DaveJackson

iTrader: (5)

Letting a woman drive a car is like letting a monkey fly a plane.

RustyVette

Ok, all, thanks for the responses. Yes I am aware this may seem a little absurd, but the point in this post is to get feedback on how Z's handle. Like I stated before, I have never driven one, don't know what to expect. Ask and you shall receive right?

RustyVette

I noticed that the highest death rate of the older cars was the Chevy Blazer. I can agree with this as I have a crew cab s10 (same thing as a blazer). They handle awful around even a slight curve you feel like your going to roll.

richee3

iTrader: (1)

Another thing to think about is not just your daughter, but her boyfriend. She's going to go out on a date, let him drive.... You see where this is going.

When I was 16, I was very responsible, made good grades, drove carefully, and all that other good stuff. I was responsible enough for a Z. But here's the problem: I wouldn't have tried to drive like an idiot but just like your Corvette, the car can easily do more than the driver. In a split second, no matter how carefully your daughter is driving, a 350Z can get out of control and she will not have any idea how to save it.

I mean absolutely no offense here, so please don't take it the wrong way. Driving one "to see how it handles" seems a bit foolish to me... It's a purpose built sports car. Of course it's going to handle well. This wouldn't be the first time a 16 year old has gotten a Z for their first car, nor will it be the last. It's not a wise idea to get a new driver a powerful RWD sports car but at least you know she's responsible. My advice would be of you do get her a 350Z, at least enroll her in a defensive driving course that will teach her how to recover from losing control.

KornerCarver

iTrader: (2)

The Z handles beautifully. It has excellent road manners. Listening to all these "experts" on the wonderful handling of front wheel drive makes me wonder why any of these experts drive a Z. Up until 1980 or so, there were no front wheel drive cars available except the Mini, Saab and various Citroens. People drove their rear wheel drive cars in all conditions and didn't suddenly spin out or have their cars become unstable. We didn't have traction control and ABS and yet we were able to drive our cars without constant crashes. I drove rear wheel drive cars from 1961 until around 1985 and never had control problems. I have a Base Z and it will have had it 10 years old on July 1, 2013. I bought the Base because it didn't have the driver aids, (except ABS and it came with that whether I liked it or not) because I think the driver should be in control, not the car. Amazingly, I haven't had any problems driving the Z. I taught my daughter to drive in a '95 Dodge Stealth and she loved it. Admittedly, it was FWD and only 222 horsepower, but she did very well driving it. I believe the Stealth would have been a more satisfying car to drive if it had been RWD but that is another story. RWD cars tend to handle better since the driving wheels are not doing all the work.

I don't see a problem getting a Z as a first car for anyone. Just remember, it isn't the car that kills, it is the driver. If the driver is taught to drive properly and not show off in front of their friends, the Z will be just fine for your daughter. This is coming from an older guy who has a 19 year old grandson so I have been around for awhile.

Jbakes727

iTrader: (3)

Buy her a g35 and call a day.

stuartc323

Its not about the car having RWD, its about the car being a two seater sports coupe with over 280hp, dont think aby of those economical cars of the 70s had more than 200 hp. Either way NOT a great car for a teen, especially a girl. your daughter may be the best driver in the world because you taught her , but at the end of the day her maturity and skill has to come into play in a car like this. Than there is the problem of her letting a bf drive or not. Dont say it wont happen, I had plenty of girls let me drive their moms mercedes or their brand new honda civics and eclipses when I was in high school because they were in "love".

OP, you want to know how a Z handles, It handles really well. It picks up very fast stock and can hit a 45 degree angle turn at 30mph (depending on the driver) But as other parents on this forum will tell you, If you want your daughter to not have an 85% chance of destroying her car, self or losing her life, get her as civic.

Cars are tools. My dad always told me with skilsaws "you can lose an arm or leg if you dont know what your doing".

bmccann101

iTrader: (16)

you asked for it.. aside from it being a poor safety and affordability choice, ever sto pto think what message are you sending her by giving her a car like this for a first car?
Let alone.. a car that adult men crash routinely. My adult non idiot friend had a blow out on the fwy last week and totalled his nismo Z..
she will also not be abel to drive her friends around.. a lame " feature' for being in HS if you ask me.

as many have said here.. this is not a learner car. Kids should have kid cars.. they dont need new things to be happy. If they do, you got alot more work to do elsewhere lol.

