[G4nismo]

this weekend, i'm going to go my local nissan dealer to take a look at 3 potential 350z's for purchase.

THey are:
*2003 350z touring manual w/ 16,569 miles going for $19,778
*2005 350z base manual w/ 46,269 miles going for $18,233
*2005 350z base manual w/ 48,809 miles going for $15,499

of those 3 and from the limited research i have done so far, i'm leaning towards the 03 model (i have not carfaxed them yet).
From what i read, the major difference from the 03-2004.5 base and touring is that
the base:
-has no cruise control buttons on steering wheel.
-no power rear mirrior, aluminum pedals or kick panel, or TPMS
-no limited slip, VDC or TCS.

the touring:
-has Heater buttons on center console.
-Adds Leather seats w/ power adjustability, Bose sound system
-VDC and TCS functions
-does it have LSD?

someone correct me if i have something wrong.

questions:
1. was the "rev-up" variant of the VQ35 and VTC function standard in all 2005 models or only in some?
2. I heard many mixed reviews about the durability and longevity of the transmissions. Some said their 1st one is fine while others complain that there on their 2nd, 3rd, 4rth tranny due to gear syncro issues, tranny grinding, etc. Have Nissan made any improvements in the 2005 model trannys? I need some more opinions and feedback on this topic. Its one of the big issues i'm worried about.
3. Do you think the 03 model price is fair?
4. to the owners, any bad experience or additional things i should be aware of?

[kuku]

I would NOT get the 2003 model. There's a reason why it's at 16k miles. Old 350z's had a tire feathering problem where the tires would literally be worn down by 5,000 miles and had to be replaced.

http://my350z.com/forum/maintenance-and-re...hering-fyi.html

^ that's a great site that will tell you all about it.

Also, it seems to have affected later models as well, but not so much.

If you buy the 03, I'm sure in the long run you'll regret changing tires so much.

[V12Juice]

HR>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>DE
Test drive the 2007 Z and then try the older ones, you will "feel" the difference.
350z Engines

[G4nismo]

I would NOT get the 2003 model. There's a reason why it's at 16k miles. Old 350z's had a tire feathering problem where the tires would literally be worn down by 5,000 miles and had to be replaced.

http://my350z.com/forum/maintenance-and-re...hering-fyi.html

^ that's a great site that will tell you all about it.

Also, it seems to have affected later models as well, but not so much.

If you buy the 03, I'm sure in the long run you'll regret changing tires so much.

i actually briefly read up on this. in fact i joined my350z forum yest. for the tire feathering, isn't that due to not being within the factory alignment specs?
i think one of the causes was due to too much toe in or something i dunno. i heard they made minor suspension changes and upgrades in the 05 model.

but do you know what the main cause for that tire feathering issue is?

HR>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>DE
Test drive the 2007 Z and then try the older ones, you will "feel" the difference.
350z Engines

oh i'm sure. i will obviously feel more high end power w/ the HR, hence the name "high rev".
but i heard a lot of oil consumption issues w/ that VQ variant. plus, isn't low end torque lower in the HR compared to the DE?

[V12Juice]

Negligible torque difference. Look at the 0-60 and the 1/4 for the DE and the HR...you can see the difference. Modability is also a problem in DE's...not as efficient especially if you plan to TT. Oil consumption is not really a problem unless you don't know how to maintain a car properly (if RX7 and RX8 owners can do it, then so can you). It's not all "high end" power, it's just that the car pulls across its revband. HR =/= VTEC KICKED IN YO!

PS you'll feel like garbage when an old lady passes you in her auto HR if you buy a DE.

[G4nismo]

Negligible torque difference. Look at the 0-60 and the 1/4 for the DE and the HR...you can see the difference. Modability is also a problem in DE's...not as efficient especially if you plan to TT. Oil consumption is not really a problem unless you don't know how to maintain a car properly (if RX7 and RX8 owners can do it, then so can you). It's not all "high end" power, it's just that the car pulls across its revband. HR =/= VTEC KICKED IN YO!

