Just checked out the 350Z (drivenand update 10-8)

[GTO]

Originally Posted by ARMAN From my own experince it can eat you alive if something unexpectable happens and 500 or even 400 a month is a isane price imo :shock: True I have absolutely NO idea what kind of salary you have and stuff, here in CR it will be a kiss of death to make such buy beeing a "normal" employe. Dont get me wrong, I dont want to say not to do so or discorage from going for it, you will make the final desiginon yourself anyway, but I hope you have it all calculated and you'll have reserves big enough "just in case"

Exactly,

Have you considered buy a second hand one? Sportscars are toys, so you can get one low KM 1 year old as new (or an ex demo) but with 20%+ off? With my car all up it be around $50K Aus (including onroads and options) but I got it for $30K , thats 40% off the price! It was only 8 months old!
Seriously buying a car from the show room is damn expensive, considering you lose 10% rolling it off the show room floor, you'd be better having some rich wanker take the brunt of that and not you.

Also everyone doesn't realise how expensive the up keep is, even I didn't. Servicing, oils, parts, mods, fuel, insurance, tires, panel beating, if you want to go somewhere on holidays, trackwork.... Even with a brand new car you need money to keep it running healthy. Insurance is the big one

My advice to you is go the local car auctions in your area now, get a feel for what cars are worth and what you want. Buying from the showroom is a waste of money IMO, and from the sounds of it, money is an issue, please consider it. Like Arman said "will be a kiss of death" , its true looking back at the cars I was looking at I simply would not of been able to afford it, I would of have to ended up selling the car, end up broke and bitter about it all.
Instead buying a sportscar at family car price was a great move, I have a great car and have enough money so I'm not struggling.

Just be wise by sussing out all your options first, its a sellers market, these cars are too expensive and people want to get rid of em before they lose more money, so you can get the car you want for a bargin if you know how to deal.

[blah]

http://www.srtforums.com/forums/show...ght=Akumas+Car

[ARMAN]

Originally Posted by ZfrkS62 of course i'm not going to be springing for this if i can't afford it. but considering a full check for me is about 850 (every 2 weeks) and my rent will only be 290/month, i am 95% sure i'll be able to do this by the new year :leaves fingers crossed: I'm actually way behind schedule on this

Running costs of a new car are rediqiulos and even more if its a hitech like this.
We have Opel Vectra B and last year we spend(its already 4years old, was bought new, only oficial dealer service) about 30.000€ for service :shock: NO major problems, NO crash, nothing special, just regular things. Years before that it wasnt THAT much but 10-15.000€ for sure.
+ fuel costs is a big item, tires, insurance.

I know its very painful to realize all this, done it myself many times but emotions and buying is the worst combination, sales people know it and probably use it.

Ofcoure I wish it to you Z but I would hate to see it to become a thing that will ruin you life

BTW 850 is for 2 months? So its 425 a month?

[TransAm]

no its 1700 a month arman, 850 per fortnight

Zfrk, what sort of discounts do you get on bmw? If I had the Z3 today I could sell it for moreorless what I sold for 12 months ago. They really do hold their value, and I guess the Z4s do too. Same motor as the 330i, but much lighter and thus quick. You don't need me to quote 0-60times to you...

I guess the price might be an issue but calculate in the low depreciation and it might work out the same overall cost as a 330i.

Honda S2000s hold their value exceptionally well and I actually test drove an 02 yesterday, outside of the VTEC its pretty crap and slow compared to the 1700rpm torque of the blown saab. Handling a million times better of course.

I've not driven the 350Z at all, I may do so just to see what it is like, they always sound really nice on the street, and the extra 20 or so HP they have now can only be welcome

On the topic of insurance, anything speed limited (like the 330i limited to 130mph)will be much cheaper to insure as it is not classed as a performance vehicle. For this reason my Saab costs me more to insure than my Z3 did (Z3 limited to 130 also). I am sure you know how to derestrict it and not tell anyone outside of JW wink wink. I think the Z4 is limited to 155 so probably classed as a performance vehicle however. 350Z probably not limited but 155 would be my guess if it is.

Have you driven the 350Z? whats it like?

[ARMAN]

Originally Posted by TransAm2001 no its 1700 a month arman, 850 per fortnight

Sorry, have to learn to read better
holy crap :shock: here people can only dream of salary like that, I mean on normal job, avarege salary is 550€ but not many people have this kind of money at work

[dingo]

Are you sure you want to finance the car? You will obviously end paying more than the cars worth.

When I was looking at WRX's I was considering getting a loan for part of the car, but decided against it after seeing the amount of interest I would be paying.

So now I am waiting until I save up enough to pay for the entire car myself upfront - hopefully in about 6 months

Originally Posted by ARMAN .....last year we spend(its already 4years old, was bought new, only oficial dealer service) about 30.000€ for service..........

you've got to be joking? :shock: That sounds WAY too much for normal service on any car, let alone an Opel.
That converts to nearly $AU 50K - you could buy a new car every year instead of paying for the service on a 4 year old car.
I really think the figures must be wrong, or I misunderstood.

[Sir_GT]

Originally Posted by ZfrkS62 Originally Posted by Sir_GT *kicks ZfrkS62* Dammit, I wanted that car!!! USD 34,000??? That's about £18,000!!! The very basic 350Z here is £24 grand... that's almost USD 50k. ::whacks Sir_GT with Z brochure:: damn...now i creased the brochure that's the nice thing about not being taxed on HP

It's not just the HP we're being taxed on...

Hell, I wouldn't be surprised if they started taxing our shagging at 50 pence a poke.

*makes mental note to move to America in a few years...*

[thekillingroad]

Just didnt like the 350Z.
I had the chance to test it in a local track. Actually I didnt test in on the actual track...
But I didnt like the seating position, the gearbox.. the driving...

It seemed as a fashion bitch more than a sports car...

[ZfrkS62]

Blah- No i don't think that was the POS i saw running the other way

TransAm- i my cost on a used BMW is cost + $1,000. Actually that's my cost on any used car, which kills me because there were 2 350Z's on our used lot last year when i first moved down here, a purple one and a blue one. I think the blue one was 23,000. but of course i didn't really know if i could have afforded it right away (which turns out, i couldn't) so i passed on them. The purple one got sold and the blue one was wholesaled i think.

I actually drove one back in 2003 around Thanksgiving. Drives well, but for a long drive, you would want to find all the rough roads and avoid them

Dingo- I really wouldn't be able to save up and buy the car on my own. Besides, financing the car would help my credit for when i go to buy a house later on. But like i said, this isn't in the immediate future for me. But it is in my future

of course i would buy the extended warranty and maintenence plans. I've seen how quickly a simple oil change can escalate into a 1,000 service visit

[ARMAN]

Originally Posted by dingo Originally Posted by ARMAN .....last year we spend(its already 4years old, was bought new, only oficial dealer service) about 30.000€ for service.......... you've got to be joking? :shock: That sounds WAY too much for normal service on any car, let alone an Opel. That converts to nearly $AU 50K - you could buy a new car every year instead of paying for the service on a 4 year old car. I really think the figures must be wrong, or I misunderstood.

Fat fingers srikes again Ofcourse its 3.000€ My dumb 8) 27-28.000 was price of it when it was new

[TransAm]

dude why buy extended maintenance plans when you are a tech?

warranty maybe...

Buy some rhino ramps from wallyworld for $29 and do your own oil surely? I'd take the car in for a timing belt but thats going to be 5 years off for a brand new car, if it has a belt and not a chain.

Cost+$1000! feck I wish I knew you a couple of years ago when I bought my Z.

[dingo]

Originally Posted by ARMAN Originally Posted by dingo Originally Posted by ARMAN .....last year we spend(its already 4years old, was bought new, only oficial dealer service) about 30.000€ for service.......... you've got to be joking? :shock: That sounds WAY too much for normal service on any car, let alone an Opel. That converts to nearly $AU 50K - you could buy a new car every year instead of paying for the service on a 4 year old car. I really think the figures must be wrong, or I misunderstood. Fat fingers srikes again Ofcourse its 3.000€ My dumb 8) 27-28.000 was price of it when it was new

That sounds alot better - glad I wasn't going insane

[ZfrkS62]

Ok, got some insurance quotes today when i dropped off my payment.

2005 350Z- $348.36/mo (full)

2002 330Ci- $341.59/mo (full)

1988 750iL- $142.58/mo (liability only, full coverage isn't offered on cars more than 15 years old)

if ever there was an incentive other than the obvious to go with the Bimmer, it's the insurance Who'da thunk it :bah:

[666fast]

Not too bad, go for it!

[ZfrkS62]

I thought the insurance would be on par with the payment.

all thats left to do is price out car loans