I'm new to the 350Z and just recently purchased a 2005 350Z Roadster. I've had many cars over the years including a few Acura NSX's. Acura had a similiar problem with the NSX upon introduction. Owner's were finding that the tires weren't lasting more than 7-8k miles and immediately were getting upset with Honda about this issue. Honda initially replaced the tires upon this happening, but then changed how they handled it.

Now, all new NSX's come with a warning that the car goes through tires much more quickly because of the special alignment specifications that the car requires for such exceptional handling. Honda didn't try and change the car, just the explanation. People have to accept this as the price they pay to own this type of car.

I'm not trying to say that the 350Z is directly comparable to the NSX, but it's very similiar in nature. There are some sacrifices to be had in order to achieve superior handling. I'm not saying Nissan didn't make a mathematical mistake in the setup, they very well might have, but considering the price point and "fun" factor of this car, the tire issue really isn't that major. I think it's forgotten sometimes that this is a sportscar and isn't going to behave the same way as say a Nissan Sentra when it comes to wear factors such as tires.

 

Interesting...

 

Here is one link to a conversation about this on the NSX forum:

NSX Prime discussion on tire wear

 

Yeah, I've read that the NSX's go through tires quickly too, but they don't roar. The wear is accelerated, but even. What about the S2000 or porsche's? They handle well but I don't hear much about tire issues.

Also, Nissan needs to take the approach of warning it's consumers that their sports cars will sound like it's got offroad tires after 10k miles. Similar to the law they just passed here in CA requiring restaurants to post all their health violations at the counter. It's a cool law!

 

Acura changed the rear camber in 93. You can do that with any NSX prior to 93 if you want as well.

Different problem.

Z-Stalker

 

is the camber adjustable on the z? and if so would the handling be sacrificed? i wouldn't think so if it were only a few degrees...

 

I 100% agree, and this has been my belief for a long time.

 

The reason the 350Z "roars" and invented the word "feathering" is because of the tire selection. The 350Z suspension settings plus the very poor wearing Potenzas is what caused the "roar" and is why you don't see it on other cars. If the inside tread blocks of the Potenzas were different there would be no "roar" or "feathering" just very poor wear characteristics. This is why you hear people say the feathing is gone when they change tires or get rims. The tires still wear badly on the inside, but they don't "feather" or "roar".

 

but there isnt more wear on the inside vs the outside then?

 

Anytime you have negative camber the inside will wear more than the outside.

 

Hey sometimes you gotta pay to play

 

I got the roaring on my T1s tires too. They exhibit the same abnormal wear pattern that causes all that noise. Any tire that has grooves in the exterior of the tire will eventually wear out in that choppy manner and roar.

Also, my tires are wearing on both sides, not just the inside tread block. This has occured with both my RE040 and T1S.

Finally, there are quite a few cars that run the OEM RE040's. Both the IS300 and RX8 run them, and I haven't heard complaints. The RX8 handles equally (if not a little better) than the Z, so there shouldn't really be anything special about the Z's alignment figures that requires us to compromise normal wear in order to make it handle as well as it does.

I've actually heard roaring in other cars before. I had an acquaintance that owned a honda del sol, and it roared similarly to the Z. But, it didn't do that until he lowered his suspension with stiffer springs, and didn't re-align it like your supposed to. So, he messed up the suspension by installing poorly matched aftermarket parts that probably didn't jive very well with the other components and he didn't have the proper alignment. The difference is that our Z's come from factory like this....messed up.

I do have hopes of alleviating this headache, but I'll end up doing on my own dime :-(

 

Yep, agreed. I also believe you also get what you pay....

If I had an NXS, and it had tire wear problems, I'd have a bigger problem.

 

Then why doesn't my Z06 Vette wear out tires at 7k-8k miles? It handles better than the 350 but doesn't eat front tires, only rear tires, that is, if I want it to.

 

longer wheelbase

 

I remember this NSX problem. I didn't quite understand what everyone was fussing over since the NSX was such a sweet car to begin with.

I was just a punk kid thinking, "You got an NSX, buy new tires and quit b*tchin! You can afford it, it's just tires!"

Boy did karma get me on this one.

 

Just turned over 10,000 - tires show now wear!

 

Are you kidding me? The RE040 is the most horrible OEM tire out there. I am an '01 IS300 owner and it was all over the forums when the IS300 came out on the market in 2000. They were known as "blowtenzas" and the RE040 was OEM tire for the Audi TT, previous generation S4 and a few other vehicles. Both Audi and Lexus offered voluntary recalls on the RE040's and offered customers a choice to switch to Dunlops or Goodyears free of charge. Unfortunately, manufacturers do cost cutting where it matters quite a bit, the tires. It is too bad Nissan decided to stock the Z with the RE040's.

 

How come some people dont' show signs of feathering / roaring then? Not EVERY SINGLE Z has it .. right?

 

Well for what its worth, I have a '05 Enthusiast, 6spd with 6500 miles. I have not reached the magic mileage that so many 03 owners say that the tires roar at, however no issues with feathering or noise.

One thing I did notice is that the outer treads on the '05 Z's with RE040's are different from the '04 and '03's. Perhaps this is why? Who knows, I will be getting new wheels and tires soon anyways so it really does not matter. Nissan's TBS only applies to OEM tires and even if there is a feathering issue, they are not going to assist with aftermarket setup.

Realistically, I would say a good 50% of current Z owners will not own their Z's beyond 3 years or 50,000 miles so, folks I would not stress over the tires, your not going to be owning the vehicle soon.

What I really want is a more supportive seat. The stock seats are crap.