ok.. im another newbie here and its been hard for me to find a good z website with a decent amount of traffic..
so i know ill be asking such basic questions but i havent really found all the answers ive been looking for..

so here are my questions.
1. Is there any specific model years i should avoid? Ive been told to tryv to stay away from 90-91 because they have the most problems with overheating or something like that. And these are the most tempting models because they made soo many 1990's and they are the cheapest.

2. Besides the whole routine maintenance thing. Is there any major problems the twin turbo's are prone to get? or what should i watch out for when looking for one?

3. How well do they handle? Im looking for a all around great car for the roadcourse, for the 1/4 and just for daily driving. so are there alot of people out there road racing them?

4. What kind of 1/4 mile times are you guys seeing these days with closer to stock TT's? low 14's? mid 14's? what 60'ft times are average in these cars on street tires and what speed should they be trapping at stock? ive read around 102 or so. Is this true?


Well anyone that has read this whole post and is going to put there info in for me to read. Thank-you

 

1. Is there any specific model years i should avoid? Ive been told to tryv to stay away from 90-91 because they have the most problems with overheating or something like that. And these are the most tempting models because they made soo many 1990's and they are the cheapest.

2. Besides the whole routine maintenance thing. Is there any major problems the twin turbo's are prone to get? or what should i watch out for when looking for one?

3. How well do they handle? Im looking for a all around great car for the roadcourse, for the 1/4 and just for daily driving. so are there alot of people out there road racing them?

4. What kind of 1/4 mile times are you guys seeing these days with closer to stock TT's? low 14's? mid 14's? what 60'ft times are average in these cars on street tires and what speed should they be trapping at stock? ive read around 102 or so. Is this true?


I have a '91 TT and I have had no problems overheating. The lack of space in the engine bay in general on all the years tend to make the engine run hot, especially the turbo models. The very early model '89.5 TT supposedly had valve seat problems due to soft seats but I haven't actually met anyone with that problem. Also, they changed the brake calipers from aluminum to cast iron in '92 I think to counteract possible caliper warping.

On the problem areas, the earlier models, '89.5 through '93 year model Z32s had injectors that were more prone to failure (subcontractor quality issues). Also, I have personally experience problems with the starter and flywheel grinding on 1 out of every 15-20 starts. Usually checking the torquing on the starter bolts helped but check your flywheel teeth to make sure they are all intact. You may need to replace your starter and/or your flywheel. If you replace your flywheel get a lighter one while your at it.

The best advice I can give for pre-purchasing is to take the vehicle to a Z specialist and have them look it over before buying. Also set aside about $2K in reserve for unexpected problems. Get a factory service manual for your year model and start doing simple stuff yourself. You'll learn a lot more about your car and save a ton of money.

The z32 is a heavy car (~3400-3600lbs). Stock suspension components on a 7 to 13 year old car will probably be on its last legs so replacing the stock components such as shocks, springs & especially the inadequate, hollow sway bars would vastly improve your handling. Also, stock brakes on the track are seriously inadequate for a car of that weight and power. If you are serious about road coursing you might consider a lighter car for cheaper and mod the heck out of it for power and handling. Maybe a twin turbo kit for a '93-95 MR2?

If your dead set on a Z32, read as much as you can on the 300zx faqs over at www.twinturbo.net and lurk for a while.

Good luck.