Is the Z the ugly duck now?

m4a1mustang

Well, usually the best looking cars are very polarizing. You either love it or you hate it... there's no in between.

Of course the only thing that matters is what we as owners think, so if you're happy with your 370 then .

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Snakes709

I wasnt happy with my 370z, thats why i have my truck..lol. But i do agree, its what you own and think, that matters. People laugh at me cuz my truck is horrible on gas and is rwd and i drive it in the winter. I cant count how many times i have seen 4x4 stuck, i've only gotten stuck once and that was in my parking lot with 25-30cm of snow.

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SeattleLion

I look at it this way. I looked around and because I felt I would have the best time driving it, I bought a Z. Do I need Road and Track or Car and Driver, or Consumer Reports to agree with me? No.

A forum like this draws enthusiasts with enormous loyalty to the car. Many own a 370, others don't but wish they did. So it's natural to vocally defend our car when it is negatively reviewed or ignored.



The facts:

• The 370Z is in its third year. Not news anymore
• Most of the reviews (over the past 2 years) had some negative comments, but all (including Top Gear UK version) found the car big fun to drive and extremely fast.
• The car is noisy. Some like that, some don't. (so what)
• High performance driving or steep mountain roads can cause oil overheating. Fixable with an aftermarket oil cooler.
• One magazine found brake failure with the NISMO. All of the others, inlcluding the usually cranky Consumer Reports love the sport brakes.
• Lots of people complain about the paint quality. My car is still the same color it was when I bought it last September
• Some were surprised that summer tires came on the sport (Infiniti includes "summer tires" in the specs for the 2wd model. Nissan doesn't for the Z)

I think that list is fairly complete. Only one known complaint about the "door sound" so it isn't included.

No car is perfect. The stock Z, particularly the sports package, is a high-performance old-school sports car. When I bought mine, that's what I expected and that is exactly what I got. I didn't want a super car. I didn't want a race car. I wanted a car I could drive to work every day and on occasion take to the track and drive on windy mountain roads just for fun.

As far as I am concerned, the car has met all of my expectations. If I find I like track days (going for the first time in March for performance driving instruction), I will add the oil cooler. I already changed out the tires for all weather ultra-high-performance Plots.

I don't care if I ever see another review of the car. I like it a lot that people tell me that I have a beautiful car. They do that often. The Z is one of the most beautiful cars I have ever seen. I love to drive it. It's safe, seriously fast, and not expensive to maintain.

So who cares what the magazines do or don't say? I voted with my checkbook and I am a very happy camper.

Endgame

Exactly.

kenchan

this reminds me of last week when some silly nissan RWD SUV got stock in this deep patch of snow and my little pos HondaFit (lowered on coilovers even) with snow tires drove right throught it like nothing happened.