I'm curious as to whether or not they really make a difference. Do they really do anything to help protect the car or keep it cleaner if you're only driving on smooth pavement? I live in Houston, which can get quite wet at times and having splash gaurds has in no way kept the car cleaner when driving in the rain. Are they just to keep from throwing up rooster tails behind you? I've often cursed many trucks for that, but with the Z so low, I don't think it would be an issue, and if that's the purpose, why the need for the front one? Are they to protect the side on your car from small pebbles and such that are picked up by the tires in wet conditions? Has anyone w/o them had any problems with chipping on the lower sill area or behind the rear wheels? If so, I'd think a couple of custom-cut peices of 3M Scotchcal would do the trick, but I'd like to know if they're really necessary at all. It seems Nissan already identified a vulnerable area on the rear of the lower sills and protected them, so if you never drive on dirt or gravel roads, are the gaurds or any other kind of protection needed, or do people just get them because they prefer the look of them on the car? I've always had them on my cars, simply because the car came with them, however, I've never really given it much thought until I ordered my Z. I just don't like the way they look on the car. The front one is OK, but the rear is blocky and seems out of place; both together, to me, disrupt the smooth lower line of the car. Now that I look at the size of this paragraph, and realize how much (probably unecessarily) I'm worrying about this, I would appreciate some input.

 

I have them, like them, and find that much less road tar/grime and other junk gets on the body itself. I don't think they distract from the look of the car at all, and they seem to be worth the money spent for them.

 

Same here, got them and liking them.

 

My car has yet to be delivered (with splash guards), but last week the dealer had two Z's side by side, one with guards and one without. I definitely liked the one with the guards better! Makes the car look more aggressive in my opinion...

 

It also keeps the drool from getting on your car as you drive by all the people gawking at your car.

 

So far, it looks primarily like people are getting them for aesthetic purposes. Keep it coming; I'd like some opinions on the functionality aspect of them.