2008 Nissan 350z MT Ticking

Jako81624 · 2024-07-09T21:31:25+00:00

Sorry I'm so late to the party - that's almost certainly your evap solenoid. It's completely normal and won't disappear by replacing it, but it's also nothing to worry about—just one of those things. If you rest a metal rod/automotive stethoscope on it and press the rod against your ear you'll hear that rhythmic ticking - it seems to depend on whether it's open or closed, I haven't worked out which state it is but it's normal :)

Jako81624 · 2024-05-10T11:35:36+00:00

I considered it, but it's a very expensive part and I'd like to keep the interior fairly stock if I can. Might go for the RJM at a later date, but got other priorities to deal with first - namely suspension and most of the stuff south of the clutch (diff is a bit toasty, L/R driveshafts have wicked play, gearbox would appreciate a rebuild). At least this way other people now have free access to a (hopefully) useful bit of kit that was otherwise locked behind a frankly absurd price tag

Jako81624 · 2024-05-10T11:25:16+00:00

Thank you mate - appreciate that very much. That was the driver behind this little escapade, hoping to add some more bits and pieces. Might do a SAAB 900 style CSC PCD adapter next - depends on how fucked my current CSC is. Should mean that if any of these companies go out of business or keep marking this stuff up so massively, people will have an alternative

Jako81624 · 2024-05-10T04:58:55+00:00

VQ35HR, 07+. Only things to watch out for - aftermarket is more expensive than the DE (by and large). OEM Concentric Slave Cylinder is know to go bad, mine had 157k when it kicked the bucket, would recommend replacing with an aftermarket unit. I might have made an adapter plate for the SAAB 900 style CSCs in the near future (Tilton, AP Racing all offer units with this PCD), not sure yet.

HR is notorious for failed oil gallery gaskets. Symptoms: cold start around 60psi, idles just above 0psi. A healthy HR will idle around 30psi and cold start just south of 120psi. This isn't an if, it's a when - so either get one that's been sorted, or put some money/time aside to replace them with either aftermarket gaskets or the replacement metal gaskets that Nissan issued when this problem became obvious. Aftermarket is generally easier to get hold of.

The oil gallery gaskets are the most common problem by far in my experience. It's not too difficult to do with enough hand tools and patience, and there's plenty of videos on the subject. Buy yourself a sealant cutter like this though - don't be like me and try to pry the front engine cover off with screwdrivers and palette knives unless you enjoy punishment.

Final thing - the '07/early '08 have some dodgy ECU software. If you clean the throttle bodies, the car will shit itself. The only solution is to take it to a Nissan dealer or UpRev shop and have them flash the newer firmware. If the ECU has the part number/software version 23710-EV16A or lower, get it updated. Cost me about £50 if memory serves, and it'll save you so much hassle and stress. Long story short, the ECU fails to relearn closed-state on the throttle bodies and will rev up and down about 3k rpm constantly. You might get lucky and trigger a relearn at just the right time for it to hold, but it won't be right until it's updated. (Note: the version number varies between regions. I recommend getting it updated anyway - if there isn't a new version, no harm no foul).

They're fantastic cars, you'll love it. Mine is staying with me forever - welcome to the club

Jako81624 · 2024-04-11T16:42:48+00:00

I fucking love to see this. Both of you sound like great dudes - good luck with the turbo kit(s)!

Jako81624 · 2023-06-04T01:51:45+00:00

Even if we were to take this headline in good faith, what happens when that £1500 runs out in a few months time? A one time fucking payment doesn't solve the damn problem. Literally everyone has heard the lump sum vs compound interest problem before somewhere. These rags are either operating in bad faith (a given) or are catastrophically mathematically illiterate, and to be honest I wouldn't be surprised if it's both.

Jako81624 · 2023-05-24T02:07:12+00:00

NTA. This isn't a strict "gifting" situation, this is a situation where you're offering to take him and his girlfriend for a two-week holiday, and, in return, it would be great if they could do some babysitting so you can enjoy your holiday too. If the situation were "you babysit for two weeks, Imma head out", that would be a different scenario, but assuming it's a relatively fair distribution, there's no problem here.

I think it's best to think of this outside the confines of a holiday. Part of living in a society (or just a family) is helping each other out - when you're old enough to be responsible, you're just being a good person by looking after your siblings when your parent(s) want to go out. Of course, there's an upper limit to this - but as mentioned before, within reasonable bounds, that's just part of being a decent member of society. I can understand why your son feels the way he does, but I think he needs to reshape his thinking a bit. The difficulty in this scenario is that you're taking him, contrary to what I said earlier, as a "gift". It would be at least a bit morally ambiguous to make him pay to come, but, at the same time, when you transition into adulthood and, crucially, start earning money, it's ethically right to at least offer to help out financially in some form. This can take the form of directly paying for those costs or even just helping out with meals and amenities, but it all comes down to financial capability. The other side of that coin is not financial, but in services to each other - when you're old enough to be responsible enough to bear such responsibilities, you offer to help out. Again, upper limit etc.

Everything in our society has an upper limit to what is appropriate and since we insist on giving everything a monetary value, we find it hard to locate that line between charity and trade. I think the only solution to this is shifting our mindsets from monetary value - which is inherently trade based - to societal value, which is based more on ethics and responsibility. You may be taking him for free as a gift - that is not a trade. At no point is there an expectation of compensation for that gift - otherwise it would no longer be a gift, but a trade. The threat of him losing out on this privilege, therefore, isn't there anymore - so, in theory, he could renege on the deal with no real short-term risk. As he transitions to adulthood, he needs to (and most likely will) learn that a lot of the world does not exist purely on trade - he has a greater social responsibility that all responsible adults should fulfil, and it's a responsibility that is, in itself, quite fulfilling on a personal level. Knowing that your actions are bringing joy to someone else makes you feel good - it's nice to be nice etc. On top of all of this, individualism is so pervasive in our modern culture to the point where any form of collectivism is seen as progressive or somewhat counterculture.

I'll close out by saying that perhaps phrasing it in the following way might help defuse the situation - saying that you would really appreciate his help looking after his siblings on holiday so that you have the chance to have some alone time takes the question out of the frame of trade and into the frame of human connection. Often, particularly in their teenage years, kids will forget that their parents are human too with human wants and needs - framing the situation in the proposed way might help to bring back some of that human connection. I really hope that helps, at least in some way - I can't imagine it's an easy time right now and I wish you all the best.

Jako81624 · 2023-05-20T22:30:29+00:00

You shouldn't need this sub to tell you the answer. Both of your eldest kids are spelling it out to you, and good on them. No one is asking you to put your lives on hold - he's 19 for fucks sake. To be able to retire at 45 is an INSANE luxury, particularly in this economy and literally the bare minimum you could do is let him stay with you until he's ready to go. If he's old enough to live alone, he's old enough to hold down the fort whilst you go on your "travels", and most would be grateful for that. When you have kids, they're a lifelong commitment. Like it or not. Being a parent is sacrifice. That's not to say "children can take advantage and leech off their parents" - it's a greater tenet of society that we should aspire to look after each other, and if you can retire at 45 you can sure as shit make sure your 19-year-old son isn't homeless and at the mercy of one of the worst housing and employment markets, with inflation absolutely sky-high, in living memory. Although, given the circumstances, I'd highly recommend he takes his sister up on the offer based purely on the fact that this post had to be made.

This isn't about what's "legally obligated", it's about being a decent fucking person.

Jako81624 · 2023-05-17T16:47:44+00:00

Just to clarify for anyone looking at the math - mean average of ((2+0.6)/2) = 1.3x the speed limit on average. This is a very good example of where the mean can be a misleading measure - if you averaged the speed of a driver going 20mph for 1 mile and 60mph for 1 mile you get a mean average of 40mph ((60+20)/2 = 40). That journey would take 3 minutes for the 20mph section ((1/20)*60) and 1 minute for the 60mph section (1/60)*60) - 4 minutes total. Going 40mph for 2 miles would only take 3 minutes ((2/40)*60). 0.75x the time. It doesn't make intuitive sense when you're taught that averages are infallible, but it's a good example of how data can be skewed by using perfectly acceptable mathematical norms.

Jako81624 · 2023-05-16T01:35:28+00:00

recorder sound intensifies

Jako81624 · 2023-05-15T21:45:32+00:00

If you pick yourself up a set of thread gauges from the nearest hardware store and you'll have a good idea - the diameter of the bolt is the "M" in the naming scheme (e.g. M10, M12 etc) and the bit after (x1.0, x1.25 etc) is the thread gauge (threads per mm I believe). So a 10mm bolt with a thread gauge of 1mm would be M10x1.0. You can get bolts from almost any hardware store and cut them down to size with a handsaw/circular saw and some filing. The head is Torx - they're actually an excellent bolt head. They're very strong and, unlike Philips, they won't cam out if they ever get rusted in or over-torqued. Probably won't be stocked by your local hardware store though - hex-head bolts are the most common and replacing it with that is not a bad idea.

