Z owners:

As some of you may know I've been keeping you up to date on my whole tires issue with the wrong type tires were sent to the dealership twice. Well, the tires were replaced on Saturday and as soon as I drove off the lot the "right" drifting has returned even after the right control arm was replaced back in August. While driving, the car wants to pull to the right and my wheel is not straight. The dealership claims they replaced the front tires and re-aligned the Z. Yes, the road noise is all but gone from the front, now the noise is coming from the rear tires. They must have been cupped all along, just not as loud as the fronts.

So here's the good part - for the past 4 weeks, I've had the BBB involved with a BBB case #. They informed NNA today that the Z was still not fixed and they are on notice that I have entered the Lemon Law process which in the state of Florida follows the BBB process. The BBB is issuing a letter stating that the car has not been fixed after (8) visits. NNA has elected to try and fix the Z one last time within 15 days of receiving my official Lemon Law letter. The BBB stated that I've had a case since August, but I continued to try and get the Z fixed, each time NNA was digging a hole under themselves. I really hated to do this, but I had no other option.

NNA's 15 days starts Monday.


I'll keep everyone posted.

 

Well, my Z is up on the rack as we speak getting new Bridgestones and the updated TSB performed. According to the service manager the new TSB has different camber specifications. I'm going to ask a few questions when I pick it up to see if I can get more details.

I plan on taking the car out tonight for some controlled experiments (VDC off) to see if understeer is more pronounced. Testing understeer.... this could be interesting. Ideas?

 

Interesting since camber is not adjustable without aftermarket parts.

 

Looks like Nissan should be busy making camber kits for the Zs that are out of order. Toyota supplied them to owners of late 80's and early 90's Camrys when they couldn't be aligned properly. Anyone have any first-hand experience with them? I got this second hand.

 

ANy one on the West Coast have the NNA Techs from Japan look at their cars yet? I thought they were starting on the 2nd.

 

I just got my car back this morning after the Nissan engineers had a look at it yesterday. They indicated that my feathering problem was due to excessive toe-out, realigned the car, and replaced the front tires.

Interestingly enough, I did not request any specific fix, nor did I ask them to replace the tires. They simply did this on their own (after confirming with me that it was OK.)

Now, the car is much more quiet and furthermore feels substantially more stable, for want of a better way to put it. However, I imagine it will be a while before any news comes up on the feathering front again for me.

-- Mark

 

Do we have to take it to a special place to have NNA techs from japan take a look at our cars?

 

Apologies, my bad.

My service manager had left by the time I picked up my car, and the manager on duty confirmed this was just the toe adjustment. Looks like the person I was dealing with was blowing smoke.

The manager on duty also downloaded all of the newest TSB's from Nissan and didn't see anything new about the feathering issue. There was a TSB about the soft top on the roadster, don't know the details on that. (I just saw the summary print out)

So.... unless I see proof otherwise I'm skeptical about a new TSB.

 

kbsig106

keep us updated. I am pursuing the same path, so let us know the outcome.

maybe we should have a letter drawn up and signed by all 19 thousand plus my350.com members...

 

i'm 100% sure this issue has been noted at least.... I just read an article on it today in autoweek saying there is a TSB out for it, etc. well anywayz.... I wasn't gonna read all 1500 replies to this, but the article mentioned how they logged onto my350z.com and saw 1000+ posts about this topic and how Nissan realized it, etc.... i was surprised to see that my350z was actually mentioned in autoweek :-p

 

Quote from the January 2004 issue of Automobile's long term tester at 25,414 miles,"I find myself, exactly one year after first driving the Z, growing weary of it. The athleticism that is evident on a twisting two lane is missing in the workaday world of crowded streets and urban freeways. You know there's plenty of power and performance on tap, but the Z is a bodybuilder, not a long-distance runner. The weight, the bulk, and the mass of it are starting to feel slightly oppressive. I dunno, maybe I just need to drive it on a good road again".

This from an Associate editor after the car has come back from a successful cross country drive by another staff member. Their main offices are in Ann Arbor, Michigan, a pretty urbanized area. Seems he doesn't care much for the Z as a daily driver. I wonder why, he sure liked the BMW 645i Coupe at a curb weight of 3750+ lbs in Spain, 6MT included?

 

ENJOY THE RIDE - HA HA HA !!!! FUBAR ( F'd Beyon all Recognition )

Cheers Amy -

 

Sounds like same old fix to me. Who last performed the alignment?

 

I think this will be the final fix. Question is who will foot the bill?

 

Mark Wilkins:
I too had my alignment done and the tires replaced. The car will be fine for "a while", but watch the front end and tires closely. The problem may return again.
L

 

Pyscho,
I too saw the article in AutoWeek. The TSB they mention is the one that's been around for awhile.
L

 

How can you compare a 645i with a Z. You can buy two Z's for the price of one.

 

Well, my local dealer looked at my car and is saying the problem is too much toe out. They aligned the front end, and tried to order new tires. But, they're backordered and there is no word on when they will be available. Since my tires are ruined, and borderline acceptable to drive on, I'll be calling NNA to file a complaint and try to get a full set of alternative tires. It really doesn't seem like they're doing anything to fix the problem, only covering it up. Because of this, I will definitely pursue lemon law buyback when the time comes....

 

Word is Nissan engineers are checking on cars around the country. They know there is a problem and will solve it. I know a couple of board members have had their cars looked at.

 

Mine and aggie's are getting checked on 12-9 in Dallas. My guess is they are doing the toe in on the inspected cars to buy time while they inspect the suspension on the cars. Taking random samples across the country to see if there is a link (pun intended). At least I hope that is it.