Ladies and gentlemen, importconvert...the man more skilled than Randy pobst.


Ever wonder if the reason he saw behavior you didn't was because he was driving at the cars limits and you were maybe at 7/10?

Simply put, the dynamics of a car change dramatically as you approach the limit of the car and the track. The dynamics of the z06 at the limits have been a complaint of many...

:iagree:

A lot of guys think they're going fast but if they timed it may be disappointed to find themselves at least 3-4 seconds slower per lap than what a professional driver can do. Being so much off the pace, most cars would be a walk in the park to drive. It's when you try to shave off those 3 or 4 seconds, that's when car handling rears its ugly head and you have to wrestle with the car to avoid crashing.

ImportConvert RE: I didn't push it for crap, and You can get 90% of what the car has to offer with EVERYTHING turned on.

If you were at 90% then you did not push it for crap and then mention Randy Pobst fishtailing. Can you explain this incongruence please?

consolidated below

When did I claim that?

We did have people there who could show Pobst up in a 'vette any day of the week, though. That's why they race the corvette professionally and Pobst does not.

The PS2 tires go a long way toward fixing its nervousness at the limit.


In attendance (instructing) we had at least one pro driver there who raced LeMans and ALMS for GM who DID know how to push the cars. Never once did they experience or whine about experiencing this sensation Pobst talked about. I never once claimed that I PUSHED the car that hard, in fact, as you noted above, I stayed well within my limits, which are far below those of the car, and a lot of why I am considering the 370Z.

Other than in a straight line, now that it has an oil-cooler it will do anything I want it to do. I am hoping by the time I buy, Nissan will have done a little for the straight-line performance, too!

The only reason I listed students in the group who did not complain is that without the skill-set that a professional driver has, several people did things that un-balanced the cars in the corners, myself included at one point. It never stepped out. Very forgiving for a noob.

Yes, right on. It felt like I was going fast as hell (really PUSHING the car!), and I was in a Grand Sport (drove all trim levels while there) and was upset that the ZR1 ahead of me was getting away. I thought *CRAP!* I am not able to keep up. My car needs more power.

Then I realized the instructor leading us was in a stock Camaro SS with PS2's on it and I had not caught him--or the ZR1 following him--yet. It was a very humbling experience and I learned a ton about driving there.

Here. This is where you made this claim.


If you were at 90% then you did not push it for crap and then mention Randy Pobst fishtailing. Can you explain this incongruence please?

So once again I would like an explaination please, rather than a denial.

Any word on factory equipped sound deadening for the 2012 model? I thought I read somewhere that Nissan was considering the road noise issue.

And for the record, all this talk of oil coolers means the 2012 WILL HAVE one installed as part of the base model correct? Or is it still just an addon like it always was?

I haven't heard about sound deadening, but that could just be me.

As for the oil cooler, I believe this means 2012 models will be equipped, but I haven't seen whether it's all trim levels or just relegated to sport pkg. I would assume all models, though.

Then go read my post. Pobst doesn't race ALMS or LeMans for GM. People at SR did. They didn't have a problem. Pobst did.

If you can find a place where I said I personally could drive as well as Pobst, please post it, otherwise I don't know what you're belly aching about. Trying to make something out of nothing is what it looks like to me.

Sound deadening is likely a "silent change", if it was changed. You won't hear about it, it will just happen.

The claim is that you did not push the car and yet you make commentary about things that happen when folks do push the car. This is the discrepancy.


I'd laugh at any one here that claims they can drive as well as Pobst. You never claimed that.

I'm saying that Pobst the Volvo driver whined about it and yet the ALMS and LeMans driver did not, nor did I see anyone have any issues with the back end. When they wanted to move it, they did, and it moved very controllably.

don't crap on ImportConvert. I have tracked both, a lot. The Z is a hell of lot more squirrely than the vette. Yes, Randy Pobst is a great driver, and he has driven one or two of my friends' Porsches and commented on them at track days. But, has he driven a Z?

I don't discount any pro driver ever. Shields Bergstrom took me out for a 20 minute session in my C6 at VIR and while he went about 30 mph faster than me everywhere, he inspired me to pick up 10 on my own.

Just saying, the vette is a lot more stable than the Z. That doesnt mean its more fun or quicker. I get almost the same lap times as I did when I had 540 rwhp in my supercharged C6.

Also not saying the C6 is a bad car, the Z just communicates with me a lot better.

If I drive a 370Z like I drive my Z06, am I going to find myself in a ditch?

It's just the more I drive my Z06, the more I realize that 505hp is badass and fun, but it's going to eventually get me into more trouble than razor-edged handling will, and I would like to re-allocate my cash-flow in the next 2 years.

I'm sure when I get whatever I get, I will miss it, lol. Grass is greener...

The 370Z will give me 90% of the fun my Z06 does at only 50% of the cost, is the way I am seeing it now.

I thought the Z understeers? Pretty strange you find it more squirrely than a corvette. Was it modified or still stock?

