Z4C vs 370z

[beaniegti]

My brother recently bought a 370Z Nismo and tbh, it’s a cracking car. I wouldn’t swap my MC for one but if I was buying today I’d be very tempted to get one over an Z4M as it’s considerably newer and less highly strung.

The engine isn’t as ‘special’ as the S54 and is quite muted as standard. They can sound incredible with a couple of mods and personally, I prefer the natural sound of a V6 over the straight 6 unless you put an airbox on the S54.

Speed wise, there’s not much in it but the Z4M has the edge. Seats in the nismo are great and the general cabin feels well put together (possibly because it’s almost new with just 8k on the clocks, but it’s much better than a friends 350Z) which is an area I feel the Z4 is lacking somewhat-tbh, my girlfriends Z3 feels better screwed together than a Z4. It probably isn’t from a technical point of view but the perceived quality is way up imo.

Both cars are pretty stiff but bearably so. I haven’t driven the Nismo so can’t comment on feel or handling but my brother who is very in to track days and has a history of tuned, nimble French hot hatches, seems to be happy with it as a usable fun road car. YMMV on this as it’s a very subjective point.

Between the ‘standard’ Z4 and 370, I have no experience but from reading around, it seems the 370 is perhaps closer to the nismo than the 3.0 is to the Z4m . Whatever the case may be, I wouldn’t listen to the fanboys on either side, go drive both and make your choice. These kind of cars are more about the experience than the raw numbers so buy on feel and go with what your heart wants.

[baege]

I'll chime in as it looks like the OP is still thinking about this.

I had 2003 350Z manual for 3 years and a 2007 z4 coupe 3.0 SI manual for 4 years.

coles notes: I disliked the 350Z and loved the Z4 coupe.

The 370Z is a little different from the 350 but it's the same in some respects, especially in terms of the engine.

That VQ engine is a coarse unrefined thing that I never enjoyed. Car and driver said it sounded like a coffee grinder in the upper ranges which I would agree with. I would almost never go in the upper ranges because I didn't enjoy the experience. It does have good low end torque, so you don't really have to go there if you don't want to.

Drive a VQ engine right after driving a bmw inline six and you will know exactly what I am talking about. I made the mistake of test driving a 330ci after I had already bought my 350Z and the smooth buttery feel of that inline six made me only hate my 350Z engine even more.

In terms of other aspects of the cars, the 350 or 370Z are less off the mark. They are decent looking cars, although not as classically beautiful as an e86 to me and I think the 350Z looks better than the 370Z which has a less fluid look to it.

They handle well, perhaps a little better than the e86.

the manual is pretty good and the interior is decent.

Outward visibility is better in the e86 and it feels more open and airy.

I think you will know your answer if you are able to drive both back to back. That can be hard to do sometimes, especially given the rarity of the manual e86s.

Back in 2003 I bought the 350Z instead of a 1999 m coupe, still regret that decision to this day.

Don't make the same mistake

[WickedNy]

The 370 dime a dozen
Z coupe rare unicorn

End of story

[John_Romanos]

Originally Posted by baege

I'll chime in as it looks like the OP is still thinking about this.

I had 2003 350Z manual for 3 years and a 2007 z4 coupe 3.0 SI manual for 4 years.

coles notes: I disliked the 350Z and loved the Z4 coupe.

The 370Z is a little different from the 350 but it's the same in some respects, especially in terms of the engine.

That VQ engine is a coarse unrefined thing that I never enjoyed. Car and driver said it sounded like a coffee grinder in the upper ranges which I would agree with. I would almost never go in the upper ranges because I didn't enjoy the experience. It does have good low end torque, so you don't really have to go there if you don't want to.

Drive a VQ engine right after driving a bmw inline six and you will know exactly what I am talking about. I made the mistake of test driving a 330ci after I had already bought my 350Z and the smooth buttery feel of that inline six made me only hate my 350Z engine even more.

In terms of other aspects of the cars, the 350 or 370Z are less off the mark. They are decent looking cars, although not as classically beautiful as an e86 to me and I think the 350Z looks better than the 370Z which has a less fluid look to it.

They handle well, perhaps a little better than the e86.

the manual is pretty good and the interior is decent.

Outward visibility is better in the e86 and it feels more open and airy.

I think you will know your answer if you are able to drive both back to back. That can be hard to do sometimes, especially given the rarity of the manual e86s.

Back in 2003 I bought the 350Z instead of a 1999 m coupe, still regret that decision to this day.

Don't make the same mistake

Been looking at coupes for awhile, deciding to go with the z4 coupe since o already have headers and a nice custom steering wheel for the car. Been trying to sell my car to get it but it's just tough since it's a vert