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Hi MX5 forumites, my NA MX5 is getting a bit long in the tooth for a daily driver so I might get something used, preferably fun and a bit more modern for ‘burb driving (I will keep the NA). Budget is around $15k +/-.

I could get something sensible like a Mazda 2 or 3, a Corolla or a Swift Sport (still possible choices) but through a contact I have come across a 350Z.

I have owned a few Nissans and liked but never owned the 350Z - they are seemingly robust and fun. However, after my drive around town they seem to have some drawbacks as a ‘burb car - poor visibility, exxy tyres, and getting in and out of them can be gravity defying. Also I am not sure about ground clearance - driveways, speed bumps and the like? If anyone here has owned one, I’d be interested in your thoughts from an ownership / daily driver perspective. Are they hard to live with on a daily basis, say compared to an MX5?

Of course, for around the same price I could get a later model MX5 – and still might, as I don’t need it to be super practical. We have an old Cruiser for cargo and people carrying duties.

What do you think?

I think if you're keeping the NA as a fun weekender/occasional car, and you want an urban run about, then getting a 350Z or an NC is a mistake. IMO you don't want much crossover, keep the NA special. The runabout should be fun enough to drive that you don't hate it, but otherwise should do all the things the NA can't, it should be easy to get into and out of, it should have room for a 3rd or 4th passenger for short trips, and increased cargo, it should have good visibility and be easily park-able, and it shouldn't be precious.

I think you want a hatchback, for my money I'd be looking at a Golf GTI, a Mk5 or Mk6 should be right around $15k depending on condition. They're a reliable fun car to zip about in, very capable and practical, but your NA will still be an event you look forward to. But other's fit the bill here too, like a Mazda 3, or a Swift, an i30, etc.

I think the 350Z is heavy, thirsty and impractical. No doubt it'd be a fun car to rip around a mountain road or a track, but that's what the NA is good at, and on suburban streets, stop lights and shopping centers, I think the Nissan would be a PIA.

yertimer wrote:Budget is around $15k +/-.
...for around the same price I could get a later model MX5...
What do you think?

Indeed, you could get a later model MX5, but currently it would be limited to an NB for the budget you've indicated. Only the ocasional very high km NC1 becomes available for your budget these days, whereas pre-COVID you could pickup an NC2 for that amount.

Thanks 93 Clubman

Yes I can't believe the impact the covid tax has had, so if it was today it probably would be an NB. Not too sure about the real advantages of an NB over an NA other than age.

In any case I drove the 350z and tbh couldn't live with one around town as a daily - for all the reasons above and they're not great for visibility either. I know others don't see that as a problem but I would rather a hot hatch or another MX5. I am in no hurry and might wait to see if the covid tax is removed later this year.

Probably next year before things normalise enough. Haven't dríven a 350Z, but my understanding was they were also very heavy.

Don't do it.
A Z is a Weekend fun toy like an MX-5.
Just bigger, thirstier, harder to drive and more cumbersome.
While most of the time it will be OK, every now and then the practicality aspect will annoy you as well. Hmm bought an item in a square box, how do I put it in the car!!!
Oh, but the noise at high revs with a good exhaust.


My best tip if you want something that looks good, drives good, will be reliable and is cheap.
2014/2015 Kia Proceed GT.
This has to be the most under marketed, undersold, unknown car from Kia in Australia. All the media reviews always praised it. It's just just weird that they always compared to more pricey hot hatches when really it should have been compared to things like a SP25 Mazda, which it would have annihilated.
Look for a later models with the Tech package.
Make sure it is the one with the GPS fitted etc. They had a lot of extra gear.
1.6L Turbo 150kw 265nM at 1750-4500RPM!!! Recaro seats. Full glass roof, that actually opens unlike a lot of the Euro hatches.
I'm 6 foot 2 and have no problem sitting behind my self in the car. Has heaps of space in the back. Plus the boot is large as well.
My sister has one.
Even tracked it and it went pretty darn good.
Was quicker down the straight at Wakefield Park than my Clio 3 RS, NC and ND!!!
Oh and way better than the Hyundai Veloster Turbo which is it's brother that cost just as much new. Way more technically advanced.
This thing is sort of the pre-cursor to the i30N.



You'd be surprised how peppy some of the newer small cars are even in base models.
Plenty of devalued Euro hatches with small Turbo motors around that have heaps of low end torque.
Even my sisters Golf 7 Wagon with its whole 90KW and 200NM goes well. Has so much low down torque. In the lighter hatch I can an imagine it being even better.

Another car that surprised me was the last of Hyundai Accent Sports that had the 103kw 1.6L engine in them. Had it as a rental. Drove well, had plenty of space, comfortable etc. They have Covid Tax on them as well now though. Some are more than what they were doing them drive away for in 2019!!!

Any of the Japanese cars you will pay a big premium for.
Previous gen Corolla was crap to drive as a drivers car. Really smooth and quiet though. Mum had one. Much more spacious then the new one she has, which actually drives good.

I think ManiacLachy nailed it since some of it reflects what happened to me with my DD.