This is well-stated. :tup:

/\ most likely to be the case. Life is a series of compromises for the most part. I personally think you are smart to be getting into a house w/n the next couple of years, even if that means giving up (perhaps only temporarily) your Z06. It's a smarter move for your future (assuming you buy in an area you plan/want to stay at for a long time). :tup:

That is my plan. I knew I would not stay where I am now, and I was depressed. I went to work, came home to my 500sq-foot apartment, went shooting, surfed the internet, pumped iron. I did all that crap before I graduated college and love it, but I wanted something TANGIBLE to remind me of the fact that I have a job other than the work and helping people.

The Z06 was it. I love it, and would buy it again in a heartbeat. It makes those 12 hour shifts worth it when the patients obviously don't care about their health, and everything seems to "go wrong". I love helping people, but when they don't want to be helped--it's just about money at that point.

I think the 370Z will afford me a helluva fun time and still allow me to buy a house. Plan is to move, finance some land, pay it off in 3-4 years, and then apply it as collateral for a home loan. By then I will know whether or not that is a permanent location for me. If not, sell the land and start over. It will have appreciated.

I really hope Nissan puts a bit more oomph in the 370Z by the time I buy, but the Camaro is a pig, the mustang doesn't appeal to me although I respect it greatly, the 'vette is a bit more note than I want while saving for a home, and the Genesis,STI,EVO just don't do it for me. The 370Z finally got an oil cooler and I always liked the looks of it inside and out and when I drove a few the ride was soft (compared to my Z06) yet the car felt pretty well planted.

I doubt we'll see any significant improvements HP wise until the Z35 chassis comes out (most likely around 2014-15ish) but it's still a fun car to tool around in regardless.

Kindof stuck on a fence here. I want to wait and see the Z35 and the C7. I feel like if I bought in '13, I might feel like a '10 mustang GT owner and hate my car for the next 5-6 years, as I plan on keeping this one a while.

Waiting on the c7 makes sense, but it's unlikely the z is gonna get a major refresh. It didnt sell well, and Nissan doesnt have another engine ready for it....not gonna do a new motor for a 10k a year car....

Your assessment is logical, but one can hope.

Why bother with an oil-cooler at this stage in the game? Yet...

I mean, I can hope, yes? :tup:

I think Nissan is just gonna ride the current design as long as it keeps selling, maybe with minor updates...oil cooler this year, maybe brake ducting and a new bumper in two years....

IF, the G37 gets DI, and it's still the same 3.7 motor and will "drop right into" the current Z, we could def see that improvement, would be good for a small hp bump and small mpg improvement as well. That's probably the best performance improvement this gen Z can hope for I think.

Nissan imho got the 370 right this time. But if they don't increase the horsepower somehow in future models i feel the car will be left behind
in more ways than one.

does the car look better and handle better than the so called new muscle
cars yes. but people buy for other reasons.

332 hp is not much at all in todays market. half the cars and trucks sold today have that much........

370Z is up for its mid-cycle refresh for the 2013 model year, expect a small power bump, revised styling such as new bumpers/wheels, new color options, and small interior tweaks.

What exactly is "Nismo tuned suspension" and how does it differ from the sport package model?

Wasn't this rumored about the 2011/2012? I know they had the tsunami... but R&D should have been going on before the disaster.

They need to do something for the Z. The stangs and camoro's seems to be doing a good job of coming out with something new.

The Z is pretty much the same old car since it's release.

I'm sure they've been noodling around with prototype mods but there's a huge difference in expense between developing a protoype and actually ordering the parts and finalizing the tooling and production lines. I suspect that THAT is hold up on a re-design. They have to get the most out of the production investment in the current model tooling that they can and I suspect that they aren't there yet, especially given the numbers that they lost in the tsunami. I'll bet that disaster set them back by at least a year on new model implementation, maybe more that that for a low-volume seller, low priority car like the Z. I'm sure the tsunami saddled Nissan with some significant financial challenges. When they start prioritizing their recovery, I can't imagine that the Z comes anywhere near the top of that list.

The oil cooler that's attached to the filter housing on the 2012? That's gotta be super cheap and a super-simple production line change for them.

Sorry this is old ... but I recall being at Watkins Glen in 2007 for the World Speed Challenge with Team Cadillac (as a supportive fan and CTS-V owner at the time) and seeing Pobst win every race for the weekend (GT win in a GT3 Porsche). Still to this day a record, I think. From his bio:

"Won historic three World Challenge races in one weekend at Watkins Glen (one GT win with K-Pax/3R Racing Porsche GT3, two TC wins and two poles with Tri-Point Engineering Mazda6). Record for both World Challenge and Watkins Glen International."

Anyway, he has plenty of success and seat time in RWD cars to be considered somewhat knowledgeable.

Back on topic, I had read in some other posts about 2012 oil cooling issues. Was there a change in that versus prior years ?

What issues?

Yes, in 2011 they went to the same type of cooling system as the 370Z has for 2012. the ZR1 used it from the get-go in 2009.