I have been visiting the forum over the last month or so to get an idea of running costs and potential problems that 300 owners experience. The problem as far as I can see is that a lot of you guys seem to be spending a lot of cash keeping your cars on the road. I am getting the impression that these cars are not really very reliable and when they do go wrong you need to sell an organ to pay the bill. Is this a fair assesment? Are there any owners out there who have had no problems and only had to pay for routine servicing?

 

I love the way the Z looks and I love the idea of a 280 BHP TT V6 but I don't really want to buy a car that turns into a millstone round my neck. :(

You just have to find a good one with a good service history ;) there are a lot of peeps on here that have no troubles at all with the Zed :cool: but like any thing you look after it and it will be good to you.

But i would say IMHO its not a Day to day car......:x:

As with all old cars, especially performance cars, a lot get driven hard and abused. Plenty of nice ones about, but LOTS of crappers.

 

I paid over the odds for mine, because I wanted something as near as standard and well looked after as possible.

 

Other than a dud battery and some loose oil pipes, it's good so far, need a wheel bearing though.

Yep, its all about buying the right car. There are a lot of bad examples out there, that have been uncared for in their past. Usually becuase people see how cheap they are to buy, without taking into account running costs.

 

It will cost more to run than an "normal" car, but buy a well looked after example and you will find them very reliable. They are well built and strong cars. but need to be well maintained, just like any high performance car.

 

Dont forget - that on any car forum, all you will ever hear about is "problems". Owners dont post up about how reliable their cars are on a regular basis.

 

Most are around 13-15 years old and there will be wear and tear issues with any car at this age.

Most of these cars are 14 years old now so you got to expect a bit of wear and tear at this age. You will find alot of Z's out there now that have never been maintained properly and would cost a fortune to get back to a good standard.

 

Try and find a car that has been owned by an enthusiast (ie, on here) and put a lot of TLC into there car. Better to spent top money and get something that wont fall apart. If maintained properly these cars can be very reliable but it does come at a hefty cost.

 

I've had my Z for years now and it's never broken down. Its only the last couple years that i've invested lots of money replacing aging parts so the car still drives like new. If you want to get into the realms of big power then you get into mega money.

 

Andy

If you want to drive it day to day, dont even bother with one.. i spent just under 3k in repairs in 6 months when i had mine... Sure they look nice.. But theyre are very heavy, and overrated in my views.. Give me a mk2 20Valve Turbo with Sync pushing 250bhp at the wheels anyday from now on!

If you want to drive it day to day, dont even bother with one.. i spent just under 3k in repairs in 6 months when i had mine... Sure they look nice.. But theyre are very heavy, and overrated in my views.. Give me a mk2 20Valve Turbo with Sync pushing 250bhp at the wheels anyday from now on!

 

 

had mine as a daily driver for over 3 years, spent about 1k on repairs in that time.

The fact that the old owner didnt know anything about the car didnt help in my case to be fair......

But theyre are very heavy, and overrated in my views.. !

 

Now theres a comment you dont hear on here very often.

Think you will find these cars are very underated buddy as suggested by many of performance magazines in the past. Sure yours is running right?

Mine wasnt runnnig right to start with... then i fixed it, then he stole it back.. because he missed the power.. lol

 

Sure, they seem fast... But when 2.0 16v Nova's pushing 200bhp are as quick, for a fraction of the cost, and thats not including repairs...

 

To me, they are a very heavy car, and anything under 400bhp in one makes it a semi fast car.. Not rapid though.. And i had the SWB TT!

 

Aftre owning one for 6 months, i cant say id go back to having another...

Mine wasnt runnnig right to start with... then i fixed it, then he stole it back.. because he missed the power.. lol

 

Sure, they seem fast... But when 2.0 16v Nova's pushing 200bhp are as quick, for a fraction of the cost, and thats not including repairs...

 

To me, they are a very heavy car, and anything under 400bhp in one makes it a semi fast car.. Not rapid though.. And i had the SWB TT!

 

Aftre owning one for 6 months, i cant say id go back to having another...

 

I wouldn't go mentioning Nova's round here mate. LOL

Mine wasnt runnnig right to start with... then i fixed it, then he stole it back.. because he missed the power.. lol

 

Sure, they seem fast... But when 2.0 16v Nova's pushing 200bhp are as quick, for a fraction of the cost, and thats not including repairs...

 

To me, they are a very heavy car, and anything under 400bhp in one makes it a semi fast car.. Not rapid though.. And i had the SWB TT!

 

Aftre owning one for 6 months, i cant say id go back to having another...

 

0-60 in 5.5 secs and 170mph+ standard is a Semi-fast car ?

