Keep the S man. I sold my S '07 two weeks ago and regret it big time. The reason I sold it because it was my weekend car and with a family, its hard to find time to drive her.

I am not so sure about the 370z. The S is more prestige to own. I owned a 350z coupe & roadster and always feel the S is much a better car.

tony

 

Trade it for an 09 CR

 

Sounds like you need to spend more time test driving. You can spend all your time trying to financially justify the change but really it's the driving experience that should matter IMO.

What's likely to break or need excess maintenance on your S? A warranty does provide some peace of mind but it doesn't prevent/eliminate breakdowns nor the hassle associated with them even if you have warranty coverage.

 

The short answer to losing the money you would spend on FI is yes. The long answer is no.

If you just sold the car with all the mods on it, yes, you would lose money. If you parted it out, maybe you would break even if you found the right buyers and had good quality mods. You may also break even if you find that "perfect buyer" that wants your exact car, with mods, and willing to pay your price.

I look at mods this way: You want to personalize your car, you spend the money. Don't ever expect to get any money at sale time because of the mods. You depreciate the mods by using them. When you end up selling, you must realize the mileage on that mod makes that mod used, and will not sell for whatever you bought it for. (same concept as your car's depreciation, you need to treat your mods depreciation the same way)

As for maintenance, you have a MY04 with 55k miles. What maintenance do you need on a car with 55k miles? Unless your beating it to death daily, its not going to need anything but fluids, tires and wax for awhile. Same maintenance as the 09 Z.

Personally, I would not go with a Z, not because its not an S, but because I see ~10 a day on my 30 mile commute. I MAYBE see 1 S in a week's time. I have not driven a newer Z (90's model was the last time I got behind the wheel of one) so I could not comment on the better, faster other than what a magazine or others more familiar with them would say. I am sure in one respect or another, the Z's are faster better and newer than an S.

I would pay off the S, then keep driving it after its paid off, save that money, and then decide. Your S is not going to depreciate 4k in the time it should take you to pay it off. (should have somewhere around a year left on loan?) Worst case is you get a 2010 Z, trade in the S, and have money in the bank. Or you keep the S, use saved money to buy whatever mods you like, and have a rarer car than a Z.

 

[QUOTE=operator207,Mar 31 2010, 10:17 AM]The short answer to losing the money you would spend on FI is yes. The long answer is no.

If you just sold the car with all the mods on it, yes, you would lose money. If you parted it out, maybe you would break even if you found the right buyers and had good quality mods. You may also break even if you find that "perfect buyer" that wants your exact car, with mods, and willing to pay your price.

I look at mods this way: You want to personalize your car, you spend the money. Don't ever expect to get any money at sale time because of the mods. You depreciate the mods by using them. When you end up selling, you must realize the mileage on that mod makes that mod used, and will not sell for whatever you bought it for. (same concept as your car's depreciation, you need to treat your mods depreciation the same way)

As for maintenance, you have a MY04 with 55k miles. What maintenance do you need on a car with 55k miles? Unless your beating it to death daily, its not going to need anything but fluids, tires and wax for awhile. Same maintenance as the 09 Z.

Personally, I would not go with a Z, not because its not an S, but because I see ~10 a day on my 30 mile commute. I MAYBE see 1 S in a week's time. I have not driven a newer Z (90's model

 

If you sell your S and buy a Z you are probably going another $15K+ into debt. Ask yourself if having a car that is marginally faster and handles a little heavier but doesn't have a convertible roof is worth $15,000+.

Don't be one of those people that feel they need something new the first time their car needs some maintenance. 55K miles is not even 1/3 through an S2000's young life!

I for one will never have a car payment again.

 

+1

You'd regret it. Once you have the Z, and $15k more debt, you will start to miss the S, and realize you made a really poor decision.

55k miles is nothing. Mine is at 85k, new clutch next week, and SC kit going in next month. My car is running real strong, and it easily has another 85k of life left.

Fix your top and clutch, and purchased a used SC kit for $3000, and be CONTENT with what you have, which is a phenominal sports car.

 

Im in a similar position to the OP, so I can fully relate.

Myself, I have come to terms with the fact that I will probably have a car payment for the rest of my life. I am 26 years old, and have already been through 22 cars. Financially, he accepts his car payment as part of his budget. So this "taking on 15k more debt" probably doesnt matter to him, I know it doesnt for me. What WOULD matter to me, is coming out of pocket 5-7k for super/turbo charging, only to have quirks here and there which kept me from enjoying my car, or worse yet, having something go wrong, and having to spend another 5-7k on an engine replacement. THAT would hurt financially, and is something to consider.
**Lets not start a debate on FI reliability please, this is not my intention.

So, with that in mind...here is my situation

I have always been in search of the "perfect car for me" and the s2000 is about 90% there, but ultimately there are a few things I dislike, that could never be changed to my satisfaction, so I will probably be trading my S this fall.

I too, am considering the Z. I owned a 2004 G35 coupe, and like it, but over all it was just too heavy. When the 370z was introduced I got really excited, but, was in what I thought would be my dream/perfect car at the time, my Lotus Elise, so I never drove it. When I sold my Elise, the first car I test drove was a 2003 s2000. I fell in love. It had 80% of the fun to drive that my lotus had, but 200% more comfort. I figured the power difference was something I would just get used to (My lotus was turbo charged, Low 12s 1/4 mile) Well, I haven't, and im not sure I want to go through the hassle of turbo charging the S. So, back to the drawing board.

My advice, which I am currently heeding, is to just say **** it. If you like the 370 enough to own it, trade the S. You can always go back in the end, but you will gain the peace of mind, knowing that you gave it a shot, and that the S is really just THE car for you. Peace of mind costs money, so what, you can always make more money, but you cant make up lost time.

 

Holy Bawls!

You, sir, are the kind of indecisive buyer who keeps used and new car dealers making a paycheck!

That's an average of changing or adding a car every 5 1/2 months since you were 16!

I have to assume there is no way that you are married because anyone who can't enjoy a nice car for more than 6 months before switching can't possibly be content with one woman!

I've had quite a few vehicles but at age 30 I'm only on my 8th vehicle and still have 3 of them in my garage which I intend to keep for the next 5 years +.

 

4evertopless; wow yeah man 22 cars at age 26 its.. well a lot, im 28 and this is barely my 2nd car! LOL i bought my first car (a new civic EK9) at 18 and then 6 years later...my S, so you can understand why a transition its kinda hard for me i have the tendency to keep cars for a while.

the reliability issue after FI is an excellent point to bring up cause lets face it, it could happen...