Help with low mileage (55k) '05 Coupe I'm considering buying
 

Hey gang, new user and prospective G35 owner here. I'm 20+ year Nissan guy (Twin Turbo Z32, Maxima, etc) that's always loved the '03-'05 coupe body lines and after doing a bunch of research, I found a vehicle I'm very much interested in. That said, there's a few things I'd like to run by the experts here first since it's a very low mileage car (for the age) and is understandably priced on the higher end. So before I fork over top dollar, I'd like to be as sure as possible.

1. Car is a Silver '05 Coupe with 55,000 original miles with all the options (Aero Package, sunroof, Navigation, etc) and is on the second owner, who has only had it for about 4-5 months. That plus a "Not Actual Mileage" claim on the Vincheck are some pretty major red flags normally, but the condition of the car very much reflects the low miles claimed. I've driven over a dozen G's in my research and have bought plenty of cars over the years and this thing screams low mileage. Current owner says he was concerned about this too when he bought it but was assured it happened when the original owner finished paying it off and the lienholder released it. I know in California cars over 10 years old don't have to report and sometimes people screw up the paperwork by omitting it, leading to "Mileage Not Actual". Mind you, I will not be buying this car until my mechanic thoroughly checks it out and confirms it appears to be the correct age/condition, but this is still my largest concern.
2. Overall paint is great barring a scuff or two in the common places, most I can take care of. However, there's a pretty gnarly gash on the driver's side rear rock chip/clear bra area. Normally I'd simply touch up something like this so it didn't bother me but it looks pretty deep and the clear bra covering is something to consider. How possible would be to pull the clear protector and perhaps fill/blend just that area and re-cover it? I'm not looking for perfect, just a passable weekend job so I don't see it every time I get in the car. Picture here: https://i.imgur.com/UVxfdDc.jpg
3. Driver's side front factory 19" wheel has a slight bend in the lip. I assume this can be taken out by any normal wheel repair place barring any known issues/complexities with the G wheels. Worst case, can I just swap it to the driver's side (after swapping the tire direction) so it's at least "hidden" over there?

Aside from the above issues, the car passes all of the initial concerns I've found with older G35s. Oil cap is clean of sludge, all door lock actuators and seat motors work, navigation/Bose system work perfect and the overall interior/exterior is a 9/10 outside of the gash above and the usual ripped seat bolster issue they all have. Though even that's less than any other G I've been in. No oil on the manifolds, no leaking rear diff bushings, no leaks at all that I can see actually, it really does look like a well-maintained 50k mile car. So my gut reaction here, despite the gotchas above, is that I'd really like to own this car provided there's no surprises with the final inspection and my mechanic gives it an all clear. What are your thoughts, fellow G35/G37 gurus? Any advice is appreciated!

Thanks in advance,
-Ryan

https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/g35driv...c6ad6e0f55.jpg

Awesome, I was hoping they came off much like other clear bras. I know that sometimes you can be stuck with a bunch of residue/glue though. I figure if the paint isn't too mismatched underneath I could leave it be after touchup, thanks for the advice.

Leave the clear bra on, just touch-up paint the gash. I've done a dozen touch-ups on mine just like that. The clear bra will protect the paint from 1000 rock chips over the next decade, don't sacrifice it for the sake of a single chip.

Some day in the future if you get a full professional paint job they'll take it off anyways, a large reason the front of that car looks so good is because it HAS a clear bra :)

I doubt the wheel can be fixed, but you can pick up another one for about $200 so it's not a big deal.

The rear diff bushing is probably shot even though it didn't rupture yet, plan on getting it replaced with a urethane one Soon™

Thanks for the advice, especially on just getting another wheel. Not sure why I didn't think of that, I guess I'm used to having aftermarket wheels and needing to repair them! As for the bra/paint issue, my concern is that the gash is rather..."chunky" for lack of a better word. Almost like saw marks so I'd kind of have to sand it down or smooth it somehow to touch it up. If I can pull that off while leaving the bra on I might do that and call it a day. Good to know on that diff bushing, urethane replacements all the way.

Regarding the "Not actual mileage" alert on the Carfax/Vincheck, I have the entire report now and can see it a bit clearer. For whatever reason, the "NAM" markings appear at the BEGINNING of the car's life and all the mileage seems to make sense and fit the 55k narrative over the next 14 years. On the one hand, it's weird that it has a NAM at all but on the other, it does seem to document the mileage accurately over the run of the car.

Overall good thing if the car checks out tip top? I've never seen anything quite like this...


https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/g35driv...d52b77ab91.jpg

Possibly a defective combination meter that was discovered by the dealership and fixed prior to initial sale, either way those numbers all look legit so I wouldn't be concerned with it.

Looks like an awesome buy on a low mile car, I wouldn't hesitate to pull the trigger on it if it's exactly the car you're looking for.

Interesting, that could be why it was with 12 miles on the car at the beginning. Hoping to see it this weekend and lock it up if everything checks out. Thanks everyone!

Well gang, picked up the car today and all seemed to go well. Mechanic confirmed it was super clean with the only issues being a ball joint starting to leak on the lower control arm and apparently the driver's side HID light is out. I know those can be pricey from the dealer ($150ish bulb, $400ish ballast) but I'll see if it's just a wiring/connection issue first then look into used Ebay ballasts before I fork over that kind of cash.

Once I get things sorted out I'll be sure to make a proper introduction in the other forum. Thanks again for all the assistance!

Oh I wont be, I was just listing it for the sake of ridiculousness. And that wasn't even the lowest, Van Nuys Infiniti wanted $250/$588. Good lookin' out to make sure though.

I figure if it's not loose wiring, swap the bulbs and see if the issue follows. If it lights up, the bulb was dead, throw in some ~5500k Sylvanias (are they still decent?). If not, ballast is toast. Search says used ones for ~$100 off ebay are a decent option. I'd do that to retain factory, I'd go full aftermarket before paying dealer price...

Sylvania makes a full line of every lamp, they're a solid manufacturer and when my lamps go out I always replace with Sylvania.

Congrats on the car purchase.

No, you're on the right track! I was going to swap the H4s in the high beams too and that's where the Sylvania idea came from. Their Silverstars used to be the go to back in the day (been a while since I did any lighting). But I also didn't see much in the way of HID bulb consensus, so I figured some of their Sylvania OSRAM 5ks would be as good as stock or better. Reviews looked good and I figured I shouldn't just replace one bulb in case the hues don't match, and they are only $10 more than the factory D2S Philips off Amazon.

Is there perhaps something better I could be using? Or do people usually just replace with stock Philips? Oh and thanks again for the congrats. I'm definitely local, just east of Pasadena.

Morimoto makes HID bulbs for $40 a pair that seem to be high quality. They're inexpensive and also from a well-regarded company with excellent quality control at least on their projectors, I'd get them from The Retrofit Source.

I gave a $20/pair 4300k TRS ACME H1 bulbs a shot but one blew after 3 months when I upped its power to 55W so I won't recommend those, although on 35W the light output is excellent with a nice colorful cutoff on my aftermarket projectors.

That is one nice car. Amazing find!