Hi All,

 

I mentioned in various previous posts that I would start a thread about my new and first 300zx. I’ve copy and pasted an introduction that I posted in the newbie section a while back (with some updates) so you can get an overview of the car;

 

Almost two months ago at the spur of the moment I went and bought a lovely Jap spec blue 300zx TT Manual LWB with 98k miles.

 

An over view of the cars spec is;

- 390bhp tuned by ProTuner

- stock turbos and internals

- 800cc injectors, selin twin maf conversion

- Kakimoto mid and rear section exhausts

- aftermarket turbo elbows, downpipes, front pipes etc.

- 98 spec fairly new manual gearbox

- K Sport big front brakes, stock rears

- Veilside Andrews racing split rim wheels in gunmetal grey

- two tone grey/black leather seats, hicas lock out, fairly new polybushed rear end and BC Racing shocks. List goes on but that's some key bits from memory.

- 98k miles

- Has been very well maintained with a lever arch of service history from the previous owners.

 

I've got plenty of plans consisting of refreshing the car including modernising where possible to create an OEM+ look (no cheap chav bits don't worry).

 

The Zed was booked into the bodyshop 23rd March but sadly due to the coronavirus lockdown, these works are now postponed. The works were to fit;

 

- 99 spec front bumper

- Respray to bonnet, both front arches to get rid of peeling lacquer, drivers door, rear bumper and getting rid of surface rust to around rear lights/boot

- Replace side indicators with genuine Nismo clear indicators as existing clears ones seals have fallen apart

- Fit new trims that were missing between boot and rear lights

 

I’ll have all this done as soon as the lockdown is over and the bodyshop is back open.

 

I’ve got on the to do list the following;

 

- Source a 2nd hand AC compressor and get it reconditioned and then installed as the previous item exploded under the last owners ownership

- Full leather retrim as existing leather is cracking up/poor quality.

- Get a double din music system trim kit so I can fit a nice double din screen unit with modern features such as bluetooth etc. and also change all speakers

- Paint the stock rear Z32 brakes in black to match the K Sport fronts

- Sills need re-doing as they have rusted in areas from where its been jacked up in the wrong location!! Paint has obviously been damaged and flaked off leaving the bare metal to rust so will get this sorted

- Fit Michellin PS4 tyres when the current tyres have worn out

- Probably go for more power in about a years time maybe but for now coming from a 2 tonne 270bhp 4x4, 390bhp is more than enough to make me giggle.

 

I’ll start a new post with what I’ve done so far with photos of course!

 

Pics of the car when I bought it;

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

Ok so far I have done the following;

- given it a thorough detail. It’s washed weekly but over the past few weeks have detailed more and more bits. Today I cleaned all the targa seals and applied autoglym bumper and trim gel with loads of layers.
- replaced the external door trims to both sides
- replaced the rusty wheel nuts with new shiny silver ones
- had an oil/filter change
- brake fluid flush with new motul rbf660 fluid
- new Castrol diff oil
- new 99 spec xenon headlights - absolutely love them!!! Transforms the front end and modernises so much

Unfortunately since last weekend I heard a rough humming noise, from the rear end upon slowing down and especially when coasting. When changing the diff oil, my garage did a sound test with this listening device and headphones and found the noise coming from the diff. When we removed the diff drain plug, we found a shit tonne of metal filings, so pretty safe to say the diff is buggered.

Thankfully Banzai Brokers are currently breaking a 92 TT SWB, and I managed to snap up a good condition diff off them. This should hopefully be with me by next Friday. I can then get it swapped out ASAP. Before I put it in, I’m going to strip off the surface rust, repaint in black, change the bushes. The garage will change the input and output seals when they fit it. Can’t wait as at the moment I can drive the car from a to b, but noise is getting worse. With the weather, I went out today with the t tops off and it’s so hard to not floor it!

Also managed to get some new wind deflectors for the t top area from Banzai, because as you can see, the existing ones have been taped together!

Here’s some pics of the bits discussed above;


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

The previous owners advised the rear wheels are buckled and the passenger left side is worse. He said there’s wheel wobble occasionally which I noticed on the 3.5 hour journey home from his place. Following this I never had wheel wobble so wasn’t worried. When I had the car on the lift earlier this week during the service, we span the wheels and noticed it was quite bad.

