2014 Nissan 370Z Touring Roadster... New Engine Needed.
 

Hi everyone,

Hope you and yours are doing well... and safe. I've been told by the Nissan dealer that I need a new engine. I'd like an OEM engine. Can anyone give me some advice please?

New vs used engine? Warranty?

Do I have to go through the dealer or can I use a non-Nissan autoshop?

What can I expect to pay in total (for parts and labor) for a new vs. used engine?

Any other thoughts?

I've never had to buy an engine before so looking for any guidance please.

Thank you and hope y'all have a great weekend!

What's wrong with the motor? :confused:

Several things... timing chain, crank sensor, pistons and they said the engine "sludged" and clogged up. It has low miles 25k and I've had regular oil changes. I've not seen any oil leaks on ground. Thoughts on used vs new engine etc? Thank you.

Have you had this car from new?

I reckon if I was in the same predicament in Australia our consumer law would look after me even if the car was out of warranty.
If it has been serviced by the book, and the book stamped by a workshop, our consumer law would kick in and say that in 6 years of ownership no one would expect such a large failure to occur and Nissan would be required to repair the car at their cost.

Good luck with it, hope it works out well for you.

I once destroyed a motor in my 300ZX-TT at my second track even, and replaced it with a new Nissan create engine, installed by Courtesy Nissan in Texas, who at the time was one of the premier Z dealers in the US. At the time, as this was my daily driver, I thought it would be the safest and fastest route to get it back, even though I realized I would overpay.

Looking back, I would never do that again. I had some unbelieveable problems with the Courtesy's service dept, including having to invoke help from another dealer's service manager to convince them that it was stuck in safety boost after two weeks of arguing. In retrospect, I always wished I had bought a Stage III rebuilt engine from Imports Parts Pro (Kyle Puckett) in Houston where I would have paid considerably less and been dealing with a guy who knew that car better than any dealer service techs.

I don't know about any shops in Fla, but I would strongly encourage you to find one with an impeccable reputation and record for completing what they promise. It is very likely that the job will entail doing more than just replacing the engine, as it makes sense to do more while it is out of the car. A good shop can advise you and provide many more options than a dealer and you can end up better performance and reliability for less cost.

The last bit of advice is if you decide to go this way, deal directly with the shop owner and get everything in writing before turning it over to them. That especially includes a list of all parts to be purchased, confirmation of their availability, and committed completion after all parts are delivered. Ask them for the last 3-5 customers that completed builds within the last two years and actually talk to them to get their feedback. If during the build they find something else that needs replacing, get them to update their quote for total cost and delivery before agreeing to it. The last thing you want to do is give them an excuse for delays because you changed your mind.

Good luck and let us know how it goes regardless of which way you decide to go.

Excellent advice ltullos I really appreciate it!!!

This is surprising. I would ask for more information.
If you had been doing your oil changes on time there's no way
you should have a failure do to "sludge" at 25K. You would have
had to be using some old rotten ash based Pennzoil for this to happen.

Ask the dealer to explain a little more as to what happened.
Have them show you the build up. This just seems fishy.

Either way I am sorry to hear this happened to you.
Good luck with getting this resolved.

Why not consider an engine from a part out in Florida? There's plenty as well as other 2nd hand options with warranties and always ebay as a last resort. No reason why a competent private shop can't do it either. Many times there much better than the dealer.

^^Definitely this.

OP, what part of Florida do you live in?

Orlando. I was looking at Riker's, ZTech and Orlando Import Auto Specialist.

There is a shop in your area where the guy use to work for Nissan. Solidus uses him for his work. You may want to PM him. He lives in Orlando.

Spooler do you have any contact information i.e. name, number, name of business, etc?

I just had Z-Tech install a complete clutch and flywheel kit, along with a CMAK to take care of the crappy slave cylinder, and was very happy with the work and service. I dealt with Ari, who I'm pretty sure is an owner, and he was great to deal with. He personally texted me some videos of the old parts when they came out to show condition, and the new CMAK kit installed and ready to go back in with the transmission. They were also totally flexible on installing the parts that I picked out and ordered, which many shops will not do under any circumstances.

Another Orlando shop I can vouch for is Lemon Chasers. They're a standard repair mechanic, so not as performance oriented as Z-Tech. The owner's name is Jerry, and he's also very polite and patient. They installed the engine on my previous G37 when the gallery gasket blew and it spun a bearing. He found a good condition used engine, and completed the job with very reasonable rates and turnaround. Lemon Chasers was recommended to me by a friend who has been dealing with them for years on many cars, and I was glad I found them when I did. Jerry also took the time to email me quite a few pictures of progress showing the engine pulled, and anything that needed attention, without ever being asked.

You'll have no trouble going over details with either one of them, and they both obviously cared a great deal about the quality of what they put back out into the world. Lemon Chasers may be a little cheaper, but the last time I brought my car to them, there was resistance by his tech to use parts that I had provided, so definitely discuss that up front.

What about "Z Plug" in Orlando?