We have known Alex for many years and enjoy seeing his Sunny truck on local drives and gatherings. He reached out to Z Car Garage for dyno tuning and we happily obliged. The Sunny was already close to being dialed-in so we just put the sprinkles on with a few adjustments. It is such a cool little RHD truck and drives really well.
Alex’s cars are built to high standard and have a great vibe. His LS-powered Datsun 510 wagon built by Marcus Fry Racing is well-known in the community:
“I met Rob through a mutual friend at the time (Dan from DGR), just about 15 years ago. I helped deliver the Bluebird he has around that time. Throughout the years I have heard great things about ZCG and it only made sense to go to Rob when it was time to get the carbs tuned on the Sunny. My experience was great. The acceleration is now smoother and I got to see numbers. The carbs are now synced and timing adjusted.”
Alex recalls how acquired the Sunny:
“I randomly found the Sunny for sale in Seattle a few years ago and pulled the trigger as I have always wanted one but never seen one in person. It was originally brought to the states by JapaneseClassicsLLC a year prior. A good friend, Marcus of MFR, volunteered to go with me and tow it back. Since then, I have had a blast driving and updating as we all do when we get a Datsun to play with. Rebuilt 5-speed, 0 offset Panasports, new rubber bushings and weatherstripping, and getting the seats reupholstered are just some of the things I have had done to date.”
Dyno Tuning
Alex brought truck to ZCG and we got it on the dyno. Under the hood is Nissan’s 1.2L A12 engine, also used in the B110 series sedans/coupes. This one sports dual Solex-Mikuni induction. It was already close to being dialed so we adjusted the full throttle, smoothed-out the fuel curve and timing. The truck made 54hp/59tq to the wheels:
Enjoy this video of the Sunny on the dyno at ZCG:
Enjoying the Ride
We love that Alex drives the ‘Ute everywhere. He’s a great guy to be around and also an an avid videographer, mounting a Ghostcam on the back of the truck capturing neat driving perspectives. You can see more of his adventures on his Instagram. We’ve had the pleasure of running with him on road rally events like Breakfast Club Rally. I even spotted Alex on HWY 101 S and at a local bar…you can tell how happy he is driving this truck. And yes, seeing a kei car in modern-day Bay Area traffic is quite the sight:
We asked Alex what’s next for the Sunny:
“In the future, I want to up grade the suspension and brakes (maybe I can get something ZCG to fit under 13s lol). Since I “somewhat” over modified my LS510, I decided to keep the sunny mostly stock. Soon, I am getting another A12 to use so I can rebuild the one under the hood to OEM. I have always been a 510 guy, but I can’t help but like to drive the Sunny more.”
We appreciate your support Alex, keep Enjoying the Ride in your Datsuns! More photos in the gallery below
At Z Car Garage, the Datsun 510 is very close to our heart. Our hero John Morton piloted a 510 in the Trans Am racing series to put Nissan on the map, fueling every Datsun enthusiast’s passion for hot-rodding the humble economy car. We also have our share of race, personal and project 510s. When Mark G contacted us to work on his 510, we happily obliged especially after learning that it was built by fellow racer and Datsun 510 specialist Troy Ermish. The 510 features our Z Car Garage CV Axles, dyno tuning and more.
UPDATE: This post is an update to our initial blog post on Mark’s rad 510. He had an emergency request and Z Car Garage got him back on the road. Here is Mark with the story:
“I drove up HWY 9 for a quick run. The car died about a mile from Skyline, I called Nick for advice, no Spark. I emailed Rob that afternoon, after getting the car towed home, he contacted me the next morning. He got me into the shop on that Thursday to replace a bad MSD, so I could do the run with ZCG and crew to Morning Motors on July 31st.”
When Mark called we did not hesitate to get him in to the shop to resolve the issue. We found no power to coil and traced it to a failed MSD box. This was a strange unit we were not familiar with so we had our in-house electrical expert Joshua Corwin wire in our favorite MSD 6AL box. After a few small adjustments we dyno-tuned the 510 and it made excellent power, 177hp/170tq to the wheels:
Enjoy this video showing Mark’s 510 on the dyno and driving on the road, volume up!
Enjoying The Ride
Mark’s 510 was back on the road again and we all had a great time attending the Driving While Awesome Morning Motors. (Above) The group convened at Alice’s Restaurant, Mark’s 510 next to Erich’s Alfa Romeo gave some serious B-Sedan vibes!
