Chromatic

iTrader: (4)

Hi guys..

I've made a few posts already about various things.. and I'm buying the 2008 350Z with 26k miles on it in the morning.

I've checked the full carfax and it's clean + shows it brought in for dealer maintenance, dealer oil changes, and regular service intervals at Nissan.

The Carfax shows it had new brakes done on all four rotors in November. So good to know.

Guy says car is perfect inside and out.. said the driver said door handle has some scratches or wear, and didn't know why exactly but was just being honest when I asked what, even minor, is wrong with the vehicle. The door handle I can "handle".. replacing that part down the road isn't a big deal at all to me.

Purpose of this post is to get you guys opinions of what to check for before I sign the papers to buy. I've bought cars before,.. I've sold them,.. and I work on them (DIY) -- IE: Brake jobs, starters, alternators, oil changes, plugs, etc. So I'm somewhat familiar.

But what exactly should I be checking for on a Base 2008 350Z Coupe?

I know to check body lines,.. frame, oil pressure, engine sound,.. how it drives, brakes, engine, etc.. But what else? And anything specific to the 350Z that is of note to check out.

Thanks,

michaelmoon912

The 08's are pretty solid, 26k is low mileage for the car and it sounds like its gonna be in good condition, check the wheel wells for rubber build up other than the normal amount to see if it has been driven hard, youve got all the bases covered pretty much, take pics!

frjr3

Got a 08 Z in OCT. It had 50k something miles...a month down the road both of my window motors were faulty. One totally stopped working so I had to replace that one. Its a simple cheapish part but always good to check and maybe bargain a bit if its faulty.

winchman

Getting new brakes at 26K seems very early, especially if the rotors had to be replaced.

Take a close look at the inside edges of the front tires. They'll develop flat spots there if the toe-in isn't set properly, and the tires will start roaring when you slow down. The 350Z has an unusual double lower ball joint arrangement that makes setting the toe-in critical. Search "tire feathering" for more info.

NoQuestionZ

iTrader: (93)

You sound like you know that Base models DO NOT have cruise, traction control, or a Viscous LSD. Bare bones. With 26k miles I would do it in a heartbeat. What price are you looking at if you don't mind me asking.

Tires are def. something to look at. Check to make sure the clutch isn't spongy due to "less than perfect" slaves in 08s. I would drive it somewhat hard during the test drive as my 08 developed a 3rd and 6th gear grind at 23k miles. Nissan replaced clutch/flywheel/trans under warranty, but yours likely wouldn't have much or any of the Powertrain warranty left based on years(mine expires March 2014)

Let us know how it goes!!

JCITY

iTrader: (2)

This could be the INSIDE DOOR BARREL COVES.They tend to get scratched.
However,unusual on a newer car like a 08.Maybe the owner/girlfriend etc wore
rings -fingernails etc.?
THere are covers for this area in CF.

SQuaLZ

I have an 08 and only problems I have had in the past 4+ years was the diff blowing, 5th gear grind, which both were covered under warranty, and my new issue is my drivers side window motor.

Funny how my diff blew about 2 months after I had Nissan change the fluid and my tranny started grinding literally 50 miles after they changed the fluid. Coincidence?

All in all the 08 is a great year for the Z, IMO the best year. They are pretty strong cars that can handle alot. I don't beat on my car but I do push it hard at the track and occasionally do some spirited driving on the streets. Unless my buddies with their Evos and Stis, I am not worried about someting breaking when I am pushing it.

Good luck!

Chromatic

iTrader: (4)

Bought the car, just got home.. Man what a long day it seems.. 6:45am straight in the shower out the door.. to the credit union.. tested the car.. spent an hour there on paper work.. then had to drive the guy back to Atlanta (another hour and 30 mins away) .. then drove the car back home, then to the DMV.. had to get the BOS for the car I just sold faxed over (who knew?) -- got that done, paid the tax, fee's.. tag is on the car now.. it's in the garage and needs a SERIOUS clay barring.. paint is good on it, but only because it's low mileage and somewhat newish.. I have my work cut out for me.. but I always do this with new cars I get.

I start with a regular wash.. dry.. then use Meguires Clay bar kit.. usually two of them over the car for about 2 hours.. Then once it's all smooth and all the grit is out of the paint I use my rotary and polish it in two stages, a thicker polish then a thin one. Then finally wax it .. I like NXT 2.0.. works well for me, you may disagree. The inside is no big deal on this one, fairly clean.

I'll post pictures after I clean it up .. raining tomorrow, so Sunday.

Can't believe I've already put 300 miles on the car.. and man driving made me sleepy

Few issues.

1) Immediately when I backed it up and went off to test drive it.. at LOW speeds (under 15mph..) There is a loud roaring noise.. like your tires/wheels are really off balance (not weighted properly).. at regular speeds 20mph-80mph it is smooth as butter with the noise. At 85-95 mph there is a stutter .. real quick and not terribly noticeably but I notice everything.. so the wheels definitely need to all be rebalanced.

