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Exciting times are happening in the Dzel household! I received a promotion at work, wife has started a new higher paying career. Best of all is our debt is less than $2,000. Not including car notes and mortgage of course.

So here's where I need help my goal is to be at around 700 HP. Should I spend the money on the Z to get it to my goal (JTran out of Houston will do all the work) or should I trade it in for a higher platform? Cars I have been looking at include the Nissan GTR, Mustang Saleen 351 black label, or Cadillac CTS V.

As always your input is gladly appreciated.

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I vote 2011+ gtr with bolt-on and tune.

Once you go GTR you basically almost eat every car on the street and track which can sometime become a kill joy.

For the GTR money, there's a lot of cool cars at that price point. I'd rather fully restore and beef up an S13/S15, 300ZX, Supra or tune an Exige, M3/M5, Audi R8. Better yet, buy an NSX, that would definitely be a head turner!

Do you have a daily?

Yeah I have my company pick up I use. GTR maintenance fees are crazy high as well! So that's a negative.

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Have you considered used 911s? Not as fast as GTR but still sexy as hell

If you're looking for nothing but HP, which I'm assuming you are, then just turbocharge your Z or swap out the engine.

I personally don't like straight line HP cars. Doesn't excite me as much as corners. But whatever floats your boat :)

Lotus Exige S. IMO the GTR is a $100k supercar with $300k performance and $20k styling.:rolleyes:

No C7 vette on your list? Buy a base C7 for $52K and mod from there. A lot more bang for your buck if that's what your looking for.

There's vets every other block around here but your right the mod list is more abundant for a C7.



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That's where my choice needs to be made really. Do I keep the Z and build the motor? Spending up to "X" amount for "Y" HP.

Or say buy a used GT500 change out the pulley, headers, exhaust, get a custom tune and boom 650 HP.

Now I think I made it sound like I have money to throw away. That's not the case at all. We all love this hobby but at the same time we have to be smart especially when it comes to budgeting our money.

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R8, 911, Exige or C7 for me. Or keep the Z and save.

If I were in your shoes, my list would look like this:
1. As new a 911tt you can afford
2. C7
3. Viper
4. Used Z06

A 2008 or so Viper would be the cheapest way to get to that power level, and it'll deal with the power a lot better than the GT500. The GT500 can't fit enough tire to deal with stock levels of power. I'd go with a ZL1 before a GT500. The CTS-V would be a great fast daily driver that handles very well for its size, but it'll never be considered nimble.

Plus, all of the cars above can be had with a proper transmission. That's one of the reasons I'll never own a GTR.

I wont own a Camaro or Mustang just because there are way to many of them around here, there must be 1,000 rentals alone. I've never been a vette fan but I love the C7 unfortunately I'm sure in a couple years they will be everywhere too. If it were me I would go with the R8,GTR or start building a motor for my Z. I had the pleasure of going for a ride in a GTR with the AMS Alpha 9 kit on it and it was brutally fast! I didn't get the grin off my face for days! The Z is much better looking than the GTR but that all wheel drive has some amazing pull.

:rofl2:

Now, now...




The only gripes I have with the GTR is it's [lack of] styling and the fact that it's a **** magnet.

Otherwise, it's badass, even the AT, despite what Chuck says. ;)

It's fast. THere's no denying that. But between the way it looks and the auto, if someone gave me a GTR I'd drive it straight to the Porsche dealer for the newest used 911tt they had on the lot with a stick.

The maintenance cost is what kills the GTR for me. I was on the GTR forum and a guy spent $3800 on an oil change, tranny, and diff! Apparently it's very complicated and can only be done by the dealer. Which I think is gaaaaayyyyyyaah


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The Porsche is much better looking! I haven't been in a TT Porsche but if pull like the GTR I would rather drive the Porsche too. It would have to be an automatic, the traffic here just takes all the fun out of a stick. When I can buy a track only car I will buy a stick again but not until then.

Check out what a dealer charges for a full brake job :rofl2:

Plus, God help you if you mod it to ridiculous power levels and blow up the tranny.

$3,800???? Hell no, I will never buy a car that cost that to change fluids!

I don't think my buddy has paid that on his, that seems a bit excessive TBH. That's Ferrari/Lambo service territory.

