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The VQ35DE is a very well balanced engine, you should feel less vibration at higher RPMs, not more. Something might be out of balance or perhaps it's engine mounts. Try not to compare so much to the Mercedes though, those cars are built around the idea of luxury, meaning more sound isolation/dampening, which could translate to heavier duty engine mounts, firewall insulation, etc. Your Z should be happy to rev beyond 5K without any effort, hell that's why Z33s are so popular today as drift cars.
At this point I can't tell if comparing to the Merc is throwing off your frame of reference or if you have a legitimate issue with the vehicle. My gut tells me your Z is just fine, otherwise you would have a CEL active.
Cheers!
-Icer
Sweet garage/ramp setup. Looks like you stopped short though, where's your paved driveway!?
Looks like recently poured concrete and new construction home. So I'm guessing things are still a work in progress. All things considered, very nice stable for the Z.
These mods are all pretty basic (entry level stuff) and should install smoothly. With how clean you've described the Z, you shouldn't have rust issues with the OEM exhaust bolts. Removing the stock plenum is pretty easy, just be careful with the vacuum and coolant hoses at the throttle body, there's one or two in hard to reach areas, some long hose pliers make it a breeze, but still do-able with basic hand tools. Your mechanic friend shouldn't have any troubles if they've done this kind of stuff before. I would wager, if you can do a brake or strut replacement, then this is something you should be able to tackle without much if any trouble (same level of difficulty or skillset required).
Cheers!
-Icer
The ramps work great, and I have peace of mind knowing that whenever we're under them, we're ok. I couldn't say that about the popular scissor lifts that are on the market right now. After we get the car up on the ramps, we remove a few screws and the center sections come out for better access. It's pretty slick. They are comfortable enough to drive up on that I can just keep them in place and park the car on them.
Paved driveway? I've got to finish building the kitchen cabinets!
The VQ35DE is a very well balanced engine, you should feel less vibration at higher RPMs, not more. Something might be out of balance or perhaps it's engine mounts. Try not to compare so much to the Mercedes though, those cars are built around the idea of luxury, meaning more sound isolation/dampening, which could translate to heavier duty engine mounts, firewall insulation, etc. Your Z should be happy to rev beyond 5K without any effort, hell that's why Z33s are so popular today as drift cars.
At this point I can't tell if comparing to the Merc is throwing off your frame of reference or if you have a legitimate issue with the vehicle. My gut tells me your Z is just fine, otherwise you would have a CEL active.
Cheers!
-Icer
I've never driven another one. I think maybe I need to. Based on what you're saying, I think something must be off with my engine. I hope when I get the tune done that maybe it will be better.
When I bought my Z I was in the middle of buying a lot of cars. Man, I was on the hunt! A little ridiculous now that I look back on it. But I did have fun. But I didn't really think the Z would be the car for me, it was just another option to try out. The SLK has a few things that I really like about it, and tops of the list would be the quality of the drivetrain. Terrible ride over anything but smooth pavement though, and very small. The drivers seat is very uncomfortable for me - I just can't get in a good driving position and the seat back feels like it's curved in the wrong direction - arching my back the whole time. My head can't reach the seatback headrest without looking up at the sky (My head rests nicely on the Z seatback). I love the canvas top of the Z - I wish it was manually operated. Mine is a deep blue - almost denim looking. The Z styling is for me. My wife doesn't care for it, but every time I get out of the car I look back at it. I love the style of the wheels on my Z. I love how the trunk lid closes. I love how easily I can find the thingy to open the front hood. I love the look of the engine bay and the crossbar. I love the look of the dual tip exhaust. I love the sound of the differential. I love the three gages. I love the 'Z' insignia and the three square dots in clever places. I love how the air vent goes through the door and the door handle pull. I love the front face and the headlights and round rear butt.
A bit random I know, but you get the idea. My Z is a keeper . . . . . until I can afford to buy a Boxster. Even then, it will be difficult to let go of the Z I think. We'll see. I'll need something to drive while the Boxster is being repaired! lol
I've always felt like that's a good characteristic, it feels luke it isn't happy to be in the high revs, but after all my mods it screams at 7k. Sounds angry in a good way.
I'll say it again, make sure your cats aren't internally cracked or something, one of mine was and you could hear it rattle when I took it off.
I had no CEL for that.
Fujita, Stillen, AFE, Injen, Z1, 06 box, had 3 different modifications to the Stillen as well, including one with the Nismo V2 scoop.
Been contemplating another, but I should stop.
I've noticed that my 350Z works a lot harder than my SLK to rev up beyond 4000 rpms. The sound of both engines is very different at high revs with the 350Z sounding a bit strained and uncomfortable and the SLK composed. The 350Z engine seems to have a bit of vibration or looseness above 4K and the SLK is smooth and tight.
I'm not saying my 350Z won't rev all the way to limit, because it does, but with strain, noise, a bit of vibration - it's just uncomfortable and I think this is why I'm always going into the next gear at around 4500 because it just seems painful to go higher than that - like I'm abusing the car.
