350Z Daily Driver Detailed

[Frank70]

Bryan - I'm with you on trading my Z for a GT-R.

[Eldorado2k]

If the 350z and GTR both came equipped with the same exact engine and performance package, which car do you think would be more popular?

Btw I know nothing about these type of cars.. I'm just curious if the big interest in the GTR is mainly based on its performance, or do people also find the car visually appealing?

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[BryanH]

Great pictures, man. I love the juxtaposition of the trees, the snow, and the dried up lake.

Thanks. With all the rain we've had the past couple months (and snow up in the mountains), I was shocked to see the lake this low.

Nice work, Bryan!

Thanks Paul.

Beautiful, did you find a lot of run off with the Iron x?

I got a moderate amount. I've done cars with more purple bleeding and cars with less. The areas around the badges seemed the worst:

Very nice job !!! Great looking 350Z

Thanks Pat. It'd look better if it was Cherry Red Pearl, no?

If the 350z and GTR both came equipped with the same exact engine and performance package, which car do you think would be more popular?

Btw I know nothing about these type of cars.. I'm just curious if the big interest in the GTR is mainly based on its performance, or do people also find the car visually appealing?

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but the GT-R is a much different car than the Z. Zs have always been (well, aside from the mid 90s Twin Turbo models when the exchange rate was crazy) about making high performance and fun driving dynamics affordable and available to a wider audience. When the 350Z came out its engineering targets were cars like the Boxster, M3, and Corvette. But they built the 350Z to come in at a lower price, and that shows in NVH refinement and interior materials. It's a lot of all around speed and competency (acceleration, handling, braking) for not a lot of money.

The GT-R, on the other hand, was built to be a much more high end, refined, and complete car. It's extremely sophisticated. Even the body, though it may not look like it, is very aerodynamic with a low coefficient of drag. It has a complex AWD system with multiple differentials and computers that make it handle not quite like anything else out there. It has a modestly useful back seat and trunk, a very nice and comfortable interior, and performance potential that is pretty mind blowing. What really put the GT-R on the map in the US is its all around performance, again at a price that nobody else could compete with. Prices have gone up in the last 9 years, so it's not quite the performance bargain it once was but the improvements over those years have been positive (power, handling, and ride mainly).

I could go on and on about the GT-R but I'll leave you with its most famous party trick: Launch Mode
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yTkjbTfSoGE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=up59aokTBec&t=3m40s

[Jaretr1]

Pat and I both have 350Z's, and even though the design is going on 14+ years from when it was introduced, I still think the cars are sexy!

Nice work!

[Eldorado2k]

I'm 1:30 seconds into the 1st video... And I can't help but think that steering wheel & dash looks alot like the Autopia bumper car ride at Disneyland. Lol. I dunno who designed that car bit it just doesn't look so great. Lol.
I'll continue watching the video now.

Actually, it sort of looks kinda like an early 90's Toyota Tercel on the inside?My brothers wife used to have a Tercel back in the days.

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[Matt3400]

I miss my 07 350z track in white, what a fun car to carve mountain roads in. I'll pick another one up someday.


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[swanicyouth]

Nice...

The GTR looks like a garbage truck compared to the 350Z

[BryanH]

Tough crowd - no love for the GT-R. I learned a long time ago that for myself, the driving experience is ultimately more important than looks. Nearly 20 years ago I had a '71 Cuda and an '87 MR2 and the 'Cuda was rarely driven, because the MR2 was so much more fun and reliable. Since then I've come to develop a fondness for Japanese design.

Cool to see so much appreciation for the 350Z.

[BryanH]

Update on Chemical Guys Clean Slate. I started the decon wash for the blue car this morning (rain is coming!). It has Meguiars Ultimate Quik Wax (D156) which amazes me for a spray wax. It's somewhere around 2-8 weeks old. Nice look and beading:



There are also three sections where a paste wax was applied on a day in December where I applied stickers that were removed a day or two later.

This time I went heavy on the Clean Slate. It calls for 1oz per 5 gallons. I used 3oz in about 4 gallons. It's a really luxurious wash this way! At the end I poured the remainder of the soap solution from the clean bucket over the car (being careful not to let the grit guard fall out!). After rinsing, the beading definitely took a hit. IIRC this wash is supposed to rinse clean and leave nothing behind. So I'll consider this wax stripping a reasonable success.