GlennM35

Awesome, thanks for the info Adam!

My rebuilt turbo should be arriving from Hypergear sometime next week and I've just called my mates who removed the busted turbo to organise a time to refit it. They're still taking my calls which is a good sign! My friends told me to source some replacement gaskets for the intake/turbo/dump/exhaust, but some ebay and google searching hasn't turned up anything for me unfortunately. This is the second turbo replacement on my M35 (this one is due to oil starvation - totally my fault) but I can't remember the first replacement requiring any new gaskets... So my question is do I need new gaskets and if so how/where do I get them? Thanks! Glenn

Cool. Well I think I'll probably go ahead with getting my mates to do it at my place, thanks for the info Scotty!

Thanks for that. I'll go see the guy today if get time and suggest to take the sump off and have a look. The diagnostics so far seem to be based off of talking to people rather than actually looking.

Thanks for the referral, I'll give him a call this week. He didn't mention any findings in the oil. It sounds like he's talked to a few people that have said what MAY happen in a worst case scenario. Surely if you replace the oil line, flush everything out again, remove whatever bits from the old turbo that are laying around the piping, and prime the new turbo properly, you shouldn't have any more risk than normal? I'm in Canberra, probably a bit far for you to come and look!

...... 3 months later and my mechanic has managed to procrastinate about this job the whole time. The ticking noise has gone away after flushing some oil through the engine and topping things up. The theory is it might have been a stuck lifter due to low oil levels. So that just leaves me with the busted turbo. I've organised for some mechanically minded friends to do the turbo swap in my backyard but when I rang the mechanic today he started on about how he's spoken to 3 workshops about the car, and all advise against replacing the turbo, saying that it's a gamble that the second turbo could blow up due to oil contamination/loose fragments left from the old turbo, and that the car was running with the lifter problem for so long etc so who knows what other damage has been done etc... He advised sourcing another motor and swapping the lot, or selling as is. The question is, does this sound right? There has to be plenty of other people that are as hopeless as me with checking oil and servicing that have blown up turbos from oil starvation and I'm pretty sure they don't chuck the whole motor because of it. Any advice? Ultimately looking to sell the car as I already have its replacement. Thanks for your help guys!

It's on idle, becomes less apparent once the car is moving along at speed, very hard to hear if it's still there or not. The 2 people I've taken the car to have both thought it sounded like a chain noise of some sort. Coming from the front side of the engine. The car is still at the mechanic's yard so I'll let him know what to look at if I think it's all worth fixing up.

My mechanic said it probably was a lack of oil supply that did it, but I think it was probably me to blame because he also mentioned there wasn't much oil left when he flushed it, like only a couple of litres. I know it's extremely bad ownership on my part for not keeping up with checking the dipstick regularly but at the very least I've never had the dash light on for low oil. Yep it's silver and a Hypergear turbo but the guy I'm dealing with now is the same guy that fitted the turbo 3 years ago. He had a lot of trouble back then getting the old turbo off and swore he'd charge me an extra $30 an hour next time he worked on my car! Has anyone come across any issues with the ticking/rattling noise before? I can't remember exactly what the mech suggested it could be but he gave me 3 options to do with the variable cam timing and chains and transfer???

It's a rebuilt turbo, from Hypergear a few years ago. Standard bearing, not ball. I'm pretty sure it's gone because there's this kind of cruching kind of noise whenever it gets on boost, plus some intermittient random crunchiness at idle as well. Power seems lower too. The mechanic also said it abrubtly lost power when driving up a hill yesterday, like it had just siezed up.

I'm in Canberra which isn't helpful, and driving it to sydney wouldn't do me any favours! I guess I could get it towed/transported though but my wife is about to murder me already over what this car is costing and I'd have to convince her it'd be worth spending more on it before doing that

Long time reader occassional poster here! So to make a long story short: I've been a bit lazy with the upkeep on my M35 and let the last service go nearly 4 or 5000 ks overdue (I hardly drive it these days and my brain tricks me into thinking I'm not racking up any ks and never pay attention to the odo). Shortly after the last service a sort of ticking/clicking noise appeared from the engine bay somewhere. Didn't think anything of it, thought it must have been something the fan was hitting or something (read: me stupid). Fast forward several months later and now my turbo has blown up, again. Not sure if related... Now my dilemma is do I get a new turbo or is this ticking noise a whole other can of worms? I'm happy to shell out a couple of grand to get it up and running, but if it's a case of getting a half cut and installing that then I might be better off selling as is for some crazy low price I've taken it to my mechanic, but as good as he is he's not really that familiar with VQ engines. He sent me off to research because he can't use computers Thankyou stagea gods Cheers Glenn

No not a silly question at all as I was trying to get it off while the sensor was still in there I'll have another crack on the weekend, properly this time!