I originally went to Lepsons wheel shop in Kent but they said they cannot refurbish or replace the barrels on split rims, since they cannot guarantee the seal between the wheel barrel and the rim.

I’ve contacted my trusty usual wheel place in West Hampstead, NW London - just waiting on a response from them as ideally I want to keep my wheels since they’re perfect for my car. Let’s see what they say. I would also go for buying replacements but you just can’t get these wheels anymore.

Not sure what wheels to go for if I end up having to replace them but have been eyeing up a BBS LM style wheel with the same gunmetal grey paint and silver studs as mine have at the mo.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I can see this Z is going to be great Naz. ?

I can see this Z is going to be great Naz. [emoji106]

Thanks Gaz, hopefully turns out all good in the end. Will keep you guys updated.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Damn bad luck about the diff bud, wonder if the buckled wheels have caused vibrations and damage?

I know you like those wheels, I still prefer the others lol, hope you get them sorted though and back to smooth running soon enough.

Used to be a great cruising car, smooth as you like on a long run, not a hint of a wobble, you will love it even more once sorted.

1 hour ago, Dazsw said:

Damn bad luck about the diff bud, wonder if the buckled wheels have caused vibrations and damage?

I know you like those wheels, I still prefer the others lol, hope you get them sorted though and back to smooth running soon enough.

Used to be a great cruising car, smooth as you like on a long run, not a hint of a wobble, you will love it even more once sorted.

I can imagine on those solid looking wheels you had, it must have been super smooth. Wheels are so subjective to be honest. 

Yeah funny I've been thinking that today about the wheels causing the diff issue, as I know these R230 TT diffs are absolutely solid. I went and picked up the replacement diff today from Banzai Breakers and even he was surprised my diff had gone. It's a good thing I've got 3 months furlough leave off work as it gives me the time to sort out the car asap, otherwise its impossible with my long work hours.

Will repaint the diff and post some pics up here, and also send an update after I sort the wheels or buy a new set, but rest assured, it will all be sorted asap. Got to get out and enjoy these dry and empty roads!!!

On 04/04/2020 at 19:43, naz27 said:

I originally went to Lepsons wheel shop in Kent but they said they cannot refurbish or replace the barrels on split rims, since they cannot guarantee the seal between the wheel barrel and the rim.

I’ve contacted my trusty usual wheel place in West Hampstead, NW London - just waiting on a response from them as ideally I want to keep my wheels since they’re perfect for my car. Let’s see what they say. I would also go for buying replacements but you just can’t get these wheels anymore.

PM BigH, he had his Work Equips rebuilt (I can't remember by whom). The rears had new barrels:

https://www.300zx.co.uk/forums/topic/157302-project-wide-arch-uk-tt/?do=findComment&comment=1736396

 

Edited April 7, 20205 yr by AndrewG

12 minutes ago, AndrewG said:

PM BigH, he had his Work Equips rebuilt (I can't remember by whom). The rears had new barrels:

https://www.300zx.co.uk/forums/topic/157302-project-wide-arch-uk-tt/?do=findComment&comment=1736396

 

Oh that's a great help, thanks for that ? Will message him now. 

Hi All,

Just some updates.

As posted above, collected the used diff from Paul at Banzai Breakers. Sanded it down with a wire brush, applied 2 layers of anti rust primer, 3 coats of black gloss paint (being done today) and will finish off with lacquer tomorrow.

After speaking to various wheel specialists throughout the uk, I’m going to have to give up these Veilside wheels since no one can replace the barrels or straighten them. I’ll try and sell them on eBay.

So I began the quest to find new wheels and the pain of finding the right size and offsets etc. Decided to go for a low price option as I didn’t expect to have to buy new wheels, only expected to repair mine. I went for a set of Japan Racing JR10 from Driftworks with dimensions as follows;
- fronts: 18x8.5 ET40 with hubcentric spacers (existing ones already have spacers and handle fine)
- rears: 18x9.5 ET40 with hubcentric spacers

Photos will be below. I love the design as their classic so suit the car and not too in your face. Japan Racing essentially make copies of super expensive wheels. This model is a copy of the CCW Classics which would go for around £3k. They also make copies of Volks TE37’s etc so basically another Ultralite/Rota/XXR type wheel company. I’ll probably go for high end wheels which I can get the offsets custom made so I don’t need spacers, in about a year or two max. For now, I’m just dying to get the car back on the road. I don’t want to drive the car with the replacement diff and these dodgy buckled rear wheels still on there, as that will probably destroy this diff as well!

Bought some Redline 75w-90 GL5 fluid to go in. The diff should be going on next Tuesday/Wednesday. Hopefully should have the wheels by Friday so can get back on the road next weekend yay [emoji16].

Gave the engine bay a quick clean with autoglym engine and machine cleaner, then applied some autoglym vinyl and trim sealant to add some shine. I didn’t go to town on it by removing parts to clean in the gaps, but it’s an improvement to the dusty way it was before.

Bought some Autosol metal polish - will apply this stuff to my exhaust back boxs to make them look brand new, hopefully tomorrow.

Hopefully have some updates next week.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Super clean ?

Looking good Naz…..

Thanks guys [emoji1417] will update with progress soon.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

23 hours ago, naz27 said:

Hi All,

Just some updates.

As posted above, collected the used diff from Paul at Banzai Breakers. Sanded it down with a wire brush, applied 2 layers of anti rust primer, 3 coats of black gloss paint (being done today) and will finish off with lacquer tomorrow.

After speaking to various wheel specialists throughout the uk, I’m going to have to give up these Veilside wheels since no one can replace the barrels or straighten them. I’ll try and sell them on eBay.

So I began the quest to find new wheels and the pain of finding the right size and offsets etc. Decided to go for a low price option as I didn’t expect to have to buy new wheels, only expected to repair mine. I went for a set of Japan Racing JR10 from Driftworks with dimensions as follows;
- fronts: 18x8.5 ET40 with hubcentric spacers (existing ones already have spacers and handle fine)
- rears: 18x9.5 ET40 with hubcentric spacers

Photos will be below. I love the design as their classic so suit the car and not too in your face. Japan Racing essentially make copies of super expensive wheels. This model is a copy of the CCW Classics which would go for around £3k. They also make copies of Volks TE37’s etc so basically another Ultralite/Rota/XXR type wheel company. I’ll probably go for high end wheels which I can get the offsets custom made so I don’t need spacers, in about a year or two max. For now, I’m just dying to get the car back on the road. I don’t want to drive the car with the replacement diff and these dodgy buckled rear wheels still on there, as that will probably destroy this diff as well!

Bought some Redline 75w-90 GL5 fluid to go in. The diff should be going on next Tuesday/Wednesday. Hopefully should have the wheels by Friday so can get back on the road next weekend yay .

Gave the engine bay a quick clean with autoglym engine and machine cleaner, then applied some autoglym vinyl and trim sealant to add some shine. I didn’t go to town on it by removing parts to clean in the gaps, but it’s an improvement to the dusty way it was before.

Bought some Autosol metal polish - will apply this stuff to my exhaust back boxs to make them look brand new, hopefully tomorrow.

Hopefully have some updates next week.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Hi,

if you are having trouble with three piece wheels, speak with Elie at Voodoo Motorsport. He made a fantastic job of my Work Equips

http://voodoomotorsport.co.uk/

If you are having trouble with sourcing new barrels, give JDM Distro a call. They can make any size offset you need. They also sell old JDM wheels sourced directly from Japan. Have a look at their website.

Alternatively if you want a set of specific wheels, they will try and source them for you although you may have to wait until a set come up in your specific size/offset.

Edited April 11, 20205 yr by bigh

JDM Distro link below

https://www.jdmdistro.com/product-category/wheels/japan-racing-wheels/

3 hours ago, bigh said:

Hi,

if you are having trouble with three piece wheels, speak with Elie at Voodoo Motorsport. He made a fantastic job of my Work Equips

http://voodoomotorsport.co.uk/

If you are having trouble with sourcing new barrels, give JDM Distro a call. They can make any size offset you need. They also sell old JDM wheels sourced directly from Japan. Have a look at their website.

Alternatively if you want a set of specific wheels, they will try and source them for you although you may have to wait until a set come up in your specific size/offset.

Hi BigH,

That's a great help! It's much appreciated. AndrewG told me to contact you actually but when I went to try and message you, the forum didn't let me for some reason, so good thing you came to me instead. I've ordered the set of Japan Racing JR10's from Driftworks last Thursday late so doubt they've even seen the order yet, so I'll get in touch with Voodoo motorsport on Tuesday to see what they could do with my Veilside wheels, as it would be a shame to sell them on for cheap.  

I noticed you sold your car, shame as it was absolutely beautiful but bet the 240z will be amazing too. Look forward to seeing updates for that one. 

Thanks again. 

Today I removed the old targa wind deflectors which had sellotape and duct tape wrapped around them. Cleaned/waxed area under the deflectors as couldn’t reach this area when cleaning the targa channels a few weeks ago and fitted the replacement ones [emoji2]

I then went to town on polishing my kakimoto exhaust back boxs and all the welds. I’m going to do the rest of the complete exhaust system when the cars on the lift at the garage next week for the diff replacement. Looks a million times better. I cleaned with autoglym engine and machine cleaner then applied autosol metal polish. This took some graft but so worth it.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

So over the last 3-4 days, I applied the best leather care product on the market - Leatherique rejuvenator oil.

Here’s the video link from where I learned how to use this stuff - very good and clear video;

You apply it to leather and massage in by cloth or hand - I prefer by hand as our z32 seats are very curvy so easier to apply by hand. The car should be left in the sun to allow the leather pores to expand, so the oil can get right in. I left it on the seats for 2.5 days and removed the targa sun shades to get max amount of sun in. What happens is the oil lifts the dirt to the surface, and you can tell this as the leather gets incredibly sticky. I reapplied more oil after a day as some areas became dry looking - the leather should look like it’s drenched in oil - see some photos below.

When it comes time to removal, you apply the Leatherique cleaner which can be sprayed on and left for a few minutes. Agitate the dirt which is in the creases and stitches.

After this, you need to have a half bucket of warm water per seat (change water after you’ve done one seat) Submerge the towel in the bucket and leave towel slightly wet but not dripping. Scrub the leather and you will instantly see the leather lighten up and all dirt removed. Finish off by buffing the leather lightly with a separate dry and soft microfibre.

This stuff is used and recommended by the Rolls Royce and Bentley owners clubs... the usual leather care products just add a shiny layer to leather, but healthy and good condition leather should be a Matt finish as you find in brand new cars. I find standard products do not prevent wear and gives you false sense of security, as they create a shine, fooling many people. The short term benefits of this product is it will stop any existing leather damage from getting any worse. The long term benefit is the leather gets softer and softer. Application is only needed twice a year. I’ve used this on 3 other cars with some cars having the entry level fake leather (bmw) and others (Lexus’s) having high quality real perforated leather, with the same results across all cars - a brand new leather Matt finish [emoji2].

I always buy from Motorgeek UK as they sell genuine stuff, and also supply with soft microfibres, brushes and application pads - I.e the full kit you need. This product is made in the USA and due to the high price, there are fake versions about, hence why I buy from motorgeek as I know they sell genuine only.

Any queries if you’re interested in using this stuff, just let me know. By the way I’m not endorsed by this company haha, I just love using and raving about excellent products.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Today I had the rear diff swapped out for the replacement one I bought from Banzai Breakers. Turned out to be a very good diff thankfully. It was caused by my buckled passenger rear wheel. Pictures of the diff which I painted at home last week is below.

Whilst the exhausts were removed, I cleaned the exhausts from mid section and back boxs, and applied autosol metal polish. It took me about 4.5 hours on my knees on a concrete floor. Safe to say I’m lying in bed in pain but the exhausts look heavenly so it’s all good! [emoji16] I mainly did it as whenever I’ve seen S/S exhausts need replacement/welding repairs, it’s generally because the welds have had dirt caked on for so long, then rust starts forming which in turn causes blows. Thankfully my exhausts weren’t heavily dirty but had a layer of dirt throughout. I polished it to an inch of its life. Only found light surface rust on a few of the flanges which I sanded and painted.

Not bad for 10-12 year old exhausts.

I ordered some energy suspension bushes for the diff but when we cleaned up the old bushes which were originally black from the caked on dirt, it turned out they were actually the red energy suspension ones, which was a right result. We just swapped the bushes over from my existing diff to the replacement. Filled up with redline gl5 75w-90.

