At Z Car Garage we live for anything Nissan/Datsun and that includes late model cars like the 350z. The Z33 has been part of our customer base since the beginning, spanning everything from NA and forced induction to full track-spec builds. Josh visited us last year to discuss supercharging his 2008 350z. He acquired it completely stock 3 years ago and slowly began the modification process.
Josh signed on for a Stillen supercharger kit (satin, CARB legal) and we installed it with our typical supporting mods like GTR plugs, and Concept Performance Z 25-row oil cooler (Setrab, T-stat controlled).
The front end needed work to accomodate Josh’s front crash bar. We shifted items around like the water-air exchanger to retain functionality:
Josh also requested installation of parts he had purchased previously like Tomei cams/valve springs for the HR engine. These units worked really well with the blower as seen in the dyno below. A few cam install pictures:
The transmission was crunchy in 3rd and 5th gear so we installed a brand new OEM CD009 transmission:
Backing the VQ is a Z Speed Performance South Bend stage 2 clutch with internal slave delete (CMAK upgrade):
For piece of mind we replaced all engine gaskets and seals:
The differential bushings were replaced with Whiteline parts:
Before/after the Stillen Supercharger installation:
On the dyno the Z made 286hp/252tq baseline. Rob UPREV tuned with the Stillen supercharger making 427hp/311tq at the wheels:
Enjoy the dyno video:
Finally, we had our man William install Josh’s supplied carbon fiber hood, fenders and hood pins.
Josh was really happy with the results and he’s been texting us often:
“I brought in my base model 350z to Rob to get it Supercharged, cammed, and a transmission swap. I was pleased with Rob and the teams work, they knew what was needed for the build. The tune is excellent, I haven’t had any issues with engine codes after excessive driving.”
Max Y visited us in 2018 for bolt-ons and returned in 2019 for a Stillen supercharger supercharger and OS Giken limited-slip differential. Power can be addicting so Max visited Z Car Garage recently for more boost and a full Stoptech Big-Brake Kit to reign it all in.
Providing more boost is a 9lb pulley and supporting upgrades to the fuel system including a CJ Motorsports return fuel system with billet hat. Injector Dynamics 1050cc injectors and 485lph Wallbro pump.
A Soho motorsports air to air intercooler kit replaces the Stillen air-to-water setup:
We pulled the transmission to install a Fast Intentions billet flex plate:
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Dyno tuning was performed via Ecutek making 447hp/324tq 91 octane and 475hp/349tq 100 octane:
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https://youtu.be/Z5U_tCjfzlk
With more power available the brakes were upgraded to a full Big-Brake Kit from Stoptech: Â 6-piston calipers with 355mm front rotors and ST22 calipers in rear with slotted rotors :
This kit sports Stoptech 6-piston calipers calmping 355mm front rotors and ST22 calipers in rear with slotted rotors, OEM vs Stoptech front:
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The brakes also look great behind those awesome Enkei R05rr wheels:
New SPPC front/rear control arms and a full alignment following installation of larger Michelin Pilot SS 275/40/18 F and 295/35/18 R
Richard M has been our customer since he moved to California years ago and together we built his 2009 370z into a balanced sports car with power and style. We are really proud to see him enjoy his Z and be an active member of the community. Let’s take a look at the journey with a few highlights along the way…
Humble Beginnings Lead to Boost
“My experience with ZCG has been nothing but exceptional. Rob Fuller has taken care of me since day one and currently we are so close I call ’em family.”
Rich simply grew up loving cars, being a young enthusiast back in Philadelphia enjoying the street racing scene and drag strip at Atco and Englishtown NJ. His vision of a quick, balanced car started off as a bone stock 370z touring addition purchased from the original owner with just over 20k on the clock.
“I had just moved to California from Philadelphia and was searching for a reputable tuner in the Norcal region. That’s when I found ZCG and brought the car to see Rob to determine if this motor was worth investing in. We put it on the dyno and made over 313whp & 268wtq with just Uprev Osiris management and a Top Speed Pro 1 Track edition catback exhaust.”
That was in 2015, and indeed 313whp for a basically stock Z34 was well-above average, but Rich wanted a bit more:
“Then 2 months later we reached out to Stillen to bless the Z with the full Stillen Supercharger kit and oil cooler. The kit was installed and dyno’d making 433whp and 340wtq. We transformed the Z into a new car. The new driving characteristics were improved drastically and the kit, compared to the naturally aspirated setup was day and night.”
We added a Stillen 25-row oil cooler and GTR plugs:
The installation was seamlessly, before/after:
With a CAN tune out of the box we saw 376hp/284tq to the wheels. This wasn’t terribly impressive considering baseline NA numbers were 305hp/251tq, netting gains of 69hp/33tq:
After Rob’s custom tune we squeezed another 58hp/55tq for a total of 433hp/339tq to the wheels. The gains were significant all the way to the VQ’s sweet 7500rpm redline, even with slightly less boost!
Richard was happier now with over 400whp 🙂
“The performance of my Amuse 370Z from the beginning has met both my expectations and Rob’s expectations. Rob and I always talk about how this car has been a stand out in regards to reliability with added power enhancers.”
“Working with Rob was the best decision I could’ve made in allowing someone to tune my car and keep me grounded as it’s easy to get sucked into the battle of “who has the most horsepower”? Although it can always be done, I am proud to daily drive and make repeated trips between Norcal/Socal without any issues.”
We thank Rich for the kind words, and the Z certainly has been a workhorse. Here are some of Rich’s memorable moments with his 370z.
Highlights
Landing the front cover of DSPORT Magazine (Feb. 2018) which was also their SEMA issue and my first car cover and centerfold.
Being featured on Matt Farrah’s youtube channel “The Smoking Tire” which has over 500k views. We love to see our customer’s cars spotlighted in the media!  Check out the video:
Winning 1st place Best Import at The San Jose Auto Show inside the “Spider Section” for custom cars at the Convention Center
Being invited & featured by Super Street Magazine to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the Nissan GTR & Z Heritage in Monterey California for car week
The final and most special to Rich is being invited to be featured in the “2020 Toyo Tires X SuperStreet” calendar which has also been declared the very last Calendar that Toyo Tires and Super Street Magazine will do. SuperStreet has been such a pillar for all of us import enthusiasts so to be recognized by them has been a childhood dream come true.
Style
Rich added his own touch to the Z, including a full Powerhouse Amuse kit and custom paint job with Silver with Gold flakes:
“The PowerHouse Amuse body kit is a kit that is also functional for cooling purposes but is also one of those kits that I actually fell in love with. The sharp body lines that I think enhances the Z. I imported the kit from Japan after becoming friends with Hitoshi Matsui and becoming more confident in Amuse now known as R1 Titan.”
We love the Work Emotion CR KAI wheels (F: 19×9.5 +15 R: 19×11 +18) with Muteki 12×1.25 Neo Chrome Extended open lug nuts and Toyo Proxes T1 Tires 285/35/19R -255/35/19F:
The Z was then fitted with ISC Suspension 32 way fully adjustable coilover kit with custom spring rates. We also included SPC front and rear camber + SPC bolts to dial in the alignment. The brakes were upgraded to Stoptech slotted Rotors and performance pads with the addition of Stainless steel brake lines and Motul fluid. Rich continues to daily drive his Z and visits us for routine maintenance. Next up will be an OS Giken rear end
Rich would like to thank his sponsors:Â Toyo Tires, Stillen, ISC Suspension, Socal Z, and ZCG.
We are excited to offer the Z Car Garage Heat Shield for your triple-carb’d L-series Z car. This is a one-piece 304 stainless unit with laser-etched serial number. Proven on all of our L-series engine builds and dyno testing.
This heat shield will fit Mikuni, Weber, Dellorto and Jenvey induction with several intake manifolds like the Harada:
Contact the shop for pricing and ordering info!
ZCG 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 70 CV axle kits on customer cars and we are stoked with all of the positive feedback. We now have a new shipment in stock, order your set today!
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Panasport wheels for your Z car
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Treat your Z to a brand new set of Panasport wheels! We special order this offset to enable fitment of a 225/50/16 tire on the 1970 to 1978 S30s.
