Hey, this is my first post on this site, but i have been reading about different cars on here for a while. Right now i have a 99 toyota corolla that i got as my first car, but im not really satisfied with it and want some more power. I have narrowed my selection down to 2 cars that i wanna get. A version of the 300zx 90-96 model or a 3rd or 2nd gen rx-7, but i am leaning toward a z because i mean comon its a z. my dad had a 280 back in the day, and u just cant touch them. I was wunderin which year and model you would suggest. I would like a turbo but im only 16 and insurance would be a bitch, plus i wanna get somthin with a lil less power than that so i can get my driving skills better. But the rx7 is turbo also so i dunno there just really nice and if i found a good deal i would i would really consider. I think i have just been rambelin but just try and make some sence outa this and tell me what u think. Thanks

well if your 16 u definantly dont need an rx-7, they are money pits b/c their engines go out really fast (like within 40k miles u will need to rebuild it). But i do like the body style of the rx-7 a lot.

at your age, get a 240SX first. if you have your heart set on the 300ZX, get a '90 Non-Turbo version. Insurence will still be a bitch.

Yeah, i really wanna get a z but a 240 would be a 2nd. i also was lookin at integra gs-r's because there really reliable but i for sure wouldnt rice it out. I like the newer 240s or atleast the last gen. But thanks for the posts.

no prob. but actually, you might also wanna look up Z31 non-turbos ('89 and below 300ZX). As you might be tempted to do something careless on a Z32 ('90s 300ZX). Being 16 and all, hehe, I would've done the same. :D

Nah man, i drive really cautious, normally, im not really gonna mod it much except for like bolt ons cuz i just wanna get to be a better driver first and i dont have the money for that kinda stuff. But i heard therers some minor things wrong with the 90 because its the first model of the z32 so i might get like a 91 2+2. I dont really wanna dog it out beacuse i dont want to drive a peice of shit.

Nah man, i drive really cautious, normally, im not really gonna mod it much except for like bolt ons cuz i just wanna get to be a better driver first and i dont have the money for that kinda stuff. But i heard therers some minor things wrong with the 90 because its the first model of the z32 so i might get like a 91 2+2. I dont really wanna dog it out beacuse i dont want to drive a peice of shit.

not really, I as well as many others drive '90 N/A, there are no complaints. it's also the year when they sold the most Z32.

Therefore it would be the cheapeast year :). I think ill just look around alot. Also gettin a 240 and then i could put a sr20det or whatnot, all i know is that its the silvia engine. That would be nice, but if i wanted to avoid all of the hassle, just get a z like i wanted to in the first place lol. Alrite man thanks.

Fuck SR20's... Aluminum blocks, peice of shits.

Go CA18DET and tickle it up to about 215hp. We got a new shipment in... $1,900 takes the front clip. Including everything to do the swap.

Let me know.

(O, and you can afford a Zed... I got mine when I was 16. Insurance was 120 monthly. Not bad at all.)

-Wes

Now what's wrong with 16 year olds ands Z32TT? You making a point or what?

lol, u might be a cautious driver now but if ya did get a 300zx it would take over your mind sometimes!!! It would beg for u to test it out and race from time to time!

I am a cautious driver....i use to say the exact same thing but when i got my z that flew right out the window...

Nothing is wrong with 16 year olds and 300zxtt, but the tt is more than a n/a and price is a factor for me, not to mention the insurance would be alot more considering its a 2 seater and has twin turbos. Price is a factor for me. But then again i dont want to have some car thats fast as shit and then go wreck it because im a inexperienced driver u know.

let me say this... putting a 300 hp rwd rocket in the hands of a 16 yr old is like giving a baby a live handgrenade... i know we all try to act mature and drive resposibly blah blah blah... the bottom line is, it will get the best of you at least once, i can guarantee you that... and all it takes is that one time to wrap yourself around a pole doing 150...
as so beautifully put by Broke as **** "Just remember that while others talk of 0 to 60 times...guys with TT Z32s are talking about 0 to 160. If not more, stock gearing get you to 185, maybe a shade more" yeah that's mph... that is INsanely fast... even experienced drivers would be freaking out.. hell, going 200 kph in my buddy's prelude was freaky as hell...
but yeah... if you do happen to get one, treat her good.. Z32's are rare enough as it is

Well if I were you Wannabe, I would get the 240sx. I had one in high school then bought a Z32 TT (in place of hopping the 240sx up). Its a great car and is still my "Get thee to work" set of wheels. If you got to have a Z32 right out of the gate, a NA of either body style will do fine. But remember, its alot easier to buy a TT then to try and make one. You can get a NA now and swap later for sure but then you get into a lot of time and money. Best advice is that if you want to go fast, get to the track and do some cart racing. A turn key operation, ready to go, set with tires for the whole season cost you a couple grand at worst.