Is there something wrong with my engine? Tuning/timing/bad spark plugs? Does anyone else notice the things I'm describing with their engines?
Installing the mods you listed will likely not resolve the issues you're having. Just because it has 23k (hopefully true) miles on the odometer doesn't mean the engine/drivetrain was well maintained.
I've always felt like that's a good characteristic, it feels luke it isn't happy to be in the high revs, but after all my mods it screams at 7k. Sounds angry in a good way.
I'll say it again, make sure your cats aren't internally cracked or something, one of mine was and you could hear it rattle when I took it off.
I had no CEL for that.
Definitely going to check the cats. Is that just a visual inspection with the catback off?
Do I need to change spark plugs due to age not mileage? Would I get better performance by changing the spark plugs?
Installing the mods you listed will likely not resolve the issues you're having. Just because it has 23k (hopefully true) miles on the odometer doesn't mean the engine/drivetrain was well maintained.
I'm sure the mileage is correct. It looks brand new underneath and in the engine bay. It looked that way when I got it, and not from detailing - just natural.
I'm pretty sure there was little to no maintenance done on the car. When I got it, It had three different brand of tires and none of them were any good. Oil looked terrible. The muffler had been removed and a Y-pipe installed.
I can't see that anything else was messed with on the car, but who knows if something was done to the tuning when the muffler delete was done. Do these cars have chips that can be replaced?
Fujita, Stillen, AFE, Injen, Z1, 06 box, had 3 different modifications to the Stillen as well, including one with the Nismo V2 scoop.
Been contemplating another, but I should stop.
What are the differences you notice when comparing them? What are you looking for that makes you want to try another?
You could also get this and just replace the filter with a dry one from Injen or AEM.
That thing should be the closest to a stock box without spending a thousand bucks lol. https://www.mishimoto.com/nissan-350...ake-03-06.html
I don't like that this retains the factory corrugated plastic. I'd think that would be a restriction just based on my testing with my '97 WS6. Replacing the corrugated plastic from the MAF to the TB netted 9 whp. I'd guess that would equate to about 5 whp on a '06 350Z.
Originally Posted by TN350ZRoadster
I've noticed that my 350Z works a lot harder than my SLK to rev up beyond 4000 rpms. The sound of both engines is very different at high revs with the 350Z sounding a bit strained and uncomfortable and the SLK composed. The 350Z engine seems to have a bit of vibration or looseness above 4K and the SLK is smooth and tight. The SLK engine is just as happy to turn at 5500 rpms as it is at 2500 rpms and willingly and easily and quickly runs right up to the limit
Something isn't right. My '06 would rev in 1st so quickly, I'd often hit the limiter before I could shift.
Originally Posted by TN350ZRoadster
When I bought my Z I was in the middle of buying a lot of cars. Man, I was on the hunt! A little ridiculous now that I look back on it. But I did have fun.
When I was working, I was the same. Had another car every 6 months. Some new. I was tossing so much cash out the window to depreciation... At one point, I had 4 cars, a truck, a street bike and a race bike. Youth... I miss it.
What are the differences you notice when comparing them? What are you looking for that makes you want to try another?
Greg
Fujita came with the car, shaped like the one you are getting, hard to get a shield made up for that style.
Went with 06 box/K&N after that.
Then I realized what a terrible job it did at filtering, when doing my spacer so I ditched it for Stillen.
Shortly after, I added the R2C filter (second Z with Stillen BTW)
Not much to say, it's perfect, I added a silicone tube to it and added the scoop, made it even better.
After that I went Kinetix Velocity and decided "I should get a CAI since the Velocity is targeted at higher RPMs"
went to Z1, very poor build quality and didn't feel as good as the Stillen.
After I decided to get the Injen just cause I hated the Z1 and wanted to give a CAI another try.
Injen is quieter but sounds nicer, I have a dry filter but it has one big con, the filter is in the grille, no rain for me lol.
Suits me fine as I only drive on nice days.
The AFE I had for like a week or two, bought it used, felt and sounded good but I think PO tightened it too much and warped it (plastic) so I decided to get rid of it because it may cause sealing issues.
Moral of the Story, my last iteration of the Stillen was superior to the rest in drivability. I regret getting rid of it, but the Injen does sound so good at high RPM, not sure how much of that is Injen vs Kinetix Velocity tho.
^^ Wish you had tried an AEM. The sound is pretty cool and the filter sits in front of the driver's front wheel. You can drive in rain, just not through any puddles deeper than 6".
The question is, does this dry filter allow more air flow
Anymore it’s not the filter that is the restriction - on the DE z it’s the 135degree bend in the neck and the unequal access to airflow to each runner.
Originally Posted by TN350ZRoadster
I need more air flow to the TB if I'm going to invest in a MREV2 and exhaust. So now what do I do?