Since this last visit we have had the pleasure of seeing Mark at various race events and even Nick’s Birthday party. Thanks for your support Mark!
“Because of the installation of the new MSD, ZCG dyno’d the car which improved it’s HP. Yahoo! Rob was kind enough to lend me his G20 to get around that day, cool little fun car. With his permission, I washed the cars windows. Another successful Z Car Garage encounter.”
Read further to learn more about Mark’s history with his 510 and build details…
510 Beginnings
Mark is an avid car enthusiast, growing up here in the South Bay. His first car was a lowered Capri that he tracked in the 80’s at Laguna Seca. He attributes his 510 passion from its rich racing heritage:
“I was introduced to Sports Car racing at Laguna Seca in the mid 70’s. I have been going to most all of the different events ever since. My favorite was Sports Cars racing, Camel GT’s, IMSA, ALMS. Thus the ‘Poor Man’s BMW 2002’, my recent 510 is my third and hopefully last. Number 2 was also brought back from the dead and used to commute and cruise over Highway 17 to Aptos to work for my Father’s business. The surf rack was installed to haul all kinds of stuff.”
In 2015, Mark decided to fulfill his dream of another 510 and bought a project car:
“I wanted something I could turn into a street racer and autocross car for my son. As in any extensive full blown renovation, everything on the car has been touched. I tore it completely apart, soda-blasted the car, personally sandblasted every bolt and part on the car, welded in new floor panels and rebuilt the trunk, back panel and rear valance.”
The project car:
Mark’s extensive bodywork:
“I met Troy Ermish early on in the process, so when the floors and trunk were repaired, the car was trailered to Troy for a full roll cage, front fender wells were cut back and jack points installed in the rocker panels at the “B” Pillars.”
After 18months of bodywork, which Mark was heavily involved with, it was back to Ermish for the final build out. The car was purchased with a 1600 and funky 4 speed, but Mark also scored a 2000cc with two side draft Mikuni’s and a ZX 5 speed transmission. The engine was sent to Rebello for a full rebuild and upgrade to 2360cc spec.
T- Square Brain
Mark studied art in school and his attention to detail throughout the 510 impressive. From the no-frills interior to uncluttered engine bay it’s no surprise that he earned the nickname “T-square brain”. Each time I see this car it reveals another level of fanaticism that reminds me how awesome Datsun-owners are. Enjoy a few detail shots with more pics in the gallery below:
Engine Bay
Devoid of unnecessary bits, the Rebello 2.3 with dual-Mikuni’s takes center stage:
Interior
A tribute to the B-Sedan racing 510s of the 70’s, the interior is spartan with a simple dash, roll cage and OMP seats:
Again, it’s super sanitary in here with subtle color choices and straightforward switchgear. That is Pete Brock’s signature on the dash!
Body
The 2017 Corvette Racing Yellow paint is loud, but in a good way. Mark’s touches here are an exercise in restraint, while harking back to the Trans Am racers he remembered. The white roundel was inspired by our friend Dave Scholz’ Datsun 240z as seen on Petrolicious . 13″ re-pop’d (VTO) AR Libras are the definitive wheel choice here, with contrasting black spokes and chunky Toyo R888 tires:
Sorting at ZCG
The 510 was constructed with both Mark’s skillset and Troy’s finishing touches. After he finished his project, Mark visited ZCG for adjustments and sorting.
ZCG CV Axles!
We upgraded Mark’s standard half shafts to our Z Car Garage CV Axles. These CV axles help transmit power to the ground and ensure smoother operation compared to standard half shafts, while eliminating the need for aluminum adapters. Mark got ZCG VV Axle set #320 and he loves them:
Nick about to install the new CVs:
Standard half shafts (left) and ZCG CV Axles (right). Note all of the powdercoated suspension parts:
Getting Mark Back On The Road
Mark was experiencing a re-occurring high water temp issue. Finally the head gasket was compromised so we pulled the engine for a refresh.
We re-intalled the the engine and tidied up the engine bay. The electric fan was removed and a fan clutch installed utilizing a 620 water pump/S30 fan blade to make it all fit behind the Koyo radiator:
On the road
With a few more minor tweaks like door locks and windows, Mark was out and about with his 510. He joined us at the local Fuel Supply Cars and Coffee:
I was fortunate to catch up with Mark and meet his son Dom who also has motorsports background. It was rad to see the Datsun being a family affair and Mark all smiles behind the wheel:
“I feel very lucky to be part of the Z Car Garage family. The staff are all great guys. I will continue to bring the car in for Anything it needs.”
