I've stepped up from my "trial size" Honda del sol to an '05 ZR. Love the power and the ride, and so far the only thing I'm missing is the cargo space... well, maybe a bit of extra gas mileage.

I have 10.5 cu. ft. in the sol's trunk, so am feeling cramped with the ZR's tiny boot that barely holds my suitcase. Has anyone modded their trunk to gain space? Pulled out the spare/tools/liners, cut the back wall into the roof storage, or anything equally bizarre?

I've been using the roof compartment to carry things like lightsabers (I do a lot of charity events as Obi-Wan Kenobi, and it's perfect for these) but it isn't the most convenient access.

 

How can you possibly mod a car for more space it is what it is. The z and cargo space and practicality dont go in the same sentence.

 

I would never buy a z roadster as my only car, it has less trunk than my 95 Del sol.

 

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is this guy serious

 

I've never made more room by removing the tools from my wife's ZR. We use the passenger seat when the trunk is full, but we have another car or 3 when we really need more room. The ZR is enough for overnight bags for the two of us plus some wine by the foot of the passenger. I suppose you could remove the spare tire and carpet back there for a little more room, but I'd be cautious about putting stuff where the top folds down to in fear of tearing it. It's costly to replace.

 

lol, you've been keeping things in the soft top storage? I thought I was the only one who tried that.

 

I'm already finding that using the Z for my project is getting me a bit more respect over the sol, since the Z is perceived as a "real car".

I didn't want to replace my '95 sol but, at 15 years old, 232,000 miles and with a declining parts stock it's becoming impractical. I'll likely be sending it off to pasture at a So Cal auto museum when my Z is complete. Since I have a long family history with Datsun Zs it seemed like a good choice and I'm certainly not regretting it; though with the cancellation of the 350 I imagine I'll be in the same boat again in 15 years...

I can't take one of my other cars to my events, as I'm modding the Z to be in theme with my appearances. I know, this all sounds weird, but it is for a good cause. I do up to 160 appearances annually for sick kids, returning US soldiers and Lucasfilm, and I'm sure some of you'll want to kill/flame me for what I'm doing to my Z.

The del sol guys got over it when my car became "high profile" and I started driving the car in NASCAR parade laps, MonsterJam events, appeared on TopGear and G4TV, and in AutoWeek, Wired, Stuff, GQ, Life and Playboy magazines, to mention only a few. I imagine you guys might as well. Or not, but I'm doing it anyway, and will deal with the crap.

Currently what I do is pack 10-12 lightsabers in the top area (top up only, of course), stormtrooper armor or other costume in the trunk and passenger or Yoda puppet in the front seat. Not ideal, and I'll make it work, but I thought I'd ask as I did eventually pull the spare out of the sol and gained another 4 ft. of cargo space. It didn't look like I'd gain as much in the ZR, but thought I'd ask in the event anyone else had gone there before me. Learn form someone else's mistake or success.

 

may the force be with you

 

...and also with you.

LOL- thanks... I'll take all the help I can get!

Might be OT, but here's an example of what I do; I'm training about 500 kids at Houston Space Center (in 114-degree heat) in this pic:

 

I removed spare tire and spare tire tool foam holder just because I dont really need it and in an emergency my family always helps me out.

 

Do you think it was a worthwhile space gain? I usually travel in a caravan or within AAA service, so it also generally isn't an issue for me, either.