Even when upsizing the tube to the TB, is a cone filter CAI good enough to filter the air coming into the engine? Or are we also compromising filtering capability for air flow with those? How do we know?
and remember that you have to re-tune … expecially if you go with a larger diameter intake tube. And a portion of your gains will be attributed just picking up what nissan left on the table.
Originally Posted by DarkZ03
Hopefully it ends up working and you don't end up like me being 7 intakes deep before I quit lol.
If you want to make noticable power there is only one intake that you need … more whistle, less trumpets
Originally Posted by DarkZ03
Fujita, Stillen, AFE, Injen, Z1, 06 box, had 3 different modifications to the Stillen as well, including one with the Nismo V2 scoop.
Been contemplating another, but I should stop.
Lol, @bealljk what made you go from supercharger to TT to single?
I was pretty much a novice when it came to cars and these cars in particular back in 2006 / 2007 when I went supercharger and I liked that the Procharger kit was all inclusive and their history with domestic muscle. I knew of vortech and I did some research but decided on Procharger …
and as the story goes, I replaced the oil pressure sensor and broke the upper oil pan and had the cash to do a built block … so built block, re-geared the supercharger to make as much boost as I could (which was 14psi) and that equated to about 450hp …
But I had this 600 to 800hp block from IPP, so of course, found a greddy twin kit and went greddy twin and loved everything about it except how hard it was to install / work on / maintain / etc. Sold the procharger setup and installed the greddy TT.
Going back to 2018 (I believe) I got tuned to 568hp on 17psi of boost and loved it. But ran out of fuel pump … so put a 450lph walbro in it and after about 3 or 4 days I spun a bearing … handful of probable causes but decided to part-out the greddy kit and brainstormed how I would want a single turbo, with as short of hot side, and as short of cold side as possible to reduce lag, reduce weight. Also, make maintenance, repair, service as easy as possible … eventually relocated the radiator to the trunk for weight distribution. I can unbolt the IC in 3minutes and be at the turbo in 15minutes or so.
Sorta brainstorming a change to those headers as they are pretty heavy and I may go to a log-style header and re-install power steering (or go electric power steering)… I’ve got a million things going on and very busy so the white z has taken a backseat. Between this shop thats going up and the g35 build I am running every which direction.
Nice, interesting train of events.
that's one thing that always gets me about these cars, so many compromises.
Z1 talks a big game about their supercharger kit and ease of use, I will say, if it pans out like they say I'll sell the HKS kit and get their kit because at the end of the day I like simplicity.
The HKS kit is a work of art, but not as simple as others.
Z1 talks a big game about their supercharger kit and ease of use
Generally speaking, superchargers will provide less torque and I see all these supercharged VHRs making 600 to 700hp but only 400 to 500 ft-lbs of torque … and I believe my 568hp tune on the greddy TT kit was ~540ft-lbs … and I can’t imagine making that much horsepower and only have ~450ft-lbs of peak torque. Further, this 600-700hp is at redline and torque is even lower there.
Generally speaking, superchargers will provide less torque and I see all these supercharged VHRs making 600 to 700hp but only 400 to 500 ft-lbs of torque … and I believe my 568hp tune on the greddy TT kit was ~540ft-lbs … and I can’t imagine making that much horsepower and only have ~450ft-lbs of peak torque. Further, this 600-700hp is at redline and torque is even lower there.
All that to say, I’ll keep my turbos!
Depends on application of couse, I think if you wanted a fun car that you could take to the track, canyons or back roads, too much torque can be a detriment.
That's the one thing I like about superchargers is they keep an NA like profile as far as power so it makes for a more predictable car.
Obviously that's on a VHR but I am curious to see what the DE numbers turn up to be.
My friend Austin and I drove four hours down to Z1 Motorsports in Carrolton GA today to get the initial dyno done on my 2006 350Z Roadster Touring with 23K miles. I'm planning to make some mild bolt-on mods to my car, and I wanted to know the baseline before doing the mods. The car was completely stock for this test. I even traded out the K&N air filter I had installed for a new one from a parts store.
On the way down, we each made a guess as to what we thought the HP would be. Austin guessed 262hp and I guessed 252hp.
Z1 Motorsports has a great new facility. This is a first class operation and I'm very glad to be within reasonable driving distance. They have some very cool cars in the lobby. The workshop is immaculate and they have eight lift stations. Everyone there was very nice and helpful. The guys operating the dyno seemed to really know their stuff. We waited in the guest lounge where we could sit and watch the dyno testing through glass windows.
My car made 252hp. While the test was going on, the operator seemed quite impressed, giving us the thumbs up and telling us that it was very strong.
Have them switch the CF to SAE next time. It's more accurate (lower) than STD. STD correction is what people use when they want to show nice numbers for internet bragging. A lot of tuners like to use STD because their customers obviously want to see higher numbers. I'm guessing you're closer to 248 whp SAE. That's about where mine was stock (245). Mine did 281 with about every bolt on you can do. A Procharger would have cost less than what I spent on bolt-ons and would've made more power.
