Honestly modding is one of thsoe things people do to stand out. If your real goal is to have a faster car, you should really jump the gun and move on. The Z is not some godly platform, and by pushing it to it's limits doesn't make it a better car than the vette. Some people really believe by dumping mad dough into their car they can make it a porsche or a vette or something... I think if ur gonna mod your Z, you do it for yourself, otherwise u'll be disapointedin having a 3200lb car with a blown motor. You should really look at V8s, or stock turbo cars...

I myself have thought about it, and i'm really tinking of buying a project porsche 944 turbo S..that car looks very promising...

 

As far as my car goes, I bought it used for 20k, it is an 03 and when I bought it in Dec it had 16k miles on it. Now the car has the JWT TT fully built engine, AP racing brakes, Tokiko springs, Eibach shocks, Volk wheels, Yokohama tires, boost controller, Defi gauges for EGT and Boost, Wideband A/F, with a Stillen wing and front bumper clip. All together I am well under $45k. Close to being under $40k. Everyone talks about how much this stuff costs and if you shop and do research you can get good deals. Also, if you are planning on going FI why in the world would you buy a new Z? Makes no sense, find a used car that is in good shape since you are going to mod it. A little planning goes a long way when you are going to do things to a car.
As far as German cars are concerned, I will take one well before I take an American car, now this being said are they as good as Japanese cars, NO.
This thread will forever show up here becuase people continually are coming to the forums and do not or will not search all the threads in the past. I think it is a good thing because new stuff is coming out all the time that some people do not know about and maybe it will come out in these threads.

 

When i bought this car a year ago i never really thought i would mod it out so quickly. Also i never really took into consideration the fact that i would want more and that i could AFFORD more so rapidly. I dont care about status or resale value, just the most fast & reliable car for the money.

As foir why i dont use the search its bc it is google based a long time ago i got a virus on my computer that somehow blocks anything google. Since it isnt a big deal i just let it go as opposed to wiping my hd and losing tons of data.

 

what about a viper. they sell pretty cheap used, right?

 

what? you're going to have to price this out, because it is impossible to spend $80k on modifications for the 350z. i have no idea what your talking about. if you spent half that you could buy a fully built bottom end, aps TT, clutch/fly wheel, coilovers, sways, exhaust, lsd, BBK, etc.. and have it professionally tuned.

First off, I didn't mean $70k in mods, I meant $70k including the cost of a new Z.

$35k-car
$8k-turbo kit
$2k-full suspension
$5k-full BBK
$4k-wheels/tires
$5k-built motor(not including removal/re-install)
$1k-clutch
$1k-oil cooler
$1k-rear diff
$1k-catback
$0.5k-gauges
$2k-modified bodywork to install tires that will actually generate enough traction (at least 315's)

Labor for removal/re-install and shipment of motor($3k), install of turbo kit($3k), brakes, catback, clutch, suspension, oil cooler, gauges, heavy duty rear diff, plus dyno time to tune it all will add about abother 8-9k in costs. This is without ANY body, cosmetic or Audio system mods.

This, in my opinion, is how to "do it right" when it comes to F/I on a Z to make it properly balanced, useable, and reliable.

 

well some of those prices are a little off because stuff like oil coolers don't cost $1000

you CAN do a really good setup for 45k total if you buy a used Z right now and then RIGHT NOW because there's so much more options with everything than 2 years ago, it's easier to pick and choose a better winning combination of parts

knowing what I know now I would have gone the 45k route with a used Z. I mean who cares if the Z is used - the engine and transmission are the primary things you care about in a used car and if you and up replacing the engine with a used engine then you're set.

Thing is most of us on this site that are FI bought 03's or 04's when they were new. Some of us bought them slightly used for a slight discount, but during 2005, a used 2003 Z wasn't all that much cheaper than just buying a new one.

So many of us were early adopters which is expensive. The earlier parts were more expensive and not as good as later parts. So many of us have played the buy this thing, sell it in a year for a severe loss.

Right now you can buy used everything - used FI kits, used Z's, used suspension, used wheels/tires, used whatever and they're good enough to use. So yeah if you're just recenty buying a Z and going FI and research it and learn all about what we know now that we didn't know a year or two ago, you can strike a much better deal.

yeah maybe we all should have waited if we were smart, but we wanted the car back then and are paying higher amounts of money than newer people

 

You guys can mod the car for a lot cheaper than that. If you walk into VRT and ask them to build your car then you will know what I am talking about. The whole setup is not going to cost you that much.
By the way they are fitting 315's on Z's with no body work, you have to know what wheels and what offset to get.
For those of you who bought these cars new a while back and modded them, I know there was no other option because of the timing. However, anyone who is looking to get a Z now and thinks they may want to mod it then go out and find a used one that you like and save the extra money.
As for what this thread sarted out with, I agree with whoever said that you should only buy this car if you love it and the way it drives and what you can do to it. I love mine and would not trade anything I did to it.

 

yeah for me, I've looked into every car in my budget or even a little beyond my budget and they just didn't grab me the way the Z did. It's well engineered and can get some high hp and handle well etc.

a used vette I will always think is a better overall modding platform, but I just can't bring myself to like vettes THAT much. What can I say other than the Z was love at first sight and I want to mod it and make my car unique to suit what I like. I've made a lot of poor decisions in terms of modding and paying stupid prices for parts that drop in price later or become obsolete etc, but what are you going to do? I'm learning. The Z is my first sports car so it's been an expensive learning process for me. Chalk it up to experience.

but yeah if you buy a used Z, walk into a knowledgable tuning shop, they'll set you straight for a good well planned out setup. Maybe that's what I should have done from the start. Problem was I had access to money and so jumped the gun and did it right then instead of learning and planning things out more.

learned my lesson, doing that with my other cars from now on and I'm NEVER buying a new car ever again

 

So very true. I was planing on doing the same thing. I love my Z and DREAM of FI in my sleep. but I have a wife and soon maybe a family "we want kids" . So I was thinking maybe some time after the movie if bids are high sale my Z and buy an Evo 8. In return I will fulfill a posers dream of haveing a FF3 like Z car. Just because I need a four door.

 

end of the day the Vette is just a better platform to start with. if you get a used C6 and the APS kit your at 700HP to start. you can get a C6 2005 for 40K 10 K for the APS installed. that puts you in the 50K mark and that motor is stock. yes you can get your Z motor there but it's kind of the same way of thought " you want to use the least amount of boost needed to get the most HP/Torq possible". now of course you would want to push it and there's no doubt you could get in the 800HP who and yes most likely on a stock block.

 

i tell you what. come by my apartment one day and ill give you a ride in my Z. then go from there..

 

HAHAHAHAHA my boy has a 950RWHP car why dont you come over. LOL

like i said i have 500+ in my Z, what are u pushing and how much did it set you back?

 

solidsnake has a turbonetics. His car is very tight. I think he even installed it himself.

 

Honestly i dont regret doing my mods one thing, if you r going to do it prepare to invest alot of money.

With the money i have spent on my Z i could have gotten i cobra and be running tens or low elevens. BUt chicks see you in a cobra and they r like ok thats a mustang. When they see a Z they simply like it becouse the car has style.

I could have gotten a cobra but i thought about it the Z has way more style then any V8 out ( with exception of the new vette and viper).

I love my Z and im planning on to finish the mods.

 

Just throwing out another option...Lotus Elise.

Im in the same situation with my Z. I checked out the Elise last weekend and it's a hot little car. For about 48k you got a little rocket that will out perform a stock Z. I'm just having a little problem getting past the size and it's pretty hard to get in and out of. I got into my Z afterwards and I felt like I was driving a boat.

 

That's what I thought until I actually drove my car with the Twins. It's like this car was made for them. The drivetrain and rear end do a fantastic job of handing the added power. Chassis flex on hard acceleration is non-existant. The car has very good high speed stability and with upgraded suspension, brakes, wheels and tires, the car feels nearly like it came from the factory with 500hp. Not to mention, I beat the **** out of it on a regular basis and it hasn't had a hiccup yet.

I have a fully loaded Z and put a little over 10 grand into it and it's a reliable, quiet, very driveable monster.

Then there's my X-factor. Originality. I'm one of only a handful of turbo 350Zs in the chicagoland area, so it's not like every joe schmoe on the road in a 350Z has the same car that I do. I couldn't drive aroud very long in ANY stock car...even with over 500hp. Everybody knows how quick a stock "anything" is, but they are in for a big suprise when they pull up next to my car.

 

You are WAY off man. I can tell you're just trying to justify your earlier claim, but come on. I've spent just over $45 grand total right now and I bought a 03 Touring model with nav brand new. All I need to have a trackable turbo Z is an oil cooler, a new rear diff, some race pads and r-compounds. That won't put me anywhere NEAR $70-80 grand. Even if I throw in a fully built long block...I'm still well under $60 grand with my fully loaded 350Z. With a base model Z it would be under $50 grand.

 

Im in between cars right now looking into the Z.. I sold my 96 COBRA which was heavily modded. Ive owned a few fast cars and know what Im talking about. Initially after I sold the cobra I was going to buy a c5 vette and go the FI route.. The things I didnt like about the c5 is the popup 80s headlights.. the seats have very cheap leather that cracks easily, the audio system sucks, the interior buttons are like 1"x1" made for blind people, some of the yrs.(00-01) burn oil.. and i dont like that American clunky feeling..yeah If I want a 10sec car.. the v8 platform is where u want to begin but in the end you realize thats not what its all about.. the car needs to be able to be comfortable and be driver friendly in all conditions... thats where the import cars come in... the Z for instance is a friendly car.. has power.. nice interior... XENON LIGHTS!!!! nice engine tone.. handles.. is available in a few packages... etc..even if you go FI on the vq35de.. it still feels smooth like stock...bottom line.. if you only care about having a 11sec car that blows the doors of any car on the street and getting speeding tickets.. get a american v8.. also.. when u have a fast modded v8... the car does not allow you to drive it slow..i have 11pts on my license for 1 speeding ticket .. im done with super fast cars and want something that isnt only good for racing..just my .02

 

I agree, a new Lotus would probably be my choice, they just need to add more hp to that car. It will out perform any car in AutoX, yet take it to a road coarse, and everyone is flying by you, even a $48k moded Z!

 

Amen to all that...had a 96 cobra as well and the other option for me at the time was a new SC cobra. I went with the Z, b/c the fun factor can be had without drag racing stop light to stop light. I had to push the crap out of the Cobra to really enjoy it, all the other time was meh.