Best way to ruin teenagers is to give them too much money or attention.

bmccann101

iTrader: (16)

lol ^ yesss.
besides, theres no room for her to cary sandwich ingredients in a 350z.
Whos going to marry or date a girl who cant make sandwiches? meh.

j3tt2

I agree 100% with all of these posts. I've had a civic ex with alot of performance mods and it still wouldn't have impaired to my Z when it was stock. My Z handles better than 100% of cars on the road at its price, has more power (remember at this price of vehicle), and is a very fun car to drive. I am 24, bought this car on my own, and have learned to drive iron my own. I have never been in a wreck (knock on wood) and am very careful.... But with that said, I do have spurts of curiosity and my car always shows me something I am even shocked it can do. It's a great design of power/handlin mix, and can turn from fun to scary in the time it take to take a highway exit.
A 4 cylinder car would be better for a first car talking from experience. The guys have said before civics, scion, eclipse, are good cars if taken care of, as would be highly recommended for a first car over the Z. I hope our input helps and you take it for what it's worth. We don't want to see another Dugan on here, unless it comes from someone ignoring what signs we've warned about

Cracka350

iTrader: (1)

HA HA HA HA HA!!

But really, be smart. Dont give har a tail happy high performance sports car for her first. Its just not wise.

BornSlippyZ

iTrader: (1)

I agree with what most have said in this thread. A 350Z is not a good first car for a teenager. Your daughter might be the exception to the rule but there are way to many variables that factor into teenage drivers. I think it is good that she has good grades and she will hopefully get into a great college one day. But rewarding her with a (albeit used) 350Z is not the smartest move imho. Corolla, Altima, Scion TC, Camry, Civic, Accord etc are all great cars and will not challenge a novice driver. Not to mention these cars are 'cheaper' to maintain/insure.

RustyVette

Some very good input from many, and things I haven't thought of (letting the bf drive, taking defensive driving classes, which would be fun) though I have to disagree with those that think that her being a girl increases the likely hood of her being careless, having an accident, etc. Seems to me that girls don't have as strong of a desire to show off as much as the boys do (this is at any age- LOL) Also reminds me of my first driving experiences - you can't go fast on gravel roads, Mustangs are not trucks, they will get stuck in cornfields, oops, that was the gas, not the brake, just how many people can I pack in this car? And back then (er...1990,)$10 almost gave you a full tank of gas. Most of my driving screw ups came from being inexperienced, something everyone learns no matter what they are driving weather it be a Corvette Z06 or a 4 banger Mustang 2 that goes from 0 to 60 in 20 years.....this is why I am trying to let her have a lot of driving time NOW when I can be there because no matter what the car, kids are most likely going to have a few 'oops' moments.
I think I will just give her my Celica and I will go buy myself the Z...problem solved!
All jokes aside, thanks for the input and for the memories!

jerryd87

iTrader: (4)

guys are more likely to show off and speed but women are more likely to do distracting things like makeup, talking on the phone, texting and other things theres a reason that females start out with just as high of a insurance rate as males anymore.(my wife actually pays more on her focus then i do on the z and she has no speeding tickets and better credit then i do)


really gotta listen to the insurance on things like this due to changes in society its not going to be the same as when you where a kid.

6mtg

iTrader: (1)

I would also so no to a z or g coupe, maybe a g sedan but when my coupe was stock it was still squirrely but the z and g platform dose not get very good fuel economy as much as I hate to say it a civic si is a good first car and it's a peppy car as well not fast but not quite gutless and amazing gas mileage but that's just my 2 cents

STL 350Z

iTrader: (3)

I would have to say no. You live in Kentucky and if you get any amount of snow she's not getting anywhere at all.

Get her a fwd automatic civic.

DavesZ#3

iTrader: (26)

Are we talking about Honey Boo-Boo here?

Z1NONLY

iTrader: (2)

The Z is a bad first car.

It's not very forgiving on dry pavement: (experienced driver that I let try my car)


And it's even worse in the wet: (although this is on tires that are not that good in the wet anyway)

KornerCarver

iTrader: (2)

I didn't drive economy cars back in the 1970's. My '69 Chevelle SS396 was the most powerful car I ever drove until I bought my Z. It had 350 horsepower and didn't tip the scales at 3000 lbs so the performance was pretty awesome. Here are a few pics of the "economy" cars I used to drive.

I also had a '66 Ford Falcon with a 271 horsepower 289 and 4 speed. In additon I had a Porsche 914 that wasn't a powerhouse, but it handled like a gocart.

JCat

iTrader: (4)

Despite your best intentions, the odds are that your daughter is going to have a traffic accident.

I purchased a Honda CRV for my daughter, and thank God that she survived (without injury) a head-on collision with a Dodge Durango.

I was so impressed with the Honda CRV that we worked together and purchased another one. She has been safe now 2+ years.

The new one:


The old one: