Kulwiec

iTrader: (2)

Took my Z in for a new tire today, hoping to not find any extra problems, but we can't always get what we want... turns out the reason why my tire wore out so fast and blew is because it apparently needed an alignment. After the alignment the guy from the shop told me that I may have a serious issue and believes the car either needs new struts or has a bent frame possibly from being hit on the left side. Before I dump more money into fixing something that might not be my problem, I would like to get a lot more opinions from you guys.

Things to consider;
1. Has 98k miles on it.
2. I live in an area where they look at my car like its a damn space machine.
3. There aren't any good, reliable shops around here that have a lot of experience with 350zs.

Here is a visual of my problem.

http://img25.imageshack.us/i/img9992qy.jpg/

Any and all ideas could potentially save me lots of headache and money.
Thanks guys.

tyau

iTrader: (1)

Bad "struts"? Your car does not use a strut. The dampers on the Z do not provide support for lateral forces.


Although worn shocks can sometimes contribute to sagging ride height, it is in your best interest to find out the root of the problem before proceeding to replacing parts. Shocks on your car hardly provide support of the vehicle's weight. Even my brand new Bilstein shocks compress under 60kg of downward pressure. With 100,000 miles on your car, it is probable that your shocks are worn and can benefit from replacement. But I doubt replacing them will fix your alignment completely.

I have seen springs sag due to uneven load on one side. In your case, your driver side is worn. Do you always drive without a passenger? Are you a bigger guy?

AustinATX

i dont know man..
id take it somewhere further away wheres theres a really good shop to help you out on that.
do you have aftermarket wheels? i had a g35 and after i bought it i had similar issues and it turns out one of the front wheels had a different offset then the others. i dont know how they got a different offset unless they bent it and just threw different offset rim on there and sold it haha.
maybe a control arm is bent or the arm of the strut?

terrasmak

iTrader: (8)

nice spyware in your popup, puck you

Kulwiec

iTrader: (2)

I havent owned it for very long so you can obviously tell i am still learning about the car.
Tyau, thanks for that information, i will definitely keep that stuff in mind when i look at it or take it somewhere. Also i do not think the previous owner had a passenger much but neither him or me are bigger guys.

Austin, I've been considering driving it up to Autowerks where they work on all types of exotic cars like 350z and gtrs but it's quite a drive. Yea the wheels and tires are aftermarket. Axis rims, 19 in the front 19.5 in the back and bridgestone potenzas.

Terra, sorry if theres spyware? on my picture, i just took it on my phone and uploaded it to imageshack.

carlili4190

iTrader: (6)

Go to Project X in Northbrook... They will take care of problems you have
Autowerks is amazing as well.

Kulwiec

iTrader: (2)

The Z is fine, the previous owner was honest and it was a pleasure doing business with them, i shouldn't let stupid rumors influence me as much

terrasmak

iTrader: (8)

Upper control arms, upper control arm bushings, bad ball joints , something bent etc etc or chassis damage.

For chassis damage take it to another body shop and have them look at the car.

davidv

iTrader: (2)

And these are original struts? Useful life expired 40,000 miles ago.

carlili4190

iTrader: (6)

Who did you buy it from? Did you buy it from a member on chicagoz?

Kulwiec

iTrader: (2)

I dont want to name a person because i dont want to slander their name, but the person is on chicagoz as well as a few other sites, but it was sold on craigslist. They are good people I'm just stressed with all this. And autowerks is about an hour and a half away from me so it needs to be serious enough for me to need that level of professional body work.

tyau

iTrader: (1)

A man cannot assume that he has purchased a lemon off a shady con-artist simply judging from the fact that two of the wheels on the car are out of alignment.


One worn bushing alone is enough to throw alignment off by 1 degree. Your car has perfect caster between left and right, an indication that the front frame is probably not impacted. Many cars on here, including mine, do not have equal caster on two sides. The front lower control arm bushings on our cars are known to go bad with mileage. You might want to check and make sure that it is still good. As for the rear, it is not uncommon for the camber to run out of adjustments due to worn parts.

Any good alignment shop should be able to tell if your shocks or car frame is bent from a simple inspection. You do not need a shop specialized in Nissans to have a trustworthy second opinion. Any shop that specializes in performance or race cars could offer you their professional opinions. I have seen Z specialty shops doing hack jobs on cars, some are even sponsors on forums.

If you cannot find a good Nissan shop nearby, you can visit a shop that specializes in Corvettes, Porsches, Lotuses, BMW's, etc. Those shops should be able to give you a good second opinion about the condition of your car. Travelling extended mileage to work, to a date with someone, to have your car fixed is a fact of life. With no effort comes no reward.

Kulwiec

iTrader: (2)

I really appreciate all the help you guys have offered me. This is definitely the most helpful information I have been able to recieve and will most likely save me a lot of money. Thanks again guys, youre the best