No offense, but i think now you're being a tad bit ignorant. A young kid being handed a 30k car isnt going to regard it highly? Sorry, but would definately have to disagree.

 

Bonz, I was referring to jtree, who'm you quoted.

 

my parents are gonna pay for insurance and gas and some other fun stuff, so i only would have the monthly payments to take care of.

 

it haunts my dreams, every time i think about driving aggressively, i think "what if a guy ran onto the road?" "what if a car pulls out of no where?" "what if im in a residential area and a kid jumps out?" "what if someone was trying to merge?" ... im a 15 year old permitted driver and before EVERY action i take on the road i weigh it and justify it before making it

 

Just some advice:

If your parents do offer to get you a new car, sports car or not, and you are only 15 or 16, you might want to consider asking them to hold off on that offer for a couple more years. Just get an old beater or drive the family car in the mean time. Having those couple years of experience will help you out a lot, greatly decreasing your chances getting into fender benders with your new car when you do finally get it.

As responsible as you might be at 15, there will be times when you don't have the time to think before you act, and you will be mainly relying on experience to make that split second decision.

If you do get your new car at such a young age, try not to drive it around much, maybe borrow the family car. Until at least you get a good amount of experience under your belt, because no one likes to see their new car with a dent in it.

In reply to the original post, I can't think of any pros that would help you with your dad. Pros for the 350z are it's performance and appearance, neither of which would probably help you convincing your dad. Actually, I take that back, because if your dad is a car enthusiast as you are, then he might understand why you want a 350z. But other than those two pros, there aren't really any others, especially if you are comparing a 350z to less expensive cars.

-Joe

 

I'm 17 myself, and at college. I have to say, I agree with those who say that they shouldn't be judged by their age, but seriously, don't just stick up for this kid because we're the same age. Reading his posts, I have to wonder if he's the 16 year prophecied by the statistics. And of course, a 287 horsepowered accident would be worse than that of the average civic.

On the other hand, maybe I could be wrong. On the other hand, there aren't any real pros that you could tell your dad. I mean, you could tell him it has great handling and a great engine and it looks great, but how would that convince him to buy it for you?

 

OK, here's my story:

My first car was a naturally-aspirated 1992 Toyota MR-2, at about age 20. I was, I figured, a conservative driver, but honestly I just hadn't driven enough to know my own limits or those of the car. I crashed that car once and came close several other times.

A couple of years later, after I'd put about 70,000 miles on the Toyota, I bought a new 1993 Miata. This car I didn't crash, but I did scratch it up some, had a couple of no-damage, no injury collisions at low speeds, and at one point came close to flooding the engine by driving through standing water under very adverse weather conditions.

Then, I bought a new 1996 Miata, and drove that without incident until getting the Z last week.

Honestly, the Z's handling and power makes it a LOT easier to get into trouble, though a good driver can put these capabilities to good use in an emergency situation.

Part of the problem is that it's very easy to get going extremely fast in the car without much feedback to tell you that the car doesn't like it; HOWEVER the real danger of doing so is not whether the car can handle it but whether you, as the driver, can react fast enough to stuff happening.

Experience as a driver isn't just about training your reactions -- it's about knowing what kinds of hazards MIGHT be around the curve or the hill ahead, visualizing what other drivers around you might do unexpectedly, and learning to drive in a way that accounts for those possibilities. (For example, it took me a long time to realize that it's usually not safe to assume that cross traffic has stopped when going through a green light, particularly in high-traffic areas. Even if you know that this is the case intellectually, until you've seen some bad scenarios develop with you in the car, it's very hard to fully integrate into your thinking.)

There are plenty of first-rate, absolutely tremendously fun cars out there that are much less powerful for the weight and much less costly than a 350Z, and will let you get into a lot less trouble. Why not consider getting an MR-2 Spyder, a Miata, a Mini Cooper S, an Acura Integra, or one of any number of other cars with very good reputations?

I'll tell you this: ten years of driving MR-2s and Miatas made me a LOT more respectful of the power of the 350, and much more aware of how to use it safely. I honestly feel that if I'd had this as my first car I might not be alive today, though I think if I'd had it after a few years it would have been great.

-- Mark

 

I just wanted to thank everyone for the time and effort they put into typing their opinions. After much diliberation and some viewing of the run (great marketing video) my dad has decided to get me the Z. Yes i am 16 and cant always drive like a granny, but i will be as safe as possible. Lets face it how many of you drive like a 90 year old. I know you all push it at times. So hopefully god will be with me when i am driving and everything should be ok.

 

Hey, it's on YOU to be a safe driver. God will only punish you when you've screwed up!

Enjoy your new car and be sure to take it seriously easy for the first few thousand miles at least.

-- Mark

 

I agree with the others who said that getting a license is way too easy in the US. The biggest part of our driver's ed test was parallel parking which has absolutely no bearing on how good a driver you are. I think there should be much harder tests, accident avoidance, how to recover from oversteer, etc. So many people get scared when their car loses traction and they panic and lose control.
If I was 16 again, I don't think I would want my parents to pick me up a new car. When I was 16 I bought my '72 Skylark and paid for everything associated w/ it - gas, insurance, maintanence, etc. and when you pay for it yourself and work on it yourself it makes you appreciate the car a lot more than just having one handed to you. Plus, I would be willing to bet there will be some kind of ding/scratch/dent on that Z in the first few months, I don't think I know anyone didn't misjudge a curb or something when they were 16 and scratched up their car or worse. Drive a beater and you don't have to worry about that. The other big factor is driving it to high school - I would never have driven my Z to my high school and it was in a really nice neighborhood. Kids get jealous or they don't like you and they won't think twice about keying your car or worse.
I know this is all a moot point since your dad already decided to get you the Z, but I thought I would at least throw my opinion out there.

 

you guys are all missing the real reason why this 16 year old wants and is getting this car, showing off (not racing just owning one) and getting lots of Pu**y something he wont be able to do in a beeter. this car would make a horny 16 year old dreams come true. you will be surprised on how much a car like this affects the opposite sex. even if i disagree on him getting this type of car i cant blame the guy if i was in his position id take it too, when i was his age i did not drive a car like this but i dd have a sports car a 5 year old at the time rx-7 back in 91 wich i saved up 5,000 and bought the car. it was not a beeter but i sure did have fun and to this date not 1 car accident (knock on wood).

my advice although i dont agree for you getting the car mostly cause its dangerous. is to go ahead and get the car i would too if i was in your position im 27 now and i would not get my son this car its more of an upbringin issue.
life is short enjoy it the most you can.

 

I somewhat disagree, but will not spend much of your time on this topic since this is the General 350Z section. IMHO, God allows us free will so that we are not just mindless puppets. So, in that regard, you can choose to drive safe or choose to drive stupid. Although God can allow events to happen or choose to prevent them, we cannot tell beforehand which will be the case. Also, we cannot tell how the events that do happen fit into His master plan for us. We only trust that His way is how life should be.

Drive safely and pray that others also do the same.

P.S. - I'm not trying to be "holier than thou" as the saying goes. I just don't think that God is out to "punish us" when we've "screwed up". He doesn't need to. We usually punish ourselves enough on our own just fine. Of course, on judgement day, all bets are off.

WayneTN

 

Wayne, I was, as you probably could guess, kidding.

-- Mark

 

I don’t think a young driver should be faulted for wanting a powerful new sports car. Rather, it is the parent who makes the decision to buy one, especially after viewing “The Run,” a video in which the Z is driven through Prague at 123 mph.

Do be safe, 350zLord. Because the car can be driven aggressively, there is a tendency to take advantage of its capabilities. You’ll find, too, that other drivers respond to the car, which can elicit behavior on their part and yours, that otherwise would not have been intended.

 

Purchase, maintain, and insure it yourself and then answer to no one.

Until then, at least act a little grateful to your dad who's stupidly spending thousands on you, so you don't have to.

I'm 29 own my own home a 2000 Jeep G.C. and a Z not because I was given it but because I busted *** for it.

Understand that most people here have worked for theirs too, and see you as a little greedy rather than appreciative that your old man is willing to give you a car. Try and put things into perspective a little.

Good luck either way.

 

I don't know, I haven't seen anything that I'd characterize as "ungrateful" from the original poster, but he does seem to want the car!

I don't blame him, I just think that he'd be better off getting there with another vehicle in between first.

-- Mark

 

When the old man is willing to spend $30K+ for a car and his only request is that he get a car with enough space so can take his siblings with occasionally, it does seem a little ungrateful. I also think that it would help the old man out with not having to cart the kids around and maybe this is an investment to save the dad time as well. Just me, but if someone made me that offer, I would look around at some other options to saitsfy everyone, i.e. G35 coupe, I have a Z so I know how hard it would be to do that.

To each his own.

 

OK, actually I agree with you.

-- Mark

 

I usually don't respond in these "let's bash a young driver and his parents" threads, but I feel like maybe it's necessary to draw attention to all the 25 and up drivers on this board who constantly post things like, "got up to 124 on the freeway, but the digital speedo said 128, is my car messed up," etc. And what about the, "I was doing over 100 racing a GS400 and outran a cop" post? C'mon guys. I'm done with college. I've been driving for years, and I'm going to buy a Z soon. There were lots of immature teenagers in my high school, but there are a lot of immature "adults" on the road too, who are quick to run into a kid and call it the kid's fault.

To 350zLord:
I had a nice car in high school and when I get the Z I'll hva e a nice car again. A few rules: Don't be a dick. People will be pissed because of what car you get (it's the Z, so I'm guessing they probably will be). If you're a nice guy and don't try to show off, your car will most likely be left untouched. Second, it doesn't matter what kind of driver you think you are. There will be times when you fail your expectations of your responsibilty and maturity (it happens to everyone, I speak from experience, and call BS on anyoine who says differently about their own experience), so try to be as good and level-headed a driver as you can be. Also, try to swing the performance model, because the VDC and TCS will come in handy, even if you think you know how to drive in different conditions. And no, I don't think you're spoiled, as long as you respect the car, and truly appreciate it. Congratulations.

 

Sure, but that's not the point. The point is that most reasonable adults (and I'm assuming you, I, and our original poster's future self all fall into this category ) have a lot of bad experiences on the road when they're young, learn from these experiences, and become a lot more safe later on.

This is borne out by accident statistics and it's borne out by my personal experience. The issue, of course, is that road safety is not solely about maturity. I'm happy to assume that this particular 16-year-old's intentions are good, although 16-year-olds as a class have less-developed judgment than their older siblings.

Instead, the biggest concern I'd have is about the ability to foresee unsafe situations before they develop, something which only experience behind the wheel can give you, no matter how good your intentions.

The point, as you imply, of having a car like the 350Z is to be able to accelerate quickly, move quickly, and maneuver precisely. When you're doing any of these things, there's far less time to react to unsafe road conditions, nutty drivers, or mechanical failures, and thus that ability to anticipate what may happen unexpectedly becomes even more critical to driving safely.

-- Mark