Hey everyone,

A friend of mine recently needed a small interior plastic piece for her 350Z that’s been discontinued and impossible to find in good condition. I am currently reverse engineering the part for her, but that got me thinking there are probably a lot of other little trim pieces, clips, covers, or panels that are broken, faded, or missing on our cars that Nissan doesn’t sell anymore.

I’m looking to expand into making more custom or OEM-style replacement parts for the Z community, so I want to hear from you:

• What small plastic pieces do you wish you could replace?
  
• Are there parts you’ve been hunting for but can’t find?
  
• Any “wish list” items you’d like to see available?
  

Drop your suggestions below! I’ll keep track of the requests and see which ones I can design and make available.

Let’s keep these Zs looking clean and complete.

— Ryan
Deadstock3D

 

Hi Buddy,

I'm interested in to an air intake molded/fabricated to bolt on on the front bumper reflector housing......Some people in the past designed some, there are some vidios in yb but it was impossible to access them..... I supose you need scan the front bumper reflector + reflector support and make an air intake with 2.5 inch flange for a brake duct..... 2006 onwards bumper......

That is me....hahaha long time looking for this part, nobody produce it...I know is not the best place to put the air intake because it is not 100% direct in air but I will like to use the reflector holes!!

Anyways....

Thanks

 

Curious, do you just want to have a use for that hole or what? It would do very little for brake ducts as you are aware, what I've always been curious about, is converting them to a functional air curtain. Not sure on the implications.

 

Hey Deadstock,

Off of the top of my head, I can think of a few things...

1) The center cubby armrest latch. It's plastic, small, and they break overtime. The only way to get a replacement that I'm aware of is to get a used, complete armrest compartment. This is a challenging since most are sold with a complete center console, which includes cup holders and shifter bezel.

2) Replacement door tweeter/sail-panels. These things are always broken or break on Zs. New replacements can only be ordered with the OEM tweeter and the prices have gotten outrageous for them. This piece is a bit challenging to re-create, they're made of ABS plastic and have a smooth semi-gloss finish with a very fine texture. You won't be able to replicate that perfectly with a 3D printer, however you could get very close. Some finishing work in the form of sanding and paint could yield a very nice affordable replacement.

3) The hinged cover door for the passenger side 12V outlet. The plastic is very soft and the hinge-pin + assist spring tends to break through the plastic overtime.

4) The front lower windshield corner weatherstripping. This rubber molding rots away on all 350Zs leaving the corners of the cowling exposed. This molding can only be replaced by purchasing new A-pillar covers. I have yet to see aftermarket options addressing this. Perhaps a simple plastic cover can be 3D printed to give the same look as the original rubber. There are also flexible rubber/plastic 3D print media available now. The difficult part of this piece will be figuring out to securely attach the piece without making it permanent. It needs to be removeable with the cowling.

If I think of other bits, I'll post them. A buddy and me are working on a 3D printed "hatch cover/door" modification for the A/C Blower box to allow for an OEM style cabin filter. The idea is to make it as easy as possible to install and replace an OEM style cabin filter (reference filter P/Ns from 03 Altima) in the 350Z OEM blower box...WITHOUT having to remove the entire blower box from the vehicle.
Cheers!
-Icer