I have always wanted a Z and I now have the opputrunity to pick one up a a decent price.
The only issue is it will be my daily driver through the late fall, winter and early spring. I ride a BMW GS everyday when I can..
I want the Z but I dont know if it can do snow duty in New England.
ANy thoughts?
I tried searching for threads on snow and didnt turn up much.

 

Back in 07, 2 of my friends had nightmares driving to high school and around town everyday in their 350z's. The Nj shore had some of the worst snow storms that winter, so I can imagine that NE would be seeing worse than that during good winters. And I am not liking the drive in the rain during these couple of days that I have had my z. Just a few of my personal experiences.

 

I drove mine through last years winter, although we only had two days of snow, and the rest were just cold. Running Blizzaks and adding a sandbag to the trunk, it was fine, even on the day of the blizzards. I plan on driving through this years winter too. Moderation was key for me, a little too much gas and I was sliding.

 

Nokian Hakkapeliittas > Blizzaks and Ice Bears. I drove mine my first winter with an open diff and these; no issues whatsoever. The only thing that no tire will compensate for is snow above the bumpers; if you get that much regularly then don't buy a Z for dd.

 

I daily my 06 Base Z (open diff) and drove it last winter. I have Blizzak winter tires and I added about 50lbs of salt in the trunk which seemed to help traction when starting from a stop.

Obviously not the best car for snow but it does the job

 

A Z is no good in the snow.Tires really do not help.The car sits too low is a factor.
Many owners put their Z's up for the winter.Buy a beater to drive in the winter.

 

This is not true, take a look at the posts above you, they offer a lot more insight into the true nature of driving a Z in the snow.

I've driven my 350z through the past three years/winters here in MA, and learned the importance of choosing the right tires very quickly. The first year I used my Michelin Pilot Sport A/S Plus. They did work and got the job done, but I knew not to push my luck with these tires. The next year I purchased dedicated set of blizzak tires on a 17" wheel setup and have used these the past two years, putting them on in November, taking them off each Spring (depending on how severe/long the winter lasts). This method has worked fine.

If the OP is in New England, a more important question would be in which part? I'm located just north of Boston, so by the time I hit the roads most snow days there has already been some initial plowing efforts and there isn't much more than 1-3" to deal with on the road. In areas which do not get as much attention, a lot more caution is needed. Also, you have to learn to play with the TCS (if you have this option), it locks up the gas (which can be a good thing), but if you drive manual can also leave you stalling on a hill, or you can lose the momentum just when its needed most.

Overall, you can certainly drive your car through winters here in NE, but plan on spending some decent money on solid set of dedicated snow tires.

 

i dd my 350z here in long island i run summer tires all year i never have a problem you just gotta be smart turn off traction control and be smooth of course i gotta wait till they plow a bit to but so do most cars

 

I would not suggest running summer tires in winter weather at all. Probably the scariest driving experience of my entire life was driving to drive in an ice storm just months after buying my car (w/summer tires on it).

 

Determine how much snow/ice/bad weather you get in general where you live, and go from there.

Syracuse/CNY has been brutal for my 27 years here (except last winter). I personally wouldn't do it at all, even if I lived in an area that got only a few inches a year.

 

I'm from the southwest part of CT (Norwich) and last year was when i got my 2007 350z Touring. I knew i had to get snow tires so i decided to buy a new set of Blizzak LM-60s. let me tell you this, they work wonderfully! i go to school everyday and i havent stopped driving my Z one day at all!! even my friends prelude with all season tires was too nervous and had to take his other DD. he had told me that he lost traction a few times. Many people thought i was crazy to be driving a 306hp+ rwd sports car in the snow. People look at you in the weirdest way while youre driving! its hilarious looking at those people's faces.
i even went out at 1am at midnight when snow was covering the roads. i went through 3-4 inches of UNPLOWED AND FRESH SNOW without a problem.

things you need:
1) the right tires! Blizzaks ftw!!
2) right mindset of driving rwd in the snow. dont ever plant you foot and be smooth with your steering, throttle, and braking inputs!
3) dont push it! I felt like i was god when i was out in the morning cruising past everybody in bad roads without even trying or losing traction, BUT DONT EVER FOR ONE SECOND THINK YOURE IN A SUBIE with snow tires!!

and also this car is the best thing with snow tires at an empty parking lot. safest way to drift without wasting rubber and hitting unnecessary objects! =]

good luck!

 

NOOOO!!! It snowed unexpectedly while I was at work one day. Ended up spinning into head on traffic (and I was only going 20). Got lucky and hit nothing.

 

Use the snow button (if you have one)

 

07 san marino. I live north of Fitchburg Ma. about 40 miles from you. We are in the monadnock region so we get a lot of snow on a normal basis.
I grew up driving real wheel drive cars in the snow in Western NY. I have owned 4 wheel, all wheel, front wheel and rear wheel drives. Just never anything with as much power as the Z.
I have been looking at these cars for 35 years ever since my buddy's dad had a 240Z in his shop.
I finally looks like I got a chance to own one... just want to be sure I am not making a mistake I cant afford.
Thanks for the info guys. I guess an option would be the Inifity G35 All wheel drive.

 

A number of Canadian members drive there Zs all year round. Any rear wheel drive car with lots of torque will be challenging. Just be smart when it comes to driving tactics and obviously buy a good set of winter tires... You'll be fine.

 

Drove mine for 5 seasons
Blizzaks, extra weight in rear, and Nismo diff-----FTW

 

You may be able to achieve traction with weight and blizzaks but none of the above advice will keep that huge SUV WITHOUT WEIGHT AND BLIZZAKS from sliding into YOU. I got my Saturn for 275 dollars and store my z. Hands down. You can only prevent so much my friend...

 

Driving in the snow can be done, but imo, it would be way too much of a pain do deal with every day of the winter. The Z loses traction extremely easily in the snow

 

And Idk about you guys, but personally, I don't like using my vertex front bumper as a shovel. If I need one ill buy one but i bought my z for the thrill of a sports car...
ALSO
if I were to run my vq in those cold of temps, id run 0w30, I run full synth amsoil and I can attest that from 5w30 to 0w30, even on warmer days, still starts up smoother. Cuz I mean its not like our cars come equipped with block heaters... Or do they? Lol

 

I won't lie to you, my purchase was definitely more of an impulse buy based on the fact I had always wanted a Z. After I bought it, and definitely after the first winter, it made me seriously regret not looking harder at the G35X.

My next used car I will likely be looking closely at the G35X/G37X. I think it would be wise to do the same before you buy so you don't have any regrets afterwards. You can get a G35X with the HR motor. It won't have the same performance as the Z or even the regular G35 HR model, but that's a reasonable compromise for being able to drive year-round with more confidence and comfort. I'm sure you could manage to get through winters in a Z, but based on where you're located, it may be more trouble than it's worth- you get some pretty heavy snow up that way.