performance. I also read they are not too loud, and has a smoother sounds. I was thinking of getting CAI later on and maybe a light weight battery. I also live in sunny California, and was thinking of trying out some summer or sticky tires instead of my all season Yokohamas. Do you all think these upgrades are worth the money? The rims and the exhaust itself will be at least 2k. Thank you all for your time, and I am looking forward to your replies.

Exhaust upgrade is great for getting the sound you want from the car. Performance wise, bolt-ons don't seem to help this car very much as far as HP/torque are concerned. I would definitely recommend summer tires. I am in SoCal too, and unlike most people, we can get away with driving on summer tires all year long. (Or even being able to drive a Z/G37 year long for that matter)

Short answer no.

To elaborate:
The mods you're listing and reading into their benefits is technically true, but the scale of measure isn't what you think it is. Almost everyone early falls for that, then does it and keeps telling themselves it's legit. 7 stages of denial, etc.

Shave a few pounds here. Lets say 10lb from the exhaust, maybe 20lb the wheels. The G37 is 3500+lbs. You add a CAI and CBE, maybe get another 20hp, and that's probably only proper with a tune. You're a few thousand dollars deep now, especially if you paid for labor (which sometimes is the right thing to do). At most you dropped 1-2% weight, and gained 6% of power. RPF1's aren't exactly a rare thing either.

If anyone were to air their back road driving laundry here with these kinds of mods, I think most including myself will tell you, that is not doing much.

Only real gain is you have a better feeling, more responsive, and perhaps better sounding car. If that battery sucks at holding charge, that was just a waste. I understand you've had the car for a while, and you want to do some things, and there is still merit to doing these mods, but I think you need to make sure you level your expectations.

I'm not saying this to insult you. Like I said, a lot of people start with this mindset, and the result is literally what it is.

To really take a car to another considerable level, is to take the mods to another level. But that can also create new problems.

Stick with the oem style battery. Save yourself the headache later on.

Read some of the build threads to give yourself an idea before pulling the trigger on any buys. Once you start to mod the car. You're going down the rabbit hole. If you decide to sell the car later on. Know the you won't get your money back on what you bought.

Bolt-ons aren't going to give you much - Nissan has already picked all the low-hanging fruit. You can get a noticeable improvement with intake and exhaust mods plus a tune. For any real gains, you need to go boosted.
YMMV

Thank you all for the replies. I like the straight forward honesty. There is no need to sugar coat anything. I read similar opinions in other threads. I estimated I would spend around $3500 for those minor upgrades. I would rather put the money in the bank and maybe decide later on if I truly want a real performance upgrade (forced induction). I think I will plasti dip my rims for now and add more affordable cosmetic upgrades.

Your ~halfway to a BP kit with the $3500.

Just my opinion...do what makes you happy. Basically don't get too focused on the #s. If you have the money and it's something you want to do, go for it! I'm sure putting an exhaust and some nice wheels like the RPF1s will bring a huge grin to your face when you look at your car. That's all that matters. I would suggest dropping the car a bit if you plan on swapping tires/wheels.

I can say with experience that the lighter brakes (2 piece rotors) lighter wheels and lighter tires feel like I freed up some pep and agility in the car. I dont know that it was "worth the money" but its just a hobby so I wasnt thinking about that.

Whats "worth" it is going to entirely be up to you, your values, and your goals.

You need to understand what the Z is and think about where you want to be.

It can be an awesome platform to build a hot hardparking toy
It can be a capable track weapon
It can be a highway car

But to get there you probably need to commit some cash and effort

******* around with bolt ons and crap aren't going to leave you with much of a different car, but if you're ok with with that, thats what YOU want, then cool

But don't cheap out and by crappy knockoff parts or you'll end up doing stuff twice

but be honest with yourself about what you want the car to be

There's alot of knowledge on the forum. Use it. Read before you spend money.

as an example, take the lightweight battery

What is the point of lightweight battery? To save weight and also relocate weight for better performance. Who needs that sort of thing though? What are the drawbacks? Well, a ******* track car that is fighting for tenths of a second absolutely could use that, cost and effort be damned. For a dude bumming around town, the lost power and cost is basically setting money on fire.

What is the lesson?

Don't set money on fire. Give it to me instead.

This. Right here.

Though I run stock electronics and nothing to crazy, I have a Costco Kirkland Battery. If it goes to doo doo land I'll just go back to OEM.

The weight you save from a lighter wheels and exhaust will not make your car goes 2s faster from 0-60mph nor reach that fat-donald drive-through faster than that pick-up truck.


however, from my experience, it will slightly improve the handling.

when I changed from Vossen to Works, I do feel the Z response to turn-in and cornering a bit better, same thing when I did the cat-back.


So the answer to your question is 1) Yes, it will improve the handling slightly AND 2) No, don't expect it can make a night&day difference


CAD$0.02

Thanks again for the responses. My car is pretty much my Jack of all trades. It is my daily commuter to work and for daily errands. I use it on long road trips and travel. And on some occasions I do take it on California back roads and drive pretty spirited. After doing more research and taking some advice with the lightweight rims, I some what narrowed down my choices to get more affordable good looking rims in Gun metal grey and maybe a set of sway bars. I seen some pretty good looking rims for around $150 each, and I believe the sways are not that expensive. I just want to make my car less "vanilla." I mean it is bad enough that I don't have sport package and I blend in with the G crowd. Everyone has a G37 now in Cali since prices dropped, and people are crazy shopping for cars. I will do more reading and hopefully update you guys when I make a firm decision.

