12SecZ

I have been with my wife 9 years I am 39 y.o and we are settled in a home in a quiet court and she makes 6 figures and tells me how to spend my money too (she is in finance as a Manager.) We don't discuss cars, that's the trick.

Her, Honey, what's in the big UPS box?

Me, "nothing."

End of conversation, works well.

Sean00500

Yea dude, im 20, but i had my Z since last july, I wish my parents bought it for me, then instead of spendin 32k on the car i could use tht for accessories, but being that i gotta 320/month payment for the next 3 years sucks the big one. Insurance is anohter thing, i mean i know im 20, but crist i have never gotten a ticket, accident not one damn thing, yet its cool to pay 5100 a year for ins., and oh yeah, if u have a system in your car and it gets broken into, dont bother claimin it on ins., cuz they drop u, jus like my as$. I also live in an apt with 2 roomies, in which i py for, so my total expenses are like 1900/month, But whatever, i love the car and dont mind workin 55 hours a week, and doin college full time to afford it, and i still got my exhaust for it brotha, savin for some Volks, and clear corner convos, and when i hit the powerball, its all about the TT setup.

Resolute

iTrader: (2)

MIAPLAYA, weren't you on the B15sentra.net forums? I used to be on there when I had my 01 SE. I miss the cheap mods as well, but I figure the SR20 has been around for 13-14 years now, and the VQ35 is still new. I understand the QR you ran was new at the time as well, but I believe people gave it more attention since it seemed poised to replace the SR as Nissan's "tuner" engine. With the new VQ, there seems to be less revealed of what it is capable of, at least on the forums. For example, before the new SE-R hit showrooms the QR25 was disected and analyzed by a number of mags and tuning shops in comparison to the SR20. A person could go online and find which motor had better breathing heads, differences in valvetrain design, block construction, wt and dimensional differences, rpm and powerband characteristics, and what parts would or could theoretically be interchangeable. The VQ35 charicteristics are not so open or available compared to the VQ30. I am certain more people have explored the limits of each and done the research to determine the differences compared to the QR, but the results are most likely proprietary and not so quickly disclosed. Like which heads flow better between the two, are they interchangeable, and if the 10,000 rpm of the VQ30 used in Nissan's formula series is possible with the VQ35 heads? I bet quite a few people know, but for competition racing purposes, so who would share? I know people tried throwing the SR crank in the QR block to have a high revving, high cfm motor and shared the results of such a hybrid. It was a plausible idea, like the crank of the VQ35 in the 30 block to have an almost square engine with a closed deck and 3.3 liters. I don't know of anyone who has tried this and shared the results. Just my opinion, but I imagine the QR parts were cheaper because results and testing were more open to those who wanted to develop parts, in addition to market considerations and engine configuration factors.
In any case, I'm 23 and a student at CU. I work as an assistant manager for a large hardware retailer and am also married. I applaud you for being in the corps and think about joining myself after college. Both my folks were enlisted and beat it into my head to be an officer if I serve, they also really believe the Air Force is the best way to go. Don't hold it against them. I don't have any money to buy anything for my car, so I resign myself to studying and planning. I have several drawings completed of the front and rear suspensions, and am working on some engine pieces right now. I figure if I can't buy anything, I can waste my time planning reeeaallllyy well

daytona350z

iTrader: (19)

hehe...i was 16 when I bought my z

SweetZ

I'm 21, financed and paying for it myself....own a house blah blah blah. No help from parents whatsoever. Payments are made by a regular 72 hour work week at 2 crappy jobs.

MIAPLAYA, I completely feel ya on that one. My wife has an '03 Explorer Sport Trac and I can't do anything to mine without doing something to hers.

Jax350z, I am also in agreement with you. I mention doing anything and I get a lecture about how I don't need anything faster/I am going to get myself killed.

Wife>Car....guess its worth the tradeoff

D@ActiveTuning

iTrader: (17)

Guess I should chime in. I'm 21, full-time student at the University of Maryland, part-time job at Circuit City installing car audio, and full-time co-owner of my company.

I work hard for what I get I haven't gotten my Z yet, but it's on the way!

XBS

iTrader: (29)

well i bought my Z when i was 17 and im soon to be 19 (next month) and my car was initially under my moms name since i couldnt be on the contract but every since i bough my car i have made all payments and paid for gas/ins/mod/ maintaninc/etc the only thing i didnt pay for and am thankful for is the downpayment which was a present from my parents, when i turned 18 the car and loan was transferred to me and i do not have a co-signer,

oh yea, and thats why i basically have no mods

XBS

iTrader: (29)

and because i have paid over 5k in fines and tickets ever since i bought this car


(i had to learn the hard way, now im a safe driver )

ZRAYGO

I am 35 years old. I bought my z 1 year ago. I upgraded from a '99 si to this. I work for SBC and have done so going on my 8th year now. I graduated from UNLV with a BA in Communications. The job I have is a great paying job. I just bought a 300k home in Riverside about 6 months ago. We will be refinancing (we made about 100k so far on equity), and then I will be getting the G35c. I have just purchased the Greddy TT (https://my350z.com/forum/showthread....0&pagenumber=1). I guess you can say that I got lucky. I was on football scholarship, so my parents or I did not have to pay 1 red cent fro college. My dad has worked for SBC/Pacific Bell for 20+ years and no matter what he says, I think he had a hand in helping me get this job. The bonus checks are 10% of what I make a year and that is how i got my TT in one shot. I first got the z when I owned my first condo and refied. I think its all timing. You just have to be in the right place at the right time.

