Sport Compact Car - 350Z

Scan of a review and a few quick attempts at modifying the car.

evo - 350Z

Scan of a British car magazine review.

 

IMO not in this case. He's a savvy guy with an extensive background in auto mechanics and auto racing. I channel all of my Maxima warranty issues and repairs directly thru him. I let him deal with the service dept. He drives a Porsche which admittedly may influence his opinion about what constitutes a purebred sports car. He doesn't call the Z a POS. It's fine for what it is. Nothing more nothing less. It's just not the knockout sportscar that the hype would have had you believe. I tend to agree after reviewing the drivetrain & specs. An ' 02 Maxima SE with a few hundred dollars in mods will keep up with it for alot less money. A nice body design. Too bad it doesn't have a powerplant to match. I will wait and compare it against the G-35 coupe.

 

Like I said the Z car is what it is. No more, no less. If it helps your argument to compare it against a late model Maxima like most readers of this board own that's your perogative. I don't think that this Z car is of the same outstanding calibur & quality of the earlier Z's. Furthermore, IMO a purebred sportcar shouldn't require any mods to bring it up to respectability. Lastly, I'm not overly joyed with my ' 02 Maxima SE but I can still see a much better bang for the buck on my Maxima over the new Z car. IMO not worth the small step up.

 

Yeah... I'm deleting my posts now cause i guess this is supposed to be links only.

 

SptBiz, never take the word of an unscrupulous salesperson, no matter how smart you think they are.

Testdrive the car for yourself and make your own observations. That's what I plan to do.

As for the handling issue, there's no way "a few hundred dollars in mods" will make our 2K2 Maxima SE's match the handling of the 350Z.

The 350Z has rear-wheel drive, near perfect weight distribution, a wider stance, independent-rear suspension, and weighs less than a Maxima. The Z is in another league, but don't take my word for it. Find out for yourself.

Regarding the torque issue though, many 4th Gen and 3-liter 5th Gen owners say the same thing about the 2K2Max (that it's gutless at low rpms). What they fail to understand is that the new Maxima AND the Z both have electronic boost control, which creates a more linear throttle response. You won't get a sudden jolt of power with this feature on the car, but our Maximas are still faster than all previous models in stock form. The engine is simply smoother than some people are accustomed to, but the power is very plentiful. The engine dynos and statistics are freely available on the net if you need visual proof, but a simple testdrive should suffice.

 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by SptBiz
[B]

The couple of Z cars that I saw were sold so no test drive. BUT, the GM has driven an auto and a 6-speed and this was his candid opinion :

including : "troublesome vibrations at higher speeds "

it looks like the GM isn't the only one to notice this problem. I spoke with a Nissan tech and he stated that 2 Z owners have already complained about this. Also, the MSN Carpoint review mentions " occasional jittery ride " . Sounds like some sort of suspension problem or poor weight distribution.

 

I think you should go to a 350Z forum and talk about this. Here is not the place.

This thread needs to be cleaned up so that people will just see links or articles.

 

I think you should find a thread that interests you and leave us alone.

 

Just trying to follow the rules at the top of this thread. Just a thought, but their are other maxima sites that aren't strict about posting this stuff. I wasn't coming down on you, but if this is the only thread we have, it should't have a conversation, disbursed among links and articles.

And this does interest me, I just realized what it said at the top of the thread. Oh well.

 

Anyone see the "Z" comercials this weekend? The one with the black and white pictures of our nations finest. Good marketing IMO!

 

Does anyone know if the Z 6 speed is the same as the Max? They say it's a close ratio gear box..is it a STS? Thanks

 

I saw the 350Z driving around and imediately i went straight to the local Nissan dealer and there it was...all i have to say is HOLY **** The thing is flawless! Even the paint

 

Does anyone know where i can download those awsome 350z commercials that i see on TV?

 

Which 350Z forum have you guys found to be the worth visiting? I don't like the layout of some forums like 350zforum.com or zcar.com. Have you guys found any that's closer to maxima.org or nissanx.com?

 

My friend drove one and said it is a super STS, as far as tranny goes, most likely it is different. one reason for that is that it is a RWD car.

