Ive floored both the rx8 and 350z.
I own and drive a 2004 350z.
Theres no comparison performance wise.
The torque of the 350z makes the rx8 feel like a civic, after all it does pull like an s2000 which pulls like a civic type R.
However, the brakes on the rx8 feel better, the interior is better and the car feel very light...which can make it feel unsafe when braking hard going downhill on a turn.
The 350z, is much more uncomfortable, cheap plastic interior, stiff suspension, hard clutch, stiff steering, clunky and hard to shift gearbox...very very unrefined
However, mechanically it performs much much better than the rx8. It grips hard in high speed corners, has minimal body roll when cutting through traffic, and the torque is just phenominal....more torque would ruin the car by a lack of traction...
Let me give you an example, I was going around 110kmph on the highway, on snow tires 235, 17,
downshifted to 3rd and floored it with gently leaving the clutch.
Once the rpm got to 4.7k'ish
The wheels started slipping and I still kept the throttle at 100%, then I hit a small bump and the car went into a drift, almost spun out... I ended up overtaking someone sideways and almost touched the back end to the car in the next lane...one of the more scarier experiences with the Z
the car in good condition has so much torque that your regular tires can not handle it unless u can manage to not floor the car
it doesnt do that with gripper tires in the summer....but my point is, performance wise, there is no comparison between the 2 cars
the rx8 takes the same amount of fuel and gives much less power...
However, if I had both, id drive the rx8 to work...
the 350z is a pain to drive in stop and go traffic, again, the steering is stiff, gearbox very clunky, clutch very stiff, very short gears at low speeds and everyone looks at you, not a in a good way but in a jealous way