Big thanks to Mark for letting us service his 510. We really enjoyed having the 510 in the shop!
Speaking of Love for The 510…this weekend 20+ B-Sedan racers will be running at Laguna Seca. I will have a full report for you, stay tuned!
More pictures in the gallery here: https://www.zcarblog.com/2020/08/05/performance/marks-1972-datsun-510.html
Happy Thanksgiving from all of us at Z Car Garage! We hope you can find time to Enjoy The Ride over the holidays. Please note we will be closed today and Friday 11/24.
Yousef purchased a set of Panasport Wheels from Z Car Garage that we shipped to Saudi Arabia. We are an authorized Panasport dealer and have limited sets available for fitment on your S30 Z car. Before we show you how a set of these 16×7 wheels look on almost every Z color imaginable, enjoy these shots of Yousef’s Series 1 S30 featuring a 3.1L ITB EFI L-Series engine. Full story coming to zcarblog.com soon!
Panasport wheels for your Z car
Treat your Z to a brand new set of Panasport wheels! We special order this offset to enable fitment of a 225/50/16 tire on the 1970 to 1978 S30s.
Contact us: rob@zcargarage.com or call 408-452-0350 Limited availability (pallet pictured)
Wondering how a set of Panasports would look on your Z car? Please enjoy pictures below of ZCG customer cars in jus about every color imaginable with Panasport wheels:
We met Bill in 2019 when he came to Z Car Garage on referral from our local Z Owners of Northern California (ZONC) club. He’s owned this pretty 1973 Datsun 240Z in Brown Metallic (code 114) for many years and had a list of small things that he always wanted to address. Before we cover the cosmetic and mechanical work we performed let’s hear how Bill got into Z cars…
Bill’s Z Story
“When I was about 10, my sister and her husband bought a 1979 280ZX. (They still have it but it currently doesn’t run.) I loved it. I always wanted a Jaguar E type and the Z has a similar shape. As soon as I could afford one, I got a used 1977 280Z and drove it to almost 400,000 miles when I finally wrecked it. I went a couple of months without a Z when a friend told me about a 240 he saw for sale. The owner was a teacher and so am I so of the 3 bidders I got it.”
“Then a few years later I went into administration and with the raise I thought it would be fun to have a new Z to go with the 240 so I ended up buying a 2008 350Z. I have had two Zs ever since. The 350 is definitely more capable and is very fun to drive, but I still think the 240 looks better. A really fun part of owning the 240 is taking it to car shows. I get a lot of people saying things like, “I owned a car just like this.” It seems to bring back a lot of memories for many people. Everybody loves the Z!”
Keeping Bill On The Road
When Bill came to Z Car Garage in 2019 we re-chromed his rear bumper, zinc plated various hardware, removed smog equipment and cleaned up the engine bay. A failing oil spray bar was replaced and we added ZCG exhaust, header and Z Therapy carb set.
Re-chromed rear bumper:
Zinc’d hardware:
New exhaust header and SU carb set from Therapy:
In 2022 we did more work to Bill’s awesome ’73. We replaced the radiator with a Koyo race unit, installed a Rebello street cam, adjustable T/C rods from T3 followed by alignment services in-house. We also replaced the speedometer seal rings and oil pan gasket. More detailed photos in the gallery below!
New camshaft installation:
Adjustable T/C rod before/after:
Koyo Race radiator before/after:
Dyno Tuning
On the dyno the L24 made 137hp/138tq to the wheels:
Enjoy the dyno video!
Details
We took care of a few more items like weatherstripping and added a set of Holley retro headlights:
Enjoy The Ride
We have been taking care of Bill’s 240Z and enjoy working with him:
“ZCG does the highest quality work. They are very knowledgeable, honest and you can tell they really love Zs. It’s like they are working on their own car when they look at a customer’s car! It really feels like a new car. It needed a camshaft and some other parts and they did it perfectly. I love driving that car!”
We also take care of Bill’s 2008 Nissan 350Z convertible, to be featured on zcarblog.com soon!
What’s in store Bill’s 240Z? He’s always wanted a rally clock since seeing one at a car show 10+ years ago. Also in the near future he wants to do a drum brakes to disc brakes conversion. Keep Enjoying the Ride Bill, thanks for your support and Long Live The Z!
