Don't buy a base unless you plan on gutting it and building a full fleged track car. In that case, you don't need cruise control or TCS and you'll want a better LSD anyway.

If you drive on the street in the rain or other slippery conditions, TCS/VDC is a good thing.

 

You live in VA, you will want the TCS!!! I'm in MD and I can't tell you how many times the weather man says "possibility of a few rain showers" and some how we end up with down pours or snow!!! Take it from a another mid-atlantic guy, you want TCS.

 

....and don't forget about resale value too.....

 

I live in Cali. my buddy has a touring and I have a base.

haha the only thing I really want is the LSD and the standard part in my area is going for 410 at the dealership.

I already bought HID real cheap from jun, but you are just missing LSD from the base 06 anyway.

I'm sure you can get it in there for less than a G if you look real hard.

I'm happy with my car payment and accesories are just a click away

leatherseats.com for leather on the cheap

buy a factory LSD for like 410 or so

and if its pre 06 get a cheap OEM HID kit from jun.

It sure beats paying interest on all of that crap for 5 years and will cost you more cause of interest on top of all of that plus additional sales tax on the price.

I got a base and am glad i did.

as far as you're question about not having LSD.

In my opinion it sucks not having it. not much traction there for launches with one tire spinning and getting wheel hop.

2 tires launching with LSD would be good in my opinion.

as long as you don't drive like an A S S you should not crash or die LOL!

I could have gotten an enthusiast but did not want it in red!

They had a used chrome silver for 24k with 4kmiles on it. awsome deal and i test drove a brand new one first and then the used one and they felt the same, -LSD.

It's all up to you but i'm sure you want as many opinions as possible to make YOU'RE own desicion.

have fun!

 

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I suggest you hop over to howstuffworks.com and learn for yourself how different differentials work. They explain it with great detail and graphs.

One thing a lot of people here are failing to mention is that the base model is safer and is the only model with significantly cheaper insurance rates. The difference in insurance costs is fairly steep and will only serve to widen the hole in your pocket-book later on if you're already strapped now. Over the course of a few years it really adds up.

I somewhat agree with that, because that is a lot of the reason why I got one, but I personally wouldnt steer someone clear of the base model just because they never intend on tracking the car.

Yep, if you want to go as fast as possible. Although open ended is safer and far less prone to spinning around and/or losing control. Have you seen all the spinout threads? Over the past 2 years I've seriously lost track of all the 350z's doing guardrail checks because the driver had no business with LSD in the first place.

TCS is only on the models with LSD. TCS is not necessary with open ended differentials. Open ended is easier to get get stuck (when one wheel spins the other won't). But it's also more tame around corners when the conditions are as such.

In my opinion it is a little less fun/fast for cornering purposes. That pesky inside wheel wants to spin while the outside wheel has more traction for acceleration and just sits there. There isn't much difference in straight line acceleration because the power is distributed evenly to both tires until one starts to break traction(or spins faster than the other). A good driver can push it to 100% with no wheel hop. To me what you are describing is inexperience.

 

Touring doesn't have vehicle Dynamics control(VDC) which differs from Traction Control(TCS)......

I have an 04.5 Touring with TCS......I keep it off now. I think it comes in handy when wet/sloppy conditions, as long as you are not "getting on it".....I found the Z prone to "snap" corrections when into the throttle when TCS engages.....for me this can cause more problems(spinning in a direction I did not start out in).

 

No, touring does have VDC, that is one of the upgrades you get with the touring model... VDC is TCS except it also monitors g-forces, steering input, throttle input, braking, and wheel speed. It uses the TCS system and ABS to keep you on the road if the driver basically tries to do something stupid.

I keep both VDC and TCS on 90% of the time, I would consider myself a decent driver and I have plenty of experience driving much more powerful RWD cars that even lacked ABS... The way i figure it is that if I'm going down the freeway and a wreck occurs in front of you and you have to make an emergency maneuver at 80mph I will take all the help I can get...

