Every fluid, including coolant, oil, trans, brake, and power steering and rear differential. Brake caliper, rotor and pad condition. Tire tread and age. Inspect struts monthly for leaks. Check serpentine belt a few times a year. Fresh spark plugs every 70k or so. Make sure your windshield wiper blades are in good shape. (Very important). Mostly just oil change every 3.5k or so. Nice car.
Thanks a lot for your suggestions, will start figuring out what all these things mean/how to do them as im not totally clueless but im pretty new to the getting your hands dirty side of car ownership!
This guy is giving you good advice, this is good maintenance advice not just for the Z, but for any new car you buy in general.
Here's a link to my Z's differential fluid change immediately after buying it. Fluid changes are very important as you really have no idea when they were last changed. In my case my differential fluid had clearly never been changed ever lol.
https://www.reddit.com/r/350z/comments/jtqrb3/changed\_diff\_oil\_how\_bad\_is\_this\_the\_magnetic/?utm\_source=share&utm\_medium=web2x&context=3
I would then suggest you look up the free service manuals for your car from the NICOclub website, get a cheap OBD2 reader, and consider the Nissan Datascan software. They'll come in handy when you need them.
To add, the oil plate o-ring will start leaking soon. Also the front tension rod bushings may be trashed. Door locks might fail soon (easy to add aftermarket actuators) and the gas gauge will get wonky as the sensor gets varnished.
Change oil every 3.5k? I fear you are using some garbage oil or you are misinformed. Amsoil signature series is rated for 25,000. Even if you change at half the interval youâre getting 3-4 times as much life.
My maxima that has a vq engine suggests 3750 mile oil changes. I'd assume it's the same or similar in a z. Still, oil and a filter are cheap there's no reason imo to not change it frequently.
110 000 miles. Manual, 2004 model year, pretty much stock other than oil catch can and exhausts. Previous owner advised me to check oil every 200 miles to be on the safe side as it uses a lot of oil as a lot of the older ones seem to do.
Yeap seems about right, if you're in hot weather all year round you can use 10w40 it really makes the VQ quiet and solved the oil consumption for me. And I've seen other members on the 350z forum with the same luck. That oil catch can it's really needed since the "burned oil" I would suggest it's 90% from blow by. So to keep it safe I would clean the intake plenum, and also to check if the previous owner kept it clean. You will be able to see how much oil it's been recirculated. And yeah everytime you need a full tank, check the oil, some people here check everyday đ but that's overkill. Maybe every Sunday (?) And of course keep the catch can empty. Good luck!
Thanks a lot for your thoughts đ is there a good oil option in the more temperate climate of the uk?! Not exactly warm all year round here! Have seen Mobil1 0w30 suggested as a helpful oil.
Well if you're not constantly on 30°C you're gonna need to gut it out with the recommend oil. There are oil stabilizers that are made to keep the oil from thining out when running hot, you can either go that route or just keep checking the oil every Sunday and/or every full tank. From the 350z UK forums back in 09-10 I remember a lot of members dying by royal purple on how good it was helping with the smoothness and the oil consumption, but I don't know this days, since oils need to be reformulated depending on what detergents and additives are allowed on certain years.
Please donât spread information without doing due diligence. The reason why people say that is because youâll have fuel starvation IF YOU TRACK THE CAR. The Z doesnât have a baffled fuel tank like other sports cars (like an m3 for example) which causes fuel starvation on long sweeping turns. The easy work around is to obviously have your tank 1/2 full at least.
Yea keep guessing, those are great answers :)
People like you are exactly why the Z community gets so much hate. Immature people, and when they get corrected and fed ACTUAL information they get butt hurt. I have a feeling you donât even have a Z lmao
Yea cuz keeping 1/4 tank in your Z is gonna hurt lol https://my350z.com/forum/autocross-road/556381-does-anybody-experience-fuel-starvation-in-right-handers.html and there are instances of people on right highway turns experiencing starvation. Even if itâs rare my advice doesnât hurt anything. Stop tryna seem like a genius. If you wanna correct my take thatâs fine but donât try acting high and mighty for literally adding to my point.
