This is Sean’s 1970 Datsun 240Z featuring our Z Car Garage CV Axles and Z Car Garage Big-Brakes that he had installed in SoCal. Highlights include a Rebello 3.0L, triple-Mikuni induction, Nismo 6-speed transmission and Watanabe wheels. Let’s take a look at how Sean got into Z cars…

 

Sean: This early-production 1970 Datsun 240Z Series 1 was purchased in 2019 from the original owner’s family. The original owner, in the army and stationed in Okinawa at the time, bought the car there brand new in mid-1970. It’s an early-production car with a 4/70 build date, chassis number HLS30-2811, and is one of the early non-EVAP examples. After completing his time overseas, he had the car shipped back to the United States in 1972, where it spent its entire life in Long Beach and has remained in California ever since. The family also included the original 1972 California pink slip with the car, which I thought was incredibly cool. Because of its lifelong California history, while the car does have some minor rust in common areas, it remains a very solid and honest example with excellent bones.

 

The original owner passed away roughly 25 years ago, after which the car sat dormant and untouched. When I acquired it, although largely original, the interior was in rough shape, the engine barely ran, and the car showed clear signs of long-term neglect. Over the years, it had been repainted twice in its lifetime, but I intentionally chose to leave the exterior exactly as it is. The layers of paint, chips, and exposed remnants of the original finish tell the story of the car’s history, and preserving that character became more important to me than restoring it cosmetically..

 

Interior

 

SEAN: While the exterior remains untouched, I painstakingly restored the interior myself back to essentially factory condition, using as many original parts as possible. This build was never intended to be a trailer queen — it was built to be period-correct, with modern underpinnings, driven, and enjoyed. Because of that, a full repaint will probably never happen. I know I’d never be able to keep it perfect, and honestly, I enjoy the car far more this way. I drive it through the canyons nearly every weekend, which is what it was built for...

          

Drivetrain

 

SEAN: Mechanically, the car has been transformed into the driver’s car I always envisioned. It’s powered by a 3.0L Rebello engine, paired with a Nissan S15 Nismo six-speed transmission and a fully rebuilt R200 differential with a Quaife LSD. Supporting modifications include triple Mikuni 44 PHH carbs, Kameari headers, a Fujitsubo Legalis R exhaust system, 123 Ignition, and Koyo radiator:

 

SEAN: The car recently dyno’d at 234 horsepower and 221 lb-ft of torque to the wheels on a Dynojet, which is more than enough for my needs. At this point, the build is pretty much complete Now it’s simply about enjoying the experience and continuing to drive a car that feels incredibly rewarding every time I get behind the wheel.

 

Enjoy this video of the Z in action including the dyno run, volume up!

 

Z Car Garage Big-Brakes

 

SEAN: The chassis was upgraded with Techno Toy Tuning and Apex components throughout. The Z Car Garage Big-Brake and CV Axle upgrades absolutely transformed the car, and I couldn’t be happier with the results. The car has also been professionally corner-balanced and tuned to my liking.

 

As fellow S30 owner/racer Glenn C mentioned in his review, on top of braking performance, pedal feel is extremely important and our Big-Brakes deliver. This is a direct result of working with Stoptech to create a totally bolt-in solution requiring no M/C change or additional proportioning valve/adjustments. All fitting behind a 15″ Watanabe or Panasport wheel and retaining factory emergency brake lever! A few details below:

Calipers: Stoptech ST42 4-piston front & rear race calipers (Alum 6061 mil-spec Type III anodized)

Rotors: 280mm x 20.6 with Alum 7075 hats

Pads: Stoptech 309 sport street pads

  

Big-Brake Kits Available For DIY Install!

(UPDATE…this kit is no longer available, V2 is coming soon see  HERE for more details)

Z Car Garage is proud to offer our Big-Brake Kit to Z-Car owners that want to perform the installation themselves. We can ship worldwide and each kit contains everything needed with a comprehensive (40-page) installation guide. Blog posts documenting all of our customers running the ZCG Big-Brakes can be found HERE.