Sadly I can’t drive the car for another 3-4 weeks until my replacement wheels get delivered, which is heart breaking as the weather and empty roads are just teasing me to go out for drives daily!! Argghh very frustrating. If I drive with my existing buckled wheels, then obviously I’ll end up damaging the diff again, so that’s a no no! I ended up getting custom offset JR Racing JR10 wheels: fronts ET25 and rears ET35 after seeing pics of RichardS’s car and following his advice.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Should probably have added a before picture of the exhaust. Completely forgot to take any more!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

What make are those exhausts?

I have been looking at the JR6 as they do a ET0 on 10.5” however I’ve seen Cosmis do a 11” wide now on an ET8 for the XT-006R so that’s a better fit for me on wide arches.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

What make are those exhausts?

I have been looking at the JR6 as they do a ET0 on 10.5” however I’ve seen Cosmis do a 11” wide now on an ET8 for the XT-006R so that’s a better fit for me on wide arches.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Hi Gonzo,

It’s a Kakimoto racing exhaust. It’s been on the car for 10-12 years and still going strong. I’m sure I’ve seen them on CZP and Z1 websites. Sounds absolutely fantastic when flooring it. The welds on them and general quality is fantastic so highly recommended.

Ah yeah if you have wide arches, then you’ve got that freedom to go for crazy offsets. Let us know what wheels you go for in the end.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Looking good mate.

 

A shame that buckled wheel has ruined a diff, but at least it's sorted.......I had those diff bushes fitted a while back, will be in the huge file somewhere lol.

 

How does that leather cleaner work, those seats are painted leather with lacquer over them, which should basically be liquid proof other than at the stitching?

1 hour ago, Dazsw said:

Looking good mate.

 

A shame that buckled wheel has ruined a diff, but at least it's sorted.......I had those diff bushes fitted a while back, will be in the huge file somewhere lol.

 

How does that leather cleaner work, those seats are painted leather with lacquer over them, which should basically be liquid proof other than at the stitching?

Cheers mate. Oh I see - cheers for fitting decent bushes! They were in really good shape thankfully so all good to go back in. 

Yeah the re-trimmed leather on this car is a lot like the cheap painted leather on my old Bmw E90 3 series m-sport I sold a couple years ago. It managed to do a good job on that car so assumed same of this car. The lacquer appears to have worn off on the rear middle grey sections as it was all super dry looking, so I massaged it right in. I massaged it in on the lines of the stitches too for all the seats. I thought I'd have difficulty on the rear outer black sections as they're really hard leather and probably still got a strong layer of lacquer on it as you say, but they still came out super clean and softer than before. The driver seat has a lot of cracks to the seat and back pads so the oil easily got in there too luckily. 

99 spec rear middle light fitted a few days ago - really helps to complete the look, but now it’s got me thinking it really needs those modern Nissan and twin turbo white decals to replace the old looking ones I have on there now. Will probably do this once I get the paintwork done after lockdown is over and bodyshop reopens.

Had some very very minor surface rust behind the original centre lights which I scraped off to bare metal and painted couple coats of touch up paint. Not a great colour match at all but no ones going to see it so not an issue!

That new reg plate is also absolutely massive so I’ve ordered a smaller version which I’ll fit in the next week or so.

The existing wing indicator lenses were clear but were not genuine Nismo ones so the rubber water proofing surrounds were naff quality and falling apart. Lasted quite well for cheap copies as original uk owner bought them maybe around 2008! I replaced both sides with original Nismo lenses from CZP.

Next on the to do list whilst I wait for my wheels to turn up is to fit the trims that go in between the tail lights and the boot, which were missing when I bought the car.

When the car was on the lift at the garage, I noticed the sills weren’t anywhere near as bad as I thought. A lot of the top layer of paint had cracked off the sills from being jacked but there was paint below and not rust. There’s rust at the very ends closest to the rear wheels with one side probably needing a small amount of grinding out and filler. Going to get some bilt hamber por 15 and paint in the next few weeks.

1 week down. Another 2-3 weeks left until wheels turn up! It’s killing me but oh well, at least am getting all these little jobs done.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

In a surprising turn of events I got an email from driftworks saying my wheels have been made and are about to be shipped hurrah!! They should be with me by next Monday close of play - will get it booked into tyre shop Tuesday and take plenty of pics to share with you all.

Wheels have only taken 1 week to make but they said it would be 2-3 weeks. It must be because of the lack of demand due to current global situation. I’ve been jumping up and down for the past hour now [emoji38][emoji16][emoji3]


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk