Just another example of how love and Z’s go hand in hand.
This pretty 240z belongs to a customer and recently had a photoshoot together with his girlfriend.
To her surprise at the end of the session he proposed!
                      

Congratulations Michelle and Christian!

Hope everyone had a great July 4!  It is great to see Datsun owners taking their cars out to shows and driving events. It is even better when you can be part of getting these cars back on the road so they can be driven 🙂 ZCarGarage restored this pretty 240z several years ago and the owner was kind enough to send this update. Congrats Andru!

  Hello Rob,
This is Andru Peters from Lake City, MN (formerly of San Jose) whose 240Z
you restored back in 2003.  I entered into a car show over the holidays and
took 2nd place in the class I entered in.  Have attached a photo, trophy and
yours truly.

Thought you’d like to know of this.
Thanks again

Dual at DeAnza annual autox
The 43rd annual Dual at DeAnza autox was held May 16th, 2010, at DeAnza college in Cupertino, CA. The Smitty Racing / Z Car Garage 350Z took 1st in the OSP class out of 13 cars, and 16th overall out of 242 cars. The 2003 Nissan 350Z was driven by Scott Smith. Complete results are posted here: Duel at DeAnza May16 Results 2010

NorCal UFO autox
Scott drove the Z to 1st in the OSP class and 4th overall out of 156 cars at the Northern California United 510 Owners Club (www.norcalufo.org) autocross held at The Marina Airfield on June 27th, 2010. Scott leads the OSP class for the year, and is currently in 3rd in PAX out of all the cars that routinely show up for the NorCal UFO autox series.

More and more Zs and Gs are showing up! Most recently, Tiffini Clark, the ZONC President, autox’d at this month’s event for her first time with Scott providing instruction. Tiffini piloted her 2006 350Z and dropped over 16s from her first run to her fourth and final run – way to go Tiffini!

Here are the overall results from this month’s event:
NorCal UFO AutoX Series Event8 June27

The next NorCal UFO event at The Marina Airfield will be held on August 1st, 2010. We are trying to organize this event to include any ZoNC member that is interested in driving. Those interested can meet at Z Car Garage between 6:20 and 6:30 for a 6:30am departure, or meet us at The Marina Airfield by 8am. Entry details are here:
NorCal UFO AutoX Event9 August 1

Long live the Z!

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]

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.