 

Beyond ease of installation and quality components, our Big-Brakes perform by offering superb pedal feel…everyone that drives our demo Z confirms! This is a direct result of working with Stoptech to create a totally bolt-in solution requiring no M/C change or additional proportioning valve/adjustments. Photos of Sean’s ZCG BBK installation, looking great behind his 15×8 Watanabe wheels:

  

Parking brake functionality is retained with our ZCG Big-Brakes!

 

Z Car Garage CV Axles

  

Our Z Car Garage CV Axles help transmit power to the ground and ensure smoother operation compared to your standard half shafts. We have over 250 CV axle kits on customer cars and we are stoked with all of the positive feedback.

Sean’s ZCG CV Axle set, #0422 installed:

 

Enjoying The Ride

 

Sean has been driving his Z everywhere including those canyon runs!

     

What’s in store for Sean’s Z? Follow his build on Instagram

SEAN: I’ve always had a love for these cars. I bought my first Datsun 240Z in 1988 for 700 bucks before my senior year of high school and went on to own several more throughout the 1990s before selling my last one in 2001 due to having twin boys, as life understandably shifted priorities, but I hoarded and held onto all my parts, knowing that someday I’d own another one once the kids finally flew the coop..

 

Thanks for your support Sean we love that you are Enjoying The Ride and Long Live The Z! More photos in the gallery below

The Last Stop in Braking for your Z

 

Z Car Garage Big Brakes are one of the best systems available for your S30 Z Car with over 200 kits sold worldwide and unanimous positive feedback. See our ZCG Big-Brakes on client cars HERE and enjoy the photos below: (UPDATE…this kit is no longer available, V2 is coming soon see here for more detailss)

   
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One of ZCG’s greatest achievements is the development of our Z Car Garage Big-Brakes in collaboration with StopTech. Many satisfied clients are running these brakes on their S30s. Unfortunately, due to supply issues, we no longer offer that kit. The good news is that we’re excited to introduce our new Big Brake Kit!

 

Version 2 has a slightly larger rotor with 4-piston calipers front and rear. It is in final testing, and will be released soon. Here are a few photos from our test drive last weekend in “Mrs. Butters”, our 1971 Series 1 240z shop demo car fitted with the V.2 Big-Brake Kit:

 

Stay tuned for more photos, details and pricing.

  

 

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Gary’s 1978 Datsun 280Z featuring a GM LS3/6-speed drivetrain is for sale. This S30 has been with Z Car Garage since 2007 where it received a bare-metal restoration and performance development to its current form.

 

Fantastic fit/finish with chassis upgrades like our Z Car Garage Big-Brakes, Z Car Garage CV Axles and full suspension with 17″ Panasport C8 wheels transformed this Z. The interior features Recaro Specialist leather seats, A/C, power steering, power windows and more. Turn-key, ready to enjoy. See more details below and serious inquiries only please contact rob@zcargarage.com

 

A full feature documenting the restoration and upgrades with more photos and video can be viewed HERE

 

Interior

 

A complete dash restoration was performed with full HVAC/ducting and A/C refurbishment:

 

Recaro Specialist seats in leather are our favorite upgrade to the S30 interior. Gary enjoys modern creature comforts like Bluetooth, back-up camera, power steering and full sound system:

Suspension

 

The chassis was treated to a full suspension rebuild with new parts, bushings, Ground Control coil-overs (Koni struts with our spring rates) and ST sway bars front and rear:

 

Z Car Garage Big-Brakes

Not to be confused with our current Z Car Garage Big-Brakes (for small wheels), this Big-Brake kit was our initial setup from over a decade ago. This 328mm sized kit requires 17″ diameter wheels and the massive ST-42 calipers are finished in bright red.

A few more detail shots of the Big-Brakes, they really pop behind the black Panasport wheels:

        

Panasport Wheels

 

Gary also got a set of our custom Panasport Racing C8 wheels. These 3 piece, 17×8 wheels allowed fitment of a 255/40/17 tire under stock fender flares:

 

Our Z Car Garage CV Axles help transmit power to the ground and ensure smoother operation compared to your standard half shafts. We have over 250 CV axle kits on customer cars and we are stoked with all of the positive feedback.

