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A bit late, but I finished the paint care regimen on my Z last week. As mentioned in my last post. I did a full wash, clay bar, polish, and chemical strip (50/50 water and Isopropyl) on the car. Then layered two coats of Reflex Pro II (Ceramic coating). I also cleaned and re-coated the LMGT4s with some Swissvax wheel wax. The car really came out great. Wash maintenance should be a breeze for another year or two with this coating, possibly longer if I keep it out of the rain and do touch ups with Reflex Top Coat.
As for the Coil Spring sleeves and correcting the rear coil orientation. This did not fully resolve the subtle knocking noise I'm hearing from the rear suspension. At this point, I'm thinking it might be related to the subframe bushings, driveshaft angle, or just the nature of the Bilstein B6s. I've done multiple checks and inspections across all the rear control arms and bushings, nothing is out of place, everything looks good and tight. So perhaps this is a symptom of just adding a stiffer strut/coil combo or perhaps the combination of the Gktech diff brace with the Whiteline Poly diff bushings and driveshaft angle. At this point it's so minor and only noticeable at very low speeds when going over bumpy patches of pavement. Think parking lots with pavers or many cracks/bumps. Basically a non-issue, but I'm a bit OCD about my Z driving experience.
Anyway, here's the finished product after the paint care. Enjoy!
-Icer
Deep shine.
Clear reflections
It's daytime, but the iJDMtoy front LEDs are still visible.
Love how the paint just Pops
Last edited by icer5160; Nov 14, 2024 at 10:28 PM.
A bit late, but I finished the paint care regimen on my Z last week. As mentioned in my last post. I did a full wash, clay bar, polish, and chemical strip (50/50 water and Isopropyl) on the car. Then layered two coats of Reflex Pro II (Ceramic coating). I also cleaned and re-coated the LMGT4s with some Swissvax wheel wax. The car really came out great. Wash maintenance should be a breeze for another year or two with this coating, possibly longer if I keep it out of the rain and do touch ups with Reflex Top Coat.
As for the Coil Spring sleeves and correcting the rear coil orientation. This did not fully resolve the subtle knocking noise I'm hearing from the rear suspension. At this point, I'm thinking it might be related to the subframe bushings, driveshaft angle, or just the nature of the Bilstein B6s. I've done multiple checks and inspections across all the rear control arms and bushings, nothing is out of place, everything looks good and tight. So perhaps this is a symptom of just adding a stiffer strut/coil combo or perhaps the combination of the Gktech diff brace with the Whiteline Poly diff bushings and driveshaft angle. At this point it's so minor and only noticeable at very low speeds when going over bumpy patches of pavement. Think parking lots with pavers or many cracks/bumps. Basically a non-issue, but I'm a bit OCD about my Z driving experience.
Anyway, here's the finished product after the paint care. Enjoy!
-Icer
Deep shine.
Clear reflections
Love how the paint just Pops
The car looks clean Icer. I also have a feeling the suspension upgrades you've done are attributing to the noise you're experiencing.
Not saying it's definitely the issue, but Whiteline diff bushings are a bit bad in design and the rear one is known for causing problems from movement.
Might be worth throwing a Go Pro down there of you have one, just to see if the noise is coming from there.
Finally got around to replace the clutch. Car has bout 134K. Still had the original clutch. Ive done plenty of clutch replacements on Nissans and Toyotas so this job was not a biggy for me BUT getting the transmission back on was very challenging.
Once i was able to get the transmission mated to the engine it was a breeze from there. Took the car for a drive and man does the clutch feel good. I got a clutch kit from Z1 with the light flywheel. I was going to go for the JWT kit but at the end I didnt feel it was worth it for me. So far im liking it. As soon as the clutch is broken in I will be going for a spirited drive up in the canyons.
Not an update for something I have done to my Z, but perhaps something I will be doing in the near future.
There's a lot of early Black Friday sales going on right now and I'm eyeing some nice upgrades for future use.
For other members on these forums, take this as a friendly reminder to shop around for parts (even stuff you may not need right away). Plenty of awesome deals to be had on items that rarely ever go on sale
Things I'm thinking about snatching...
Z1 baffled oil pan for the VQ35DE (LINK)
CZP Powdercoated Aluminum Valve Cover Set (LINK)
- Note: Includes billet PCV host fittings + Wrinkle black powdercoat, hence price difference for standard aluminum set.
BUT getting the transmission back on was very challenging.
I've dropped my transmission 4 times in the past two years.
I'd say 2 out of the 4 it went in very easily.
The other two times I needed an additional hand, probably the clutch alignment not being perfect. The tool has some play when inserted
I've dropped my transmission 4 times in the past two years.
I'd say 2 out of the 4 it went in very easily.
The other two times I needed an additional hand, probably the clutch alignment not being perfect. The tool has some play when inserted
This is what i thought initially. I did notice the play on the alignment tool so after I had the cluth/pressure plate on I tried checking to see by eye that the disk was as centered as possible. When doing this on the jack stands its a bit harder to see everything under the car. Also I think I had the car not leveled and that made it harder to get the transmission on. I think next time I need to do this itll go much smoother.
Spent 2.5 days trying to reinstall my trans after clutch. Frustration had me wanting to push the car off the stands.
My father asked me about alignment tool. Or did I even eyeball it.
"Oh dad, what do you know??" Being the i obstinate 19 year old.
When he wasn't looking, got underneath, gave it a look and found the disc was off center by 3-4mm. Unbolted everything, lined it up by eye, slipped the shaft in all the way first try.
Moral of story: I shouldn't have been a dick to my engineer dad. 🤣
By the way, pilot tool (nylon) WAS bent. Went to the pick n' pull after that and secured myself an actual input shaft to use for future clutch jobs. Best $10 ever.
Never done a clutch on a Z, but I've had a 240sx for 10+ years so, I've done a few...
Before I'm about to remove the alignment tool I like to wiggle it around a bit. Seems to help the disc not get "frozen" in place.
Took the battery from my silver Z and the OEM wheels and picked up this 6MT Enthusiast Sunset Orange 2006 with 50K miles.
Going to give the car a good cleaning, and list it for sale (in CT for anyone interested)
Took the battery from my silver Z and the OEM wheels and picked up this 6MT Enthusiast Sunset Orange 2006 with 50K miles.
Going to give the car a good cleaning, and list it for sale (in CT for anyone interested)
Does anyone have a Daytona B17 blue bumper for a 03 350z they would like to part with lol... sorry to ask here but its the only place i have seen traffic .
Best to check in the forum marketplace, you can post "Want to Buy" or "Looking for" threads. But there hasn't been much activity in the marketplace these days. Your best bet is to look on FB Marketplace for large body parts.
Good Luck!
-Icer
