GregZ33

Hey mate. Yes, LED rears. I'm sure the car is a facelift, apart from the front lights, everything is as it should be

It's a 56, register at the end of '06 I believe. Higher tax bracket, and I'd imagine the Rev-Up 296 engine. The interior is facelift. I think it just has the wrong lights fitted as they were cheaper than buying a facelift pair. I remember in the 'old days' VW would use up the stock in the part bits on crossover year models. I built a 1.8T Mk2 Golf a few years back, and that was a Type19 shell, with majority '90 spec parts fitted to it. It was a 1988 model, so right on the crossover year. I imagine this probably isn't the case with more modern cars though

I thought that may be the case! A friend wrote his facelift Z off and I remember him complaining something rotten about the price of replacement headlights haha.

If you're tempted by a 996, research Bore Scoring, and IMS Bearing failure. They're 2 key things you'll need to know about to ensure you buy the right 996.

I've actually bought parts off of him before, legendary guy! Thanks for the suggestion, I don't think this Z is cheap enough to justify the cost of swapping the headlights too, over buying a non categorized car. I need to weigh up what to do!

Hi mate! Thanks, I'm new and old to the forum, I used to own a Z a couple of years ago. Back for another now! Ah okay, I thought as much! That's a shame - it'll stick out like a sore thumb as an accident repaired one with the wrong headlights.. That's good to know that the bumper would fit fine though. Thanks for sharing your knowledge!

Hi all, I viewed a Cat D 350z yesterday (Front end knock where it hit an animal). It appears to have been bought back off the insurance, with a previous owner repairing the damage himself - new headlights by the looks of it, but the damaged bumper left on the car, along with the slam panel that's slightly cracked where bumper crash bar bolts to it. The damage doesn't put me off massively (new front bumper supplied with the car & I could source a slam panel). However... I've noticed that it appears to have the early headlights. It's a 2006 model on a 56 plate, am I correct in saying that it should have the facelift projector headlights? Therefore the previous owner that crashed it cheap'd out on fitting the more expensive & correct headlights? The damaged front bumper doesn't fit great/hasn't been re-fitted properly as it sits. Do facelift bumpers fit properly with early headlights?

I've not looked yet if I'm honest, I was planning to have the wheel and disc off this weekend to inspect it, then maybe pull the driveshaft too to inspect the wheel bearing. I'm curious to ask around before doing so though so I'm armed with a bit more knowledge of any common Z faults to look for in that area. The weather shield isn't a bad shout, definitely worth checking while I'm in that area, although I think it's something a little more sinister. Backing off the handbrake is a very good idea, it would be a great way of physically testing whether it were the park brake shoes rubbing and eliminating the theory of it being the wheel bearing!

Yeeah I looked that one up on youtube, at first I assumed it to be the CV joints clicking, not the axle itself. Hopefully the splines aren't too warn & a bit of grease is enough to quieten them down. Thanks again for the explanation mate

That's interesting to know, thanks! I'll make sure to check the tightness of the hub nut. I will definitely contact you if the bearing is showing any signs of wear as it would be nice to replace the hub with the bearing too I suspect that may help resolve my 'axle clicking' as well

Hi, I wondered if anyone has any theories on this issue I'm having with my '03 Zed (GT pack, LSD & Brembo's) before I go about stripping & inspecting bits.. Symptoms are as follows; -I'm getting an intermittent 'metallic dry whirling' noise coming from the NSR hub area. -Noise more noticeable when travelling slowly (Potentially as there's less engine & wind noise). -Noise levels don't get louder as wheel speed increases - which indicates this may not be wheel bearing related. -Left foot braking while accelerating, or operating the handbrake whilst moving don't appear to stop or have an effect on the noise. -If I coast in gear then accelerate this can provoke the noise to quieten as I accelerate, although I get a squeak as I accelerate. Sometimes the noise does persist though. -Turning right can provoke the noise to start or get louder. (My Z has an LSD. The NSR wheel is the outside wheel when turning right, therefore noise gets louder when the wheel/hub assembly is under more strain from the LSD as it's trying to take the larger turning circumference. -I get 'pinging' & 'clicking' noises, although I think this may be a separate 'axle clicking' related issue (Which I plan to fix at the same time..). -I've jacked up the car and can't feel any play in the wheel bearing. I have two theories; 1-Wheel bearing. I believe the pinging noise, and the fact that turning right provokes the noise are signs of this? 2-In my eyes the more likely cause - Handbrake shoes not returning properly, and therefore rubbing. This would explain the dry sounding whirling noise, and the squeak I get as I accelerate as adding power forces the brake shoes to break free from contacting the inside of the disc? I just don't know why turning right would have such a bit influence in the noise if the handbrake were the issue? Sorry this is a hard post to reply to without hearing that dreaded noise in person..! Thanks in advance for anyone that could shed some light on this Am I wrong to have ruled out that I could be the Driveshaft or Diff?

My advice would be to just use it if you're going to buy one. Leaving car's sat around rarely does them any good, so you might as well enjoy being behind the wheel as much as possible in your ownership & keep it ticking over. Or.. buy it as a weekend toy so that it still gets it's use & enjoyment whilst you aren't bent over by the fuel costs involved with it being a daily. I also wouldn't bother buying a cheaper one as a project, because all the parts that you're likely to need to replace (clutch/flywheel, exhaust, brakes) are generally more expensive than they are on your everyday car, as headphones highlighted above. You're better off starting with a solid car in the beginning, then adding your own mods to it over time, in my opinion.

Hey All! I'm Greg, 24 & from West Sussex. I'm a newbie to the forum, and 350z's so thought I'd introduce myself & say hi! I picked up my Zed in October last year, it's an '03 GT pack car with a few mods (Pop charger intake, 20 & 25mm spacers, decent headunit & a couple other little bits..). I've since added a Milltek system, some Pirelli's, my plates & a de-wiper bung. The plan is to keep the car fairly OEM+ and daily driver friendly as it's my replacement for my E36 daily & Mk2 Golf 20VT weekend toy I built. Give me a follow on Instagram if you like ( @gregh_vw ), I need to see some more Z's on my new feed haha! Look forward to being part of the forum & meeting you guys at any motoring events over 2018