I wanted to avoid using Gina as a DD since I had way too many close calls on Creek Road; on that road people change lanes very aggressively since it's heavily congested and barely 2-lanes wide in many places - add a few cyclists and it turns into one lane only where it becomes "no holds barred".

Being sensible for a change, I specified what I thought was important in a DD (cheap, cheap to run and find parts, easy to work on, comfortable/roomy, good A/C for those times when stuck in traffic and good carrying capacity since the MX5 has none). An automatic was NOT considered since every time I get a hire car for work it's always automatic and I don't feel like I'm even driving.

I bought a gen I Mazda 3 Maxxx which met all my criteria but was boring as hell to drive, soft suspension and NO power at all.

The November 2014 hailstorm wrote off the Mazda 3 (not Gina thankfully) so I bought a Mazda SP23 with the insurance check since it met my original DD criteria but had a larger engine. The SP23 has a leather interior, MUCH better climate control but more importantly, more torque due to the larger engine and sports suspension, making it more fun to DD in traffic (I did have to swap the 17" rims for Mazda CX3 16" rims to improve the ride, especially over speed humps).

My advice is to keep the MX5 for weekend fun and get a practical DD that is also fun to drive (ie. test drive your candidates first) otherwise you'll hate the DD.

The 350z is not a DD IMO, it's too heavy, rear visibility is poor and is not particularly roomy.

Luke wrote::
My best tip if you want something that looks good, drives good, will be reliable and is cheap.
2014/2015 Kia Proceed GT.
This has to be the most under marketed, undersold, unknown car from Kia in Australia. All the media reviews always praised it. It's just just weird that they always compared to more pricey hot hatches when really it should have been compared to things like a SP25 Mazda, which it would have annihilated.
Look for a later models with the Tech package.
Make sure it is the one with the GPS fitted etc. They had a lot of extra gear.
1.6L Turbo 150kw 265nM at 1750-4500RPM!!! Recaro seats. Full glass roof, that actually opens unlike a lot of the Euro hatches.
I'm 6 foot 2 and have no problem sitting behind my self in the car. Has heaps of space in the back. Plus the boot is large as well.
My sister has one.
Even tracked it and it went pretty darn good.
Was quicker down the straight at Wakefield Park than my Clio 3 RS, NC and ND!!!
Oh and way better than the Hyundai Veloster Turbo which is it's brother that cost just as much new. Way more technically advanced.
This thing is sort of the pre-cursor to the i30N.
:

Just read up on this, nice call on a car I knew NOTHING about, great if you don't carry rear passengers much.

As for most Hyundais, the rental cars I've had always felt too "wallowy"/softly-sprung, especially when driving in Canberra where there's lots of roundabouts (I felt like an opened Jack-in-the-Box and am springing around all over the place). The i30N has sorted that out but I don't know about the other Hyundai models.

I very rarely see a 350Z, are they that unpopular?

Lokiel wrote:I think ManiacLachy nailed it since some of it reflects what happened to me with my DD.

I wanted to avoid using Gina as a DD since I had way too many close calls on Creek Road; on that road people change lanes very aggressively since it's heavily congested and barely 2-lanes wide in many places - add a few cyclists and it turns into one lane only where it becomes "no holds barred".

Being sensible for a change, I specified what I thought was important in a DD (cheap, cheap to run and find parts, easy to work on, comfortable/roomy, good A/C for those times when stuck in traffic and good carrying capacity since the MX5 has none). An automatic was NOT considered since every time I get a hire car for work it's always automatic and I don't feel like I'm even driving.

I bought a gen I Mazda 3 Maxxx which met all my criteria but was boring as hell to drive, soft suspension and NO power at all.

The November 2014 hailstorm wrote off the Mazda 3 (not Gina thankfully) so I bought a Mazda SP23 with the insurance check since it met my original DD criteria but had a larger engine. The SP23 has a leather interior, MUCH better climate control but more importantly, more torque due to the larger engine and sports suspension, making it more fun to DD in traffic (I did have to swap the 17" rims for Mazda CX3 16" rims to improve the ride, especially over speed humps).

My advice is to keep the MX5 for weekend fun and get a practical DD that is also fun to drive (ie. test drive your candidates first) otherwise you'll hate the DD.

The 350z is not a DD IMO, it's too heavy, rear visibility is poor and is not particularly roomy.

Thanks Luke and Lokiel

The Kia looks like good value - I didn't know they even existed! I think the SP23 / SP25 is a great DD. I have had a a Mazda 3 before - not a SP, and it was a great little car. They hold their value well though.

Driving the 350Z again the other day I had forgotten how compromised they are for normal use, They are very heavy and a bit cumbersome around town. You see a few Z's around but not too many, and they don't hold their value well. I think Nissan's cut price strategy doesn't work so well for them either in terms of resale value. They seem to have a small but dedicated following, but I read a review claiming that the Mustang has basically taken their market.

I like the look of that Proceed GT. Unaware of it before mentioned here. For older folks like spouse and I who are thinking about something in a small manual hatch (that doesn't have Stop-Go) to use as a general runabout and shopping trolley, this fits the bill. Gets good reviews.