Stutopia

I'm surprised no ones commented on the £3000 part ex Toyota offered me

GT86 / BRZ / FR-S is too slow from what I've heard. Maybe if they ever do an STI... I'm looking at the same alternatives as you though, with the XKR being the current favourite (won't be for a couple of years at least though). Go try all those and report back with which is best I'm not certain it's too slow, you're comfortably playing around at 50-70 depending on the road, same as I would in the Zed. If I was tracking it at speeds above this, then I imagine it would feel a bit short, but I took my speed awareness course as a message from above about my road behaviour Edit: I'll happily report back on any others

At least I'm not going mad! New rubber and wheels would defo be on my list, plus an exhaust. I had a play with the VSC button but it made the same light as turning off the TC, so I was a bit nervous (wasn't mine after all!) about what it did. What's the difference between the VSC and the TC buttons?

If the last year in IT has taught me anything, you MUST have a cloud and you must be Digital. Not like those analogue computers from 2015

It could well be me, rather than the car!

Whilst I still love the Zed, after a few years with just one lady, ardour can cool. I've been considering the GT86/BRZ as a replacement as well as a 370 and an XKR and a Cayman and a 6er, well you know how it is once you start browsing autotrader . Cruising by the Toyota dealership and they had this winking at me outside... I love the look of the Toybaru (particularly in WRC blue) and have been seeking an opportunity to take one for a drive. The Toyota dealer was very friendly and happily sent me off to see what she's like. It was nice to take it out without a chaperone and close to home - i have a little circuit I like to drive in the Zed, perfect for a like for like comparison. It was a 2013 with 33k on the clock, totally stock AFAIK and immaculate apart from a worn knob and a small dent on the rear quarter - just under £15k. As for the drive, I was expecting something pointy, go-karty and stuck to the road, but probably short on grunt. This wasn't quite what I experienced. It's a really eager little thing, the throttle response on this one was desperate to get going, even compared to my uprev'd Z. It's so keen!!! Sadly, as the revs climb you don't get a the baritone of V6, Berks and cobra - just a strange grunting from up front and another noise, perhaps from inside (do they have a noise faker?). This is my first go in a stock boxer with stock exhaust, it's not a noise that stirs the soul is it? Even with the window down, letting in the bitter cold, the exhaust was barely audible, but that is easily fixed with modding - it's not like the Zed sounds beefy in OEM form. Round town and getting on to the motorway I enjoyed the easy drive and it's a much lighter clutch and steering than the Z. Puling on to the motorway it was up to traffic cop non-bothering speeds in good time. It didn't feel much slower than the Z, however, the Zed's power just keeps climbing right up until you shift. The Toybaru just didn't surge at all as the revs climbed. Trying to getting going from 70 in 6th was a waste of time, this car is going to see a lot more shifts than the Z! This was all as expected, but the surprise was on the B roads - it felt a bit floaty compared to the Zed. I know it's about half a ton lighter, but I expected this to make it feel more "connected" to the road, not less. I don't know if it was just the huge difference in weight, or the Nexens on the rear and Michelins on the front or perhaps the springs and shocks I've put on the Z have spoiled me, but it didn't fill me with the confidence like I expected. I saw the TC light more times in 20 minutes of driving this than I have in 6 months with the zed. However, the TC is more friendly than the Zs, it doesn't pull you over for a telling off, it just lets the back shuffle across and then reigns it in before it gets out of hand. I could very easily see how that could be fun and the way it broke away was nice and soft, I'd be turning off the aids fairly soon on one of these and playing around with the limit. In the Zed I've only stepped the back out twice (both unintentionally) and it was't something I particularly wanted to do again without some tuition, the "snap back" on the Zed was very aggressive (for my skill level at least). The GT86 was much friendlier. I wasn't blown away by the brakes, they were fine but they just weren't as sharp as my Z. I was expecting the reduced lard of the GT86 to mean it pulled up more sharply and the brakes to have more initial bite, it didn't. I might be being unfair comparing stock GT86 to modified Zed (DBAs, DS2500s, baited lines). I thoroughly enjoyed the steering, much like the throttle response, it is eager. Applying the same inputs I would in the zed on the motorway, the 'GT86 fairly hops from one lane to the next. Once I got used to it, it's fast turn in was very pleasing and encouraged me to get into the twisties. I loved the seating position and the seats very much, though my arms must be a bit short as the wheel felt far away, even with my little legs. The interior is all round much more modern than the Z - the Japanese love of hard plastic is still very much in place, the checked effect dash was fine, so long as you don't touch it, and how often do you really touch your dash? The back seats are even less of a space than I expected, with me being a short arse, you could just about get another shortie in behind. I'm not sure that would be the case on the passenger side if one of them is topping 5'6". All in all, I liked the interior - it's not going to trouble the German's but neither does its price tag. The boot was decent and deep, albeit with a very narrow aperture. So good for golf clubs, bad for flat packs. All in all, I really enjoyed the drive and at £14,750 I think, for it's age and milage it's a bargain. Sadly, I actually laughed out loud when the salesman offered me £3000 for my extremely tidy 2004 350z GT on 67k. The ICE alone is worth a grand but, in fairness, he was very apologetic about it and said it might do better if I went private with enthusiasts. Apologies for banging on, I realise you will care very little for what I think of the Toybaru, and you'd be right not to I wanted to get my thoughts down now, whilst it's still fresh and I can refer back to this once I test drive the others. Next up, a 370 I think... I do have one question though, any ideas why the GT86 felt "floaty" to me?