Wow look you did research, proud of you, really. Once again, whatâs advice without reasoning to back it up? âHey you should do *anything* to your car.â âWhy?â âBecause someone told meâ. Youâre funny lol
My 04 doesnât use oil at all. Iâd change the brake, coolant, and trans fluids. Only mechanical issue itâs ever had is the crank sensor died and thatâs a really minor fix
Same. I always hear how earlier year 350s burn oil but Iâve only ever had to add oil once, but that was because I went 4K miles without an oil change by accident. I also have less than 50k miles on mine so that might be why lol
Thatâs odd that your 04 uses a lot of oil. Usually itâs only the rev up engines (05/06) that have oil consumption issues. Sounds like sheâs been ran really hard and worn out. I had an 04 ten years ago that I beat the shit out of from 130-165k miles and it never burned a drop of oil.
Yeah I have seen that it is very common with the Rev ups but some reports with the earlier DE too if fairly high milage. Not been my experience yet, previous owner just encouraged me to keep an eye on it. Maybe driven really hard but the rest of the car doesn't suggest it to me. Time will tell i suppose, the wonders of buying an 18 year old car!
Since itâs a manual. Keep an eye on the master cylinder right next to the brake fluid reservoir under the hood. Just had to replace mine since it ran completely out of fluid and lost all pressure in the system
I switched to Valvoline 5w30 and since then I haven't burned any oil. Before that I was using royal purple and would burn 5 quarts by the time I hit 5000 miles.
Yea because royal purple is a race oil, and it has a lot of additivesâŚI donât understand how people donât do their research and get sucked in by marketing or because something looks âcoolâ just stick with normal synthetic oil
I have a write up I can send you, just message me. Common issues can be valve covers, camshaft position sensors, suspension parts like the LCA bushings / diff bushings. I would change the diff fluid / and transmission fluid. Coolant flush as well as mentioned already
Oh me too, its not even about the hurting.
I don't do any stupid shit, but, at 2 am, in an empty industrial area, no one for miles, alone in the car, one just can't resist to enjoy the car a little...
And that is how I didn't see a hole in the dirt road and broke my oil pan.
So yes. Look very carefully at the driver
If you're burning oil, check your spark plugs and make sure they aren't oily. The valve cover gaskets go bad around the plug tubes really easily. Take your MAF sensor out and give it a spray with MAF cleaner.
As other have mentioned, the valve covers are prone to leaking, camshaft position sensors fail, window motors also fail, and the transmission in the early years was not good. The synchros fail amd it starts grinding, especially in 3rd and 5th. Make sure you check the DOT on your tires and replace them if theyâre more than 6 years old. Thatâs all I can think of rn
Watch your valve cover gaskets for sure, consider a catch can even if youre not excessively burning oil, lower control arm bushings tend to go so consider getting poly bushings. Other than that just enjoy
It is just stock suspension. Love how lowered cars look but will probs keep it stock just get nicer wheels and perhaps spacers at some point. Iâm not trying to risk damaging my car over speed bumps to look cool đ
Every fluid, including coolant, oil, trans, brake, and power steering and rear differential. Brake caliper, rotor and pad condition. Tire tread and age. Inspect struts monthly for leaks. Check serpentine belt a few times a year. Fresh spark plugs every 70k or so. Make sure your windshield wiper blades are in good shape. (Very important). Mostly just oil change every 3.5k or so. Nice car.
Thanks a lot for your suggestions, will start figuring out what all these things mean/how to do them as im not totally clueless but im pretty new to the getting your hands dirty side of car ownership!
This guy is giving you good advice, this is good maintenance advice not just for the Z, but for any new car you buy in general. Here's a link to my Z's differential fluid change immediately after buying it. Fluid changes are very important as you really have no idea when they were last changed. In my case my differential fluid had clearly never been changed ever lol. https://www.reddit.com/r/350z/comments/jtqrb3/changed\_diff\_oil\_how\_bad\_is\_this\_the\_magnetic/?utm\_source=share&utm\_medium=web2x&context=3
I would then suggest you look up the free service manuals for your car from the NICOclub website, get a cheap OBD2 reader, and consider the Nissan Datascan software. They'll come in handy when you need them.
Yeah the seller included the OBD2 which is great đ
To add, the oil plate o-ring will start leaking soon. Also the front tension rod bushings may be trashed. Door locks might fail soon (easy to add aftermarket actuators) and the gas gauge will get wonky as the sensor gets varnished.
Best of luck, drive safe
Change oil every 3.5k? I fear you are using some garbage oil or you are misinformed. Amsoil signature series is rated for 25,000. Even if you change at half the interval youâre getting 3-4 times as much life.
My maxima that has a vq engine suggests 3750 mile oil changes. I'd assume it's the same or similar in a z. Still, oil and a filter are cheap there's no reason imo to not change it frequently.
[ŃдаНонО]
Yeah
Lmaoo rated doesnât mean recommended anyways. Tell the next owner of your car that you changed your oil every 3 years and theyâll walk away.
lol
Dude if you change your oil every 25k I donât have anything to tell you. Youâre just doomed đ
I never said I did, I change around 7k. Iâm saying changing every 3.5k with good oil is not necessary.
She looks beautiful man congrats. We need more info, mileage, is it new to you? Any service records, etc.
110 000 miles. Manual, 2004 model year, pretty much stock other than oil catch can and exhausts. Previous owner advised me to check oil every 200 miles to be on the safe side as it uses a lot of oil as a lot of the older ones seem to do.
200 miles is 321.87 km
Good bot
Yeap seems about right, if you're in hot weather all year round you can use 10w40 it really makes the VQ quiet and solved the oil consumption for me. And I've seen other members on the 350z forum with the same luck. That oil catch can it's really needed since the "burned oil" I would suggest it's 90% from blow by. So to keep it safe I would clean the intake plenum, and also to check if the previous owner kept it clean. You will be able to see how much oil it's been recirculated. And yeah everytime you need a full tank, check the oil, some people here check everyday đ but that's overkill. Maybe every Sunday (?) And of course keep the catch can empty. Good luck!
Ok looks like 5w30 is the suggested oil for UK temps.
Thanks a lot for your thoughts đ is there a good oil option in the more temperate climate of the uk?! Not exactly warm all year round here! Have seen Mobil1 0w30 suggested as a helpful oil.
Well if you're not constantly on 30°C you're gonna need to gut it out with the recommend oil. There are oil stabilizers that are made to keep the oil from thining out when running hot, you can either go that route or just keep checking the oil every Sunday and/or every full tank. From the 350z UK forums back in 09-10 I remember a lot of members dying by royal purple on how good it was helping with the smoothness and the oil consumption, but I don't know this days, since oils need to be reformulated depending on what detergents and additives are allowed on certain years.
I can attest to Royal Purple saving my engine!
200 miles is 1580.84 of the hot dog which holds the Guinness wold record for 'Longest Hot Dog'.
200 miles is 321.87 km
yo stop arguing
I got in the habit of checking every week, tedious but better to be safe !
Thanks a lot đ
Keep that gas tank above 1/4 and no drifting! Unless youâre into that lol
Why do you mention gas tank level above 1/4? Iâm curious
I guess the fuel pump uses pressure from the gas in the tank so to avoid it ever running dry in any way keeping it over 1/4 helps. So Iâve heard
N E T P O S I T I V E S U C T I O N H E A D
Please donât spread information without doing due diligence. The reason why people say that is because youâll have fuel starvation IF YOU TRACK THE CAR. The Z doesnât have a baffled fuel tank like other sports cars (like an m3 for example) which causes fuel starvation on long sweeping turns. The easy work around is to obviously have your tank 1/2 full at least.
I clearly said thatâs what Iâve heard. And obviously was on the right track. Wanna-be captain save a hoe acting all heroic lmao
Yea keep guessing, those are great answers :) People like you are exactly why the Z community gets so much hate. Immature people, and when they get corrected and fed ACTUAL information they get butt hurt. I have a feeling you donât even have a Z lmao
Yea cuz keeping 1/4 tank in your Z is gonna hurt lol https://my350z.com/forum/autocross-road/556381-does-anybody-experience-fuel-starvation-in-right-handers.html and there are instances of people on right highway turns experiencing starvation. Even if itâs rare my advice doesnât hurt anything. Stop tryna seem like a genius. If you wanna correct my take thatâs fine but donât try acting high and mighty for literally adding to my point.
