Well, my 17 year old brother has decided he wants a new car. Apparently he has the same problem as me since he's had his current car for only 10 months....Anyway, he wants a 350Z, and my parents are suprisingly "thinking about it."

Being the family car guy, I figured I'd get some opinions from you all. I'm not sure if this is a good choice. His current car is a 2.0 turbo Saab 9-3. It has like...200ish hp I think. Its not that fast (similar to my Cooper S). The 350Z has 300ish..300hp + 17 year old kid = not good.

So basically, my question is do they handle well and are they safe? He's never driven one, so I'm wondering if they're really THAT impractical? He's a decent driver, but tends to show off. We'll be living in Texas, and have 4+ cars (one being AWD), so at least the RWD wont be an issue.

Opinions? Suggestions? Alternatives?

 

i rented one end of last year. great pick up, the power is VERY accessable. really fun car to drive. noisy when you get on it, maybe because it had crappy tires handled a little squirelly at times...
I'd be worried if my 17 yr old brother got a hold of one, especially if he likes to show off.

 

Thanks, thats what im thinking....although I do think they look sweet, and would def steal it from him on occasion.

 

We had one for a while but it got written off. Great engine, good handling, probably not for a 17 yr old. He'd never be able to afford to insure it here (£6000) per yr for a 17 yr old.

 

Well it'll prob be insured in my dad's name, so I dont think it'll be that bad. That, plus my parents pay our auto insurance as long as we're in school.

 

Honestly, your brother will likely get into trouble with ANY car he drives.
If he is an aggressive, risk-taking driver, it really won't matter whether he has 200 HP or 300.

At least let him drive a cool car, if he's going to be driving around Texas. He needs a chick-magnet!

 

not sure what you mean by that?

 

everyone picks up Zs nowdays huh?
good car, heavy but great engine.
cheap as shlt interior, kind of outdated, everyone's mother's friend's son's have- like exterior... (it was very fresh when it first came out but after a few years, phhhhhh.. )

 

He's a poser, fits him well. lol

 

i would have told him to mod his sabb more
but i realized that it isn't aero..

if u can tune em right, they can be f a s t..

 

Do yourself a big favor and private message TheFutureQueenofNebraska.

She will tell you her detailed experience with owning a 350Z.

Not good......not good.

 

what your bother really wants is a Mazda5.

i think those microvans are pretty cool. plus once he starts college he
can lug a lot of his stuff and all his girl friends to his dorm.

 

Really? I sat in one last week at a used car lot and loved the leather. It also had a beast of a clutch and the shifter throw seemed way short. Still rather have a G35 though. LOVE THAT SOUND!!!

 

350Z for a 17 year old, a bit spoiled no

Try reading here http://www.forbes.com/forbeslife/veh..._0226teen.html

 

i'm not a fan of the 350z. i actually don't like the way it looks at all and there're just too many annoying/stupid things about that car. that strut tower brace in the truck is ludicrous, the car is pretty fat and rather unrefined for a dedicated 2-seat rwd sports car. and the exhaust whine is annoying. for the money and type of car, the RX-8 is much much better, imho.

alternative for a 17-year-old? how about a basic mustang, civic si, or basic wrx?

 

I've talked to Tori many times before, haha. She had that thing for what, a few months? lol

 

Well right now he's driving a $30k Saab that I got brand new when I graduated high school. I had it less than a year before I got my Cooper S and gave him the old car. It's pretty nice too....bright red, manual, turbo, heated black leather seats, sunroof, all the techie junk..and it had like 12k miles on it when I gave it to him. That's pretty nice for a kid that had just turned 16 at the time.

I doubt he's gonna consider an Escape, PT Cruiser, or anything else on that list.

If I was him I'd do an '07 328Ci coupe

 

totally agree, 5 is the way to go. i was hoping there resale would plummet, honestly if you could get a used one now for around 10k more or less, id honestly seriously consider dropping my cooper for it. i know its lame, but ive always liked the van idea; what can i say my parents were hippies

 

I think you parents should adopt me. Even though I'm 55, I'd have no problem going back to school and I'd look great in a 350Z.

I'm very tidy and I'd even help out around the house.

 

Can I pretend I didnt just read that?

 

haha. do you clean toilets?

 

haa, yeah, i just want that 5 because putting an "if this vans a rockin dont come a knockin" bumper sticker on a MINI just doesnt work

but to keep on topic, a kid i know has an earlier 350z, like an 04 i think, and he loves it. His is pre facelift so he has the less quality interior, but ive never heard him knock it down. In fact the only negative ive heard him say is the lack of glovebox, and im sure he regrets the fact that putting the above bumper sticker on a Z is completely redundant since there is no room to make things rock when your with a lady

as to quality i know he blew a clutch, but thats because he had never driven stick and learned on that car, i def dont blame that on the car

 

but your whole setup is make-believe anyway until you make it out
on your own... so wat difference does it make?

 

does it really matter?