40th Anniversary Z

[RawrImAMonster]

As some of you may know from the group chat or facebook, I picked up a 2010 40th Anniversary 370z from Arlington on Friday.  There were only 1000 of these made so I was expecting to have to fly out somewhere to find a nice one.  Luckily a nice 1 owner car showed up at the Audi dealership in Arlington.

So anyway onto the details:

It's a 2010 40th Annivesary edition which includes:
Sport package (bigger wheels, bigger brakes, lsd, synchro rev match)
Touring package (leather interior, bose stereo, other interior upgrades)
Dark gray paint
Dark gray wheels
Red leather interior
Red brake calipers
Red interior stitching

65k miles
6 speed manual


Right now this thing is completely stock.  I was hoping to find one with a couple basic mods already done, but you can't be too picky when looking for an already rare car.  Overall, it's in really good shape.  There's a barely noticeable scuff on the rear passenger fender flare and a few paint chips on the front, but otherwise no dings or issues that I've noticed.

For the most part these are relatively solid cars.  The only big issue they have from the factory is that the clutch slave cylinder goes out.  This requires dropping the transmission to fix, but for a few hundred you can fix this permanently.  Other than that, you need an oil cooler for track use or it will go into limp mode fairly quickly.  I'm planning on doing that either way because again it's only a few hundred bucks and it helps on hot days even on the street apparently.

As far as fun mods go, I'm just planning on doing some basic stuff:
2015+ Nismo front bumper.  I'm not a fan of the factory front bumper but the 2015+ bumpers look great.  Luckily these are priced surprisingly cheaply, only $380 ish for the bumper itself.
Catback + high flow cats and these things sound great and dyno around 300 whp.  Unlike the S54, pretty much any set up sounds really good on these.  I'm just going to try to find something used.
Intakes + a tune will bump these up to around 320 whp.  We'll see if I feel like it's worth it after the exhaust.  Probably not.
For suspension I'm going to keep it simple. Koni yellows + a set of springs for a mild drop.
I like the factory 40th anniversary wheels and they're forged Rays so they're fairly light for a 19" wheel.  Probably no changes here.

Other than that, I don't plan to get too crazy with it.  I wanted a fairly simple car that I won't be afraid to drive and won't have to worry about doing a ton of maintenance on and hopefully this will be it.


I'm guessing some of you will be curious about how it drives vs the M3 so here are some initial impressions

Inputs are heavier all around, not necessarily good or bad, just different.
The interior is nicer all around.  Half of the dash is covered in leather.  The bose speakers are pretty good.  No rattles what so ever.  Overall a pleasant place to be.  
The transmission shifts way better. Night and day difference.
The E46 M3 felt a little more nimble and lighter ,even though it's heavier.  Granted I was on a fresh coilover setup vs the (probably original) stock setup on the Z.
The 370z feels like it has way more torque even though the numbers aren't much different.  It's far less of a chore to drive this around town with the added torque and better transmission.
On the other hand, the 370z isn't as rev happy and isn't as satisfying as the m3 is at full throttle above 6k.  I suspect a lighter flywheel would make a lot of difference, but I have no plans for that.
The blind spots really aren't bad.  Backing out of parking spots is really the only time it's that noticeable.
It's not quite as fast as my M3 was, but I also had headers and a tune on that.  370z's dyno very similar to the M3's stock and the same goes for basic mods like exhaust and a tune.
It gets way more attention than the M3 ever did.  Not in a ricers trying to race me way, but everyone asks about it.  It's not exactly a common car around here.

Overall, it's a much nicer cruiser with the downside of losing a tiny amount of outright performance, which is exactly what I was looking for.


Here are a couple pictures from last weekend.  As you can see from the front pictures, the headlights were a little yellow.  I've already cleaned them up a good bit with some plastic polish, but I'll probably sand them down and do it right before too long.  The direct front picture has one side cleared up and the other how it was when I got it.  All that white stuff around the headlight is plastic polish residue.  Overall, it's one of the cleaner cars I've had.

[.RJ]

congrats, that's a sharp car - I dig the seats!

I wish those were a 2+2 sometimes... I know there's a G35 coupe but the Z looks sooooo much better.

[ScottyB]

looks awesome. you're right - i've never seen a 40th anniv. version of one of these...hell i didn't know they existed.

excited to see what you do with it. i've seen a few lowered with a set of wheels and with the right offset they look mean as hell, almost a bit like an old M-coupe with those rear haunches.

[RawrImAMonster]

Yeah lowered just a bit with some mild spacers and I think the stock setup looks great. I also really like the Work cr-kai wheels on them, but they're pricey.

This 2015 Nismo front bumper I'm planning on switching to, minus the red. Those red spots at the bottom will be body colored.

[V1GiLaNtE]

Why are these not more popular? *That's me asking in a more serious tone* Like searching my memory I don't remember the last time I saw a 370z on the streets.

[CaptainHenreh]

Why are these not more popular? *That's me asking in a more serious tone* Like searching my memory I don't remember the last time I saw a 370z on the streets.

Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaale,

A: they were kind of expensive when new for what they were. 
B: They are basically a GT car (which is why Rawrimamonster bought one), but masquerade (and are marketed) as a sports car. 
C: The "Secretary Car" Problem.
D: The "The Mustang is Basically Better By Any Metric" Problem.
E: Renault
F: They have a proclivity towards burning oil. 

I think most of the above is probably overblown, but ask yourself this:

Assuming a limited slip differential is a requirement, which would YOU rather have:
A 332HP French Nissan for 33k OR
A 460HP American Icon for 35k?