Well I've worked out that 0345 is referring to the passenger side sensor (pretty confusing looking at G35 forums when they're left hand drive) and had a quick go at removing it... the instructions I found tell you how to take the connector clip off, but it's like it has been glued on! I'm pushing the little clip in while pulling the connector out but no go Any tips? Also went to Nissan in Phillip today, and the parts guy was actually quite helpful. We had a bit of a yarn about the M35s, he really likes them which I think helped! Anyhow I got a quote for both sensors, the drivers side is ~140 and passenger side ~210 plus GST. Does that sound right? The drivers side is listed as "Sensor assy" and the passenger as "Sensor A-Crank", which might lead one to believe that it's the crank sensor, but the part number is right (23731-AL61A).

Hey Cam, Is this what you're referring to? There are two little silver dots on the right hand side of the plate, smaller than a 5c coin. One of them is blank and the other has "R186" printed on it (sorry about the blurry phone photo). Just to make sure I have it right, the 2 sensors are at the bumper side of the engine, and they're located just below the level of the plastic engine shroud, and mine are blue in color. Where is the 3rd sensor? If it's a case of a bent connector, is that pretty straight forward to see and fix yourself? Thanks again Glenn

I'm in Canberra Wow thanks for the info guys! Man this forum is so helpful. I'll have a look at the strut tower later today for that silver sticker, but I'm hoping it is just the sensors going bad. I'll take the part numbers and VIN to the dealer, but I just remember last time I dealt with them they weren't particularly interested in dealing with imports. Ouch for the $400 though! But what can you do.... Thanks again!

Hey guys, All has been going well in my Stagea's life (apart from the 4WD light coming on when it feels like it) until yesterday when my RX just stalled in the middle of a school zone! What was even more worrying afterwards was that it wouldn't start straight away - I had to crank it for 5 or 6 seconds for it to go again! Anyway I thought this might have just been a once off, but later in the day I went to start it and there was the same issue, took about 10 seconds this time, and the ECU also threw a fault code: P0345 which is "Camshaft Position Sensor Circuit Malfunction Bank 2". From researching on the American forums, other people with this fault code get the same symptoms as me, they replace both sensors just to be sure, and the problem is fixed. I've read that the code can be caused by other faults, but it would seem that most people just have a dud sensor, and infact there was a recall for '03 350z's in the states for this exact problem. My only problem now is how would I go about sourcing the right part from my helpful local nissan dealership? Is there anyway of finding or knowing the correct part number? Is it interchangeable with any other VQ engine variants? Obviously this is something that should be fixed immediately, I'm just worried about the intermittent stalling and having my big box stalling after taking off through a busy intersection or something! Cheers Glenn

Yeah the attesa computer is in the rear right. I managed to get the carpeting off but it didn't reveal too much. I'll have a go on the weekend at getting the computer out from where it's wedged which is between a metal bracket and the reservoir. I topped the reservoir up but it didn't make any difference. The problem seems to happen most often after a warm start, it is usually fine in the morning. Can Nissan get the fault code from a consult? If I have no luck with on the weekend I'll take it in to them. HAven't checked the tyre pressure properly but none are flat. And the tyres would have been new from compliance and I've only done about 11000kms I think.

Awesome, thanks for that! Back to the drawing board for the 4WD light though

Hey guys! Ever since getting the car back on the road with the new turbo, I've been getting the 4WD light come on temperamentally. It usually happens if I have to do some maneuvering before getting up to speed, like reversing out of carparks and such. I can usually get it to go off and stay off by turning the car off while I'm at lights just before they go green - getting the car or engine up to speed quickly seems to nullify it. Anyway, I thought I'd check to see if I'd get an ECU fault code even though the MIL light has not come on, and the 4WD light doesn't persist after turning the car off like the MIL light does. Much to my suprise it spat out 0235. I've searched right through a G35 service manual and googled for ages but cannot find anything that says what it is, although the suspicion is that it's to do with the ATTESA system. One thing I have been noticing recently with the car is that when I pull up to a stop, just as the car is almost about to stop I hear and feel a creaking sort of noise from somewhere underneath. Then when I take off again there's another creak. Andy suggested to me last weekend that it maybe my mechanic hit the ATTESA line while dropping the gearbox crossmember to change the turbo, but I haven't had a chance to get underneath to look yet. Also I have tried the method here http://www.skylinesaustralia.com/forums/4wd-Light-S2-s-t190973.html - the one for r33 and r34 non vspec - drive at 30kph for 1 minute then look at the flashing led on the attesa ecu. I removed the carpet surround at the right rear of the boot and used a mirror, but couldn't see any led flashing or any reflection of it... probably doesn't work for M35s anyways. Also, from what I understand while the 4WD light is on the car will only operate in RWD mode. Am I doing any damage to the drivetrain when it is in RWD mode by way of the ECU controlling it? Or is it just as bad as pulling the fuse? Any ideas? Would a Nissan dealer be able to tell me what code 0235 means? Also wasn't there an AWD version of the G35 sold in the states? Has anyone else with the 4WD light problem tried getting an ECU fault code? Cheers Glenn

