10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
1 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
6,814 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2003 Nissan 350Z suspension problems

suspension problem

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2003 Nissan 350Z Owner Comments (Page 1 of 4)

problem #76

Apr 082008

350Z 6-cyl

  • Manual transmission
  • 12,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

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 Nissan's 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 Nissan's 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 front align kit' $394.87 parts total''... $682.87 2X tire mount'. $10 2X tire balance... $30 align kit install.. $270 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.

- Nashville, TN, USA

problem #75

Jan 122007

350Z 6-cyl

  • Manual transmission
  • 19,626 miles
I have a 2003 Nissan 350Z which I purchased new from selma Nissan in July 2003. The vehicle has had the front tires replaced by the dealer three (3) times, averaging 17,000 to 19,000 per set of tires. Each time the dealer has re-aligned the front end and assured me that the problem has been taken care of. Each time that the vehicle has gone in for this problem, the vehicle experiences severe front tire noise and steering wheel shake, especially during low speed and braking. Both front tires display excessive wear to the inner edge of the tires rendering them unserviceable. To Nissan credit, they have acknowledged the problem and have re-aligned the front end and replaced the last three sets of tires at no cost to me. The car was taken to the dealer today (01-12-2007) with the same problem. The dealer said they will contact the manufacturer to see if replacement will again be authorized. Whether or not Nissan covers the replacement isn't really the issue. A modern vehicle that wears out four sets of $600 tires at under 20,000 miles each obviously has a problem that should result in a recall. Nissan is apparently unable to repair this defect, and the car is not only unsafe, but has a very low resale value.

- Hanford, CA, USA

problem #74

Oct 022005

350Z 6-cyl

  • Manual transmission
  • 23,000 miles
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. Why should Nissan's shoddy engineering be my responsibility to fix? go to www.nissantireproblems.com and register for the class action suit......

- Dracut, MA, USA

problem #73

Feb 102006

350Z 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 70,342 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Bought 2003 Nissan 350Z used in 2/06. Keyes woodland hills Nissan of ca sold me the car with both front tires worn down to the wire on the inside rim. They still have not disclosed or acknowledge the alignment/tire feathering problem. Its been 12000 miles & I need new tires. This is very costly & I would never have bought this car knowing about this.

- Canoga Park, CA, USA

problem #72

Aug 202006

350Z 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 12,434 miles
350Z touring model pre-mature tire wear. I ordered my car on 01/2003 and took delivery on 04/2006. At which time I discovering that Nissan had put out its 1st tsb bulletin dated 01/23/2003. Reference # ntb03-006. I have 15,434 miles on my car. I drive it very little and therefore, just starting to experience the problems that I've been reading about. I have taken my car to the dealer at least three times for the same recall and was told there was nothing wrong with the front. The lastest recall notice was during the month of August 2005. Again I took my car into the dealer and was informed there was nothing wrong that applied to the recall notice which involved the front suspension and uneven tire wear. The service rep told me again there was nothing wrong with my car. I decided to get up under my car and do my own inspection. What I discovered was unbelievable, my tiers were wearing on the inner toe to the point they were almost bald at 12,500 miles. I returned to the service rep. And pointed this out, he immediately changed his mind and ordered me new tires at Nissan expense. At 15,434 the tires had begun to wear in the same manner. I took the car back to the dealer who wanted me to pay for an alignment. I refuse to put another dime in this car. He said that I would have to contact Nissan. I did and now Nissan will not fix my car until I get a release from one of those lemon law attorneys that I had contacted out of desperation. That's another story and now I'm fighting them too. I told the lawyers that I wanted my car replaced but let them persuade me into a 4,500 monetary verbal agreement. When I received the terms of the agreement from Nissan I refused to sign it and return it to the lawyer for payment. The law firm contacted me and informed me that a verbal agreement in the state of Maryland is the same as a binding contract. I am in the process of writing letters to attorney general, federal trade, BBB Nissan and those so called lawyers who claim to represent us.

- Joppatowne, MD, USA

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problem #71

Feb 022005

350Z 6-cyl

  • Manual transmission
  • 24,000 miles
My 2003 Nissan 350 Z continues to "eat" front tires. I have replaced the front tires 4 times and aligned once in under 12 months. My last set lasted a whopping 2 months and two days! I notified Nissan of the problem in February-05, July-05 and twice in September-05 and have not received a return call as promised. Nissan said they had "no" recalls or complaints of front tire issues during the first two calls. In August-05, I received a letter from Nissan stating they were going to extend the warranty for front end alignment and possible replacing the tires for 03 & 04 350's. but as I was told in two earlier phone conversation, they knew of no problems. Apparently during the month of August they decided to check into the complaints since they knew of none earlier...right! the letter states "Nissan is truly dedicated to your satisfaction"! Nissan has not shown any signs of dedicated to 350 Z owners. I for one! looking in this site, I have found over 70 complaints on this problem. It's time to do something.

