I had pretty much decided to get an Audi A4, when the Z's started catching my eye. I'm now very interested, and getting close to pulling the trigger. I've read all the reviews, scoured these forums and have come up with a few candidates:

2004 350Z Touring (hoping I can get out the door for $31ish)
2004 RX8
2002/3 TT - 225hp model
2002 Boxter

They're roughly the same prices, within $2k anyway. I'd love to hear some thoughts, biased as they may be, on these choices. I'm a street driver only who wants to have a lot of fun in the hour/day I spend in the car.

 

Unless you're going for the "S" type boxter, the Z out performs everything on your list. I love the look of the boxter & almost bought one myself. The Z is without a doubt the better car for the money.

 

$31 out te door? plus tax, title, and ....all of the options that come with a touring....

 

For Touring, your going to have to pay at least $34K.

If they are all about the same price, I would get a new Z.

 

04 RX8 - Slow, and the fenders are hideous
02/03 TT - You putting a rainbow sticker on it too?
02 Boxter - As said, if it's not the S it's useless

That leaves only one...

 

RX8 - Good all around car, reliability will be terrible, repairs will be a pain in the ***. Soft ride, pretty agile, torqueless. Too gimmicky for me, esp the overdone interior and exterior. Spent 200 miles driving this one, decided it was a little overpriced for what you get.

TT- A fashion statement, and getting long in the tooth. I've only driven the 225hp car, and I wasn't impressed. Handling was poor, power felt low. Hopefully the 3.2 will be better, although at a pretty ridiculous cost.

Boxster - an amazing car. Don't let anyone sell it short, it is one of the most fun cars to drive. That said, the interior quality is akin to that of the Z, the ride is brutal (even compared to the Z - at least on the sports susp car that I drove). It's not a good deal for the money, and repairs are absolutely ridiculous. How about $200+ oil changes and $500+ minor services? I'll pass. Plus you always have to explain to people why your dad wouldn't buy you a 911. :-)

350Z - I'm tired of hearing people ***** about it. The 350z is a hardcore sports car. If you want a car that is affordable yet raises your pulse each and every time you shift into third, the Z is your car. If you are looking for bragging rights or looking for something to impress your neighbors (325Ci) or the rice boys next door (Evo/STi), you can do a lot better for the money. In terms of driving satisfaction, I couldn't find anything that matched the Z for under $40k. Only the boxster was comparable, and it was much slower. People complain about the interior of the Z, yet I find it to be no worse than the G35, boxster, or even 911. The G35 has that awful dash-kit-look aluminum, and the strange instrument pod up top. The boxster/911 simply have the worst selection of plastic colors you'll ever see. And just looking at the rear seats in the 911 shows you how half assed porsche is about interiors. Low points of the Z are limited to excessive tire wear and recurrent speeding tickets.


Don't think I could write any more. This is all my opinion, drive them all and make your own. ;-)
NzZ

 

I'm in a similar boat but was considering an '03 S2K, the Z, and a RX-8 since they're all marketed about the same audience.

The S2K is hardcore and a car I could love 100x over if I didnt have to drive it everyday. The ride is hard and loud and not really what I want going from a Prelude riding on TEIN HA's.

I havent driven an RX8 or Z yet but the RX8 I can see turning into a POS quick. Reviews have come up with a lot of little things they didnt like and of course there's nothing to say this Rotary will be any better then their past attempts. One other thing that kills me is it looks like a 4x4 from the factory.

The Z seems like the car for me but you guys on this board have had their share of issues with the car so far. Yes I know everyone loves it but having rattles, greasy windows, possible trans issues, and what the F was Nissan thinking with a plastic gas filler door??????

That being said it's still at the top of my list with one other car I've recently thought about. The '02 M Roadster, it has 315 hp, lots of goodies and its a top down b1tch getter! Of course fixing something like a bad window motor out of warranty might cost as much as a set of coilovers on the Z pushes me away to some degree.

BTW Supposedly the rear seats in a 911 are for insurance purposes far more then for passengers.

 

Z is the way to go...i love the comment about the rainbow sticker on the TT..haha.

 

This is great feedback guys. I'm not a huge fan of the RX8 styling, so that one was already at the bottom of my list. I really do like the appearance of the TT. I need to balance overall usefullness with sport, as this will be my primary car and I will have to drive in adverse conditions. That's one reason the Quattro of the TT stands out in my mind. I really do like the looks and the power of the Z, that's what keeps me coming back. Any other thoughts are appreciated.

 

The TT looks like it's going to fall over when you look it at from the side.

 

If you drive smart in bad weather (i.e. snow and ice) and equip the car with good snow tires, something like Blizzaks I dont think you'll have even the slightest problem year round with a Z.