Agreed. To make a long, boring, story short, the service manager said Nissan NA would never authorize the new trans because of the lack of any service records on the car. Which is bs cause I had feathering TSB done, seat wear TSB, window motor, as well as the fuel filler recall all done at the dealer. All other maint. I did myself. Used Amsoil every 3000 with new filter. flushed the radiator and replaced with distilled/anti and Redline wetter.

I do have a case open with the Nissan NA customer service warranty dept.



But obviously I'm never going to see that cash again....


Actually that whole experience has made me want to sell my 03 and get an 07.

 

Well even if there's no records on file with them any mechanic can tell if a car has been well maintained or not. Sounds like they squeezed you for some $$ on top of the warranty work and used it as leverage. The 07s are temping but my 03 is well paid off. I'll be waiting to get different car in the future and keeping the Z.

 

i've had 2 03's and im at 50% with problems. first z had bad 3rd gear grind, my current z has no problems at 46k

 

Bought my '03 with 32.5k miles. The tranny was replace at some point before I bought it.

 

03 G35 coupe 3rd gear grinding 28,000 mi replaced under powertrain warr. on invoice it says price was like 2100.00. but most z's and gs have 80,000mi powertrain warr. at least mine did.

 

UPDATE: Up to 78k and no problems. I've put 7k on the tires myself and they still have plenty of wear left (car came with them), so I'm pretty sure my tire feathering woes are nonexistent.

Car shifts fine, but it won't go into gear easily if you aren't already rev-matched. If you rev match then shift, it goes in easy.

 

03 touring, had new tranny put it at around 12k. 3rd gear was grinding when shifting fast.

I was 2nd owner on this thing 2, just took the Z into a dealer and told them the problem, next day they said come pick it up a day later with a new tranny under the beast.

 

my 3rd gear started grinding out around 30,000... i got a new transmission put in shortly afterward...

 

Can someone please explain what grinding feels/sounds like?

 

I've had my 03 for 4 1/2 years and 43,000 miles. Except for a tire alignment for feathering I've had zzzzzipo problems. Runs the same way today as it did the day it arrives: like a fine Swiss watch!

 

Update:

85,000 miles now and still problem free.

 

Update:

Just hit 40,000.

So far:

Tire Feathering not an issue, but dealer said that if I let them adjust my front end, I would qualify for new front tires, so I said "wtf" and let them do it.

Hatch Release Springs: Never had any problems, BUT:

Springs replaced with higher tension springs.
Charge: Free

No 3rd gear grind.
No tranny backlash
No tranny "resonance"

It is solid as a rock. Since I have had ZERO problems with paint chipping on the front and hood, I think my clearcoat may be harder than later years (due to some threads I've read here).

My advice to anyone getting an '03 is to order the new Bi-Xenon lights and send them to MrZipps and have whatever custom work you want done FIRST, and then they are a simple plug-n-play on an OEM HID equipped Z. No down time for you, and the upgrade will be FAR more than merely cosmetic (but the awesome things Dan does to those lights is pure car-**** -- must be 18 or older to view).

Next, slap on one (or both!) of the plenum goodies offered by Motordyne and hook up a Stillen intake (it upgrades your system to have a venturi ring on par or better than the new one in the '06 airbox, BUT w/ a hi-flow K&N cone intake... and it sounds cool. ).

If you do those simple little things, it will look, drive, and accelerate like a whole new (and better) car. It will be a "keeper."

I love my '03 Track so much, I will definitely keep it when I get my next Z. If I can, I'll keep it forever. It is my first Zed (long time admirer, first time owner), and the '03 is the first year they came back, and mine is the Track Model w/ OEM Nav and the extra air bags, so it is kinda special, because there were not that many made like it.

Through a series of carefully planned mods, I'm just now getting it where I want it. It is like a fine fitted suit, and gets more to my liking every day (thanks to Courtesy Nissan, Intense Motorsports, the Z-Store, Motordyne, MrZipps, Stillen, AUT, and a few others).

Tranny problems? Pfff.... Have you seen the new Stillen catalog? If you do, you will be praying for tranny problems (or any good excuse)...

Tomorrow my 4 new BFG KDW NT g-Force's will arrive at the shop and they should be mounted by noon, and I'm trying a wider footprint this time. It just keeps getting better, and the process is half the fun. In the end, you'll have a better car (and better suited to YOUR tastes/needs) than any year of Z as it ever came from Nissan.

Just a thought from another very satisfied '03 owner...

 

I had zero tranny problems on my 03 until I hit 58k.

Just beware that it can still happen, even if you're up there in miles.

 

Excellent! There is still a chance to get that cool carbon-clutch Stillen assembly with the lighter flywheel... guilt-free.

It is only logical that, since more people have racked up more miles on the '03's than any other, that there is a higher incident of reports accumulated to date. The clock is ticking on every year model, but the difference is, we don't know wtf is going to happen down the road to the newer ones.

In short, if a tranny lasts the duration of the 6/60,000 warranty, I've gotten my money's worth and will be ready for an upgraded transmission anyway.

Stillen has some cool ones...

 

bought an 03 touring with 26 k now at 30 k and its at the dealership getting a new tranny and clutch assembly due to a clunking ratling noise in nuetral while idling. i am the 3rd owner of the car

 

42K on mine , dont know anything about its past. I bought it with 37K on it, and 5th is now grinding .

 

Nothing like a free tranny!

Hard to beat lamron's luck: 2,000 miles before the warranty expires, and he gets to start with a fresh tranny. Rockin.

I bet everyone wishes they could get a new tranny under warranty after nearly 60,000 miles of driving. I know I do. Sign me up for that New Tranny at 58K Program!

 

my tranny is kinda whack. when i hit reverse, the car kinda pops a little, and then in drive, it pops a little too ... and the idle is always hella high ... supposed to idle at around 600, i'm idling around 900-1000 ... sigh =(

 

My first transmission went at 19 000 km, now I have an '05 transmission, and haven't hada problem yet at 54 000 km

 

Powertrain warranty is 5 yrs or 60k miles.