for what it worth..i paid 69 for an oil change using that special Z oil..at the dealer My biggest surprise was that the tires that came with the car wore out after only 20,000 miles and i was only moderately aggressive in my driving...
I am about to buy four continental extreme contact DWS and with alignment, repair to two damaged rims and detailing including wash, claying, way and polish the dealer is going to charge me $1450...
My fault for damaging the rims but I am not happy to see the tires wear so fast..but I am told the Contis will last about twice as long...
I would say the biggest expenses you are going to find are the cost of gas because of reduced millage and the quick wearing and expensive tires...

2011 Nissan 370Z Base Model Cost to Own - $0.64 per mile

2011 Honda Civic Base Model Cost Own - $0.39 per mile

So.... the Z will be 60% more expensive to own than a fairly modern Honda Civic. That's a big jump. You may want to buy used to offset the depreciation a little and/or start off in a 350Z.

:tiphat:

^ Keep in mind my Civic is an SI, so it's a little more costly than a base (not much, probably). It's also turbo'd, so my gas mileage is a solid ~6 mpg less than it was stock, I change the oil every 3k miles, tranny fluid every 10k, etc, so my maintenance is higher. I realize the Z will still be more, though.

And yeah, if I go this route, definitely used. I got my SI new, my civic before that new.. it's not worth it imo. My SI smelled new for like 2 days and then it was like any used car. Of course, it's all dependent on what kind of deal I can swing on a used one. This damn car doesn't seem to depreciate much!

my Z is 2.5yrs old and still smells like new.

Nice to see another Minnesotan as well :tiphat:

Coon rapids is a bit of a drive (Rochester), so I was just checking out the dealership in Roch. Probably won't buy from them since they lied to be a few times already, though. And $400 for one tire.. ouch. I realize OEM tires are absurdly expensive, though. My crappy-*** A/S tires that came with my car run over $700 IIRC, I recently replaced all 4 with wayyy better Conti DW tires and it was ~$500


I realize it's probably all carcinogens, but I was really bummed that my SI smelled new for a few days and then just disappeared haha. Usually you get a few weeks of that

take a shower? ;)

And holy crap, I just looked it up and my stock tires are $906 on special. For a civic. $906. I'm that shocked that I had to repeat it.

stock tires are always expensive. i remember re92 shitola were like super expensive while they were garabage. were popular tires in the late 90's early 2000's.

:iagree:

Thanks for this post,,but can anyone really put a price tag on the pleasure of of driving a Z...? :driving:
But we sure as hell take a depreciation beating the first year no matter what the car..

I was surprised when I insured my Z, I went from a 99 chevy S10 with 178,000 miles paying $230 every six months for full coverage. When I got the Z it went up $130 for the six months. For reference, we also have my wife's civic on the insurance, and I am a 29 year old guy with no tickets since '03.


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I am here: http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=28.368695,-80.699377
Sent from my iPhizzle

Oh, and I own a house, so I guess I get credibility hahaha.


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I am here: http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=28.368674,-80.699481
Sent from my iPhizzle

I did a cost analysis of my tires. $1680/7250 miles = .23 cents per mile. Plus everything else may very well be 64 cents/mile.

I love my tires and will happily buy them again. Others might complain about the cost.

The only "American Dream" is with debt up to your ***. Or, both you and your spouse make 100k/year each. Don't believe in all the hype and not everyone can make 100k a year.

Or you could just be smart with your money and not over step your limits.

true that. :tup:


i was quite amazed how some people have like $10K of credit card debt...and they consider that to be 'normal'??? :wtf2:
i never have creditcard balance.

This is very true. But, who is the person to question credibility? Smart budgeting can mean live in a nice apartment and drive a Z or own a home and drive a civic. Does one path make you a better person vs the other?

Living the "American Dream" is expensive. If you have the cash to do it without any debt, then more power to you. I'm happy for you, actually. But, it doesn't make you any more credible then me. I'm a single man in my 20's. I earn just shy of 70k a year. I rent and drive a brand new Z and have no credit card debt. Does that make the next guy better than me?

You started this topic. It seems like you're well off and I'm happy for you. And, while I agree that 10k credit card debt is way too much, don't bring anyone else down for it. No one on this board could understand what the next guy is going through. As long as they are not cheating, lying, or hurting anyone, fugg it.

hummm... i dont think it has to be though. :D

and i will end it there. :icon17: hahaha.

Sure. I plan on getting there myself. But, buying a Z before my house has nothing to do with it. :tiphat: :tup:

So would you consider the financial meltdown that was largely caused by consumer debt hurt people? It's one thing to owe debt, which is ok as long as you have the means to pay it back in a timely and risk averse manner, but a large percentage of people who consistently run large credit balances cannot and that is wrong and hurtful to themselves and the economy in general.

woaah, pulling back the lid of canned wormed even further are ya? :icon17: hahaha. :tup:

Hey dude, slow down, I'm on your side. lol I'm arguing credibility here, not major debt. :stirthepot:

With no indictment of the institutions that enabled and overtly encouraged it. Cuts both ways with the consumer and the bankers! Cant have 1 without the other. Oh and the banks making loans for short term gain in fee's to people with little or no documented means.

