My son is looking to buy an 03/04 G35 Coupe. He wants a MT car. Obviously not plentiful. In his price range he is looking at cars with 75K-100k miles. Just wondering how long the stock clutches are lasting. Have seen a few that have advertised the clutch had been replaced at 75-80K. Should we be wary of a car with that mileage that still has the original clutch. I realise that some drivers will be tougher on the clutch than others. Any other issues that we should be aware of in those years or with certain features on these cars . Any advice will be appreciated. TIA

 

Really depends on how those miles were obtained, freeway or city and if the previous owner knew how to drive and did not ride the clutch constantly or abuse it doing burnouts/racing. A test drive should tell you if the clutch is slipping since one performing properly will toss you back into the seat fairly well with no lag.

Best of Luck and keep in mind this really is not a car for most kids/teens (not knowing how old your son is), this car has more than enough power to get an inexperienced driver in trouble very quick.

Jason

 

FYI, My son is 28 yrs old, married with one child. Previously owned an 04 350Z. I think he might be able to handle a G35 without much problem. He also had an 04 M3 convertible. How could you know! Lack of a back seat made the 350 Z totally impractical when his first child came a long. Sold the M3 to buy a SUV.(OUCH!) Included a picture of my ride.

 

I replaced my stock clutch at 80,000 miles...it still had some life in it, but it was due.

 

In DGP-G35 defense (not really needed) Most adults dont go to online forums to post questions about a potential car for their grown son to buy.

I figured your son was 15 or 16. Although I would appreciate my father trying to research a vehicle for me, but I am the one making the purchase so I would be doing the research regardless. Give him this forum as a reference and call it a day.

Back to the topic..I would be weary of any vehicle with 80K + on a stock clutch. As with any manual vehicle, they can go at 60K or last 120K...at the mileage he is looking at, it's either on the end of it's life or just starting a new life recently. Get documentation if they claim its new.

 

^exactly what he said. Although a stock replacement isn't too expensive, the labor will get you.

 

95k and still stock. But most my miles are highway and all my cars have been MT since I started driving at 14 (11 years) so I don't ride my clutch like many newbs.

I've actually been hoping the clutch goes out so I have an excuse to upgrade clutch and flywheel.

 

Thanks guys, I've been driving manual transmissions for the last 45 yrs. Anyway, my son did buy the car and it is in good mechanical shape. Interior is very good but the exterior has some very minor paint issues it is missing the front tow hook cover and the wheels all have some some curb rash . I know to how DIY repair the wheels. The Audis and BMWs I had used Einszett Silber or Wurth paint to match the stock wheel color. What paint do you G35ers use to match the wheel color? http://www.audiworld.com/tech/ext43.shtml

 

I dont believe anyone has matched the OEM wheel color yet. I think if you are going to do some wheel repair, your best bet is to respray the entire wheel.

 

Thanks. Then we'll try either Einszett silber or Duplicolor

 

so if he owned a 350z then he should know