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Palo Alto Concours D’ Elegance…Pictures!!!

Filed under: Events
by Alvin G @ 3:49 pm on June 28, 2010

DSC06782

The Concours event was an amazing experience. Big thanks to David Swig for the invitation and giving Japanese classic cars a presence at the show and in people’s hearts!

We left ZCarGarage at 7am with three 240z cars, a ‘67.5 roadster and one sinister-looking s/c’d 350z.

This was my first time at a Concours event, and I was really impressed with how the venue was organized. As we drove  past the registration and onto the lawn area each car received a bottle of wine!  Flag wavers at every turn directed us to our staging area, where I immediately saw a sea of Ferrari’s and other exotics. I kept wondering, “A bunch of Datsuns get their own display in this show? ” Yes indeed. Not only Datsuns, but Hondas and Toyotas deserve their moment in the spotlight as well 🙂

The Japanese classic car display included a Toyota ’67 2000GT,  Toyota Sports 800, ’68 Honda S800, ’71 Skyline GT-R.   3 Datsun 240zs,  Datsun roadster, and a 1973 Toyota Corolla.   9 lovely Japanese cars in between gangster-era Cadillac’s and bright red Ferrari’s.
 
 

 

 
People were smitten with the display. I could hear memories being conjured, stories being swapped. It was great exposure for our cars, and quite endearing to see this happen amongst all of the high dollar iron surrounding us 🙂

                    
Rob told me that the Skyline was real, with the S20 drivetrain. My jaw dropped and I got very giddy as I have never seen a real Skyline GT-R in person. When the owner opened the hood the mighty S20 gleamed in all its twin-cam glory. Check out the pictures below for more detailed shots…from the underbody to the interior, it was a treat.
                  

The arrival of summer came late to the Bay Area but it was definitely felt with 95 degree + temps. Multiple tents and water stations were available to the attendees. Our invitation included snacks, drinks and lunch in a pavillion with a perfect view of the car display ramp. We were fortunate to have a chat with David Swig about seeing more folks getting into vintage racing and increasing Japanese car representation.
    

Here is a sight that was new to me: Concours judges scrutinizing cars. Maybe one day these gentlemen will be judging your Nissan/Datsun at a Concours event! Why not?


After lunch it was time to check out more of the cars, and I can’t describe or include all of the wonderful machines so I will  list a few favorites. Make sure to click after the “read more” to see all of the pictures!

Mercedes Benz 300SLs, and Gullwings galore! The new SLS was there too.

This Alfa Romeo Guiletta Sprint had just the right proportions:

Chrome everywhere, huge grilles, hood ornaments, and interiors that are so huge and luxurious that they belong on Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous

           

The event was truly an incredible experience and hopefully we can have an even greater display of Japanese cars for the collector car world to appreciate. Enjoy the pictures!

Click on the “continue reading” link below for the full picture album (315 pics)
…[read more]




ZCG Wednesday Night Drags Report…6/2/10

Filed under: Events,Performance
by Alvin G @ 9:16 pm on June 24, 2010

The “Rev on Redline” Drag Series continues at Infineon Raceway  in Sonoma. Here is a report from fellow Z-car owner/enthusiast Scott Smith:

We had a good showing of Zs, Gs, and Nissan/Infiniti SUVs at the June 2nd ZCG Drag Day:
ZCG-Drags-Session-2
            
It was a different drag night than usual for the ZCG crew, as Rob took a friend’s QX56 and Scott took his Titan to see how well they could do with the automatic transmissions while competing in the Street (V8) class as opposed to the typical Sport Street (4cyl and V6 class).
Alan “Doc” Beede took his supercharged 350Z for his first drag racing experience – that’s a lot of car for a first timer! On the drive up, Rob was quick to prove that the newer, higher horsepower/torque QX56 was faster than Scott’s 2004 Titan. Doc Beede kept a watch from far behind knowing that his Z was the juggernaut of them all in this contest. I believe everyone advanced at least one, if not two, rounds. Walt proved his skill by advancing 4 rounds to reach the finals, but could not take the title in Sport Street. Scott had to go one more round to reach the finals, then blew the start and lost to a sad Mustang by .07s. Ask any real racer though, a win is a win, so props to that Mustang.

                                      

Join us for the next event on July 7th! http://www.infineonraceway.com/raceway/race/drags/

Prizes!
1st Place: One Pair of New BF Goodrich Drag Radials courtesy of Z Car Garage
2nd Place: $100.00 Gift Certificate at Z Car Garage

Points:
Sears Point Wednesday events are bracket racing. If you show up early, each driver gets 4 or 5 practice runs before the sessions begin.