It could be, because we have a great GTR tech here in Phoenix though. He is top notch on Z's and GTRs - I've heard that he doesn't like his bay to be "ugly", if you know what I mean. :icon17:

From the reading I did, the tranny fluid was $80 a quart if you order it yourself and it takes 10 quarts. $800 in fluid alone. :rofl2:

That guy got ripped off, send a message to MC on this forum (who runs the GTR forum) and ask about the maintenance. The reason people say it is high is because they let the dealership charge them like 20 dollars per quart of oil. :facepalm:

The break job is a bit pricey but honestly if you shop for your own parts and then just give them for labor it is not bad. You can get better rotors, pads, fluid for cheaper via aftermarket. Anything through the dealer is going to be good quality but you will get raped on pricing.

I'm dropping my car off Monday to upgrade to the sport breaks with slotted rotors , Aquamist meth injection, AFR/boost gauge and change every fluid in the car and I don't think I spent close to that!

Thanks dreamer I'll be sure to do that.


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I wish I could remember the company my buddy was looking at to build the tranny and engine.

$~10k for roughly the same power as Alpha Omega (which charges $~30k for theirs), and it's race proven, etc.

AO seems to take advantage of the GTR owners, because they do have money. Just like the dealerships do.

The Alpha and Hennessy upgrade packages are crazy expensive!!! That's not the kind of money one has laying around. I would piece it together if I did have a GTR downpipes, mid pipe, exhaust then tune. So on and so forth


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Exactly, but there's a company offering the same power and such for a fraction of the cost. That's what I'm getting at with my post.

But onto the actual discussion, you seem to be in debate about keeping the Z versus an upgrade.
I would lay down some pros v cons on the Z first and see what future plans you could achieve with the Z and a build you might want to do, NA/FI/track/etc. Then after that throw in the other cars, cost of ownership, modding, etc. Then finally your enjoyment factor, having a vette or 911 would be awesome but is it what you want.

I will admit I'm researching some 911TT's and they have my attention...

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That's exactly what I need to do car will be mainly too mess around on the street and track use. But all of your input is a big help as well

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Funny how you discounted the Vette because there are so many of them yet you are looking at a Mustang? There are far more mustangs being driven than Vettes.

Mod costs are going to be your downfall there. The cheapest and easiest way to 700whp involves 8 or more cylinders.

Yes there are a lot of mustangs. But very few Saleen 351 Black labels. If you guys have a chance Google them and you'll see why they are on the list.

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GTR would be my choice. Unless you drive alot because maintenance will eat you alive on it. My limited miles is what makes it a future option for me.

Still looks like a Mustang. Starts at $82k. Interior is still embarrassing. I'd pass. If you want a Mustang, buy one and mod it yourself. Save the Saleen tax. I'll bet you could save 20k if you skip all of the extra crap he tacks on.

LOL see I didn't even notice the interior until you said something. Damn... well thanks I guess. LOL

Mr.&Mrs. I'm looking at about 1,000 miles a year. That's if I drive it to events that are close to me. I'll take that into consideration as well.

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Ok I'll be that guy. Put off the new car purchase until you pay off your debt and car notes. Then set aside some cash for a rainy day fund. Once you've got that taken care of, go nuts. It's not the fun thing to do, but it's the right thing to do. You're in a great position to get your finances in order. You may not get this chance again for a long time especially if you start playing with super cars. I put off my turbo build for years while I put all my bonuses and overtime earnings towards paying everything I could off. Now any extra cash I have can go towards my hobby without any guilt or risk. It's a good feeling. Sure cars are never a smart investment, but if you've taken care of everything else then at least you're still in good shape financially.

That being said, my vote is for the C7. 700 hp is easily achievable without breaking the bank. There's a shop already making over 1000 whp on the stock block (of course they don't expect it to last long). Good luck my friend and congrats on the promotion :tup:

:iagree:

The best plan would be to defer the car stuff for a year and bank every dime. Then revisit next year and walk into the deal with a huge wad of cash. Plus you can plan your build down to the nuts and bolts while you wait so all you have to do when it's time to pull the trigger is start writing checks.

I agree with others, keeping the Z might be the wises choice in the end.
Also, at 1,000 miles a year a GT-R maintenance would be super cheap. I know transmission is rated at 10k miles per year and is a every 2-3 year item, brakes are every 2 years so you would probably barely touch anything if you drive so little.

Well in houston there is a porsche at every red light pretty much. A chick wouldn't be able to tell the difference between a 911tt and cayman without looking for the badge.

Gtr is more exotic IMO.