This one was tough for me. As a very proud S130 owner, I was torn. However, I had to vote Z32 for best over all. Let's face it, the Z32 looks awesome, had supercar stats and was basically alone in its class. As far as I am concerend it was the pinnacle (so far) of Z car engineering. As impressive as some of the numbers are for the Z33, it has neither the looks or performance of the Z32TT.

I still prefer the S130 in most aspects, but for sheer dominance of character... The Z32 owns all.

I'm still searching for my '95-'96 triple black Z32TT. When I find it, I'll buy it!


Rod.

 

Well thanks to some ice...mine flew out of control into a fence last December....

 

ouch! that sucks....all better now?

 

Booo. Rod. Booo. Are you switching sides on us. Thats not cool. jk. I love the z32 but compared to the looks on the s30 and 130, its nothing. Well in my mind. In the performance aspect, the z32 TT, is the best. P.s. lets ban rod for that statement.jk

 

S-30 are very nice to drive.. but in my own opinion.. i dont like how old it is and the looks
S130 is more in my line of looks and performence..it has the classy sport look
the z-31 is freaking awsome ! the turbo model kicks butt !
the z-32 witch i have had are really good but paying gas for 92 octan sucks !
the 350z is awsome in all aspecs.. just to darn heavy

Now lets include the
R-31
R-32
R-33
R-34
and soon R-35's

NISSAN SKYLINES....

 

I still like the S130 more. It's by far the best looking of all the Z's... It just gets spanked by the Z32 in performance. Don't be hatin'!

Rod.

 

I think the 280ZX is a good looking car......but I still think the best looking Z is the original 240Z.

 

240Z's are beautiful cars....but.... I'm reppin the s130's!

 

^ Damn straight!

Tell me that car right There isn't DEAD SEXY!!!


l
l
\/

 

That car isn't dead sexy. ROD. JK thats a big JK. Anyways, i'd rather have a s130t then a z32 n/a any day. But my favorate zcar is the s130, hands down. No other picks. The z32 is second but probably third since the s30's are Thee first Z. But the z32's are the Best, but only in performance...

 

Yeah I hit a patch of ice, slid into a ditch and side-swiped a fence... overall there was over $11,000 damage but it was all external....no damage to the frame.....nows she's back like new!

...and I'm not ashamed to admit I openly weeped that night....

 

comparing a s130T to a Z32 NA is like comparing apples and oranges. compare a s130T to a Z32TT.....which one do you want? Oh, and auto climate control, power seats, power mirrors (and heated), fully adjustable seats, ergonomic cockpit controls, etc owns.....especially all while going 0-60 in under 5 sec. I have a 240z and that's it's downfall for street driving....it's not very comfortable...especially in heat!

 

You also can't compare twin spoolers to a single turbo (also a smaller displacement motor...)

And, all thse wonderfull gizmo's you mentioned are the same **** that drives most Z32 owners insane when it craps out on them

Still, Z32TT is the shizzle for performance and it looks really nice and all but it is NOT as sexy as the S130.

Rod.

 

This is very interesting... but I think we have a niche group of S130 lovers in this crowd...
Everyone is looking for different things out of their sports cars... I use my 240Zs as mainly track toys... fair weather in-town driving only... I like cars with creds... I can spank an amazing assortment of fast cars with the 240Zs... And they are cheap to buy, cheap to build, and cheap to run...

If you want a REALLY FAST track toy... and you don't have a $60,000 budget... The 240Z is one of the best vehicles around for on-track performance...

 

If you really want to embarass the Porsche owners... then this is my secret weapon in progress... I have plenty of room for a V-8...

 

I HAVE to disagree, lets face it 240Z's now cost a crap load more than a 280ZX in the same condition. A 280ZX comes with a more powerful engine. They're both pritty close to eachother eccept when it comes to weight which the 280ZX is the fat daughter with the hot mom.

 

I disagree..you totally can compare that. skyline's, supras, etc....all compare to the TT and do better with singles and the skyline has even smaller displacement than a s130. but you're right...things freaking BREAK! but no thanks to lash adjustements and carb adjustments with my 240z.....bugs the heck out of me!


Oh nad BJ, awesome Z's! I'd love to see some track vids...S30's do rock for road courses! I love mine!

 

of course the S130 has a niche group. Not only is it a sexy car it's affordable for even the brokest of enthusiasts. And lets not forget that if Nissan hadn't taken the step toward the S130 it did, and instead had kept the Z's pure sports car roots, then the Z32 most likely wouldn't have become the car it did. The Z was never originally intended to become what it did. I'm not complaining, I think the Z32TT was by far the epitomy of performance in its class, but it is a far cry from the concept of the original Z. The S130 took that step toward combining luxury and driver comfort with performance. Of course if you were to got out and spend the couple thousand it would cost for a 280zx turbo and then put enough money into it to make up for the difference in the cost to purchase a Z32TT (in good mechanical and non-neglected shape) I'm sure that 280zx would more then give a Z32 a run for it's money on a road course. 300+ horsepower on stock L28 internals is not a problem. Which means a good deal of money could go into the chassis/suspension. Aftermarket EFI can be had for next to nothing. So a great handling 280zx putting out 300HP and weighing several hundered pounds less than a Z32TT... You do the math.

And for the record, the Z32 TT was the fattest of the Z's. NOT the Z33 (people keep using that as the Z33's downfall)

 

OK... here is a track vid of me waiting in line behind a Mustang and a 350Z.. the BMW E30 is a hotrod hybrid and as fast as my street-prepared 240Z...

The 240Z and the hotrod E-30 easily out perform the bigger cars.. We are all on slicks... and all of these cars have suspension and engine mods... This is an advanced run group... listen to my engine.. you can hear me letting off before a set of turns so I can actually get on it through a set of turns... I have to wait... give distance... and then blast it with a short burst until I run into the slow traffic... you can hear me letting off in the turns leading out onto straights... that sucks because I have less than 200HP and need the extra momentum I get comming out of turns... the bigger cars are NO MATCH...












This is me chasing down our head instructor in an Improved Touring CRX race car... We are running Time Trials with 30 seconds of space on a course that takes less than 1:30 to lap.... I catch and pass him in less than 7 laps in my street legal BSP 240Z...

 

OK Screw it then...

Please change my vote to S130


I also agree that the Z32TT (as firece as it is) is not in the true spirit of the Z. It's a techie showpiece with a Masters Degree in science as where the original Z was all about bang for the buck simplistic performance. The only nice thing I can say about the Z33 is that it at least returned to its roots somewhat.


Rod.

 

There you go Rod join the dark side. And the only reason i was comparing the s130and the z32 n/a was the closer comparasons. There around the same power, vg has more, but the z32 is a fat lady. So the power is made up there. No need to argue, as long as there zcars.

 

S30 is my weapon of choice. Totally epitomizes what a sports car is to a driving enthusiast. The other generations are fine for different types of drivers and was geared more to appeal to the masses (except maybe the Z32tt since it was priced so high). Thats cool but I prefer purity.

Thats not really true. Theres a '73 240Z for sale in my area for $250 (I might buy it this week ). True the 240Z will be worth more when fully restored or fully race prepped but thats because it's the best generation

Rear suspension is different too. 280ZX has a semi trailing arm rear suspension vs chapman struts for the S30s.

 

yea, the z32 did go away from the true spirit of the Z car, which is why they discountinued it. The original premise was a cheap car that was stripped down and could whoop on most everything on the street. the 240z is the epitome of that premise. someone said the s130 is when they started to leave taht premise...you're prolly right. here's my personal assessment (my opinion)
S30--purebred Z car. track car extraordinare. Revolutionary car (this car revolutionized the sports car market--I don't know how many times I have heard someone come up to me and tell me they remember when they first came out , when I'm driving my S30 btw, and tell me about how they got killed in their nova or camaro or whatever)
S130--Little more luxury. Late 70's, early 80's styling (love it or not). Cheap to be had, easy to build as it is the same L28.
Z31--More luxurious. 80's styling. up'd performance as far was drivetrain. Cheap and cheap to build.
Z32--most luxurious. Modern styling (I get funny looks ALL THE TIME when I tell them it's a 90). Supercar status for its time in performance stats. Way ahead of it's time. Expensive to own, expensive to mod. Fastest in a straight line and does well for street driving. Great all around street car.
Z33--Good daily driver. Can be built to be more. Sorry, not too much experience at all with this car.

 

The Z32 is the car that got me into cars in the first place. However, I ended up with the S130 because I found it to be the best compromise of classic looks and modern amenities, so it met my needs all around.

 

.... I am not explaining myself... I dont even need to say it. Anyone want to go for an autobahn cruise?