ZBlacktt

Ok, so that we don't get off the beaten path. I like to talk about what people have brung up. So far we got cost, we got comparisons to the newer line up of cars, we got the old school 300zx ( Z31 ). Boy this is a wide array of directions,, lol :-p Ok, so we got the Sti is around $31,000+. Cost is not so much an issue if the demand is there. Marketers will not price something out of common sense range, not a productive strategy. Based on past vehicles and others with similar capabilities the STi is around the same price as Nissan's Skyline in Japan. But when the Skyline is shipped to America, that price doubles and them some. Sti Spec's: Horsepower 300 @ 6,000 rpm Torque 300 lb-ft. @ 4,000 rpm Displacement 2,457 cc (150 cu. in.) Fuel/Induction/Engine Management: Resin composite intake manifold, sequential multi-port fuel injection (MFI) with multi-spray injectors and Tumble Generator Valves, electronic "drive by wire" throttle, high-boost turbocharger, intercooler and manually operated intercooler water spray. In plan words, a well engineered car with advancements that any piror car will have to add bolt-on upgrades to be equipped with, such as intercooler spray system to lower the air charge from the turbo into the 4 cylinders for raising the motors power output with air density. There are many after-market manufactures that have this design out and marketed now for all Turbo/ Intercooler car applications. But again added bolt-on. Transmission: 6-speed manual transmission with cooler Again, most advanced Sports cars come with 6 gears. The 300zx was only available in a 5 speed manual with optional after-market companies hosting a 6 speed transmission, but not at a consumers price ( $8000-$10,000 ) Brakes: The Brakes on the Sti are just shy of 13" vented rotors on the front and little over 12" on the rear. This is one of the biggest flaws in the 300zx ( Z32 ). The car had a weak 11" four wheel disc system for all of it's years of production. The cars where very heavy and braking has always been an issues with owners. An after-market set up is mandatory when adding any power or just all around safe driving. The performance machinery derived from the WRX Sti, is Subaru Tecnica International (STi), the division that builds race cars for the rally circuit and is in essence a special edition manufactured car like Fords SVT, Nissan's Nismo, Viper's ACR, Toyota's TRD, etc. Nissan had some 300zx licensed and manufactured under companies such as Stillen called SMZ and where numbered limited edition cars. In 1995 Stillen Motorsports developed the Stillen SMZ 300ZX in conjunction with Nissan's North American operations to be sold through select Nissan dealerships. The SMZ would be offered as a complete package with the same warranty as the factory car. The cost of the SMZ was about $57,000 ($14,000 more than a stock 300ZX Turbo). Aside from a few body changes and rims and tires, the Engine modifications included a new intake manifold and air filter, a free flowing cat-back exhaust, and an extra 2-psi of boost. These changes resulted in 365 bhp @ 6500 rpm and 332 lb-ft torque @ 3500 rpm. So you can see the cost was an issue for it as well back in 1995. As far as the other new cars mentioned, well, their all just not built or in the same class like the EVO and STi in rally car/ street machines. So no surprise in there performance characteristics, and the Z31? Need not talking about without major updating in performance,, lol.:wave:

Well, it's nice to see the 300zx ( Z32 ) still compared to today's newer more advanced sports cars. But like some stated before, these two cars are really two totally different classes of cars. But given the question was asked, lets look at it. The 300zx was produced state side for 6 years ( 90 to 96 ) and a few years more over in Japan. All 6 years mostly stayed the same car with minor changes. But due to emissions problems the '96s have less horsepower due to OBDII and increased emissions requirements. No variable valve timing, etc., which changed there output rating to 280hp @ 6400rpm 283ft-lbs @ 3600rpm. There was only 400 cars sold that year, so finding one and racing one of that year won't be as common as the earlier years. The 300zx has a Weight Distribution 55% Front / 45% Rear, so light rearend which make the cars very problematic when launching hard. They have very bad wheel hop. But there's after-market parts to prevent that now. For track racing all the Twinturbo models came with a system called HICAS. HICAS is Nissan's name for the 4 wheel steering system that is standard on the Twin Turbos. Unlike other manufacturer's implementations of 4 wheel steering, the HICAS system turns the rear wheels a very small amount (+/- 2 degrees or so) at the max. They all have two way adjustable suspension from inside the car as well. Remember this is a 14 year old design where talking about too, not 2002/2003. Given that all 300zx's came with the same motor, just minor changes in parts over the years. There potential is still being challenged to this day. Like it's ached rival the Toyota Supra. The motors are greatly suppressed from the manufactures. Those same 1996 twinturbo's like other years are running 11 second times in the 1/4. That's stock turbo's too and the 5 speed cars weight in at 3502lbs ( minus driver ) and Auto's 3540lbs ( minus driver ). Put a full exhaust, boost controller, air intake and ECU ( chip ) and a good running Z Twinturbo can lay down 400rwhp and 430+rwtq. I think on a road course the AWD STi will kill it and bad. The Z is just to heavy to compete with that. It's overall power will not help it take the turns as fast as the AWD Sti. Watch this video, this is what it would be like. Some cars just handle better and some look for the straight-aways http://auto.joins.com/upboard/pds/pdst/BestMotoring_TougeShowdown2.asf