nowhereboy

So what started as a small rattle from the rear of my exhaust has turned into a loud vibration that sounds like stones are bouncing around in there. The noise stops when any throttle is applied so i presume it's probably the cats failing? Originaly I thought it may be a heat shield but it's got worse as tme goes on. I am yet to have a proper look at it but I'll try to get it up on the jack tonight. If it is the cats I'm faced with a choice of what to do, ideally I'd fit some hfc's but as I've just bought a type R I'm not really in a position to fork out for them. So..... Option one would be to replace with standard cats, what should I expect to pay for them second hand? I'm not to keen on this option as I'd rather upgrade the parts if I'm going to have to spend the money sorting it. If they are very cheap however it may be worth doing for the time being. Second option would be to buy some decent decat pipes (cobra etc), I've read mixed opinions on decats on this forum, some report a big decrease in torque and others say it made no difference. I'm not to worried about MOT time as I plan on getting HFC's before the next MOT anyway. I don't want a decrease in power tho, I'd rather not bother if that is the case. Third option live on beans on toast for the rest of the month and buy the HFC's now things always go wrong at the worst possible times!!

And yea, I'm going to invest in a dash cam, not the first time this sort of thing has happened around here.

I'd normally stand up for myself to be honest but the size of the second bloke who got out the van made me think better of it, didn't fancy my chances with two of them. Still I felt like a right pussy running away. I'd be lying if I said the thought about running them down didn't cross my mind once I'd put a bit of distance between them, glad I thought better of it, not worth the hassle. The problem about driving a car like this is how recognizable it is on the road, had it escalated I'd have to watch my back everytime I go into that area in the Z.

Didn't have time in the heat of the moment. I hadn't even had my morning coffee yet haha! Cheers tho fella.

Very narrowly avoided a beating this morning whilst driving the Z! Just dropped my girlfriend off at work, drove a few blocks and a white van was parked in the middle of the road blocking the way. I sat behind him for about 30 seconds wondering if he was going to pull over and let me past but instead he jumped out the van and shouted "you have to go another way", admitidly the bloke annoyed me as he spoke to me like I'm some sort of idiot and I shrugged my hands at him to show my frustration. As I started to reverse I noticed another car behind me so I couldn't go anywhere and the blokes temper just snapped and he started pacing towards my car. It looked like he was going to try and damage the Z so I got out to stop him. I wasn't aggresive I just walked forward to block him from my car, after a verbal attack from him another guy jumped out the van and came to join in the fun. It became a bit physical and I quickly realized this wasn't going to end well so I turned to head back to my car and both guys started running at me. I managed to get in the Z and luckily the other car had now moved and I reversed away like a lunatic as they chased after me This all happened before 9am this morning and kind of paved the way for the sort of friday I was going to have, roll on 8PM when I finish work and get a beer or two down my neck. Some proper lunatics out there and i've learnt my lesson, next time I'll stay in the car.

I used wbac when selling my old fiesta to trade against the Z. They offered £800 online and I ended up walking away with £350. I just wanted rid of the thing to be honest but they did pick out lots of non existant faults and used a load of technical jargin to explained themselves. Personally I'd not do business with them again.

Test driving the Z was the only time I've been thrown the keys and allowed out on my own. The bloke happened to know I had the cash waiting in my account so I guess that influenced his decision. Very nearly traded up for an evo 8 FQ330 last month and the saleman jumped in and watched me like a hawk on the test drive. Ended up keeping the Z and getting a type R for the missus and it was the same story then. Three out of the four civics I drove wouldn't even engage vtec due to low oil but thats a whole other story!

It's still settling here. Drove the Z into work taking a de-tour into a big, open, empty, snow covered car park

It's quite steep but it looks well looked after. If you were to buy one for 6 grand by the time you'd bought the new wheels, mods etc you could have spent that sort of cash anyway. Its a tough call to make, personally I'd feel much better buying it if they could have shaved something off the price. I paid 5,900 for mine with 58k on the clock but it's not a GT and is bone stock.

