300zx Or R32 Skyline

[Pol_Boy]

hey people,

Im soon to be getting my 1st car in round 5 months or so and cant decide whats better in my situation.

As im still 16 im limited to turbo exemptions and all that mumbo jumbo, i have to stick with the NA's for a lil while.

I've always liked my skyline's but when their turboed. but when it comes to pick over an NA R32 or a 300zx i cant overcome what would be overall a better buy...

Any ideas?

[Mulkers]

I would recomend an r32 with the rb25de, with a few mods- exhuast, extractors, and some coilovers.

It should be a bit of fun until you can get a snail

[Mecha]

I would go for the 300. Cant go past the 3L.

[thrtytwo]

i think you would find a lot of 32s are in better condition. and i dont know from experience but i've been told by a lot of people that 300's have huge upkeep bills. but i assume that is more applicable to the twin turbos. both nice lookin cars. Non turbo so neither one is going to be a huge power house, so i guess its up to your preferance.

[AZZA]

I would suggest the R32 also. Have also heard from a friend that working on the 300 engin is a pain in the backside. Apparently just to change a radiator hose you have to get under the car, or pull off the front end. The 32 is much better to build on and easier to mod when your ready. That would be my choice but it is up to you in the end.

[ScorpR32]

My mate has a N/A targa 4 seater Z32. Power-wise (stock-for-stock) it would easily outdo an RB25DE R32. It pretty much kept up with my car when it was un-modded. Granted the engine may be a pain to work on, but for outright speed + interior go the 300... unless pricing is a concern then go the 32.

[MacGuyver]

I've also heard many stories about how much of a nightmare the 300 is to work on as the engine is all over the place! I personally like the look of the R32 better but to each his own.

"Me fail english? That's unpossible!"

[TTT]

P platers have should one of the following..

should be given to you with your license.. hahahaha

or if you got a little more cash

both of those will be more enjoyable and easire to sell later than a NA 300zx or R32

Edited January 4, 2006 by GTST

[Deluxe]

Run the R32 cos the 300 is a 2 tonne waste of time.......

[BLACKR]

Dude

All that b...s..t about 300 is not true.Well one thing is and that is that they are tigth to work with. But appart fromt that they are exellent car to have.Even N/A will pump out 163kw which is pretty cool, will give you alot of grunt and that sex appeal of 300zx that is quite rare. Yeah well they will cost a bit of money to look after if you buy a piece of s..t that cost you say under ten grands.Consider this, 300zx was over 80 grands when new and was aimed at the big fish like M3, AMG and Porsche so that is the reason as why some maintenace tasks will require more money then r32. 300 is a grand tourer, not your average Joe from around the corner.You cant expect to neglect it, mind you if you get a helathy one and believe me ther are a few around if you dont want to bite the bullet and imoprt. Service it regularly look after it , hook up some good exhaust, dumP pipe AND set of filters and you will be on a good path to keep up with some v8, not only that but smaller capacity turbo engines AS WELL. How do i know? Well easy i had one. Last but not the least, do not buy AUTO as reconditioning is very expensive (over $2000) go manual which will give you a rigid strenght box with second to none problems

Cheers

BLACK R

[Pol_Boy]

hmm

Yea 300z do have a bigger apeal to them and the targa is a great option for when you wana cruise with no roof.

My budget would be the 10k mark for either.

[Archie@]

The 300zx is a great car, most of the rumors are rubish. Anycar that has not been looked after will cost you a fortune....

Anyway for $10K forget the 300ZX you will be regreting it, as it probably will need abit of work. I spent $17K on my first 300ZX, it was an Aus spec model, so N/A and 2+2. immaculate condition, I wouldn't pay less than that for a Z or you will most likely get a rubbish car.

Even the R32 will be worn out pretty bad for $10K I recon.

Go for something alittle small first, maybe a s13 or something, and work your way up to a quicker car.

thats my 2 cents....

[someonestolecc]

I'd get a shitter s13 for like $6-8k.

300zx sucks and r32 NA would suck too.

[Pol_Boy]

When did u purchase your 300z??

[Archie@]

about 3 years ago now....

but look at it this way, you would probably have to pay something like that for a semi decent low km Z anyway, as they are hard to come by with original km's on the clock.

Aus spec models are your best bet, as they generally have a good service history. If i had to hazard a guess, i'd say every single import has had it's km's wound back.

Aslo, although the aus-spec is almost entirely identical to a jap model N/A apart from some negligable differences, the insurance will be alittle cheaper as well.

Just remember it all comes down to what you pay for is what you get. $10K won't get you a very good condition car.

Alot of mechanics won't touch it either as half of them can't even find the air filter.The mechanics that do work on the Z will charge you a fair bit, but some do a very good job and know thier stuff (insert plug for UAS here).

Nissan will charge you through the nose for parts... best to hunt around for bits online or at the wreckers, or to buy aftermarket bits for it....

[Cubes]

I'd have to place my vote with the S13.

CA18DET, exhaust bit of boost maybe an safc.

Plenty quick for a first car.

[TTT]

det = no no for P platers now

[cowie165]

Different strokes for different folks.

As has been said, both cars are built for a different purpose. You need to work out what kind of driving you'll be doing and how you like to do it.

ie. you don't buy a Barina to tour Australia and you don't buy a 740i just to get you to work and back, if you follow.

To the guys that have driven/owned the z-cars, is the driver visibility and handling suited to someone learning the ropes? I would have expected poor vis out the rear glass and the zed being a bit of a handful when reverse parking/carparks/etc.?

As mentioned, an N/A S13 might be a good option...? They don't look real flash but are cheap to buy, cheap to run and easy to drive.

[RBFIRE]

I would love a 300zx,

I got a 300zx b4, but that got stolen, now i got a R33, gtst

which is not as dream to drive like 300zx,

The handling in 300zx, and the Torque just outstand the rest.

But yea, 300zx cost more to maintain, If ur still young,

i reckon u should go for R32, or something cheap, coz u dun wana spend too much on maintaining.

300zx do have cramp engine bay, since i have it for 2 yrs,

I have never have any problem with the engine, only top radiator hose broken and its like 5 mins task, the rest, just normal services.

But R33, cant go past that back seats, I can fit 5 ppl in there?? LOL...gosh, never seen such a huge sport car.

[Archie@]

To the guys that have driven/owned the z-cars, is the driver visibility and handling suited to someone learning the ropes? I would have expected poor vis out the rear glass and the zed being a bit of a handful when reverse parking/carparks/etc.?

good point cowie, visibility is definatly limited at the rear, so you do need a good feel for the size of the car. I had a stillen type III wing on mine, and that reduced visiblilty even more.

I would say that in general even an N/A model is probably not the best choice for a first car. They are very quick and in the wrong hands very dangerous.

as I said before if he has his hart set on a nissan.... at the price range he is looking for, an S13 or N13/N14 might be a better/safer option... plus your mates fit in the car as well.