Okay I just bought a 350Z and I cant help but think I made the wrong decision. All I read on these forums are people blowing engines, having tranny problems, and other issues. I bought this 350z to replace my 97 M3 which is currently in the paper and running perfectly, reason selling is too many miles. The M3 was just as fast. I was thinking about getting a 01+ M3 E46 but since my roommate works for nissan he convinced me to get the 350z. The 350 does not have enough stock power for me. I got a roadster and i believe they run about a 14.0 or 14.1 1/4 mile and I need better times. My 97 M3 ran a 13.9 w/ intake alone and the new m3's runs 13.3-13.4 in the 1/4. All in all I am worried that i made the wrong decision due to the fact that the only mods I am willing to do on the 350 are twin turbo or SC and both of them void the warrenty and I am pretty sure my tranny will need to be replaced sometime soon which sounds expensive if nissan is not paying for it. My car only has 1260 miles on it and I am seeing weather I should go all out and do Twin Turbo in a few thousand miles or just sell the car in a year and get something else. Btw, I would be getting the Greddy kit because I can get it for a very cheap price. I just dont want to deal with a lot of headache and engine problems. Anyways I am rambling, any input is appreciated. Thanks.

 

Rebuilt the engine 1st then buy then Greddy Kit

 

I went from a highly tuned Audi S4 to my Z roadster. I accepted the fact that the car was going to be somewhat slower. The handling, overall feel and topless factor make up for the loss in power for me, and therefore, the overall fun factor in this car was increased. Still...Power is power and it is VERY addictive. I am in the process of getting the HKS supercharger installed. It is a fully tuned, moderate power (relatively speaking) system. Reliability is going to be impaired to some degree anytime you do serious aftermarket mods to a car. Still, from what is out there, I felt this to be the safest option without internal engine mods.

Do a search on all the sytems out there, then decide. Don't jump to Greddy.

In my opinion, it is one of the least safe and least well designed "out of the box" systems. It is a good place to start to build a super high power motor with internal engine mods and a lot of tweaking and tuning. It really comes down to your goals for the car and how much risk you are willing to take. The fact is that an E46 M3 convertible is about 0.5sec faster to 60, and quicker in the 1/4 mile. The price is also $24,000 higher than a Z. I took a serious look at the M3, but for me the price was not justified over the Z for what I got.

Bottom line is this.... fully educate youself first. Don't make a hasty decision, but don't be afraid of it either. YOU WILL ALSO HEAR ABOUT FAILURES A LOT MORE THAN SUCCESSES. After all, nobody is going to get onto a website and post..."hey! my engine DIDN'T break today!!!"

Also, make sure you have a reliable tuner nearby to service your car. This may ultimately be the biggest factor of all. If you have experienced tuners that are easily accessible to help if things aren't working perfectly, that is half your worry gone right there.

 

I was acctually going to get a m3 coupe around 02 model which would cost about 40k same as roadster. I get what you are saying and I will do some more research, I have been checking out the vortech kit but the main reason I was going w/ greddy is because I love turbo and I can get the kit about 1600 less than MSRP but I definitely do not want a unreliable car being that this will be my everyday driver.(except for during snow time I am buying a cheap 700 dollar car to preserve the z's paint.)

 

My advise is to save up $15000 and do the entire build right from the start. $10K is a rough estimate for a Greddy TT kit, installation, guages, and basic tuning, fuel pump, etc. Roughly $5000K is the cost of new pistons and rods, engine machining and assembly, and engine removal and replacement. Then you'll have a 550whp safe monster than few cars can touch.

 

IMO :
Rebuilt the engine 1st then buy then APS Kit

 

At Infineon, I went against an instructor-driven E46, and I kept up very well. I gained on him each corner. On the straights the M3 was a bit faster, but since I had higher exit speed out of the corners, it made up for it. Up until now, I always drooled over M3s, but the 3600lbs doesn't help that thing around turns and sweepers.

Not very impressed with the M3.