  

We built Gary a set of CV Axles, shown below:

 

LS3 V8 Power

 

The LS3-crate motor came with a warranty from GM and weighs less than the L-Series engine it replaced. Engine and 6-speed transmission were installed using the Hoke Performance kit:

 

The larger, twin-fan radiator and A/C plumbing and wiring:

 

Ovalized exhaust from headers to catalytic converter help with ground clearance:

 

Dyno Tuning

The LS3/6-speed T56 drivetrain was dyno tuned after installation, making 405hp/410tq at the wheels, a significant increase of 115hp/206tq compared to the L-Series:

 

Enjoy this video with dyno run, in-car driving, cruising and fly-by action with Gary’s LS3-powered 280Z:

See more details below and serious inquiries only please contact rob@zcargarage.com.
A full feature documenting the restoration and upgrades with more photos and video can be viewed  HERE

 

Larry Chen’s 1970 Datsun 240Z featuring  Z Car Garage Big-Brakes , Z Car Garage KW coil-over suspension., dyno-tuned SR20DET and full engine bay restoration. Photos by Larry Chen from the recent gathering in Los Angeles…

 

“My oldest project car, Ole Orange Bang 🍊
1970 Datsun 240z number 2868, I bought it on my 21st birthday for $3000. It’s gone through so many revisions and modifications. It’s not near its final form, but as it sits this car is so much fun to drive. It’s a rocket ship just weighing in at 2150 lbs and it makes 300whp.”

 

John B has been with us for many years. We featured his 1971 Datsun 240Z back in 2013 when he visited Z Car Garage for a mechanical overhaul, dyno tuning and Panasport wheels:

 

In 2020 he returned for our Z Car Garage Big-Brakes and more sorting. Since then he’s been Enjoying the Ride and recently completed his first track day at the world-famous Laguna Seca. Enjoy his track day report and read on for a summary of work we performed over the years.

John’s Track Day at Laguna Seca

 

JOHN: Here’s a report on my Track Day at Laguna Seca on 29 Nov 2025, with some history of my Z cars.

The event was hosted by Turn8 Racing on Saturday 29 Nov. It was my first time, so was a member of the Beginner run group. I brought both of my Z cars but only drove the 1971 240Z on the track. There were many other types of cars in the run group, some new ones like a 911 G3 and a new Ferrari, but there was one other 240Z.

 

The first couple of runs were “lead-follow”, where we followed an actual race driver around the track to learn the proper race-line through the curves. For the remaining runs we were free to attempt to find the race-line on our own, which happened occasionally for me. It’s pretty obvious when I did not have the race-line since I was either in the dirt or was quickly approached by traffic from behind. I found the slower I went the easier it was to find the race-line. The Beginner run group only allowed passing on a couple of the straights (for this event), it was my track during the turns and my chance to learn to find the race-line so I felt it as ok to go slow.

 

Of course, once in the straights, everybody passed me. By “everybody” I mean EVERY car on the track. They may have been going faster, but I was having a blast with my 240Z on the track. My smiles per mile was high.

 

My favorite turn was turn 9, the sweeping left-hander out of the corkscrew. Probably because it’s challenging to judge the brake/coast/accellerate adjustments since the next turn (10) is slower right turn. It’s nice to “have” the whole track during the turns at the Beginner run group to try different approaches. The whole track is great, it’s Laguna Seca man! What fun.

 

I want to go back with my 1977 Lotus Esprit to see if I can beat my lap time in the 240Z. I expect that the Esprit will have faster laps since it seems to accelerate quicker out of turns and is closer to a race car than the Z. I had ZCG inspect the 240Z the week before the event to ensure that the brakes were up-to-snuff. They performed well, as expected since both of my Zs have the Z Car Garage Big-Brakes.