It's not losing if you've tried hard to make something work and it doesn't. Losing is giving up without trying.

Good on you. I'm between contracts at the minute, though it ended rather than me doing the honourable thing and quitting, but I was relieved when it did - properly fed up. The feeling of having a bit of breathing room, to climb down from the ledge, before having to find the next bit of work is tremendous. I'm hoping the next opportunity won't be something that makes me rage on a daily basis. There's always opportunities out there if you're prepared to put a shift in, sometimes they pay better, sometimes worse. Good luck.

You're really selling it All entries welcome

Come on peeps, we've nearly got enough for a 52 week desk calendar, at the minute I'm having to do SIX tasteful nudes just to fill it up - and no one wants that

Took the Zed out for a little leg stretch this morning, got her nice and dirty after yesterday's wash.

Nice start gang Keep 'em coming.

Stop stiring up trouble!

Useful info here https://dashcamtalk.com/best-dash-cams-of-2016/

Assholes match rubber. Everyday's a school day round here.

I wouldn't worry about your rubber, I've got one MPSS on the RR, a unicycle wheel on the RL, the FR is a dustbin lid and the FL is huge poppadom. Grip isnt that bad and it's cheap.

Buy now with your heart, you can always sell later with your head.

What's the code you've pulled for the EML?

^^^ ooooh that's moody ^^^

We in no way guarantee fame, but you may be on the wall or desk of an exclusive UK location for up to 31 days (wall calendar) or 7 days (desk calendar) respectively.

Please do the usual copy and paste of the interest list: SuperStu (2 wall and 1 desk)

Hello Fellow Members! Now that we have the photos in and the word back from the printer, I can confirm the price and format of the Official Forum Calendars for 2017. Due to an increase by the printer we've not been able to maintain the same price as the last two years. I've been away to other suppliers and to be honest, the quality wasn't as good, so I'm afraid there is a £1 price rise on each Calendar this year, new prices below. 12 Month Wall Calendar - £17.50 delivered 52 Week Desktop Calendar - £19.50 delivered Both for £28.50 If you're planning on buying multiples of either style, e.g. 2 walls and 3 desks or other combos, do get in touch with me by PM and I'll confirm the price - it gets cheaper the more you buy. Please can you continue to post up below if you would like to purchase either a monthly wall calendar or a weekly desk calendar, perhaps both, or even many! Any surplus from the calendar goes toward the cost of running 350z-uk.com forum events, you're not just getting a great calendar, you're directly supporting this place.

I wasn't trying to provoke a debate, but If you'd like to have a discussion about this, please feel free to PM myself or anyone of the team.

I might start putting this up as a daily announcement... If you're a budding master criminal please do keep your epic schemes to the confines of your mind or, at the very least, the inside of your hollowed out volcano. Thanks

As part of the 2017 forum calendar work I've been gathering some 2017 dates: Fast Show, Santa Pod - 2 April Japfest, Silverstone - 30 April BHP Show, Lydden Hill - 1 May Modified Nationals, Peterborough Arena - 26 to 28 May JDMCombe, Castle Combe - 10 June Players Classic, Goodwood - 11 June Japfest, Donington - 1 July JapShow, Santa Pod - 8 to 9 July 350z-uk.co.uk Coventry - 15 July Scottish Car Show, Royal Highland Centre - 16 July Simply Japanese, Beaulieu - 30 July Ultimate Street Car, Santa Pod - 5 to 6 August Niss Show Rockingham -13 August JAE, Newark Showground - 31 August to 3 September TRAX, Silverstone - 1 October Please can you add below any dates and locations for shows for 2017 you're aware of. Also if you spot an error in mine (or any other event posts), please let a mod know the correction :thumbs:Thanks