Welcome to the forum
This post is to give new members and potential buyers a quick guide to the forum. It contains links to several of the most asked questions.
Search Function;
In the top right of the screen is the search button. Putting your phrase in inverted commas will search for the exact phrase. You can also search for two keywords by putting and in between them. The advanced search allows you to search using a members name ind in a specific section of the forum. If you cant find something then feel free to ask, we are here to help.
Buyers guide;
Many new members will be looking to buy a 350z, getting the right one is always a challenge. Many garages will not be quite sure what the spec of the cars is so the following links will be helpful.
Nissan's 350Z carries on (and restores) the famous Nissan Z car tradition. Mixing reliability and good build quality with a silky smooth 3499cc V6 and rear wheel drive.
While they are still available new (priced far less than any real competition) there is a growing used car market as owners upgrade to the latest spec. or get banned for drifting round roundabouts!
As with all Japanese cars there are loads of imported (JDM) cars on the market too. Briefly...
you can't take the roof off without a saw it is a Coupe, if you can it is a roadster. (Don't make yourself look stoopid by talking about buying a 350Z cabriolet!)
If it is a 350Z GT, Gran Turismo or has the GT pack fitted it means it has heated seats, cruise control and upgraded (Bose) stereo. When new dealers charged an extra £2000 for this. There is a GT4 limited edition too.
If it a Fairlady, Version T (Lux) it is an import.
While the 350Z is pretty reliable there are a few problems which happen to most cars. While most of these should have been fixed by the dealer under warranty there are a few that have not materialised until the warranty has run out. UK spec. cars have the usual Nissan 3 year warranty. If the car is under warranty and there are outstanding faults this may indicate a reluctance to visit the dealer (big service due? modifications that may invalidate the warranty?)
These problems are...
Tyres feathering, uneven wear, grumbling at low speeds.
Grumbling at 15 to 30mph is usually caused by the tyres, if it has original bridgestones.
Feathering, scrubbing and un-even wear is probably bandly set tracking. Nissan issued a bulletin on this subject which you can see at http://www.bonell.plus.com/350z/tire%20 ... lletin.pdf
Rear axle clicking noise. Sounds like something left underneath. Usually does it when shifting from reverse to forward or initial load when moving off. This is caused by the driveshafts. Due to the work involved make sure the price reflects this if the car is not covered under warranty. You can read the bulletin at http://www.350z-tech.com/wiki/index.php ... _Rear_Axle
Bose CD player skipping. The Bose system is intended as an upgrade but the CD player tends to skip or jump. Usually when my CDs are on. If my good lady puts 'Chick flick sondtrack' or 'Cheezy 80s cack' on it is fine! Yet as soon as the White stripes, the Who or the Zep are on it sounds like the dance remix! Most have been fixed under warranty though.
The N/S speaker can cut out when playing CDs too. Best to administer a sound thump to the passenger kneepad area (With your hand. Put the hammer down!)
Squeaky brakes. This is what happens when you fit big Brembo racing brakes to a car then people drive it like a Fiat Punto. Seat Turbo R and Mitsubishi Evo owners cars suffer from this too. Funnily enough those cars all have Brembo brake callipers too! At times the odd squeak from the brakes can be embarrasing but as a car mechanic I am happy as long as they stop the car when I press the brake!
Some owners complain about a spongy pedal too. Because the Brembo brake calliper has large brake pads more effort is required when the pads are cold. Sometimes over-zealous owners overfill the brake reservoir too. Because there is no space this causes the master cylinder to draw the brake pistons back in overnight, so when you come out in the morning, half asleep picking kebab from your teeth and yellow stuff from your eyes, reveverse out the drive and shi...get a big fright and have to pump up the footbrake, thats what causes it!
People always complain about handbrake travel (not just on Zeds, on all Nissans) For some reason Nissan like the handbrake to come on a convincing amount. If overadjusted, the rear pads will heat up and cause terrible brake fade.
Tailgate trying to eat you. The stops can be adjusted by taking them off and spacing them. Dealers can get the correct pads for doing that. If ignored the struts will weaken and adjusting the pads won't work.
Scratches/stonechips on bumper. This is normal because of the shape of the front of the car. There are 2 ways to stop this happening.
1.Buy something else
2.Buy some clear film and fit it before it happens. Most car accessory shops sell this film.
I would recommend the later option. It is better to see a few stonechips than a horribly repainted bumper, bodged because they are trying to sell the car!
Finally, if the car is over 4 years old or past 54,000 miles make sure it has had its major service because it is a biggie! (Currently about £500!)
In addition to the above remember all the usual car buying rules. To summarise...
1.If you are buying off ebay, don't hand over a penny until you have actually touched the car and seen the registration document.
2.Take the Missus. While you are picturing yourself driving along the seafront with girls swooning at you the battleaxe will be noticing scratches, stains and asking 'Why are you selling it if it is so good'!
3.Get it HPI'd. Don't bother doing this to them all but if you are serious, get it done. It will avoid tears at bedtime.
4.Phone the dealers in the service book. Nissan servicing can be pricey so there is a temptation to commit 'Service book fraud' Nowadays any dealer mentioned in the book will have a record of each service being done (or not done!)
5.Don't be forced into anything. God as it is, there are plenty 350Z about so if you have to walk away, walk away!
Having joined up you may want a personal avatar, this link helps you to get one.
viewtopic.php?f=7&t=3552
We also have personal signitures which appear under our posts.
viewtopic.php?f=7&t=7695
Having joined up owners will be pestered to post pictures of their cars, we like pics
This will help you to post them up.
viewtopic.php?f=7&t=7695http://www.350z-uk.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=5091
The cars fall into two main categories, the UK spec and the JDM, Japanese domestic market. Here are the differences between the UK and JDM cars.
viewtopic.php?f=37&t=1781
