2001 Z8 (#61390) A Dinan Z8 - Sold

[Satch]

I ran across this car the other day: The text is absolutely useless—a list of the Z8's generic attributes, nothing at all specific to this car (AH61390). No mention of the Dinan mods—however, this car is sitting on Dinan wheels (produced specifically for the Z8) and has D I N A N splashed across the deck, and you can see the Brembo brakes over perforated discs. I am betting it has the full Dinan suspension (NLA), and perhaps even the beautiful exhaust headers that so riled the Z8 purists.

I see Dinan air boxes but no strut-tower brace, and of course there is no mention of the hard top. Still, if this is a full-on Dinan Z8 in Jet Black over the black-and-créma interior, I think it's a bargain with under 20,000 miles at $170,000.

UPDATE: They're not Dinan wheels, they're HREs. Here's the car on the dealer's website. Yes, the hard top is included.

[macfly]

Wow, that really is a great price, I'd have put that one at 240k just 18 months ago.

[bmb99]

Do you think the Dinan mods add value, or take something away on account of not being the factory setup?

[Satch]

Well, the Dinan parts are expensive improvements, and they would probably not be desirable to someone looking for originality. For a driver, they are definitely worth considering—especially if you can negotiate on the basis that they hurt the value! Since these are not Dinan wheels (although I believe they are high-quality items), I would replace them with the original Alpina wheels, especially if the suspension turns out to be stock.

It may be that my adding the Alpina suspension to Nancy Drew has diminished her value, but I certainly do like the Alpina springs over Bridgestone run-flats. Even Andrew liked the setup!

[2112]

Since my car has the same upgrades and wheels, I can tell you the ride quality and responsiveness is definitely improved. I have the same wheels but with a painted hat.

One exception; I would NOT run that low of profile tire. Those will transmit all road roughness up and into the chassis with limited improvement to performance.

i originally ran Yokohama AVS 265/40 in front and 295/35 in rear. Those were discontinued so I went with pilot sports 255/40 in front and 285/40 in the rear. They aren't as wide as I wanted but the ride and performance are superior in every way. And I loved the AVS tires

edit; I added the PP upgrade the minute they became available.
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[2112]

Last, it is my experience that selling a modified car, even if superior to stock is a hit to a private party seller. Dealers the other hand generally do not take that hit, in fact, they typically want at least 50% of the cost of the upgrades.

YMMV.
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[Z8DinanS2]

Wow, that really is a great price, I'd have put that one at 240k just 18 months ago.

The problem is almost everyone and their grandmother has thrown their Z8 up for sale. Simply far too many cars for sale relative to the market for the cars......."supply and demand"

[Z8DinanS2]

Well, a fully loaded Signature 2 series Z8 has 474 hp compared to 400 stock. It has great brakes compared to cheap and heavy oem set up. It should also have a limited slip and a quick shift kit and an aluminum flywheel. It makes the Z8 the car it should have been from day one. The fact is there are nearly 6,000 Z8s.....not exactly a particularly rare car such as, e.g., an Alfa 8C. So, IMO, proper mods by the right group (Dinan) make the car much more desirable. A properly set Dinan Z8 has about $65,000 in upgrades from the receipts I can see.

- - - Updated - - -

Do you think the Dinan mods add value, or take something away on account of not being the factory setup?

Well, a fully loaded Signature 2 series Z8 has 474 hp compared to 400 stock. It has great brakes compared to cheap and heavy oem set up. It should also have a limited slip and a quick shift kit and an aluminum flywheel. It makes the Z8 the car it should have been from day one. The fact is there are nearly 6,000 Z8s.....not exactly a particularly rare car such as, e.g., an Alfa 8C. So, IMO, proper mods by the right group (Dinan) make the car much more desirable. A properly set Dinan Z8 has about $65,000 in upgrades from the receipts I can see.

[Satch]

If I recall correctly, the Dinan wheels (which this car does not have) were over $5,000. Stevie D sold me a set for my Z4 at his cost—and they had to be cheaper than the Z8 wheels—but they were still about $800 a corner.

[2112]

Those HRE's start about $1500 each if it makes any difference to the discussion.
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[Norcal]

HRE wheels can easily be 2500 ea.

[2112]

Last set I bought was in the depths of the recession and got out the door about halfway between our #'s.

I think those days days are gone.
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