febuary this year i purchased a brand new '03 nissan 350z in peaks pike white. the car had 7 miles on the odometer and it ran like champ. well after several months of driving it, i started to notice problems, tire noise was almost unbearable (dealership said that its a common problem with Potenzas yea right), the rear would make noises when shifting into gear, the tire pressure sensor went out, little things like that just irritated me. but today would be the biggest irritation to date.

today, i woke up feeling very sick, coughing and wheezing. usually, ill drive my gf to work in the morning but today i was just too out of it. so i told her to take the Z and pick me up when i was ready for work. so now keep in mind, she does accounting for a trucking company (i know, it sounds bad already). so my phone is ringing off the hook about an hour after she left to work, the first couple of times i just let it ring. finally, i get the phone call and my gf is hysterical, she is telling me that she parked the car and an 18 wheeler drove into it. from her description, it seems like from the front fender to the rear quarter panel was damaged.

after looking at it first hand, the complete passenger side is destroyed. cant tell yet if there is frame damage, from the looks of it, there isnt. they will need to replace the fender, door, 1/4 panel, bumper, wheel, side mirror, door handle, etc. the damage on the door is about 3 inches DEEP!!, the window doesnt work, you can barely open the door.

the parking lot is directly in front of the building and right next to it is the docking bay for the trucks. she thought she would play it safe by parking all the way down the other end where noone was parked.

/ / / / / / /z/ / / / truck/ / /<---parking space

____________________<---wall

the truck driver parked his car in the parking space (horizontally), taking up like 12 parking spots, he decided to leave and i guess he didnt see the 350z and while turning out, the rightside of his truck, took a piece of the car. =(

hopefully i illustrated it well enough for you guys to see what happened.

the damage, is gonna cost well over $7k and 6-8 weeks to fix, thats what the owner of the bodyshop said. at this point, im just very upset, my experience with the 350z hasn't been as pleasant as most of you. i think i will sue the trucking company and have them pay me the value of the car. i have no intention of fixing it now that i know it will devalue the car and it will never handle the same again.

sorry for the rant, just very upset. its been a long exhausting and emotional day. i will get pics of the damage asap. but in the meantime, here are some pics of it when i first bought it.

 

wow that totally sucks ***

i hope that the truck guy was atleast courteous enough to leave insurance information... if not, i would definitely go after the trucking company ... there's noway you or your insurance should have to pay for that!

 

i heard the resale value of the Z is bad... ...i have a lot of problems too....tire noise, all kinds of sounds when shifting (especially now that it's cold), grease on the windows all the time, etc...o yea, can't forget the RATTLES i can't beleive the whole interior is plastic, what the hell were they thinking ??? anyway good luck...

 

What the hell were they thinking?

How about providing an awsome performing SPORTS car at a very reasonable price.

If you wanted a luxury interior, you should have bought a luxury car.

 

are you sure were not driving the same car? those were the same exact symptoms i was having with my car. besides the fact that the dealership blew out my tire pressure sensor when they changed the tire.

and the insurance company is paying for everything, but i dont think i want to drive in this Z anymore because it will not be as good as it was when it came out of the factory. i will most likely buy a new one and hopefully my experiences with the Z are positive.

 

Check my last post to "OUCH" on this forum - I'm facing the same problem, but have no one to sue. I am headed for a $10k bath on dumping my Z once its repaired - I agree with your reluctance to consider continuing to drive this car after repairs. Good Luck!

 

Sorry to hear about your car mystik.... I remember your very first post when you first got the car too. you were stoked!

Anyhow...good luck...don't give up on the Z yet.

 

That's awful, man...sorry to hear about you Z being totaled. In spite of all the problems, I hope you're not ready to give up on the Z once and for all. I'd hate to be the only Z driver cruising the seven hills of Woostah.

 

the car won't ever feel the same...i use to have an CL-s, and nearly totaled it (like 13g's in damage, 2 1/2 months in the shop), after a while you'll start noticing little things the bodyshop messed up on, or didn't do right...then there's always gonna be something in your head telling you the car's not 100%...if i were in your shoes i'd do the same thing, the z's worth it...

 

If they dont total it, sell it and cut your losses. You will never be happy with a wrecked and fixed Z IMHO.

This is an opportunity if you look at it a different way. You can buy another 350Z, 04 model of your choice, learn what you did not like on the first one and have a "better Z" than the first. Chances are, the tranny and tire feathering issues will not occur on the 2nd one. They seem to occur less on later manufactured date/built Z's as a whole.

Another option is buying another type car altogether. If the Z's interior is not something you like, get something else. A close cousin of course is the G35 coupe with upgraded interior.

The C6 vette is coming out soon. Standard C6 is rumored to be 405hp with the Z06 also rumored to be in the 500hp range. This car will be a beast. You got many options. You cannot change the past so make the future better, that you can control. I do understand your frustration, i would be really bummed too.

The 350Z is not a perfect car and of course, being a 26K - 40K car, corners had to be cut, interior was one of them. I love mine and accept the compromises along with its strengths. No mattter what you do, always come back here and lets us know what you decided.

good luck,

Jeff

 

I have some of the problem...but I didn't think it was a big deal...after all, it is only a Z, not a Ferrari. You get what you pay for....50,000 cdn for the fun it gives me, I think is not bad.