A number of people tell me the 350Z will easily waste the S2000 in a race.

Who cares? What is their idea of "waste"? 1 or 2 tenths of a second in the 1/4 mile? Who cares?

There are a lot of cars that will beat the S2000 in a straight line race. If straight line racing is the determining factor between you buying one car or another, you're lookin at the wrong two cars. The S2000 is quicker than the average car, but it's not a dragster and neither is the 350Z.

My mother has a 6speed 350Z Roadster. I've driven it many times. Yes, it's quick also. Is it quicker than the S? I don't know. I know it was quicker than a Boxster S, because I beat one with it.

I am not as comfortable driving the 350Z as I am with the S. The interior does not fit me well. I'm short and the doors on the 350Z as so high that they practically come up to my chin when I'm sitting in it. The tranny is very notchy and vague. I've missed a few shifts in it going from 2nd to 3rd. The clutch pedal is quite a bit heavier than the S. There is a lack of rearward visibility in the Z, more so than the S with the top up. The quality of the interior components of the Z are not up to par with the S. Suprisingly, for a 3400lb car, the Z handles quite well. It doesn't feel as heavy as it is, but it still doesn't feel as nimble and tight as the S. If I can give the Z anything, I can say that it has one of the BEST sounding V6's I've ever heard. It's a monster. Awesome engine.

Like many others have said, you need to drive both, but for some reason it doesn't sound like you're actually interested in purchasing one of the two. It just sounds like you're trying to settle an armchair dragracing arguement.

 

Seeing as this post is here I'll post my "street encounter"

I was on my way home the other day and I rolled up on a brand spanking new Z with dealer paper plates.

I was top down and chill'n..... I looked over to make eye contact but he didn't look. He just stared straight ahead. The guy was an asian male late 30's early 40's. (not that it matters)

Light turned green. I assumed that because he didn't look at me and his car was probably still in the "break-in" period he didn't want any.

I rolled forward in 1st.......normal acceleration and sure enough!!!!!!

Vroom Vroom....... this freaking guy trys to race me!... WTF?

I had a 3/4 car length from the light and off we went. I saw/heard him shift to 2nd and 3rd. Each time he shifted I gained another 1/4 car length. I don't know what he was doing but I was "power" shifting. His meager attempt to catch me.. much less pass me was FUTILE. I shut it down due to traffic and looked over again but nothing again.

After that, he didn't rev on me again. Just swerved in and out of traffic to get a way from another encounter.

IMO.......It's a drivers race and on this particular day it was obvious to me that it wasn't his car........it was his SKILLS that were in their
"break-in" period.

 

Ok, lock this thread please. Enough of this stupid magazine race.

 

Last time I checked, it was kinda tough to put the top down on a Z...

Two buddies have them--very nice cars. One has CAI and exhaust, and the car is VERY quick. The second car has 12" Volks in the rear and a twin turbo setup. 420rwp - apparently the stock slugs are good up to 450.

 

I've driven both cars and ran a Z and ZR.

Here are my impressions:

S2k vs ZR - S2000 pulls slowly after 3rd from a roll.
S2k vs Z Coupe - Even though I ran with the top down from a roll

Both cars are very nice. The ZR handling is much different than the S2k handling and I can tell the cars rear end is larger on the ZR. THe Z/ZR offers more 'bells and whistles' than the S2k like Nav system, more digital gauges, etc. If you're looking for the bells and whistles go with the Z, otherwise the S will be for you because it handles better and is as fast with fewer horses.

 

I beat a S with an Intake, Comptech SC, and an Invidia Exhaust. At the time I had intake, header, and straight pipes on 19" volks. The funny thing is the guy I ran was a guy that worked with my friend that was in my passenger seat

 

I had the happiness of owning both the Z and now I currently have the S2000....The cars are both great, but on any track the S2000 will easily own the Z unless it is consistently made up of straight aways...Anyway straight line I would bank on either car winning because the low end on the Z is amazing, but the high end kick of the S2000 and the weight difference all adds up to a beast...I think both cars are great and you can't go wrong with either car!

 

I definitely agree with that statement. I test drove my friend's stock S and boy does that thing handle!

 

It's funny this topic came up. My father just bought a G35 coupe (6spd mt) today and I had the pleasure of driving it for a few hours (basically the same car as the Z from what I know). I think it definitely doesn't handle as good, and is about equal on a straight line. I raced my dad tonight (considering he is not at all used to the car) and I actually pulled about half a car length through 3rd gear (pretty good considering new G35 has 300hp). We are going to race for real once the break in is over and we have a better spot.

That issue aside I love the car and you get alot of "bang for the buck". It's definitely a different animal than the S.

Joe

 

Well, the march issue of Road & Track (not yet on thier website) has a 9 sports car shootout, including the S2000 and the special anniversary edition of the 350Z. They tested track times + everyday livability.

The s2000 came in 5th (not bad considering it's the cheapest car on the shootout).

The 350Z came in 8th (second least expensive car).

I don't have the issue in front of me because I lent it to a friend, but I remember them saying they were dissapointed with the 350Z's performance on the track.

Might want to head out to a bookstore and read the page about each car, or wait a few weeks and it will be on roadandtrack.com


It was a good article. Worth the $4.50 for the mag, I thought.

--geekd