What Happens in SEMA . . .
Every year the Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) takes over the 3,000,000 square feet of floor space at the Las Vegas Convention Center for a weeklong trade show that covers everything automotive. Exhibitors feature cars, trucks or SUVs in their displays to showcase their products or simply to attract attention. In a town where weird is normal, the masses of over-the-top and extremely modified cars seem at home inside the multi-building center.

 

Tens of thousands attend the SEMA Show each year, and while a trade show and not open to the public, it’s the one auto show every enthusiast wants to attend. Despite the propensity for depravity that comes with a no-last-call town, SEMA is never anything short of a legendary gathering and we had a blast during our 2-day visit.

 

SEMA 2015 marked a special milestone for the crew at Z Car Garage as we prepared a special 1971 Datsun 240z for display at the show.  Through an exclusive collaboration with OS Giken we unveiled the world’s first North American (LHD) S30 to be powered by the legendary TC24-B1Z engine. This mythical twincam cylinder head bolts onto an L-series block giving it crossflow breathing and high revving operation.

 

 

The Z was well received by show goers stopping by the OS Giken booth which featured video displays of the engine being assembled and tested at ZCG. Jaws dropped at the sight of the TC24 and we also heard admirable reviews from fellow Datsun/restorers for the build. Our friends at Japanese Nostalgic Car (JNC) and Speedhunters featured the car in their SEMA reviews:
JNC
Speedhunters

 

 

The lucky owner of this OS Giken-equipped Z is our friend and customer Gary Stephenson. In short, his build highlights our restorative powers and sports full suspension (allowing 255/40/17 tires under stock flairs), our ZCG Big Brake Kit, nos OEM glass, integrated roll cage,  KA24 transmission, Recaro Competition seats and more.

 

 

 

In current tune/configuration the TC24 produced 376hp/281tq to the wheels on 91 octane, proudly displayed by the car at SEMA. This Z will be driven on the street and track so stay tuned for videos!

 

 

Huge thanks to the crew at OS Giken for a killer booth and memorable experience. Look for an in-depth story about our collaboration with OS Giken and TC24-B1Z build on the blog soon.  Long Live the Z. Here comes the TC!

 

 

Datsuns Everywhere at SEMA!

Our favorite vintage cars were in great numbers this year. One of the most prominent of course
was Sung Kang’s 1973 Datsun 240z affectionately called “FuguZ”.

Sung ( “Han” of Fast and Furious movie fame) chronicled the build through social media, enlisting parts from around the world with final assembly by Kenji at Greddy. Sporting the latest Rocket Bunny body kit, Volk TE37s and an ITB’d RB26 drivetrain this was a crowd favorite and inspiration to all. Congrats to Sung and the Greddy team for an epic build!

 

For the first time in SEMA history a Datsun roadster was on display courtesy of Socal specialist Kevin Desirello.

 

This fully restored 1967 SPL311 was treated to a complete S15 SR20DET drivetrain swap but Kevin and his team didn’t stop there. By adding a VVL head and punching the displacement out to 2.2L, they essentially made an SR22VE-T with power levels of 450whp anticipated!

 

 

Garret wanted the car for its SEMA booth and it was placed alongside the famous Mad Mike Whiddett’s insane twin-turbo FOUR-rotor powered Formula-drift Miata. We are especially proud of Kevin and his roadster for making it to the Top 21 in The Battle of the Builders competition!

 

 

This Datsun 520 pickup was actually a contender in the Optima Batteries challenge with a Mazda Miata drivetrain and double A-arm suspension F/R!

 

Hakotora! Take one Sunny ute and graft a Hakosuka front end on for a mean little pickup. This build had some great details and a built SR20DET under the vented hood.

 

This BRE 510 was on display in the Tokico booth. A celebrity driver car, this is now owned by Datsun-freak Adam Carolla. Our hero Pete Brock was not too far from the dime!

