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Nissan 300ZX Care and Maintenance

mrelaxedmrelaxed Member Posts: 1
in Nissan
Hi all!! im about to purchase a '92 or '93 300ZX. i absolutely love the car!! so im very excited. but im thinking what is the maintainance like? because the car wasnt made after '95.... are getting the spare parts hard? maintainance difficult? what kind of things should i check for before buying this car?

I'll appreciate all the help i can get!!!
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Comments

  • izrhazelizrhazel Member Posts: 2
    I absolutely love my car, but be sure you can work on it, or you have the funds necessary for upkeep...
    I have a 94 and a shop that loves working on it..
    Some things to watch for, if you got a convertible parts are almost impossible to get. The front end shock struts will cost you, I had mine replaced for about $700.
  • jnicelyjnicely Member Posts: 1
    I have a 93 300ZX NA and it seems I'm having injector trouble. I just replaced the #1 injector and now another miss is happening and I'm being told that the #4 injector needs replacing. Question is, should I replace all the rest while I got the intake off? Is there a new fuel rail I should look at putting on?
  • will1972will1972 Member Posts: 1
    i have a 85 300zx v6 non turbo 5 speed, and when i drive it, it will miss real bad, not all the time but most of the time, and also, sometimes it makes a ticking sound, but not all the time, and when it ticks only when it ticks, it lets out gas foul smoke out the tail pipe. what could be the problem, plugs? injectors? sensor? what? and in the dom light is lit up and it says sensor? any body know what could be wrong?
  • onebdmthronebdmthr Member Posts: 1
    can anyone tell me where to find a really good wire diagram for the ac heater unit?
  • eduardo3eduardo3 Member Posts: 1
    The nissan 300zx are easily maintained with regular maintenance.
    Check for engine noises, hard starts, and if the cars cuts off and stalls.
    If you smell oil, or see oil coming out around the tailpipes beware!
    Check to see if any lights come on, while you are inside the car with the gauges.
    Check the clutch, steering, and the brakes well, to make sure they work properly.
    Check to see if a maintenace schedule, has been done on the car aas well.
    You can get cheaper car parts for them, at the autowharehouse.com.
    They sell genuine parts at half the price, and they ship them out quickly.
    I own a 1985 nissan 300zx non turbo coupe 2 plus 2.
    I also own a 1994 twin turbo coupe with many upgrades.
    They are really great cars to have.
  • therealztherealz Member Posts: 2
    hi. i own a 1990 300zx twin turbo. and i smell oil after something like a highway drive. any suggestions? ideas?
  • therealztherealz Member Posts: 2
    any suggestions on what type of turbo to upgrade to? im not huge on cars but i love my Z.and am willing to put money into it. just dont know where to start.bassically i just need to keep up with those damn EVO's and STI's. i figure new upgraded turbos should do the trick.
  • z32chicz32chic Member Posts: 16
    I own a 1990 300zx non-turbo its having a hard time starting but it does start. when I give it gas it sputters like it has no power. That's the best way I can explain it. I put new spark plugs in. any suggestions?
  • sam87300sam87300 Member Posts: 1
    i also hav an 85 300 zx with the same problems did u figure out what was causing these problems mine has all the same problems. thanks for any information u can give me.
  • sudzo77sudzo77 Member Posts: 2
    Hey all - I just traded up an old beat up BMW for an 85 300zx 5 speed (non-turbo) and I love it. It's my daily driver to and from work which is 106 miles round trip and I averaged about 29 mpg at 70mph last week so I was doing the happy dance to find a fun car I like that is economical.

    That being said it's 23 years old with 156K miles and was treated less than great by it's prior owners. I figured I'd tell you all about an online store i used that had great parts availability and some of the best prices I've found yet - beats autowarehouse and those others I'd been using.

    I got my front brake disc's, wheel bearings and grease seals - brand new shipped to my house in 3 days for about $100. The place is call (AUTOHAUSAZ.COM). It's a good place to get OEM parts.

    I also just found an 86 2+2 5 speed for $700 that runs and drives - figure I'll pick that up and restore it.
  • neofliteneoflite Member Posts: 1
    Check your valve cover and see if there's oil that has been oozing out and accumulated- if so, this may cause the smell when it's hot, and 1) the easy fix- tighten the valve cover bolts (I believe this requires a hex wrench), then clean the entire area (and monitor it for any subsequent oozing)- and then give it the drive and sniff to see if problem solved; 2) if the oozing was the source of the smell and after cleaning it is still oozing, then it's the more complex job of replacing the gasket; 3) if not 1 and 2, it's something else, keep looking- if the smell is more like a gasoline odor, you had better ensure the fuel injector seals are not leaking, as this can cause an engine fire. Nissan has a factory recall on replacing the injectors/seals
  • joani1joani1 Member Posts: 9
    I bought this car from the original owner who had the car sitting in a barn for 11 years. It has 98,000 miles on it. I want to replace all the belts and hoses. How much should I expect to pay to have this done? BTW, it's a hot car and runs great!
  • beachbum11beachbum11 Member Posts: 1
    I have recently aquired a 1990 300 ZX 2+2 with 135,000 Miles. It hasn't moved since the year 2000. It has been sitting out doors in a salt air envourment. I am looking for a good price on a complete shop service and some advice on how to procede with the first start up. I am assuming the engine is relatively dry inside. I don't want to cause damage.The battery is dead. After a general cleaning of the engine compartment, my plan is this.
    1. Syphon out all the old gass I can.
    2. Remove spark plugs.
    3. Using an oil can, put some oil in the clyinders.
    4. Using Jumper cables, turn the engine over a fiew revolutions to get oil into the cylinders.
    5. Put in some new gas in the tank.
    While the jumper cables are connected determine if the fuel pump is running. If it is, procede to #6
    6. Change engine oil and filter.
    7. Clean and or change intake filter and air box..
    8. Check to see if there is spark. If so install new more modern and efficient spark plugs.
    9. Install a new heavy duty battery.
    10. Attempt to start the car and let idol, do not rev the engine. Let it run untill warm.
    11. turn off engine.
    12. Drain and replace engine coolent.
    13. Replace tires. They are dry and have cracked side side walls where the tires had gone flat.
    14. Change transmission fluid.
    15. After a couple of hundred miles change oil again.
    16. go through systems to determine if all systems are functional.
    ( Repair and or replace parts as needed as plan evolves.)
    ( Replace engine drive belts.)
    Then off to the body shop for a paint job.

    I had a newer Z than this some years ago. I tried using full synthetic engine oil and where it never used oil between changes it started using oil and I had to return to nonsynthetic oil to correct the problem.

    I am looking for any usefull advise in this reencarnation. Thank you. The Beach Bum
  • joani1joani1 Member Posts: 9
    Check your vac lines coming off the fuel pump.
  • docilelokidocileloki Member Posts: 1
    I've got a 1987 Nissan 300zx 2+2 all electric car. I love this car to death and have done plenty of maintenance to nurse it back to health from the previous owners. I still need to do body work but everything else is pretty much sound. Digital dash display, steering wheel controls, heated seats, mileage information on dash, automatic climate control, and electric lumbar settings. These cars were just way ahead of their time. But anyway...

    I'm not sure if anyone's had a similar problem, but me and my Z have been through a lot together, after the car sat around for a fair time while I replaced the motor it fails to start. I've gotten my A/T rebuilt and i bought a motor that was in working condition, that matches, and put the both back in even though it did sit around for about a year during all this tuning and such. To the best of my knowledge there is either something not matching up with the computer that triggers the inhibitor switch, or the security system just doesn't want this new engine. If anyone knows a way to work with the computer that could be explained to me, or anyone who has had a similar problem tell me how they fixed it i would be overjoyed. I'm thinking of just working out the kinks in the wiring that let the security system work if i don't figure something out soon.
  • steve1127steve1127 Member Posts: 1
    I'm the original owner of a 1984 300zx turbo with 56k miles. The last time I drove the car, a couple of weeks ago, the rear lights didn't go off when I put the car in the garage and the battery ran down and I had to jump start the car today. Now, the rear lights stay on all of the time. Swith is off, headlights are off but back lights stay on. Rear turn signals are working properly. Does anyone know what may cause this problem. The light switch works fine for turning on front lights. thanks
  • z32chicz32chic Member Posts: 16
    Just wondering if the Fuel Injector Connectors 1991 thru 1996 are all the same?
    I look online and the injector are different but are the connectors from the wiring harness to the injector the same?
  • glenner227glenner227 Member Posts: 1
    sounds like your light switch itself is bad i would replace the switch
  • sin1215sin1215 Member Posts: 3
    I have a 92 twin turbo and whenever i reach 105km/h my car makes a ding noise.
    Its not a ticking sound like a hydraulic lifter makes but a dinging sound like a bell. Nothing like a warning light shows up so would like to know if anyone out there has
    any ideas?
  • itsjoe1itsjoe1 Member Posts: 1
    where are these vacume lines show up up under the hood? coming out of the fire wall?
  • tadszxtadszx Member Posts: 1
    The turbo's were spinning up well 6 month ago but other then having someone start the car and drive it around the block a couple time the turbo's have not had the opportunity to kick in. Now, after taking the car up into higher RPM's the turbo wont kick in. Do they freeze up without use or ???????
  • joani1joani1 Member Posts: 9
    I had the same problem with my 84 300 zx and it was the switch under the brake pedal. It's an easy fix but a tight squeeze to get to.
  • joani1joani1 Member Posts: 9
    edited March 2010
    Try this link. http://300zx-twinturbo.com/manual/gi/001.gif It may have the manual for you car on that site.
  • jtrombonejtrombone Member Posts: 2
    I'm replacing my struts in a 93 300zx 2 + 2 non turbo. Looking at KYB and Tokico. Any suggestions or comments? JF
  • philyphil85philyphil85 Member Posts: 1
    Okay I've had this car 4 years no major problems with it. I was driving it last weekend and thought I'd fill it up. So I put 10 gallons of gas into it started right up drove it two miles down the road and the car shut off completly. I go to start it up again and it would start but run really ruff sputtering and would turn off after about 30 seconds. I checked the spark plugs they smelled like gas and were black. I just changed the rotary button and distributor cap. The button was very worn out but I changed it a year ago and haven't drove it all that much during the year. It is getting gas and I checked for spark from the number one spark plug and I seen it sparking. I hear the fuel pump running and I just changed the fuel filter. When it was running for the 30 seconds now I would press on the accelerator and it would do nothing to cause the motor to rev up. I am very confused and I really don't know what to do please help..
  • david32363david32363 Member Posts: 1
    On my 84 the problem was small rubber bumpers that the switches hit when the break pedal is released. they rot and fall out over time.
  • temj12temj12 Member Posts: 450
    I have a 93 300zx. The steering was grabbing when it was cold and then it would become fairly smooth. I took it to a mechanic, who worked as a mechanic for Nissan 23 years, and he says that the rack is leaking fluid. He would replace the rack, when he finds the part, for $600. He told me that the steering would not lock up; it would just become more like manual when it begins to totally wear out. For those in the know, how is this price wise. The car has 113,000 miles and I doubt that it has had a timing belt. (Just bought it) The same mechanic said it would be $700 to change the timing belt. That would include replacing the water pump, which he would do while changing the belt. Am I headed for trouble not having changed the belt and what do you think about the charge. Thanks in advance for any response.
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