Raja93

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

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.

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

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

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

Sounds great and the Z32 engine bay looks absolutely fantastic when all cables are tucked - really emphasises the engine. Wish I could do a tuck one day. I know I'm the same, with all this free time I'm getting tonnes of bits and bobs done to the car and throughout the house. Send some pics of the dash when its all done - looking forward to it!

Looks fantastic mate well done! Very refreshed and timeless now. Have you started any of those other jobs you mentioned? the power steering I think you mentioned and some other bits?

Yeah I noticed that when I googled the car. https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a30586109/nissan-z-future-2021/ Just saw this link amongst others. I'd have to see multiple view pics of the car to comment really. I'm surprised also by the lack of at least hybrid motors but that's a good thing - very happy about that. It is early days though, so they may end up having to incorporate some form of electric power. Time will tell.

Yeah I mean if you're going to start Youtube just for the 300zx, you'll be doing it to document your own works, and to help out fellow owners and us owners club members really. As you say, it won't appeal to the masses to get enough views to make money sadly, but worth doing if you want to document the work and help others. I don't really like engine swaps for the 300zx too; the engines great as it is and can make big power just like all the other Jap turbo engines. The JZ engines are good for Toyotas and maybe 200sx's but I also just don't think its right to the do it to a Z32, especially as in the USA there's lots of specialists with knowledge to turn these VG's into high horsepower beasts. I remember when Jared was first introduced, I'm sure it was when Tavarish did the Supra, and I do remember him saying he specialises in 2JZ's, so that's probably why they went that route I guess, as you say; you don't want to be building an engine you have no experience of. I think the whole engine swap thing is again to do with views, to do something which catches peoples eye on the video name.

Thank god they’re planning on bringing it out with a TT V6. The 350z came out when I was about 9 and it was the biggest disappointment of my childhood [emoji23] because it didn’t have turbos!! Used to read all my older brothers jap performance and various other mags and I’m sure the 350z was rumoured to have turbos originally. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Don’t you just love it when it all comes together in the end [emoji16]. Well done! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

That’s a great help Richard and also your original post on wheel offsets was super helpful with the photos. Experience of other owners saves me and others hours and hours of endless researching online haha so thanks again! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Thanks for that link Andrew [emoji1417] as I was on the hunt for some easily attainable sealant locally, so I could fit my 99 spec centre reverse light unit. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Yeah definitely wait for the respray. Painting yourself is ok for bits you don’t see like the diff, which I’m doing at the moment [emoji23] but definitely not bodywork! You’ve pretty much got on the list all a z32 needs aesthetically - wheels to fill arches, paint refresh, 99 spec rear lights and slightly lowered suspension. Power steering sounds painful though - good luck and keep us updated! Ps I love Akita’s. My bro had one about ten years ago. Such a loyal and protective dog she was. Used to guard his kids when they were at the play park and scare off any unknown people haha. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Stillen front lips look so good; really oem+ so if you’re keeping original bumper then thats the way forward. RichardS posted pics of his car a little higher in this thread and look how great that looks. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

That’s a great job well done! If you showed me the photo of the 89 spec and 99 spec lights only as a before and after, I would have thought you forked out the cash and bought the 99 specs - they look identical. Hopefully will ease the pain when it’s all installed and looking fresh haha. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I watched this and watched every episode. I’ve been watching Tavarish for a good couple years now. He’s a great down to earth guy and love his content. Jared is such a great mechanic and engineer; he can fix anything!! This is going to be an interesting build. It seems as though because Jared is involved, they might get this build finished. With a lot of Tavarish’s builds, he makes great progress at the start, but then progress halts because his focus goes onto big high end stuff like his recent lambos and also to be fair, the rest of the 50 cars he owns haha. I’d prefer it if he started and completed a build like he did on the TT Gallardo, but I guess they got to feed the beast and create non stop headline grabbing new content with different cool cars. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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

Hi Jimmer, I'm the guy who bought Ollie Bells blue TT. He told me you recommended 10w-40 only actually so that's what I went with on my recent and first service, but what brand oil would you recommend? I've usually gone with Millers Oils Nanodrive but on modern diesel cars, as I found Castrol made the engine quite noisy funnily enough. I wasn't sure on the brand for the 300zx and after some googling, went with Castrol in the end.

Hi Stephen, Thanks for the info, much appreciated. Definitely something to consider when it comes to fitting my wheels, so will bear this in mind.

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.

Oh I see - learning something new everyday here. Very useful to know and cheers for the link! That’s very interesting about your wheels - My current buggered rear wheels are 18x10.5 ET40 but are fitted with 275 width tyres so have a stretched fit, which is why they clear my rear arches with no arch rolling needed. I went for the JR10 wheels and the rears I went for the exact same size as you. According to their wheel calculator I would need a 15mm spacer to match my existing fitment (mainly in relation to how they fill the arches), but after looking at your pics, the ET40 will fill the arches just fine, so I can get away with no spacers - result! I think in the future I’ll probably order custom offset front wheels so I don’t need spacers, but I just had to get back on the road ASAP, and therefore couldn’t stomach the 3-4 weeks + delivery they were claiming. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Thanks guys [emoji1417] will update with progress soon. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Sounds like a job well done. This is great motivation for me - I need to sort my speakers as well. They work but just have no punch to them and they’re not crisp at all. How are you finding these speakers so far? Love your pictures as below post, car is so dam clean in every aspect [emoji7]. Are those Japan Racing wheels? What’s the offset and dimensions of those? They were an option I had but I thought I’d make a change from the 5 spokes I currently have. Found it so difficult to get a decent offset and wheel width combo. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk