Newbie Essentials?

[Anonymous]

Hi,

I have just bought an '11 plate, 30k miles, 156bhp GT RCZ in Charcoal grey; thanks to the suggestion of mistral_blue!

So, I was wondering what are the essentials I should know? I have looked through the forums and have a few items: -

- Tensioner. I know these have a habit of failing and you start to get engine knocking. I have also read that the replacement should be a lot better. Therefore, as I don't think it has been done on mine yet, is it worth doing at the next convenient opportunity?
- Servicing. Unfortunately, my car lacks a fair bit of service history. So for peace of mind, and probably in combination with the tensioner replacement above, I will get a full service soon. The place I got it from did a "service" for free, so I am not exactly convinced by the quality of that. So, any garage recommendations in the area of Oxford/Reading/Swindon? If I supply the parts myself to save some money, are there any recommendations on non-OEM part minor upgrades (like air filters etc)?
- OBDII Reader. These seem pretty cheap and would no doubt be really handy for when something does go wrong. Are any in partcular/shop recommended?

I think those are the essentials. There are plenty of other minor things I will look into, like a spare wheel and maybe dropping the 19" to 18" when the tyres need replacing (could be a couple of years with my low mileage!).

Finally, really weird observation, but the central locking seems quite violent when locking; not a problem, but is that normal?

Thanks

 

[DKZ5745]

:greetings-wavingblue: Welcome :text-welcomewave:

You will not regret your purchase, you now have a car that will make you stare so much you will think there is something wrong with you :crazy:

So, a couple more common issues to keep in the back of your mind, coil packs, and MOST IMPORTANT sill damage from jacking using the jacking points. ( do a search on here - many many posts )

I would be having a good look underneath, and going straight back with it if there is evidence of the above. It can prove quite expensive to repair correctly.

As for the tensioner, you are correct that the replacement is a modified part and seems to be more reliable, but I have to say that I am a big believer in "if it ain't broke don't fix it" so I would be waiting to see if there are any future problems, not everybody experiences this, (research on here to see the usual symptoms) before dashing out to spend hard earned cash replacing a part that appears to be OK at the moment. But that's just me.

If there are any weird electrical issues, it can often be traced to the boot lock, which has a bit of a habit of taking on water.

No ideas about dealers in your area I'm afraid, and as mine is still under warranty, I have kept to OEM parts, so other than K&N or Pipercross filters (both seem very popular on here) I can't make any third party suggestions.

OBDII readers, most seem to have gone down the Fleabay route, I think they are very similar if you are looking at the budget end.

The main thing is, just enjoy your Z :thumbup:

Oh & p.s. We love pictures on here

 

[renegade79]

i use dash command on iOS and its pretty good. About €10 from app store.

One of my jacking points was damaged (unsure as to when it happened) so check yours and for future references check the thread listed above for future guidelines on how to lift the car correctly/safely. those jacking points are made of cheese....

enjoy the Z, oh and welcome :greetings-wavingblue:

 

[Anonymous]

I did read about the jacking points, but actually completely forgot to check them. They all have some sort of damage: -
- Front passenger's side has bent inwards partly (not buckled though) and the paint has flaked off (no rust though).
- Front driver's side just seems to have paint damage.
-Both the rears have buckled for about 10-15mm in from one end; the rest of it is fine. I guess someone used a disc to lift the car off-centre of the jacking points as there's some paint damage and dents the other side of the gap.
So it doesn't look too bad, just need them repainted to stop any rust for now. Does bring up the point that I need to look into it if I decide to get a spare wheel.

I did come across some mention of coil packs, but will need to read up of them in detail.

I would post some pictures, but I didn't take any when I collected the car and despite only doing 80 miles so far, the rain has meant it's already dirty! However, I did solve one mystery; when I was looking at a couple of these, they all seemed to have mould in the boot in roughly the same place (midway along the opening at the side). Turns out if you don't clear the water off the boot before opening it, water can poor down onto the outside just above, and splash into the boot. Luckily, I had new wipers and kept one of the old ones to clear the rear window, so will just use that in future! I keep it in the garage at home, so shouldn't occur too often.

