Filed under: 510,Events
by Alvin G @ 5:10 pm on April 18, 2024
Z Car Garage is excited to go vintage racing April 18-21 at the Sonoma Speed Tour with Sportscar Vintage Racing Association (SVRA). Come out to Sonoma Raceway this weekend and watch some exciting B-Sedan/Trans Am race action!
Z Car Garage Race Preparation
It is our pleasure to bring more enthusiasts into the world of vintage racing. Our trackside services include full race support and car-preparation to help make client’s race days seamless and worry-free so they can focus on driving. One of our specialties is dyno tuning. Before a race weekend we confirm that your car is running well and make necessary adjustments while on the chassis dyno. Here is a video of the race cars we prepared this week with dyno passes and a walk around the shop. Enjoy!
Z Car Garage Racers
Z Car Garage will be racing and supporting several client cars at both events:
#64 Kenny Tse
Kenny will be in the Ex-Ted Gruner B-Sedan Datsun 510 featuring our Z Car Garage CV Axles :
#8 Gabe Rothman’s B-Sedan
#7 Rob Fuller in the Bay Area Datsun Dealers Datsun 510
Join us for the 2024 race season! See the full race schedule below and LONG LIVE THE Z! The next event will be Laps For Laguna on May 31 at Laguna Seca Raceway:
Filed under: 510,Events,Racing
by Alvin G @ 5:10 pm on March 13, 2024
Z Car Garage is preparing several Datsun 510 B-Sedan race cars for this weekend’s Classic Sports Racing Group (CSRG) David Love Vintage races at Sonoma Raceway. Enjoy the dyno video of the Ex-Ted Gruner B-Sedan Datsun 510 and car-prep photos below!
All 510 race cars are getting their suspension and motors dialed-in for the race weekend:
Filed under: 510,Events,Racing
by Alvin G @ 5:10 pm on February 19, 2024
The Classic Sports Racing Group (CSRG) is excited to welcome Vintage Spec Miata (1990-1997) to all of their events! This is a fun, affordable way to get into vintage racing. If you have any questions regarding prep and presentation, reach out to Rob Fuller: rob@zcargarage.com. Please see below for more information and rules.
Why Vintage Spec Miata (VSM)?
Why VSM? It’s a great way to get into vintage racing at an affordable price point. The nice folks at the CSRG have a strict no-contact policy as part of their racing philosophy: this ensures the safest environment for you to race competitively while sharing the track with traditional cars.
Lastly, CSRG events are known for their camaraderie and undeniably cool eye-candy. If you want to mix it up with classic race cars of the 60s and 70s in your Spec Miata, this is the ticket.
Did we mention it is Fun! See what vintage racing with CSRG is all about in one of our race reports HERE!
Fellow Spec-Miata racer Ross L in front of Randy Pobst’s first National Championship-winning Miata (1992). Below, Rob Fuller’s Spec-Miata at the shop:
CSRG Rules for VSM
The first race event is March 15!
Register your Vintage Spec Miata for CSRG’s first event, the 2024 David Love Races at Sonoma Raceway March 15-17. Registration details HERE. It will be a blast on Sonoma’s NEWLY PAVED surface with plenty of vintage cars and good times. See you there!
Dear Zcarblog readers, it’s been a busy year and we are catching up on blog posts. Please enjoy our belated race report from November 2023.
WE LOVE RACING! On November 10-12 we attended the Velocity Invitational at Sonoma Raceway. Z Car Garage had a blast racing and supporting clients in Group 6 (1968 – 1978 IMSA GT Cars), Group 9 (ALMS) and Group 10 (Mini vs Mustang Enduro). This vintage racing event was just as fun for spectators with a friendly, immersive vibe. Enjoy our report from the weekend with photos and in-car video of the action.
This very special Porsche is the 2006 FIA European GT3 Championship winning car that was driven by Sean Edwards. It is a 997 GT3 Cup S Prototype and our client Kenny Tse raced it in Group 9 (ALMS). Listen to this car on the Z Car Garage dyno below!
#78 IMSA Porsche 911
Z Car Garage prepared and provided trackside race support for our client Kelvin Tse and his IMSA Porsche 911, running with the Z cars in Group 6.
Mini Vs Mustang Enduro
Rob Fuller and Greg Hoff raced a Mini Cooper against Mustangs in the Group 10: 1960’s Mini Vs Mustang Enduro, this was an action-packed group!
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.
Racing With Group 6 IMSA
Photo by Chris Constantine
Group 6’s IMSA cars were dominated by big-power Porsche 911 RSRs with a few BMS CSLs and four S30 Datsuns. Rob Fuller ran the #49 Joel Anderson IMSA GTU Datsun 240Z joining Dave Stone’s 260Z, Gary Cook’s CP 240Z and Glenn Chiou’s’ 240Z:
#49 IMSA Joel Anderson GTU Z
This was Z Car Garage’s third time running the Velocity Invitational event. Enjoy Rob Fuller’s race report with video below…
ROB: “The IMSA GTU Z made a switch this season from Avon to Goodyear tires, and it’s really been quite amazing. You have to remember that all of the suspension on this 240Z is what Joel ran in 1981, and it still rocks. Group 6 was fun and I was in the mix with legends…spent the last 20 years attending the Historics watching Bruce Canepa in his Porsche 935, Ken Epsman in his DeKon Monza, the Greenwood Corvette…just unreal to be actually racing with them!”
