The 1988 Nissan GTP ZX-Turbo is back at Z Car Garage after being displayed at the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion during Monterey Car Week. It was great to see this legend with fellow IMSA race cars at Laguna Seca. The media also took notice, with Hagerty writing an article about the ZX-T’s development, recognition and restoration at ZCG. View the article HERE
Bonus media exposure: Motor Trend’s top classic car picks from Car Week included the GTP ZX-Turbo and the Joel Anderson IMSA GTU Datsun 240Z!
Required Reading: The Nissan GTP Story
One of the highlights of the Rolex event was meeting Electramotive engineer Chris Willes! He wrote an incredible book chronicling the design and development of the Nissan GTP car that dominated the IMSA GT series during the late 1980’s. It’s a must-read for all Nissan/Datsun fans, and you can purchase the book HERE
The book contains:
The beginning of Electramotive’s racing history in 1975 with the Datsun B210 and 280ZX race cars.
The design and development of one of the first Electronic Engine Control Processors.
The full description of the 1/7th-scale moving ground plane wind tunnel.
The design and build of the Nissan 300ZX V-6 race engine.
All the IMSA race storylines from 1985 to 1989.
Professional photos and never seen before in-shop photos compliment this 12-chapter, 400+ page, 9″ x 12″ coffee-table style book
Rob invited Chris to the Rolex event to be reunited with his beloved ZX-T. (Below) Here I am with Chris and we look forward to working with him!
“Earlier this year, it was announced that Geoff Brabham and the 1988 Nissan GTP-ZX Turbo Chassis #8801 will be inducted into the IMSA Hall of Fame, Class of 2024. I was so proud to have been part of Electramotive Engineering and the development of this car, that I authored a book about it.
In my book, Developing a Champion: The Electramotive Nissan GTP Story, I describe how the GTP car was conceived, the build of the first car at Lola Cars in 1984, and the development performed at Electramotive during the following years. Included is the conversion of the stock 3.0-liter Nissan 300ZX V-6 engine into an aluminum block turbocharged race engine, and details of the Electronic Engine Control Processor (EECP) designed by Don Devendorf to control the spark, fuel, and boost of the engine. Also included are details of the Electramotive aluminum honeycomb monocoque designed by Trevor Harris which included new front suspension and increased stiffness, and the aerodynamics designed by Yoshi Suzuka using the Electramotive-built 1/7th scale moving ground plane wind tunnel. All of these developments led to two driver’s championships for Geoff Brabham in 1988 and 1989, and one manufacturer’s championship for Nissan in 1989, and more in later years.
The 9” x 12”, 444-page, coffee table-style book chronicles the design and development of the Nissan GTP car that dominated the IMSA GT series during the late 1980’s. Over 600 images, including professional photography, never-before seen in-shop photos, technical diagrams, and drawings compliment the text as it describes how the team converted an aerodynamically unstable, crash-ridden design into a multi-time championship winning machine. It is a great historical reference of the ultra-competitive IMSA GTP era during the 1980s and a great gift for a motorsports fan!”
The third annual Laps for Laguna vintage racing event was held on May 31-June 2. This event is created by the Laguna Seca Raceway Foundation and Classic Sports Racing Group (CSRG) to raise money for charity. Z Car Garage had a blast racing and supporting Datsun 510 race cars running in B-Sedan Group 3. It was a great weekend filled with competition, camaraderie and plenty of Alfas, BMWs and Datsuns sharing the track. Enjoy our report!
Z Car Garage Racers
We raced and provided trackside support for 9 cars including B-Sedan Datsun 510s and Kenny’s 997 GT3 Cup car:
Gabe’s father Jeff is racing his B-Sedan Datsun 510:
#98 Kelly M
#68 and #30 Noah’s 510 and BMW 2002
#7 Rob Fuller
ZCG owner Rob Fuller, Bay Area Datsun Dealers tribute car (driven by Tom Dockery, see below)
Photo by Jim Rose
Let’s Race!
Laps for Laguna is a vintage racing event created by the Laguna Seca Raceway Foundation and California Sports Racing Group (CSRG) to raise money for charity. It is an open sound event with multiple races for each race group, charity rides and more. We hope Laps for Laguna continues to be an annual affair.
Rob recaps the weekend:
“This was the 3rd time CSRG and Laguna Seca Foundation co-hosted L4L. Spectators got to do charity rides in race cars and street cars…speaking of street cars, Kurt W’s R32 Skyline GT-R is still in the break-in stage so he did not get to attend the R’s Day. I invited him for a little Laguna Seca redemption and he came down to run the R32. Everyone loved seeing it at the track, a great way to start the weekend. Friday afternoon began with practice and one qualifier. ZCG provided race support for 9 cars with crew of Cooper, Josh and Meghan….
