Has the 2011 v6 and 5.0 made the 370z much less relevant???

I don't consider the Mustang and Z to be direct competitors.

The Z will probably always handle better so a person after a pure sports car will probably go Z. I like V8 sound and fury and given my bad luck with Nissan over the past 4 years, would never consider a Z.

Greg

I don't think it's any less relevant because I don't imagine there are many people cross-shopping the two (Mustang vs Nissan 350+). Also, as you said, the 370z is still a great performer in it's own right. I'm sure it offers a completely different experience and feel. I think that's where the main difference lies. I personally would even opt for a 2010 GT over the 370z.

The Z is still a great car and offers a sports car driving experience. The stang offers more of a muscle car experience, and that you really can't compare.

The 370Z is a sexy car! I thought the same thing about cross competition thinking the two cars don't attract same buyers but I've had a few 350Z owners stop me in the last couple months and tell me they're going to get the new 302 Mustang. Who knew.

Gregor111 said:

I don't consider the Mustang and Z to be direct competitors.

The Z will probably always handle better so a person after a pure sports car will probably go Z. I like V8 sound and fury and given my bad luck with Nissan over the past 4 years, would never consider a Z.

Greg

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You can definitely make a Mustang outhandle a 350/370Z. Ever heard of Griggs? They have a 'Stang suspension kit that rapes Corvettes.

You can make anything outhandle anything else. I could make a Kia outhandle a Ferrari if I had any desire. These types of discussions really need to be kept stock vs stock since 95% of people purchasing the car will not modify or won't do anything more serious than new mufflers.

Either way, very few people will cross shop the two - especially more mainstream buyers. People who are looking at the mustang frequently never considered the Z anyway since it has no back seat. People who are shopping the Z really don't care that you can get the backseat of the mustang for the same price. If anything, it's a turn off to those buyers.

stangdude2000 said:

You can make anything outhandle anything else. I could make a Kia outhandle a Ferrari if I had any desire. These types of discussions really need to be kept stock vs stock since 95% of people purchasing the car will not modify or won't do anything more serious than new mufflers.

Either way, very few people will cross shop the two - especially more mainstream buyers. People who are looking at the mustang frequently never considered the Z anyway since it has no back seat. People who are shopping the Z really don't care that you can get the backseat of the mustang for the same price. If anything, it's a turn off to those buyers.

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Fair enough, but the statement WAS, and I quote, "The Z will probably always handle better". Stock to stock, this is most likely true, but I'd love to see a comparison between a 5.0L with the FRPP Handling Package (from the factory) vs a new 370Z.

I'm actually cross shopping the 370 to a 2011 GT.... Ill be test driving the 370 this weekend. I do see how the argument presented makes sense but im not sure how deep it goes.
What asian car directly competes with the mustang though? I'd say the 370 best fits it...

I think you are dead wrong if you think people won't cross shop the Z and the Mustang. True, the Mustang is more a muscle car while the Z is a true sports car. But I'd say MOST people aren't going to be pushing either one of these cars to their limits. Both cars deliver a lot of bang for the buck. Both cars are on my radar.

So does the V6 stang take away from the Z? I would say so based on the price of the V6 stang and what you get for that price. A better point would be that the V6 Stang will also steal some of the GTs potential buyers. People who before would never even look at a V6 stang are definitely looking now.

Don't forget Hyundai!

adidas said:

What asian car directly competes with the mustang though? I'd say the 370 best fits it...

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The Hyundai Genesis Coupewould best compete - RWD with a back seat and 306hp v6. With the 2011 Mustang engine upgrades, the Genesis will no longer be the value leader, which is what would give it the bulk of its sales most likely. However, I'm not sure how many Mustang faithful would really consider it.

well, in the very end here im basing my comparison off of road course time comparisons. for me, thats what matters most when comparing cars based on their performances. Before the 2011 the 370 wouldnt stomp a mustang GT around a track but it would beat it. with plenty more HP the GT should be able to hang much better. Thats also the same reason why I didnt mention the Genesis. It may be a value car but its road course times would be slightly behind the mustang and pretty far behind the Z. (An M3 would out run all of these cars pretty easily in this comparison)

but if were comparing genres of cars and not road course performance than I guess the Genesis would be the mustangs closest Asian competitor...

Performance comparison, the 5.0 goes with the Camaro and the M3/RS4/IS-F/C63 all fit in the right ballpark. But as far as a "relevance" question from the original post, you'd need to look at cars that would be cross-shopped. Very few people shop for a car solely on speed. Yes, many people here do, but the members of this board are the vast vast minority of car shoppers. That being said, I'm fairly certain that only about 5 people in the country would cross shop an M3 (or any other high performance luxury cars) and a Mustang. They are just completely different cars, even if the 2011 GT is fairly level with - or even slightly ahead of - the M3. The only reason I sold my last Mustang without waiting to see the 2011 GT was because I was ready to get a luxury car with a fantastic interior and great features. I bought the M3 because I wasn't ready to give up the mustang's speed. Yes, a lot of the features are now trickling down into more mainstream cars, but the interiors are just on a whole different level than the Mustang, and that's not going to change any time soon. Even last generation M3 interiors are much nicer than 2010 interiors. Cross shopping the M3 with these cars is somewhat like saying the ZR1 Corvette will be frequently cross shopped against a Ferrari. The ZR1 might be as fast, almost as fast, or faster, but the cars are just completely different.

The Genesis is considered one of the biggest competitors to the mustang. And that's really only to the V6. The Z will have some cross shopping between both the V6 and 5.0, but not a lot. Other than that, the only real competitors the 5.0 Mustang has are the Camaro and Challenger.