http://www.bristol-cruise.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=12565

Te zed is one - if not THE MOST unreliable jap sports car ever sold. I know hundreds of ppl with tuned jap metal - and nothing, i mean NOTHING breaks down like a Zed.

 

Zeds look and sound the shizzle, but engine wise - nissan got it all wrong. Hence the RB26 - straight six, two turbos - strong as an ox. V6, two turbos - tow truck

 

I love zeds, but i wouldnt in a million years say they were reliable - unless you are one of those people who never see over 30 miles a month, never see rain, never go over 70 (unless its for like 5 seconds, never go on track, and generall never have sex - then it will be as reliable as fook

 

hehe

The Reliable quote was in reference to the Micra, Primera...etc statiscally some of the most reliable cars in the world.

 

However now you mention it, the Zed is a strong reliable car when well maintained. The Engine is also very strong. Every car has its achelies heel, with the zed its the PTU and electrical contacts that cause problems from heat, vibration..etc. any other problems are due to neglect!

 

I've had less problems (and less cost) than all my previous cars, including new cars and german, and mine is a TT and its driven daily (and not like miss daisy).

I spent over 15k on my old zed - all in the right areas, and it broke down at the best of times.

 

Oil pumps x 2

3 x engines

headgaskits

injector seals

ptu

radiator blown

coilpacks

heater matrix

manual gearbox

 

Correct me if im wrong - but all common problems

 

And dont start me on afms - and how they love aftermarket filters and rain lol

 

Sorry - just touchy on this situation.

 

For 15k worth of work and 6k for the car - i should have had a car that was the best looking, handling and tasty Z in the country

 

What did i get ??

 

3 grand trade in against an R32 GTR

 

And now the heads have gone again

i want a NA zed with throttle bodies and nitrous, with no electrical shite whatsoever, and no turbos.

 

Good for 600bhp and around 10.8 quarters - hehehe

 

I had a dream..........

ps - when i do the cannonball run in 2008, it will not be in a bloody Z. Because it will probably break down on the boat over to the states.

 

Having said that - they are still my all time fave car, no comparrison

I spent over 15k on my old zed - all in the right areas, and it broke down at the best of times.

 

Oil pumps x 2

3 x engines

headgaskits

injector seals

ptu

radiator blown

coilpacks

heater matrix

manual gearbox

 

Correct me if im wrong - but all common problems

 

And dont start me on afms - and how they love aftermarket filters and rain lol

 

Sorry - just touchy on this situation.

 

For 15k worth of work and 6k for the car - i should have had a car that was the best looking, handling and tasty Z in the country

 

What did i get ??

 

3 grand trade in against an R32 GTR

 

And now the heads have gone again

 

Definatly not all common problems.

 

Oil pump - Very uncommon failure!

headgaskets - They will go becuase of overheating, due to other problem (rad?, split 15yr old waterpipes..etc)

PTU - Yes, common for s1. s2 super reliable though.

injector seals - no, not common.

Rad - Will go at old age just like any car. Most are original at 15yrs though

coilpacks - yep, once car gets to certain age they'll need replacing

heater matrix - I've had 2 previous cars with matrix failure. Both much newer than zed

Manual gearbox - Very strong. Syncro can start to go in 4th for pre 94 boxes, but thats still rare.

 

Maf problem, is because of the removal of splash gaurd.

 

Engines are essentially very strong. They will fail just like any car due to oil starvation or water starvation (or persisitant detonation with badly modified examples).

 

The VG has small sump. Regular oil changes and ensuring the level is correct is important. Split waterpipes becuase they are 15yrs old and should of been replaced by now are the reasons for overheating issues or not getting waterpump replaced as part of cambelt service at 60k!

ps - when i do the cannonball run in 2008, it will not be in a bloody Z. Because it will probably break down on the boat over to the states.

 

Having said that - they are still my all time fave car, no comparrison

 

I did a 1400mile trip thru Europe in my zed last year with several over zed's, and off on another road trip this year, through France, belguim and Germany to the Nurburgring. :cool:

jesus i was scared taking mine to bristol and back lol

 

I see what your trying to say legrath - but why did my GTR, my subaru wrx, and my mr2 turbo - all of the same age etc - never get any of these problems ??

 

I silicone hosed every single pipe in the zed, race spec rad (better cooling by far) - i seriously did every thing i could to ensure it would not let go - and it did. 3 times in the end. Id say - not a car to be owned by anyone but an enthusiast

 

Ive had two Zeds - both unreliable. And from the people i know with zeds - they all seems to say, as soon as you start tuning them, they will let go. Thats a general opinion - id say more are unreliable, than not.

ps - only stating my opinion, not having a go by the way mate

jesus i was scared taking mine to bristol and back lol

 

I see what your trying to say legrath - but why did my GTR, my subaru wrx, and my mr2 turbo - all of the same age etc - never get any of these problems ??

 

I silicone hosed every single pipe in the zed, race spec rad (better cooling by far) - i seriously did every thing i could to ensure it would not let go - and it did. 3 times in the end. Id say - not a car to be owned by anyone but an enthusiast

 

Ive had two Zeds - both unreliable. And from the people i know with zeds - they all seems to say, as soon as you start tuning them, they will let go. Thats a general opinion - id say more are unreliable, than not.

I've got two zed's myself. :)

 

The Impreza also has its weak points, I could spend all day listing problem with them and my Celica GT4 (same engine as the Mr2 Turbo) cost me more in maintance than my zed did in a years ownership.

 

Zed reliablity certainly has nothing to do with weakness or poor build.

 

However it does get hotter under that cramped engine bay than most cars. Which means correct preventative maintenance is important at old age. Electrical connectors and water pipes will suffer from corrosion and breakage from heat after 15 years....replacing them before they do will make the world of difference.

 

Sometimes its just luck of the draw. Its not possible to see how past owners have cared for them :(

 

Hope your unfortunate past experiences has'nt put you off future ownership again.

tbh - next time ill be putting an rb26 TT, or JZ TT in a zed shell.

 

It would never put me off owning a z mate - they are amazing cars

Te zed is one - if not THE MOST unreliable jap sports car ever sold. I know hundreds of ppl with tuned jap metal - and nothing, i mean NOTHING breaks down like a Zed.

 

Zeds look and sound the shizzle, but engine wise - nissan got it all wrong. Hence the RB26 - straight six, two turbos - strong as an ox. V6, two turbos - tow truck

 

I love zeds, but i wouldnt in a million years say they were reliable - unless you are one of those people who never see over 30 miles a month, never see rain, never go over 70 (unless its for like 5 seconds), never go on track, and generaly never have sex - then it will be as reliable as fook

 

hehe

 

Now flame me - but you all know im right

 

Who cares if its an VXHL or a saab - if it has turbos its tunable, and if its tunable - then it can be made FAST.

 

Thats what matters to some

 

The rx7 and mitsu GTO are much more unreliable than the zed.

rx7 is not unreliable

 

It just needs 3ks worth of work at 60ooo miles or there abouts. Then its good for another 60 lol

I spent over 15k on my old zed - all in the right areas, and it broke down at the best of times. blah blah

blah blah

blah

 

no just because you bought a shitter dosent mean everybody else did.

6 years of hard driving in mine running 15psi and nothing but a clutch and brake pads to change and loads of others on here will agree.

Second that!

 

Owned the car for 8 years now with many enthusiastic miles clocked up.

 

Spent a fair wack on maintainance but not once has it let me down!

 

Seems like you were unlucky fella.

 

Andy

Yep - 10 years for me (4 of 'em at 1bar :D ) Only problems have been two fried clutches, a series 1 PTU and a split water hose :bow:

 

Steve :)

ill fourth that :wack: admitedly its not my everyday car but my zeds only everbroke down once cos of a fualty MAF in 4 years, which i dont thinks bad for a 15 goin on 16 year old car. i know theres a few unreliable zeds on here but i bet theres more reliable ones, you probably just got unlucky and bought a sh1tter that could happen with a brand new car!

and surely any car that needs a couple of grand engine rebuild at 50/60k miles cant be reliable plus the rotor tip can go at anytime without warning how can that be reliable?

lol lads, agreed on the "vauxhall front", other than the GTE the only other vauxhall I really like is the Lotus Carlton and tbh thats only due to the "Lotus" side of things.

 

To clear it up so I am not taking undue credit, I did not carry out the engine transplant. I reshelled a GTE 16v ready for the conversion, but this one came up for a silly amount cheaper than what it would cost me so I bought it.

 

I'll stop spamming your thread now ... maybe see you all in a few years when I go Jap :)

 

Simon

 

Some wise words there mate!

 

You've a unique car Si :bow: Look forward to seeing you here if you Go-Jap somewhere in the future.

 

Richard :)

ill third third that :wack: ............. i know theres a few unreliable zeds on here but i bet theres more reliable ones, you probably just got unlucky and bought a sh1tter that could happen with a brand new car!

and surely any car that needs a couple of grand engine rebuild at 50/60k miles cant be reliable plus the rotor tip can go at anytime without warning how can that be reliable?

 

Agree too :bow:

 

Had mine 3 years and apart from the dreaded series 1 PTU it has NEVER been any trouble. OK, I did experience a little detting in the hot summer a couple years ago but that was cured with Optimax.....

 

I used it as a daily driver, clocking up 50 miles per day for a good while; and on various holidays it has covered up to 1400 miles in a week. The only real costs are its appetite for fuel and tyres :wack:

 

I have relegated it to a second car now, not because of reliability issues, but a nice low mileage UK spec car is very rare so I intend to keep it that way.

 

Richard :cool:

On the whole my zed has been very reliable. No engine problems, just dirty elecrical connectors. I have to change my rear brake pipes due to corrosion, but that happens on all cars eventually!

Yep, all in all mine has been very reliable...

ok it must be just me then lol and all my mates who have them