pixel8r

I googled a bit more and my impression is that since its completely stock (and therefore running a little rich) and always uses 98 octane fuel, I doubt I have anything to worry about. Maybe I'll just need to change the plugs a bit earlier next time or something...say around 160K km... However, now that I think about it...twice in the last week it has had trouble starting. First time I noticed was last saturday - which was freezing where i was and the car had been sitting there all day. It turned over ok so nothing to do with battery or anything but took a few separate tries (about 5 seconds each) to actually fire and start. The second time was this morning, where I turned the key, and then I happened to relax the key a bit early so it kind of fired but then just sat there with the revs on like 200rpm and then about a second later it jumped up to 1500-2000rpm as per normal on a cold start and was fine after that. On both of these occasions that was the only issue - once its running its good as gold, and running noticeably smoother/faster/better than with the old plugs.

oh dear...looks like I have the wrong ones then... Doing a quick google search - they've probably looked up INFININTI M35 rather than stagea.... Does anyone know if the 5A-11's will be a problem? Car seems to run fine...obviously its a hotter plug and gapped at 1.1 instead of 0.9, but I have no idea what any of that means in terms of how the engine will run. Just wondering what my options are or whether its fine just to leave it. I dont think the workshop would be too happy if I asked to have them changed over again...after the running around they did to find these...but at the same time if I need to change them I'd rather not pay again if its their error. I never specified what plugs to put in.

The ones I have are PLFR5A-11 and are listed on the invoice as OEM NGK spark plugs. I'm guessing they were from Nissan and they were $34 each. Most other VQ engines come with these plugs so I assume this means they are the standard plug?

Mine is silver (and completely stock). Ducati02 I'm only about 5-10 mins south of you.

On a circuit so long it would be near impossible to do a perfect lap ever, so 12seconds over 7+ minutes should be possible, considering Nissan's chief test driver has a lot of racing pedigree, including Formula 1. There are too many factors involved that could impact both track conditions and also the car's performance. Thats why this is important to have the two cars run back to back on the same day. Its a more fair comparison. Use the other 'ring times as just an indication of each car's "best run so far".

as stated earlier, the term "rice" was a dig at the japanese/asian countries since it was originally only used to refer to cars made in those countries. Still mostly applies today except now it more loosely applies to cars that are over-done in the looks dept without any performance to back it up. You can use RICE to make up any acronym you like but it wont change its origins. I think who cares what people say, as long as you're happy with your car. Sure, the more visual mods you do the more you're asking for insults...but no ones gonna actually stop you.

Its entirely possible to get 10-11L/100km city driving in an R34. I used to get that when I had my series 2 stagea (same engine as R34). It also had 160kw at all 4 wheels at the time. Modified doesn't necessarily mean more fuel. My fuel consumption went DOWN the more mods I did. All of the mods were either helping it breathe better or making the tuning more efficient. More power AND better fuel economy. Comparing (a R34) to a SR20DET isn't a good comparison. I've owned one in a S13 and whilst it was a fast car it wasn't great on fuel. Great engine in their day but average by today's standards. My current stagea gets better fuel economy than the SR20DET and that is with a VQ25DET (206+kw and 407N-m) - so yes 50% more cylinders and 25% more capacity, and yet 34% more power and 46% more torque, not to mention an extra 500+kg worth of car to haul around. There are a lot more factors to fuel economy than just the size/capacity of the engine. sorry for getting offtopic though... such an interesting thread. and generally speaking (this is not aimed at anyone in particular), resorting to insults is an admission that you lost. Its interesting to see who is able to argue objectively and who resorts to personal attacks. "Arguing" is a skill that takes years to master And it can (and should) remain civil at all times. Criticise what the person said, not the person themselves

I like it!! Nissan - bring back the stagea - and make it look like that!! oh, and give it a turbo (or 2) again...

Mine were replaced just recently as part of my 100,00km service (at 103,500 cos I've been too flat out with other stuff). Pretty sure they were the original plugs which means they've lasted a hell of a long time. I bought the car at 79000km so I doubt they were done in japan. I have the part number at home I'll try to remember to post it up.

I disagree that the liberty is bigger. The boot shape on the M35 may be ugly and like a volvo but its practical and maximises the amount of space. Other wagons like the subaru's and the holden sportwagon lose a lot of boot space in the interest of styling. Maybe there's more seating room? but the M35 is by no means cramped. But yeah I like the subaru wagons - I just dont think they're as good value as the M35. The M35 can pretty much match it featurewise, with 3 main advantages - they're cheaper, have rear-biased awd, and a turbo. There's my bias showing through again

note the AR-X obviously has different suspension to the RS/RX's but I'm not sure on how much difference that makes to how they each drive... I used to own a 1999 stagea (series 2) and when it was stock, fuel economy was around the 13-14L/100km mark. I now drive a 2003 M35 so I can very unscientifically compare them and say that I'm now averaging 12.5-13L/100km (same state, similar traffic). Now for a general comparison - the M35 is a better car than the C34 in almost every way. Faster, more comfortable ride, slightly better on fuel, bigger fuel tank, more rear-seat legroom, one extra gear (5sp auto), more modern shape, better interior incl more comfortable seats, more boot space incl space under the boot floor. I could keep going but I'm already sounding biased enough. Check out the first page of the "M35 Info" thread (sticky) at the top of the stagea section for more info on the M35. The C34 is possibly more of a sports wagon and has more aftermarket/performance parts all readily available, whereas the M35 is more of a luxury wagon (although it is quicker as well) and a bit rarer. As for which one you prefer, drive both. Thats the only way.

Yours is the white one yeah? I see it every now and then

Was that loud? Mine needed 2 mufflers before it was quiet enough to drive without getting a headache from the drone in the back - although that was with a turbo-back 3" stainless system.

Short answer: YES it is normal. The C34 turbo is audible, though fairly faint and generally more noticeable at lower revs as you just come onto boost. In the M35, its the same sound - like a faint (ie. not harsh) whistle but much louder than the C34. I put this down to better airflow through the VQ25 plus the fact the M35 runs fairly high boost from the factory compared to the C34. My prev s2 had a cracked exhaust manifold and the turbo was starting to go when I bought it and that made the turbo quite loud but a very different sound. If its not a harsh metallic sound then you should be fine. My M35 has now done 25000+km since I bought it and the turbo's still going strong.

just clarifying what others are sayin - you _can_ get power out of a na, but for the amount of money you'd have to spend, you really shouldn't go down that road. If you must keep the na, keep it tidy, enjoy the fuel economy, and at the most I'd go for an exhaust and rims...but nothing loud or anything. But having owned 3 turbo cars now, its not even worth talking performance in a na. They can still be fun - especially in the twisties etc, but you just cant make them go properly fast without emptying your wallet into it.

spotted a silver R35 with black bonnet (cf?) on main north rd this morning on my way to work. I was in the M35 stagea and gave a thumbs up.

I have always said that toyota make reliable, yet boring cars. The type of people who toyotas are best suited to are the type of people who dont know what car they're driving - they just want something cheap to run, reliable, and good quality. Toyota deliver on this 100%. And they do make a few good sporty-looking cars as well - I do like the supra for example. But for the most part I find their cars technically superior in almost every way, but overall just boring. Its about appealing to the mass market - and there's definitely a reason why toyota are the #1 most profitable (is that the right term?) car manufacturer in the world. Until recently they are the only one who hadn't reported a loss. And yes I'll admit the same can be said for most aussie-delivered Nissans as well (the garden-variety maxima and tiida come to mind). But when you have a lineup including silvias, 180s', 300zx, skylines, stageas, 350z, 370z, and now the GT-R, its clear they are passionate about sports cars....and pretty much all of these cars have a strong fan base surrounding them. Having said all of that, I know a few people who are passionate about toyotas so obviously i'm just biased.

Well I have the verdict on mine already - the mechanic just rang and confirmed it is just the tyres. He said they had it on the hoist and the wheel bearings seem fine. This is the same as what my dad and I diagnosed on it about 6 months ago so I'm happy now. The tyres are really ribbed, particularly on the inside. The tread is just getting sharper and sharper edges on it the more its worn. So now its making a shudder at 10-20km/h and also the whining noise as you go faster. So in some ways its a good result but now I've got the choice of either drive a nice car that handles like crap (and sounds like a council bus) or hand over ~$700 for new tyres. I really really want new tyres now - this has been driving me up the wall for the past 10 months!!

Just came across this one - might be the same issue I've had since I bought my M35 last october. I did some tyre swapping early this year (well, swapped different wheels with the spare to try to identify the problem) and it seemed to me that it was just purely tyre noise in my case. However, ~6 months later and the noise has been slowly getting worse. Hard to say if it gets louder with speed, if anything its loudest around 30-40km/h and kind of stays fairly constant after that. Lately its started doing a really low-pitched grinding noise around 10-20km/h and this noise will continue if i stay under 20km/h. The vibration can be felt through the car, although more through the floor at the front / steering etc. I was originally suspecting wheel bearings when I bought the car but I'm not so sure. When I put the spare wheel on the front the noise almost disappeared. Its definitely speed related which just points to anything AFTER the gearbox I imagine. Its booked in for the 100,000km service this week - might get the mechanic to sus it out while its in there. Other symptoms include when cruising at say 60km/h, sometimes it will all of a sudden feel like the brakes are on and it starts slowing down quicker than normal - feels like the gearbox shifts to a lower gear which is strange, normally at this speed it will be in 4th or 5th when cruising. And yet another symptom is the sensation that something is "slipping" either when changing from reverse to drive or if just slowly taking off up an incline. This doesn't occur when driving normally though...only when first taking off from standing still.

When you reach max boost, is it a misfire or does it completely cut ignition for a split-second? In the earlier stageas (I know this because it happened with my previous s2), just putting an exhaust on was enough for it to hit whats known as "boost cut" or R&R. There are two triggers, one seems to be that the ecu either has a boost limit or an airflow limit (basically when your AFM signal reads too high) and will cut ignition, and it almost sends you through the windscreen its so sudden. The other trigger is when the A/F ratios get say below or near 9.0. In this case it will switch to R&R (Rich & Retard) fuel mapping which is like a "failsafe" mode to protect the engine. Basically it just dumps loads of fuel in at this point. This only continues while the AFR's are low. Once you lift your foot and things return to normal, the ecu switches back to your usual fuel map. Either of the above scenarios may be happening in your case. I doubt very much that Nissan removed the "boost cut" from the M35. And as with the C34's, it will happen in some cases but not others. It was a bit of hit or miss. Essentially the way around it was either tune the AFR's or fiddle with the Air Flow meter signal so that it didn't read so high. Most interceptor/piggyback ecus do both. Dont be tempted by the Fuel Cut Defender - all that one does is limit the AFM signal once it reaches a certain figure - yet it doesn't restrict the actual airflow in any way - so there is the possibility of running lean. Not a risk I'd want to take. Its essentially just bypassing your ecu's built-in protection.

nice. love those rims!

the Adelaide Royal Show is on this week. Thats about as exciting as it gets in Adelaide (kidding.......well sorta). I'd be interested in a cruise...depending on day/time etc

That rust under the passenger mirror is so common that I've never heard of a C34 NOT having rust there. Not sure why but my old s2 never had rust on the driver side, only the passenger side, and yet for all I could see the mirror/body shape were identical on either side. They fixed it in the M35 thankfully FWIW.

Presumably you have checked that there is no load/drain on the battery when your car is "off"? Obviously any alarm/central locking circuitry etc will still be drawing current but it should only be minimal. I had an issue where my fog lights were left on (my old stagea - s2) - which flattened the battery very quickly. Before that I had no idea they even worked or how to turn them on - but they must've been flicked on accidentally the night before. I'm assuming you've checked all the obvious stuff like this but thought I'd mention it anyway...

apart from the M35 front looking terrible on a C34, the bigger issue is that Nissan completely changed the chassis - with major changes to the front end. The front wheels on a M35 are much closer to the front of the car, with the engine's center of gravity now behind the front wheels. You may have heard of "Advanced Front Midship" - well thats what Nissan call it. They use this new platform for most of their new cars, including 350Z, V35, and even Murano and others. Basically, your wheels wont line up with the guards (just guessing but it seems obvious to me), among other things. You may be able to find a custom kit that will fit but then it wouldn't look exactly the same. I would go with the other suggestions instead and try a car around the same year. Chances are these would be built very similar and not have anywhere near the structural differences that the M35 has...