general problems of the 2003 Nissan 350Z - part 1

Action Nissan in nashville, TN has replaced damaged front tires at least twice, and I have now replaced damaged front tires at my own expense. The effect of Nissans alignment/suspension problem is not isolated to tire damage. Action Nissan attempted to correct my vehicles alignment/suspension issues, but my car continued to experience issues related to abnormal tire wear and a pull to the right. Nissan did not offer a permanent solution for the alignment/suspension problems of my automobile, and I continued to experience damage to my front tires and misalignment/suspension effects. To protect any new tires on my vehicle, and to permanently correct Nissans manufacturer defect on my vehicle, I had repairs performed with 3rd party parts, an eibach front alignment kit. The original configuration of the front factory 350z does not allow for such adjustments, and the eibach kit allows for common front alignment adjustments that can easily compensate for the alignment/suspension problems. The installed parts, along with new tires, balancing, and alignment/suspension has total cost of $1087. 04. I am including documentation of all itemized costs below: tires. $288. 00 front align kit $394. 87 parts total. . . $682. 87 2x tire mount. $10. 00 2x tire balance. . . $30. 00 align kit install. . $270. 00 front alignment. . $59. 95 subtotal $369. 95 labor tax@9. 25% $34. 22 labor total. $404. 17 grand total. $1,087. 04 the proposed Nissan class action settlement covers only a fraction of the costs to permanently correct the alignment/suspension problem experienced by countless Nissan 350z owners. My objection is that Nissan should offer a permanent solution to correct the manufacturer defect in the alignment/suspension of 2003/2004 350zs, which causes tire damage and other misalignment/suspension side-effects resulting from the inability to properly align select 350z vehicles. I duly swear to all facts presented in this document.

The 3rd gear was grinding then second started to grind too therefore I had the transmission rebuilt at my expense and other transmission problems persist and also have the tire feathering/tire growl issue which I've took the car varies times to the alignment shop.

I bought the car used in 5/05 with 15,000 miles. Tires appeared new when purchased. Car is only driven in the winter, I had the "roaring" noise and vehicle shaking effect roughly 5 months later. I brought the car to the dealer and told them about the issue. Their solution was to replace the front brakes and rotors for almost $400. I did not notice the problem again until a relative drove the car in the spring of 06 and thought I was crazy because I was apparently ignoring the roar and shake of the vehicle when traveling at speed under 40 mph. I replaced the rear tires at the suggestion of my local garage for over $500 yet the problem persisted. I now have to replace the front tires for another $500 or so and the car only has 32000 miles. I have read the numerous (hundreds) complaints written about this problem and this is just ridiculous. . Read more...

Consumer owned a Nissan 350z track version 2003. He took vehicle to dealer for recall repair about a year ago. Consumer stated it was a recall, however, could not find recall on NHTSA web site. Ntb03-046 was the number identifying the recall that consumer had. Repair work was done on 6-11-04. Then, on July 19, 2005 consumer took vehicle to gardena Nissan in California, and they told him that the problem involved front tires wearing out on the inside during repair work they replaced the right front compression rod. Consumer contacted Nissan, and they told him that after recall and warranty repair work was only good for 10,000 miles. Consumer believed that recall repairs did not fix problem, per gardena Nissan. Six months after consumer bought vehicle when shifting up or down at any speed periodically it will not go into gear. Nissan was aware of the situation, and they did not want to do anything about it.

I own a 2003 350z. I got a flat tire on my car yesterday. I took it in to be repaired. When they jacked it up they noticed that all four of my tires are bald on the inside. They told me that my car has been recalled. They said they have had many 350z's come in with the same problem I am having. They also stated that they are able to fix the problem. So that's when I looked it up on your website but didn't see it anywhere. I have talked to many other tires places as well and they said they have had many people come in with the same problem. Have you heard this complaint from anyone else?.

Tires are feathering badly. Dealership service center tried fixing it. Nissan tried avoiding recall on it, but told service centers to change tires at no cost. Ridiculous and unsafe. Was told to be an alignment problem. Everyone except the company seems to notice. 2003 350z. Nissan made its warranty on the tires to 24,000 and our service is till about 36000 miles. They are just waiting it out until it becomes the peoples problem. Is anybody listening?.

Jan 03 the brakes would squeal loudly when braking in cold weather. The two front tires continually lost air and needed to be refilled every 3-4 weeks. Upon dealer inspection, nothing was found wrong. Upon recall notice of the growling of the tires (around April 04) the vehicle was brought into the dealership and the two front tires were replaced. The vehicle had to be brought back twice due to the alignment being done incorrectly (steering wheel was crooked and slip & vdc off lights were illuminated). Since the tire replacement, the two new front tires still lose air and need to be filled up every 2-3 weeks now. The tires occasionally squeal loudly when braking. Dec 04 the dashboard was lit up with the following warning lights:1. Brakes 2. Vdc off 3. Slip upon towing the vehicle into Nissan (because the front passenger tire went mysteriously flat again), Nissan dealer has advised that the front brake pads are worn through to less than 10% and need to be replaced. They also reported the front tires had no holes and the tire beading was fine. They suggested the tires go low and the warning indicator sounds because it is a sensitive car. It is my personal theory that the vehicle has a design flaw within the suspension and the vehicle is also placing too much weight and pressure on the front tires which has caused: 1. Growling 2. Front tires to lose air 3. Brakes to wear unreasonably fast 4. Squealing when braking. The dealer has not been satisfactory in their responses or suggestions. The vehicle is in the dealer now; I requested they give me the worn brake pads when I pick up the car.

My 2003 350z's tires were replaced by the dealer at 16,000 miles. I recognized the problem right before the recall. Now at 27,000 miles I have the same problem with the back tires/alignment. I've been told by the contracted tire dealer which my Nissan dealer sends it's work to that the problem is with the alignment on the 2003 model and the problem has since been corrected on the 2004 model. I'm told that to avoid the improper wear on the tires (cupping) that I should have the alignment checked every 3-6 months. I was told that other than the tire noise(which when noticeable means serious improper wear), another way to tell that this cupping is happening is to put the car up on the rack. Also, the car starts to have traction/handling problems. The problem cannot be seen in a visual check when the car is on the ground. I called the Nissan headquarters and filed a complaint, but was told there was nothing they could do. At 27,000 miles I got the rear aligned and had to purchase two new rear tires. There is so obviously a problem that Nissan is choosing to ignore.

Severe tire feathering. Two sets of front tires in under 12,000 miles. Service by dealer did not solve problem.

I own a 2003 Nissan 350z my two front tires have been on order since 7-2-04 its a recall I haven't heard anything from Nissan as of yet.

Nissan 2003 350z - tire cupping, roaring and vibration. Nissan issued a bullitan to replace the original bridgestone front tires and complete an alignment with 7000m due to a factory suspension/alignment problem. The bridgestone replacement tires have 9000m and the problem is reoccuring - tire cupping, roaring and vibration. The car is unstable on curves and braking. Nissan will not replace the front tires a second time and refuses to acknowledge there is a factory defect with the suspension. This defect is noted to have been corrected on the 2004 350z. Nissan dealership is recommending a full tire replacement without any compensation on their part or correction to the suspension problem to see if the four tire replacement will correct the problem. (why would this correct the problem when the problem occured at 7000 tire mileage and again at 9000 tire mileage) I am pursuing every avenue to an equitable resolution to this Nissan factory defect. Preferring a permanent fix. .

The inside of both front tires wore out. Dealership repaired the problem twice, but did not resolve the problem.

At 8,000 miles my font tires are worn due to the factory setting the toe-in to aggressively. Nissan dealer will not do anything since the car is just over 12 months old. So now I have to pay for new tires and wait for the next 8,000 miles until I have to buy new tires again. I love the z but Nissan should know they just lost a customer here.

Front tires are wearing excessively on the inside. The car is very hard to drive as it pulls to the right once the tires start to wear. I feel this is a safety issue. It rains almost daily, and the car is even worse on slippery roads. I have already replaced front tires twice and rear tires once. I have also had to replace the breaks twice. The brakes still squeal and squeak but the dealer says the brakes are fine. Once it was aligned the squeaking stopped for a few days, then started again.

Front tires (bridgestone) are extremely feathered on the inside of tire causing road noise, drifting to the right and a dangerous driving condition. This started around 8,000 miles.

Nissan refuses to let customers know of the tire feathering problem on the 2003-2004 Nissan 350z. This is getting out of hand.

Nissan 350z. Lost control of car just changing lanes at 45 mph. Car spun sideway and when I tried to recover, steering was almost impossible as tires seemed to be just gliding wherever they wanted to go. I am just now connecting this incident to the just became aware of tire and front end problem that Nissan seems to be having with this vehicle. I only wish somebody had told me my front end was not aligned and tracking correctly and that my tires were worn away on the inner edges. The failure to notify me placed me in a circumstance that allowed me to think the vehicle I was driving was safe and would respond when I needed it to. My initial thinking of a slick road, which really wasn't present, is now apparent to me to be a front end which can wander and cause abrupt alterations in tracking due to tire wear and improper alignment. Fortunately, the only bruised item was the car. I hope it doesn't lead to a human. The consumers vehicle failed the massachusetts safety inspection because of bad tires.

2003 Nissan 350z tire feathering and excessive wear. My 2003 350z has 6,000 miles on the odometer and my front tires have experienced excessive wear on the innner edge due to factory alignment/weighting specifications. . A TSB was performed to fix this problem temporarily by switching the tires. My primary complaint is that the traction on the outer edge of my tires are gone. I have concerns going into corners, even at the recommended speed limit. Nissan has yet to create a permanent fix for this issue. This problem, I know, has impacted many 2003 350z owners. There is no reason one should have to worry about a new or at least relatively new car when taking turns at the recommended speed limit. Nissan needs to fix this issue immediately. Thank you!.

I was driving the car in a rainy stormy night north bound hwy 101 on January 10th 2004 when my 2003 Nissan 350z stopped with a huge clunk in the motor compartment and came to a rolling stop to the side of the road where there was not much shoulder space and poor visibilty that night!apparently this vehicle has been burning oil 1qt pr thousand miles! I didnt know this from getting regular oil changes at aroung the 3k marker! kept getting oil consumption test but no corrective action was taken by manufacturer until I went to the bbb! then Nissan was forced to replace motor, clutch , tires which ive been having issues long before this ever occured along with the window motors in which the windows kept giving out also! my vehicle broke down again some 1000 miles after the new motor! my car kept stalling at a stop light! I had the vehicle taken to the Nissan dealer where I almost had to fight with the sevice rep to get it taken care of under warranty! about 3k miles after the new motor was replaced and installed I had the vehicle taken to get an oil change and the car was almost 3qts low again! yes the car still keeps burning oil!Nissan did not want to do anything about it! I kept calling consumer affairs whom kept passing my file around to one rep and another. I finally broke down 3-4 thousand miles later and have been for over a month with a vehicle that does not run and no assurance from the dealer who fixed my motor less than 7k miles ago. This car has been giving me problems since the first few months ive had it.

Tire feathering and accelerated wear on inside of front tires. This wear pattern first was noticed at around 3k miles, and by 5500 miles the problem was bad. By 7k miles, the tires are nearly unusable. Four issues with this: 1. Some very slight vibration when the problem gets bad 2. Terrible noise from the tires 3. Safety issue due to extreme abnormal wear pattern, could get bad enough to cause a blowout 4. Ridiculous operating expense will be incurred when tires have to be replaced every 5k to 7k miles Nissan does not appear to have a fix for this, and simply keeps replacing tires. Currently the oem tires are not available, and dealer says they will not do anything.

350z tire feathering and cupping. Severe feathering due to improper factory alignment specs on early model 350zs. Noticed at 8,000 miles and got progressively worse. They say there is a TSB to cross swap tires, but this leaves the original tires with feathering on the car. A safety issue to me whether Nissan will own up to it or not. After this is solved cupping will occur due to the camber and caster being unadjustable. The only know 100% fix to this is a nismo s-tune suspension or possible to replace front suspension with later model suspension systems. Why would Nissan not fix this problem? they say it isn't big enough or its not a safety issue. Is it going to take death to fix this problem like adding stop lights to an intersection. "we will only recall if 3 people die first" is what Nissan should be saying! very unhappy consumer and will never by a Nissan again! -VIN.

I recently (9-13-03) purchase a 2003 Nissan 350z track edition with 2500 miles. I purchased it at dobbs Nissan in memphis, TN 38115. In purchasing the vehicle I notice a little road noise that I though was normal coming from a car with 18" wheels. It did not appear to be a problem at first. After my first service visit at dobbs Nissan I notice the noise getting louder, I address this problem with tj (service advisor at jim keras Nissan 2110 covington pike, memphis, TN 38128) along with a list of other problems. Tj diagnose the noise and suggested that I rotate the tires, he also indicated that the tires are scheduled to be rotated at or around 5,000 miles. My response was that the car was making the noise when I first purchase the vehicle and that it progressivly got worse. After coming to a dead end at jim keras Nissan about replacing the tires under warranty I pursued to contacting Nissan USA refering to the entire service ticket, but specifically the tires. I was refered to firestone in which refered me to a local dealer (firestone 4035 austin-peay hwy, memphis, TN 38128). I was scheduled to bring my car in that evening. I meet with jesse ( store manager), he evaluated all four tires and inform me that the front tires were not defective but had uneven wear, possibly due to misalingment or worn suspension components. Jesse also inform me that he didn't think it was the tires but, he was willing to absord 50% of the cost of replacing the tires per firestone's approval. He made a call to Nissan USA (rep. Alex morgan) to get them to ok the other 50%. Nissan declined that resolution. They (Nissan USA & firestone) are using the consumer to slove issues that should be handled by their companies. I was given the run-around from both Nissan and firestone. Giving the nature of all complaints, I wonder when will Nissan accept the responsibility of repairing or replacing whats wrong? I hope not when someone is hurt or killed!.

The suspension problem is reoccurring, and mis-diagnosed a. Roar from front suspension under 40 mph. First attempted repair @ 7,279 miles. Changed brake pads and turned rotors. Attempt failed, roar remained. B. Roar & pulls to the right at highway speed. Second attempted repair @ 7,720 miles. Changed right side compression rod. Pull to right corrected, roar remained. C. Roar severe,visual damage{feathering} on inside edge of front tires. Third attempted repair @ 11,077 miles. Rotated front tires side to side, off rims {directional tires} also did four wheel alignment. Roars less, but still very noisy. At 12,000 miles noise increasing, new feathering now appearing on inside of front tires. This suspension problem not corrected.

Tires have started feathering at 4000 miles. Right suspension repaired once and vehicle is pulling to the right again and tire feathering is getting worse.

Nissan 350 z owners have a severe problem with the suspension of there new car. Nissan is not repairing this problem. They have addressed the issue with a TSB. This repair is just enough to get the owners passed there 12,500 mile warranty. The problem is that there is no adjustment for caster or camber on the 350z. The cars left the factory with an alignment problem, and there is really no repair available. This has left all 350z owners, replacing tires almost every 6 months.

Various things gone wrong with this car: -rack and pinion / steering pump failed at 4000 miles. Car refused to steer when at idle. Very dangerous. Replaced under warranty after 2 weeks. -two transmission replacements. Second transmission replacement requires new flywheel, clutch disc, and pressure plate. Both under warranty. -uneven tire wear. Dealer told me that I'm a "young speed racer" and that I need to "slow down". Denied my appeal for new tires, I bought new, wider rims and tires, alignment, and problem went away. Tire sizes are 245/40/18 and 275/40/18. Bridgestone potenza s03. No feathering after 11000 miles. Unfortunately, this car is not very safe. . . And Nissan service / customer service is very uncourteous and rude in their approach to the situation at hand.

Premature buckling on two front bridgestone potentza tires on my Nissan 350z. The manufacturere of the car deflects responsibility to the tire manufacturer and the tire manufacturer fails to prorate or warrant the tires.

My front tires on my 2003 Nissan 350z are feathering after only 6,000 miles causing a very load roar in the vehicle cabinet below 30 mph. Nissan is only offering to rotate front tires which results in the tires rotating in the opposite direction as the tire manufacturer specifies. Many others with this same problem have had no success with Nissan providing a solution to this. I consider the vehicle safety to be seriously compromised as the tires are not performing properly.

I have a 2003 Nissan 350z that has exhibited abnormal tire wear on the front tires. The symptoms include cupping/feathering on the inside of the tread and increased road noise/roar. The noise appeared at 5,000 miles on the odometer and worsened. I took my car to star Nissan in niles, IL, and they told me they were ill-equipped to perform Nissan TSB #ntb03-006 (tire road noise when braking). I called Nissan consumer affairs and informed them of the problem and I will try another local dealer. When I asked if tires would be replaced if the TSB did not solve the abnormal wear, the Nissan representative told me that I'd have to call them back if the problem persists.

Tire feathering, on front end seems to be non-correctable resulting in repetitive premature replacement of tires. I was told by service mgn. That caster adjustment is at full, and can not correct for the towin causing the tire wear.

Front tires (bridgestone) are extremely feathered on the inside of tire causing road noise, drifting to the right and a dangerous driving condition.

2003 Nissan 350 z tires are wearing out bad, cupping and going bald.

Tires are cupping/feathering and will not be acknowledged by Nissan north America. I believe this will provide for a situation that can be hazardous. The solution provided by Nissan is to have the tires taken off the rim and rotated, as well as perform an alignment. The problem continues to persist even after this action was taken.

My 350z had a terrible growl noise and vibrations coming from the front when braking. Tires were very feathered on the inside of the front two tires. Filed a complaint with nna and they had the dealer take the tires off the rims and swap the front tires. I don't think they fixed the issue just delayed the inevitable.

Front tire wear, due to bad design, seems non correctable.