For the love of god please don’t buy wheels before reading this
http://www.the370z.com/wheels-tires/...tart-here.html

OZ’s female counterpart

https://www.instagram.com/p/CDCjBCMp...=1i1znjyvul5l5

She's kinda hot. :ugh2:

I actually plan on going to a tire shop if I ever decide on getting on getting new rims. Do you guys have any recommendations of affordable rims? Preferably Gun Metal Grey/Black and a Japanese brand. I also been browsing around and came across some exhausts on Ebay for an affordable price. Will do more research on those because I don't want my car to sound raspy and ricey.

Z1 2 piece rotors are such an underrated mod IMO. If you care about how the car feels through corners this mod literally felt like taking an anchor off the steering and made the car feel more nimble.

The cheapest quality wheel you can get for your sedan that fits properly is a set of OEM G35 Rays. A set in good shape will cost less than a new set of cheapo garbage. Or a set in fair shape plus fresh powder coat will be the same as some new junk. I'll post pics in a bit.


Ebay exhaust :shakes head: It will sound like chit if you go that route. You can not get a cheap good sounding exhaust for the VHR unless you score a deal on a used set. And to top it off there are limited options for the sedan:twocents:

This is no spacers. Just bolt them on with the correct lugnuts.
Mine is an X so don't mine the 4x4 wheel gap
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...464a04e48b.jpg
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...5d5ca7666e.jpg
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Again...

If you're just gonna get cheap **** don't even bother

stay stock

I never said cheap. I said more affordable. I saw an Invidia Q300 up for sale that is more affordable compared to ARK or Magnaflow. I am also considering some Enkei Phoenix rims that are more affordable than the RPF1, but are no where cheap.

Those look pretty good. I saw a few Gun Metal Grey Enkeis that would look good on my car. I am also debating if I should get the 18 inch rims of the S models. Will have to wait though when I get new tires.

In short. The minor upgrades are the ones that, you need the least. They are the fine touches to a heavily built car.

Intake exhaust aids throttle response and in cert a in weather conditions improved accelerations. It makes it less difficult to get consistent acceleration times. Like if the car goes to 60 5.1 n the quarter 13.3. with intake n exhaust you can achieve that more steadily. Add headers and cams, not that 5.1 may be 4.7ish.
Supercharge it you may be 4.4
Tune the suspension you may get 4.2? Your quarter may drop to mid 11?
Or u can go tt n go even lower. Down to the 10s

But modding is subjective to what you want. Whether its looks, or a smoother ride? Better sound. Only you can determine if its worth it.

No, it's cheap

It is very clear you are going for the lowest priced crap, not stuff that actually works for our cars

for example, did you even look at the available sizes for the Enkei Phoenix?

You are going to end up out whatever amount of money and have a car that is worse the crap because you clearly are either too lazy or too cheap to do things right. You are buying parts JUST TO BUY PARTS

THOSE ******* WHEELS MAX OUT AT 18X8

I am in love.


Wait, maybe that is OZ?

Cheap in your opinion probably, but I read good things about that exhaust. I read a lot of great reviews about it. If I really was opting for the cheapest options then I would have selected cheap knock offs. No one is lazy here. I don't know what the **** are you talking about. I used a reliable website that was recommended by a tire technician that narrows down options of rims that fit my car. And yes, it claimed those rims will fit my car with 17 inches. I don't see anything wrong that nor how that qualifies as being lazy.

there's a pandemic, but go ahead and light money on fire

What brake calipers do you have on your car? The sport calipers or the base calipers?

Lol piece of crap? I assume you are talking about yourself. Hey, maybe I will. Don't see anything wrong with the rims at all.

There's a pandemic? No **** Sherlock. Tell us something we don't know. Why did you edit and delete your previous posts? No one is setting money on fire. A few of the guys here even suggested that some upgrades for your own personal taste is worth it.

Nah brah let him get those 17’s

He did a bunch of research remember?

And he’s gonna cater to his personal taste

Please buy the 17’s

In the Journey trim, most likely base calipers sitting on 17 in oem rims.

OP, on wheels, oem G37 coupe 19’s are popular with sedan owners. G35 Rays also can be had for cheap (don’t know why, they are lightweight forged Rays after all).

If you want OEM 18’s, those are even cheaper, and you won’t lose your butt off if you decide to sell them later.

Heck, even 350z wheels are viable options. If you can score some 18 in track edition Rays especially.

If you go the OEM G37 coupe wheels route, beware that rear wheels from convertible have much lower offset, more than 10mm difference, like a -30 vs -45 or -42.

Of course he remembers. He can read my posts. I'll consider it, no need to beg.

I will keep that in mind. Thanks. I actually prefer the styling of the 18s that came with the Sport Sedan. I saw a website that offers OEM rims. I will see if they have 19s available and I will compare them to the previous rims I liked.

Not another one. :shakes head:

You’re beggin for help to throw shitty wheels on your G and makin **** jokes

Which one of us has the problem?

I have 20’s because i put in time and effort to look good

I also have a set of 18’s for track, because i wanna do that right as well

Yes talk about my **** more as u browse through bottom end enkeis and ask whether to get a lightweight batteey on your car you cant commit to modifying

Get the f*** outta here

You are as dumb as you sound. Look up the word begging, and you will learn that not a single person begged on this thread.

To answer your question, it is you who has a problem. You deleted and edited your previous replies with condescending answers, and now you are playing the victim like a woman.

Just because something looks good to you, does not mean it looks good in the perspective of the next person. Looks are entirely subjective if you didn't know moron.

Lol! Holy dog **** 20s and 18s? Those aren't even close enough to compensate for your "tiny" problem Mr. Chow.

Bottom end or not, they look pretty damn good.

Take a breather, I was just busting your little balls lol. Go cry in the car that you put so much effort in. After all, it is obvious that it is the only good thing going for you.

Last time I checked, I started this thread. So you get the **** out of here and take your 2 inch tootsie roll else where. Lol.

:tup: