Blue Straggler

Cougarworks doesn't seem to give local recommendations, I've asked about this regarding a couple of different matters. At this rate I'll probably be passing by Horsham before I get sorted!

Hi all. Seems that Cougarworks is the "no-brainer" go-to place for fettling a Z. Unfortunately they are heavily booked at the moment. I need someone to look at why my power steering fluid is leaking - I've had a quick look myself and it doesn't seem - as I'd hoped - that it's just a perished hose or jubilee clip that needs tightening. More likely the actual cooler (this was suggested by Cougarworks by email). I'd like to confirm this before ordering the part and the work. I live in Loughborough, and used to quite happily use Hoyle and Robbins on a range of previous cars. Any reason not to do so for this one? I guess it's a simple diagnosis for a competent mechanic...? Or (not being sarcastic here) is there something particularly special and magical about how to look at the steering rack and cooler on a 350Z? Any specific recommendations for a garage will be welcome. Willing to travel within reason! Thanks Kenny

Got a wheel arch rust bubble on the other side too. Hurrah! (well I always knew about it but perhaps in the euphoria of buying this thing, I turned a blind eye thinking "ah, it's 12 years old, it's never going to be PRISTINE at that age....)

Ha, I might as well have bought the silver one I saw for 2k less and had it resprayed, at this rate

D'oh, that's only for flashing CEL isn't it (and 43mph, but I guess the car forces that limit in limp mode) I gather that non-flashing CEL isn't so drastic and tends to mean a sensor failure somewhere - still needs investigation but the car won't explode in normal driving, right? RIIIIGHT???! Ordered ODB thing off eBay anyway, as my curiosity is worth the £15 and I can't really get it to a garage in short time.

Aye good point - it was more related to my PAS fluid leak and CEL coming on yesterday, plus the massive faff I had with tyres. Again none of which are 350Z-specific! I am just being a bit grumpy because it seems like just one thing after another. This 350Z replaces a 1.6 diesel Kia Cee'd which was the only trouble-free car that I ever had, I only kept it 15 months and you can probably understand that there's a small part of me that kind of wishes I'd held onto it (heresy on here I know!) Yes the rust bubble was there when I bought it. Were your estimates factoring that in, and is that what you meant by tinworm (as opposed to the new bits where paint flaked off?) Thanks and sorry if I sound defensive, I'm still kind of getting over spending far more on a car than I ever had done previously

Thanks all. I thought a 350Z was meant to be generally a bit of a "no brainer" purchase. Seems I have bought into a minefield of issues. Anybody want to recommend a decent body shop in Leicestershire (I am in Loughborough, willing to travel for the right supplier though) ?

That's the wheel arch above where I had an "exciting" blow-out at motorway speed! Although I can't see how the wheelarch got affected, but hey there was a lot going on that afternoon...

Thanks all. Veilside - what is it about the posted pictures that makes you think this is not the original paint job, and are you talking about getting a full respray or just a professional touch-up on the bare bits (as opposed to me applying Chipex, which with my lack of craft skills would end up looking like a monkey has thrown Hammerite at it :-D )

OK, topped up the steering fluid and that particular problem (horrible screech / whine when there is strain on the steering e.g. full lock) has unsurprisingly disappeared. MI / CEL light still on though, so I guess it is unrelated, but it is a funny coincidence that it came on at the same time that my steering fluid got "critically" low. Oil is good and car is driving OK. All a bit mysterious. I didn't retry the pedal dance today yet though.

Nice. I remember when they were John Peel no-hopers, and then suddenly around 2001 they exploded for no big reason :-)

As you all like piccies :-D and here you may be able to see the drips starting on the straight bit running left-right from lip toward wheel

Photos. Hopefully "Public" on flickr https://www.flickr.c...eposted-public/ https://www.flickr.c...eposted-public/

Thanks Alex. Sadly Europarts not open tomorrow so Halfords will have to do, hopefully they'll have the right stuff in. I'll buy a big carton (have a feeling you have to, for the good stuff at Halfords) to allow for bleeding the system (a job I'll leave to someone else before I ruin the whole thing with my anti-Midas touch!)

3 ) is it fairly simple to get a leaking power steering system patched up?

Hi, hope this is the right forum (there isn't one for steering). Long story short, I just noticed my MI light earlier today. Left everything a few hours. Started car. Was idling at 1000rpm and when I set off (to take it somewhere secluded to try pedal dance) there was a disturbing high pitch whine. Decided to park up again. Sat a few minutes with engine off, and then fired up again. Idle rpm a more healthy ~600rpm now and no whine......UNTIL I tried to move - so I figured it was the power steering as it was at its worse when under most strain e.g. full lock or just trying to steer whilst stationary. Drove ok (careful on revs, never more than 2.2k and never more than 48mph) to secluded spot. Pedal dance failed, quite possibly human error on the timings. Came back. Noticed wet spot on the tarmac right at the front of my usual parking spot. Opened bonnet and noticed power steering fluid reservoir is in that spot, and also saw some telltale drips dripping off the underside on that side. Reservoir below minimum. SO.... I have a power steering fluid leak. I must say I had noticed these strange damp spots at front of car a couple of times and assumed that it can't be me, that it must be someone else leaking oil. But to be honest the position was wrong for anyone to be leaking oil. This suggests that the leak is at least pretty slow. Of course I'll get it looked at but not convenient to do immediately (I already contacted Cougar Store in Leicester who are overloaded and won't even be able to fit me in for a diagnostic plug-in until mid-April) Questions to the forum 1) as a temporary measure will I be OK to just top up that reservoir as required, and put up with the slow leak? 2) is this likely to be the cause of my MI / CEL light? (and its failure to disappear after pedal dance?) I'll go get some appropriate fluid tomorrow (I just missed closing times tonight!) Thanks all

Hello all I've seen a few references on here to the "notoriously thin" paint job that Nissan applied as factory standard, although a forum search now doesn't bring up any specific threads on the subject. The thing is, I've had my 350Z for approximately 10 weeks (it is an 04), and it was not even being driven for 4 of those 10. Yet I have spotted two new spots where the paint has entirely flaked off, exposing bare metal! Fairly sure these weren't there when I purchased (admittedly there were always minor scuffs and rust-bubbling as expected on a 12-years-old car) There's been no memorable incidents of stone chip etc that might have caused this. One is a little bit at the top of a wheel arch (POSSIBLY related to my motorway blowout of a few weeks ago) and one is around the fuel cap (POSSIBLY me over-zealously forcing the nozzle in when the hose was at full extension due to my poor positioning at the pump) Do you folk regularly take your ZED to the body shop for minor touch-ups?! Just a tad worried about corrosion where bare metal is showing... Thanks

I named my 350Z "J-Lo" as it is a bit senior yet still sexy, and is famous for its rear end (also Japanese and low...)

Update. Tyre fitter Neil has NOT nicked my tyres. The delivery van dropped them off at a different nearby tyre place. FFS.

Just venting...... Yippee, it must be my lucky weekend. Online confirmation on Thursday, of delivery of two tyres from Oponeo to "Fix My Alloys", refurb place in Loughborough. I had previously arranged with the chap at Fix My Alloys that I would come in on Saturday around 10am So 10am Saturday rolls around, and I go there. No sign of the guy. Someone else is there working on a friend's car, and he says "oh yeah Neil said something about coming in today to fit a couple of tyres" but he doesn't know anything about my specific tyres (I think he doesnt really work there, just borrows the space on Saturdays for odd jobs). I wait an hour (occasionally calling Neil) and give up, but leave my wheel with blown-out tyre there, as it is stinking out my lounge. Keep trying to call Neil throughout Saturday. Today he calls me back, apologetic, saying he fell really ill on Friday and also had lost his phone charger. More ominously, he hasn't seen my tyres and wonders if Oponeo might have delivered them to a neighbouring unit (he is based on a little industrial estate and there are a number of units there, many of them automobile-related. So currently I've been carless for a week, have paid for two tyres whose current whereabouts are unknown, and have an LMGT4 sitting in the premises of a somewhat unreliable chap. I don't really have any other means of moving big wheels and tyres around (the 350Z is my only car) and I have a tight schedule at work all week, and will have to go in by public transport again which is very inefficient (25 mins train, 20 min walk, 25 min bus, rather than a 23 min driving commute). I might be able to "work from home" on Friday morning to get this sorted but before that, I am not flexible. I already wrote off yesterday (Saturday) devoting it to getting my tyres on, even though I fully expected to be done by noon. Now I have pretty much lost Sunday as well, in a fog of confusion and (continuing) concern. This coming Friday I go to Hamburg for ten days. Tomorrow I'll need to ring Oponeo and accuse them of delivering to the wrong premises and try to find out if they have a name of who signed for my tyres - they will for sure just say they were delivered to the right place and signed for and that's the end of it from their point of view....and my Neil will have to go around his neighbours chasing up my tyres, and all through this I have to keep blind faith and also be polite with the guy rather than ranting at him for not having made any effort to contact me about not being able to keep the original appointment (regardless of presence/absence of tyres) You'd think that "ordering some tyres in to get them fitted locally" would be simple. Apparently not if you are me

brillomaster - yes, it was something I had thought of even before buying (and in fact the ad for the car mentioned the possibility). I do love how they look though and more importantly, right now I simply need to get this tyre business sorted as the 350Z is my only car and a daily runner. I'll try to use public transport for work this week, it will be inconvenient but better than knacking my spare tyre and feeling self-conscious with people driving up my arse as I stick to 50...) Shezza there is an alloys specialist just up the road from me, I'll call them. Cannock isn't too bad a drive, yes a bit far but I can take it slow on back roads. My plan was for sure to book it in and get tyres delivered to them Thanks

Thanks, I had seen the thread about Openshaw...that is a bit far but the Cannock one might do. I am trying to minimise the amount of driving I do on my space saver (and it doesn't feel good sticking to 50 on busy dual carriageways. I need to do 26 miles per day for work. I was thinking of ordering a "come to your workplace and do it in the daytime" service (Tyre Medic in Leicestershire), sounds like it may be worth waiting till next weekend and going over to the Cannock place - should I be alright commuting on my space saver? I guess it'll be OK if I am careful... Or there are more local alloy refurb places (sticking with the theme of "get tyres fitted at an alloys specialist rather than a garage / tyre fitter")

Thanks, quick straightforward answers! 275 it is then, oh joy, actually I think its more like another 30% to the price, phaaaaaa. I take solace in the fact that I still have my left arm (I WILL post about the blow-out shenanigans later, not 350Z-specific I suppose but an interesting tale I think)

Hello all! 1) I had a blowout yesterday which is a whole other story (I may post about it elsewhere as some interesting lessons were learned about trying to fix it oneself on the hard shoulder...)....happily no enduring harm done. 2) I have LMGT4s with Falken 453s all round. I just noticed that the fronts are 245 and the rears are 275 (this is how the car came, I only bought it 9 weeks ago). 3) I guess I'll replace both rears as they are 19 months old with 16,000 miles on them and although quite legal, that will end up being quite a mismatch 4) I will get Falkens again so I have the same front and rear. Would there be any reason for having 275 on the rear and 245 on the front? I don't drive "hard" so minor performance differences are probably not worth the admittedly small (17%) extra cost for 275. 5) I was going to order these from Oponeo and have them fitted by one of Oponeo's "listed fitters" (although I rang this fitter and they knew nothing about being on Oponeo's list but of course happy to do the work!). I just read a couple of posts about people finding more specialist fitters to ensure no damage to their precious alloys. Any recommendations around Leicester / Loughborough would be good - and is there any issue if you order from Oponeo and don't use one of their "approved" fitters?? I had a battle a few years ago with a company like Oponeo delivering to Tanvic (local small chain) when one tyre arrived knackered but had been signed for, it was a right old ball ache! Thanks!

Cheers, I have a Flickr Pro account actually (which I don't use nearly enough!), just thought people might like to stay on site