 

www.my350z.com
www.freshalloy.com

 

First drive article on the G35 Coupe
http://www.edmunds.com/reviews/roadt...4/article.html

Pictures

http://www.edmunds.com/reviews/roadt...age1photo.html

 

2003 Infiniti G35 Sport Coupe 6-speed(List Price: $30,000(est.)/Price as Tested: $32,545(est.))
--280 bhp@6200 rpm
--270 lb-ft@4800 rpm
--Redline 6600 rpm
--Curb weight: 3435 lbs
--Test weight: 3600 lbs

Acceleration(mph)
-----------------
0-30---- 2.3s
40------ 3.6s
50------ 4.7s
60------ 6.1s
70------ 8.0s
80------ 9.8s
90----- 12.3s
100---- 14.9s

Time to distance
-------------
0-100ft--- 3.2s
0-500ft--- 8.1s
0-900ft--- 11.5s

1/4 mile
-------
14.6@98.6mph

Braking
-------
60-0=117ft
80-0=205ft

Handling
--------
0.92g(BEATS the 350Z Track Model!)

700ft Slalom
----------------
67.7 mph(BEATS the 350Z Track Model!)

Gear -- Ratio -- Overall Ratio -- Max Test Speed
--------------------------------------------------------
1------- 3.79------13.42:1 ---------38mph(6600rpm)
2------- 2.32-------8.22:1 ---------61mph(6600rpm)
3------- 1.62-------5.74:1 ---------88mph(6600rpm)
4------- 1.27-------4.50:1 --------112mph(6600rpm)
5------- 1.00-------3.54:1 --------142mph(6600rpm)
6------- 0.79-------2.81:1 --------155mph(5700rpm Electronically limited)

Final Drive Ratio
--------------------
3:54:1

For more info and PICTURES:
http://www.roadandtrack.com/features...?articleID=349

 

I actually saw a G35 coupe on the road on Thursday. It was in New Westminter (suburb of Vancouver, BC), but had Ontario plates. There are none in the local showrooms yet, so this car may be an evaluation unit.

Color was that bright electric blue - the car looked really good but the back end looks kinda funny as the rear window is quite small and the back bumper is very tall and wide.

The big surprise was the sound - it was much louder than I expected but in a mostly good way. Very tight, high revving sound that I hope doesn't drone in the cabin. Even with my windows up I could hear the revs climb as the driver went up the gears.

 

Infinity G35 Sport Coupe 6-speed(Base Price $29,000(est.)/Price As Tested $33,000(est.))

Engine
--3.5L 4-valves/cylinder
--280 hp
--270 lb-ft
--Redline 6600 rpm

Vehicle Layout
--53:47 front/rear weight distribution
--Front engine, RWD, 2-door, 4-passenger

Acceleration(mph)
-----------------
0-60------ 5.8s

1/4 mile
-------
14.23@99.40mph

Braking
-------
60-0=112ft

Slalom 600-ft
----------------
66.1mph

 

I had the chance 2 days ago to drive the 350...The car is unmatched in exterior beauty. Lots of cheap plastic on the inside as is the case in my Altima. I was totally unimpressed with the power. It is quick, but by no means would I call it fast. I have not doubt that a 5 speed Altima or 6 speed Max will run right with it.

Very cramped on the inside, and I found the tranny to be very notchy.

 

Infiniti G35 Sport Sedan AND Sport Coupe

Incase this is old news,., I was on vacation and finally caught up on my mail.

The list of cars tested:
BMW 745i, Cadillac CTS, Dodge Viper SRT-10, Honda Accord Cpe V6, Honda Accord Sedan(I-4), Honda Civic Hybrid, Honda Civic Si, Hyundai Tiburon GT V6, Infiniti M45, Lincoln Town Car L, Mazda 6 V6, Mercedes CLK500/E500/SL500, Mercury Marauder, BMW MiniCooper/MiniCooper S, Nissan 350Z, Pontiac Vibe GT, Saab 9^3t Linear, Saturn Ion, Suzuki Aerio SX awd, Toyota Corolla S/Matrix XRS, and VW Passat W8.

Infiniti G35 Sport Sedan/Sport Coupe
------------------
Acceleration, sec
0-30mph 2.51/2.14
0-40 3.57/3.31
0-50 4.92/4.43
0-60 6.51/5.83
0-70 8.57/7.86
0-80 10.86/9.84
0-90 13.47/12.24
0-100 16.15/15.05

1/4mile
-----------
14.68@97.08/14.23@99.4

Braking, 60-0, ft
-------------------
114/112

Skidpad, g
--------------
0.84/0.87

600-ft slalom, mph
--------------
65.6/67.1<---FASTER than a C5 and even '03 ZO6

Base Price/price as tested
--------------
$27,100/$30,925----$32,050/$32,595