for the second time, i dont mean an actual 0-60 race.
i dont mean race to 60 mph and stop...i am just calling it that because it is a short race. i am not talking about the races on the highway that go on for 20 mins..i am talking about the races that most people do when they pull up to a light and punch it at the green light for about 200 feet or so.

i guess you just dont understand what i mean, i am sure others do. Besdies,after reading your last post about the neon and the wrx beating the z in a "0-60" race, i dont think i care for your "thoughts" anymore, as i realized you dont know much.

take care...

 

thank you exsilio..i am glad someone understood what i was getting at...dang, it is 430 am..i need some rest, see what this damn Z car has done to us humans..lol.

 

I would love to pull up next to some punk in a POS Neon who wanted to go. Although I think even the kiddies in those will realize they're about to bite off more than they can chew. And as for the GS400....great car, fast car, but the Z will take it, no problem.

 

R*Rocket. Are you going to be a 350Z owner? Because you're really talking down the car. Also, since we read a forum instead of hearing you talk to us, we can't tell if the tone of this post is aggresive or a calm reply. So please, try to word your statements so they don't come off as being condecending or just add smiles.

I highly doubt a GS400, or a Dodge Neon R/T will beat the Z. Hell, i love my GS400, but the Z will still beat it.

If 0-60 isn't a race, then what would you suggest is?

 

well,i think u are wrong. z28s dont run low 13s stock and from what i've seen..stock ones run from high 13s to mid 13s. The previous Z runs high 13s which the best i've seen is like 13.7. the 300zxtt weighs like 300 lbs more and has turbo lag. howeva the Z has a n/a engine with a lighter body. my prediction is that if nissan makes the Z with 300hp or ova we should get in the mid 13s easily.

 

Big domestic V8s now have a growing reputation as being handlers as well as straight-line-monsters.

Just FYI.

 

I agree with you. Thanks for agreeing with me!

My post was in response to another post saying the Z wouldn't be effective against "straight-line" racers. I could consider a Camaro to a classic straigh-line racer: quick in a straight-line, but handles like a grocery-cart in the corners.





Well not quite like a grocery cart. I'm just JOKING! Relax! I had a Camaro and thought it was a fine car, but that live rear-axle is awful on the bumps....

 

Well, its a quick race.

Like 5.2 seconds quick.

 

If Nissan is predicting 0-60 under 6 seconds, and the software simulation is getting like 5.6 0-60, and JmanZ who's incredibly hooked-in is getting 5.2 0-60, how do you justify the assumption of 0-50 in 5.7?

 

Glad I'm not alone in my "its the driver" assertion.

Thanks JmanZ!!! You're a great forum host!!!!

 

Living as I do in a large metropolitan area, with a speed limit of 55 on even the biggest of highways, my answer to the question of where is 0-60 practical is: pretty much everywhere. That is the range of speed I will be driving most of the time.

But what is 0-60 anyway? It's just a totally arbitrary number that at best can give you an idea of how one car might match up against another over a very short, straight distance of road, all else being equal. But as Jay pointed out, it really never is equal, due primarily to the driver. Until they master the laws of physics and figure out how to have the same driver in two places at one time, as well as matching a thousand other variables, it will never be equal.

Getting back to what Jay really meant when he asked where is 0-60 practical (as opposed to my shaky, stretched interpretation above), the answer of course is nowhere. When you race someone, do you watch the speedo until you hit 60 and then quit? Of course not...you keep that pedal down until you've made your point, or it is no longer safe to do so, whichever comes first. That may occur at 37 MPH, or at 91.6 MPH, depending on a million other factors, of which the speed "60 MPH" is not one.

 

By "big" domestic V8 do you mean "big-block?" Because most of the V8s out there are small-blocks.

Anyways, I've had small-lbock domestic V8s, and certainly the handling can be quite commendable, particularly Corvettes, which are stellar in their skid-pad G ratings (where's them fish when you need them). But I would assert that a stock "muscle-car" does not handle better than a stock "sports-car." I've had both, and experience indicates that the sports-car exists for a reason: because it can handle.

If it couldn't, nobody would buy one.

 

Regarding TCBZ's post 2 above:

You got that right. 0-60 exists so we consumers can have a vaguely reasonable common standard from which to compare cars. Most everybody goes at least 60MPH, and its far enough from 0MPH to allow at least a few seconds to exist between the two, yet not so far apart that it would be meaningless. Like in my '86 Toyota 4x4 a 0-90 test would be pointless BECAUSE I CAN'T GET THE DARN THING TO DO 90. Unless its downhill with another car behind pushing me.

Anyways 0-60 is a reasonable statistic. Is it a race? Well semantically, yes. Is it a good yardstick for all cars, no, buts its a pretty good yardstick for the vast majority.

 

Well, look like there're a lot of activity here in the last 24 hours while I was sleeping and handled some other stuff, i.e. my full time job. Since I started this thread, I'd like to thanks all for very constructive and civilized discussion. A lot of discussion focused on the Z vs SS. Some honorable mentioned include: Boxster S, GS400 and Dodge R/T Turbo. So, I think an objective comparison is in order to set a base line. There is no stock version of Dodge R/T turbo, yet, so I used a non-turbo number and you have to estimate on your own what a turbo would add. 0-60 and 1/4 mile numbers are from Car & Driver.

Model_______HP___Torque__Weight__CD:0-60__1/4 Mi.
'03 350Z_____280+__267____3196
'02 SS_______325___350____3433
'01 Z28 Conv__310___340____3600___5.2_______13.8
'01 Boxster S__250___225____3042___5.3_______13.9
'01 GS430_____300___325____3828___5.9_______14.5
'01 R/T________150___135____2777___7.6_______16.1

After reviewing these numbers, my subjective opinion is that the 350Z 0-60 and 1/4 mile number would be very close to Boxster S, since this one is the benchmark for 350Z development. The closest number I can find for SS is the CD Z28 convertible number, so you have to make some adjustment.

For 0-60 and 1/4 mile short skirmish on the street, the differences between the Z and SS or Boxster S vehicle capability will be subsecond. With these small differences, I think the driver reaction time and vehicle launch will be the deciding factor. I have to agree with BrianZ and Jay on this one.

For longer race, the street is not suitable for that. It is unsafe. Save it for track or special event. I think the Z would be more nimble with its brand new FM platform against a much older SS platform with solid live axle. Is it enough to make up for the deficit in HP and Torque against SS? again, I think the driver will be the deciding factor.

That are my 2 cents.

You can draw your own conclusion in your own mind about how a Z would stack up against a GS400 or Dodge R/T turbo. I don't even want to go there.

Comments are welcome

 

If you mention a 0-60 mph number to your German auto enthusiast friend, chances are he/she will give you a blank look. This stat. is only matter in a country where 55 mph is the law for almost 2 decades. This stat. in invented by Auto magazine to sell subscription and supported by car company when and if their number looks better than the other guys. It is just an American invented yard stick. Well, 0-60 mph is very close to 55 mph reality and what a top speed mean to an average person when you can't even experience it.

If we look at competitive event like Olympic, there are track event like 100, 200, ... 1000 meter, ..., and marathon. Short or long, these are all competitive races that give out medals. If we apply this concept to auto racing, a short one is as valid as a long one. One wrinkle, 0-60 mph is a time to speed measurement, not a time to distance race. So, if we replace 0-60 mph with 1/8 mile, then that would be half the distance of 1/4 mile, similar to 100, 200 meter track event.

In short, both short or longer distance are a race. That's my 2 cents.

 

Wait a minute, you've just hit on a new Olympic race!

 

nicely put touring..