PS you'll feel like garbage when an old lady passes you in her auto HR if you buy a DE.

i see. also, i do not have big plans for it, most i'll do is prob basic mods (assuming i get the non-rev up): plenum spacers, intake, exhaust, etc.
also, i thought the HR was standard starting in the 06 models or is that the rev-up? i know thats a beaten topic but haven't fully looked into it.

and bottom line, the newer models are not within my price range.

PS, track>>>>>>>>>drag, where the "real" driving counts :hide:

nevermind, saw that link you posted.

* 4th generation VQ
* in 2007 350Z and G35 Sedan

[V12Juice]

03 -05 had the VQ35DE engine. However, in 05 the 35th anniversary edition and the track edition came with the VQ35DE Rev Up motor. You can identify this one clearly by the raised redline on the tac from 6600 to 7100 rpm. These models in 05 bumped the hp from 287 to 300 but I believe the torque was lower on the rev up engine.

In 06 all models came with the rev up engine. They also saw some slight improvements like the headlights high/low HID Xeon headlights instead of just low beam HID and high beam Halogen. The tailights are also LED. The front bumper is slightly different in 06 with only 2 more widely seperated grill pieces and the side marker lights in the front bumper are wider too.

I am not sure if it was 05 or 06 they added steering wheel radio controls and changed the inside a little bit. The center console has a sliding door compartment vs a pop up lid. It's just little refinements mainly.

07/08 introduced the VQ35HR engine which was completely re-designed and has an output of 306hp under new calculation formulas for all vehicles making it much more than what it appears, a mere 6hp increase over 06.

Most people will want the LSD (limited Slip Diferential) which the base does not come with. This allows one wheel in the rear to turn faster than the other when going around turns instead of them both trying to turn at the same speed and improves the cornering and handling of the vehicle. If your getting this for any type of performance and like going around turns this is recommended. If you ever intend to take it on a track, which is a lot of fun, having the LSD is helpful.

The headlights and tailights of the 06+ Z's fit in the 03 -05 Z's without any modifications as long as your Z has HID headlights. You can make that change later if you desire, rather than buying an 06 just for this reason. The headlights will run you about $1200 a pair and the tailights about $400 or so.

The Track model, and starting in 05 the grand touring model came with Brembo brakes which help in the stopping department. The 35th anniversary model in 05 also came with them.

Overall, the differences between an 05 and an 06 are slight with an 06 having a slight advantage in the HP department but not much. If you add a few bolt on aftermarket parts you can equal or better that difference. The biggest way to do this in an 05 is to get a plenum spacer or replacement upper plenum (intake manifold). They cost around $300 or less and will give you 12rwhp. That alone puts you about where the 06 engine is for very little cost.

[G4nismo]

03 -05 had the VQ35DE engine. However, in 05 the 35th anniversary edition and the track edition came with the VQ35DE Rev Up motor. You can identify this one clearly by the raised redline on the tac from 6600 to 7100 rpm. These models in 05 bumped the hp from 287 to 300 but I believe the torque was lower on the rev up engine.

In 06 all models came with the rev up engine. They also saw some slight improvements like the headlights high/low HID Xeon headlights instead of just low beam HID and high beam Halogen. The tailights are also LED. The front bumper is slightly different in 06 with only 2 more widely seperated grill pieces and the side marker lights in the front bumper are wider too.

I am not sure if it was 05 or 06 they added steering wheel radio controls and changed the inside a little bit. The center console has a sliding door compartment vs a pop up lid. It's just little refinements mainly.

07/08 introduced the VQ35HR engine which was completely re-designed and has an output of 306hp under new calculation formulas for all vehicles making it much more than what it appears, a mere 6hp increase over 06.

Most people will want the LSD (limited Slip Diferential) which the base does not come with. This allows one wheel in the rear to turn faster than the other when going around turns instead of them both trying to turn at the same speed and improves the cornering and handling of the vehicle. If your getting this for any type of performance and like going around turns this is recommended. If you ever intend to take it on a track, which is a lot of fun, having the LSD is helpful.

