jamiebridge Posted September 16, 2016 Share Posted September 16, 2016 Ok so i picked up my 350z last month and im absoloutely loving it, however there are some niggles that i am hoping some of the more experienced 350z owners can help me with. Although none of these issues are terminal, it would be great if i could get it running as perfectly as possible. The car is an 04 model with 88k on the clock, it has been very well looked after and is almost spotless. The niggles: 1.Slip light, this seems to come on quite easily when applying power, even when its dry, my friend has the same car and his doesnt come on half as much. Now the car has been fitted with rota gtrs 18inch all round tyres: Front: 225 45 18 Rear: 265 40 18 and lowered on tein springs. Im wondering if the springs or tyre sizes are causing the issue? If so, would resetting the ecu help in any way? 2. The handbrake is utterly useless, i have to apply it with the power of thor to have peice of mind on a hill start, which makes the hill start actually quite tricky when unapplying the thor'ed handbrake. I have searched this and this is a common problem, however i wondered if you guys had any tips? 3. Boot lifters are shocking, it takes quite some distance of lift to actually get the boot to lift on its own. Is it worth just replacing the lifters or trying the penny trick? I read the penny trick has damaged some cars. 4. Cockpit gets crazy hot, its rare i dont have the cold fan on at least 1/3rd at all times. It does have a cobra catback system on and i believe the hottest part sits underneath the footwell? Thats it really, Im just looking for any advice going foward / reassurance on anything as a new 350z owner Thanks for anyones time. Jamie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brillomaster Posted September 16, 2016 Share Posted September 16, 2016 (edited) slip light is coming on cos the rear tyres have a diameter too small (40 profile is too low), swap the tyres for a 245/45/18 and you'll be fine. or run with TCS off! handbrake, yeah, that's pretty crappy... leave it in gear/turn the wheels into a kerb when parking on a hill. cant really help with hill starts though! boot lifters - replace the gas struts if the boot wont hold itself up and tries to eat you, do the penny trick if you need to lift the boot while pressing the release button to get the boot to open. I used pennies, they didn't damage my car as far as I can see. I used 3p a side. cockpit getting hot - just use the a/c? I never turn the a/c off - in summer it keeps me cool, in winter it stops the inside misting up all the time. and a 3.5 litre V6 has plenty of power that it can run an a/c pump no problems, and it keeps the a/c in better shape to running it all the time. Edited September 16, 2016 by brillomaster 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KUGT4 Posted September 16, 2016 Share Posted September 16, 2016 point 2 - yes, normal i park on a very steep hill and it requires pulling to the topmost notch....and then another one i always double check it before getting out Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BulletMagnet Posted September 16, 2016 Share Posted September 16, 2016 (edited) The Handbrake will need adjusting at the hubs, check if the handbrake shoes on the inside of the disc aren't worn down too Edited September 16, 2016 by BulletMagnet 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZEUS Posted September 16, 2016 Share Posted September 16, 2016 What make are the tyres? Handbrake can be adjusted, buy the uprated boot struts and use rubber washers instead for the penny trick. I leave my climate control on all year round to keep the cabin nice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miller350z Posted September 16, 2016 Share Posted September 16, 2016 Slip light, mine is the same. I put it down to the tyres but could be wrong. Handbrake, mine was OK until I changed the discs last week. There is a rubber grommet on the rear disc. Get the grommet to 12 o'clock, remove it and there is an adjuster for the handbrake adjust it to move the shoes outwards on both sides, see if that helps. The boot shocks, 350s have a weight in the boot that can be removed incase you put a spoiler on. I have a spoiler and the weight is removed and the boot still falls. I'm gonna buy some new shocks Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kbad Posted September 16, 2016 Share Posted September 16, 2016 Hi Jamie - your 350z niggles appear to be answered adequately/excellently - Hello and welcome Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coldel Posted September 16, 2016 Share Posted September 16, 2016 Do let us know tyre brands, budget brands will very quickly find and go past their capabilities in a zed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jamiebridge Posted September 16, 2016 Author Share Posted September 16, 2016 Thanks everyone for the replies, really apprechiate it, some great info here. Tyres are Michelin Pilot Super Sports, which are pretty expensive in the current size. They also have a lot of tread left, once the tread wears down on them i will replace them with Falkens, but the slip light isnt such a servere problem to replace them yet i dont think? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coldel Posted September 16, 2016 Share Posted September 16, 2016 MPSS are much better than Falkens, much more expensive too. I would suspect it is the profile then as people have mentioned... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jamiebridge Posted September 16, 2016 Author Share Posted September 16, 2016 (edited) Car as it stands: Yes i am aware that they are very good tyres although if there not the correct size, i will change the sizing once the michellins are worn. And for the type of driving i do, i think the Falkens will suffice judging by previous reviews. Edited September 16, 2016 by jamiebridge Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coldel Posted September 16, 2016 Share Posted September 16, 2016 I had Falken 452s on mine - as you say if you are not one for booting it around they suffice. I have Vreds on my car now, bit better than the Falkens I find and good prices. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brillomaster Posted September 16, 2016 Share Posted September 16, 2016 its definitely the profile... the TCS looks at individual wheel rotation speeds to determine if a wheel is slipping, so the correct ratio between front and rear tyre sizes is critical. in order to keep the TCS happy, either put a 40 profile on the front to match the back, or put a 45 profile on the back to match the front. personally, 265/40/18 sounds a bit of a weird size and thus hard to flog, so i'd flog the front 225/45/18s on here, and then buy a set of 245/40/18s which will match up ok to the rears. I'd really get it sorted sooner rather than later rather than putting up with it until the tyres are worn, as while its unlikely you will actually need TCS if you're running MPSS all round and don't drive that quickly, it only takes one patch of sludge and you're going backwards into a tree. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jamiebridge Posted September 16, 2016 Author Share Posted September 16, 2016 Hmm. Im tempted to just replace the rears, even if it is a fair bit more, i think as well as sorting the slip light issue it may also fill the arch out more and make the ride height look more even, i always thought that it looked an odd angle from the side. With the teins do you think it would scrub at all? I think it should be fine, there looks to be loads of room at the moment between the tyre and arch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FiddyZed Posted September 16, 2016 Share Posted September 16, 2016 3. Boot lifters are shocking, it takes quite some distance of lift to actually get the boot to lift on its own. Is it worth just replacing the lifters or trying the penny trick? I read the penny trick has damaged some cars. boot lifters - replace the gas struts if the boot wont hold itself up and tries to eat you, do the penny trick if you need to lift the boot while pressing the release button to get the boot to open. I used pennies, they didn't damage my car as far as I can see. I used 3p a side. Guys - I have this same issue - what's this penny trick I hear of brillomaster? Welcome and good looking zed Jamie! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jamiebridge Posted September 16, 2016 Author Share Posted September 16, 2016 3. Boot lifters are shocking, it takes quite some distance of lift to actually get the boot to lift on its own. Is it worth just replacing the lifters or trying the penny trick? I read the penny trick has damaged some cars. boot lifters - replace the gas struts if the boot wont hold itself up and tries to eat you, do the penny trick if you need to lift the boot while pressing the release button to get the boot to open. I used pennies, they didn't damage my car as far as I can see. I used 3p a side. Guys - I have this same issue - what's this penny trick I hear of brillomaster? Welcome and good looking zed Jamie! Here you go: http://www.350z-uk.com/topic/35706-the-penny-trick/ 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zeezeebaba Posted September 16, 2016 Share Posted September 16, 2016 Adjust handbrake as advised and if the hand brake pads are in good order rough them up a little with some fine grade wet and dry paper. My handbrake on 80k miles was shocking, whilst changing the rear discs I took the opportunity to do this. Three clicks and it's tight and secure now whereas before it needed to be pulled right up to get any engagement. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stutopia Posted September 16, 2016 Share Posted September 16, 2016 There's a quick and dirty handbrake adjusting screw underneath the ashtray, the hubs is the place to do it properly though, since I had mine done (a year or so ago) the handbrake has been just fine. If you're worried about the penny trick and damage, just replace metal pennies with rubber washers If the struts are struggling to open the boot, after the initial pop and once you get it a good way open, watch out when the weather gets cold, the boot lid will either eat you or knock you out when it feels the chill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HiddenWomble Posted September 17, 2016 Share Posted September 17, 2016 the manual says to park the car in gear, that's how bad the handbrake is. i live on quite a steep hill and the engine is quite capable of doing the lions share of the work when it comes to not letting it roll! also before i got some proper rubber on her i had to do a hill start on a crazy steep cobbled road. i gave it plenty of juice and the traction control sorted out the rest. as for the penny trick, get some rubber grommets instead (eg from maplins). that will be safer on the body work if you're worried about doing damage there are 2 things that can go wrong with the boot: 1: it doesn't clear the catch when you press the button, which means you need one hand to lift and one hand to push the button to open up (or 1 fast hand to do both!). this is what the penny trick fixes 2: it tries to bite your head off. this is what fixing the struts helps with (re-gas or new ones) it sounds like you have problem number 2, so the penny trick won't help. the springs push the boot past the catch, the struts then lift the boot up and keep it up. the penny trick is for the springs only. if it's got past the catch then the penny trick wont help Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
veilside z Posted September 17, 2016 Share Posted September 17, 2016 Hello and welcome along and happy Zedding Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derbro Posted September 18, 2016 Share Posted September 18, 2016 Hello and Welcome, some great info to sort out those niggles. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KyleR Posted September 18, 2016 Share Posted September 18, 2016 Ok so i picked up my 350z last month and im absoloutely loving it, however there are some niggles that i am hoping some of the more experienced 350z owners can help me with. Although none of these issues are terminal, it would be great if i could get it running as perfectly as possible. The car is an 04 model with 88k on the clock, it has been very well looked after and is almost spotless. The niggles: 1.Slip light, this seems to come on quite easily when applying power, even when its dry, my friend has the same car and his doesnt come on half as much. Now the car has been fitted with rota gtrs 18inch all round tyres: Front: 225 45 18 Rear: 265 40 18 and lowered on tein springs. Im wondering if the springs or tyre sizes are causing the issue? If so, would resetting the ecu help in any way? Tyre sizes should be ok, 275/40 would be a better fit, but it shouldn't affect it too bad. Are they MPSS all round? Are they evenly worn front to rear? 2. The handbrake is utterly useless, i have to apply it with the power of thor to have peice of mind on a hill start, which makes the hill start actually quite tricky when unapplying the thor'ed handbrake. I have searched this and this is a common problem, however i wondered if you guys had any tips? Apparently it sucks, but I'm on my second 350Z now and both have been adequate despite needing pulled quite high. 3. Boot lifters are shocking, it takes quite some distance of lift to actually get the boot to lift on its own. Is it worth just replacing the lifters or trying the penny trick? I read the penny trick has damaged some cars. ​I presume you mean you hit the button and the boot only half pops, so you have to use two hands? Penny trick will do the trick, I think new ones are quite expensive for what they are from Nissan. 4. Cockpit gets crazy hot, its rare i dont have the cold fan on at least 1/3rd at all times. It does have a cobra catback system on and i believe the hottest part sits underneath the footwell? Sounds like your A/C isn't working, it may just need regassed. Thats it really, Im just looking for any advice going foward / reassurance on anything as a new 350z owner Thanks for anyones time. Jamie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy_Muxlow Posted September 18, 2016 Share Posted September 18, 2016 Hello and welcome along buddy 🙂 Sent from my iPhone using hammer and chisel! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roadtrip Posted September 18, 2016 Share Posted September 18, 2016 Hmm. Im tempted to just replace the rears, even if it is a fair bit more, i think as well as sorting the slip light issue it may also fill the arch out more and make the ride height look more even, i always thought that it looked an odd angle from the side. How wide are the wheels? I would use that as a guide as to whether it's best to replace the front tyres or the rear tyres. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rippo350z Posted September 30, 2016 Share Posted September 30, 2016 RE: boot lid - I fixed this by doing a rear wiper delete and when you take the trim off he inside there is also a pointless weight sitting in there, i took approx 8KG out. now the boot lid pops up nicely and you never have to press the button twice (sometimes the initial button release wouldn't release the catch) If you don't want a wiper delete (there are threads on how to do this and its easy) you will still achieve this by taking the trim out and removing the weight Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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