Budget 2004 350z DE

[thefool1983]

A few have probably seen this already.

2004 3.5L V6 (currently 127800)
Bought this just before Christmas off Facebook marketplace. It was actually advertised in Polish!
Took a punt on it for some cheap lockdown giggles and a project to mess about with.

Its actually been a pleasant surprise so far. Mechanically very sound. Engine and suspension are remarkably tight for a 16 year old car. The aircon even works!
Gearbox is whiney and crunches into 5th. I changed to thicker gear oil with Molyslip and it has quietened it slightly. No difficulty selecting gears.
Diff 100% works
Bit rough underneath - W frame is rotten, needs replaced.
All 4 arches showing some surface rust.
Bodywork is good from far, but far from good. Seen quite a few amateur paint jobs.
However all panels seem original and doesn't look like its had a hit before.
Underneath the main chassis seems quite solid -maybe one patch required.
Was struggling to start when warm, however a second hand starter cured that.

Think it might be a GT. however the log book states "was registered/used overseas". Yet the date of first registrationisn UK is 08/12/2004. .


Anyway the standard spec is:
Cruise control
Heated seats
Bose sound system
Brembos
VLSD


Goodies that I've found so far:
Rays forged 6 spoke wheel in anthracite with 4 matching Falken FK453s.
Nismo kit with rear spats and front "Canards"!
Invidia Genesis Cat back exhaust with titanium tips (LOUD!)
JWT popcharger intake
Recently replaced banana arms

HEL Braided clutch line.
Exedy clutch and lightweight flywheel kit (Tarmac Sportz)
Stop tech premium clutch slave cylinder.
(All fitted at 123700 miles)


Immediate plans are
Fix front wings. Does anyone have a contact for wings in NI anywhere?

Replace W brace and probably rear kidney fittings.

Tidy and get fresh MOT (currently exempted until july)

For the price I got it for it is great craic and lovely driving thing.

Thanks for looking

 

[southsky sunrise]

Iv a notion for one of these but yet to scratch the itch.... when your bored with it fire me a txt

 

[thefool1983]

Holy thread revival.

Finally got a chance to do a bit of work on this.

Got the side skirts removed... expecting a horror story.

And was pleasantly surprised.

Holes at aft end of each sill, but the rest are solid.

Also got the w brace and kidneys pulled out (and thankfully no sheared bolts)

Have some refurbishment kidneys ready to screw on and will probably go for a tarmac sportz w brace. (Unless anyone has any other suggestions)

Three patches needed, but the holes are too close to fuel tank, so I'll have to drop exhaust and prop shaft to get the tank out too.

Should be fresh for MOT easy enough.

Then will probably get 2 front wings off this guy:

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@pablo says he's gonna spray them for me!

So yeah, overall not too bad

 

[Chris0]

Lockdown does crazy things to us! what’s the plans for it? If you need a copilot for any drift events I’d happily sit in the passenger seat and be your hype man

 

[thefool1983]

Lockdown does crazy things to us! what’s the plans for it? If you need a copilot for any drift events I’d happily sit in the passenger seat and be your hype man

Just gonna get it tidied up and thru MOT (currently exempted till july) then I'll reassess!

 

[thefool1983]

Got a bit more done on this today.
Dropped exhaust and prop shaft and then the whole subframe.

This gives me access to drop fuel tank in preparation for welding.

It also means I can give the whole floor a good wire brushing and treat with dinitrol or similar.

Subframe was surprisingly easy to drop, and all went well except for one sheared bolt in drivers side caliper.

Was surprised to see the prop shaft on these is carbon fibre. Cool

 

[thefool1983]

Tank out today...

Wish the rest if the floor looked like this!

Next up is to get the grinder at this in prep for welding!

 

[da.murf]

Brave man and fair play for taking the time to sort it.

 

[thefool1983]

Brave man and fair play for taking the time to sort it.

I'm sure you have it sorted, but if yours has not been waxoyled or similar , I'd get it done ASAP.

Im hoping I got this one just in time, but from following the Facebook page, there's a lot of them similar!