To order, contact Rob at the shop:
rob@zcargarage.com or call 408-452-0350
Shop Update 2/4
I stopped by the shop today and grabbed some quick shots of a few projects, enjoy! Felix’s 300zx Twin Turbo is back for power upgrades:
We might be biased but we feel the Z32 is the best Japanese sports car of the 90’s. Keeping them on the road is our passion and even in 2019 there are still some real gems out there. Felix C brought his 1996 300zx Twin Turbo in to ZCG under dire circumstances and here is how we met him.
While we were at the Spring Classic event at Laguna Seca a customer was trying to buy a ’96 Z32TT from SoCal. Rob informed this customer to hold off buying the car until inspected by our friends at SpecialtyZ. When we got back to the shop at night to unload our cars from the race weekend…that ’96 Z32TT was sitting in front of Z Car Garage!
The following morning a gentlemen named Felix called to say he had purchased this car in SoCal and on the way home it broke down. With 96k miles the odometer, this Z32 from came to ZCG with a busted fan clutch. When the fan clutch failed it made a mess of the radiator and front end. The first visit for Felix was a full inspection with a plan to remedy all problems to get him back on the road. We installed a new Koyo race radiator, our one-step colder plugs and performed full timing belt services:
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Power Upgrades
Felix returned after feeling the need for more power and we also knocked out a few more items from the initial inspection. Power upgrades included a SpecialtyZ 2.5″ exhaust with resonated x-pipe and dual tips, 740cc injectors, Ashspec massive intercoolers and Greddy boost controller:
On this visit we also got the A/C working with a new condenser and drier. A new fuel pump and all fuel hoses on top of the plenum were replaced:
The engine bay was cleaned up, including oil cooler lines:
More power upgrades: Selin translator dual MAF and BDE Performance motor mounts to allow for ASH-SPEC inlet piping. Massive IC from Ash shown below:
Dyno Tuning
We dyno tuned Felix’s Z with each power modification. It came in with a failed knock sensor, causing the low baseline power levels of 220hp/223tq. The knock sensor was fixed:
Great gains with the SZ exhaust system for 313hp/334tq to the wheels:
Ash-SPEC intercoolers:
Rob’s final tuning really woke the Z up, yielding 357hp/351tq to the wheels on 91 octane, dyno video below:
Interior
Felix wanted us to sort out the interior. During this visit we installed some weatherstrip, fixed an ABS sensor code and eliminated a few door panel rattles.
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Felix added LED lighting:
The highlight of the cabin: we had the seats re-finished to OEM spec!
Big-Brakes and Chassis
As every Z32 owner knows, the stock brakes just aren’t up to the task. More power exacerbates the issue and you know how we feel at ZCG: It’s Stoptech Or Don’t Stop At All. Felix’s car had larger than factory wheels allowing us to install the 332mm Big-Brake Kit using red calipers and rotors.
Stock vs Stoptech
At the rear, stock Z32 calipers were paint-matched to the Stoptech red up front. Sport kit slotted rotors with 309 pads and SS lines throughout:
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In addition to their function, the Stoptechs look nice too!
Stillen sway bars front and rear and we replaced all of the power steering hoses:
The Z had outgrown its suspension and it was 40th Felix’s birthday. We delivered icing on the cake with KW V3 coil-over suspension:
Installed front and rear:
More birthday goodness: super sexy SSR GTX-01 wheels in 18×9.5 with Bridgestone S-04 tires:
Wheels/tires being mounted:
Notice the J-spec tail lights, one of our favorite aesthetic mods and it looks so good on the black Z32s. Of note is the license plate “AUDREYH”…Felix wanted to pay tribute to his Mom’s favorite actress, Audrey Hepburn:
“aka Fairlady Z since the designer named it after the classic movie My Fairlady. The actress in the movie is the beautiful Audrey Hepburn. Hence I chose AUDREYH. I figured a classic lady should have a classic name with relevance.”
The 300 is now well-sorted and Felix is loving it. He did his first track day at Sears Point (Sonoma Raceway) and had a blast hustling the Z:
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“Rob and the team is a high energy team that takes their work seriously while having fun. I’m happy what they have done to the car and also ecstatic that they share equal appreciation of the Z32”
UPDATE:
Felix is Enjoying The Ride as I write this blog post! He sent me these awesome pictures minutes ago with another Japanese sports car we admire…the FD RX-7:
Thanks for bringing your 300 to us Felix and Long Live The (Twin Turbo) Z! More pictures in the gallery below:
