Has anyone who has had a new sound system put in their Z experienced any problems or difficulty with the car not going back together properly, or with rattles or misaligned panels after the fact?

I'm considering having it done, but after viewing the complexity of the interior (in the service manual), I'm still a bit leary of how well even an experienced installer will put my car back together.

 

ZZtopp --

Bjmnzzzz wrote in a thread that he had Vegas Stereo shop work done. They would have had to remove and then replace the console to install his monitor. He did not name the shop.

He is on vacation for about another week. Hopefully, when he returns, we can get some info from him, as I am also waiting to install an Alpine 760 monitor and a rear view camera.

Hang in there --

 

Actually he did name the shop...Vegas Auto Sound. They seem pretty competent so I guess I'll let them upgrade the base system in my track model. Pretty scary, though. You never really know how good they are until after the work is done. I'll let you know how it turns out...they're doing it tomorrow.

 

most of the panels on this car come apart easy. Unless the shop is full of idiots, and break the pop holders, you should be fine. Get directions for them on the pieces that will be removed to assist them. They will be less likely to break/scratch/loosen stuff.

 

Will do! Thanks!

 

I broke a bunch of little crap on my install, and was saddened by this, but Nizl said his super duper pro shop thats the best around broke some little tabs and stuff too. You gotta break eggs to make an omelette.

 

If you want to be **** about it, go to nissan and buy 5-10 replacement pops.. not sure what their real name is, but the things that are used all over the car to hold panels on... I only broke one that goes to the door - it was orange in color.

Dont give them these in the beginning of the install - more likely to feel safe ripping it apart, rather let them know halfway through that you have some spare ones.

 

I have had my stereo in now for about a month with no problems. Actually, my shop said that this was one of the easiest cars that they have worked on. The only rattle I have is when my sunglasses are in the holder and the bass hits....So I don't use the crappy holder any more..

Jason
NJ

 

Just pulled into Zeattle on Thursday night after 2 week 4500 mile roadtrip through WA, OR, NV, AZ, CA. What a blast! This car is incredibly nimble at elevated speeds. What a gas to have all that acceleration, particularly when cruising the freeway with slackers that insist on driving 64 1/2 in the passing lane. We all know this group of sanctimonious traffic vigilanties. An appropriate application of torque from 60 thru 120 or higher

leaves most in the rear view mirror, sputtering and shacking their heads, but interminably still hogging the passing lane.

Regarding the Stereo mods and reassembly of the panels... I had my original install done in Zeattle at The Installation Shop on 137th & Aurora. I was shocked to see how disassembled the car was after the first 30 minutes. Center Console, Door Panels, Rear Facia, Rear Floor/Spare Tire mouldings were completely removed. What a sight! Egads! Looked like a factory scene without the million dollar wrenches.

Fortunately, I was assigned Gabe, their top award winning installer and, although it was his first 350Z, he new exactly what had to be done to prevent even minimal damage to the connectors and panels. It's amazing how all the pieces snap apart and back together.

I did have a few challenges: first Pioneer AVIC90DVD arrived DOA. Bummer. Wouldn't read Nav DVD. Etronics.Com was excellent about shipping a replacement overnight at their expense. Etronics customer service manager was completely cooperative and understanding.

The Infinity 10" Sub placed in factory location did not sound tight. I had Gabe craft an MFD? custom enclosure and used Dynamat extensively.

To my taste, the Bass kick is now nothing short of outstanding, considering my modest investment, and it really rocks when stoked by some of Michael Jackson's hard drivin' dance numbers...Billy Jean, Beat It, Thriller, etc. When I plugged the "Pearl Harbor" DVD into the system, I was flat out amazed at the surround sound and massive bass vibes generated through the FM Modulator (88.7) by the all Infinity system during the air battles and bombing runs. Too, too cool by half!

Since I don't consider myself to be an audiophile, I look forward to meeting with some of my local Z owners to compare notes and stereo performance and to solicit some 3rd party comparative evals.

Incidently, I originally installed the Farenheit LCD T5801 screen mentioned frequently on this board. It fit like a glove and produced an acceptable image, albeit, not with premium resolution. But what the hay... it only cost $165.

