Looking at buying my first 350z

[Cipurs]

Looking to purchase my first 350z and came across this on Autotrader. Bodywork etc looks top notch but had a look at MOT history and theres a couple things I wouldn't mind getting your opinions on. It passed it's most recent MOT in September but some of the advisories have me second guessing (rust in particular)

 

Autotrader; https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202209199907728

MOT; https://www.check-mot.service.gov.uk/results?registration=mm55+YCF

 

Be interested to hear what you think!

[davey_83]

Hello 

 

Monitor and repair if necessary (advisories):

 

- under body and suspension components rusty

 

Alot of the suspension on these cars are aluminium which is great so can't rust. The above I would imagine relates to the centre chassis brace, referred to as a w brace. Non structural and bolt on/off for replacement. 

 

Re the suspension rust, I would imagine this would be the rear anti roll bar which is prone to surface rust. Never seen one fail for rust, so if it is this part wire brush, rust treatment and paint will suffice.

 

- rear axle rusty and suspension parts

 

Only parts this relates to would be the half shafts, again surface rust I'd imagine so same gig needed as the anti roll bar.

[Andy_Muxlow]

Hi and welcome. It doesn’t look too bad to be honest. For its age they mostly all have rust in some way shape or form. You would be best to have a test drive and see what you think. You can then check it over to make sure. Check out the for sale section here there might be a better car available from an enthusiast rather than a garage.

[polaris]

I'd run a £10 Vcheck against it if you're serious. When I was looking a while ago, I made quite am extensive list of 350Z specific checks to do on first inspection. I can share with you if you'd like.

Edited December 13, 2022 by polaris

[Cipurs]

1 hour ago, Andy_Muxlow said:

Hi and welcome. It doesn’t look too bad to be honest. For its age they mostly all have rust in some way shape or form. You would be best to have a test drive and see what you think. You can then check it over to make sure. Check out the for sale section here there might be a better car available from an enthusiast rather than a garage.

Thanks! Been lurking in here for a while now - been keeping my eye on the sale page here for a while and nearly bought one from a forum member but was too slow. It's been a while since one was posted up for sale that was both near me and not too much more expensive than this one (unless you know of someone willing to sell up haha)
 

 

37 minutes ago, polaris said:

I'd run a £10 Vcheck against it if you're serious. When I was looking a while ago, I made quite am extensive list of 350Z specific checks to do on first inspection. I can share with you if you'd like.

If you could, this would be super helpful! Thanks!
 

1 hour ago, davey_83 said:

Hello 

 

Monitor and repair if necessary (advisories):

 

- under body and suspension components rusty

 

Alot of the suspension on these cars are aluminium which is great so can't rust. The above I would imagine relates to the centre chassis brace, referred to as a w brace. Non structural and bolt on/off for replacement. 

 

Re the suspension rust, I would imagine this would be the rear anti roll bar which is prone to surface rust. Never seen one fail for rust, so if it is this part wire brush, rust treatment and paint will suffice.

 

- rear axle rusty and suspension parts

 

Only parts this relates to would be the half shafts, again surface rust I'd imagine so same gig needed as the anti roll bar.

Thanks for this! I've seen stuff on here about people changing the W brace so happy days if it's easy to sort. Also read some stuff about inconsistencies in MOT centers and what they flag so I guess there's not much I can really speculate until I go to see it

Edited December 13, 2022 by Cipurs

[Loadmaster]

That looks really tidy and in good condition, nice in grey as well. The price seems quite reasonable, but for cash you could probably haggle somewhat, particularly at this time of year.

 

Check with the seller to see if it's been modified in any way. I'm not suggesting that's bad, but would be handy to know if it's been mapped or fitted with a non OEM exhaust/high flow cats for example. 

 

Good luck.