- Beaumont, TX, USA

problem #70

Jul 012004

350Z 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 7,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

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..

- Avon Lake, OH, USA

problem #69

Mar 012003

350Z 6-cyl

  • Manual transmission
  • 6,000 miles
Excessive tire noise was noticed, took to dealer and found inside of front tires had worn away. Dealer re-aligned suspension and replaced front tires. Later, tire noise was noticed again along with pulling to right. Took to dealer and inside edge of front tires had worn away again, tires were replaced again and suspension re-aligned again. Right front suspension "compression rod" replaced due to pull. Tires continue to wear excessively along both inside and outside edges. Tires wear out in less than 10,000 miles. Once tire noise becomes severe, straight-line stability is affected at highway speeds. Tires could fail due to premature wear if vehicle owner does not inspect tires for inside edge wear at abnormally frequent intervals.

- Lawrenceville, GA, USA

problem #68

Apr 062004

350Z 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 7,438 miles
The front end and tire defects. At 7438 miles, car was rumbling at stop speed. Dealer put new front tires and aligned front end. At approximately 10,000 miles dealer installed new front brakes. At 12, 493 miles the car was rumbling at stop speed. Dealer put new front brakes and aligned front end again. Both times tires had cupped, and thread separated. If it did not get fixed it could result in a crash. ( a blow out ).

- Aliso Viejo, CA, USA

problem #67

Feb 012004

350Z 6-cyl

  • Manual transmission
  • 7,000 miles
Ongoing alignment / tire feathering issues with Nissan 350Z I have had my tires swapped side to side several time + replacement tires and many alignments. The 350Z will not stay in alignment and eats front tires every 7000-12000 miles. It wears the insides of the tires to the point of replacement with over 80% tread on the rest of the tire. They are now not performing alignments on my car even though their tsbs state that they will and will replace tires up to 30,000 miles. They stopped doing alignments and tire rotations/replacement before 20K miles in my situation. The stock tires are up to $400 a piece, so this is unacceptable. The dealers want $80 for an alignment every 4-6 months + tire purchase. This is a known issue and Nissan refuses to issue a real recall, even though every 03 350Z has this issue. It was blamed originally on the suspension being stressed during shipment from Japan. I have also had dual rear axle replacement, transmission replacement, clutch assmbly replacement, just to name a few. The vehicle become very unstable with the front alignment issue. There are also issues with the rear alignment. It is out of spec everytime it was checked.

- Round Rock, TX, USA

problem #66

Feb 222005

350Z 6-cyl

  • Manual transmission
  • 7,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

My 2003 Nissan 350Z sports car has a front suspension problem that causes extreme inner tread tire wear in very short periods of time, ie, less than 5000 miles. The problem is pervasive in all 03 models as indicated on the various internet chat rooms. Nissan is aware of the problem and has provided a front end alignment and left to right/right to left tire rotation and/or tire replacement - neither of which cure the problem (indicative of an engineering design problem). The extreme tire wear is evident at approximately 4-5000 miles. Nissan appears to not have found a solution to this problem. Replacing the front tires at unreasonable 5000 mile intervals is required to prevent an extreme road hazard.

- Las Vegas, NV, USA

problem #65

Jan 152005

350Z 6-cyl

  • Manual transmission
  • 4,000 miles
My 2003 Nissan 350Z has a problem keeping alignment. This causes premature wear on the tires and the additional cost of alignment. This began immediately (2003 at 6,000 miles). Both tires and the alignment were replaced and repaired. However the car continues to lose alignment. A bigger issue is caused in the winter on slick roads. The car will swerve unexpectedly - totally lose control and cross over into on coming lanes. I feel these cars represent a hazard not only to the driver but other innocent people on the road. The only safe remedial action would be a recall and permanent repair of this defect.

- Lisle, IL, USA

problem #64

Dec 282004

350Z 6-cyl

  • Manual transmission
  • 27,186 miles
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.

- Vacaville, CA, USA

problem #63

Nov 182004

350Z 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 29,000 miles
My 2003 Nissan 350Z has experienced tire/feathering on both front tires. Nissan replaced both @ 17,000 miles at no charge to me. Then @ 12,000 miles on 2nd set, same problem exists. Nissan says they will replace, but the dealer says tires are on back-order till April 2005. They offered no "buy back", or loaner. I could not wait till April 2005, so I traded the 350Z. I traded because after my warranty period was to expire @ 36,000 miles, I would have had to pay approximately $600 per set to replace at 10,000 to 12,000 miles. The feathering of the tires made for very little traction, especially during rainy conditions. I also took quite a hit (trade-in was $6,000 less than kelly blue book). Nissan should be responsible for selling me a lemon>

- Danville, KY, USA

problem #62

Dec 012004

350Z

  • miles
My front tires were replaced on my Nissan 350Z after only after 18000 miles, with a realignment after Nissan recommended in the bulletin release released this year. Now after 33000 miles on my vehicle I am having to replace once again the front tires on my vehicle due to improper wear on the tires, the same as what happened at the 18000 mile replacement time. Obviously there is something wrong with 350Z front alignment. Is there a class action lawsuit against Nissan for defect of the front alignment, as I am not the only one this is happening to, and how to I go about joining the lawsuit?

- Naples, FL, USA

problem #61

Sep 102004

350Z 6-cyl

  • 4,000 miles
My 2003 Nissan 350Z has an extremely dangerous pattern of tire wear. The inside of the front tires wears rapidly - by 6000 miles it is nearly smooth. Vehicle lost control several times due to this problem, resulting in many near-accidents. Visited dealer who swapped tires from side to side but issue recurred. First noticed at 4000 miles and recurred at 6000 miles. Very unsafe in my opinion. Would not recommend this vehicle and am frustrated by Nissan's dilly-dallying tactics extended towards the 80% of Z drivers that have this problem.

- Houston, TX, USA

problem #60

Jun 222004

350Z

  • miles
Complaint received via E-mail."I have so many problems with my car. The tires wore out within 7 months. I took to the dealer to get it fixed. I ended up replacing two tires. That was in June. September I experienced the same problem. Less than a year, my car has had 5 alignments and two sets of tires. I contacted the Nissan consumer affair specialist, no one wanted to take care of the problems. The car is believed to have a manufactured defect. The dealership has informed me that lots of problems with this model car has been reported. I can not drive my car anymore because I am scared the tires might blow up.

- Lexington, TN, USA

problem #59

Jul 282004

350Z 6-cyl

  • Manual transmission
  • 6,500 miles
I own a 2003 Nissan 350Z which I purchased new. The carS tires began to make a loud noise, which I noticed around 2500-3000 miles. The noise was gradually increasing in volume as I added miles to the car. I took the car to the dealer at approximately 6500 miles when the noise became unbearable. The dealer re-aligned the front wheels and replaced the tires to address a "known problem" with alignment for which Nissan had issued a service bulletin. I now have just under 14,000 miles on the car and have just delivered the car to the dealer to address the problem once again as the issue was not resolved by the alignment and tire replacement. The dealer was unwilling to align or replace the tires and claimed the warranty fix was a one time fix. I contacted Nissan Consumer Affairs, and now I will be provided with an alignment and new set of front tires under an extended coverage Nissan is calling "2003 350Z front wheel alignment warranty extension". this warranty extension is addressing the same problem that I already asked them to fix under warrantee last year. The problem should be covered under the original warranty because it first appeared during the warranty period and was not fixed by the action taken by the dealer. This is a known problem with many of the 2003 350ZS. Nissan is addressing the symptoms rather than fixing the problem in order to buy time. The problem is much more significant than a simple alignment and tire replacement. They are using deceptive practices to skirt around the problem in order to avoid developing and implementing a true fix for the issue. Under the "2003 350Z front wheel alignment warranty extension" my extended warranty expires two years from the in-service date of my vehicle. That is October 2004 for me. At that point I will be stuck with a defective car that wears out very expensive tires in a fraction of the normal tire life with no means of recourse.

- Amsterdam, NY, USA

problem #58

Sep 062003

350Z 6-cyl

  • Manual transmission
  • 10,541 miles
Experiencing an unresolved tire wear problem with 2003 350Z that I purchase new in February 2003. The front tires have been replaced and alignment performed twice on the vehicle. When the tires are examined, they have an irregular wear pattern on the outside edges of the tread. Although Nissan has issued tsb ntb04-043 on 4/12/2004 and extended the original warranty to two year / 30K miles, I do not believe there is a long term solution that will result in front tires lasting significantly longer than the current unacceptable 10K to 12K miles. I view this issue as reducing the serviceability / reliability of my 350Z and it may also pose a safety concern if the problem remains unresolved.

- Cary, NC, USA

problem #57

Dec 262003

350Z 6-cyl

  • Manual transmission
  • 12,000 miles
2003 Nissan 350Z brought in to showcase Nissan in bourne, MA with oil light on and no oil pressure. Technician put car on lift and drained "less than a pint of oil" from vehical. Inside of tail pipes were oily and black. Milage at the time was 14,100. Nissan's solution was to do consumption tests at 500 mile intervals which resulted in oil usage of 1/4 to 1/2 quart per 500 miles which Nissan claims is "normal".

- East Falmouth, MA, USA

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