300ZX what to look for (Page 1/1)
Phirewire MAR 12, 12:26 AM
I'm still poking around for a car, and one that caught my eye is the 300zx. I enjoy the looks of the 80's and the 90's body styles. Now I'm looking at this 90 that was a n/a, but he swapped a t/t engine and tranny into it, but now he can't keep the car running.

Hes only asking little over 100$ car doesn't look bad, and he is including. 2 N/a Engines (one good one bad) and extra 5spd tranny (bad clutch).

How expensive are repairs on this car, How tricky are they to work on? what are things to look for.


I have a feeling he fudged up the and didn't connect something, and thats the cause of the problem.

I can't find another for under 3 grand so if I can get this running without throwing anything into in parts wise should be a great turn around if I wanted.
Fiero84Freak MAR 12, 07:28 AM
If he's only asking $100 (is that a typo?) then I would say go ahead just for the monetary resale value of parts.

It could or could not be an expensive fix. There's a reason that really good TT 300ZXs go for a lot of money despite the ease of being able to swap an N/A - many were ragged out, and parts can become pricey. Ones that were taken care of demand high prices since they've likely had all the kinks worked out.

There's a local tuner here in Arkansas that specializes in turbo upgrades. They're fairly well known in the Z32 community. Just to give a base idea of how parts can run for these, the upgrade for the turbos last I checked was $2,500-range, and you still supply the turbos.

Most of the TT Z32s that show up here are usually because of a need for turbo components and the owner doesn't want to deal with it (or pay to have work done on it). through my experience though they're a lot easier to work on than say something like a 3000GT or Stealth. I would much rather be under the hood of an longitudinal V6 in the Z32 than under the hood of that mess that Mitsubishi threw together thinking it was a good idea to twin-turbo a transverse mounted V6.

[This message has been edited by Fiero84Freak (edited 03-12-2013).]

weaselbeak MAR 13, 10:53 PM
I got my Fiero GT and an 86 300ZX at the the same time, both in nice shape and low miles. I still have the GT, the 300ZX is long gone and there will never be another. That money pit POS still leaves me cringing. And mine was the norm, if you do a little research. One of the biggest fans of that car that I know, and a damn good mechanic to boot, admits as much.
ARFiero MAR 20, 03:29 AM
On problem i have encountered with the TT is the engine wire harness. The under hood temps cook them and they have to be replaced. I have done one and I will never do another. You have to do a lot of disassembly to get them out.

[This message has been edited by ARFiero (edited 03-20-2013).]

FieroMontreal MAR 21, 09:32 AM
I`ve had several Z32 300zx`s, I love those cars. All of them were TT`s and all of them were freaking expensive and complicated machines to fix.

If it`s running fine it`s a real dream car, once you start getting little electrical problems or problems under the hood it`s a real expensive mess. Replacing the turbos on those cars is quite the challenge.

anyways It`s a great car and for the price, you really can`t go wrong with a Z32! I haven`t seen any TT`s in that price range, ever.. even the rusty cars are more expensive then that
GreenPlatypus MAR 25, 06:45 PM
If you want even more out of the 300zx's, the Infiniti Q45 V8 fits very nicely under the hood