CHOOSE a coupe or a roadster?
 

Heres the thing.. I know people say that you should buy your own z. But im a good college kid blah blah good grades so my mamas gona get me one as a early graduation present.

I can spend 35-36k.

Get a fullly loaded Coupe ? or get the roadster?

Im the kinda guy that likes to go fast with all teh windows down.. So I duno if I should get a roadster enthusiast without the burnt orange seats and navigation which I wanted.

So should I give up the navigation and upgraded seats for the abilbity for me to drive fast with the top down...

Its a hard decicision, gimme some feedback as well as your personal opinions thanks!

Plus im getting the 2005 model just to decrease my chances of getting one that will tire feather badly. :icon17:

hell ide say get the fully loaded coupe, you will be lighter without the drop top and i personally dont like convertibles in general.

I used to think the roadsters were wierd looking. But the more I see one the more I want one. I wish I could have both =(...

You can't go wrong with either one. But my preference is the coupe.

I think the roadster looks lame with the top up. If this is your 2nd+ car, get the roadster and only drive it with the top down. If its your only car, get the enthusiast coupe, but not fully loaded. If you want to drive fast, then leather seats wont hold you in like the cloth ones. Also, nice racing seats can be bought cheaper then the leather/cloth combo they also offer. Navigation systems can be bought cheaper then 2,000 (what Nissan will charge you for navi).

What you need to consider isn't looks but more like will you use the roadster Top down frequently? If you like lots of wind noise and getting blown around a bit then by all means get the roadster. It can be lots of fun but if you're not sure then you need to drive one. Take it on the freeway & open it up a bit. security may be another consideration. If the car is to be parked outside then you need to think about where it will be parked & how secure the area is. Those canvas tops are cut or punctured with a sharp knife farely easily.

Both cars are great. Just be sure your buying based on what you'd prefer & not simply looks.

If you haven't yet, go to dealership and test drive both. That should give you a better idea what you should get than asking strangers.

+1

If I had a 350Z Roadster, I would only drive it for fun, never to go to work or getting the groceries or going to a friends place.

I also had to make this same decision, and so I went for a month in the summer counting the days I would have the top down or the top up. I also counted what places I would feel safer to put the top up when I parked...

It turns out, lots of days were too hot/humid to have the sun beaming down at you. some days were rain or chance of rain. I drive on the highway a lot to get to work.

So all in all, in that month, I probably counted about 5 days out of the month that I would take the trouble of putting the top down, so I bought the coupe.

PS: The roadster with the top on looks ugly in my opionion. not worth the money (at least the climiate where I live).

Good Luck!

Yup, looks very lame to me. :rolleyes:

http://www.quiros.net/350z/images/nismozr_pic.jpg

The touring roadster is less than 200lbs heavier than the touring coupe, so I'd rather leave the wife and the golf clubs behind and drive topless... :D

If you're in the market to buy one... the subjective decision should be your own. Test drive both and see which you would be more comfortable in.

On a side note... too bad the coupes don't have a sunroof.

In my opinion, get the coupe if you're more into performance and the roadster if you're more into looks. Roadster guys don't get offended. I love the roadster too, but I just never feel good not having solid metal about my head, the chassis is more rigid in a coupe and it's lighter. Just my 2 cents.

I havent seen any "rigidity" numbers to compare, but I do know that the Roadster is like 180lbs or so heavier than the coupe. So, if you are into racing, and need every last ounce out of your car, then yes, by all means. Actually, several other performance cars are lighter than the Z, but that's another thread....

As a daily driver, the practical differences are:

1. Trunk space (less in a Roadster).
2. Road noise (more in a Roadster).
3. Theft security (a knife vs. a hammer breaking a window?)

However, riding topless on a breezy afternoon is something you will never experience being couped up (pun intended :D ) in a "regular" Z.

If you live where it snows, may not be such a hot idea.

If you live in Florida, today was like 150 degrees (like 90, but felt like 150) so going topless is a bad idea. Maybe around 7pm...

Looks are completely subjective. It just cracks me up how some fellow Z owners will defend their Zs from the Stang owners and the like, but will knock the Z Roadster at the drop of a hat - "its not a real Z", "it looks like crap", blah blah blah

Well, it is a Z. And apples to apples those 180lbs difference may give you what? 1/10 of a second advantage in a race? You can have it.

And, if the car flips over, is it more likely that a Roadster owner will die? I guess those rollbars are just for show... :rolleyes:

Not everyone is made for a Roadster. For you to appreciate a car like that you need to love the road noise, the wind in your face, the feeling of open sky all around and above you. If you don't, well, you're OK too, just don't bash those of us who do... :D

Maybe this will help. Alot of people have traded in their coupe to get a roadster, whereas I haven't really read about anyone trading in a roadster to get a coupe. This source is from many months of reading several 350z forums online.

I think both cars are great and you can't go wrong with either, but there was one statement that stood out on your post, and that was you like to drive with the windows down. If that is the case, you will LOVE to drive with the complete top down, and looking damn good at the same time.

Hey, I said "don't get offended," :D. I know there isn't a big difference between coupe and convertible. I wish I could have both, but I prefer the look of the coupe more. You don't have to see rigidity #'s, the roof is obviously a strengthening point for the chassis. The convertible would definitely be fun to have on a sunny day. I'm not worried about the top of the car collapsing and I never said a roadster driver was more likely to die. I'm more worried about me pulling up on the seatbelt and scraping my head along the pavement, :D. I was just giving an opinion and I was being pretty nice about it and even said not to get offended and here comes the "rolling eyes" smiley. Damn man, listen to other people's opinions and take a second to understand that people have different opinions than you. It wasn't an attack on roadster drivers if you were paying attention. I wish I could have both but prefer the coupe, simple as that.

I don't think ZBoater was attacking anyone, more like an expression of love for the ZR.

Yeah, I wasn't saying he was attacking me, just that I wasn't attacking him, :D.

If you want a coupe get the 350Z, if you want a roadster go with the Honda S2000. The Z roadster just doesn't look right to me....

I'm kinda surprised that so many guys who drive coupes feel so negatively about the roadster. Every time I run across a coupe owner, they say they wish they had a roadster, but that's probably because I always have the top down! Regardless, the choice for me was clear, because I wanted a convertable. If I wanted a hardtop coupe, I would have bought a G35 coupe.

I only like a Roadster, if they made a hardtop for them. If you are modding, stay with the Coupe, buy only a Roadster if you live in CA, or any place where sun is plentiful.