 

[da.murf]

I’ve been under mine a fair bit and most of it’s been replaced underneath recently and I’m pretty lucky that rust is near zero on it but yeah end of summer I’m going to line up getting it done before next winter.

 

[thefool1983]

So, got a bit more done on this yesterday. Started cleaning the rust off with a wire brush. It always gets much worse before getting better!!

Have both the sills welded now and one side ground back and lick of paint. This is the first time I've welded so go easy on me!!

Hoping to have all patches welded and floor wire wheeled this weekend. So I can start to treat rust and paint.

Beauty of these patches is they are hidden completely by the side skirts, so nobody will ever see my patches!!

 

[mark19]

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So, got a bit more done on this yesterday. Started cleaning the rust off with a wire brush. It always gets much worse before getting better!!

Have both the sills welded now and one side ground back and lick of paint. This is the first time I've welded so go easy on me!!

Hoping to have all patches welded and floor wire wheeled this weekend. So I can start to treat rust and paint.

Beauty of these patches is they are hidden completely by the side skirts, so nobody will ever see my patches!!

Just remember to seam seal all along bits youve welded and gaps etc

Looks decent tho! And as you said its all hidden

 

[Blackie]

Good job for a first attempt!! Well done lad!

 

[thefool1983]

Good job for a first attempt!! Well done lad!

Cheers @Blackie . They are no oil painting, but each one is getting (slightly) better .

To paraphrase somebody said the other day, "a grinder and filler (seam sealer) make the welder i ain't!"

 

[Coog]

My welding isnthe same. Flap wheel and sealer sorts it lol
There’s a really ropey one sits at the house down the street here and has done for years. Was going to put a note under the wipers and seen just a few days ago it’s gone and been replaced with a A7 TDi

 

[thefool1983]

Floors looking much better now.
All holes patched, 2 coats of rust convertor and 2 coats of zinc paint.

This should be me ready to put parts back on...
But I took shocks out and cleaned a bit of stone chip away in the inner arches/pockets
More welding required

 

[TheDaniel]

Sorry to hear of your rust problems but its good to see someone fixing it and enjoying it and not just putting it in the bin!

 

[Coog]

Lol if you keep looking for it you’ll find it. Nightmare. Doesn’t look too bad anyway.

 

[thefool1983]

Sorry to hear of your rust problems but its good to see someone fixing it and enjoying it and not just putting it in the bin!

Don't feel sorry for me lol. Self inflicted. I knew the thing was in bad shape when I looked at it!
Never buyimg a rotbox again!!

But nearly there now. Its never going to be a minter, but I think that's a good thing as I won't be afraid to drive it properly!

 

[thefool1983]

And she's back on the wheels!!
Need a bit if a wash i think! Gives you an idea of the grinding I have been doing!

Will get a proper update late once I get all the pics pulled together

 

[Lyons]

Barn find dust! Get it advertised at £40k.

 

[Coog]

I detest grinding almost as much as welding lol. The dust and crap gets everywhere and it stinks too. I’m sure you’re glad that’s over anyway.

 

[thefool1983]

I detest grinding almost as much as welding lol. The dust and crap gets everywhere and it stinks too. I’m sure you’re glad that’s over anyway.

Yeah, its a nightmare. Shed is pure stinking!
Glad to get the hard work finished anyway.

Rush was on to get it off the lift as the other car needs a brake pipe for MOT. Never stops!!

 

[Coog]

Yeah, its a nightmare. Shed is pure stinking!
Glad to get the hard work finished anyway.

Rush was on to get it off the lift as the other car needs a brake pipe for MOT. Never stops!!

Oh I know all about it with 5 of them lol

Brake pipes are 3rd on the crap stuff to do on a car list... especially if it's the full length up & over a fuel tank.

 

[thefool1983]

Oh I know all about it with 5 of them lol

Brake pipes are 3rd on the crap stuff to do on a car list... especially if it's the full length up & over a fuel tank.

Yep thats the one lol.

Hopefully not too bad, and no doubt ill find something else whilst at it!

Was actually thinking of you and ur fleet when typing out the last message. I don't know how you can be arsed