Maybe 3-5 if your lucky... And you probably wouldn't notice anything but the new sound...


But the point I had for getting a new exhaust was because my car is old, and the factory exhaust rusted in half.

 

Epic mergers

 

1200....

I still vote for a savings account for 1200

 

at $3500 FI setup and 15-20hp from bolt-on exhaust.

 

OP as someone mentioned before, are you going for performance or show?
Not hatin but maybe you should save up a little bit more money, and do a bit more research until you know what you really want. In the meantime, enjoy getting to know your Z, go to car meets/cruises, get to know other Z owners at those events as well, they can help you as well. You will prolly more than likely will be bit by the modding bug as well and you will want to keep going after you do one mod. Fixing up your ride is fun but can be an expensive hobby too.

 

Ive been researching the same thing for the last few weeks... Here's what I have done/will be doing to my 03:

5/16" plenum spacer (plenum spacer + MREV2 lower plenum if you have an 06 or newer, iirc) $100-$200 for spacer, $500 MREV2

Stereo + Zenclosures sub box that goes under rear strut bar. The factory Bose system is pure crap. Replace it ALL with aftermarket stuff.

Shorter antenna - I paid $5 for one that came off a truck (forgot which, sorry). It sits flush and looks OEM. Or get the "Shorty" antenna.

Re-black your grill - I used plasti-dip. Looks brand new now.

LED lights - interior, brakes, turn signals, reverse, etc. I paid ~$100 for it all. Looks modern and is efficient.

Restore Headlights - Tons of videos on how to do this. Cheap and easy. Looks amazing.

Steering Wheel - Can buy a used factory steering wheel for around $75 on ebay. Or re-wrap your old steering wheel yourself, though its pretty hard to do a good job. Or pay $250 to get it done by Redlinegoods.

Shift **** - Kind of hard to find a decent used factory one on ebay for a good price.

Restore Rims - If your rims have crazy curb rash, youtube how to restore rims. Time consuming but cheap and worth it.

New carpet. - New Nismo Floor mats $60, new factory trunk carpet $60

OBD2 dongle and Torque app - $10 and $5. Best $15 ive spent on this car because I can read all the error codes and diagnostics in realtime.

Dash tablet - I removed my cubby door and put in my Galaxy Tab 3 Lite 7". Fits snug. Use it for navigation, Torque app, music, movies, etc.. Can find one for ~$50 though im sure there's better, newer tabs that would fit also. A tablet can also be used as a full on stereo replacement. Theres tons of videos on how to do that also.

Exhaust - I see stuff on craiglist going for under $300. The factory Y-Pipe and Catalytic converters restrict airflow like crazy. If I were to replace any exhaust part it would be the cats which go for $500 brand new. Berk, Stillen, Fast Intentions, etc..

Intake - Pop Charger $125 shipped from Amazon. Seems to be the most recommended intake.

Throttle Body - 09 Maxima 75mm throttle body + NWP adapter plate and harness = $300.

Tune - I wouldn't even bother buying an exhaust, intake, or throttle body if you don't get a tune right after. AND, there's no point in getting a tune unless you have those parts installed. Get it all done at the same time or don't do any of it. You will only get about 30 extra horsepower out of it all anyway.

Shocks/Springs - Tokico HP $350 and Eibach Pro-kit $250. An even better setup would be the Tokico D-Spec shocks $600



But if you only have $200 then I would just replace some of the parts that tend to go bad in the 350z such as the Camshaft Position Sensors, o2 sensors, PCV valve, fuel level sensor, hatch shocks, window motors, etc..