But,.. this low speed noise sounds like it's coming from the front driver side wheel.. there's no wheel scrub.. factory tires.. treads good.. brakes done recently. I told the guy about the noise and he said.. "Yeah, these cars are loud." -- I was like, no.. it's not supposed to be like that. It's not a huge thing, I obviously bought the car.. but before I would buy it, I was stuck on that noise from the wheel..

He said, ok.. I'll pay for anything mechanically that is wrong with the car, as I listed it as mechanically sound. I said fair enough,.. so we wrote up a form that he would pay for anything mechanically wrong to NISSAN dealership (he said to bring it to Nissan).. put date, names, Car Vin number, description. Then I also went and had it notarized.

So, hopeefully this is something simply like a wheel balance issue, but if it's a suspension issue, he pays for it. I think a notorized document with 5 witnesses from the Credit Union managers is solid, and the guy has money..

I'll probably make another thread about this noise - but for those reading this thread, what on earth do you think this could be? Could it be as simple as wheels out of balance? It sounds like your brake pads are worn down to nothing, and you are pressing them hard.. sort of.. No screeching just a sort of roar like that. As speed picks up past 15mph or so it goes away. Then, I notice a bit of what I know is a balance issue at 85-95 mph (I didn't go any faster than that..).

Otherwise car is great. Worst case scenario, Nissan has to do some suspension work I suppose.. but with 26k miles, 2008.. I just don't see how it could have anything MAJOR wrong with the front wheel area...

I'm happy as a clam.. Can't wait to clean it up properly,.. then bringing it to Nissan Monday to get that issue resolved.

The driver door does have scratches on the handle on the inside -- guess from his ring or something.. but it's a very cheaply made plastic piece I can tell.. so I know I can replace it or do something about it cosmetically.

Love the color, and MAN that car is fast. I haven't been a in a car with that kind of power in a while.. it blows away the mustangs I had, and oh that steering is so sweet and tight.

pyshin

iTrader: (14)

Congrats man, post up in the New Owners sub-forum when you get your Z cleaned up.

Chromatic

iTrader: (4)

Definitely will do! I've really been missing out,.. last Z I had was a 1991, 300ZX and it's always been my favorite car. I should have done this a long time ago. Driving is perfect now

pyshin

iTrader: (14)

^^^ had 2 240's and a myriad of other imports/muscle cars/trucks in the past...

My '08 Z is at the top of the list. I thought 43k original miles picked up was low, good on ya for finding one at 26k that's ridiculous haha

Bmurray350z

iTrader: (34)

Nice pickup. Could the noise be a wheel bearing? They're notorious for going out, some within the first several thousand miles I've heard of.

Chromatic

iTrader: (4)

Keep the ideas coming.. I thought of the wheel bearing as well. But, another mentioned the Toe in/out issue that Nissan issued a TSB for.. and it sounds (no pun intended) like that is exactly the issue.. Here is the link:
http://www.nissantireproblems.com/autoweek-tsb.html

Although that's for 03's... sounds like it may still be an issue for an '08?

Chromatic

iTrader: (4)

For sure! Yeah, I scoured for a year looking for these things.. and at the last moment ended up finding one with 26k for 19.5k. Private party.

I talked him down to 17.5k.. and that's what we settled on.

Has some minor front lower bumper nicks from rocks.. and little stuff like that, but overall it's really clean. The car I sold had 28,150 miles.. and I got out of it cause I truly wanted the 350Z to start with,.. but also because the other car was just too small.. The 350Z feels like a Sport utility inside compared to the Solstice I was driving! Ended up with less miles too! Turned out fantastic.

I'm looking forward to cleaning this up (rotary, clay bar, detailing) -- then working on some light perf. mods.. It has a really high end aftermarket Pioneer touch screen double din headunit.. Must have been like 699-1000 bucks at least for that thing.. It opens tilts the huge screen to load a CD.. and plays DVD's to watch movies.. has USB port for well, usb's.. Has iphone port.. aux port.. Satellite radio it's nice!

But, the speakers are not impressing me in that car, and I know Nissan's Bose systems sound good -- so the head unit may not be powering them properly.. or I'll just replace them with something else. I still have a pair of 6.5" MBQUART 150watt x 2 speakers from my 300ZX I bought that were the best on the market at the time. I'd have to get a sub to even it out though.. but I'm not a kid now,.. so I'd just throw a single 8" sub in there.. or smaller if they could fit it in a factory slot behind the seats. But that's down the road..

Always fun to have a car like this where the enthusiast following is so high and the sky is the limit on what you want to do with it.

pyshin

iTrader: (14)

^^^ Chips on the front bumper is notorious issue with Z's.

And that Pioneer unit is a very popular aftermarket upgrade that owners install on their Z's, I'm sure all of the reasons you listed are a major part of why (along with the very OEM look)

The Base model's speakers are a joke.. When you swap them out you'll see what I'm talking about. Here's a picture I found:


I upgraded to Rockford Fosgate speakers and an Alpine single-din deck... No sub (not even close to a priority since my Z will be seeing alot of track time).

This forum has a trove of information, glad you know how to use the search function already.. More than many newer members can boast.

davidv

iTrader: (2)

26k miles is a winner. I don't see any photos.