Newbie From Nz M35

[M35]

Hi,

Well i decided to trade-in my 06 Focus and bought myself a Stagea Series2 M35 ARX-FOUR. I used to own an r32 coupe Skyline 2.5, before i bought my house, since then I had to sell the Skyline for something more userfriendly(karting building materials). This is alot bigger car than my old Focus, so still getting use to the size of it. Got all the luxuries including a twin sunroof and heated wing mirrors. All the gadgets including the useless Tv that cant be use..lol. Been reading alot of posting here on how to get the DVD-rom to change the language. Also im looking at upgrading the front brakes as they are only single pot, any suggetions on Series2?? also in the process of installing a reversing camera this long weekend.

Look forward to interacting with fellow Stagea enthusiasts.

Cheers

[PN-Mad]

Hi Mate and Welcome to another series 2 car!

Please dont say how much you bought it for... you kiwis get it good over there with import prices!

The TV can work, you just need a new digital tuner and install. The Language is a no go unfortunatly. Series 1 to 2 changed the setup, and they dont have the conversion for S2 yet. Have been waiting since I bought it, so don't hold your breath.

Brakes - most anything from R32 through R34, V35/350z 370z will fit with a little / varying degrees of mods. Big problem here is that your stock ARX wheels probably wont fit over the brakes. If you want to stay nissan, go for 18x8+30 rims from a V35 or 350z TRACK wheels, otherwise aftermarket- go nuts.

Lots of info in here- search function is good, however there are a few things changed on the S2 cars so dont be afraid to ask!

[M35]

Hi PN-Mad,

Thank you for your advise. Ok i wont say how i paid for it..lol. Well i think more research is needed for the front brakes issue. I liked the standard 18' wheels and

wants to retain it.

[PN-Mad]

I think you may be able to use a certain model Muarno brakes that are bigger in diam. but are still single piston. Have a search, but you'll pay more for those I guess than a decent upgrade.

[Spong]

Hi, I'm another Kiwi owner of an M35 S2 in the same fairly rare shade of blue. Mine's only a lowly 250RX FOUR n/a model however.

Changing the TV tuner isn't really an option over here as our digital TV standards are different to Aussie, so finding a 12V DVB-T tuner running H264/MPEG4 could be difficult. Some connect an XBox, media player or iPhone/iPod to the aux input of the existing tuner, but whatever you do, you'll need to feed it an NTSC signal as the TV monitor doesn't support PAL. Still waiting for the trip computer language translation also. The Russian translators seem to be struggling with this one.

[Daleo]

I believe the late Z33 (350Z) base model used a twin piston sliding caliper on a 320mm x 30mm rotor that will fit; and also go under the AR-X rim.

I have no idea how much they would be, or how hard they are to find.

[M35]

Yeah bit difficult to get the tv going here due to our digital signal, so im not bothering for the meantime, although i hope to get the reversing camera going so atleast i can utelise the factory pop-up tv screen. Anyone done an install on a Series2??

[PN-Mad]

I think thats what I was thinking of Dale, maybe used on the murano too.

Don't know about the Camera mate, mine is a factory one.

[Spong]

Things have changed since I last looked.

Here's a 12V Freeview tuner that claims to be compatible with NZ standards and can output an NTSC signal.

See: http://www.trademe.co.nz/motors/car-stereos/other/auction-478825543.htm

[M35]

thanks guys for your replies. Spong thanks for the link, didnt thought of TradeMe to look at. Tv tuner looks interesting, not sure about the supplied aerial tho, looks gay..lol.

[Spong]

The current Japan tuner is fed by 2x integrated aerials (from memory, I think they're etched into the glass side windows), and you maybe able to utilise them as I believe the Aussies guys have with their mods. Sorry, I've never gone down this path with our Stag.

[QJQ]

Nice Stag mate. I actually reckon blue ARXs are the best, but then I might be a bit biased.

The M35s do seem to be big cars but your photo with the VE makes it looks small. Did you have the towbar installed or did it come with it? Would love to see some photos.

Given the language conversion is still some time away, an alternative could be to swap out the monitor for the standard pocket and then mount a nav unit that takes a reverse camera input. Or you could do what some Infiniti G35 owners have done and swap the factory monitor for an aftermarket LCD. Here's a link to a thread if you're interested. http://g35driver.com/forums/car-pc/317481-dracovs-carpc-stock-navi-replacement-diy-status-progress.html .

The simpliest option though would be to swap the stereo for an aftermarket 7" double DIN that has nav, DVD and reverse camera input. I believe Chris Rogers has brushed aluminium double DIN facias for sale if you dont have it already.

Just throwing up some ideas for you to think about. I think any one of these options gives much more flexibility than the factory gear can ever provide (even with a language conversion).

Anyway, your Stag looks great and cool number plates as well.

Cheers

[M35]

Yes I agree, i love the blue colour looks so much better. I got the towbar fitted prior to picking up the Stag from the dealer. I was

originally looking at Skyline 350gt-8 sedan when I spotted the wagon, test drove both, agonised for a week to which one to buy, but I settled with the Stag. Very happy with it, so much space inside. Will be posting some pics for the towbar soon. I might have to look at installing a new tuner at some stage, not important yet just the reversing camera atmo. Anyone use the auto headlight switch much?

[QJQ]

I leave my headlights on auto all the time. Only time I manually switch them on is during rain or overcast when it's not quite dark enough for the sensor to trigger, although since I have installed my dashmat they do come on a little bit earlier. The auto feature is great when you enter multi level carparks or similar.

I've got so used to them that when I drive my R31 I nearly forget to switch them off. :-)

Cheers

[M35]

I've noticed the auto headlight does a two stage switching. Depending on the ambient lighting, it will only turn on the park lights and when it gets a little bit

darker then it turns on the headlights and vice versa. How cool is that!

[Commsman]

That's very cool, but where is the dash light dimmer?

[Mr 20Valve]

Funny that, I thought they had to install dash light dimmers for compliance... Obviously not anymore.

[M35]

There is a dimmer?? Im still finding buttons that I dont know what it does

[slippylotion]

There is a dimmer?? Im still finding buttons that I dont know what it does

Where? I haven't found one.

[Commsman]

Where? I haven't found one.

I think M35's "There is a dimmer??" remark was more of a question than a statement. I haven't found one yet either....