 

[DKZ5745]

If you do decide to get an OBDII reader, The mysterious OBDII port is hidden behind the secret ashtray :wtf:

 

[neilgsxr69]

Hi, if I dead lock mine it does go with a thud! I Expect this is normal?
I would also say that if your not getting timing chain rattles on cold start ups (you need to be out of the car to hear this in the early stages) I would have thought it may have been done or you might have one of the lucky ones
Most have problems early 10k-20k miles so your well past that so I wouldn't worry.

Enjoy your new car I'm sure you will love it! :thumbup:

 

[DKZ5745]

I had never noticed, but yes the locking system does make a bit of a thud, so it must be normal to the model :eusa-think:

 

[DKZ5745]

P.s. Don't forget those pictures :eusa-whistle:

 

[Anonymous]

Here's one...

Hit a sunken manhole cover this afternoon. The alloy looks OK apart from scratches. So off to ATS tomorrow (only ones local) to get a new tyre and check the tracking if they can fit me in. Should get two, but to be honest, I am still thinking of getting 18"; especially after this. They were only EP Accelera Phi tyres, so no great lost! Also brings home the point of having a spare; no way the gunk kit would fix that. I will have a read of how to jack the car safely to let them know tomorrow.

 

[tianorth]

If manhole was sunk, can't you get compensation from the council?

 

[Anonymous]

In theory. However a quick look over on Money Saving Expert says it will be a long drawn out process, and since it is a manhole cover, will bounce the blame to the water company and back. However, it was highlighted with some red paint so they were aware of it. I just noticed too late and couldn't avoid it because of traffic. I think I will just bite the bullet in this case.

 

[DKZ5745]

I know what you mean, but it's certainly worth a letter, including copy of above photo, and address date & time of where it happened, telling them about the red paint too. Worse case, it costs you a stamp :eusa-think:

 

[Anonymous]

True. Might be a bit difficult getting a photo of it as there wasn't really anywhere to pull over, but I'll give it a go. Knowing my luck, they'll fix it tonight!

Oh, I did find a picture of my car, it's at 0:58 during the Bicester / Aylesburt meet 2015 video: -

https://vimeo.com/132017403

It was on private plates at the time.

 

[DKZ5745]

Nice :thumbup:

 

[2retro]

Hang on... does that red R at 1:04 really have a numberplate that says Rim Me?!

 

[DKZ5745]

:lol: :lol: :lol: :shock: :eusa-think: :eusa-whistle:

 

[RCZash]

Hi and welcome :greetings-wavingblue:

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks. :greetings-wavingblue:

So, they had repaired it! Which I guess is kind of good that they were on top of it, but since I hadn't driven that route for a month, I have no idea how long it was there for to start with.

You can still see some of the red paint I mentioned, but I was mistaken about it being a manhole cover; I was going by memory and just saw the drain. Which brings me to another "nice-to-have" I would like; a dash-cam! However, my priority is now a Jag space saver spare wheel and some way to jack the car up safely in order to use it! And some car mats.

Took some phoning around, but managed to find somewhere in Abingdon that not only had the right size tyre in stock, but the same make. Even better (sort of), it was a budget tyre so it only cost me £80 to get replaced. :thumbup: As I mentioned before, I would like to get some dark grey/black 18" alloys that will match the colour.

Speaking of colour, since I was out and about today, I gave it a quick clean: -

I'll be honest, I don't normally spend much on adding things to my cars other to maintain them, but I can quite easily (and happily!) drop over £1000 on this one. Part of me is also thinking about saving up and trading it for an 'R, but that wouldn't be a for a couple of years.

 

[Anonymous]

I now have some car mats and door courtesy lights.

 

[RCZ-Performance]

Congratulations and Welcome !!!