ZRAYGO

oh yea the wife thing.....here is how that happened. Everytime I buy or bought something for my car i would either have it installed that same day or i would keep it at the store until i was ready. The hardest thing I had to get past was the rims situation. I went from stock to 19" gunmetal and she just stood there and stared at the car for a minute. My wife and I have an agreement. As long as everything is payed for (bills and baby essentials...oh yea..I have a 5 month old and an 11 year old girls) then what we do with our money is our business. But I will say this, she does NOT like my car. If she ask me what I want for my birthday...the 2nd phrase out of her mouth is it better not be for that car.....anything you want as long as its not for the car....LOL

MIAPLAYA

iTrader: (3)

Yeah I am the same guy from b15sentra and yes I was an avid Spec V enthusiast. The beauty of the Spec V is that when it hit the street I got in early on it and got in with some good companies to get prototype parts and others for very cheap. As I'm sure you know I was the first to have the Mossy exhaust, short shifter, SS brake lines, timing advance, etc. But as I got in on the new parts I saw the same ones being developed for the Z. I remember thinking then that I would want to wait until I got older to get the Z when the parts price dropped since most of the stuff had been created already. Then my wife drops the "I hate how much you work on your car" line on me and begs me to get something else. It took months of pleading before i finally went and bought my Z. (Crazy huh, i was arguing to KEEP my SENTRA with my wife). But the thing was I had a lot of work done to the car and getting the Z was like starting back at square 1 after 2 years of work. Just tuff after that much time. Granted the Z is much more capable square one but still. I love my Z but the Spec V for right now I think was more me.

04Ronin

I' hear you I'm 39 with a 600k house my wife and I bought 3 years ago and a 220 k townhouse we bought 11 years a go that is a 405 a month loser rental right now i make low 6 figures and my wife almost 2x what I do she still hates my car.

Yancy

iTrader: (5)

First, everyone that drives a Z or G35 should feel very proud to be in such a bad *** car. In my opinion, they are the most attractive pieces of work below $60,000. Mods are nice, but so is just having the car, right? Sometimes its about being patient and gathering things as they come along.

Second, having a good job that pays really well helps with buying mods. For the most part, wealth is acquired more as you get older and have worked like a dog for years getting through school, working the shitty job, etc. This is how it worked for me anyway. I've been a lawyer for a little over 3 years now (I'm 30)and have the money that I never had while growing up, going to school, etc. (well, at least not to drop in large amounts for car parts). I'd have to agree that once you become established, it becomes a lot easier to spend because you have that buffer area with respect to your finances/bills etc that allows you to justify to yourself spending some of your cash on car parts that aren't really needed.

I see a lot of younger people on the board with Z's. You guys are extremely lucky to have such a bad *** car at your age. I'm sure most of your friends are envious. In any event, anything anybody wants to install on the Z is possible (regardless of age), but it is just a matter of patience and timing.

Hupperware

I'm 25, college graduate, and CTO of a company. Hard work and taking advantage of opportunities got me to where I'm at today. Do I look down on those that have a Z at 17, 18, and 19... no, but I do worry for you. I was in your same place at your age... still climbing out of the hole I dug. You can't live at home forever... do yourself a favor, graduate college.

jtree007

Got the car last october 2002 (preorder) 2 days after my 18th birthday and bougth it outright and I pay for everything related to it... but parents are payin for college

mdracer76

iTrader: (1)

2 words ....

Internet ****.

I run 100 sites,.... LOL

Naa .. I wish I did. Then I would be on the ferrari forums

I am a software eng. I too grew up dreaming about cars I could not afford. I had such a crush on the 300ZX.

Finish school. And when you find a girl that loves your car as much as you do.. keep her

Sharif@Forged

iTrader: (92)

I think it's all about priorities, rather than age. The guys that are 18 are making it a BIG priority to own and mod this car. That is cool in my opinion..we all makes choices. I think as you get older, it because easier to balance the Z with other priorities in life, and spread our resources over several areas...family, mortgage, other toys, vacations, etc. Good luck to everyone!

AV630

im 17.... i do photography.... and work part-time at a movie theatre to pay for my beast.... i make ALL the payments on it. its a 2004 daytona blue performance....

fluidz

I am 32, married with a 5 year old daughter and a 7 year old son own my own home, have worked for my parents company since 1990 in the Pressure Sensitive Label Industry....LSK Label Company, anybody need some labels?....

-Kevin

Eric1h

i assume you put alot down? finance for 4 years and only 320 a month? did you put half down? lol