"Where is your enthusiasm..."
 

[Rant On] All right, I am not usually much of a pot stirrer but this is pissing me off. I have been a Z enthusiast for a looooong time. I have owned a TwinTurbo for just over 9 years now and currently own 4 Z's. One could say that I have a certain sense of community and heritage when it comes to Z cars. More than that, I am a car guy! Period! If it goes fast and makes noise, I'm in. I love that people love their cars and even though they may not mod them in the way that I would mod mine, I can appreciate their effort and passion regardless... even if they do strap what looks like a see-saw on the back of their Honda. Back to the point...Why is it that when I drive by someone in a 350Z and wave, no matter which Z I am driving, they stick their nose up in the air? WTF!?! Any model before or after, I always get a smile and a friendly wave in return. I know that there are 350 drivers out there that are like us. I have plenty of friends that 350s, bad a$$ ones, that love everything Z car. I think there should be a Z car loyalty certification that you have to get before you purchase a Z. I am just sayin! [Rant Off]

Disclaimer- If you own a 350Z and you are reading this, you are obviously an enthuisast and I am not talking about you. :tup:

Happy Friday everyone!!! Go out and drive your Z this weekend! :driving:

i think it is because 350's are at that perfect age and price which allow them to fall into the laps of your average joe shmoe who doesn't really care about cars. If you've got a z32 or prior, you have an old Z, and clearly, you like z's, because people don't drive 15+year old sports cars unless they are enthusiastic about them. if you've got a z34 you just bought a new car, and chances are if you're willing to drop more money for the newer version of the car, you're more enthusiastic about it than the person who says 'i'll just get a 350 because its cheaper (not that there is anything wrong with that).' 350Z could be anywhere from 3-7 years old, which puts them in an affordable price range for someone who is just looking for a fast, nice looking car, but not necessarily a Z enthusiast.

so more to the point, a Z enthusiast would be willing to either:
A: drive an 15+ year old car because they love it
B: Drop the extra cash to get the newest model Z around.

You don't need to do either of those things in order to own a 350Z, making it the most likely Z for a non Z enthusiast to own.

A used 350 is priced right for any HS douchebag. They are all over the place so you get a lot of bad apples.

yea, if you buy a 350, and you're in HS, you've got probably the cooler cars at your school that you could have bought yourself. anything more expensive and you're parents bought it for you.

The first couple of years of the 350Z their community was probably closer to what we have now as reflected on this forum. Fact is though now 350Zs are relatively cheap and plentiful. This makes them available to a wider variety of folks -- not just Z enthusiasts. Older Zs while some may be cheap, are actually hard to find in good condition and are now typically in the hands of Z enthusiasts. I'm guessing the 370Z community will resemble the 350Z community we have now in about 5 or 6 years (if the 370 is as successful as the 350 was). Fact is we have a mass market sports car and once they get a few years old and are available to any old Joe the percentage of folk who own the car and appreciate it for its heritage will dramatically decrease. It will increase again once the 370 is old enough to start getting hard to find. So you just gotta wait it out. :)

This is very prevelant with the motorcycle crowd as well. I have had a number of sport bikes and I made it a mission to wave at all other motorcycles on the road. I would wave and most motorcycle enthusiasts wave right back. It gives a great sense of community. However more times than not, the leather clad hard core Harley guys would just ride right by and rev their motor with a dirty look. It definitely irritated me but I felt it best to just keep waving.

By the way. I passed a mid 80s Z yesterday with a couple of teenagers. They were completely enjoying themselves with the t-tops off and some music playing. Both waved and I waved right back. :tup:

careful waving while riding the bike :tup:

This has the potential to take the "most posts per day award".

Sorry, is it me? Who is that?

Larry David from "Curb Your Enthusiasm" :facepalm:

:wtf2:

ive been snubbed by 350Z drivers too. haters

300Z owners wave though....

I think people are afraid to look at someone in the eye and acknowledge another human's presence. This age is dominated by online social sites and facebook owns all. This is unfortunate since socialization skills are key to our existence. Just sayin...

To be honest, I bought the car cause I like the looks & the way it drives, I'm also a huge car enthusiast. But I didn't buy the Z to join a community or a way of life. Yeah OK, I joined the forum but that's different, I like to learn about new things about the car but that's when bored at home. If I drive my Z I don't personally want to have to wave to every Z owner on the way, I'd rather concentrate on the road.

It's also like those yearly Z outings that the dealer is asking fellow Z'ists to join and go on. Personally I hate the idea and would rather not. I don't especially feel the need to talk to other people who just happen to have the same car as me.

Of course, If a Z'ist decided to wave at me I'd automatically respond by waving back, I'm not going to be a tit.

To each his own i guess.