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;

 

 

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Watch out for the import tax, you may or may not get stung.

Cheers mate for the heads up - I remember reading about this before. I had a small order with them back in March and got away with it, so let’s pray to the car gods this happens again haha.


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I can let you know, I’m about 5 days ahead of you.

Yes please! That’d be great to know. Cheers.


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2 hours ago, naz27 said:

I know mate haha ; If you looked in the car bible, this example would pretty much be the definition of a ‘whilst you’re in there job’. I can only assume the clutch was in ok condition then at the time and if funds were tight, then it’s an option.

Yeah Ollie was like the rest of the owners and kept every single receipt, even small ones like touch up paint. Although he didn’t type out the service history in date order like the rest of the previous owners and like I’m doing, he did write down everything that was done on each receipt. Jimmer also wrote very clearly all the work he did on each invoice, and no mention of a new clutch.

Did you used to have a clutch rattle noise at low rpm around 1300-1500rpm? If so, then that’s the same clutch. I’ve sent him a text anyway so let’s see what he says.

Ah yes thanks for explaining that issue better. It’s funny cos I noticed it had the issue when I first got the car but I don’t notice it anymore. Will have to pay more attention when I’m next driving.

How’s C63 ownership treating you? Have you swapped out the head studs? Heard they’re a common issue on those. How’s the overall experience of the car then compared to the Zed? Must be a rocket ship with that 6.3.


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The C63 is nice.

 

When I sold the Zed I bought an R33 GTR, which needed a ton of work, but after a year and after it was perfect I sort of lost interest, it was great but I had put in so much work, I was getting sick of looking at it, even though it was fixed.

Sold that and bought a newish Jaguar XKR, but it whilst being good was not the same to drive, and had no room for anything.

The C63 is quicker than all the above, whilst driving nice and having enough room for the family when needed.

Only thing I've done is dusted off the detailing equipment, polished and ceramic coated everything, then under-sealed after cleaning out the rust spot rear arches.

I plan to leave it standard, almost everyone rips the cats out and remaps them to over 500bhp, which is still fairly unstressed being a 6.3, it's quick enough though for public roads.

This is a late 62 plate, so head studs not an issue...just the fuel bill lol but to be fair it averages 20mpg and just now thats all short journies, so fine for me.

The C63 is nice.
 
When I sold the Zed I bought an R33 GTR, which needed a ton of work, but after a year and after it was perfect I sort of lost interest, it was great but I had put in so much work, I was getting sick of looking at it, even though it was fixed.
Sold that and bought a newish Jaguar XKR, but it whilst being good was not the same to drive, and had no room for anything.
The C63 is quicker than all the above, whilst driving nice and having enough room for the family when needed.
Only thing I've done is dusted off the detailing equipment, polished and ceramic coated everything, then under-sealed after cleaning out the rust spot rear arches.
I plan to leave it standard, almost everyone rips the cats out and remaps them to over 500bhp, which is still fairly unstressed being a 6.3, it's quick enough though for public roads.
This is a late 62 plate, so head studs not an issue...just the fuel bill lol but to be fair it averages 20mpg and just now thats all short journies, so fine for me.

Wow that’s a lot of cars in those last couple years. Shame about the Gtr, they’re worth tonnes of money now compared to back in the day. C63 is one of my favourite German cars, that engine note is just [emoji7]. Sounds like a fantastic all rounder. Before I bought this car I was considering a Lexus ISF or an E90 (4 door) M3, so I get that all rounder appeal completely, the Lexus being the better due to rock solid reliability, but I went with my heart for once and so far loving it. I need to ceramic coat this one after the respray - good thing you reminded me, I need to buy some.


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I'm surprised they never changed the clutch when the gearbox was replaced, that's bonkers as it was around 8 or 9 years old at the time, it's certainly lasted well considering it's been ran at higher bhp it's whole life.
The uprated fork was fitted to try and get rid of the famous clunk the manual Zeds making usually at low speeds in 1st and 2nd gear, especially n bumpy ground, the clutch forks on these are quite soft so wear out creating movement and the clunk.  I'm sure Ollie said the clunk was still there though after the gearbox/fork was fitted.
Are you sure they didn't replace the clutch with the box?  I still can't get my head round that [emoji846]

He just replied to me saying the clutch was in fine condition back then (2018) so they left it in. This is good news as if it was a new clutch in 2018 and already gone, then there would probs be another underlying problem. Parts arriving next Friday 29th and car booked in at a jap car specialist the following Monday 1st, so all good.


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1 hour ago, naz27 said:

Parts arriving next Friday 29th and car booked in at a jap car specialist the following Monday 1st, so all good.
 

Mine said Fedex on the 27th, got it two days ago, so doubt you'll have to wait that long, as soon as it hits Stansted you'll have it next day.

No idea on duty, import VAT as yet, not heard anything, didn't come to me, it went straight to where the car is.

Mine said Fedex on the 27th, got it two days ago, so doubt you'll have to wait that long, as soon as it hits Stansted you'll have it next day.
No idea on duty, import VAT as yet, not heard anything, didn't come to me, it went straight to where the car is.

That’s great news and cheers for the update. Mine is FedEx too so hopefully will be similarly quick.


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17 hours ago, naz27 said:

Wow that’s a lot of cars in those last couple years. Shame about the Gtr, they’re worth tonnes of money now compared to back in the day. C63 is one of my favourite German cars, that engine note is just . Sounds like a fantastic all rounder. Before I bought this car I was considering a Lexus ISF or an E90 (4 door) M3, so I get that all rounder appeal completely, the Lexus being the better due to rock solid reliability, but I went with my heart for once and so far loving it. I need to ceramic coat this one after the respray - good thing you reminded me, I need to buy some.


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I had looked at the ISF as well, much rarer to find though than the C63, and after driving both, preferred the Merc anyway ?

 

Mine said Fedex on the 27th, got it two days ago, so doubt you'll have to wait that long, as soon as it hits Stansted you'll have it next day.
No idea on duty, import VAT as yet, not heard anything, didn't come to me, it went straight to where the car is.

My order is turning up today now so 3 days early! Input duty got me though yesterday, to the tune of £43.32. Its not too bad and I got away with it on the last order so all good.


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2 hours ago, naz27 said:

Input duty got me though yesterday, to the tune of £43.32. Its not too bad and I got away with it on the last order so all good.

I've not heard anything as yet on the import duties, looks like I've got away with it, strange as it weighed 17kgs !!

4 hours ago, phutumsch said:

I've not heard anything as yet on the import duties, looks like I've got away with it, strange as it weighed 17kgs !!

It's not the weight, it's the value the sender reports.

I used to ask them to report a low value, to try and get round it ?

Yes I know that, I was trying to get across that it was quite a large weighty item, which you wouldn’t think would slip the net.

Thanks for the info both and yeah I guess it’s just pot luck. Will deffo try asking the supplier to underreport the value though! Hopefully they’ll be ok with that.

Couple of pics of the clutch and flywheel below. Can’t wait to get it in and start driving again in this lovely weather!


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Just an FYI for you:

http://specialtyz.com/blog/?page_id=178

Just an FYI for you:
http://specialtyz.com/blog/?page_id=178

Andrew, thanks a lot for this - much appreciated. Definitely will save me some pain by sending this to garage to read through before they do the work!


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The Speciality Z flywheel looks like a very nice piece of kit!!

2 hours ago, E8VEN said:

The Speciality Z flywheel looks like a very nice piece of kit!!

Thanks Lee ? I've heard nothing but good things about the kit so looking forward to having a set up that can handle the power and my driving! My old clutch used to have an embarrassing rattle around 1300-1500 or so rpm when pulling away unless you over revved it, so that's the bit I'm most looking forward to getting rid of!

Those nearest and dearest to me are telling me to put the major works for the car on hold, due to the current state of the economy. My employer has put me as a key worker thankfully so the last couple years slaving away have been worth something! I'll be going back full time from the end of furlough and our clients are picking up work now so seems positive. The total of the works were amounting to around £7k so it is a valid point to maybe hold off until the end of the year. Works as a summary were to do;

- full respray including new 99 spec front bumper which I bought already. Cut out rust from outer sills and weld in new metal

- new front/rear windscreen seals/mouldings and roof mouldings. New targa and a pillar weather rubbers 

- strip chassis and new underseal 

- full 120k mile service and sort minor engine oil leak - doesn't drip onto driveway and can't notice any reduction in oil on dipstick so not bad

If I put off the works, I'll buy that Rustbuster kit so I can get the sills rust converted to solid metal and encapsulated in the epoxy magic stuff that this kit contains. I'll finish off with some paint. At least that'll encapsulate the rusted area to stop it getting worse, and keep it going until next year when I'll carry out the work.

Hmmmm decisions decisions. ? I'll have a good think over the next week and update the thread once I've made up my mind. 

I've been faced with the same problem in the past with another car.

The way I decided was that no matter what, the work was needing done, and getting it fixed and fixed permanently sooner rather than later was the sounder investment idea.

Especially with an older car, rust can be eating away in places that may not be noticeable, so patching up the sills will help, but only that one area, other areas may worsen, costing you more.

Or how about getting chassis undersealed and sills repaired, they could easily paint just the sills when fixed, then doing the rest at a later date once the rust is safe?

 

But life, houses, etc come before cars, so that may decide for you, just may end up costing some more when the time does arrive to repair.

I've been faced with the same problem in the past with another car.
The way I decided was that no matter what, the work was needing done, and getting it fixed and fixed permanently sooner rather than later was the sounder investment idea.
Especially with an older car, rust can be eating away in places that may not be noticeable, so patching up the sills will help, but only that one area, other areas may worsen, costing you more.
Or how about getting chassis undersealed and sills repaired, they could easily paint just the sills when fixed, then doing the rest at a later date once the rust is safe?
 
But life, houses, etc come before cars, so that may decide for you, just may end up costing some more when the time does arrive to repair.

Yeah I get what you mean completely, that’s why I originally wanted to do all the works in one go. I think I’ll wait to hear something firm about work loads from the client that we work with most, hopefully over the next week or so. I’ll then be able to make a call on what to do or not.


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New Rps/specialty Z clutch and flywheel fitted yesterday! Clutch was so grabby on the first journey as it was new but now I’ve done about 90 miles, it has gotten smooth. I’m gonna let it run in by continuing to do long motorway journeys over the next couple days, with a target of around 200 miles on the clutch before my heavy right foot gets unchained again [emoji23].

The lightened flywheel has made a huge difference in throttle response - the Rev counter just flies when you touch the pedal now, it’s fantastic.

The owner of the garage (Jap Performance Parts, Crawley) commented on how clean the car was as well [emoji2], and how rare it is to see a zed in good nick.


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Photos of the old exedy clutch removed from the car, that’s 11 years old! Was worried about the 25 minute journey to the garage but thankfully it didn’t slip badly and made it there in one peace. Clutch did absolutely stink though!


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Nice!

Garages always referred to it as the minty clean Zed anywhere I took it ?

 

That is one cooked clutch, although I've seen worse ?

Nice!
Garages always referred to it as the minty clean Zed anywhere I took it [emoji846]
 
That is one cooked clutch, although I've seen worse [emoji846]

Yeah am glad it went now to be honest, rather than when I’m on a long journey or something - it was playing on my mind how long it would last.

Haha minty clean it is! Got another compliment last night at the shell garage from the till guy. It gets so much positive attention it’s quite entertaining.

Went on a long motorway run today for the running in of the clutch and the lightened flywheel makes the car absolutely fly from 80-100 (kph of course!).


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Full 120k service kit, 3x drive belts, full set of timing cover bolts and some other bolts to replace rusty ones in engine bay will be ordered in the next few days.

Although it’s only been around 25k miles (from memory) since the last 60k service, it was carried out 7 years ago in 2013. I’ve seen it should be 60k miles or 48 months. I don’t want to risk it since it’s 3 years overdue and I drive it a lot, so I’m getting it all done for the peace of mind.

The timing cover bolts are rusty as per pics which along with some other 2-3 slightly rusty screws really let down an otherwise almost immaculate engine bay, hence why I just got to scratch that ocd itch and replace them.

Therealnips recommended his go to guy to me for maintenance such as the above works, but I’ve also got the jap performance specialist who I used for the clutch/flywheel job who’s an equal distance in the opposite direction!

Just need to work out who to go for. The recommended guy trained with 300zx’s in the 90’s so I’m very tempted to go that way. The guys in Crawley I used are specialists with evo’s, scoobies and skylines with crazy company project cars like their 2 door 22b style scooby drift car with an rb25 and their altezza engined 70’s Celica. So they are also capable guys, but I’d rather someone who knew the vg30 really well I suppose.

When they did the clutch they noticed the starter motor bolts were split which would explain the slight sticking noise. It’s getting worse now but still starts fine. I’ve found a company selling them online link: https://www.startermotor-alternator-store.co.uk/nissan-300zx-starter-motor-s1349-reman-7546-p.asp

They appear to have a decent reputation so probably going to go for them. Does anyone else know anywhere better for starter motors? I’ve seen good firms who can rebuild used units but I’d rather go for a ready refurbished unit.


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