“All cars ran flawlessly in the B-Sedan group with Jeff Rothman, the Tse brothers with Kenny running double duty in his cup car in G9, Noah and his friend Danny co-own a BMW 2002 that we prepare, and Lora Baggot’s Miata for VSP (I drove it). I was able to make my way up to the top 10 in Group 3 with the Miata, only a second off lap times with my own Miata. Another highlight was watching Kenny really come alive in the Porsche Cup car, earning a PB and podium amongst heavy-hitters like the 935 turbo and Flying Lizard Cup car. Kelly M did his PB and Tom Dockery also had fun. Josh M was struggling a bit with his 510 out of the PNW, so ZCG teamed up with Rebello racing to refresh his engine and he had a smooth weekend winning races.”
Tom Dockery
Tom shares his experience racing in Rob’s Datsun 510:
“Rob’s generous offer to run his Bay Area Datsun 510 at Laps for Laguna was incredible. It gave me a chance to get back on track after over a year of downtime, with people I know and trust. It also allowed me to experience racing a highly developed B-Sedan. From the first lap in Rob’s car, I fell in love with how it handled the course. With each session, I reduced my lap times until I was consistently running laps in race traffic that were better than my previous personal record. Despite some missed shifts with the Dog Box, I managed to qualify and finish in the top half of the field. I’m looking forward to this fall and the Velocity Invitational, where I’ll be back in the Balzer 510, hopefully set up as well as Rob’s Bay Area Datsun 510.”
Enjoy this in-car video of Tom in Group 3 with paddock footage as well:
The Z Car Garage Nissan Z as Pace Car
Z Car Garage was happy to have our 2023 Nissan Z as Official Pace Car at Laps For Laguna. You might notice the new Z’s livery, it’s a nod to our #49 Joel Anderson IMSA GTU Datsun 240Z, and we will dedicate a separate blog post to it:
Glenn’s FAR Performance Datsun 240Z
Race car driver, restorer and Datsun Historian Glenn Chiou raced his FAR Performance 240Z. This Z has a very rich racing history, driven in the 70’s by Loren St. Lawrence in VIPS Restaurant livery. It was fun to watch him race this beautifully-restored 240Z, going as fast as he’s ever been too, earning a class win!
Enjoy this in-car video of Glenn in the BADD Z:
Paddock Highlights
Big thanks to Meghan and Ning for taking photos and video around the paddock. Enjoy this VIDEO highlighting paddock and race action
A weekend of great racing and good times
There was such a great vibe in our pit and it was an absolute pleasure seeing our clients all from different walks of life enjoying the company. Amazing weekend. Special shoutout to ZCG crew for keeping all of the cars running so we can race! More photos in the gallery below.
Join us for the 2024 Vintage Racing Season!
Z Car Garage is amped for more racing this year. Please check the CSRG website and zcarblog.com for upcoming race events. Do not miss the next event: CSRG’s Charity Challenge at Sonoma September 13-15. We had a blast at last year’s Laps for Laguna, see our race report HERE.
On this Throwback Thursday we go back in time to the year 2002. Rob Fuller was featured in the “Z Fanatic” column of Sport Z Magazine. Enjoy the story behind his famous “Z Tooth” and a photo of his 1970 Datsun 240Z, running a 3L Stroker L-Series before it eventually got an RB25DET…
Z Car Garage wishes you a Happy 5/10 Day! We love driving Datsun 510s on the street and at the race track. Here are a few 510s at the shop, with more photos in the gallery below. Hope you get to Enjoy the Ride in your Dime today too!
We have several Datsun 510s in the shop today, here’s a short preview with full features coming to zcarblog.com.
SR20DET-powered Bluebird Coupe:
Sean’s SR20-powered (Mikuni induction) 510:
We always have many racing 510s in for tuning/sorting:
5/10 Days of the Past
We have plenty of 510 content for you to enjoy, starting with the most famous Dime of all time…when the Brock Racing Enterprises (BRE) Datsun 510 #46 race car arrived at Z Car Garage.
Despite being against all odds, our hero John Morton drove this 510 to SCCA Trans-Am series championship victories in 1971 and 1972, putting Nissan on the map and fueling every Datsun enthusiast’s passion. In preparation for the Velocity Invitational at Laguna Seca we dyno tested this legendary race car. Turn those speakers up and enjoy the video!