1 point: Once the sessions begin, each time you advance
(Sears Point staff puts a smiley face on your slip), you get one point. The goal is to NOT run against each other until absolutely necessary (i.e. everyone stages in the same lane until the final brackets)

3 points: Runner-up (loss in the finals) – trophy awarded

5 points: Winner of class – trophy awarded

Points are only valid on the dates ZCG goes to Infineon (4/7, 6/2, 7/7, August, September, October, possibly November). I’ll update this post as we set the dates for future months.

All competitors must sign waiver @ Z Car Garage before entering competition (or sign at track and give to Rob).

So put your excuses to rest and join us on July 7th for the 3rd event of the year.




Palo Alto Concours D’ Elegance This Sunday

Filed under: Events
by Alvin G @ 11:17 pm on June 23, 2010

Summer brings good weather and more car shows! The 44th Annual Concours D’ Elegance will take place once again at Stanford University in Palo Alto this Sunday, June 27. This show is typically geared towards those high dollar fantasy machines of the 30’s, 40’s, and 50’s but recently they have allowed Japanese cars to be displayed. ZCarGarage will bring several cars to the show and represent Datsun/Nissan. Although they will be not be judged this display will be a great forum for showing/increasing Japanese cars as truly collectible automobiles.
So come out to enjoy some of the finest cars in the world!
For full show details and driving directions click below:
PaConcours





Canby Datsun/Nissan Show Report 6/13

Filed under: 350z,Events
by Alvin G @ 12:29 am on June 18, 2010

Last Sunday we checked out the Canby Datsun Driving Show on our way back from a camping trip. This event is organized by the Northwest Datsuns group and is held at the Clackamas Fairgrounds in Canby, Oregon. Before I share with you how cool this event was here’s a couple gratuitous shots of our Z33 camping near the Columbia River Falls area 🙂

On to show!

                          
The Canby show is actually a 3 day affair with an Auto-x event on Friday, Swap Meet, and Car show on Sunday. It’s reminiscent of the All-Datsun Meet at Mt. Shasta but with plenty of shade, grass, kid-friendly activities, and gorgeous 70 degree weather. Upon entering the parking area I noticed that there were just as many show-entered cars as non-registered, both groups had some pretty incredible and rare rides, like this Datsun 200sx:
                                
It was engine-swaps ‘o plenty and (dare I say) almost seemed predictable to see 510s, roadsters, and Z’s with SR20DE(T) and KA24-series drivetrains. Most were exceptionally clean with attention to detail like this beautiful ’69 Roadster with a full S13 SR20DET drivetrain, Lotus Elise seats, Z32 Calipers, and a spotless engine bay:

     
The “Rat Rod” or “Ratsun” theme was in effect with several Datsuns, like this pickup. Dogs love trucks!
                          

It was quite refreshing to see these 2 super-clean L-series powered 510s, both boosted in different ways. The green car has EFI, while the red had a 32/26 under the box! Both cars had immaculate, semi-race-prepped interiors. Keepin’ it real with L-series power, gotta love it.

Speaking of “keeping it real”, as this pretty first-gen RX-7 rolled into the show I exclaimed “It takes some guts to bring a MAZDA to a DATSUN show!”, to which the owner replied, “Hey it’s not all Mazda!” And the crowd walked over to see under the hood of this Zoom-Zoom to find…NISSAN power! In the form of a KA24DE, factory clean looking install too.

Lots of pretty, restored 240Z cars, even a few 2+2s!

                    

Late-model rides to drool over too like this R34 GTS-T with a massive turbo:

Uber-clean S13 with an RB26-single turbo:

Nismo 370Z!

                    

Check the pictures below for everything from mild to wild. Canby had it all, plus a good vibe with great folks running the show.  Oregon is a long haul for us Bay Area folks, but if you happen to be near Portland or feel like a road trip, it’s worth visiting. So mark your calendars for next year’s event!

For a list of car show winners in each class click here:
Canby 2010 Winners
Click on the “continue reading” link below for the full picture album (107 pics)
…[read more]





Blackhawk Nissan/Datsun Show This Saturday!

Filed under: Events
by Alvin G @ 11:40 am on June 17, 2010

It’s time for another great show from ZONC. The weather will be awesome so bring your Nissan/Datsun to the Blackhawk Museum in Danville this Saturday, 6/19.
Join the caravan up to the show from ZCarGarage in San Jose. Meeting time is 8:30am Saturday morning at the shop.
ZCarGarage
140 Archer St.
San Jose, CA 95112





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