Autobahn

I should be getting my Silverstone, Touring, 6-spd, w/matts & splash guards in a couple of weeks but I was getting a little anxious to see one in person. Since I was driving up the 405 freeway past Torrance I thought I would stop by the headquarters building to see what I could see. There in the parking lot were two 350Z’s: a LeMans Sunset and a Chrome Silver.

First some background. I did see the 350Z at the LA car show last January but since I wasn’t in the market for a car at that time I didn’t pay that much attention and the details of that encounter are fuzy. I did think it looked HOT but so did a number of other cars.

Okay here are my opinions. First the car did look “small”. I know all about the wheelbase being the same as the vette but it kinda looked about the size of an Eclipse or maybe a bit smaller than the TT. I know true sport cars are small but it is just an observation. Second imo the best feature was the “rear”. It just looks “beefy”. I walked all around both cars and looked through the windows. The "Z bar" inside the rear hatch looked impressive. I do understand now what people have been saying about the interior. Compared to "high-end" cars, the Infinity G35 I sat in last weekend for a comparison, and what I remember of the 300Z I almost bought in '93, the 350Z interior looks at little plain and “unfinished” when it comes to details. This is just an impression but I think it was just the way the console trim ends and the carpet begins; the big pieces of plastic for the speaker enclosures which look to be easily scuffed up; and just some of the dash and radio treatments, etc. The orange leather seats in the LeMans definitely looked a lot better that the black on black cloth seats in the chrome silver.

Overall I’m still very exited about my new Z and will post lot’s of picture in a couple of weeks if everybody isn’t too tired of the flood we should be expecting soon. This will be the 4th sporty car I’ve owned (’77 Trans Am 4-spd; ’87 Starion Turbo 5-spd; ’93 Corvette 6-spd) and I’m really looking forward to selling my current GMC truck and getting something that handles again.

Autobahn

I liked the LeMans Sunset MUCH better than the Chrome Silver. The orange exterior and the orange leather interior really make it seem like a sports car. I would definitely get the leather though, either factory or plan on getting aftermarket. From the pictures I've seen I would still have to agree with the common opinion that blue is the best color but if you want the LeMans it's definitly an eye-catcher.