Having said that

Just as I enter Las Vegas after three days of continual use, the damn screen "fried" (whiffs of smoke, insults to my olfactory nerves, a sublimally percieved crackle of burning electronics). What a flippin development that was. I was majorly bummed, 1000 miles from the original install shop, smelling burned electronics, looking at a totally blank screen, but still hearing instructions from the sweet dulcet female voice trapped in my Nav system. All this, and wondering if the entire car was going to go up in a cataclismic and fiery inferno. Okay, color me highly impressionable.

So... after snagging a hotel reservation for that night, I let my fingers do the walking through the Jello pages and found Vegas Auto Sound on E. Flamingo Road. These guys were stoked to get their hands on a new Z and offered to do a complete diagnostic for $45. Any port in a storm, I turned their top technician loose, bracing my sphinster for an out-of-town ream job that I believed was to likely follow.

30 minutes later, center console once again extracted from its factory resting place, the techy's reported that the original install shop had done a very professional, quality job of installation and that wiring was clearly not an issue. The Farenheit simply fried a circuit, which was easily visible, and toast to be sure.

Their recommendation... replace the Farenheit 5.8" screen with a 7" Microvision which, by the way, fits extremely well, requiring just a 3/8" flat black plastic strip along the bottom edge of the screen bracket. It still looks nearly stock.

Besides getting a much bigger image with better resolution, the additonal silver lining was that the manager took great pity on my tale of woe, and dropped from an original quote of $450 to a seemingly great family deal of $350 installed. Once again, I was greatly surprised and more than satisfied with the quality of work and the fabulous break they gave me on the Microvision screen!

Here's a kicker. In 4 hours at the BJ table that night, I actually won a bit over $500, which was terrific salve for my earlier trials and tribulations. Sometimes life IS fair.

One final note: when I called Etronic.Com and spoke once again to Leo Landau, Customer Service Manager, he expressed appropriate commisseration and promptly issued me an RA number for return of the defective Farenheit screen and a full refund.

To recap... throughout these biting slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, my hat is off and many kudos go out to the staff and management at: Etronics.Com, The Install Shop (Zeattle), and Vegas Auto Sound!

Through it all, my cars relevent interior panels have been disassembled, reassembled, disassembled, and reassembled again, and I am totally stoked with the final result... and nary a rattle or squeak. Life is back to bein Goooood!

 

Bhmnzzzz --

How much did Vegas Auto Sound charge you for the Microvision monitor, and were you able to close the NAV door afterwards?

Also, how long did it take?

I am planning to install a rear-view camera, so I will call them to see if they had any for sale.

 

Vegas Auto Sound cut me a family deal (I think) of $350 installed. Said their cost was $325. They may not offer to you but, I'd ask to speack with the manager, Paul. Mention the Z from Seattle with the fried Farenheit screen

The Nav Door works perfectly.

Took about 1.5 hours not including diagnostics on defective Farenheit.

Good luck!

 

Bj, thanks for the great writeup! Sounds like a great experience - glad to heart it turned out positive!

Also, thanks for the headsup about the farenheit screen. Do you think it overheated? Mine seems to be working fine.. went on a 3.5 hr trip last weekend and it was great!

Also, kudos to etronics.com . I'll look them up when I have to buy something online next.

 

Bjmnzzz: Any chance you can get some picture of the Microvision installed picture? I like to see the fitment.... currently deciding between the Farenheit 7" or Alpine 6.5". But hearing that Microvision 7" can fit without any modification to the slot just gave me one more option. thanks in advance.

 

Sub went into factory location. Enclosure was made from that compressed wood material.

The Installation Shop number is 206 366-0347. Speak with Gabe.

Best of luck.

 

I doubt that the failure was due to heat buildup, but I don't think I'll ever know for sure. It was probably just a random failure.

I found Etronics to overall have the best pricing and availability after rather extensive shopping so I bought all my equipment from that sole source. Based upon their fair and prompt response to a couple custormer service issues, I highly recommend them.

 

Here's a series of 4 pictures that I hope are clear enough to help.

First shows closed Nav Console. Door slides Open/Shut perfectly.

 

Dis be da Microvision wid out da picture...

 

And now, wid da Sound. You can almost hear that audio ear candy tripping up the sensory scale, n'est-ce pas?

 

Here's a side shot to highlight the 3/8" strip of black plastic added by the installer for cosmetic purposes. It is hardly noticeable under normal lighting.