Did anyone make the upgrade from the older car to the newer car? I am curious to see how much faster is the new car?

 

Well I have gone from a 03 track to a 07 Nismo Z. The whole car is refined IMHO. The 07 motor is definetly a step up.

 

 

i like the hr, but the car is softer.... i might get energy susp. stuff to fix it.

gear box is way better, clutch is also better ( needs hi-temp fluid )

saving for an lsd and 3.9

 

Is it faster? I know it's faster in a straight line, how about overall? I am curious.

Sometimes I want to sell my car because the suspension is so hard, but I cant think of many cars that can outperform the Z for less than $40K new.

 

o7 is sooo for you then ! it is way faster and softer ! go test drive ! and it's less than 30k.....

 

I like my 07 for autocross much better than my previous 03. No need to go to 3rd gear in an open course and the response above 4k is more like boost. Took a while to get used to the wheels breaking loose in a straight line coming out of a corner. You can't hammer the throttle like an 03 without losing time to wheelspin. Got waxed at Walnut Ridge but with Konis and practice I placed 3rd behind Carter and Asher at the Huntsville Tour.

I really enjoyed taking it to the Z-Nationals PDX this year at Talledaga Gran Prix Raceway. Stock Bridgestones handled pretty well and I got my moneys worth of fun. I was catching up to 300Z TTs and waiting until the passing zones to get by.

 

so it is safe to say they are faster in all ways?

 

Uh... Sweet! You put Koni's on your 07? I had the SA's on my 97 M3 and loved them.

I am curious how the Konis changed the feel of your 07. Can you provide some subjective feedback? I want to take handling up a notch on my 07, but I can't really go much lower with the places I drive (Lots of steep driveway ramps), but I have considered trying Koni's on my OEM springs.

EDIT: I am skeptical about sways because they tend to couple the left and right suspension movements more closely together; so less of an independend suspension.

Thanks...

 

My son said that the original shocks were limiting transitions especially in slaloms. I value his opinion so we replaced them. We are running faster than before so the Konis could be helping.

They did not make as radical a change (for the better) to the ride comfort as Konis did on the 03. Normal driving is comfortable with them dialed down to 1/2.

No change to the front sway bar. The only other mod is a trailer hitch based on Roark's design.

 

I'm surprised you're running with the stock front bar. Did you have mid- to late-corner wheelspin with your '03? Do you have it now with your '07?

Edit: Also, have you had the '07 on a set of scales yet? If so, what did it weigh?

Edit 2: I noticed you mentioned wheelspin in an earlier post: I'm specifically referring to wheelspin from lifting the inside rear tire off of the ground, which doesn't affect the car's attitude, as opposed to wheelspin from breaking a tire that's on the ground loose with power, which causes the back end to step out. When I drove an '03, I got lots of the former kind, and I know Jim and Carter Thompson ran a bigger front bar and a full tank of gas in an attempt to prevent it.

 

Yes, I took Jim's advice on the gas level. A Z runs better with weight over the wheels. I prefer around 3/4 of a tank. As for the bar, I've spent enough on autocross goodies this year. My wife is patient and understanding however I've reached her irritation point.

 

I plan to autocross my 07 NISMO for the first time sunday.I'll probably hold off on any mods until SCCA classifies the car.Maybe we can start a campaign to classify the NISMO B/S.

 

Honestly, I don't think those mods are the difference makers. It would be stupid for SCCA to screw you guys like that. I think the Z can do well by simply getting some front camber to get the car to turn!!!

 

"Campaigns" to class cars are ineffective. Cars are classed according to a methodology which does not take letter writing campaigns into account.

It would not be at all stupid for the SCCA to class the car above B Stock. It's been proven time and time again that the 350Z can get it done in BS. A 350Z that was even incrementally faster could upset the balance of power in the class, and the last thing the SAC and SEB want to do would be to make a rare car that will likely only be made for one year and which cannot feasibly be upgraded to the car to have.

 

The Nismo belongs in BSP.

 

So when do we get a street-tire class? All they need to do is drop the back seat requirement for STU and the Z could race against the same cars it races against in B-Stock. (RX-8's, E36 M3's etc.) If the methodology's purpose is to put cars together for a "fair fight" in any given class, I don't see how the lack of a back seat, (that I never had in B-stock) suddenly becomes an unfair advantage when the RX-8's and E-36's throw on street tires and go to STU.

And I will be glad to take my chances against S2000's on street tires when they drop the competitively-irrelevant back seat requirement.

 

we had a stock 07 race a 03 with stock exhaust and test pipe.....03 won

 

Had the opposite result this weekend...my 07 won. My first time out too.

I think while the 07 does have an advantage because of the HR, the driver is still the deciding factor.

 

I was pleased with my NISMO last weekend at Little Rock.With a good set of Hoosiers I feel the NISMO could have easily won in B/S or B/SP.I came in 2nd between a Hoosier sod MR-2 turbo and a Hoosier sod 911,all three within 1sec of each other.Not bad for a 10yr layoff from autocrossing and OEM Bridgestones.