I want first hand opinions on the 03, 04 and 05 coupes from actual owners. Anything that you have noticed be it a like or dislike I would like you to tell me about it.

A guy on a different forum told me somethin like this

It has cheap interior. The front end is too effin heavy, hence a lot of understeer. There are a lot of mods for it. It doesn't have a usable trunk. many people complain about it's notchy tranny. The paint is thin and chips from rocks easily. The Bose sound system sucks.

Also are there any serious problems that have occurred?


Is there anything else I should know about the car like maintenance costs or anything like that?


Thank you.

 

all thats bs..its a sports coupe...screw the trunk..if u care about a trunk...get a minivan...interior is not cheap at all...every nissan i have has really stable interior....(89 240sx, 2004 sentra SE R spec v)...and now the 350z touring...i have not had any chipping problems yet..and i have not seen any on my friends Z's...the only complaint i would have is regarding the feathering/alignment issue...looks like it has been taken care of in 05 models...not 2 sure..look up the thread @ the top...also..pretty much the dealer took care of the problem when z owners took their car back 2 nissan....but again...imo

 

I would check out a couple cars locally and drive it and decide for youreself.

 

I plan to but I just wanted to clear this stuff up with owners first.

The guy that I quoted has spoiled himself by going from an s2000 to the g35 to a 05 911...so I he probrobly looks down at anything else

 

Never quite understood what "cheap interior" means. Are they expecting woodgrain and leather? I like the interior the way it is. The front end is not excessively heavy, although obviously it is heavier than an S2000 due to a 3.5L V6 vs. 2.3L 4 banger. Too much understeer depends on the driver and how they like the car setup. No dening there are alot of mods. I find the trunk plenty useable for anything other than very large objects. I have never not been able to fit a cars worth or groceries and how much more do you need to haul? The tranny is definitely not the smoothest, I don't mind the notchyness though. I don't believe the paint is any thinner than any other car, if you don't let rocks hit your car, then you don't need to worry about it. The Bose sound system does suck in comparison to any aftermarket system. As far as OEM stuff goes, I feel it is on par.

 

There is an iota of truth in all of the above in that some people have problems with some of the issues listed. But 99% of we owners on here luv our Zs.

Have to judge for yourself on the interior. I would have preferred a slightly higher level of interior materials but have come to accept it. I describe the interior, fondly, as "early areospace"

Go drive one & see what you think.

 

If I wanted to save a few bucks and go with a used 03 what should I pay attention to when I go to check it out? When does the Z hit its Mileage "apex" or sweet spot? Do they handle 90 or 100 thousand miles easily (not meaning that I'll find an 03 with 100k just in general if anyone has even gotten that high)?

Also how much of a chance do you think I will have at finding a leftover 04 on the lot?

 

Sure, there are still 04's on lots.

I got a used 03 and saved a good chunk of money. No real issues with it so far.

When you test drive an 03 or 04, be aware of the transmission (no grinding), front tires (wear on the inner portion and not the outer portion), and the paint (the front bumper takes a beating).

 

Cheap interior compared to what?

 

I don't own a Z, but I may be able to answer some of your questions:

I don't think the interior was cheap. As a matter of fact, when I sat in it for the first time, I REALLY liked it.

The car does not understeer because the front is "too effin heavy". The Z has a great weight distribution, 53/47. The reason it understeers from the factory is the staggered wheel setup, i.e. 225's in the front and 245's in the rear.

Of course it doesn't have a trunk. Its a pure sports car. This isn't a car to buy if you expect to haul **** around or more than two people. And in regards to the tranny, again. Its a sports car. Its going to be a little notchy. Want buttery smooth? Buy an Altima.

In reference to the paint, my understanding is all new paint jobs are this way. The EPA issued new regulations back in the mid-to-late '90s and now the composite materials used in paint are weaker than what they used to be.

I've heard many complaints about the Bose (or "Blows" System, as it is lovingly referred to). But I also heard Nissan released a fix for it in the 2005 models that improved it.

Issues in the past have included:

- Tire Feathering (Premature Wear)
- Transmission Grinding (Synchro's)
- Window Grease Streaks ('03s)

Most of these affected only the '03 and a few of the '04 model years, which is expected. Anytime a major manufacturer redesigns a model, there are bound to be problems.
The 04.5's and 05's seem to have most of the issues covered.

 

I disagree with you on the paint issue. The Z has cheaper quality paint. It's passable but it scratches and chips WAY easier than any car I've ever owned.

I have an 04 Ford SportTrac and the paint on that thing is damn near bulletproof.

 

The paint definately sucks. The guy above who had no problems on his, or his friends' cars lives in Atlanta. They don't get very much snow there. Here in NY, the roads are covered with salt and unfiltered sand (pebbles) 5 months out of the year. Even though I don't drive the Z in the snow, I still get alllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll the chips.

Even if you live in an area with no snow, the paint will easily chip everytime some @ssh@le opens their door into you at the supermarket. These @ssh@les are unspecific to any region. Everybody has them.

(Disclaimer) I am just letting you know about the crappy paint. No vehicle is 100% perfect. IMHO the Z is waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay closer to being perfect than most other vehicles. :-)

P.S. A 3M clear-bra will completely resolve any paint chipping.

 

Yea thx for bringing that up...how well does the z handle in the snow? This would be for a year round daily driver and this past winter the chicagoland area got hit hard with about 2 feet of snow. Does it handle fine and just need some snow tires?

Or if I had 500 or 1000 sitting around I might get some mid 80's beater for the bad months, it would just have to sit in front of my house cause I only have a 3 car garage.


any reason why there isnt a door handle on the driver side like on the passenger door? nitpicking but it just doesnt seem right.

 

Brickyard Rat hit it right on the money. There is a LOT of truth in what your friend said. The paint on the car chips quite easily. The interior, on a letter-grade scale is probably about a C-. The sound systems on all models have received less than gleaming reviews. As for the weight/handling, this car was carefully designed to provide relatively neutral handling, through weight distribution/suspension tuning, and wheel stagger. The trunk is big enough to hold two golf bags, but yeah, it's a sports car, so it's not huge. If that's a problem for you, this probably isn't the right car for you. And YES, there are LOTS of mods for the car, which everyone on this forum views as a good thing, because modding is lots of fun

As for other serious problems, the '03's and some '04's have reported tire feathering. Do a search on what that means if you're not sure. The jury is still out on the '05's.

I don't recommend saving money by buying an '03 unless you can verify that it doesn't suffer from incurable tire feathering.

Spend a little (or a LOT) of time reading here on the forum, and your questions will be answered.

Now, as for my biased opinion on the subject. Despite all of the shortcomings of this 30K sports car, it is so much fun to drive, it looks so good, and it's so affordable that I would buy it all over again if I could, just to experience it all.

Good luck.

 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by mach250
[B]Yea thx for bringing that up...how well does the z handle in the snow?


If you are from Chicago and are a good snow driver, you should be able to deal with the Z if you made some Tire mods. The stock tires are absolutely useless in the snow/ice or mud. I got my car stuck two different times in 2 inch deep mud, and I can only imagine how lousy they must be in 7 inches of snow. From what I've heard, a good snow tire (Blizzak, for example) makes all the difference in the world. If you had good all season tires and used caution, you should be able to get around without too much difficulty.

Another option would be to use the $800 a set of tires would cost you and invest it in a beater car. Buy a cheap beater that runs (And needs little insurance), for the really bad days, but enjoy the Z the other 345 days a year. As long as it runs, who cares what it looks like if you only drive it a couple of times a year.