coldel Posted October 12, 2011 Share Posted October 12, 2011 ...this week. Wow it has flown by and seems like I only got the car last week. Thought I would pop together a little summary of my highs and lows and I generally need a good excuse to procrastinate Month 1...mixed emotions. I knocked £1k off the asking price, but even then thought I could have gotten more off, so despite the saved cash I was a little worried on the drive home on the M40 that it was too easy and there must be something wrong with these cars. My paranoia was heightened when on the way home I had a loud noise coming in from the passenger window, it was open a crack, when I tried the switch to fully close it the window wouldnt move. I remember the drive home and wasn't having the wonder drive I thought I would get. Window problem was sorted shortly after getting home when I found the window lock button... Month 2...loving the drive, then hating the drive and my bank balance, then loving the drive. Car was great, loads of grunt, plenty of looks and I had a clean car at a discounted price. Then, I noticed clicking at the back, rear axle problem, £300 part from Alex and fixed. So not that big a problem...until the clutch went and I was back at Alex's virtual door clutching nearly £700 to get that sorted nearly £1k on repairs in month 2. Once all done though car was driving fabulously and I was experiencing the full power of it with a new clutch installed and Alex is my best friend and saviour. Month 2 to Month 3...my wife Rebecca announces she is pregnant, I fear for the Zed. Month 3...excitement and anticipation. As I can finally spend some money on cosmetic stuff, just little things that set it apart from a standard Zed, change the badges around, some wrapping on the interior which had gotten a little tatty, aluminium gear knob. Just those little changes that I find make me feel like the car is now mine and I don't feel like I am driving someone elses car anymore. Its at this point I am eyeing up a set of Volks on the forum...then looking at the bank balance...then back at the Volks...bank balance...Volks... Month 3 to Month 4...Rebecca urges me not to sell the Zed Month 4...drooling and some frustration. ...the Volks are mine, and they transform the car. Looks great, handles great and very happy with the investment. I am drooling. Then I notice paint flaking off the backside of the car, actually there are a few too many stone chips appearing on the front bumper too. I nip it into RTPerformance and Taras says that the front and rear bumper have had a 'blow over' so a cheap paint job which was now failing. I get the rear bumper properly resprayed (not a cheap effort like teh previous Coventry based idiot called Steve had done... ) and it looks good, I am saving the front bumper for something a little special in October. Month 4 to Month 5...Rebecca wants a car, we discuss selling the Zed and buying two reasonably priced cars, we bin the idea within seconds, another stay of execution for the Zed. Month 5...surprised. Bought a throttle controller from doogyrev, really pushes on the revs in the sport modes and I start to leave it in SP4 to really get a good response from the engine without doing 10mpg. Its a great little gizmo every non upreved Zed should have. Surprised that the engine has so much more to give, and I am now casting an envious eye over at Abbey and their uprev capability. Its not top of my priorities list on the car though I am seriously looking at front bumper options. Car mechanics are generally pretty good, Engine is grunt-tastic, the gearbox is very clonky though and I am getting more and more concerned about it. Month 5 to Month 6...redundancy, panic, valuing Zed and how we can keep going on the money we have. Got a job out of nowhere, Zed survives once again and Becks wants a Ford Focus for her and the baby, I can live with that. Month 6...contentment, almost. Gearbox is driving me crazy, its so clonky, it feels like it is moving around, is it going to drop out the bottom of the car at 70mph on the motorway accompanied with a burst of cogs and bolts? Will350z takes it for a test drive, its ok, its normal, just a bit loud, clearly I have a special Zed with extra loud gearbox, that must make it worth more than a standard Zed. I discuss at length on the forum and someone says try molyslip, I foolishly scoff the idea, and then add it anyway, the loud clunking stops. I stare at the car from my upstairs window, its shiny, it looks amazing, black colour coding all over the car, I have resprayed some of the interior parts which had scuffed a bit over time I am now converting some of the engine bay starting with bolts etc - its coming together and at the same time I am learning new skills on working with cars. Life is good...just that front bumper...and waiting for that 'all go' message from someone to sort it out then I might be happy with it, probably. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisS Posted October 12, 2011 Share Posted October 12, 2011 Love is............................ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rabbitstew Posted October 12, 2011 Share Posted October 12, 2011 Excellent read mate and think you have summed up zed ownership for a lot of us! Its the first 6 months of ownership for me also. I bought my car end of March. Was the first car ive bought where the seller (in this case a main dealer) refused to knock even a penny off the price). When I bought mine there were only 3 face-lift roadsters for sale within about 80 miles of my house, so wasn't many to choose from. This one ticked all the boxes for me and being an ex Nissan car for the first 12 months of its life it was fully loaded with every option and had spent most of its life sitting in a showroom, so very low mileage on it. Month 1 was pretty boring car wise as I went straight on a 4 week vacation leaving my car on the driveway. All holiday I kept worrying if it was okay? Would it start okay? Hope no-one nicks it... etc. Month 2 was more fun. It was cold but I still wanted the roof down. Some nights id get home from work and it would be -7 and id still have the roof down! Also fitted the K1 exhaust... wow... its loud. Did the ipod mod now I can listen to songs from my phone through the bose stereo -although with the loud exhaust its not ideal listening. Month 3 and im getting more and more used to the drive into work and the novelty of filling up with petrol every 3 days. My Tesco clubcard points are racking up very fast now with the amount of petrol im getting through. £20 a day just to get into work & back. Still, that power is great.... 2nd gear throws you back in the seats. But wait.... is that a clicking noise i hear? Luckily it was just the fan belt which was worn - so a new one of those fitted. At this point I also discover the Nissan warranty doesn't cover the paper its written on. They wont give me a 20quid fan belt because whilst they are surprised it wore out at 20k miles and was clearly damaged when I bought the car, they class it as a consumable. The roof also develops a bit of a sticking problem occasionally so back to Nissan it goes and once again... not covered by warranty as electric roof is classed as "trim". Luckily the garage fixes it as a good will gesture - it needed "re-aligning" or something. That K1 exhaust is still very loud. Month 4 and i realize my hearing is going. The K1 is killing me, i can no longer hear soft noises or whispers. Hmmmm... start to consider swapping it out for a scorpion. Commuting is taking its toll as the mileage clocks up and I start to wonder if I made the right choice. Those tyres are looking a bit low... and the road tax is soon up for renewal. Month 5. Some days I find im not enjoying the driving experience. But then I put the roof down, floor it and yey, its awesome. And man... that K1 is seriously loud. Starting noticing strange reactions from people who clearly are jealous, like the guy who shouted "gaylord" after me as I drove out of the local Tesco car park. Month 6 comes and ive done 10k miles already. Fit new DS2500 pads and notice the old ones are worn down to the metal, that's £250 odd. Time for a P1 service, so I do that as well, luckily that's cheap at less than £30. I also notice the front tyres were actually smooth on the insides! No wonder the car had started to tramline. So, a set of new Falkens... thats £510. Oh, and the road tax needs renewing.. £260ish for 6 months. Bit of an expensive month this month with over £1100 spent on the car. Also notice my hearing is definitely getting worse... having to ask the missus to repeat things she says now. Month 7 is where we are now. Insurance renewal is coming up so it will be an expensive month. Also dreading the winter - been considering getting a shed or a cheap 4x4 but the insurance just makes it unaffordable for me. Also been thinking about a remap. Had a few instances where the car really does not feel as quick as it should do. It feels like its missing maybe 50bhp. So, think I need to get it on the dyno and see if its on the money or a bit low on power... but not sure if I can afford that just yet. Also coming to the conclusion that maybe the baffles in this K1 are shot and I really should swap it out for something less noisy before I become totally deaf. All in all a mixed bag really. I think using the car every day for work takes away some of the magic of ownership. When it comes to the weekends, rather then going out for a fun drive we tend to just use the missus`s car as its twice as economical and it saves the wear / tear on mine. Opting for the roadster was a great idea and even though it was an expensive car, I think having the roof down really adds loads to the driving experience. The running costs certainly aint cheap, but then I knew that when I bought it. Im also worrying about whats the best mileage to sell it on... should I sell it now whilst its got low mileage, or risk having to fork out for items like a clutch or a P3 over the next 6 months? The car was always a 12month thing for me, so think i`ll stick with it until next summer and see how it goes. Really do need to swap that exhaust out tho...... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coldel Posted October 12, 2011 Author Share Posted October 12, 2011 Good stuff mate, I have to say I am a bit envious I didnt go for a roadster. When I drove Wills it was fantastic having the roof down, that said I can't imagine its going to be down much more for the next 6 months and in my opinion the coupe 'looks' better than the roadster with roof up. I also use mine daily, I imagine it does take away that 'weekend moment' but I still LOVE IT driving it every time. I have also clocked up 8k miles in my first 6 months. Got Dad to service the car, so saved on labour costs, £150 for what was effectively a P3 plus a fair bit more (changed pads, all 3 oils, belts, sparks checked and adjusted plenty of things outside the standard service schedule) and made a whopping difference to the drive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrzed Posted October 12, 2011 Share Posted October 12, 2011 Ahoy Shipmates!!! I too am a six monther, bought the zed from Crystal Nissan is Lincoln in March, nothing to report as yet but only done 2k in her......oh except for the tread on my tyres seems to have mystriously disappeared for no apparent reason. Must admit though those Bridgies are pretty good, at that price they should be. Oh and the road tax, but that's not the cars fault... Mr Cameron to thank for that one.... wonder if tax comes from the word taxidermy ... proverbially getting stuffed....every orifice, bet the government are thinking about drilling a few more. Can't turn the gas boiler down any more and already replaced all the light bulbs with candles, my misses thinks it's very romantic sitting there in candle light with three sweaters on. PS. Still getting the same kick out of it, just great, nothing else really looks as good until you start spending mega bucks ....unbeatable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coldel Posted October 12, 2011 Author Share Posted October 12, 2011 I think this could be the beginning of a small club of recent owners 2k in 6 months, that is exclusive use - amazed how much difference some falkens with 8mm tread made compared to the bridges with 3mm tread had makes a huge difference and well worth switching them as soon as you can to get the most out of the Zed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glrnet Posted October 12, 2011 Share Posted October 12, 2011 Col you clearly have a case of Zeditis Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TimFF Posted October 12, 2011 Share Posted October 12, 2011 And me too! I was just smugly thinking Col had Zeditis in a bad way, and then realised that since acquiring mine in March I've spent over £3.5k on it... But then the following were essential (ahem): Mats HFCs (yet to be fitted...) Parking sensors - hidden cable one Stubby carbon aerial #1 - looked good but as useful as a chocolate teapot Garmin mount - the cubby is full of iPod connected to the: Alpine Imprint system - well worth it Head up speedo display - VERY useful, got a bar rev counter a la F1 'steering wheel' and a 0-60 timer too! Carbon struts - must fit them soon! Stubby aerial from a S2000 #2 - that works... Spare set of Rays for the forthcoming set of winter tyres Fortunately I've had no mechanical maladies, just a bloody pigeon which committed suicide on the 'grille' but even so I've still spent £700 on servicing, a worthwhile geometry check, a check for damage post pigeon and 'consumables'... Oh, sorry - I had a gear lever linkage gaiter replaced as the old 'un decided to split. Having done just under 3000 miles (it wasn't a daily driver for nearly 5 months) in that time it means I've spent well over £1 a mile. Without including fuel, insurance, tax or tyres... Oops. And do I care? Nope... Do I grin when walking up to it knowing I'm about to drive it? Oh yes... OK, I have Zeditis. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coldel Posted October 12, 2011 Author Share Posted October 12, 2011 And there is no known cure - only amputation prevents further zeditis Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TimFF Posted October 12, 2011 Share Posted October 12, 2011 a very real possibility if a certain other 'alf spots this post... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thetranquilbass Posted October 12, 2011 Share Posted October 12, 2011 Reading this thread and counting up on the fingers, 6 months for myself also. Picked the car up at the beginning of April and have covered a little over 4k so far, most of wich has been commuting to work but atleast the A roads get hit on the way home in contrast to the motorway in the morning. Enjoy every minute of it and always find myself with a big grin when I get out the car at the end of the day. Only been to one meet so far but will doubling that this coming Sunday with the Borders run, which am looking forward to. Haven't spent a huge amount on putting my mark on the car as of yet but have a list of things that I want to get done next year once I've got the funds in place as would prefer to do it all at once. To date my rather limited spend has included: K&N panel filters Club stickers Z boot carpet S2K stubby Tein S-Tech lowering springs 380RS gas pedal Car goes in for its first service under my ownership on Friday this week, which will include HKS braided break lines and a new set of Michelin Pilot Super Sports - it came with the Bridgestone 50As which I've found good when dry but absolutely useless in the wet. On my to do list - new discs and pads all round, Berk HFCs, new zorst (thinking either the Invida sold by Tarmac or alternatively a custom job), re-map, 25/20 Eibach spacers, Eibach sway bar and maybe a new set of rims but I do like the Rays on it at present although they're badly in need of a refurb as previous owner had curbed all but one. Don't know yet whether I will go down the route of any body modifications as like the look of the car standard but this may well change. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rabbitstew Posted October 12, 2011 Share Posted October 12, 2011 Looks like theres quite a few of us 6 month people here!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Will370z Posted October 12, 2011 Share Posted October 12, 2011 Col, Glad you got the gearbox sorted and you have had fun over the last 6 months. You have a great car there, one thing though it does need the berks lol Tim cant believe you still have got your berks fitted lol. Good to hear everyone enjoying their cars. I still havent stopped smiling a year on and i enjoy every minute. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TimFF Posted October 13, 2011 Share Posted October 13, 2011 Berks not yet fitted as it's under warranty till January - at which point it will be off to a certain well known tuner, sorry - I mean local Z specialist not that far from me... Didn't want to take a chance voiding that knowing it wasn't going to do many miles before then. And that's a bit less off that bill I won't have to explain to a certain significant other! The 'idea' behind a Nissan was that it's cheap to service (coughs)... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrzed Posted October 13, 2011 Share Posted October 13, 2011 I think this could be the beginning of a small club of recent owners 2k in 6 months, that is exclusive use - amazed how much difference some falkens with 8mm tread made compared to the bridges with 3mm tread had makes a huge difference and well worth switching them as soon as you can to get the most out of the Zed. I might take your advice on the Falkens, I know "2k" I don't take her out nearly enough but has only done 9k from new and never seen a wet road. Trying to keep it that way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Will370z Posted October 13, 2011 Share Posted October 13, 2011 Berks not yet fitted as it's under warranty till January - at which point it will be off to a certain well known tuner, sorry - I mean local Z specialist not that far from me... Didn't want to take a chance voiding that knowing it wasn't going to do many miles before then. And that's a bit less off that bill I won't have to explain to a certain significant other! The 'idea' behind a Nissan was that it's cheap to service (coughs)... Haha nice. Very sensible decision. Bet you cant wait for the warranty to be up with all the goodies to go on it. Look forward to seeing it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cesc Posted October 17, 2011 Share Posted October 17, 2011 6 monther checking in here as well Bought April 7th and loving every minute so far, despite its worrying thirst for oil! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deank93 Posted October 17, 2011 Share Posted October 17, 2011 Mrzed, that is one lovely looking car, looks box fresh. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deank93 Posted October 17, 2011 Share Posted October 17, 2011 I'll be 8 months into ownership on October 24th...to date i've had zero expenditure, I bought mine on a private sale with a 2 year extended nissan warranty and having only been serviced the month before i got I've got a couple of months until i need to open my wallet. Despite it being a third car I've still managed to rack up 6k, too often i've walked out in the morning with the intention of getting into my Focus oil burner only to convince myself i should take the Zed as winter is coming and I'll not be using it too much when it's wet and snowing. I went on a tunnel run through the streets of London a week into ownership which was fun and went on the Kent/Sussex drive out which i really enjoyed, plans for the future include: Performance: Milltek Berks HFCs Uprev Cosworth panel filters I feel i need some more grunt and some audio enhancement to fall 100% in love with the car. Cosmetics: Wheel refurbishment, one or two chips that most wouldn't notice but i want it perfect 3 teeny tiny dents that no one but me will know are there Front end respray thanks to too many stone chips I really wanted to get the performance mods done now but my wife got sick and 4 months later she still isn't back at work so until she is I just can't justify the expense, cosmetics are planned for early next year. Overall i'm really enjoying Zed ownership but i can't help but miss the whiz bang of a turbo...hopefully the performance mods will ease that just a little. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david 164 Posted October 17, 2011 Share Posted October 17, 2011 well ive had mine about 6 months,had an annoying missfire at 1st which was sorted,bought it with 13k on it,just coming up to 17k,not had any issues,apart from putting fuel in it,decided to just use it as my toy now tho,and bought,yes wait for it,a skoda diesel to knock around in anyway done no mods,going to keep it standard apart from paint the rays,its temper orange so was thinking black,anyone seen one with black wheels?? let me know how it looked,please,also dont know what exhaust to go for,again any suggestions? other than that i love it just as it is Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nzr350z Posted October 17, 2011 Share Posted October 17, 2011 Bought mine in March too,done about 2,500miles,used daily,not used any oil,loves petrol tho .BTW mines an orange 05,31K. Few minor probs but sorted by me,only big expence was new rear tyres,oh and fuel.Love the looks and the drive Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John tarantula Posted October 17, 2011 Share Posted October 17, 2011 Overall i'm really enjoying Zed ownership but i can't help but miss the whiz bang of a turbo...hopefully the performance mods will ease that just a little. Had mine for a just over a month now I think and was worried I'd miss a turbo.... (last 6 cars where tuned up turbos) and haven't so far surprisingly! enough torque from all gears for me and enough speed that feels safe to lose my license if I want! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rabbitstew Posted October 18, 2011 Share Posted October 18, 2011 Overall i'm really enjoying Zed ownership but i can't help but miss the whiz bang of a turbo...hopefully the performance mods will ease that just a little. Had mine for a just over a month now I think and was worried I'd miss a turbo.... (last 6 cars where tuned up turbos) and haven't so far surprisingly! enough torque from all gears for me and enough speed that feels safe to lose my license if I want! That was one of the things I was worried about too. Im used to my turbos and love the kick in the pants they give you when you floor it. But I had no need to worry as the zed certainly does throw you back in the seats! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John tarantula Posted October 18, 2011 Share Posted October 18, 2011 Amen brother! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chuck21 Posted October 19, 2011 Share Posted October 19, 2011 well ive had mine about 6 months,had an annoying missfire at 1st which was sorted,bought it with 13k on it,just coming up to 17k,not had any issues,apart from putting fuel in it,decided to just use it as my toy now tho,and bought,yes wait for it,a skoda diesel to knock around in anyway done no mods,going to keep it standard apart from paint the rays,its temper orange so was thinking black,anyone seen one with black wheels?? let me know how it looked,please,also dont know what exhaust to go for,again any suggestions? other than that i love it just as it is It took me forever to decide on an exhaust but in the end budget dictated what options I had. Having heard a few, read reviews, talked to specialists etc I opted for a Scorpion cat-back system and couldn't be happier. It looks great with the cut-away profile, isn't 'boomy' on a longer run or at idle (just a little louder than standard) but really sings when you're pressing on up the rev range and IMO gives the Z the voice it should have had from the start. The exhaust was about £350 fitted IIRC and I also added a JWT pop charger which is only £100 and gives a really satisfying intake noise when pressing on. More generally I'm now 1yr in and so far so good; only mods are the exhaust and intake which were definately money well spent and only costs have been a service and new ARB drop-links. A few costs coming up though which I'm hoping to stall until the service is due in December; am expecting a new clutch slave cyliner, pads and tyres all round, and ARB bushes; may also get spacers fitted at the same time if funds permit. Only niggles are the squeeks and rattles which do drive me mad sometimes as there seems to be a new one every time I go for a spin! The car also seems a tad overly firm and could do with being a bit more supple - that may be in-part down to the shocking state of the roads round where I live which no-doubt haven't helped in the squeaks and rattles department! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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