Yep thats just good business eh? Sorry but the banks could say no. They actually chose not to. End of story. Ask the Fed and the minutes that proved the working of the banking industry. Based on that it was about 60/40 bank to consumer. Ultimately we bailed out the banks for making BAD LOANS. Go figure.

If I was a millionaire, I'd still have a 370Z in my garage.

Jeez, just because you have credit card debt, doesn't mean you're irrespossible. The financial metldown had more to do with wall street more than anything else. That's not to say it should be the norm, but it certainly isn't that difficult to fathom an average credit card debt of $10k, which by todays standards, isn't really all that much. It's not outside the realm of never being able to pay that off. It's also never that black in white. I know a few people that got into a $10k hole from medical bills, emergency car repairs and other unforseen events. Living within your means should be the standard in a perfect world, but life, real life is far more unpredictable. You wan't something to be upset about, be upset at the 30% uncle Sam takes from your paycheck and seemingly get little in return. If you've never had a credit card balance, I applaud you, but it doesn't make you any better than anyone else. I wonder how many of you had to get a student loan to put yourself through college? Those who didn't get a free ride from mom & dad?

This thread took quite a turn.

CC debt is the American way.

As long as you can pay it off that's fine. Ill advised but fine...

Though look on the bright side... you're helping the shareholders of Visa, American Express, etc. send their kids to college! :icon17:

Some of you guys have some funny points of view LOL

I just bought a 370Z...got an awesome deal on a 2009 model with 2900 miles fully loaded Touring, 7AT, sport, NAV. I got it to drive to work everyday as I already have a toy car for the weekends in the garage.

I do pretty much all my own work on my cars, I just find it fun, and sometimes like the challenge, so oil changes and stuff like that are of no concern to me. 5qts of Mobil1 at Wally World and Pure One oil filter and 20 minutes I'm done for under $40.

Tires are a concern with this car as I've seen many mentions. When the Potenzas that are on this thing wear out (treadware 140 eeek) I'll get something with a better wear rating for a daily driven car.

Other than that I didn't really see anything in the maintenance book to give me any concern. At least this thing has a timing chain and not a belt....good lawd I'd hate to try to do a timing belt service on the engine in this car.....there's barely room for air molecules under the hood.

As for the house deal....I just had a new place built for about half the price it would have been 3-4 years ago. If you got money now's the time to buy. Interest rate was good to boot.

Ive had no shocks on cost so far. I knew prices of all basic items/tires etc before I bought by joining this site and doing some research. For a car with this power and performance, frankly, its not that expensive. I know for a fact Ive spent more and gotten less.

So it goes with the car hobby! :)

I would double that and still be fine with it, this way I know what was done to my car and how. Too many issued with *** hats messing up. Once they forgot to put the oil cap on the engine in my SUV and oil came out everywhere. If I have to double check all their work its best I just do it myself!

i bought a maintenance plan also. hope i made the right choice...
but yes the oil changes are free every 3750 miles

:iagree: on both accounts, its easy to spend money, but making it is the hard part. If you are sensible and dont overspend on what you don't need, you shouldn't land in debt in the first place.

I like to think I keep America running...

370Z maintenance looks in line with MSRP of base car.

Boy the thread did get a little sideways on debt and what to buy or not to buy. I will offer a suggestion for anyone that is interested in learning money spending and fighting to get through the " amercian debt " dream or lack of.

Spend 15 to 18 dollars and purchase a book titled " The Total Money Makeover ", author Dave Ramsey. It might help some folks and maybe not. It could guide or set a path to some sort of financial success or freedom. The quicker people figure out what you expect or want from your hard earned money right now or down the road is a choice we all have to make or not. Good luck all :tiphat:

PS. OP I still say you need to pass on the Z for now. But its not to say it can happen down the road. Just a thought. :tup:

You looked too far into that quote. Im not questioning credibility nor judging anybody or saying one thing or the other. Im just saying....


@Cmike
I paid off my school loans myself while I was still in school and I am the person on the hook for my Z and Im 23 right now. I was fortunate to have an internship and job that allowed me to do that. I am very thankful for that. Doesnt make me better/worse than somebody else. Again, I wasnt saying any hidden meaning or judging people. Life happens sometimes and expenses happen, but also remember there are people that are in the same situations with the economy and financial situations and are not upside down on their house/car etc etc. It just boils down to personal choices, situations. Not everybody is the same, doesnt make anyone better or worse.

I just had 4 Yokohama YK580's installed with replacement certificates for $950 incl tax. Awesome tires!

[QUOTE=jazzmannca;1535818]I just had 4 Yokohama YK580's installed with replacement certificates for $950 incl tax. Awesome tires![/QUOTE


Sounds like a good deal. I gave 1100 for th hankooks

^^ or pay a lil more for Redline or Royal Purple... Mobil1 is... ugh.... lol