I am 61 and I think I an the perfect age for a CROSSFIRE.

 

Well if its any indication, my 19 year old son keeps asking when he gets to drive it. My 20 year old daughter loves it and I'm 55. Agree with juddz about 30-50. I did have quite a few 280/300 zx's during those years tho. 2 were two seaters and the last was a 2+2. The design of the new Z leaves me cold, I'm just not into it. Our car is unique. I've only seen 3 or 4 on the road since I got mine back in July and I like having something semi unique. Some of the other cars mentioned like the new Eclipse and the Solstice which I do like, will do well but like someone else said give it some time and they will be everywhere, same thing happened to the PT. If I was 16 or 60 I wouldn't feel out of place in my Xfire.
Pat

 

Yes I agree with you patpur on the looks of the Z. It does nothing for me also. They should have made it look more like the original which is one car I love even today. Are there many old Z's left or did they all go to rust heaven? I sure hope not that was on sharp car.

 

What does it matter what others think, I love my X Fire and that is it. I drove a RSX type S, it had some good points to it. Insurance was not one of them. I saved money since getting rid of it, plus have had more fun. I'm 58 and if it wasn't for birthdays would not remember I was that old. Just go to clubrsx and read the posts, the boy ricers are a great reason to avoid the Japanese cars. Because of them insurance is high and the police are given good reason to watch them so close. Above all the X Fire is an eye catcher.

 

My best friend and I did our own private "Cannonball" back in the summer of 1978, driving his 1975 - 280Z (that I talked him into buying "new" over a 914-Porsche). We drove straight thru from Akron to Willow Springs Calif. in 32 or 36 hrs. I was so impressed with his car, that in the fall I purchased a brand new 280ZX. I've also owned an '81, '82, and a '83 ZX. The '84 300ZX (my least favorite) was my last one. Like PATPUR & KMAG, I'm indifferent towards the 350Z. I find the G35 (a 350Z 2+2 by any other name) a much better looking car. Coming from me (Mr. Two Seater) that's saying alot. It's to bad Datsun, oops, I mean Nissan, didn't have "*****" enough to simply come out with a reincarnated 240Z body style. Personally my favorite. Oh, and KMAG to answer your question as to weather all the original Zs have rusted away, I just want you to know I've got a 1977-Z from Calif. tucked away in my garage right now. It's got a perfect body, it runs, at least it did when I parked it there a couple of years ago, but it needs a complete restoration. My friend is still driving his today. It's got less than 80k on it.
As for the original question about the XF being an old or young car, I too would have to agree with what JUDDZ had to say. Mostly under 30 or over 50. Another good car friend of mine who is 38 loves to "rag" on me all the time about my cars, called me yesterday to inform me that he just saw "Col. Sanders" driving a yellow XF roadster in Cleveland. He says he sees Crossfires all the time and can't understand it when I tell him how rare they are. I told him he's probably seeing the same 3 cars over and over again. His biggest problem with the XF is that it doesn't have a V8. I told him it's still faster than 2 of the 3 vintage muscle cars that he owns , so what's the problem?

 

The new Z doesn't move me either. In fact Z's haven't moved me for years. For a while they seemed to be following the same migration path that Ford picked for their Thunderbird. From cool 2 seater to waddling garage hog.

Tell your buddy "nice whack" for that "Col. Sanders" comment. Like a lot of us, Col. Sanders was a cool young guy stuck in an old wrapper.

 

UNCLE_AL, If you knew my friend you wouldn't be offended by any of his comments, he's a pretty funny guy. He was being absolutely serious about how the guy looked though. He said he had snow white hair, glasses,and a "go-tee". Does this guy sound familiar to any Cleveland members? By the way, I like your "old wrapper" quote. LOL

 

viper2ko - I think the question should be what's the target market ie who will buy the car - the xf is a luxury item (a want not a need), but a relatively affordable luxury and two seat, hence it's likely to be either singles with the disposable income, couples without kids, couples who have got shot of the kids.

I have no idea how many 16 year olds have cars like that in the US. In Europe 17 is the minimum age for a license, insurance for a 17 year old on a sports car will run to $3,000 per year easy. As insurance costs increase all sports cars become more suited to the "older" or "more experienced" driver - just the way the numbers work.

I was driving at 16 (outside the UK) and had good fun in a lot of cheap old cars, trucks and vans that I maintained, repaired and broke again. A couple would break 100 mph - and 0-60 in 12 seconds. Perhaps you are much more mature than any 16 year old with an interest in cars that I have ever met and the XF is the right car for you. I can get a cold shiver down my back even now when I think how I risked my life at various times taking risks I thought nothing of, as an student some 15 years ago. Although never continually silly, at a guess I would say I was 21 when I started really understanding risks.

The XF has a classic type styling which with it's rarity seems to attract a mixed range of owners, the Z is more contemporary.

I don't want to get into who bought your car etc, that will probably just make me jealous, but unless I have bought something like a car myself with money I earned it wasn't really mine, when I first started driving I preferred drive my own $400 car to anything else owned by the family - basically it felt mine.

Take care anyway, none of the above is meant to be critical of you or your driving - I don't know anything about either.

Malcolm