ROB: “My personal best lap time was 1:46 and I think that is the highest finishing Datsun 240z ever in that group. Shoutout to Glenn Chiou in the BADD Z he kicked some ass, Gary Cook brought out an old CP car and Dave Stone was in his GTU 260Z.”
Enjoy these shots of the #49 car in action by photographers Kris Poulin, Chris Constantine and Charles Frerking:
Video!
We have in-car video from Rob in the Joel Anderson IMSA GTU 240Z and Group 6 racing action below, volume up and enjoy!
Sunday Race:
Catch some Turn 2 action HERE and watch more of Rob’s racing adventures on his YouTube Channel.
Z Car Garage Trackside Race Support Services
ROB: “ZCG provided trackside support for 4 cars. Kelvin in IMSA 911 and myself in G6, Kenny in G9 ALMS with a bunch of 996/997 Porsche Cup cars, Ford GT’s and really cool metal. They all had a blast. We changed up a few things on the IMSA 911 and solve some issues that came up at Rennsport so he was able to have a good time at Velocity.”
Kenny with his 997 GT3 Cup car and first time on track since 2018. Z Car Garage prepped the car with fluids and dyno tuning, and wow what a car:
ZCG is always willing to lend a hand to fellow racers, like Dave Stone:
Mini Vs Mustang Enduro
ROB: “We also ran a Mini with Greg Hoff in the Enduro. The Mini kicked our ass all weekend and we had to do an engine swap (thanks to Nick for the assist!)…we had electrical woes. British Steel really challenged us and thanks to the ZCG crew we were able to catch the last Enduro race and take the checkered flag.”
Paddock Action
Enjoy this video highlighting the Sonoma Raceway paddock with race group walk-throughs, engine sounds and more:
Exotic cars
There was no shortage of rare and exotic cars from well-known and upcoming supercar marques. Guntherwerks had their 911 Speedster and McLaren showed off an incredible display of F1s mixed with newer models:
Privateer Spirit
Our friend and Datsun Historian Glenn Chiou raced his FAR Performance 240Z. It’s worth noting that not unlike privateers of the period, Glenn builds his race cars, maintains and manages racing efforts himself. Not an easy task so we applaud his work ethic. Glenn builds some beautiful Datsuns and we will highlight his B-Sedan 510 soon!
A Fan-Friendly Race Event
Formerly known as the Sonoma Speed Festival (2019), the Velocity Invitational re-imagined the vintage race experience with a Goodwood-inspired vibe that we enjoyed at the 2022 Velocity Invitational. One of the best experiences for spectators is the paddock and organizers made access to drivers and their machines seamless. Fans could get up close and personal with race cars without the typical ropes or 45-foot RVs in the way:
ROB: “First time running at Sonoma for us with VI, since we missed the inaugural event in 2019. Jeff O’Neill ‘s event is first class and reminds us of what the Rolex MMR used to be. So much excitement in the air…when you drive in people would be everywhere. Thanks to Jeff, Ryan Turri and Ardelle Lind for accommodating our needs.”
“They have done an incredible job making the guests and fans welcome. Organizers created a memorable experience, down to the driver’s meeting and we really enjoyed the paddock design, signage, F1 energy. All three days there were lines to get into the event! More driver amenities like the lounge, food and drink…ZCG’s first shop helper Jeff Garcia and his company was in charge of coffee/drink services at the event, small world!”
The hot pit area where all run groups stage before heading out to the track is an amazing place to be. Typically, access is only granted to pit crews and media. At the Velocity Invitational however, organizers staged a “false grid” where any spectator could walk amongst the race cars.
If you want to see action from the event in its entirety, check out Goodwood’s live streaming coverage of Day one and Day Two. Huge thanks to Meghan Fuller for capturing photos/videos for ZCG. More photos in the gallery below!
ZCG Race Crew
Huge shoutout to the Z Car Garage race crew including Josh, Meghan, Nick and Cooper. We are grateful for your support, keeping us safe and on the track!
Racing into 2024!
Thank you Velocity Invitational for an incredible event. We look forward to running with you again. Join us for the 2024 race season starting March 1 with SVRA at Thunderhill. See the ull race schedule below and LONG LIVE THE Z!
Filed under: 240z,510,Events,Racing
by Alvin G @ 2:40 pm on September 20, 2023
Z Car Garage is excited to participate in the Velocity Invitational at Sonoma Raceway November 10-12. This is a must attend historic racing event for Nissan/Datsun fans with IMSA GTU Z cars, exotics and more to enjoy. Tickets are still available, to purchase simply on click HERE, and read below for a preview.
Z Car Garage Racers
Z Car Garage is excited to be racing in Group 6 (1968 – 1978 IMSA GT Cars) and Group 10 (Mini vs Mustang Enduro). Here is a preview:
Race car driver, restorer and Datsun Historian Glenn Chiou displayed 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.
This is a wonderful event for the whole family, check out our report from last year’s 2022 Velocity Invitational. Z you at Sonoma Raceway November 10-12!
Join us for the 2023 Vintage Racing Season!
Z Car Garage is amped for more racing this year. Here is list of events we will be attending in 2023, including CSRG and SVRA . Please join us!
March
March 3rd to the 5th SVRA Thunderhill
March 24 to 26th CRSG Sonoma
April
April 27th to 30th SVRA Sonoma
May
May 4th to 7th SVRA Laguna Seca
June
June 23rd to 25th CSRG Laguna Seca
August
August 12-13 Monterey Pre-Reunion
August 16-19 Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion
