Hey fellas i have been thinking lately about selling my 91 2+2 and getting either a 350z or a 300zx TT now, my first choice was the 350z but i was at a nissan dealership and they would not even let me test drive the 350z because i am only 18 and in Nebraska i have to be 19. So i was really pissed and now i look deeper into the situation and consider that the twin turbo 300z is very capable of being MUCh faster than the 350z and i love the z32 body styling, and with a few extra grand put into a 300zx TT I could have a 12 second tuner as opposed to a 350z N/A i was just wondering if anyone who might own both cars or has a TT and has driven a 350z or vice versa? any input would be great! thanks guys and gals(hopefully).

 

ive driven both....the 350 is a ***** compared to a TT...i used to own an N/A i went and drove a TT and just feel in love. the turbos spool fast, and that thing puts your *** into the seat. and stock is faster than the 350 and with the amount of money in a TT and the same into a 350 youll still have a much faster TT...its a great powerplant for building...and if you ahve the money for a 350 you can buy an AMAZING TT and still have money left over for tuning. there is a TT 20 miles away from me that is absolutly flawless and stunning..only 22k on it and is selling for 13,000...compared to a 350 int he same condition that would still go for in the mid to upper 20G's. The 350 is a bit more luxurious and nicer on the inside...but the TT well....its the same as your 300 now except it feels like it has a rocket attatched to it... and is more comfortable in my personal opinion...when i drove the TT in first gear even wiht all the squat once that thing hit 4,500rpm it started to wheel hop from the power....it was nuts. i had the automatic suspension set on stiff though, shoulda been a little softer and the rear wouldnt have hoped, well at least not as bad....so i guess what im saying in my personal opinion...the TT is a much better choice...unless you wnat a warrentied car.

 

If you actually believe the 350Z's cheap interior is more luxurious, you're insane. The X at the end of 300ZX stands for luxury... the 350Z doesn't have it. I wonder what the hell happened to interiors over the years, because I MUCH prefer the interior of my 90 300ZX to the interior of ANY new car on the market today.

And the TT would've still wheel hopped with the suspension on touring... they hop because of the body float... another aspect of the excessive luxury, easily fixed though, with the installation of $60 subframe spacers.


Anyway, onto the question at hand... Z32TT vs Z33. You know the answers in the Z32 forum are going to be biased, but let me present it to you in a different light. How's your income?

I ask because when the 300ZX breaks, the money to fix it will come from you income. With a 350Z, it'll probably be warrantied.

If you find a good condition 300ZX, this won't be as big of an issue, but the cars are about 11-17 years old now, so they're going to have things break before the 350Z counterparts.

You're right, the 300ZX TT will be faster dollar for dollar, and it'll take less than a grand to get it into the 12s (intake - $90, exhaust - $600, ECU - $300).

So it depends on your values... if you value speed, the 300ZX TT is going to be the obvious choice. If you want reliable and cheaper to fix, the 350Z is a better choice - at least until the warranty runs out.

I know a few people who own both (a couple members on tt.net and Chris, the owner of Ultimate Z). From what I've gathered, they all enjoy the 300ZX more, but use the 350Z for a daily driver because of its new-car-reliability and warranty.

 

Cost is not a huge matter becuase my parents will be helping me out a little bit with the costs of things and since i live at home if the TT breaks i will always have a backup spare car. (our 86 300zx) So its not much of an issue of cost. I really want a Twin Turbo and I have wanted one from the first day i drove my 91 z32. But the fact that the 350z is newer is the only part that makes me look there, for reliability. Honestly i have had hundreds of hours under the hood of my z32 fixing numerous things and my passion is imports. And to go from a z32 sports car to a z32TT tuner.......I would **** myself. I want the TT but my dad wants to talk me out of it...so any one ups the TT has to make the 350z would look like the more foolish choice would help me out. If I get a Twin Turbo I have already picked out the mods i want to put on it. Intake, Exhaust, One Piece Driveshaft, and maybe an ECU but im not sure if an upgraded ECU would hurt the Z in anyway.

 

i fully agree. the interior of the z32 is wonderful. all of the controls are laid out in a sensible manner. the seats are very comfortable. and the best thing is, there are very few hard surfaces. everyting has a little give, a little padding behind it. not a lot of hard plastic, which you find in a lot of new cars. i think they tried a little too hard on the 350z interior, and it ended up looking busy. 300zx is clean and elegant. as for exteriors, its basically the same story. 300zx is elegant and clean, 350z just hasnt made an impression on me.

 

True the 300 tt is hella fast, but there few and far between, and kind of expensive for being 12+ years old. My buddys 350 was clean, but being an automatic it was kinda slow. I've never been in a manuel 350. But on the other hand my other buddies 300zxtt was damn fast and damn comfortable. I myself would get the TT, even though the parts are expensive and there hard to find. But you can always tell people you've got a twin turbo.

 

no way...i love the setup opn the 300zx, the controls of everything are literally at your finger tips. it looks much more clean and the seats are incredibly more comfrotable i said that... i just like the 350z's dash that moves with the steering wheel lol...but the Z32 doesnt have an adjustable steering wheel. but thats the only thing that i like about hte 350's interior...lol i dotn know why its just amuzing to watch the guage cluster move with the steering wheel. and stupid body float...
otherwise froma parents view, 350z is gonna win. becuase your dad is no tlooking for what goes faster, what is more stylish w/e. he is gonna look for reliabilty and less maintenence and insurance. i dont know which would be more expensive on the insurance side for an 18 year old. but i know that the 350Z will be damn more cost efficient and most likely more reliable since it is a newer car. but you can make a TT more reliable...but who knows how the previous owner treated it..a problem might be on a timer right now just waiting to happen.

