hey all been here for several months researching on the z. i just want your opinion to see if the 06s are worth waiting on or i should jump the gun now and get an 05. i would aim for a 6speed with navi, dont really care for the colorchoice since i like all z's in all colors lol. the only option on the 06 that i like is the track/volume control of the cd player on the steering wheel. my current car has that and ive grown used to it lol. ps i was looking at the z and s2k and the deciding factor was the insurance. rates on the z are pretty good imo. thanks all!

my concern is that with the 06s i wont have much room to negotiate. im tryin to get a 6speed with a navi for 33-34g's out the door. ill prolly get it in winter, after nov (my bday..will turn 20 lol).

 

The 06's are supposed to be cool, but they all look the same too me. I'd rather buy an 03 (that's what I have) or 04 and spend the difference on modding the car, vs. just spending more on one that's the same but a year or two newer...my 2 cents.

 

The wheel controls are going to be useless if you upgrade the stereo later on down the road. I would say get an 05, dont get the stock navi, and use the money you saved into an aftermarket navi. You can easily get a new 05 enthusiast for 30K OTD then add navi for 1500. BAM! got 1500 bucks to spend on performance parts right away.

 

Yeah, dealer here quoted me 30.5 for 05 SB Enthusiast 5AT, no extras except cargo net/floor mats.

 

how hard is it to take out the stock head unit and replace witih an aftermarket one? im not that big on audio stuff so stock would more than likely suit me fine. when i get a z, the first thing im going to do is get tein coilovers and some nice looking rims. and then ill get teh boltons as time goes by lol.
how good/accurate is the oem navi btw? just looking at options

 

Its really easy to replace, thats why im saying...save the 2K they will charge you on their inferior navi and buy a better one for cheaper.

Is that 30.5 OTD or before TTL?

 

I'd get an 05 Enthusiast.

 

Assuming TTL involves tax and title, before.

 

There are a few changes to the 06 that "I" personally don't like. My suggestion is, do you like the changes?

 

+1 I dont like the changes on the 06 too

 

hey if you're going for the enthusiast, a good price is 28-29k OTD i'm assuming for a 6m/t. It's possible to get the 5AT for 30k OTD. go for the invoice price.

 

Recently bought an 05 SB touring. Didn't care for the slight changes in the 06 model.

 

Why not wait until the 2006 hits the showrooms before deciding or buying anything?

Then if you don't like the 2006 and or if it's too much money, you will be able to get a much better deal on a leftover '05 as opposed to buying a '05 right now.

Shop and compare before you buy... Isn't that Priceline or something?

I'm trying to find out what all of the changes are they did to the '06 other than the body and interior, more specifically if they addressed any of the mechanical problems that the car seems to be plauged with.

If they didn't fix or at least make some major attempt solve at least half of the problems, I ain't buying a Z of any year.

I keep hearing from people the same things over and over about tranny this, rear end that, clutch this, vibrate that, grinding this. It's weird but I don't recall hearing anything really bad mentioned about engine problems other than the cars idiot lights that seem like they go on when you sneeze or fart or if your tire PSI is off by more than .0001 of a pound and the occasional stalling with some intake kits, that also make said idiot lights go on, that also seem to throw on their own idiot lights. Too many micro chips on cars these days, I tell ya.

The hard part for me is that I love the car (mostly the looks, HP, price and the fact that it goes around corners better than an ugly 'sorry less attractive' looking GT) but I hate the horror stories I am hearing.

I'm still trying to find out if people with '05's are having less trouble than those with 03 and 04's. I think that the general consenses is that the '03 had the most issues, which only makes sense, since it was the first year.

If the 05's as a whole seem to be better than previous years and if I could get about $2,000 knocked off of a '05 base model in April of 2006 and asuming they still have any leftovers available, I would get a 2005. I have heard of some dealers selling the Enthusiast model for the same as the base's MSRP, so I'm hoping I can get at least a couple grand knocked off of a base but I dunno. If not, I set my limit for either the 05 or 06 base model at $29,500 OTD MAX!!! Doubt it will make much difference in regards to me getting a better deal or not but I'm putting $10,000 down in cash. No more, no less.

If they won't sell me one for that price, I will buy something else. It's a really neat car but taking everything into consideration, the base model is not worth any more than that, if even that much, at least not to me. The Z is like the Ducati of cars, minus the steep price. It's fun to straigten out a curvy road, when it's not in the shop on a lift.

For several months now, I have been bummed out cuz I have to wait till April of 06 to get my dream car (if I decide to get one) but it may take me that long to make up my mind whether it's worth the risk LOL.

My Z would be my only car, so reliablity is a must. And right now at this point I am very doubtfull the Z will be there for me when I need it to get me from point A to point B. Hopefully that will change soon.

Like in the Fall LOL.

 

I agree, I got much below invoice. I dont know if the pricing is going to much different because invoice wont change for late 05s at the end of the year.

 

Chard68 don't worry bro. the 03s and early 04s had some tire feathering problem. So far there is a thread in this forum where they have updates on the 05s and tire freathing. Last time i checked that problem dissappered. The only thing that's coming up is car going slightly to the right. Hey wait till mid October early November for the new 06s, if you don't like the prices on that. You can easily get a base 05 for 25-26k OTD no problem. They want to sell you the 05 to make room for the 06, you'll be in controll of negotiating the price buddy, that's what i plan on doing and it's on 3-4 months away. I'm going for the 05 enthusiast, I'm putting planning on putting down 23K though, (money from work and insruance paying for my totalled scion tC) but i have 20K right now. WOW 13 more HP, they just tuned it a little bit, OMG GET A HOLD OF THE 06 and pay more, crazy nissan.

 

Take a long test drive in whatever one you decide to buy. Some people that have 05's are experiencing the car pulling to the right. Get on a super straight highway and check it out. I have an 05 Enthusiast and it tracks down the road straight as an arrow. Even if you decide on an 06, completely test drive the vehicle you're going to buy.

I'd say go for an 05 because the changes to the 06 are very minor. I doubt most non Z owners will know the difference.

 

+1

 

+1. 2 Week old Z here.

 

like u also, the z would be my only car so i want a nice and reliable car. i had my car for 8 months and it has 13k already lol so i drive around a bit. right now i have an auto accord coupe v6, only 8 months old but im seeing a lot of ppl with the auto version of my car with tranny going out at 20k or so. i feel as if my car is a ticking bomb. my dad gave me the green light on trading it in and getting another car. this time whatever i get would be a 6speed. im down to a z and g35c. i dont want a g35 becasuse i want a smaller car thats easier to navigate around in. i really want a 2seater and for some odd reason the insurance rate on the z is really fair compare to other 2 seaters such as the s2k. as far as pricing goes, im in so cal and used kbb.com to email couple of dealerships around here. they replied back saying that i can have any model z at invoice and tax, title, license. this is with no haggling at all. i will trade in my car and the difference will be paid in cash so i think i can haggle a bit more
what othe changes have they done with the 06? i know there was a thread about it but i didnt see much diff from the pix. i only noticed the headlights and the volume/track control on the steering wheel.

 

Get the 06 if you want something new.

The changes aren't really all that significant, except for the headlights and some interior changes, I think anyone would be just as happy getting the 03/04/05 etc.

I think the headlights are suppose to be quite innovative from what I heard.