to buy or not to buy, that is the question

OldFart

I bought a 2011 sport package in May, so far put 6000 miles on since then (had 14k when I bought it). I love driving the car, but be advised the mod bug is gonna bite ya if ya get one. Car is parked for the winter and probably won't come out till April, hopefully it will go thru a transformation in that time frame.

Good Luck with whatever you decide!!!!

JARblue

2011 Z with nearly 45K miles has been both my wife's and my DD. As long as you can avoid traffic (we have MT - not really a problem with AT) and don't need to haul a bunch of stuff regularly, the Z makes a fantastic DD

I recommend the Sport Package at minimum. Get the Touring Package, too, if it's in the budget. Although, if you plan on doing lots of mods to it, you should do some research into specifically what you want to do - sometimes a base model is a good way to save some cash for all the mods you want, especially if you're going to be replacing stuff that only comes with the Sport Package (like wheels or brakes).

__________________

z it go

I daily drive my 2009 and have almost 75,000 on it now. Plan to keep it for many more years. Absolutely love the car and always puts a smile on my face every time I get behind the wheel. Sport package is definitely the way to go--love the rays wheels.

ProfessorDave

I'm guessing a low mileage 2010 Z would run in the low to mid $20's these days?

I'm also guilty of the low mileage crime...I put about 4k a year on my Z. Damn PA winters!!!

__________________

Rain, snow, sleet, hail: 2009 Mazda 3 sGT HB
Everything else: 2009 370z, PW Touring 6MT

enkei2k

Had I did more research earlier, I would have found out that only the touring model had lumbar support and maybe I would have gotten that instead.

Anyway, like mentioned it's all about the owner. Some DD it, some people drive it on weekends only, and others only during the summer time.

I'm the type to drive it only on the weekends and with no snow. Purchased March 2012, and have 3100 miles on it.

__________________
...need boost...

ElVee

The 370Z is a good looking sports car with power that costs more than a typical low income person can afford. This means it ends up being a lot like a Corvette; babied and driven only on the weekends, if not being a straight-up garage queen car to owners who blush with pride just because it's in their garage. This all lines up to having plenty of specimens that are not heavily driven over the years, and they tend to be driven somewhat carefully, since they were 40k new.

It's a good DD, though some people may be a tad bit too large to feel completely comfortable in the car. Others garage it in the winters and stay out of the snow/salt. Many have this car as a third car, so it only gets driven on the good weather weekends, leading to much lower mileage.

I've not seen or heard of any longterm reliability issues at all, so this shouldn't be a concern. The only thing to look for would be a salvaged title or one that has been in a big wreck. Definitely get it deeply checked out. An accident doesn't equal issues down the road, but you should definitely make sure the frame is good, the body is good, and you've got OEM parts and all VINs present.

Maintenance isn't that expensive, but there are three exceptions:
- gas -you'll be paying for premium gas and the mileage isn't great unless you drive it like a prius.
- tires -you'll go through tires, and they're not cheap. Many get 12-15k out of their tires, but I wore out my first pair of rears in 8k.
- insurance -just be sure to grill your insurance on what your rates will be. And keep the hell out of trouble. Invest in a radar detector and be very judicious when you decide to test the acceleration. If you're clean, this should be surprisingly livable.

kfull

Bought mine new in March of 2012, daily driven, winter too, I have about 35k miles on it. No problems at all except when I got hit by an old dude. Plan on 100k+

__________________
2012 GM 6MT sports package | FI non res cf exhaust | K&N Drop Ins | Viper 3303 security system w/ tilt sensor | GTR start button | 35% rear 45% side window tint | Michelin PSS

Mt Tam I am

I DD mine as well as track it, and it is still strong showing no signs of giving up.

__________________
Nissan Motorsports 34R Oil Cooler. Stillen CBE. Hotchkis Sport Sway Bars. KW Variant 3 Coilover System. Stillen Gen3 CAI. Michelin Pilot Super Sport. Stillen Brake Ducts. Carbotech™ XP10/XP8 Pads. Z1 Front Rotors. Z1 Stainless Brake Lines. Two degrees of camber

axmea?

You drive it a lot! and you are from MA. Rep ya'.

__________________

ohohoh123456

First of all, you are probably not gonna DD it in Illinois and I don't suggest you do that

__________________
13 NISMO|Magma Red|F.I. TDX 12''+NRHFC|

Fountainhead

The reason most sports cars are sold with low mileage is that people buffet buy, they buy more car than they expected, they don't like the work associated with driving a car like this, hell it's way more work to even get into it and out of it than they are willing to expend the effort on. They are surprised after a few months how it's not like their cushy BIG car, so they hang on to it and then eventually sell it after they realize they aren't cut out for a driver, they want a "floater" that caresses them from the time they get in till they get out. They like comfort more than performance.....besides, they also realize that they never use the performance they sacrificed so much comfort for.

When I bought my Z the sales guy told me he had one but it was so hard to get in and out of after a few months he sold it.
Mine is my DD, and I love it.

redzoneos

thank you all very very much for giving me so much feedback, gives me something to think about and also raises a few more questions

Some of you mentioned winters and others mentioned "Illinois". I live in the neighboring suburbs of Chicago. Is winter a real issue in this car? I have a couple friends that own it and drive through winters, but the last couple winters have been fairly mild here, and quite frankly my friends are nuts. lol
--I am more concerned about safety then I am rust/salt etc. its a car and I fully intend to drive the hell out of it year round, as long as it won't kill me.

Some mentioned the packages. I was actually leaning towards touring first, and then sports package, likely staying away from Nismo. Main reason for this is based on the forum and formal reviews, it seems this car can get loud (sports/nismo being the loudest). Honestly it won't bother me either way, I used to drive a riced out civic so noise isn't an issue, but still something to consider since I have no plans to race this car anyway. Might as well go for a bit more comfort (that's my logic anyway). Of course if I can find a car with both packages, that'll be ideal!

Mod bug. Yea I probably will get hit with this at some point but its not something I want to think about right now. Kinda going the "out of sight out of mind" route on this! Not easy to figure out a budget if I start dreaming of customization. haha

fzgood

I moved away from Chicago in 2012. I DD my Z here in sunny SoCal. I think your friends are nuts. Salt, potholes, snow/ice... nopenopenope. IMO that explains why you're looking at such low miles—previous owner(s) probably only pulled it out of the garage after mid-April.

b15

I also live in the 'burbs' of chicago. I hate the salt and thats mainly why I garage it however if you're not concerned, a good set of winter tires and wheels will be fine. We will get the occasional 4-6" of snow and in that case you're likely stuck but for the majority of winter you'll be ok. Personally I would recommend two cars if you can afford it.

redzoneos

This I guess is what I was looking for. I'll assume snow tires are a necessity (adding about 3-4k to my cost if i get a wheel/tire package).

As long as it's driveable in snow I'm off to a good start. I have 2 other cars within my family that I can use for emergencies on those really rough winter days when the city is too cheap to plow in a timely fashion lol.

Also, just to correct what I said about my friends, only 1 friend has this specific car and he bought it this year so I don't truly know about it from my crazy friends. however 2 of them on 350z's, 1 has a 335i, another a g37s. I imagine their snow performance is comparable to what I should expect out of the 370z.

I am about 90% sold on buying a Z at this point. Just a matter of price and required/immediate winter expense.

Thank you all!