slimshady

OH....how could I forget the Pontiac GTO. I saw one on the road just a week or so ago. HOT!

dHoff

The Audi S4 and the BMW M3 will smoke them all if it's performance you are looking for. And Even the Porsche Boxter is in this class.

These are arguably some of the finest cars built today. And the S4 is even good in bad weather. I have driven it at true Porsche eating speeds and they will out run a plow truck in the snow.

-dH

DrunkIQ

First off thanks to all for replying!

Well I just test drove the crossfire and the RX-8. I looked at the 350z but it was raining so I will go back for a test drive later in the week. I also plan to take a look at a Sabb 9.3 later this week. I wanted to get this written down while it was fresh in my mind.

As for the Audi S4 - my buddy has one (turbo) and it was not my style. I do like the TT and the M3 but they are in Corvette price rages when equipped so they are out (I would choose a C5 over them anyways).... Basically I am looking for something under the $35k range so that I don't have to cramp my daily life style. Heck, when I got done putting add ons to a 3-series bmw I ended up at $45 for a 330xi or ci or somthing.... The way I see it is that maybe i was ment to get somthing for now and a C6 corvette later on when the bugs are fixed...

as for now my current thoughts...

Crossfire Cons:

It was very awkward to get an out of. I had to basically try to swing my feet up and over the door sill to get out of it and to do that the door had to be pretty far open. There where so many blind spots that you can only rely on the mirrors to see what is around you. Luckily the rear spoiler only deploys at highway speeds (57 and up) and closes at 45. When the wing is up you lose 1/3 of the rear window, which is pretty small to begin with. The crossfire I drove was an auto with what appeared to a tiptronic transmission. Well it was no triptronic, it still shifts on you… Basically all it does is let you up or downshift when it does not want to. I tried using the feature and there was a big delay in response. I was just like putting you regular automatic in low and shifting up. I forced it into first and still shifted on my when I did not want it to. The response of the auto I think really killed the horse power. It felt like the engine was governed at take off, I did not see away to turn all the active handling stuff off. The cabin was tight. I did fit with wise, but if I was a few pounds heavier then I would have been in trouble. The drivers’ side seat did not have lumbar support either, that sucks for long trips. I like to put my seat up rather than swung back – I am only 5’10” and my hair was touching the ceiling. I also had to bend my neck to get in. There is almost no storage space at all. There was a glove compartment, a small net holder between the seats for paper work and the smallest trunk you have ever seen in you life (unless we add a Lamborghini to the list). I actually sat in a manual that was blocked in and move the gear box – it kind of had a squishy/rubbery feel to it.

Crossfire Pros:

The crossfire was defiantly the best looking of the bunch up front, both inside and out. The ride was super smooth. It took bumpy roads better than my SUV. The turning radius was super tight. It felt very solid to drive it. It seemed pretty obvious it was a Mercedes Benz in disguise, best part about that is that you can look at the CLK to see how reliable it really is... So this is not really a first year model, unless somthing is wrong with exterior and interior "kit", all should be good. Once I got use to the mirrors I was able to tell what was happening around me. – Next year they will have a 330 HP version with a super charger (RST-6) – to bad it is 10k more :(


Crossfire Conclusion:

I had the opportunity to try a manual model but declined as it has been nearly 5 years since I drove one (stupid in retro - I drove the RX-8 with the manual). The vision thing really does not bug me as the mirror setup really helps. I am sure I could master getting in and out of it better with out bending the neck and without having to twist so much to get my feet out. I am sure I could get use to having the seat a notch back in order to never hit the ceiling. I really liked it but would have to try a manual version to see if this is really the car for me.


RX8 Cons:

The Touring model with leather has some of the ugliest leather I have ever seen. It is ribbed and look like vinyl. You can get in the back sets (yes even I fit back there) but you really need to slide the front seat up to make it easier on the person to get back there. On the touring model the seat is all electric and that is a pain in the rear. Esthetically it is not as pleasing to the eyes as the other two models. At this point I was not very impressed by the car. The only model with the lumbar support is the touring model with the horrid leather. The only problem I had with the exterior is that the front of the cars license plate makes it look like it has buck teeth. Below 3500 rpms there seem to be much power.

Rx8 Pros:

Well you can sit four if you needed to do so. I drove the manual model and told the sales person that it lacked power. I think he told me to down shift two gears…. I forgot that this cars engine likes to be between 4000-8000 rpms! I was a 2500… Well that took care of that problem. It really moves! This one does not beep at you when you hit the 9100 rpm start of the red line like the old RX7’s – so you really have to keep an eye on it. We found a parking lot and I test the turn radius. It was very tight, not as much as the crossfire by way tighter then I would have imagined. The manual tranny was very responsive, the car was very well balanced and it drove great. There was plenty of storage space, tons of cup holders for everyone and the car was easy to get in and out of. It also had a ton of room inside. Also blind spot are not an issue on this car.

