womblingfree

Will do! Not had chance to look under myself, the exhaust was loose on one side but I presumed it was just the support that had gone. The body shop set the exhaust back in place but warned their fix wouldn't last. Sure enough once I was back home the knocking had started again as the left hand side had broken free.

I picked up my Z from the body shop today, and a lovely job they did as well. Unfortunately they had some bad news for me. A few months back I posted a picture of my exhaust which was a bit squiff. Turns out that a knock I had from a raised manhole cover in Hackney has bent the exhaust underneath and it needs replacing. Ouch!! Coming on top of a grands worth of bodywork and four new tyres this is the last thing I need! So, as usual, I come to you guys for wisdom. I can get it fitted cheaply enough, hell I'd even have a go myself, but what exactly do I need to get? The guy at the body shop said if it was to be replaced the whole lot, including the cats, should be done. So if some kind soul can give me a list of stuff to buy I'll give and :pmr35lee: a buzz to see what they've got. A standard exhaust would be fine for me, but as I'm in the market, anything that would enhance performance? Hackney council should be liable for this expenditure, and I'll be looking into claiming from them. But I don't hold out too much hope on that front as I have no idea of the roads name. Will spend a day cycling round looking for that bloody manhole cover!

An L1, L2, L3 are just P1, P2, P3's for slightly older Z's. Nothing to worry about.

Yes, it's the original BOSE. I'd like to keep it if it can be made reliable. Mailed Lee, so I'll see what he says.

3 things that are being a pain in my backside: I just had my Z MOT'd, not by a Nissan dealer but a 'friend of the family'. When I picked up the car I noticed that the airbag warning light was flashing. I Googled the problem and have now re-set it. I'd like to know what this guy could have done during the MOT that would have set it off in the first place, as I'm a bit concerned he may have caused some harm. Secondly, the speakers are playing up. Using the CD changer some CD's may only come out of one speaker, change to another and it's fine, go over a bump and it's not. Seems different for each CD. When using the radio the bass has a tendency to cut-out. All annoying, but anything I could fix myself? Finally, there's a really annoying rattle coming from the central console where the pods are. I took a look and it seems the panel is loose. It easily pulls forward to reveal the innards. Again, anything I can do?

Thanks for this link. I spoke to a guy there and he's told me that even if I get a used wing and bumper with the same paint codes, chances are they'll vary from my cars colour. Which is very depressing! Not sure whether to risk used parts now. How about getting unpainted ones and then blending them?? That sounds even more expensive! I just want someone to say, 'Hey, I'll sort the lot out for £500, pop the car over and it'll be ready in a week'.

Been onto ZMANALEX but he's got no parts availale in Gun Metal unfortunately Anyone got any other ideas? I went to two repair places and got quoted £1500 and £2200 respectively. Alex reckons it should cost around £300 to fix if I get pre-owned panels, but I really have no clue where to get this done for a few hundred quid rather than the thousands I've been quoted. If nothing comes up I'll have to take a hit on my insurance, but as the excess is £500 it seems a waste. Anyone?

Cheers, that's do'able at least. Everyone will be getting hand-made Christmas presents this year for that personal touch though.

While I've got the cheque book out.. I noticed my exhausts were unalligned the other day, possibly from the 'sccccruuuunch' that occured from a raised manhole cover in Hackney a couple of weeks ago (seriously, East London has more pot-holes than your average farmyard lane!) Here's a pic: Anyone else had this, or know how to fix it?

I just had a disastrous confrontation with a knee high brick wall in my works car park. Here's the damage. Looks to me like I'll need at least a couple of panels replacing. Could any of you kind souls point me in the direction of a good, honest and reasonably priced person to fix my once beautiful Z for me? EDIT: See also the dodgy exhaust alignment below.

I'm after one of those boot dividers that fits under the rear strut, preferably an official one. Anyone?

:: SOLD VIA PISTONHEADS :: Been grinning like a loon ever since driving it home. Thanks to everyone for all the great advice.

Might help if you update you user profile with your location. Done The car's in Surrey, near Farnham.

I moved on from that import Z a while ago. The one I'm getting now is an 04, UK model Actually I'd like someone that knows their onions to give it a once over before I part with my hard borrowed loan. Who's the best person/people to ask?

Hey, thanks a lot Actually he's just had new pads, the rear tyres have been replaced in the last 3 months with Vredestein Ultrac Sessanta's, which I've read good things about. There are Bridgestones on the front which I'd replace with Vredestein's when it came time. The exhaust certainly looked shiny enough. Hopefully I'll be joining you all on the roads asap

Hi everyone! I'm a nearly new 350Z owner based in London. I started a thread about my search a while back but never got around to introducing myself. So here I am.

Right, after months of searching I think I've found the one. It fits all my criteria perfectly, exceeds them in fact. The only slight worry is the service history. Its all been done at Nissan dealerships but it goes; P1 - 4891 Miles P2 - 8789 Miles P1 + A/F - 11620 Miles P1 - 17266 Miles PDI Oil & Filter - 20308 Miles Level 3 (P3?) Service + Plugs + Diff Oil - 25792 Miles The seller explained that an L3 is the service given to Z's over 5 years instead of a P3. Is this correct? Otherwise will I have to pay out for a P3 straight away? Another explanation for two P1's in a row was the low-mileage, it's an 04.

Thanks for the advice. There is another that's pretty much the same all round but without the issues I've mentioned but it's a grand more.

So realistically I'm looking at a bill for around seven or eight hundred pounds for two new tyres, P3 and greasing the axle? Might be able to get him down to £11k if that's the case. Do we think it's worth a punt for an 05, GT with low-mileage for that price? From what I've looked at so far I'd er on the side of yes, but be good to hear from those with experience.

My search has been continuing! I've just found a UK, 27k miles, 05, GT in my price range (actually a few hundred quid under). The good; low mileage, GT and 05. The iffy; a few minor scratches, a very little ding in the bodywork. It's had it's P1, P2, P1 (at around 8000 miles) but then there's nothing until 19k miles which isn't the P3 but a service by some non-Nissan bods. It's now at 27k miles so it'll need the P3 I presume. Also I could hear a slight clicking from the back and the front tyres have been replaced with no-brand jobbies. I think I could notice the gears being a bit less than smooth between fourth and fifth as well. More minor, the struts on the boot need replacing as they don't hold it open and the passenger side window doesn't go up and down without holding the button down continuously (is that normal??) I wonder is it worth a punt at that price??

For just shy of £12k it's: 23k miles, 05 reg convertible, electric heated leather seats, Bose + disc changer, sat-nav (albeit useless ) bodywork in great condition. I've only seen 1 UK car in this price range that comes anywhere close. The main thing that's pushing me towards this is that he's offering me a decent PX for my very scratched Ford Mondeo which I'd otherwise have to fix up for £700 and then sell before having the full £12k.

Thanks Is it a straightforward swap to change a Japanese sat-nav DVD for a UK one? I've also head I should check the underneath has been properly sealed for British weather, which seems odd as Japanese weather can be just as bad.

Oh, I'm feeling it I'm just wondering what kind of brakes and exhaust those are and whether the lack of the main services makes it a particularly risky proposition? Changing into 2nd seemed a bit 'crunchy' as well. It's a lovely looking car though and I'm tempted to take a punt. For £12k I'm looking for an 04/05 GT with under 30k miles. Only found two with such a spec in the past month and this is one of them. The fact he's willing to part-exchange makes it pretty appealing.

So I've looked at a few now. I have about £12,000 to spend £3k of which is my current car which has made me look at Trade px for a quicker purchase. Today I looked over a seemingly good condition 05 Japanese convertible Fairlady import. It was an odd spec, electric seats and sat-nav but no cruise-control and it didn't seem to have Brembo brakes either. Also it seemed to have an after-market exhaust. Here are the brakes and the exhaust. A couple of other things putting me off were that everything was in kmph and the the sat-nav buttons were all in Japanese. Also it has had none of the 350Z services P1, P2 or P3 in the UK, just a service at a Renault garage marked as 'M1' and another at a Nissan garage marked as 'Value Service'. Other than that I was offered a decent px price and it seems in tidy condition with a pretty low mileage. Waddaya reckon?

Does this mean if it's polished with a matt polish it should go away?