Hello,

I am planning on getting the 2003 Touring, in about 2 weeks. Then I began to read up on the car. I started seeing threads galore about tire wear. Then more and more I read about it, the more nervous I am about getting the car. I really love the way the car looks and feels. I have test drove it already, but I dont wana have to spend extra money on tires that wear out in like 6k-8k. Then I hear alot about Nissan's attempt to fix the problem, then the problem comes back. Is they're no way to fix this problem? I understand just keep getting alignments sure. But alighments can get thrown off so easy, hard turns, the wonderful bumping the curb etc.... Gettign alignments constantly would be time consuming. Please tell me they're is a fix to this problem. I dont want to have to get a different car.

Thanks,
Scott

 

i was told from many people after they install aftermarket wheels and springs their problems go away

 

Dont quite understand that one. When you put springs on it messes up your camber settings. Matters the drop, if its about an inch then you will still close to oem specs, but once you go past that it requires a camber kit. So basically buy a new camber kit and I'll be good is what your saying? I still dont know ive heard people say that they did that and still problems ocurred.

 

im just going by what i heard...i have a 06 with 22k and normal tire wear...but many of my friends have told me they dropped the car.. put a camber kit and aftermarket wheels and tires and everyone was happy

 

I guess I'll give it a shot. I really want a newer one but if i got a new one I cant turbo it for another 2 years. But sure I'll give that a try. Do I have to get bigger wheel sizes or can I keep them same wheel sizes? Explain in detail so I know what to buy.

 

the inner tire wear issue is something indicative of any sports car with an aggresive alignment setup such as the 350z. this problem was somewhat more pronouced with the 03-04 models because of the soft compound of the OEM RE40 ponteza tires. now if you get an alignment and some higher tread wear tires then you should be fine, while keeping in mind that this IS a sports car and thus more inclined to tire wear and this will of course be more pronounced if you drive the car hard. if you want to be safer then just buy a camber kit. I had some fairly aggresive tire wear on my stock tires (bald on the inner part of the tire after 10k miles of easy driving), but after getting an alignment and changing out to different rims with kumho mx tires I've had no problems and I'm at about 15k miles on the new tires (even with tein springs).

 

Summit Point, WV. 05/27/05


Cecil County Dragway, Rising Sun, MD. 04/30/06


Ripken Stadium, Aberdeen, MD. 06/17/06

Get yourself a 350Z and drive that bad boy!


Or get yourself some reliable transportation.

 

If you're worried about reliability, buy a car that has a warranty. If the 2003 Touring you're looking at does not have enough warranty left, get a certified pre-owned Z or BUY A NEW ONE

Tire wear is not a big issue. Get an alignment when you get the car, then check for wear periodically. If the tires are wearing unevenly, they can be flipped according to these instructions:

click here
https://my350z.com/forum/brakes-and-suspension-diy/137762-how-to-rotate-staggered-directional-tires.html

 

I guess I will have to now. Is autocross fun in a 350z? But yeah I will have to grab mine i found Z Track for sale for 23k with 27k. So I will probabbly get that one. Any other tires good on the Z. Like Nitto, Goodyear Eagles, uh..... Any others that you guys have good expirences with?

 

I dont care to much about the whole "reliability" It's the time im in the shops is what I dont want. Id rather be out having some fun then sitting waiting in line to get tires put on every 4-5 months.

 

You'll have plenty of fun. Do what I said and you'll be fine with regards to tire wear. (The biggest complaint about tire feathering was the NOISE, not the amount of tread remaining)

Now go buy your Z, and post pics in the "New Owners" forum

reminder:

 

The tire feathering on the inside tread was also due to the front wheels toe-in under hard deceleration. A common solution is to go with wider tires up front. My 03 Performance had stock Bridgestone OE040 225/45 18" and the noise was terrible at 8k miles. I swapped them for Nitto 555 245/40 18" and have put 27k miles on them before i started to hydroplan due to the low tread. I went back and got the exact same tire. My car has 61k miles and im very happy on my 2nd set of Nitto 555 245/40 18's.

Edit: that should have been 555 and not 555R.

 

Yeah, I have 22k miles on my Nitto 555's and things are fine. 245/40 and 275/40-18.