 

ROB: John asked me about doing his first track day in his 240Z. I think the interest came from attending our Vintage Racing Events with his girls, eating snacks and hanging out at the track. I said why not? You’ve got brakes that can handle it and we know the car is safe. We did a tech-inspection on it, made sure everything was good to go and yes, John Bunker drove his S30 on the world famous WeatherTech Raceway also known as Laguna Seca. Good job John keep on loving the Z we can’t wait to work for your girls someday.

The Z Cars

 

ROB: We met John around 2012 and did a bunch of work to his 240Z. He later acquired a 280Z and 280Z 2+2 so his daughters could ride with him. Both of these S30s have our Z Car Garage Big-Brakes. John and I have the same passion for music and he is just exactly why I love my job: he’s passionate and spends time enjoying and driving his Z cars. He also has a vintage Lotus that we’ve done some work on.

 

JOHN: The 240Z is a 1971 model built in Oct 1970. My mom bought it in 1978 and I’ve been driving it since 1980 (45 years, yowza). My siblings and I used to ride in the hatch. (Why a mother of six bought a two-seat sports car is a point of discussion amongst us). It was her daily driver until about 2000 when she started having trouble getting in and out of it. She put about 250K miles on it and replaced the L24 engine with a rebuilt one from a 260Z. I bought it from her in 2005. In 2013 ZCG went through it and made it run as it should. We installed the Big Brake Kit, Panasport wheels, new tires, new headers, exhaust, and a suspension upgrade including Techno Toy T/C rods. It now has about 275K miles on the road and about 40 on the track.

 

The other Z is a 1978 280Z. It was originallly owned by my mom’s neighbor. He traded it to my brother for some custom furniture in 2000. I bought it from my brother, then sold it to my niece, who sold it to her brother. It sat in the driveway of his mother (my sister)’s house for a few years until I bought it from my nephew in 2019 where it went straight to ZCG for a Big Brake Kit, new Panasport wheels, tires, and a suspension upgrade. It has about 195K miles.

 

Both are daily drivers, mostly. I can’t take my two daughters in them (well, not legally), so it’s usually just me in the car going to work. There is a third Z car, a 1976 2+2, intended to take the whole family, but we will not talk about that here. These are multi-generation family cars. The goal is for my girls to continue the Z-car tradition when they get older.

Z Car Garage Big-Brakes

 

In 2020 we installed our ZCG Big-Brakes on John’s 240Z, giving him the ability to brake on a dime, perform well and daily drive. This is the same brake kit as seen on “Mrs. Butters”, our 1971 Series 1 240z shop demo car (above).

 

As fellow S30 owner/racer Glenn C mentioned in his review, on top of braking performance, pedal feel is extremely important and our Big-Brakes deliver. This is a direct result of working with Stoptech to create a totally bolt-in solution requiring no M/C change or additional proportioning valve/adjustments. All fitting behind a 15″ Watanabe or Panasport wheel and retaining factory emergency brake lever! A few details below:

Calipers: Stoptech ST42 4-piston front & rear race calipers (Alum 6061 mil-spec Type III anodized)

Rotors: 280mm x 20.6 with Alum 7075 hats

Pads: Stoptech 309 sport street pads

Blog posts documenting all of our customers running the ZCG Big-Brakes can be found HERE.

A few closer detail shots of the calipers, rotors and hardware:

  

We removed John’s stock brakes and installed our ZCG Big-Brake kit. The Z also received suspension parts from Techno Toy Tuning including their adjustable T/C rods.We really appreciate Gabriel and his staff. They make some of the best suspension parts out there for Z cars.

   

ZCG Big-brakes up front:

  

T3 T/C rods and new brake master cylinder/booster, clutch hydraulics:

 

At the rear, the factory drum brakes were replaced with our ZCG Big-Brakes. Factory handbrake functionality retained!

  

Enjoying The Ride

Photo by Alex Nibyt

We love seeing John in his Z cars locally, doing kid drop-offs and other daily driver duties:

 

He also joined us on Tokyo Calling 5 event hosted by Breakfast Club Rally. More photos in the gallery below.

 

Thanks for your support John and Long Live The Z!

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