Dipper Posted July 26 Author Share Posted July 26 After allot of very careful work on these bolts I managed to get them all out successfully. It was a game of patience. Wire brush. A good set of hex sockets. And being really gentle with the breaker bar. One thing I learned during this job was the importance of loosen untill you feel pressure. Then re tighten. And repeat. Over and back over and back (basically forever) to clean the threads as you go. And never forcing things too hard. That and wd40 helps. Also for the big nut in the kidney bracket the impact gun. To loosen and then tighten over and back over and back. Which also made the nut hot and easier to take off. It wasn't easy though. But so relieved to have the whole thing disassembled without breaking any bolts or captive nuts. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dipper Posted July 26 Author Share Posted July 26 (edited) So I wire brushed the underside of all the mating areas and treated it with rust converter. Leaving it to sit over night now before giving it a lick of paint. Before re assembly with new parts bolts and nuts. Also as for the splash shield. I'd bought a replacement part but yeah. I havnt the patience to fit it. It's not structural and it was a seige of a job to rip it out. As like most people I didn't want to remove the exhaust and the drive shaft. So I ripped the rusty thing out and If anyone wants to buy a cheap new unused splash shield you're welcome to it. Edited July 26 by Dipper 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zalas Posted July 26 Share Posted July 26 (edited) Looking good, reminisent of the work I'm doing on mine. Taps for the threads are a godsend - so often they're fine threads though so watch out. Unfortunately all the work I got done in this thread ( ) has mostly started to get rust inside again and rust stains leak out. Dynax S50 to the rescue Edited July 26 by Zalas 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ballistic Posted July 26 Share Posted July 26 Im planning to do rust proofing on mine soon too. Kinda.dreading it but also really want to do it 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dipper Posted July 30 Author Share Posted July 30 (edited) On 26/07/2024 at 15:54, Zalas said: Looking good, reminisent of the work I'm doing on mine. Taps for the threads are a godsend - so often they're fine threads though so watch out. Unfortunately all the work I got done in this thread ( ) has mostly started to get rust inside again and rust stains leak out. Dynax S50 to the rescue Nice work here. Unfortunately they do love to rust. It takes real effort to keep them alive in our climate. I was impressed by how well the rust converter works to be fair. But it can only do so much. Yeah not knowing thread pitches put me off the taps. I only have standard pitch taps. Not the fine ones Edited July 30 by Dipper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dipper Posted July 30 Author Share Posted July 30 On 26/07/2024 at 21:32, ballistic said: Im planning to do rust proofing on mine soon too. Kinda.dreading it but also really want to do it Yeah it's better to bite the bullet. Make sure to check under the plastic side skirts at the rear arch. That's where my rust journey started unfortunately 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dipper Posted July 30 Author Share Posted July 30 (edited) New kidney brackets on. All new bolts and hardware. As well as new hardware for the previously installed white ultra racing brace. MOT rebooked for tommorrow. Fingers crossed this time it's a win. Edited July 30 by Dipper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zalas Posted July 30 Share Posted July 30 Fingers crossed!! Highly.recomment the Bilt Hamber Dynax UB/UC for underneath and the S50 for cavities. I'll send some pics tonight of how my arches and underneath look as I have my knuckles and tie rods off at the moment. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dipper Posted July 31 Author Share Posted July 31 Mot passed and the red zed is back on the road. I think changing rusty kidney brackets is basically a rite of passage for a 350z owner...you should get a badge or something Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zalas Posted July 31 Share Posted July 31 Awesome news! Hoping to put mine in a couple weeks once bits from Alex and Coz have arrived. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dipper Posted August 21 Author Share Posted August 21 (edited) Next up on the list is the heating dials. Mines an 04 so has the 1st gen dials. A little flatter and wider. With a smaller chrome bezel. So I snagged some of the newer dials off Ebay. They felt a bit gritty to turn and not smooth. So a quick rebuild and clean out was on the cards first before fitting them. I'm doing all this assuming they work once fitted. Edited August 21 by Dipper 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zalas Posted August 21 Share Posted August 21 Nice! How did you do the 'rebuild' clean - compressed air and qtips? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ballistic Posted August 22 Share Posted August 22 Arnt those the JDM controls? Thats what i have on mine Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dipper Posted August 23 Author Share Posted August 23 On 21/08/2024 at 21:35, Zalas said: Nice! How did you do the 'rebuild' clean - compressed air and qtips? Yeah some wet wipes, q tips and then some tissues to dry it off and reassemble. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dipper Posted August 23 Author Share Posted August 23 17 hours ago, ballistic said: Arnt those the JDM controls? Thats what i have on mine Oh good question. I know there is 3 types of heating controls. The ones that came in my early 2004 350z. Then the one with the slightly larger silver rear bezel. (I assumed this was a rev up change. But maybe it's a japan import thing) And then the ones that come on the interior facelift models on the HR and such with the silver rotating parts and black rear housing. The 3 types I know of pictured here: 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dipper Posted August 23 Author Share Posted August 23 So popped up the gearstick surround bezel. Disconnect the ribbon style harness wire connecting them. The dials are held in by a single black screw and clips you have to pry back. Two on top and two on the sides. (I didn't spot the side ones at first.) Lever them out with a screw driver and they pop out. I did a quick function test before reassembly. All the controls seem to work so I reassembled them and voila. A little more bling added to my interior. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ballistic Posted August 24 Share Posted August 24 Very nice lil upgrade. Jdm ones are my fav. HR ones are nice too. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dipper Posted September 1 Author Share Posted September 1 Another sneaky little mod. The black Zunsport grill added. Still a little bit unsure about it. But will leave it on and see if it grows on me. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dipper Posted October 3 Author Share Posted October 3 Next mod on the list: Rear red lens fog light removal. After following a previous "how to" guide on this site. I stuck the rear bumper light cluster in the oven. And using some trim removal tools.pried the lens away from the black housing. Once opened and clearing away the sticky glue. I took out the red lens and the mirrored backing. Both of which came away easily. Back in the oven for a minute to make the glue tacky again. And resealed the unit. Confession. I was worried about wrecking my lights. So I bought a cheap 2nd hand unit off Ebay to try this mod. Since it was successful. Next I just gotta get a red bulb to replace the affected fog light, take off the rear bumper and fit the new clear lens. Which hopefully add some symmetry to the rear of the car Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MONKEYSOCKS Posted October 3 Share Posted October 3 Looks great, I've wanted to do this for ages, but I'm terrified I'll wreck it. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dipper Posted October 3 Author Share Posted October 3 Yeah same here. It scared me a bit. But now having a spare light made me less fearful. Little to lose. Glue doesn't need long in the oven at all to soften. So risk of things melting is low as long as you leave it in for a minute at a time. My process I had it in and out maybe 5 times. The glue would get hard again quickly once out of the oven. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zalas Posted October 3 Share Posted October 3 Looks good, likewise to the cautious wrecking. I've got my MOT booked for next week. Hopefully it passes! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zalas Posted October 3 Share Posted October 3 Just now, Dipper said: Yeah same here. It scared me a bit. But now having a spare light made me less fearful. Little to lose. Glue doesn't need long in the oven at all to soften. So risk of things melting is low as long as you leave it in for a minute at a time. My process I had it in and out maybe 5 times. The glue would get hard again quickly once out of the oven. Would heatgun work better? Or does it need to be universally heated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShortPaul Posted October 3 Share Posted October 3 5 hours ago, Dipper said: Next mod on the list: Rear red lens fog light removal. After following a previous "how to" guide on this site. I stuck the rear bumper light cluster in the oven. And using some trim removal tools.pried the lens away from the black housing. Once opened and clearing away the sticky glue. I took out the red lens and the mirrored backing. Both of which came away easily. Back in the oven for a minute to make the glue tacky again. And resealed the unit. Confession. I was worried about wrecking my lights. So I bought a cheap 2nd hand unit off Ebay to try this mod. Since it was successful. Next I just gotta get a red bulb to replace the affected fog light, take off the rear bumper and fit the new clear lens. Which hopefully add some symmetry to the rear of the car I did exactly the same thing bought one from eBay just be on the safe side 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dipper Posted October 4 Author Share Posted October 4 (edited) 18 hours ago, Zalas said: Would heatgun work better? Or does it need to be universally heated. Heat gun might work better. I didn't have one. The glue however runs the entire perimeter of the lens. So I'm kinda thinking all the glue would need to be heated in unison to get the lens moving at all. So yeah maybe someone with a heat gun can try. But oven worked well. No melting of plastic or browning of the clear lens. Edited October 4 by Dipper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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