Well crap... (Oppo advice needed)

"Dsscats" (dsscats)
04/17/2014 at 18:16 • Filed to: None

Insurance on the 300ZX is a lot. Almost too much. We are on Geico right now. Any idea who could insure it for cheaper? Collectors/classic is out of the question because I DD it (12,000ish miles a year).

If worse comes to worse, what are the best 4 door sporty cars? They would have to be for $10,000 or less probably (the KBB on the 300ZX is $9600 and I'd be trying to trade). Ugh. Crap.

DISCUSSION (24)

Vince-The Roadside Mechanic > Dsscats
04/17/2014 at 18:18

Try to get a quote from Progressive.

jkm7680 > Dsscats
04/17/2014 at 18:21

Hmm, There is always Cheap-O insurance that's out there. The protection would be rather Sub-Par though.

Luc - The Acadian Oppo > Dsscats
04/17/2014 at 18:22

When I had my 300zx I was 20 at the time & the insurance was $1400/year for liability only. Mind you I had a clean driving record. it didn't seem too bad. how much are they trying to charge you?

crowmolly > Dsscats
04/17/2014 at 18:25

Buy a one-paycheck warrior and push it to sunny day status.

Decay buys too many beaters > Dsscats
04/17/2014 at 18:29

That's funny, the insurance on my "Wrong car" FR-S is super cheap :)

Anyway to actually be helpful here, depending on location USAA (some states allow everyone to enroll), and PEMCO (pacific NW) have consistently given me the best rates by a decent margin.

The best 4 door sporty car is going to be a turbocharged (NOT WRX OR STI!!) Subaru, especially if insurance is a concern. The Evo you have pictured is usually one of the most expensive to insure normal cars on earth (I was once quoted above $4K per year)

Dsscats > Luc - The Acadian Oppo
04/17/2014 at 18:34

$1800/yr. I'm 16, clean record, good grades.

Dunnik > Decay buys too many beaters
04/17/2014 at 18:36

I got a quote on an FR-S, it was surprisingly cheap. If you have 10k in hand, put that down in financing and borrow like 15 over 3-4 years. Could be doable, depending on your circumstances.

And yea, don't get the WRX/STi if you care about cheap insurance rates.

But if the 300ZX is a dream car for you then I'd say bite the bullet and pay up whatever insurance it costs. Do what you can to reduce it over time (no tickets, no at-fault accidents, get older).

Dsscats > Decay buys too many beaters
04/17/2014 at 18:36

The Evo is just for reference. As for location, I'm in CA. Evo was just for reference and cuz I love evos! Just curious, how much is the FRS to insure? My 300zx is $1800/yr, but being a teenager doesn't help.

Mercedes Streeter > jkm7680
04/17/2014 at 18:37

DITTO! For the past two years, I've been paying top rate for what I thought was awesome "full coverage". Rental car, uninsured motorist, breakdown...you name it, I had it.

A couple weeks ago I got a rock chip in my windscreen. Safelite told me that my insurance company (Founders) specifically noted to their customers that they will not cover glass repairs of any sort...unless it exceeded my deductible...

I thought that was ridiculous! I ended up calling Founders and they just regurgitated what Safelite said.

So, I decided to dig into my policy and was astonished at what I saw. I was paying top rate for state minimum coverage with $500 deductibles and minimum coverage for everything else ($16/day car rentals, etc).

So, I decided to probe the most popular companies for quotes. For the price I was paying, I could've had nearly maximum coverage in all areas plus $100 deductibles.

Oh yeah, you bet I switched that very moment. I now roll with State Farm.

Dst > Dsscats
04/17/2014 at 18:40

sentra se r

Cheap to insure 4 door it's no z but it's affordable

Decay buys too many beaters > Dsscats
04/17/2014 at 18:44

In Oregon I pay right around $1200/year with full coverage on a dirty record (which serves as a nice little reminder to me that track days are far cheaper than speeding tickets in the long run)

Decay buys too many beaters > Dunnik
04/17/2014 at 18:46

The FR-S is cheap for now, but I'll bet it goes up a bit over the next few years if these damn first time drifters keep crashing them.

VeeArrrSix now powered by FA20F > Dsscats
04/17/2014 at 18:48

http://www.wawanesa.com/us/california/…

Dunnik > Decay buys too many beaters
04/17/2014 at 18:50

Yea, those Prius tires apparently allow you to get the back end out moderately easy, but if you're not used it - used to the iron grip of modern cars and tires - of course it's easy to over-correct into a tree.