Fuck SR20's... Aluminum blocks, peice of shits.

Uh...right...so of all the people I've talked with and worked with that have swapped a SR, none have had a problem with it. Even upwards of 20 PSI or more I've never heard of a SR exploding or otherwise failing due to the aluminum block. The SR is a damn good motor, exspecially for being a dinky 2 liter. If I was going to swap it would be an RB in the 240 but a SR is pretty cheap considering how much power you can get out of it.

SR isnt bad... I just dont like them. They are WAY overrated Broke.

"If SR20 is so shitty, how come all the drifters in Japan use them?"

"Well... The same reason all the drifters in America use the KA. There is an ample supply of SR's in Japan. As there is an ample supply of KA's in America"

-AJ Smith : One of the top drifters in Detroit

I personally like CA18DET better. Cast Iron block, less crank shift. More consistant power. But it does need some "tickling" to get up to spec... In my opinion.

But hands down, the best drift motor, is the RB series. RB20DET, RB25DET, GREAT power stock, and are very easy to work on... Also pretty damn tough.

But its like everything... Personal preference.

-Wes

16 yr old with a TT...please no...that's a recipe for disaster. Check out the Z31s. Someone said "89 and below"...that's not really right...it's the 84-89 300ZXs. There were Z cars before 84 that weren't Z31s. I got my first Z car when I was 16, just like you. An 86 2+2. It was a WOOOOOOOONDERFUL car. GET ONE! I LOVED that car more than life itself at times. I bought it for $2700 (cheap as fuck for a car) with 118,000 miles on it (not even the car's half life) and it ran GREAT for 3 years. It would STILL be running great if I would have had the money to maintain it...which isn't even all that much...I just REALLY had NO money...I was in college and...well...yea. Amazing cars. I regret selling that car to this day. I'd still have it and it would be running fine today if I hadn't let my parents talk me into selling it.

All in all...buy an N/A Z31. Amazing cars, all the power you need, a HELL OF A LOT OF FUN, and they will run for a LONG fuckin time, man. I went a LONG time with out doing ANY maintanence [sp.] and it NEVER gave me trouble. I'm on my second Z31 and I swear by them...go Z31 N/A, man.

I bought it for $2700 (cheap as fuck for a car)

No cheap as **** for a car is the 79 Valaryie station wagon with a slant 6 that was my first car.

Bid at Auction: $15

Plugs, oil, belt or two and a new door: $150

The bright aluminum "POS" letters where the grill should be: Funny as hell

I think I drove it away from the lot for like 42 dollars or something like that. And it ran, those damn slant 6 engines didn't have enough sense to die. Got me back and forth for a month or two before I got the 240.


The 240 felt like a Ferrari after the wagon.

My first car was the 1990 Zed. Had to do SOOOOO much work to that damn car just to get it moving. Drove it for a few months. Sold it.

One day when im rich I'll track it down, buy it off the poor bloke, and send it to get restored.

Some day...

-Wes

Broke.....That rocks.....that beats the current record holder: my friend bought a olds cutlass for $75 off some old lady. Ran GREAT. It smoked a little after driving it for a while every day cuz it dripped oil onto the exhaust somewhere or something, but we didn't care. That was the best car ever cuz we didn't give 2 shits about it. Instead of trying to avoid running into things like usual, we AIMED for shit. We hit a speed limit sign once while going so fast that it sheered the metal post clean off about a foot and a half off the ground and the sign portion with the remaining ~3 feet of pole bounced off the hood and went flying over the car. We also tried to take out a bus stop once...bad idea...those are anchored REALLY well...it didn't move. Tons of stories about that car...but I'll stop there...

What I mean by saying that $2700 was cheap was that it was cheap for how good of shape the car was in. It was literally, in every way, like NEW. It had been in the same family since new and they took amazing care of it. I should have worded that differently....$2700 was cheap as fuck for a car that was pretty much new. You really can't beat the Z31 when it comes to value.

Example. (http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/vdp.jsp?car_id=167181592&dealer_id=&car_year=1986&make=NISSAN&distance=any&max_price=&model=300ZXTURBO&advcd_on=n&end_year=1989&min_price=&first_record=176&certified=n&address=41091&search_type=used&advanced=n&start_year=1984&=&color=&cardist=323)

You can find hundreds of them on Autotrader.com. I found my first one in a local newspaper and the one I have now on Cars.com. If you keep your eyes open and know what to look for, you can find AMAZING deals on them. I got my turbo for a steal!