Two rather large Nissan trucks came to ZCG for some tuning! Here is Rob with the story:

Linda N is wife and partner in crime to Mark.  Mark is a long time Datsun Rocker and has owned plenty of Datsuns including an IMSA turbo Z, Datsun 510s, 620 Truck. He still has his 510 from when he was 16 and built a turbocharged L-series motor for it. He also has a daily driver 510 with a KA24DE and A/C!

Enough about Mark, back to Linda. This Datsun family uses the Armada to haul the kids and pets around town while Mark has all the Datsuns torn down in various stages of modification.
Linda was asking me what we could do to give her Armada some extra kick. I suggested the UPREV software. She dropped the V8 powered SUV off at ZCG. Vlad helped me strap it down on the rollers of our DYNOJET 224 LC and we got some baseline runs before tuning.

We were impressed with the results: gains of 17hp/29tq at the wheels…not bad for a truck with 130,000 miles and just an intake! Linda is very happy and reports that along with power and torque increase she is also seeing better gas mileage.

More Nissan Family Madness: Nick’s QX56

Nick is the brother of Matt, you may remember his G37TT, the quest for performance runs strong in the family! Nick brought in his QX56 for some service work and we starting talking cars…next thing you know we ordered a Stillen intake and stainless Magnaflow cat-back exhaust.

Icing on the cake came in the form of some UPREV tuning. On the test drive I could see that performance smile that runs in the family. Nick called me the next day to tell me the QX56 feels like a new machine. The exhaust and intake are just the right amount of rumble and you can see from the DYNO graph below that the power and torque is increased everywhere:

The Nissan hard-drive in my head started buzzing after this exciting few days of SUV madness…VK56DE powered Datsun 510 Stationwagon, anyone?

Long live the NISSAN/ INFINITI performance!
Rob

Geri R first came to ZCG in November of 2009.  She has owned this pretty 1974 Datsun 260z for over 30 years and never had a dedicated Z-car shop work on it.  The car needed specific Z parts and some TLC that ZCarGarage is always willing to provide. Geri’s goal was to make the Z totally dependable and more enjoyable for long roadtrips down to LA.

A complete rebuild of the suspension was performed, both front and rear. Along the way a laundry list of  items were replaced or refurbished including:

-New factory Tach
-Battery cables
-New factory fuel pump
-Hard to find factory transmission speedo cable
-Gear reduction starter
-Fuel hoses
-A/C system converted to r134

On to the suspension rebuild! After parts were removed the underbody was undercoated and all nuts/bolts were zinc plated:

Every major suspension part was powdercoated. Geri found the stock suspension to be a bit on the soft side with lots of body-roll so Tokico shocks with slightly firmer/shorter springs, and sway bars were installed to stiffen the ride:

Check out the before/after pics with the freshly powdercoated a-arms, T/C rods, subframes, zinc’d hardware…it’s so clean!
New ball joints were also installed:

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Ken S came to ZCarGarage several years ago when he just purchased this pretty 300zx Twin Turbo. It had just passed the 60k mark and ZCG performed routine maintenance including full timing belt services. It wasn’t long before Ken got the performance bug and started upgrading the suspension. ZCG installed Tockiko 5-way shocks, sway bars, and StopTech 13″ big brakes. After tackling the suspension naturally Ken wanted more power so a Stage 3 upgrade with supporting mods was installed. Unfortunately the stock turbos had issues so they were upgraded to JWT Sport 500s.

The original front bumper had seen better days with nicks and peeling. Williams worked his magic with new paint and installed new side skirts, JDM front bumper and that trademark vented hood that we have seen on other Z32s.

Recently Ken visited  ZCG for more power upgrades.  Basic performance upgrades included new 2.5″ IC plumbing and SMICs from ConceptZ.  Here you can see the install and how much cleaner the new plumbing is:

Dual JWT POP chargers replace the single merged setup:

With increased cooling capacity and the HKS boost controller total output is now 383hp/378tq at the wheels!

Here is the engine bay before/after the install and detailing. Please check the gallery for more detailed images: it’s easy to overlook all of the work that is performed!

It is impressive to see an iconic 90’s sports car perform and make power that rivals most current sports cars. It is even better when there is still plenty of aftermarket support and enthusiasts willing to continue developing parts!
Long Live the 300ZX TT!
Click below for more photos
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ZCarGarage has plenty of upcoming project updates to share with you so keep checking the blog! Here is Rob with a report on a sleek, twin-turbocharged Infiniti G37 coupe:

Matt and Josiah are cousins in a family filled with Nissans and Infinitis.  Matt had owned lots of American muscle  cars and bought the G37 since it had a great combination of performance yet refined ride and style. The power wasn’t enough though…we have all been there! Matt and Josiah came to ZCG to meet with me and discuss options for increasing the G’s output. We came up with a plan consisting of a GTM Twin Turbo Kit (Stage 2) to make sure we had room to grow should the need arise.

The kit installation was smooth and GTM really makes a high quality package. Note the heat shields that hide the exhaust manifolds and the large front mount intercooler that fits beautifully behind the factory bumper:

With the kit installed, the engine bay appears almost stock with only the polished intake pipes deviating from the tame look . There isn’t much to indicate the magnitude of force-fed power that is now being produced 🙂 On the ZCG dyno the Stage 2 kit turned the rollers to the tune of 428rwhp/369tq!

To keep the newfound power “under the radar” we mounted the Defi link gauge setup in the sunglass holder and out of plain sight:

The G37 is now an entirely different machine with the added power and torque and we know that Matt is enjoying his new Japanese super coupe!

You can see more pictures of the build below:
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Lou S is the owner of this right-hand drive 240z that got the full ZCarGarage performance suspension treatment last year shown HERE. With the handling and footwork sorted the Fairlady has received several improvements that add to both the driving experience and aesthetics.

The Z’s vinyl seats had seen better days with a few rips and tears so new Recaro LXF seats were installed. These are some of the best seats for your Z and a huge improvement over the stock pieces in terms of comfort and grip…letting Lou take advantage of that grippy new suspension!

Another upgrade to the interior was the steering wheel. The tuner-ish “D” shaped wheel was replaced by one of the best period-looking units on the market today: The MOMO Prototipo. I love this steering wheel:

The Fairlady’s tired chrome bumpers got replaced with brand new show-quality pieces and for a cleaner look the over-riders were not installed.:
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