Is it just me or does the '03 Z handle better than the 05??

My car was in the shop for the last few days and while it was there, I decided I was going to test drive an 05 6MT. Although it was still good handling, for some reason it feels like my 03 handles better. I was driving a Mustang while my car was in the shop so I thought it was just because I had gotten used to the Mustang. When I got my Z back it really did feel like it handled better than the 05. My Z is a 5AT so I went back and test drove a 5AT to see if there was a difference. The 05 6MT and 5AT felt the same.

Did they make any changes between the 03 and 05 suspension that I'm missing or is it just me imagining it?

 

there are changes but i don't know about handling differences.

 

yes, the 05 has suspension changes, and naturally, a suspension change means handling change.

 

The great handling in the 03's could be credited to the negative camber... which also is culprit to the infamous feathering...

 

Yes, they made some changes to the suspension from 2004.5 and up models.

 

looks like the feathering fix affected the handling.

 

+1. Maybe one in 10 350Z drivers is aware of the positive handling points with negative front camber. The other 9 want 40,000 miles out of the front tires like a Honda Accord.

 

Yes, the 03's were designed with race car handling as the main preference. Then when everyone started to cry about the harsh ride and tire ware Nissan softened up the suspension a bit. I think that you'll find in the years to come that the 03's will have the reputation of the best handling 350Z's out of the bunch. I for one will give up a better ride for better handling. As for tire ware? I have owned my Z for 1.5 years and have only put 7000 miles on it. So tire ware is not an issue with me, and again, I 'll give up a little for top notch handling. If I want a nice ride (suspension wise) I'll drive my Altima.

 

I think they're heavier too.

 

05 = 3247
http://www.rsportscars.com/eng/cars/nissan_350z.asp

 

I test drove an 05 a few weeks ago and felt the same thing. I'll keep my 03.

 

I'm selling my ***** to the Wall Handling 2003 350Z.....bids starts at $70K.

 

+1-that's what I was thinking, .

 

My '03 didn't have negative chamber in sufficient amounts... it was the toe out setting that was "aggressive"... I'd love to have more negative chamber. I have 30k miles on my '03, swapped out the original RE040s at less 15k, had the alignment setting correctly, no more tire roar... but less snap to the car's turn it. Regional Mfg's rep. refused to honor the car's warranty due to my changing out those fantastic "Ripple Technology" po-go sticks for a set of more suitable Konis... still in love with the car after almost 2.5 years of ownership... rare for me.

BC

 

I have a 03' Touring and it handles great. As for the handling, it's really stiff and rough, but I like it a little rough.

 

So have they made any changes to the Nismo S-tune suspension? I have an '03 Track and love the handling. Don't mind the ride, but would like to put on the S-tune suspension; heard it rides better AND provides better handling. Will this hold true for my '03? I don't really care about adjustability or lowering that much and prefer to stick with Nismo parts for personal preference reasons, so no need to comment on the choice or make other suggestions; just wondering if I'll really be helping the car that much...

 

I agree, when I drove my friends 03 it felt more glued to the ground.

 

i have a 03 track and i love it.....i have driven my buddies 04 and 05 Z's and they seem to be more sluggish but not by much....i geuss it might be a mental thing but i love my car and i wouldn't trade it for a newer year!!!

 

Yeah, you can even see the difference between the 03's and 05's. But that can be remedied by buying new suspension. I still think that the "Z" is still a "Z" even with the 06's coming out with new goodies. Things are always going to improve and/or be modified, so if you guys are implying that the suspension is better on the 03's, then i hope that you guys are not frequent visitiors at nissan for replacement tires.

 

I had a girl riding in my Z that said the same thing to me! I took her for her word!!