Decay buys too many beaters > Dunnik
04/17/2014 at 19:00

Yes, the FR-S is scarily neutral for a modern factory car (BRZ is slightly less so), and as such there is very little safety under-steer built in. Coming to it from an AWD eclipse was... interesting

Dunnik > Decay buys too many beaters
04/17/2014 at 19:04

I'll bet. Must have been quite a few "Whoa there!" moments as you got used to it.

jkm7680 > Mercedes Streeter
04/17/2014 at 19:13

I'm extremely happy that I'm with State Farm.

Whenever somebody crashes into me, I end up with a wonderful Hoonmobile to hoon.

Luc - The Acadian Oppo > Dsscats
04/17/2014 at 19:16

I don't think your grades have anything to do with it. but to be honest with you $1800/year for a 16year old with a sports car actually seems really fair.

when I first started driving in 2001 I had a 1985 Chevette that I paid $400 for and I was paying over $2600/year(liability only). statistically speaking you are the highest risk driver out there right now. the sweet spot is once you hit 25 years old.

Once I hit 25 I was paying just over $1200/year for full coverage on a $60000 2010 Dodge Challenger SRT8. I'm 29 now and liability only would be less than $550/year.

Hang in there and keep your record clean and it will get better.

Decay buys too many beaters > Dunnik
04/17/2014 at 19:17

and then some! I actually spun her a few times, but thankfully all this occurred on a track (I'm getting too old/smart to search for a car's limit on the road)

CPT Speedbump > Dsscats
04/17/2014 at 19:21

Geeze! I'm paying like 1200 a year for my Z33, and I got a ticket 2 years ago (and am 22 years of age) I'm on Metlife I think, full coverage.

Dsscats > Luc - The Acadian Oppo
04/17/2014 at 19:35

Geico has a good student discount. And holy jeesuuuus that Chevette was that much!?

Planktron > Dsscats
04/17/2014 at 21:08

I was paying almost $300/mo when I was 18 and had a '93 Z28 with GEICO. There are buttloads of insurance companies, man. Just cruise the net and get all the quotes you can. With my location, age and vehicles Safeco is the best for me right now. Rates change OFTEN. I was with Travelers for a while then bam, $100/mo rate increase. I called and asked why and I don't remember the exact excuse, but it pretty much boiled down to I was absorbing the cost of the other drivers in my area who were hit/sued etc even though my driving record has been spotless for about 8 years. There is no overall cheapest insurance. GEICO was $90/mo for me in upstate NY but when I moved to Central FL the rates went to almost $200/mo on a '99 Cavalier! If you use the progressive OBDII thingy you have to drive like a dead grandmother. I tried it and it offers lots of insightful knowledge into your driving habits, but even the most regular stop can be considered a hard stop in their eyes, but all of this is available to view in your account on their website.

Ferrero1911 > Dsscats
04/17/2014 at 22:41

What you're paying doesn't seem too bad for someone so young. If you're on your parents insurance then the only way you're going to find anything cheaper is if the whole family switches because right now you are getting a multi car discount.

Also, I know when I was growing up in Texas my parents were not allowed to take me off their insurance even when I was away at college because my official residence was their house, so that's something to think about.

BiTurbo228 - Dr Frankenstein of Spitfires > Dsscats
04/18/2014 at 04:13

$1800 a year on a 300ZX as a teenager? Damn people in America have it easy with insurance ;)

It was £1400 ($2350) for my first year's insurance at 18 on a 1.2l Vauxhall Corsa (google it, they're boring as fuck). That only dropped to below £1000 after 3 year's no claims at age 20, right around the time I switched to driving the Alfa and it went straight back up again. It's gone up from there as well. My mate who's a couple of years' younger had to pay £2200 ($3694) for his first year driving a 1.1l Peugeot 106. It's a joke.

As a point of comparison I've just done a quote search for an NA 300ZX for me, age 23 with 3 years' no claims bonus and the car kept in a locked secure garage overnight. It's £808 for the year ($1357).

Saying that, it is shitty when you have to shell out a lot for insurance. That's the main reason I didn't get my Jag on the road as soon as I could, and now it's got crushed by a tree before I'd even driven it. On the positive side, it will go down significantly the next year.