The headlights and tailights of the 06+ Z's fit in the 03 -05 Z's without any modifications as long as your Z has HID headlights. You can make that change later if you desire, rather than buying an 06 just for this reason. The headlights will run you about $1200 a pair and the tailights about $400 or so.

The Track model, and starting in 05 the grand touring model came with Brembo brakes which help in the stopping department. The 35th anniversary model in 05 also came with them.

Overall, the differences between an 05 and an 06 are slight with an 06 having a slight advantage in the HP department but not much. If you add a few bolt on aftermarket parts you can equal or better that difference. The biggest way to do this in an 05 is to get a plenum spacer or replacement upper plenum (intake manifold). They cost around $300 or less and will give you 12rwhp. That alone puts you about where the 06 engine is for very little cost.

thanks for the input. yeh i read most of the trim and year differences on the my350z forum, just forgot when the rev-up was introduced.
i did some more research, particular about the tire feathering issue that kuku brought up, its apparently a prominent and notorious issue, especially in the 03 and 04 models, which sucks cause i was really interested in that 03 model (brickyard color too). theres even a class action lawsuit and a webpage for it. does anyone know what the culprit pertaining to that issue is? can the tire feathering issue be resolved? theres just so many info and many of them are from couple years ago so i couldn't find a definitive answer. i don't want to freaken change out tires every 5000 miles

[G4nismo]

just spoke to a nissan service manager and he told me theres no way to resolve the issue
only way to prolong the life of the tires is by swapping the tires from left to right to even out the cupping, abnormal wear.
extended warranty doesn't cover tire wear but it does for the transmission, so i dunno, i might reconsider the 03.
and i think the transmission issues is really speculative. i heard theres a lot less reports of tranny replacements from the g35 owners compared to the 350z, and they both have the same tranny. i think its prob most likely due to the difference in demographics, particularly age.
seems like G35 owners are the lesser of the aggressive drivers compared to the Z owners. again, thats purely speculative.

[MsKrnDoll]

In my opinion, it would be best if you went with a 05 model because i easily broke the synchro in a friend's 03 Z..in addition, be aware that the paint on the button that you push up to open the glove compartment in the center console easily peels off too (saw this in another friend's 06 Z) and like you said, there really isn't a difference b/w the 05 and 06 models, people mainly chose the 06 models because of the oem led tailights and projector headlights but like any mod, you can easily swap them out.

i do agree with you that g35 owners are the less aggressive drivers and i also understand that you might like some of the interior options in the touring, but you have to keep in mind the Z leans more towards a track car while the G does not..from what i read in your previous posts, im assuming you are more of a performance person than cosmetics (please correct me if im wrong hehe ^^) so i honestly think the upgrade and corrections of the problems in the models of the previous years whether it's engine wise or not, would save you some money.

[G4nismo]

In my opinion, it would be best if you went with a 05 model because i easily broke the synchro in a friend's 03 Z..in addition, be aware that the paint on the button that you push up to open the glove compartment in the center console easily peels off too (saw this in another friend's 06 Z) and like you said, there really isn't a difference b/w the 05 and 06 models, people mainly chose the 06 models because of the oem led tailights and projector headlights but like any mod, you can easily swap them out.

i do agree with you that g35 owners are the less aggressive drivers and i also understand that you might like some of the interior options in the touring, but you have to keep in mind the Z leans more towards a track car while the G does not..from what i read in your previous posts, im assuming you are more of a performance person than cosmetics (please correct me if im wrong hehe ^^) so i honestly think the upgrade and corrections of the problems in the models of the previous years whether it's engine wise or not, would save you some money.

that was my initial response, to go w/ the 05 b/c its newer. but after research, i'm not 100% sure but, i don't think nissan really made any better improvements in the 05 tranny (someone correct me if i'm wrong). also, your talking speculation again. is your friend a harsh driver?
the 05 that i'm looking is also the BASE MODEL, as it has no TCS, VDC, VLSD, where as the 03 does plus the lower mileage. if it was the 05 touring, it would be a different story.

the big difference b/t the 05 and 06 models is the rev-up was standard in all 06 models, along w/ the new cosmetic upgrades found in the 06.

well the G35 is essentially a 350z just with a bit more luxury amenities. and i am more performance oriented, your right. but you have to understand, not every car is going to be "perfect". Not every dealer is going to have the car of my preference. Every car is going to have it's own problems. You have to look at the trade offs. In my case, i think it would dum not to go w/ the 03, considering all the things i mentioned what the 05 base doesn't have and the minor differences. Tire feathering is still existent in the 05 and in the newer models as well, just not as bad as the 03-04.
But there are ways to alleviate the issue like i mentioned w/ the tire dismounting and swapping from left to right and getting the most up to date alignment specs. you can even get camber kits to get a better range of aligning though i'm not sure it'll help the symptom but can't see why not.
and w/ the tranny, i will be most likely consider getting the extended warranty as it will cover the transmission. The typical fix is to replace the transmission with a newer revision.

[MsKrnDoll]

that was my initial response, to go w/ the 05 b/c its newer. but after research, i'm not 100% sure but, i don't think nissan really made any better improvements in the 05 tranny (someone correct me if i'm wrong). also, your talking speculation again. is your friend a harsh driver?
the 05 that i'm looking is also the BASE MODEL, as it has no TCS, VDC, VLSD, where as the 03 does plus the lower mileage. if it was the 05 touring, it would be a different story.

the big difference b/t the 05 and 06 models is the rev-up was standard in all 06 models, along w/ the new cosmetic upgrades found in the 06.

well the G35 is essentially a 350z just with a bit more luxury amenities. and i am more performance oriented, your right. but you have to understand, not every car is going to be "perfect". Not every dealer is going to have the car of my preference. Every car is going to have it's own problems. You have to look at the trade offs. In my case, i think it would dum not to go w/ the 03, considering all the things i mentioned what the 05 base doesn't have and the minor differences. Tire feathering is still existent in the 05 and in the newer models as well, just not as bad as the 03-04.
But there are ways to alleviate the issue like i mentioned w/ the tire dismounting and swapping from left to right and getting the most up to date alignment specs. you can even get camber kits to get a better range of aligning though i'm not sure it'll help the symptom but can't see why not.
and w/ the tranny, i will be most likely consider getting the extended warranty as it will cover the transmission. The typical fix is to replace the transmission with a newer revision.

well i never owned a 350z and i never liked one so i wouldnt have known much about it..as for my friend's they both bought used Z's and they're both not aggressive drivers so it depends on the previous owners and i never said a car can be "perfect" and of course not every dealer will have the car with all the preferences you want, that's a given..with your statement above you basically answered your own question in the your original post..so then go ahead and get the 03..you asked for opinions and i just gave mine that's all.

[G4nismo]

well i never owned a 350z and i never liked one so i wouldnt have known much about it..as for my friend's they both bought used Z's and they're both not aggressive drivers so it depends on the previous owners and i never said a car can be "perfect" and of course not every dealer will have the car with all the preferences you want, that's a given..with your statement above you basically answered your own question in the your original post..so then go ahead and get the 03..you asked for opinions and i just gave mine that's all.

i understand. i made the original post w/o hardly knowing anything about the 350z's at the time. i gradually started doing research and thats how i came up w/ that response.

[switchlanez]

Any particular reasons why you want a 350Z?

[phantompc4]

^my question also

is that your mr2 in the sig? hotness

[G4nismo]

Any particular reasons why you want a 350Z?

being somewhat of a performance oriented guy i'm sure you can guess why.

went to the dealer today, the buy fell through. when i got there, the price was inflated to 21,xxx. took it for a test drive though and tried to talk some numbers afterward. eventually the manager came and told me his best offer was 19,2xx + tag, title, tax, pretty much about 20k. he wouldn't be anymore flexible and i thought it was too much for what it was so i just left.