I was assigned for an outstation work trip down the south of my country. The trip would be around 250 km, one way and usually takes around 3.5 hours. I decided to drive my Nissan Fairlady Z and test how it would serve me on a long-distance trip. Actually, this would not be the first long-distance trip because I bought the car from the most northern point of the country but it was in terrible shape. So, this time it would be a proper test. I had some fun traveling south and learned several things. I found out that with its high weight, the 350Z's have a cruising speed of 190 km/h. Also, the acceleration of the Naturally Aspirated, V6 engine is very linear and easy to be done. I had a few cars tailgating me and I did not even have to downshift. I could accelerate easily in the sixth gear to get away from them. It was overall an exciting experience and the 350Z is a really nice and fast car to drive. I even reached the speed of 2However, it was very tiring in the Nismo sports seat on a trip like this.
On the way back to my home, I had an issue with the 350Z. Out of a sudden, I heard a loud thunk and my exhaust note sounds weird. I quickly stopped at a petrol station and looked under but I could not see anything. When I start my engine, it sounded different too. I immediately called my workshop, Redsun and asked if they were available. I was already near my home, so I might as well visit to have my 350Z checked. When I arrived, the mechanic checked thoroughly with a flashlight and found the problem. It was one of the downpipes that broke, causing an incomplete path for the exhaust gas. The right way should be exhaust manifold, downpipe, mid-pipe, and muffler but now the gas comes out from the manifold. Half the gas flows all the way to the muffler at the end but the other half flows out in the engine bay. The owner of Redsun said I was lucky because the downpipe was still intact with mid-pipe and not fallen out of the car. There I was worried how much a new downpipe would cost me but it was just an easy fix.
As you can see from the photos above, the downpipe had a flange on each end. The flange that was supposed to connect to the manifold broke and still attached to the manifold end. Meanwhile, the flange to connect the mid-pipe is still fine. All there is to be done is to weld the broken flange back to the downpipe and it will be finished. I had the honor of the owner, himself welding for my 350Z. Luckily, he did not charge a premium price for his involvement. The gasket had to be replaced as well from a burn. In the end, it cost me little and everything was back to normal. I had a scare but I was glad everything was solved easily. Thank you, Redsun for saving my wallet and 350Z.
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