 

..and your trying to compare it to a modified example of an old cheap shopping trolley with one of the worst images of any car in the country. :xxx:

Im not a Nova fan myself..... But im just saying... I like it how everyone on here seems to think the 300 is totally rapid.. maybe the guys pushing 450/500 bhp without the use of gas, this may be true.....

But in my short experience, the 300 is just a car for posing, you put your foot down, you risk it breaking... As much as i hate Supra's.. Id prolly go for one over a 300 from now on..

0-60 in 5.5 secs and 170mph+ standard is a Semi-fast car ?

 

..and your trying to compare it to a modified example of an old cheap shopping trolley with one of the worst images of any car in the country. :xxx:

 

170mph+??? HAHA! the SWB i had, had troubles getting over 160mph! And that was with it running right!

 

0-60 in 5.5? HAHA! The SWB TT i had wouldnt have done that on a good day!

170mph+??? HAHA! the SWB i had, had troubles getting over 160mph! And that was with it running right!

 

0-60 in 5.5? HAHA! The SWB TT i had wouldnt have done that on a good day!

 

they are well proven, well documented and accurate figures

 

Something was wrong with yours, simple as that ! You had a bad experience with a bad example, and therefore presume thats the case for all zeds.

Your arguments are kind of invalid really. A Nova with a C20LET engine in it is going to be quicker than most things. Infact, one running EDS phase chips will chase and beat Skylines up the strip.

 

It's all swings and roundabouts. The ZX is a fast car. Most things with 6 cylinders and two turbos generally are.

i didnt say all zeds.. hence why i stated it against the car that i had owned fella... I dont doubt some do in excess of 170 mhp... and a 0-60 in 5.5

Mine wasnt runnnig right to start with... then i fixed it, then he stole it back.. because he missed the power.. lol

 

Sure, they seem fast... But when 2.0 16v Nova's pushing 200bhp are as quick, for a fraction of the cost, and thats not including repairs...

 

To me, they are a very heavy car, and anything under 400bhp in one makes it a semi fast car.. Not rapid though.. And i had the SWB TT!

 

Aftre owning one for 6 months, i cant say id go back to having another...

 

Then why are you here?

 

 

re the original question -

 

iv spent a fair amount on repairs, but i believe thats down to my own negligence more than anything (not enough oil changes etc) - and mines 15 years old. Am now doing a head gasket and 60k service to get it back on the road.

 

its like having a page 3 girlfriend - looks good, goes superb but needs alot of attention.

170mph+??? HAHA! the SWB i had, had troubles getting over 160mph! And that was with it running right!

Paul, it certainly doesnt sound like it was running right to me im afraid!

 

0-60 in 5.5? HAHA! The SWB TT i had wouldnt have done that on a good day!

Sure it wasnt a NA! :dance:

 

 

Back to topic, A 300zx TT is a reliable car, i honestly use mine very hard (santa pod, track days etc) and apart from auto boxes giving up the ghost the only other prob i have is split water pipes!!

 

If you regularly service it and get yourself a turbo timer/leave the engine running for a few mins after harder driving you should be fine!

 

HTH bud

 

Rich

Im not a Nova fan myself..... But im just saying... I like it how everyone on here seems to think the 300 is totally rapid.. maybe the guys pushing 450/500 bhp without the use of gas, this may be true.....

But in my short experience, the 300 is just a car for posing, you put your foot down, you risk it breaking... As much as i hate Supra's.. Id prolly go for one over a 300 from now on..

 

Sound like you had a bad experience but they dont break when you put your foot down, even running 400bhp on stock internals. And that my friend will keep up with most modern 80K sports cars. Not Fast???

it was treated with the upmost respect, turbo timer etc etc etc.. it just didnt go at all.... and to be told youve bought a 500bhp car, then to be told that he'd lost the RR fugures, then to be told it hasnt got 120bhp Nitrous jets, then to be told he wasnt actually sure if it had forged pistons, metal headgasket.. or anything else..

This sounds harsh chap, but you bought it. Shouldn't really blame the car on other people's shortcomings....

yup, your right... Ive come to that conclusion.. It was my own fault for trusting a mate...

This sounds harsh chap, but you bought it. Shouldn't really blame the car on other people's shortcomings....

 

I was kind of thinking that myself.....Sounds like the problem was with the last owner not the car :)

I am prepeared for it to cost more to maintain than a Mondeo, I currently put aside £100 a month to cover the maintenence, tyres and tax on my 328. As well as this I would also hang onto the cash from the sale of the BMW, which will be around £2K, just incase of any major problems.

My biggest concern is that it will be used every day and will have to do at least 10k a year. Am I mad for considering a car like a TT Z for daily use?

Am I mad for considering a car like a TT Z for daily use?

 

Unless you have money to pi$$ up the wall on fuel, buy a good one and you'll be happy. :)