I have searched and searched about tranny issues and have seen some of the horror stories that some people here have had. One of the reasosns I purchased an 05 rather than an 04 was to hopefully avoid some of the glitches in the engineering of the 350z. I've only had the car for two weeks and so far i'm very happy with it.

My ONLY complaint is the shift from 1st to second gear. Yes, It's very "notchy". Only during very slow accelerations and long shifts do I get an extremely clean shift. Upon searching i've found that many people say that this simply a charactersistic of the Z. If it is than I won't worry any longer. I can live with it.

People with 2005's, what are your feelings?

 

I also have an 05...I have the same problem,well not really a problem i think its just the way the gear box performs,it will get better with wear, Im not worried about it.

 

Yeah, the tranny is a bit squirrelly. Not the smoothest shifts in the world. It almost wants you to shift slowly so I don't know what is considered "normal" for this vehicle. Dealer feels that it is however, so what can you do? And this is from a dealer that is pretty reputable.

Some other dealers I have been to give me the run around, however this particular dealer is pretty responsive. Items I have had warranty work done on in the short 6 weeks I have owned the vehicle.

1. Replace dead pedal (loose).
2. Install plastic clips on the front bumper under the hood, (missing from day 1).
3. Adjust idle speed (too low from factory).
4. Replace 350Z emblem (pitted chromo - looks like air bubbles when they chromed the plastic.)
5. Replace passenger seatbelt (webbing coming loose).
6. Realign hood to fenders. Gaps way off.

I guess the dealer felt bad for all the issues and gave a $50 gas card. That's about one fill up. Nice touch though. And no mention of the usual "hey please give us a excellent rating on the surveys for CSI purposes." Not all dealers are the same some on the horror end of the spectrum and some on the good end.

 

Thanks for the replies.

Unless it starts grinding, I'm not going to worry about it.

I hope I don't have to worry about this in the future. The dealer I got the car from has a BAD reputation for customer service. The reason I bought the car from them is becuase they were willing to work with me on the price of the car more than other local dealerships.

 

This is just a suggestion..... I don't know how much experience you have with manual transmission and I am not claiming to be the expert but as far as I know most of "notchyness" depends on driving style. Try shifting in the same patern as you do when you drive slow. It is a timing issue and when you drive slow you have the time to control your actions better that's why it's not as bad. Dropping the clutch and not adding enough power in time is probably what's causing it but practice makes perfect...

 

I'm not a pro, but my previous 4 cars have been manual, including the Legend coupe that I still drive. Yeah I'm aware that I still need to get used to driving this car, and hopefully It will work itself out.

 

Seeing as your location is LA, I would bet you got it from the same sh*t hole I did, Universal City Nissan.

 

Not only a bad service rep., but those guys tried to rape me for 10K over window when Z's first came out. I have to admit, most Nissan dealers were getting over window at that time but they were the worse of the bunch.

I got so pissed at all of them, I got my Z out of state so that I did not pay over window.

 

I have a 05 too..... I must agree the shifting is not smooth at all. Well, I suppose.... I had the integra for 5 yrs and it was a completely different shifting from the z....but i still like the car...... a ...............lot

 

I've only got 300 miles on my 05 and I must say the shifting on mine is butter smooth just like Hondas and Mazdas I've owned.

 

I have 2000 miles on my 05 and my shifts are smooth. The Z's gearbox can not be compared to a honda. They are two different cars. Hondas are much smoother and their clutches are a lot shorter. At first my shifts were notchy but as I got the timing down, the notchyness settled down. But first to second I must admit is the hardest out of all the gears, but they are also the two lowest gears. Practice makes perfect, you'll get it down.

 

my 2005 has only 300 miles on it. Shifting from 1st to 2nd gear will be notchy if you drop the clutch. The only way it won't be notchy is that I have to slip the clutch for about 1 second or so. Of course we all know if we don't accelerate too hard, then all gears will be very smooth. I am still under 500 miles, so I usually shift under 4k RPM, but sometime when I shifted at above 4.5k RPM, 1st gear going to 2nd is very smooth, just like baby's butt

 

Concur 100%. Timing IS the key. I've noticed when my shifting is in synch with by clutching, no probs..

However, 1-2 is definately the trickiest. After that, smooth sailing.

One pointer:

When shifting, make sure your still pushing in the clutch (preferred), or at least have it stopped. This will give you smooth shifting.

But by no means shift when you're starting to let up. Sounds logical. But I've noticed that with 1-2 being as notchy as it is, if I don't shift aggressively, I'll have a slight hesitation in my shift speed and so I'll automatically start to lift the clutch just a tad, therefore UNSYNCHING the shift process and causing a bad shift.

I've had the car since 11/02 and it's taken me quite a while to figure these things out. But so far I'm with the original tranny at 24K without probs yet.

 

wow man is it me or all u ****ers too paranoid about ur z's

 

Yeah, i'm well aware of their reputation. When I found the car wanted, the finance manager's attitude was like, "What.. you expect us to give you a "Good" Deal on this car!? It took like three different people to negotiate, but I finally got the deal I wanted. I'm hopefully done with them.

If need be, will other local Nissan dealerships honor the warranty?

 

notchy at first...but now it's smooth after getting used to the clutch

 

The Z has a direct linkage transmission. As such, it won't be as "buttery smooth" as the cable linkages most people are familiar with on the Civic/Integra/Accord/Legend/etc. Even the Corvette has a cable linkage, since they put the T56 in the back of the car for weight distribution. The closest transmission on a popular production car I can think of is the S2000, and shifting that car feels very similar to the Z.

The upside is that a direct linkage transmits better shift "information" back to the driver, so it's easy to tell when the gear is selected. I also find that shifts are more precise and that I'm less likely to accidentally select the wrong gear.

 

whats up azrael

 

Its not just you. I feel these kind of posts just turn away potential Z owners.