Hey there, new to these forums but have lurked for a while.
I'm about to buy my dream car, a 350z. Been driving a prelude for a while and loved it but the time has come.

To yall who have bought used cars and 350z's especially what should I look for?
Car is good physically, paint and interior are 9/10 I'd say. I'm test driving it this weekend. Has roughly 118k on it and it's a 2003. Stock clutch, aftermarket suspension.
Guy said only 2006's had oil consumption problems, but I thought 03's did as well, but what should I look for to make sure it's no lemon?

 

Get an 07+ GO

 

I dont believe 03's had oil problems, just the transmission, might have already been replaced with the newer model if he did the tsb

 

A vehicle with 100,000 miles will require more $upkeep$ than one with 50,000 miles. You will pay a premium for the vehicle with 50,000 miles, but less for maintenance. So pay now or pay later. No free lunch for you.

 

Depends on what you plan on replacing. I bought mine with 71k, but with plans to replace the exhaust, transmission, suspension, etc., and build the engine for FI. At that point miles don't matter, as long as the car was well cared for.

That said, you can find good deals on lower-mileage Z's. What I payed was fair, considering I bought from a dealership and they took care of some issues with the car and made sure it was running perfectly. But I could have gotten a Z with 50-60k for the same price private party had I been more patient.

If you can get one with 40-60k (at least under 100k) I'd say it's worth the extra time and money. But really with these cars it's about how they were treated. I've seen Z's with 20k fewer miles that look MUCH rattier than mine. I wouldn't even consider buying a Z with a dirty engine bay or with a rusty undercarriage. Pretty big red flag there, imo.

Also look for any bolts anywhere on the car that look newer than what they've been bolted to. That's a sign it's been modified and reverted back to stock. Most of the bolt-ons don't hurt these cars (if anything they increase the longevity, all other things being equal), but there should be full disclosure.

Finally, REALLY inspect the paint and the body, especially the base of the front bumper. Trust me, once she's been yours for a year, you will wince at every little nick and crack. Best to get the best you can get :-)

 

03 oil consumption problems?
Where did you get this info?
If this car did have this proble,you'd think that after 100k+ miles,it would have been fixed.

 

I hear you there on lower miles but I'm a college student on a budget, besides suspension upgrade/speaker upgrade it's stock. I'm hoping to do mods later on, since its over 100k miles with sock clutch is that an issue?

 

I really don't understand why so many ppl are joining this forum, asking for advice on if they should be buying an almost 10 yr old car, and whether they can afford maintenance on it or not or whether it'll require a lot of maintenance.

Your budget is not merely obtaining the Z. You will have plenty of other costs just running it and maintaining it. Seems like a lot of people are really trying hard to get an old old 350Z. Perhaps you should graduate, get a good paying job, then buy the Z that is of newer year model and much lower mileage or get a used 370 by then?

 

The Z is still a Nissan and will be a reliable car well over 100k even without absolutely perfect maintenance. But you do make a point.

 

I never said I couldn't afford maintenance on it and upkeep, I can. I just can't afford a 15-17k car + upkeep. I have a 2001 prelude with 170k atm, still running strong.

 

Still.. being a college student and not making a lot of $ trying to get an old Z is just financially irresponsible. However, my advice for you is get an 07+ (cuz less issues/maintenance needed, better motor, and slightly updated interior), save up and get an 07+, or graduate + get good job and buy a used 370z (if you still love to own a Z) or better. No point wanting an old *** 10 year old 350z just cuz you want "a 350z".

Priorities priorities...

 

I may check out some 07's or lower milage z's.

 

Troll is troll.

 

Test drive, check for trans grinds. 03s had trans problems, which considering your budget would be a stretch to replace if it went out after buying the vehicle. As for mods, depends on what mods you want to do, but other than a visual facelift, considering the mileage already and you wanting to mod it "later" probably won't be a good return on your investment. Sure it will last for some time, but why spend that much on a 10yr old car when for that $ you can buy a new model?

 

For the price of an '07 or '08 you can get an '03, and an engine rebuild, CD009 tranny, various other upgrades, and supercharger... that extra $10,000+ buys a lot. I'm not saying everyone should do this - if you just want a car, the newer might be the way to go. But if you want to build your own car... '03 all the way.

And talking return on investments about cars is kind of ridiculous. Have you ever bought a fully functional car made within the last 10 years with the intention of making money on it? The best you could hope for is a smaller percentage reduction in value over time for the newer model vs. the older model. But I'm not even sure that holds up... especially if you finance, since the extra interest payed on the more expensive car will outweigh pretty much anything else.

 

Return on investment...meaning life of the product. Of course you would never get money back on it. Lol. I'm saying for the miles on the car, paying for all those mods on an older car with high miles is not a good financial move imo. Car would die well short of what you paid for the mods in terms of usage.

 

"Car would die"? What exactly would "die"? You also have to consider the extra cost of interest and tax and registration of the newer car...

 

I mean would not be worth replacing engine and trans and other expensive parts on a car that you didn't even spend that much $ to buy in the first place. (chances of him sinking tons of $ into rebuilding and doing mods or FI is very slim).

For you sure why not, you probably have money to spare. The OP obviously does not right now.(in college and on a budget) He obviously doesn't have the money to spend to buy the car then spend another 10K on rebuilding it. He is using the Z as a DD, so while trying to purchase something that would be worth his investment and be able to mod in a couple years, all I'm saying is he should look for something a little newer to start with. And if he can't afford a few K to pay for taxes/registration he should stick with what he has and wait to finish school, then buy his Z when financially stable.

 

Agreed.

 

well I'm buying something between 50-85k miles now, bone stock.

On a side note, I can't post a thread in cars for sale section. Why is this?