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Dwane’s Vortech Supercharged 350z

Filed under: Featured Cars and Projects,Maintenance,Performance
by Alvin G @ 12:34 am on March 13, 2015

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Dwane has been customer since the opening of Z Car Garage in 2004. We installed one of Vortech’s earliest supercharger kits on his ultra low-mileage ’03 Brickyard 350z circa 2005 and he has been enjoying it ever since.  Almost a decade later forced-induction tuning and support has tremendously advanced and many boosted applications are abandoning the old Split-Second and FMU-based systems.

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At ZCG we love the UPREV tuning platform and it allowed us to maximize gains from a new GT MAF, larger injectors and upgraded fuel pump.  We also installed ART pipes on the exhaust side and nice cosmetic addition of LED-based headlights:

 

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On the dyno we picked up 9hp/13tq with smoother delivery throughout the rev range. Mid-to-high gains were significant:

Dwane C Z33 Votech...Upgrades
Stay tuned for more power!

 

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Eric’s 370z

Filed under: 370z,Featured Cars and Projects,Performance
by Alvin G @ 12:37 pm on February 4, 2015

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At Z Car Garage we love to help enthusiasts by installing customer-supplied parts. Eric R purchased these hot rod goodies online and came to us for installation on his 2014 370z:

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Stillen Gen 3 Intakes are a proven way to increase mid to high-range power on the VQ37HR:

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Install showing filter location:

 

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The 370Z has been discovered to suffer from high oil temps when exposed to extended periods of spirited driving. Once oil temps reach a specific temperature, the vehicle’s ECU will put itself into a “Limp Mode” cutting the power to the engine.  The solution? An engine oil cooler, this one is a great unit from Z1 Motorsports:

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Stainless steel braided brakes lines can also help with pedal feel compared to the stock, rubber lines:

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The perfect balance to improved intakes is to upgrade the exhaust side. Eric chose the TDX cat-back system from Fast Intentions. Aside from the power gains this carbon fiber muffler option also saves weight:

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And yes i does look great too!

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UPREV tuning maximizes power gains from these bolt-ons. The Stillen intakes and FI exhaust pushed power past the 300whp mark to 307hp/258tq at the wheels:

Eric R Z34 Base and Stillen intakes
 

With UPREV tuning we extracted 10hp more to the wheels for total of 317hp/258tq, noticeable improvements in mid to high range hp and torque:

Eric R Z34 Start to finish
How can we help you add power and performance through bolt-ons on your Z or G?

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Reuben’s Vortech 350z

Filed under: Featured Cars and Projects,Maintenance,Performance
by Alvin G @ 9:38 am on February 1, 2015

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Last year we helped Ruben enjoy the merits of boost with a full Vortech supercharger install install on his LeMans Sunset 350z:

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The high-flow catalytic convertors had failed so we replaced them ART pipes from Motordyne:

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HFCs vs ART pipes:

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We also re-tuned the Z and it picked up 18hp/6tq for a total of 385hp/330tq to the wheels:

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Enjoy The Ride Ruben!

 

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1,750hp Cruise: Fun Run Pictures 1/3/15

Filed under: Events,Featured Cars and Projects
by Alvin G @ 2:37 am on January 4, 2015

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How do you start the New Year off on the right foot? Drive your Nissan/Datsun! Today I joined Rob and Lou for a nice drive through the South Bay foothills. Rob and shop dog Kane drove the 820hp ZCG 300zx Twin Turbo, Lou drove his 470hp R32 Skyline GT-R and I drove the 460hp Datsun 510.

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Our route included stops at both Uvas and Calero Reservoirs with a nice mix of long sweeping curves and windy, single lane farmland roads with picturesque bridge crossings:

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At Uvas Reservoir we met a nice gentelman and his tubbed ’66 Chevelle:

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Before departing we made our final stop to admire just how “right” Lou’s R32 looks with the new VOLK TE37SL wheels. Amazing car!

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We hope you can enjoy driving your car in 2015. Follow the blog and Facebook for upcoming fun runs!

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Click after the jump for more pictures!
…[read more]




Marc’s 350z

Filed under: Featured Cars and Projects,Maintenance,Performance
by Alvin G @ 12:15 am on January 3, 2015

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Marc H found Z Car Garage online and wanted to see what we were all about. After visiting the shop he dropped off his ultra-clean, low mileage 2008 350z for power and suspension goodies:

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We love the HR engine found in the latest Z33s because they respond extremely well to simple bolt-ons and UPREV tuning. We started with a with Bassani cat-back exhaust followed by JWT dual POP charger intakes :

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On the dyno, Marc’s 350z baselined at 271hp/245tq to the wheels.  The Bassani exhaust netted a peak gain of 7hp and significant midrange gains in torque:

Mark H Baseline and Exhaust

The JWT intakes added an additional 4hp:

Mark H Exhaust to Intake
 

This graph illustrates the benefit of UPREV tuning when adding bolt-ons. More power everywhere, all the way up to 7500rpm for peak gains of 19hp/8tq for a total of 290hp/253tq to the wheels:

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Marc wanted to improve handling and braking so we installed Eibach springs, Hotchkis sway bars, and Whiteline T/C rod bushings followed by a full alignment. Factory Brembo brakes were upgraded with Stoptech Sport Kits all around:

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Sway bars:

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Marc was very pleased with the results and has been enjoying his Z.  He told us he would be coming back to ZCG and we will happily oblige!

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