Less weight more power!

Ahhh a 370Z stock exhaust..... Bin it

Actually come to think of it I have some video clips and photos of your car from that mini meet in durham we invaded. I'll try and get them online soon. I have plans to make a car scene cinematic style video/documentary this summer, I'll message you at some point to see if you want to get involved.

Saw this car in the flesh a few times now, looks awesome mate.

No offence fella but if you're in a position to afford clutch changes, tyres etc as as and when they come up you would be much better paying the extra £500-1000 now and getting a lower millage example. It's more than likely it will end up costing you more in the long run buying a cheap one. Not trying to be negative and I realize I'm echoing what other people have said but it's worth listening to us. I've seen it happen more than once on this forum where people have bought cheap and ended up having to spend a small fortune putting it right.

Very interested in these, look great and well priced.

It's a bit like asking your girlfriend / wife about her life before she met you. You'll never really know for sure. I HATE those conversations

I had my car up for £5,500 not too long ago. Much lower miles (70k) and in mint nick with new clutch/fly and good tyres all round. I've ran it on nothing but super unleaded for the length of time I've owned it. The car can also be vouched for by people on this forum. http://www.350z-uk.com/topic/91426-04-uk-350z-for-sale-5500/ I got very little interest and decided to keep it but this gives you an idea of how much better you can do if you up your budget a little.

Don't get a juke! There bloody everywhere.... One of the nissan factorys is based in Newcastle and all the little chav scum bags get them cheap due to working for them. I can't go from A to B without seeing some radgie driving one of these and thinking he's in a sports car. To be fair it may be a great car but thats put me right off them.

Cheers GM, i love it. It feels strange getting back in a front wheel drive car with a bit of power, gonna take a bit getting used to. It feels much quicker than it actually is too due to the way vtec delivers the power. Its definitely not as planted as the Z mind, its made me realize how well the Z handles. Plans are to tidy up the engine bay a little, get a decent air filter on it and sort the handling out with springs, camber arms and front strut brace. I also fancy some red JDM foot mats if i can find them anywhere!

My girlfriends mam has one of these and I'm not gonna lie it was awful haha It's done about 38k and it sounds like it's done 200k. A proper bag of hammers, the car handles like it's on stilts and the build quality is hillarious (the door handle actually fell off). Hopefully you'll have better luck with this one!

haha You're south of me!!!

Deffo! Plus this one is nearly two years newer and with lower miles. I'll be giving it a good detail and getting some pics of it alongside the Z soon as the weather perks up a bit

I spent most of yesterday looking online and a car popped up on autotrader 5 minutes away from where I work in Newcastle . The car was with a trader, Full history, 3 lady owners, it's made in 05 and has only 80k on the clock. It was priced at 3,999. It's an absolute gem, not a mark on it, even the alloys are in mint nick. Snapped it straight up and even managed to knock a bit off the price. I feel really lucky, over the moon with it To top it off I've been told I can claim my deposit back from the bank if those cowboys down south won't give me it

The only thing i can think of that might be something to hide would be the clutch, or possibly steering rack. Both of which couldn't really be hidden anyway. The engine was pulling fine when he drove it and it idled nice and low, the gears apeared to be engaging well too. Fingers crossed it turns out to be a good car and liek you say worth the stress, time and money! There are tons of EP3's up privately but unfortunately non worth looking at local to me. Most have done way over 100k now and look tierd. The nearest one on autotrader I like the look of is over 200 mile away. I've already done over 600 mile driving about looking at cars and I'm in a real hurry to buy otherwise I'd put the cash to one side and wait until something come up. Side note, I can't find the for sale section on type r owners, not sure if i'm having a moment or if it's been removed.

I'm heading back on sunday! I rang the place to tell them I wanted to drive the car before putting the rest of the cash down and the blokes attitude was horrible. Not sure what it is with car dealers but everyone I've dealt with recently has been rude, impatient and seeming to think they know it all. Fingers crossed all goes well anyway and the drive home is uneventfull. I'll keep people updated.