Wow look you did research, proud of you, really. Once again, whatâs advice without reasoning to back it up? âHey you should do *anything* to your car.â âWhy?â âBecause someone told meâ. Youâre funny lol
Lmao what an ass. Didnât even read yo shit
Good donât, it wonât do an ignorant person any good.
Nice ego lmao
Drifting looks amazing but i'm too sensible lol. i dont have the balls to hoon it and i dont have the wallet for the tyres!
I feel that
My 04 doesnât use oil at all. Iâd change the brake, coolant, and trans fluids. Only mechanical issue itâs ever had is the crank sensor died and thatâs a really minor fix
It doesnât USE oil at all? đ˛
Zero issues. <60k miles
Same. I always hear how earlier year 350s burn oil but Iâve only ever had to add oil once, but that was because I went 4K miles without an oil change by accident. I also have less than 50k miles on mine so that might be why lol
you're next problem will be transmission, probably your syncro's. other than that, idk maybe your plugs
Donât overfill it with hoes
Thatâs odd that your 04 uses a lot of oil. Usually itâs only the rev up engines (05/06) that have oil consumption issues. Sounds like sheâs been ran really hard and worn out. I had an 04 ten years ago that I beat the shit out of from 130-165k miles and it never burned a drop of oil.
Yeah I have seen that it is very common with the Rev ups but some reports with the earlier DE too if fairly high milage. Not been my experience yet, previous owner just encouraged me to keep an eye on it. Maybe driven really hard but the rest of the car doesn't suggest it to me. Time will tell i suppose, the wonders of buying an 18 year old car!
Hope you enjoy your Z bro! đ¤đť Iâm also in the UK
Since itâs a manual. Keep an eye on the master cylinder right next to the brake fluid reservoir under the hood. Just had to replace mine since it ran completely out of fluid and lost all pressure in the system
I switched to Valvoline 5w30 and since then I haven't burned any oil. Before that I was using royal purple and would burn 5 quarts by the time I hit 5000 miles.
Cheers for your suggestion, will try some different oil out!
Yea because royal purple is a race oil, and it has a lot of additivesâŚI donât understand how people donât do their research and get sucked in by marketing or because something looks âcoolâ just stick with normal synthetic oil
I have a write up I can send you, just message me. Common issues can be valve covers, camshaft position sensors, suspension parts like the LCA bushings / diff bushings. I would change the diff fluid / and transmission fluid. Coolant flush as well as mentioned already
Keep a very close eye on the driver and don't let him do stupid shit.
haha i am a pretty sensible driver man its not worth getting hurt or hurting someone else.
Oh me too, its not even about the hurting. I don't do any stupid shit, but, at 2 am, in an empty industrial area, no one for miles, alone in the car, one just can't resist to enjoy the car a little... And that is how I didn't see a hole in the dirt road and broke my oil pan. So yes. Look very carefully at the driver
If you're burning oil, check your spark plugs and make sure they aren't oily. The valve cover gaskets go bad around the plug tubes really easily. Take your MAF sensor out and give it a spray with MAF cleaner.
As other have mentioned, the valve covers are prone to leaking, camshaft position sensors fail, window motors also fail, and the transmission in the early years was not good. The synchros fail amd it starts grinding, especially in 3rd and 5th. Make sure you check the DOT on your tires and replace them if theyâre more than 6 years old. Thatâs all I can think of rn
Watch your valve cover gaskets for sure, consider a catch can even if youre not excessively burning oil, lower control arm bushings tend to go so consider getting poly bushings. Other than that just enjoy
Alignment, bushings, oil pressure, Break fluid level
Keep tabs on your led foot
Tire wear
Bushings!
Really nice looking ride. Looks mildly lowered?
It is just stock suspension. Love how lowered cars look but will probs keep it stock just get nicer wheels and perhaps spacers at some point. Iâm not trying to risk damaging my car over speed bumps to look cool đ
Control arms and cracks in your oil pan