Finally found my Q!

[NuQFO]

Hello everyone!

Newbie here, just purchased my 2000 Q45 yesterday! I've been shopping around
for an LS400 & GS300 for several weeks now when my brother reminded me of the Q45!
Sure glad he did!

Picked up a 2000 Q45 Anniv. Ed. w/ 110k miles (silver) for $6500.00 OTD. Was this a good deal?

Anyway, absolutely love the car! I'm happy I remained patient throughout this whole process. Lost count of how many cars I've seen and test drove...

Any suggestions on lowering springs? Worried about the ride getting too stiff...
Will probably leave it stock for a while or at least until the holidays are over.
Doesn't hurt to start poking around and planning though!

Looking forward to doing a lot of reading here.

Cheers!
~Mr. E

[lino]

Welcome to Nico and congratulations on the new car

If you don't have a copy of the FSM (Factory Service Manual), you can download it from here:
http://www.nicoclub.com/FSM/Q45/

Here's a link to the articles:
http://www.nicoclub.com/infiniti-technical-articles#q45

Wes' site also has some info pertaining to the Y33:
http://q45.org/techhelp.html

The following thread has some info on springs:

Need front Springs
post5776500.html

Most members like to buy parts from I.O.S. (Infiniti of Scottsdale). They are a supporter of the forum and have the lowest prices:
http://www.infinitipartsusa.com/splash/ ... ?siteid=55

[BCC93QT]

110k miles is "ok" depends on how it runs, amount of owners, maintenance records, where it has been maintained, how the suspension feels, 6500$ is costly for an almost 11 year old car but depends on soooo much. Lowering it, i would do bags if you were to "lower" it. but thats my opp. also depends what state your in, type of weather you see, daily driver, etc. GL!
PICTURES PLZ

[BadQ45t]

Welcome to the 2nd Gen gang here at NICO. So I have a 97' and the first thing you need to figure out is what type of suspension you have. If you have the electronic one where you can switch between touring/sport/ etc. then you have to decide if you want to rebuild these with OEM Parts. As they suggested you can get them from IOS cheaper. the ohter thing that some folks have done is aftermarket shocks/strut replacements. You cannot go and get Monroe's or Bilsteins from you local auto parts store, the car wasn't popular enough. The only aftermarket stuff for out cars is the KYB SR Special shock/strut interts...stock is KYB NIssan branded, which are just fine but not performance oriented. As for lowering springs there are Tein and Espelir springs. I have the Teins and they have worked just fine, but recently other members have said the Espelirs are better. There is a place called Memoryfab that can order them, ping their website and then call them. 4-5 weeks wait for them but is worth it if you like a car that handles taut.

The other things you should be looking at is what the fluids all look like. If I were you unless you see tons of paperwork to show these fluid changes I would flush the transmission, rear end, brakes, power steering and radiator fluids all with top quality synth products (Amsoil, Red Line or Mobile one in that preference order).

This is a great car and at 100k you have plenty of life left if you do the right thing now and commit to fresh fluids and regular oils changes.

good luck, let me know if you need more help on the suspension, I did mine 5 years ago so I think I'm the resident expert on 97-01 suspensions now.

[NuQFO]

Lino,

Thank you for the warm welcome and wealth of information! Love the FSM!



BCC93QT
Carfax is clean. 2 previous owners. 1st owned it for 1yr the 2nd for 8yrs. Driven 11k miles per yr. Maintained @ local Infiniti dealer. As far as the price, just went by kbb and also compared it to what's currently out on the market. I've seen higher mileage and older asking for the same or more. Don't know how to post pictures here yet! I will do so as soon as I learn to...


BadQ45t

I'll make sure to stay on top of my fluids. Already eying the tip on the transmission cooler.
I have the active suspension. Would I be able to get away with just going with springs? Or will I have to change out the shocks/struts too?
I read that the Tokico blues are good? Any info on Impul or Calif. Custom springs?
I want to rid of that gap without compromising ride quality. Had a bad experience with putting intrax springs in an old 325. Bumpy as hell...
How does all of this affect the active suspension?


Thanks guys~ e

[BadQ45t]

The Tokico blues don't fit your car, they used Tokiko on 1st Generation Q45 but our generations is actually based on the JDM Cima (Y33 is the designation) and thus completely different suspension and engines. Infiniti used KYB's on our cars so the only option you have is to rebuild the electronic ones or rip them out and replace with KYB SR Specials and/or the stock non-electronic versions. If the suspension still seems okay I'd ride it until it is done and then figure out which approach you want to go with, either the electronic rebuild with IOS parts or source through memoryfab....if you do the stocker I'd just get some fresh Infiniti springs and rebuild kits and call it a day. That would probaby get you another 10 years and 120k. There were a few other guys on the board that went with the new springs and KYB SR Specials as from what I've heard the electronics are not very sporty. If you live in an area with really bad roads you might not want the 2" of lowering and tautness of the SR Specials, it for sure firms up the ride considerably, but it also makes this car handle like crazy. For sure a trade-off, but the Espelir or Tein springs fit no sweat, my mechanic did mine but encountered no issues at all when doing them. You might consider having a set replacement strut mounts ready to go if/when you do either job.

Great that you have a dealership history for the car, I would consider finding an 3rd party mechanic moving forward as it is a diminshing return on returning the stealership with a 10+ year old car. Regular fluid changes with high quality synth fluids will pay you back big time with far longer lifespans.

Good luck! Welcome to the family, your gonna find that nobody knows what your driving around town.