Now as for the original poster, it seems your set on a 06', but as mentioned before why not pick up a used 05', you could get a touring or track for the same money and you won't be throwing your money out the window on the depreciation that you have with a new car...

 

Touring with MT does have VDC (which includes TCS).

 

umm... i dont know about what you guys think about driving without VDC in damp/wet conditions but my story -
i was on a circular ramp going on/off NJ turnpike and i had VDC off and the condition was damp ... i was about 5000rpm in 2nd (i downshifted from 4th-3rd-2nd) and turned quite fast and sharp and had no problems...
maybe i was lucky hahaha

 

I wouldn't put it like that. That's a myth. TCS, VDC, and ABS are not substitutes for driver intelligence. It doesn't matter how many saftey features a car has, those things cannot prevent a driver from doing something stupid.... in fact I'm pretty sure your manual will state that somewhere. Some people actually think if they get TCS and/or VDC the car is all of the sudden a supercar and can't be wrecked even if they do something stupid. That is obviously not true and would suck to learn the hard way.

 

i have an 05 base and live in columbus ga it rains here at least once a week... at least, and i have not had any problems. but then again i dont drive like a hero when it rains.

 

I absolutely agree, i guess I was trying to keep it simple... VDC is just another layer of saftey, IF you were going into a cornor at some speed and you keep applying throttle and steering input, the computer will predict oversteer and will cut engine power and apply brakes to one or more wheels to help prevent it. Nothing can replace having good seat of the pants feeling for a cars behavior and experience with a vehicles dynamics. ABS, TCS, and VDC are just saftey systems, and if you are doing true spirited driving you don't need any of them. You should be able to keep the brakes from locking up, control wheel spin, and you should be able to know the limits of your cars grip...

That being said those systems greatly enhance the saftey of a vehicle in an emergency situation when it becomes harder for a human to process all that information and respond appropriately.

 

Now that the base model comes equipped with 18s and xenons, I would consider it the best value . Just get yourself an aftermarket LSD and you're good to go. I had a '05 base and now have an '06 track. Even if I turn off VDC with the track, the base was just more raw and maybe even more fun to drive.

This is very true. When I had a base model, I use to bury the throttle in 2nd and 3rd gear turns and I would get large amounts of tire squeal with the inside tire spinning. Even when I was full on the throttle, the back end stayed planted. If I were to try the same thing with a LSD equipped Z, I would probably have gone over the cliff or need to dial in large amounts of counter steer. A good driver would be faster with a LSD, but I have to admit that the back end staying in place did inspire confidence.

 

What else is there, cruise control? With the 2006s, there just isn't much of a difference anymore.

 

That explains it....I am 5AT. Thanks....

 

I have to vouch for TCS... I was at a stoplight and it had just rained and I gunned my engine to get ahead of the truck on my right when the light turned...

Didn't realize that the road was that slippery and my car started to spin towards the truck... the TCS came on and slowed down the car and I steered away.... that was a hairy (and stupid) 5 seconds...

So if you're an expert driver with good reflexes, TCS is worthless, if you're like me and probably half of the people here who know how to drive but have never been in a track... these things are valuable...

BTW, why not get a used 04/05 enth/touring and use the savings for mods... I never buy Base model of anything... but that's just me...

 

I almost spun out and hit a building too I made a left turn at the light and gave it " a little " more throttle as the light's turning yellow. I think this board overemphasizes the benefits of turning off the TCS or VDS. I turned it off everytime I drove because everyone said the TCS did more harm than good, and people getting modules to disable the TCS permenantly. I mean I can see the benefits when racing, but for daily use just leave it ON for God's sake. Just learnt from my personal experience, don't do anything stupid like turning it off when raining, it's too late when you find out the importance of it (like after you crash or spin out).

 

It would be great if sickguy's post above could be stickyed. Everytime I see a "turn-it-off" post I cringe.

Turn off might be fine for experienced drivers but 90% of the people ownibg Zs, imo, do not qualify.