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The first tool you should have if you own a Z is a $500 beater car (in my case a lovely 1991 Chevy Lumina w 297,000 miles ;) ) for the times when it does break, nobody in town has the part, or it's expensive and will require a bit of saving to repair/upgrade. I bought my 1991 N/A w/38k miles from the original owner in 1998 for $11.5. By the time I payed it off 4 years later, I'd replaced the clutch, power transistor unit, High Pressure steering hose, power steering pump, alternator, rack bushings, rear main seal, A/C compressor, fuel dampner, fuel hoses, break rotors, calipers, Tension rods, struts, springs, a few coilpacks, a few injectors & connectors, shifter bushings, timing belt / 60k, radiator (x2), fan clutch, rusted out exhaust, O2 sensors, another clutch job (fork broke), water pump (x2) coolant temp sensor, oil pressure sending unit, and 2 front fascias due to close encounters with suicidal animals. The car now has 89k miles and I'm toying with the idea of parting it out due to lots of bent valves ;) That list is by no means complete and isn't meant in any way to deter you from getting a Z... Just know what you're getting into. Most people here who've owned their Z's for any length of time are probably all too familiar with most of those repairs as they're pretty common (with turbos or without). I think it's a huge advantage if you're mechanicly enclined and can save $$$ on labor. It's not a bad idea to factor in ~$1k or so for right-after-purchase maintenance as no matter how great you check it over there's bound to be something that needs attention. I learned the hard way that when something DOES go bad, it's best to get it taken care of immediately (that few drops of ATF on the garage floor from the steering doesn't seem bad till your car won't start cause it leaked on your alternator & it turned your rack bushings into mush) Expect the worst & hope for the best - hope that helped.
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