[V1GiLaNtE]

Why are these not more popular? *That's me asking in a more serious tone* Like searching my memory I don't remember the last time I saw a 370z on the streets.

Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaale,

A: they were kind of expensive when new for what they were. 
B: They are basically a GT car (which is why Rawrimamonster bought one), but masquerade (and are marketed) as a sports car. 
C: The "Secretary Car" Problem.
D: The "The Mustang is Basically Better By Any Metric" Problem.
E: Renault
F: They have a proclivity towards burning oil. 

I think most of the above is probably overblown, but ask yourself this:

Assuming a limited slip differential is a requirement, which would YOU rather have:
A 332HP French Nissan for 33k OR
A 460HP American Icon for 35k?

[RawrImAMonster]

I think the burning oil thing is mostly only a problem on the early 09's.

Yeah a mustang is a better performer, but you'll see 5 on your way to work even around here. I'd rather have something a little more interesting/uncommon.

Nissan has definitely slacked on these in recent years. When they first came out they made more power than the comparable mustang GT, but now they're way behind. I definitely wouldn't buy one for anywhere close to the new price, but you can pick these up in the 10-15k range all day long.

Having said that a 2015+ mustang gt might be this car's replacement in a few years. I like them, I just wish they weren't EVERYWHERE. The last cars and coffee I went to in Hburg had 3 2015+ mustangs.

[CaptainHenreh]

I think the burning oil thing is mostly only a problem on the early 09's.

Yeah a mustang is a better performer, but you'll see 5 on your way to work even around here.  I'd rather have something a little more interesting/uncommon.

Nissan has definitely slacked on these in recent years.  When they first came out they made more power than the comparable mustang GT, but now they're way behind.  I definitely wouldn't buy one for anywhere close to the new price, but you can pick these up in the 10-15k range all day long.

Having said that a 2015+ mustang gt might be this car's replacement in a few years.  I like them, I just wish they weren't EVERYWHERE.  The last cars and coffee I went to in Hburg had 3 2015+ mustangs.

Yeah I mean all VQ motors are at risk for high consumption, but early ones are definitely worse.

And as far as avoiding meetoooooitis, I totally get it. Really. But on the flip side, you'd probably see a shitload more of them if, you know, they were better. 

I blame 100% of this on Renault, by the way. It's not like the french have a huge sports car heritage to begin with (bugatti nonwithstanding) but 21st century Renault is even worse. The Nissan-Renault deal, maybe the worst deal in the history of deals, ever. I'd honestly rather have seen Nissan die than have the lifeless shell of a company I once adored, shambling about the landscape mumbling zut alors and wishing for the sweet embrace of the hereafter.

[RawrImAMonster]

I'd imagine a lot of it has to do with most people not being able to swing a two seater in the price range these cost new. Combine that with the fact that Nissan let them get really stale and under powered in the last 9 years. 370z sales peaked in 2010 and have been dropping since. Either way, the rarity is a plus in my book.

[Jake]

I'm curious to see how this treats you and how you end up liking it, I looked at these a few times and never pulled the trigger. But, I like them, a lot more than the 350Z. The special edition looks way sharp!

[CaptainHenreh]

I love the way the Nismo bumper looks, btw. You totally should do that.

[JPolen01]

I love the way the Nismo bumper looks, btw. You totally should do that.

x2. Looks way less bulbous and more aggressive.

[RawrImAMonster]

Yeah I'm definitely planning on it. I never did like the front of the 370z until I saw those nismo bumpers. The new nismo bumper is only like 380 from Nissan so it's not even going cost that much to switch.

[WRXtranceformed]

Awesome pick up man! I also love seeing these out in the wild, especially the NISMO versions with the crazy body kit. That bumper is fire, definitely a +1 from me on that.

[RawrImAMonster]

I made a few improvements to the car over the last week. I cleaned up the headlights and clearcoated those so they'll hopefully stay nice. The clear coat didn't quite go on right, I'm guessing it was too humid when I sprayed it. I'll probably end up resanding/polishing and using one of the protector films at some point, but for now it looks a lot better.

I also swapped to the 2015+ nismo front bumper. I just need to find a used set of the daytime running lights or buy something aftermarket. The factory option looks a lot better, but they are 1200 for a set.

While I had the bumper off I epoxyed some rare earth magnets to the inside of it and mad a magnetic license plate mount. It's very solid and I have no worries about the license plate coming off from the wind as long as the epoxy holds up over time. The magnets + the epoxy cost around 20 bucks total so it's a lot cheaper than buying the actual mount and it avoids having to drill into the bumper. The license plate is fairly easy to remove if you slide it the right way, but otherwise it takes a lot of force to pull it off.

[davej]

New bumper looks great! I might have to copy your magnet trick for the audi to get me out of a ticket. Did you coat the ones on the plate with anything so they don't scratch the paint as you're putting them on/off?

[Senor_Taylor]

Wow, that magnet trick is really clever.

Sent from my Pixel using Tapatalk

[RawrImAMonster]

New bumper looks great! I might have to copy your magnet trick for the audi to get me out of a ticket. Did you coat the ones on the plate with anything so they don't scratch the paint as you're putting them on/off?

Not yet, but I'm planning to do something.  As long as you slide it off right, it's not really scratching the paint where its at.

The paint I had them use for that part of the bumper is called Trim Black by 3M.  It's a little tougher than normal paint it seems like it.

[WRXtranceformed]

Looks really good man, love that bumper! Check in with The Retrofit Source, I bet they have some universal options for those DRLs