RX8 Conclusions:

With the exception of the buck tooth plate and the cheap leather interior, this car is really nice. The dealer took me inside and showed me the cheapest model that they had done aftermarket leather to. This leather job was great; it was the best leather job I had ever seen. If I do get this one then I will get one model down and add the aftermarket leather. All you lose is heated seats and the lumbar support which none of the vehicles have. Either that or I will just get the grand touring model and add the aftermarket leather later… I need to check it out with out the lumbar support to see which way to go.


350z Cons:
Well the blinds spots are bad but near as bad as the crossfire. The carpet looks REALLY cheap. The touring model with leather is not as bad as the RX-8 leather job but still stinks. The back is still cloth and it is the bullet hole leather. All the upper models really add is leather some power seat stuff and stuff to drive for you (stabilizer junk). I say to buy the cheapest one and add leather. The car was not as hard as the crossfire to get in and out of due to it being taller but I still had the feet problem. The optional aero package looks like crap. Since I have not driven it this is all I have.

350z Pros:

It looks cool due to all of it angles. The shifter felt solid just in the parking lot unlike the crossfire – it was on par with the RX-8. It had more head room than the crossfire, not sure about that compared to the Mazda but either way I was good. There was a ton of storage in the cabin everywhere you looked. Even the base model has the same size engine as the expensive one.


350z Conclusions:

I have to drive it…


Once I pick out which one of these is for me then I just need to take some friends to the lot to pick out the color (Yep, i am pretty color blind)

-marc

Japle

Something else to think about:
My wife and I bought our last new car in 1971. We made our last car payment in 1972. We buy 3-4 year old high-end Japanese cars and drive them until they start giving us trouble. At that point, they're still worth good money (we keep them in good shape - clean, waxed, Armorall).
I figure we've saved somewhere between $170,000 and $200,000 by doing this.
We never have the hottest ride on the block, but we always have good-looking, dependable cars. And it's fun to be able to write a check for $18,000 and watch the car salesman turn colors.

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dcstep

400 hp, Mustang Cobra!!

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KevininGeorgia

First Off I will say that I'm a Nissan Fanatic so you have to take everything I say with a Grain of Salt!

I owned a 95 Maxima for YEARS & if it wasn’t for a damn Explorer rear ending me.. I would still be driving it.. I now have a Pathfinder & love it..( I mean I have to haul a brass band worth of instruments)

I love the 350z if I was going to get a sport car I would get the new 350z Roadster( It's the 350Z convertible.) That said the g35 Coupe is a "better Z than the Z".. One of the major mags ( Motortrend or Caranddriver) called it that.. the G35 Coupe has much better interior & nice suspension. Over all I like the Nissan motors (3.5L VG35DE V-6).. since they are all based on the 3.5L block, they just have different cams, heads, pistons & computers chips according to what you get.. I know a few guys that have gotten the 6 Cyl Altima & put the 350Z computer chip in it.. WOW a front wheel drive VERY light 350Z, those things are TOO fast.. LOL

If you interested in anything Nissan related feel free to ask ???

A few Reviews:
http://www.motortrend.com/roadtests/...g35/index.html

http://www.motortrend.com/roadtests/...35c/index.html




Thanks,
Kevin

mheffernen5

Saturn has a car with 3 doors...but they don't do bad gas mileage...
Pontiac also makes a 2 door car I think.

Ash

Not really a muscle car, but what about a hybrid? The new Prius has some snazzy geegaws for gadget tyops

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1933 King Cornet

DrunkIQ

OK,

It came down to a used Corvette (extened warrenty only) or a new crossfire. The RX-8 was just to plain looking and is really a sedan. I am not sure why I did not really like the 350Z. It may have been because it already looks like an aftermarket aerokit was already put on it, but the interior is what really bugged me.

I sat down yesterday morning to print all the invoice pricing off of edmunds for the crossfire and noticed the 2005 list was there. next year the had three versions - a really stripped one, the limited (equal to the 2004) and of course both of these in a convertable. Later they will at the SRT6 models...

Powered with next years and this years invoice prices I went down to the dealership to see what I could swing. The 2005's are going to be on their lots in 2 weeks. for every 2004 they sell they can order a 2005 so they wanted to blow out the 2004 models. I finally told them I would not buy a 2004 unless it was at invoice of the super cheap model's invoice price of the 2005 model due to depreciation. When it was done I got if for about $1200 under invoice which included Tax Title and licence!

Needless to say I am driving a Crossfire

Now the dealership is going to order antoher 2005 model for their showroom and I am driving a Mercedes in a slick disguise.

Thanks to all for you advice and views. It really helped out. It even made me look into a few more options which made me more comfortable with my choice.

-marc

gzent

Sweet! Ya gotta love it when a trumpet man gets the better of a car dealer, especially in TX!! Enjoy the new ride!

Greg

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