 

You will never get over ~350bhp without an ECU upgrade. You can't touch the boost levels without one either. The only alternative to an ECU upgrade (JWT, Ash, or ZTuner) is a standalone engine management system, which will require more work. Personally, I'd rather trust the pros with my general tuning and do the fine-tuning with an Apex-i S/AFCII on the dyno for the few extra horsepower. No matter what, the stock ECU isn't going to cut it though, and the aftermarket ones have been proven safe.

In your case, though, where you have an alternative car if anything does break, there's no reason not to get the 300ZX.

Don't let your dad influence your decision... get what you truly want or you'll never be happy.

 

Thank you for reminding me!

Here you go...

The Top 10 Cars with the Most Expensive Collision Losses...

10. Jaguar XJ
9. Nissan 350Z
8. Acura RSX
7. Honda S2000
6. Lexus IS 300
5. Jaguar XJ (convertible)
4. Subaru Imprezda WRX
3. Dodge Neon SRT-4
2. Mercedes CL-Class
1. Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution

The study was done from 2002 to 2004 and was done by the Highway Loss Data Institute

If that doesn't help your argument, I don't know what will. But honestly, the 300ZX will be cheaper to insure also because it is older and less valuable.

 

this is also tru^^^ without a Z i have this empty feeling in life that im trying to fill by finishing a priject plane ive been building for 8 months now....and im almost done...soooooo close....... but spring time im finally buying a vehicle of my choice again. and the only reason i am waiting that long is cuase my ma is a bitch....ok not that bad...but she says i cant buy anything till spring..id rather buy over winter though when cars are a bit cheaper due to season. and i wouldnt upgrade the ecu until you have all your mods on you want for the supporting hp cuase they tune your ecu to teh upgardes you ahve...so basically get everything you said but i would get upgraded injectors to, and turbos but they are expensive and hard to put on it you just want like more bolt on sort of upgrades...but w/e

 

and that ^^ pst was for the one prior to Zlover previous about being happy....he psted faster than me...and your welcome...wow the lancer is number one huh...that blows, for the owners.

oh and thank you Zlover for the qute i put in my sig, that was clever and funny when you said how many months ago.

 

Yeah, I noticed the sig quote, no problem.

And about the ECU, it's only $100 to reflash the chip, so the ECU should be done right after intake and exhaust. If you can't do injectors at the same time, it's not expensive to do it later.

Realistically, the only parameters that change the chip's program are injector size and single or dual pop, so unless you're doing all those at the same time, waiting on the ECU is pointless.

It's called a stage III mod for a reason, it's done third (I just don't want this guy to do intake, exhaust, and a boost controller thinking he can wait on the ECU... if he touches the boost without the ECU, reguardless of any other mods he has, he's going to detonate).

 

yes he is....boost controllers are kinda pointless unless you ahve a way to richen/tune the fuel too.

 

Z32>Z33, problem solved...

 

ok, when asking what car is better, the TT, hands down! When asking which car is better for an 18 yr old....something slower and easier to handle. The TT is quite a bit of car. It takes a while getting used to it. Once you go stage three, it happens again, then again when you get upgraded turbos. sorry to be the party pooper, but I just don't want you to kill yourself.

 

You are such a sweety, so emo even. But really. Z Owns- How good are you with your hands too. The TT is a get down and dirty to save yourself a ton of money type car. That plays into the decision making as well in my eyes.

 

agreed^^^ but if he did ALOT of work on his N/A he can do it on the TT...its just a bit more cramped same stuff in there though....well almost, besides you know...a turbo system...but alos sometimes you just need to let a pro handle it as well....in which case its probably gonna be VERY pricey for the labor.

 

i'm surprised no one has said it yet. Since you have another daily driver do a N/A to TT swap. Insurance will be the same as the NA. That way you can keep your 2+2 and still be badd @ss. Also while you are doing the swap you can put in bigger injectors/turbos and such for half the price of getting a whole new car.

 

I'm, speaking from experience. Taking on a huge project at this age/stage in life is never a good idea. I'm cutting my losses as I speak on the Supra.

 

I'd really like to know where this myth came from. Back when I was insured through State Farm, they didn't ask whether EITHER of my 300ZXs were TT or NA, only 2+0 or 2+2. Now that I switched to Progressive, they didn't ask either, if I recall correctly.

 

really^^^ hmm.....it should make a huge difference in insurance coat for 80hp more... but mabye they dont ask...insurance companies can be dumb....holy crap wanna see a FUNNY insurance video...here yah go...so for that slight off topicness but i had to.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=FtEp5yc-g...e=user&search=
enjoy

 

The insurance companies' philosophy is that a sports car is a sports car, it's going to be driven aggressively whether it has 78bhp more or not. 2+2s suggest more responsibility, because you didn't opt for the sportier coupe and you may drive more responsibly with passengers.

I'll check the vid later, busy making my forum rounds right now.

 

There would be no better way to die than wrapped in a Z turbos still spoolin....

 

yeah i recommend everyone watch the vid...i find it hilarious...somewhat immature...but soo funny....could just be my sense of humor...but i love every non music video these guys have made (baratsandbereta) if any one has free time they should check out the videos...provided me with an hour of laughing entertainment one lonely night....

 

By the way I would keep the TT stock for at least a year if i got one, for financial reasons. When i am looking for a TT what is a good range of milage to be pretty sure im not gonna have to fix anything for at least a few months?