A long time ago, in a galaxy far away, I owned a 1979 280z. That was in the early 1990's...so it was an old car at the time, but it was fun and reliable. Even when it wasn't reliable it was easy enough for me to work on and get back on the road.

Here I am, years later...and another Z-car is on my list. I'm looking at either:

- 2004 350Z with less than 20k miles on it
- 2009 370Z with just over 90k miles on it
- 2010 Mazda RX8 with about 30k miles on it

All three cars have prices in the same general strike zone. It's been a looooonnng time since I drove a Z-car, so I don't have any feel for the decision. For instance, is 93k miles a lot from a reliability standpoint? The 2009 model is surely nicer in terms of fit and finish etc...but I don't know if it's worth the trade off in mileage, to get a newer model.

The 2004 doesn't have a lot of miles...but it's almost 12 years old.

What are your thoughts? What should I be considering here? Again...the money is pretty close on all three...the 2009 is the most expensive, but not by a whole lot.

First off, Welcome to NICO!

That's a lot of miles on that 370Z, especially considering how relatively new it is. The good news is it that it might be a lot like my '05 and had its miles piled because of a long highway commute. They are nicer on the interior, both in layout/design as well as in the quality of materials & construction..that funky gas gauge and pointless clock notwithstanding.

On the other hand that 350Z could be a great find, low miles could be a car that was babied, driven easily and we'll taken care of. It could also be a car that had chronic problems and consequently sat around in a garage or shop a lot.

I like the way the RX looks, but the rotary isn't exactly my thing unless it's for toy car. Poor fuel economy, oil consumption, low torque rating and occasionally even difficulty to find a quality mechanic van make ownership a little stressful. I leave it out of any further questions & evaluations because I can't really advise you on it much beyond what I've already said. It is pretty telling that not even Mazda uses the rotary any longer.

A couple of questions...

What are you looking for in the purchase, i.e. What's the intended purpose/use?

What are the trim lines of both the Zs? Are the similarly equipped?

Have you had a ppi (pre-purchase inspection) performed on either either of them?

Thanks for the feedback. I've done a lot of reading since i last posted and discovered quite a few alarming stories about the RX8...including that they simply aren't making them anymore! That doesn't bode well for parts availability/pricing in the future.

I hadn't considered that the low miles might be an indication of poor reliability for that particular car...not sure how I'll sort that out.

I've also found a few more tonight in the $16k to $21k range that have 30k to 60k miles on them...that might be a sweet spot.

I've not done a ppi on them yet. I actually went to drive some Mustangs today when I heard the news about their air-bag recall. The air bags can shoot metal out at your face when they deploy...and they have no idea when they'll have the parts to fix them. That immediately took the Mustang off the list. Dealers are telling me it'll be at least July before they start getting parts.

I guess I'm happy that happened because when I came back home and really started looking at other options...the Z-car popped up on the radar.

I vote for the 09, 92 k isn't a lot of miles on these cars, mine is nearly double that. The RX8 isn't likely to see that kind of miles without the engine coming out. Also have you driven the rx8? they are lighter and more tossable but with no torque and that makes you sad every time you exit a corner