 

The APS TT will run on stock internals quite safely at 7psi if tuned CORRECTLY and running on (at minimum) 91 fuel, stock cats and the standard rev limit's (6600rpm).

David

 

APS kit is way too expensive for me. The greddy I can get for a hell of a deal. Can I daily drive my 350z w/ a greddy tt kit at stock boost w/ stock internals?

 

Sure if you don't care about driving around witoout a front bumper beam. Also note that a Greddy sytem is a PITA to install and will cost more for instalationl when compared to either an APS or PE system. Unless you intend to self install.

 

Dont buy the Greddy if you are tyring to save money. Becuase once you add up some of the extras that arent included in the basic Greddy kit, you should have just bought the APS kit. Yeah, its $2000 more than a greddy kit, but you get soooooo much more. And you'll probably save $500 or so on installation.

And this is coming from a very happy Greddy TT owner!

I am reserving full endorsement of the APS kit until I see some US dynojetted dyno charts from several owners.

 

The two key points you mentioned in your post is you want more power and you want to make sure you dont blow your engine up. At the point, the only SC or TT set up that has a warranty (and even carb legal) is the Stillen SC. If it blows up, you got a warrranty. Spend a lot of time reading posts on FI. You will see some people have blown motors at low boost and proper tuning. In other words, going FI on this motor has risk. The Stillen is as cheap as any, with warranty. Many dont like the hood.

Basically if you dont take that option, you are voiding any drivetrain warranty so either go N/A, stay stock, take a risk with other FI set ups, or sell it.

I am not knocking any other I set up, just addressing your question. You ask for reliabiity and performance in FI setup. At this pont, ll other set ups have the consumer assuming the risk the moment you install the FI set up.

Good luck, Jeff

 

Yes you can. Out of the box with nothing else beside a quality install it is not a problem. Of course extra toys are nice however they are not required.

Greddy has sold over one thousand of these. Alot of the owners are not on the forums, every system has issues though. Most of the Greddy issues have been worked out. Once you turn up the boost it's a new game, make you know what you're doing.

These are my opinions based on my experience with my kit and my background. I'm sure others on here think otherwise.
Gary

 

Any car will have issues to be addressed when installing a big upgrade like a turbo or a supercharger. Also, it is not a fair comparison to pit a brand new 04 350z Roadster to a used 02 BMW. There are plenty of issues with the BMWs block as well (someone had a link to a forum about some big recall on M3 motors). Fact of the matter is F/I will lower reliability but by how much is up to a variety of factors:

1) Turbo Vs. Supercharger
In my opinion, a SC will produce less stress on the engine and therefore be more reliable. The power is gained smoothly thoughout the powerband. But, you dont have the same HP potential as a TT setup.

2) Weak Links
From reading these boards I have learned an important thing: Rods are the weak link in the VQ35DE (350z Block). I saw a group buy on Pauter Forged Rods and Arias Pistons for like $1600... not a bad deal.

3) Installation
Make sure you look around for a reputable shop in your area, one that specializes in forced induction. I goto a shop down here, Dynamic Turbo, and I know all the guys by name... They do great work. When it doubt check the better business bureau. Or, If you are really serious goto a car show (Hot Import Nights, Tuner Bash, etc) and look at FI cars, ask the owners who did the install and how they like it.

4) Driving Habits
If every red light is going to turn into the final lap at Le Mans your car wont last as long as someone who uses their FI more conservatively and "picks their battles". Also, remember, as with any car the faster you go the more you need. Dont neglect a good brake setup, reinforced tranny, etc.

5) 350z Problems
So far, I have had no engine/drivetrain problems with my Z (22k miles). I have had a few electrical problems such as the window motors getting stuck... But, that's it. It all comes down to the luck of the draw. Some baby their Zs only to have em take a crap for no reason at all while some put on a TT kit at 12 psi on a stock motor and have driven it for over 20k miles. Imo, you should drive your car around without FI for a few months to see if any problems develop that wouldn't be the fault of the FI.