I rang the mechanic earlier today, and his thoughts were that going bigger than 60mm would make a very small difference if any. He said something about the pipe being the same size as the intakes on GTRs. I also enquired about getting other pipes made up. He said a rough quote would be about $500 to make and fit. He's going to talk to someone later this week about getting a run of exact duplicates made from mine to see if a run of 10 would be possible if the demand is there. I'll let everyone know when I find out about that.

Here's the old turbo: Doesn't even look like 1 fin is still intact. I did a little bit of testing on the way home last night. Boost starts building a tiny bit around 2200rpm but really doesn't get going until 2500rpm. At that point it picks up very quickly and seems to hit full boost around 3500rpm. If I had a boost gauge I could confirm if it maintains boost until redline but I can't see why it wouldn't be, it certainly feels like it does. Drivablility is still a bit of a concern. It takes a little bit of dancing with the right foot to get medium levels of acceleration, because the car is either bogged down at 2000rpm or hauling ass above 3000rpm. Most notably driving around suburban streets and 60 zones can be a pain to get to the speed limit without either taking ages or looking like you're in a street race. I live in a hilly area and trying to get to 60 and stay there is hard with the gear in 'D' while going up a hill. It will just take some practice I guess. Don't get me wrong though, I'm still preferring bucketloads more power than worrying about this slight niggle. Is there any way to reprogram when the gearbox shifts/downshifts gears and under what load? Is this possible with an aftermarket ecu or p.i.ggyback? Or will it be a parameter that can be changed once reflashing the stock ECU becomes available? If possible I think this minor problem could be programmed to go away. With the suction pipe I couldn't even see with my own eyes exactly which direction it goes in... I need one of those little cameras on a bendy stick that seem to always get used in the movies. I'll give the mechanic a ring tomorrow and ask if he can explain somehow... Also about getting other pipes done, he said that he'd have to have the car to fit it - there wasn't much clearance, as low a 5mm in some parts. On the other hand, he mentioned the idea of sending my pipe off to get exact duplications made. Not sure of the quantity required and cost involved in doing that though. And I've paid for the job but still haven't got a copy of the invoice yet, but I'll ask how much labour was involved in making the pipe.

Just kidding Yeah there's no cat atm.... but I've decided to get one put on. probably in a couple of weeks after I evaluate whether I like how noisy it is or not. Too much boominess around 1500-2000rpm, which sucks driving at 80kph. Cam, tried getting some pics of the intake just then but the engine is still too hot to get my hands near it and I have to go out, but definitely tomorrow!

Yeah Cam post up the turbo pictures if you like, I forgot to take any before I took it to the shop. I'll get some photos of my busted one up as well. Peak boost seemed like about 3500, not too sure though. I'll have a better look tomorrow on the way to work And yes I was pretty happy to find out about the nismo suspension when I went over the pits for the initial rego. It's a very good ride without being harsh at all. I'll try and get some better photos of the intake... it's hard to see exactly what's going on down there. I'll try and wedge the camera down the gap and get a photo from there, might show things a bit better. I was thinking a cheap powerduct style mod might be the next thing to get done Andy... I know there's a thread somewhere how to do it for $10. Is the stock air filter any good? Or am I going to see some better performance from a K&N panel filter or similar?

Hi guys! After 6 or 7 weeks of my car being off the road due to a blown turbo it is finally back! The turbo itself is an equivalent to a GT3060 with a journal bearing, which was designed to retain the stock turbo's response but with more power. No more nasty turbo whine! Of course with these things one thing leads to another, and I ended up having a custom intake made, custom 3 inch mandrel exhaust, and the dump pipe from ebay fitted as well So far I haven't had much of a chance to test it out (just driving to work and back today) but once it gets up and going it absolutely hauls ass! Here's some pictures of the intake and exhaust: Big thanks again Andy and Cam for helping get the rebuild sorted, and to Scotty and Craig for offering their help on how to get the damn turbo out! cheers, Glenn

I spotted a silver M35 in fyshwick this arvo at about 5:40 on woolongong st as I was leaving work. Was also wierd... I was thinking to myself "what the hell is someone doing driving my car?? especially since the turbo is blown atm!" First M35 I've seen getting around since I've had mine.