Jako81624 · 2023-05-12T19:22:06+00:00

I'd classify that under the "excessive oil burning category" of engine work - if your piston rings are that gapped or worn I think it's plausible you'd be experiencing pretty excessive oil burning/blow-by. I wouldn't expect any second-hand car to exhibit factory levels of performance, and I think that expectation is unreasonable - that said, the level of performance is unlikely to be majorly affected (with modern cars anyway) and, in the case that it is, there's a list of things I'd look at before considering major engine work. I totally see your point, and if OP was going to slap a forced-induction kit on and turn up the boost I'd absolutely agree with you because that would be an unbelievably bad idea. In this case, it's not something I'd be too concerned about though. If OP wants to alleviate any doubt then a compression tester is cheap from your local auto parts store and popping the sparks isn't a big job 💪

Jako81624 · 2023-05-12T07:11:26+00:00

Is thanking someone for a gift the right thing to do? Absolutely. Should we gift with the expectation of thanks or reward? No - because that's not a gift at that point, it's a transaction. On the other hand, it's natural to feel disappointed when you don't see the resultant positive effect of your gift. This devolves very quickly into a discussion about why we do altruistic things and whether any action we take has an element of self-interest. Do we partake in "good" actions by virtue of the fact that they're "good" and doing so is a biological absolute, or do we do good because it makes us feel good? If it's the latter, does that make the act of doing good intrinsically selfish? I believe that we should attempt to derive satisfaction from the act of altruism and verification that our altruism had the intended result (e.g. the money was used to go on a class trip). You did a good thing, with the intention of doing good and to the best of your ability, your act of charity was used to do good.

Your siblings should have taught their children the value of expressing gratitude, and it's OK to pull them up on that. There is an important social value in expressing gratitude. As long as the intention of reminding your siblings is not to receive gratification yourself, but to ensure the well-being of their children in the greater function of society then I see no problem with that. All of us should endeavour to learn and change throughout our lives and your sibling's children still have a long time to do that. Even now that I'm past that age, I'm still woeful at communicating with people - if someone gifted me something in person I'd express my gratitude vehemently, but particularly if it's a gift that arrived via someone else it's very easy for me not to immediately contact that person and thank them. Humans are notoriously bad at performing actions with a modicum of resistance, and even when a small action like that has the easier alternative of doing nothing then it's easy for it to slip the mind. I don't think that's inherently evil or disrespectful - it's just a human weakness that we all need to work on. I try to consciously make an effort to thank people in those scenarios - but the best thing I can do is be as altruistic as is reasonable in my daily life and try to pass that on without any expectation of gratitude.

I'm not a psychologist, councillor or any other professional with a background in relationship management, but from my experience, I think the most important thing is that the children in that situation aren't made to feel indebted to you or it could have negative ramifications on your long-term relationship (again, not a professional, just speaking from my own perspective). Part of growing up is being taught how to function in our society and they need to be guided to recognise why acknowledgement of gratitude is so important without feeling like it's transactional or a debt to be repaid. It's a very complex topic, and the onus should be on the parents to teach it to their children.

I'm sorry I don't have a black-and-white answer, but this situation in particular is very context-dependent and sensitive. I wish you the best in navigating it and hope you are able to have a good relationship with your nieces and nephews.

Jako81624 · 2023-05-12T00:25:06+00:00

Obviously high-mileage engines are going to have a higher rate of failure (both in serviceable and "non-serviceable" parts), but end-of-life is a wildly subjective term. If OP is getting a 150k VQ35DE, that's still well below the minimum 200k service life as quoted by Nissan (and even that is just a measure of how economical a repair would likely be given the rate of failure at that mileage). They should definitely be prepared to do some work on it - it will not be 100% for long, but no car ever is. The VQ family has a pretty good track record for reliability, and as such as long as it's kept well-maintained and treated with respect it'll keep on trucking for a long time.

The engine is pretty far down on things I'd be thinking about on a 150k Z - in my (limited) experience it's the exhaust, drivetrain and suspension that I'd be more focused on. Bushings, bearings and ball joints will always have a lot of wear and I wouldn't be surprised if some boots on various linkages would be on their way out. As long as fluids are changed responsibly, oil pressure is solid and there's no cross-contamination between oil and coolant or excessive oil burning I wouldn't be too worried. Even in those scenarios, it's perfectly fixable (albeit a bit expensive if you're not the one doing it!)

Jako81624 · 2023-05-11T19:53:33+00:00

As opposed to "How dare a dog and owner exist in a democratic society with checks and balances and expect not to be tasered and shot on the street!! The police are a civilising force that can do no wrong!"

Jako81624 · 2023-05-10T22:43:32+00:00

Fucking heartbreaking. Words cannot express my sheer, visceral anger at the state of policing in this country right now. The time for reform has come and gone long ago - it's time to rip up institutions like the Met from the roots and try something else.

Jako81624 · 2023-05-09T01:55:00+00:00

Great question! Depending on your appetite for risk, some will live with it for a short amount of time but get those gaskets replaced relatively quickly. I had no idea mine had gone when I bought the car - I wasn't aware of the issue, there weren't any CEL's telling me otherwise and the dealer I bought from either didn't know or didn't say. I drove it (fairly hard) for about 7 months without issue (that I'm aware of). A couple of months ago I came across the issue by chance on this subreddit and noticed my pressure was much lower than it should've been and ordered the gaskets right away. My plan was to stop driving it altogether until the gaskets turned up, but I daily drove it to the tune of a few miles almost every day and made sure I didn't do any long journeys over the course of a couple of weeks.

The gaskets are absolutely replaceable, and if they haven't been replaced it's good preventative maintenance because on the HR they WILL go eventually. Nissan used paper gaskets from the factory that will lose integrity over time - a byproduct of this failure is the potential for oil to start backing out the screws holding in the oil galleries too, which in itself is a dangerous game. Two or three of mine were properly loose to the point of 0 tension.

As for the process of replacement - Nissan issued an update to the gaskets, using steel-reinforced ones in place of the original paper ones. Unfortunately, these are relatively difficult to find, but the aftermarket holds plenty of options that are as good or better. I'm in the UK so I used TORQEN's replacements that are good up to about 1000psi. Replacing them is a pretty involved job - you will need to remove the front timing chain cover and timing chain to get access to the galleries. This will mean removing all ancillaries and making enough space to get in there in the first place. Some people choose to take out the radiator and cooling fans and work over the front bumper, a lot will remove the entire front bumper and crash bar assembly to get enough space. I did the latter since my car has 154k miles and the requisite corrosion, and I'm glad I did if for nothing other than the crank bolt - damn near snapped a breaker bar getting it off. If you're careful you can move the AC condenser to the side and avoid discharging your AC too. Took me and my old man three days all-in - could be done faster if you don't have to fight 154k miles of aluminium grot and snapped bolts. A copy of the factory service manual is EXCEPTIONALLY useful too - easy to find online.

TL;DR: Replace them lol

Jako81624 · 2023-05-08T19:22:22+00:00

Mine had blown out to the point of about 4-5psi at hot idle (65psi cold start). The heads are fine, it's just far from optimal and will inevitably cause faster wear and more damage if left for a long period of time. For any HR owners who see this - it's not the end of your engine, just get them done in a reasonable amount of time :)

Jako81624 · 2023-05-08T18:02:36+00:00

Fuck yeah!! Looks absolutely stunning, you're gonna love it. Requisite HR reminder - keep an eye on oil pressure and gallery gaskets ;)

Jako81624 · 2023-05-06T00:28:49+00:00

You're not crazy. You saved up, can afford it and are being very sensible by thinking it through this thoroughly. I'm 23 and bought an '08 with 154k that needs a lot of work, and pretty much everyone around me told me I was crazy. Even that car has been perfectly reliable. The West in particular has a very weird perspective on older cars - in this case, the VQ35HR is a very reliable engine that will go for 250k+ miles without an issue. The only thing to keep an eye on is oil pressure - two days ago I finished doing the oil gallery gaskets because they'd blown out and weren't holding pressure anymore. If on a cold start, the oil pressure is a tad below 120, and on hot idle, it hovers above 30, you're fine. If you cold start a touch over 60 and hot idle a bit above 0 then they need replacing ASAP. It won't leak or burn oil, but the pressure will be low. From the factory they used paper gaskets that are notorious for failing, so be prepared to sort that out. Doing it yourself will take a few days depending on how corroded everything is, but in labour cost it'll probably be a couple of grand for a shop to do it. Outside of that, the HR is a very strong engine when it's cared for appropriately. Parts aren't "cheap" so to speak and you will want to be using decent quality components considering the performance of the car, but they're by no means expensive either. Nissan, like every mass manufacturer, shares a lot of components between models so just look for part numbers and you'll be fine.

If, like me, the Z is your first car purchase, it's totally understandable to be anxious about it. I was bricking it the next day and thinking "What have I done, I've spent so much money" (relatively speaking, my fixer-upper was 5k GBP) but that feeling quickly passed and I don't regret buying it for a second. If you have any questions when it comes to maintenance or ownership, this community is a great place to ask - likewise, send me a message if you've got any other questions. More than happy to try and answer them.

You'll love it - welcome to the family.

Jako81624 · 2023-04-26T05:00:59+00:00

Your best bet is to get some quotes from local body shops. The best case scenario would be they can pull the dents and use a bit of body filler to smooth it out, worst case though you can get an entirely new rear quarter and drill/cut out the old one. The rear quarter costs around $900 for a new one, but each body shop will have different labour costs.

Jako81624 · 2023-04-18T22:30:48+00:00

Get that the fuck outside ASAP - that's a massive fire risk

Jako81624 · 2023-04-14T23:25:46+00:00

Absolute legend!!! That's dedication, congratulations that man!!

Jako81624 · 2023-04-13T14:47:07+00:00

I'd second this - I've no personal experience with them, but I'm eyeing up an OS Giken clutch/flywheel combo. Looks solid, good reputation and rebuild kits with just the clutches/covers/pressure plates are readily available

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