I hit the gas hard in my car again today...it is SO damn fast and smooth.......especially as the RPM's build...this car is amazing, i absolutley love it!!

I agree that it is somewhat rough at idle and low RPM's but run it up through the gears really fast one time and all you feel is smooth power and toque.....great engine. This motor is good for 200K miles.....plus one of my good friends is a Nissan mechanic....he is buying a Z next week. I dont think he'd do that if he knew something we didnt.

 

Fast? Yes. Smooth? Err, not really... try out a 5th gen (2000-2003) Maxima. Even the 2K2-2K3 w/the same 3.5L engine is WAY smoother IMHO. I've got one, as you can see from my sig.

My mom's 96 Camry V6 is also pretty smooth.

 

Well my Acura CL was very smooth all throughout the rev range. The Z seems a little rough below 3000 RPM's but my car is very smooth when im running it hard....just as smooth as any other V6 ive driven. Its just doesnt make the prettiest noises inside the car.....the Z sounds great to specatators though.

 

I hope this doesn’t discourage anyone but, the V6 and flat 6 design has an inherit drawback. It has 2 banks of three cylinders. This means, when one bank has 2 cylinders at the top of the stroke, the other will have only 1 cylinder at the top of the stroke and thus causes the imbalance. All the other popular engine designs don’t have this drawback. Inline 4, inline 5, and inline 6 all have 1 bank so it’s naturally balanced. The V8, V12, or any V with an even number of cylinders per bank will be balanced.

Not to say our engines are just plain cheap, but a V6 just needs more work to make it more efficient, balanced, and smooth. Look at all the Honda/Acura V6s. The affordable Accord V6 is extremely smooth and robust. The NSX made some of the highest horsepower/displacement of any production vehicle back in the 90’s.

 

Go buy a f@#$%^& Cadilac

 

I love the engine sound of my car. At first, I thought it was a little rough. I couldn't bare to get it over 4k rpm because I felt like the engine was already screaming. But it just took me a little while to get used to. Now it's second nature.

 

I am suprised no one has mentioned the fact that the Z has more aggressive cams in it than the other vehicles with this motor. That is one of the ways Nissan got more HP out of the engine for the Z. That in itself will give you a rougher feeling engine. The Z also has a tight suspension which does not absorb as much of the engine vibration. Aggressive cam + high HP/TQ + stiff suspension + big wheels = rough ride but a lot of fun

 

Ouch! that's high. I beleive it will take it just fine though. I seldomly run over 4.5K. My needle runs between 3 & 4 all the time, usually closer to 4. I have my RPM light set at 5.5.

BTW- I have a Magnaflow exhause and man can you really "hear" the engine more. Not alot louder, although it is, but you can really hear the innerds of the motor itself. Alot more gutteral and gurgley. Especially when it's cold.

 

I just rode in my friend's 5th gen Maxima last night. He has the 5MT and has only been driving it for about a week now. It is a very smooth ride with alot of leg room in the back. Still, no doubt in my mind i love my Z.

 

I love the sound of the engine as it climbs in rpms. I think it is refreshing for a japanese company to release an engine that has some character to it. If you think your Z has a rough engine then test drive a S2000 and push the car. That engine is a beast when it is pushed into 5 to 6 thousand range. You will forget that this is a Honda engine. When breaking in my 350z I had a hard time keeping the car below four thousand rpms. This car begs to be pushed into higher rpms that is where this car shines. This is a sports car. If you want smooth then buy a Honda Accord or Acura TSX. Both cars are nice cars but a little boring. Very few pure sports cars are produced. That is what makes the Z unique because it is mass produced at a very competive price.

 

This is partially true.

It's really only the inline 6 that is inherently balanced (and therefore any other arrangement of inline 6's, such as a V12, ).
All the others you mention (I4, Flat 4, I5, V8), are not inherently balanced and will require balance shafts just like a v6.

That's part of what makes the inline 6 such a nice engine.

-D'oh!

 

But the advantage of the V6 is that is is shorter and lets you put more weight behind the fornt axle, as well as usually weighing less than a straight 6 (longer, heavier block).

http://autozine.kyul.net/technical_s...ne/smooth1.htm

It mentions that all flat engines are inherently balanced, whic I've also heard other places. Also offers an explanation why.

 

This is also what I'd heard. I thought the I6 and flat-anything were naturally balanced. I guess the exception to that rule would be flat engines that aren't fully 180 degrees. Didn't someone up above mention that Porsche engines weren't completely 180 degrees? I'm not familiar enough with them to know. But I guess if it isn't fully 180 degrees, then you'd be looking at a 179 degree V6.

 

I had heard that all versions of the VQ35 had the same cams, the only difference was the intake and exhaust. When 2k2-2k3 Maxima and V6 Altima people mod their cars with just breathing mods (intake and exhaust) they put down as much hp as the Z's do and run close to the same times at the track. I'm pretty sure that one company opened up a 350Z engine and a Max/Altima engine and found that, internally, they were all the same. This is the general consensus on the Maxima, Altima, and most other import forums, along with the fact that the 02-03 Maximas and Altimas actually have the same engine, despite what Nissan says in their official power ratings, the new Maxima has closer to 280hp than the rated 260 (265?), etc.

 

Oops, I guess I was wrong about the flat engines.

That was a very cool article.

Thanks.

-D'oh!