350Z or Z3M coupe as a daily driver
Discussion
ok thanks gents, good points and i'd agree with them both.
any more or is the BMW just going to walk it?
kambites - surely the depreciation on the 'Z' is quite low now though thinking about it as a 3.5 litre bit of muscle will always be worth a few grand. couldn't one bill for the BM more than offset this?
any more or is the BMW just going to walk it?
kambites - surely the depreciation on the 'Z' is quite low now though thinking about it as a 3.5 litre bit of muscle will always be worth a few grand. couldn't one bill for the BM more than offset this?
The Crack Fox said:
I think the z takes some beating, prob less highly strung than the Beemer, I'm a Beemer driver who prefers the Nissan.
4 - 1 to the beemer so far.whats the reliability of both cars like compared to each other eg which is more reliable and which is cheaper to maintain.
i'm guessing the nissan is reliable and cheap ish to repair plus its newer so less to go wrong?
or, is that m car bullet proof?
Z3 is a nice car to drive very smooth engine (abit of driveline shunt) but would be a good cruiser but would offer a nice little toy for some 'fun'
I prefer the 350Z, it's the better looking car(in my opinion), great sound track, good sound system (option bose), Good chassis and relatively Thame when pushing it hard (i.e won't bite your head off).
I'd say drive both and decide yourse as obviously every one likes and enjoys different cars and what they deliver in the driving experience.
I prefer the 350Z, it's the better looking car(in my opinion), great sound track, good sound system (option bose), Good chassis and relatively Thame when pushing it hard (i.e won't bite your head off).
I'd say drive both and decide yourse as obviously every one likes and enjoys different cars and what they deliver in the driving experience.
Well, I know which car I prefer 
However, bear in mind that lots of 10 mile runs won't be great news for an engine that will be at least 9 years old, and potentially 13/14yrs old. It takes about 5 miles to get the oil up to temp, and I would never rev it over 4,000 until it was properly warm 'cos of the VANOS issues. They're also not as refined as a newer car. Anyway, they're great cars, so if you do go that route, I'm sure you'll enjoy it!
Jez
However, bear in mind that lots of 10 mile runs won't be great news for an engine that will be at least 9 years old, and potentially 13/14yrs old. It takes about 5 miles to get the oil up to temp, and I would never rev it over 4,000 until it was properly warm 'cos of the VANOS issues. They're also not as refined as a newer car. Anyway, they're great cars, so if you do go that route, I'm sure you'll enjoy it!
Jez
Z3MCJez said:
Well, I know which car I prefer
However, bear in mind that lots of 10 mile runs won't be great news for an engine that will be at least 9 years old, and potentially 13/14yrs old. It takes about 5 miles to get the oil up to temp, and I would never rev it over 4,000 until it was properly warm 'cos of the VANOS issues. They're also not as refined as a newer car. Anyway, they're great cars, so if you do go that route, I'm sure you'll enjoy it!
Jez
can you name some particular problems you have had with your car jez?However, bear in mind that lots of 10 mile runs won't be great news for an engine that will be at least 9 years old, and potentially 13/14yrs old. It takes about 5 miles to get the oil up to temp, and I would never rev it over 4,000 until it was properly warm 'cos of the VANOS issues. They're also not as refined as a newer car. Anyway, they're great cars, so if you do go that route, I'm sure you'll enjoy it!
Jez
common parts and servicing prices?
things to look for?
can you explain vanos issues simply
would it be ok in your opinion?
I would imagine the BMW would cost significantly more come service / part replacement time.
Bear in mind you can get a mint UK spec Z for that money whereas your budget will get an older BMW that is likely to need tyres/brakes/suspension replacements in the near future.
My BIL has the Z - it has not missed a beat in two years, servicing is reasonable, parts not too bad.
I had a drive and it shifted pretty well, felt like more of a muscle car than a sports car.
I found the sound was a bit computer game-like, a bit engineered if you like. Very comfortable though.
Bear in mind you can get a mint UK spec Z for that money whereas your budget will get an older BMW that is likely to need tyres/brakes/suspension replacements in the near future.
My BIL has the Z - it has not missed a beat in two years, servicing is reasonable, parts not too bad.
I had a drive and it shifted pretty well, felt like more of a muscle car than a sports car.
I found the sound was a bit computer game-like, a bit engineered if you like. Very comfortable though.
The Z3M is probably marginally more practical (it's emphatically not a mini-estate car, despite appearances, but it compares favourably to a regular roadster in that respect). It's also a nicer place to be inside than the 350Z, and better to drive in standard form.
However, I wouldn't say the difference on any of the points above is night and day (unless you spend all your time prodding instrument panels to test material quality) so I would bear something else in mind: cost.
I vaguely looked at both before getting the Chimaera (quite seriously in the case of the Z3M...) and my take on it was that the 350Z still had the potential to lose more of its value, but an early 350Z was likely to be in better condition for the same money.
It wasn't that common to see Z3Ms under £10k, but there were a reasonable selection of Zeds from about £8k. Perhaps the answer would be to up the budget fractionally so you've got the pick of the Z3Ms, but otherwise I think price might bring the 350Z back into contention.
However, I wouldn't say the difference on any of the points above is night and day (unless you spend all your time prodding instrument panels to test material quality) so I would bear something else in mind: cost.
I vaguely looked at both before getting the Chimaera (quite seriously in the case of the Z3M...) and my take on it was that the 350Z still had the potential to lose more of its value, but an early 350Z was likely to be in better condition for the same money.
It wasn't that common to see Z3Ms under £10k, but there were a reasonable selection of Zeds from about £8k. Perhaps the answer would be to up the budget fractionally so you've got the pick of the Z3Ms, but otherwise I think price might bring the 350Z back into contention.
I ran a Z3MC for about 20k miles. Apart from servicing, tyres and a couple of A/C pipes it was fairly faultless. There were a few little niggly bits that I had to fix but nothing that registered as expensive. Cheapest motoring I've had in a long time (not difficult when sandwiched between a Cerbera and Pork).
Vanos issue used to be a problem due to bmw dealers just replacing the whole unit if something went wrong with bills of £2-3k. It's not so much a problem now as specialists understand the individual parts that go wrong (bolts shearing off, solenoids failing). As a preventative measure you can buy an uprated bolts and seals kit and have it fitted for about £100, and like was mentioned before wait for the oil to get up to temp before taking the revs high.
Edited by htid on Thursday 3rd February 12:03
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