Let me start by saying that I am new to the site and I have been wanting a Z for a few years now. I've recently been trying to do some research and find the right one. I am getting rid of my turbo Honda show car to get the Z and it will be driven pretty limited. I started out looking for an 06 then thanks to this forum I found out about the oil consumption issues. Anyways, here is my story.
I find this 2003 350Z Track edition that has a little over 16000 miles on it at a dealership. I know they had some issues with synchronizers, feathering, and window motors, but this thing is decked out with an APS Twin Turbo kit, APS intake plenum, lightened flywheel, stage 2 clutch, Sparco Seats, Racing Hart 1 piece 19" wheels, Stoptech brake kit, you get the idea....decked out. The car is a 2 owner, the first owner built the car, then some doctor bought the car and put about 4000 miles on it. I fought with the guy at the dealer over the price for about three weeks and we finally agreed on a price. He tells me that the car is a 9 out of 10 on the exterior and that he took it for a drive and everything seems ok with it. He has all the receipts for the turbo kit, and the install and tuning at Gennesis Racing Development. The car was tuned at 9psi and he had slips of it making 393HP. I figured with 16000 miles on the car why not go for it. The parts on the car added up to around 20K. So I take off from work and drive 5 hrs to this dealership. I get there and it is 20 degrees out and they don't pull the car inside for me so I have to look it over in the cold. The car is black and has some noticable scratches on it. Looks like some dumb *** washed it with a brush at a car wash. Maybe a 7 out of 10 exterior. The sales guy has it started and tells me to take it for a spin. I hold my temper about the scratches and think I'll just drive it first. I sit down in the driver's side with my wife in the passenger side and immediately she starts complaining about the Sparco non reclining seats, but she says she can get used to it. Not like I didn't see that coming, but anyways, I baby the car out of the lot, then get on the main road and start to get into it a bit. Let me just say these Twin Turbo kits are amazing on these cars. This was one of the fastest cars I've been in. I would say it was on par with the acceleration of my 05 ZX10R. Wheelspin in 1st, 2nd, slightly in third, then just rolled really smooth into fourth. The power comes on so quick, not like my turbo honda that has a huge lag. So rolling in third I look at the boost gauge and this thing is pushing 15PSI...What the ****? They said the car had no internal work and it is pushing 15PSI?? I pull the car into a car wash to look it over and what do I see? Antifreeze gushing from the front bumper cover and spewing onto the underside of the hood. It was so cold out I couldn't tell exactly where it was coming from, but it looked like it was bubbling over at the aftermarket reservoir. I try to get it back to the dealer, and the ride back is terrible. The STOPTECH enormous brake kit that is on the car has been squealing the whole test drive, I figured they would clear out, but they never did. The belts are squealing from the coolant dripping on them and the car is running hot. I get it back and the guy tells me that maybe it had a bubble in the coolant to let them check it out. They take it in the back, add coolant and tell me it was probably just a bubble. Yeah right, it is 20 degrees out and the car is running hot as hell...something is wrong. I tell him about the 15PSI and ask him to show me some paperwork for internals and he says it didn't have any motor work that he knew of. I didn't take the car and drove 5 hrs back home sick to my stomach. I am sure the douche bag that bought the car cranked the boost up and didn't have it tuned or have the engine built. I bet the original owner of the car would be sick if he knew what had happened. If I had any idea of how long it was driven like that I would get it anyway and turn the boost back down, but who knows? 4000 miles at 15PSI on stock internals with the APS twin turbo kit? It makes me so S I C K. I haven't been able to sleep for the past few nights thinking about it. Its like finding a unicorn and seeing someone shoot it.

 

 

TL;DR

I'm shocked that any respectable dealer would even touch a highly modded car like that.

 

I thought the same thing. Dealers usually avoid those kinds of messes.

 

Wise decision, but damn, yea, I understand, the unicorn analogy nailed it.

 

sounds like a great way to fool some people ! "look dad a turboed 350z i want it" lol

 

^yea, some dumb *** at the dealer probably cranked the PSI "that'll get it off the lot quick"

 

man what a bummer. your analogy is spot on.

hope you can find something even remotely comparable. non f/i cars boosted are always a gamble though, dealership, private party.. doesn't matter.

 

Yeah, the dealer said they were selling the car for a friend of the general manager. They were offering me financing thru the dealership and everything. When I called them on the way there to ask them to change the oil with mobil 1 synthetic before I picked it up since I had to drive it home 5 hrs and wasn't sure how recent it was changed, they said that their service department didn't want to work on it. This was after I was approved on the loan and they knew I was driving 5hrs to see it. I should have seen that red flag before driving 5 hours. How do you destroy a creation like this?

http://www.communityford.net/2003-Ni...lis/vd/5922663

This is a link to the dealer and the car for sale. Maybe I can save someone else on the site from making the mistake. I would just like to thank everyone on the forum for supplying me with enough knowledge about these cars to not go for the bait! Hopefully I can find the right one for me out there somewhere.

 

Looks like a nice car. Your issue sounds like the heads lifted, if the coolant tank overflows it maybe caused by the cylinder pressure pushing the coolant out of the system.

 

This.

 

Hopefully it will only require new head gaskets and turn the boost down to 7-10psi.

 

instead of wasting your time at dealerships for a modded Z, why not support our members and check out our for sale threads
https://my350z.com/forum/cars-for-sale-81/

 

For the right price i would still buy it. Not a dime over $11k , and if it was running perfect, nothing over $12k.

 

f the dealerships, not a whole lot of good news comes out of there

 

I've never been a fan of buying something that is already built, because I like doing the work myself. I just came across this one and thought it was nice. I'm just going to move on and find something stock with low miles. I am looking now at an 05 Roadster loaded with 17K on it in gray or an 08 San Marino blue coupe base model with 18K for the same price. I really can't decide to go convertible or get the coupe for some reason. I know I will eventually try to turbo it so thats why I am kinda leaning towards the 05. I should be able to get a decent deal on a used setup from someone on here going with the 05, but the kits for the 08 are still too pricey. Are you guys with the HR motors pretty satisfied with the power you are making with just intakes and exhaust? I drove an 06 roadster bone stock and it pulled pretty well, but I haven't driven the 07 or 08 with the HR motors. The coupe is Nissan Certified so it has the 100K powertrain warranty which is pretty nice too.

 

Why do people even bother to look for used vehicles at dealerships?

 

well at least you got to drive a turbo z before owning one lol,and what a crappy a$$ vid he made for that z lol,just the way he talked on there made me hate the car,i hate salesman,just covering poop all the time,i can smell him from here lol

 

The hr motors make around 300whp with bolt ons and tune which isn't bad but if your set on boosting it cheaper to get a de

 

that dealership should've known what was on their hands when they placed it on their lot. good thing you exposed all the defects during your test drive. good luck selling that thing.