Hi guys,

 

I'm thinking about getting a 300...

I used to own a 3000gt which i absolutely loved, and i've heard that this nissan is pretty much a clone of the mitsi....

 

The only thing with the mitsi was the cost of running it. I wasn't thinking too much the petrol costs, which were still ludicrous, but more the cost of repairs/servicing..

 

Question is basically is the 300zx twin turbo an expensive car to own and is it likely to cost me my life savings just to keep it on the road. I appreciate it depends on whether i buy a very very nice one or a crapper, but i was hoping for a bit of a generalisation about the cars....

 

Any help is much appreciated!

 

Thanks,

Andy

i suppose it depends on your personal financial circumstances, but generally i would say yes they are expensive to keep on the road, it helps if you know what your looking at before you take the plunge and get one. Fuel costs offcourse are an issue, servicing can be an issue, so do your reasearch to find a garage that has z experience close to you, it helps if you have a basic mechanical understanding as many jobs can be done yourself with advice from the excellent people on this forum. I think the main point is shop around and do your research on the car before you commit to buying, that way you can be sure that the engine/turbos/gearbox etc.... aernt gonna throw their hand in soon as you get round the corner. If you buy an auto you can pretty much be assured that it will go sooner or later, there are ways to prolong the life of the box but i would advize on a manual model given the choice. (awaits to be cut down by the auto lovers)

A Z is only as good as the how the previous owner treated it. Buy a neglected one from a cheap-scate and you'll be buying a problem car, buy one that's been well maintained by an enthusiast and you'll likely have no problems.

 

Regular servicing on a stock engine isn't that expensive IMHO. If you start cutting corners, modifying it on the cheap, you'll have expensive issues.

Hi Andy

 

The key is to remember that these cars are getting quite old now and its pretty hard to find one that has been well looked or has not been thrashed. Bits go with age, the engines are quite complex and its pretty hard to find a zed specialist within 100 miles of London. Aftermarket parts are plentiful but expensive. I love mine to pieces and my wife is very understanding.

Dont go to the nissan dealer for parts, they take the piss with prices. You can usualy get uprated aftermarket parts 50% cheaper than O/E

Hi Andy,

 

My advice would be to buy one from a club member / enthusiast and pay the extra few quid. In general you will be getting a well looked after car.

 

In my instance I was looking for a specific model and being in Ireland it took a while for it to come up and it was quite cheap. The engine and gearbox are perfect, but there were a lot of other things that needed work, that I didn't notice at the time. My heart ruled my head and deep down, I had decided to buy it before I ever saw it. Do I regret buying it - no, but if it was again, I would wait till one came up for sale through this club or other Nissan clubs from a member who knew how to look after it.

 

From a parts point of view, any new Nissan parts that I would need, I would get them through Mike of MJP auto's who trades here and I save a fortune over the Irish Nissan dealers. There are loads of 2nd hand parts through the board or Paul at SWZ parts who also trades. In comparison to the parts for my BMW's, the Nissan gear is relatively cheap.

 

All in all, in my opinion, if you buy the right machine it won't cost a fortune to maintain.

Running costs=lots