 

Eric and Josh from JDM Legends made the trek from Utah and displayed their superbly restored Ken and Mary Skyline. The C110 had all the choice parts from the triple-carb’d L-series, Comp seats and Watanabe wheels.

 

There’s a New Boss in Town . . .

Not Datsun per se, but the following Nissan 240sx (S14) sports cars all have one thing in common: The “Boss” aero kit from RocketBunny/TRA Kyoto. The kit transforms the front end of an S14 into a B110/Challenger looking vehicle… it takes some time getting used to, but we dig it.

 
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We will be closed on Tuesday 11/3 and Wed 11/4 to attend the SEMA show in Las Vegas. We will return to normal hours on Thursday. If you are going to SEMA please visit us at the OS Giken booth # 24929 and see the world’s first TC24-BZ1 powered LHD Datsun 240z! The dyno chart will also be posted for you folks wondering what the power output is. Stay tuned, after the show we promise a comprehensive, behind-the-scenes look at the OS Giken/Z Car Garage collaboration. Long Live the (twincam) Z!

 

 

The final Canepa Cars & Coffee of the year was held on 10/11. To celebrate our good friend Lou S’ birthday we joined him for a morning drive to Canepa. Instead of taking the direct route via HWY 17 we Enjoyed the Ride though HWY9/Big Basin Way and Skyline.

 

A Skyline mountain blast wouldn’t be complete without a Skyline! Lou naturally chose to drive his classic R32 Skyline GT-R:

 

Adding to the fun our group also included Andy in the Mazda RX-4 wagon, Rob J’s beautiful S30, Henry’s R35 GT-R, my ’67 Datsun Roadster and Rob Fuller in a Porsche 911 Turbo (for sale soon):

 

 

When we arrived, Canepa’s parking lot was already full and our group was relegated to overflow parking, which was a car show in itself! Mandatory Datsun content: I found two S30s,  stock and with massive flares/Chevy V8 power

 

Canepa as usual were gracious enough to open their entire facility to the public. Touring the showrooms and shop areas with soft pretzels and strudels in hand was a great way to start the morning!

 

Looking pretty in red, a recently restored Ferrari 288 GTo and Testarossa:

 

Turbo Fan madness! Love these BBS icons on the several Porsche’s. The Rennsport prep was strong inside Canepa!

 

This ’32 fordor hot rod caught my eye with old-school tricks mixed with modern touches. Halibrand wheels, 6-piston AP calipers, 427ci small block with Gurney Weslake heads…

 

Back in the parking lot, more interesting cars show up. A crowd pleaser was this La Ferrari, parked next to Mclaren:

 

Lots of bathub and 911 Porsche’s:

 

Great Muscle Car attendance:

 

Gorgeous Alfa and Jaguar:

 

Many more pics in the gallery. See you at Canepa Cars and Coffee next spring!

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Every year, one of my favorite events to attend in Southern California is the annual Japanese Classic Car Show in Long Beach.  JCCS is like a big reunion of old school friends, surrounded by the finest vintage metal made in Japan. The iconic Queen Mary cruise ship and the Long Beach skyline is a perfect backdrop for Zs, 510s, Skylines, Rx-7s, Rx-3s, Celicas, Corollas, Land Cruisers and other interesting Japanese old school cars!

 

Founded by Koji and Terry Yamaguchi, JCCS has been running for 11 years strong now and the bar is set higher ever year. I remember the first year of JCCS, and it’s hard to believe the inaugural event was over a decade ago!  I love this show and the Z Car Garage crew keeps coming back every year to soak up the sun, see old friends and drool over some spectacular vintage builds.

  

Attendance was impressive but surprisingly not over-whelming like previous years and this made photographing cars a breeze!  Sure, a bulk of the cars are the same annually but the small percentage of new cars tend to be amazing.  At JCCS we love that every pass up and down an aisle of cars reveals a new detail, emblem, decal, or set of wheels.  Also, this is a more adult car show (no loud Drake/EDM, no booth babes, no car parents towing around scraping cambered-out red Power Wheels with kids in them) and a breath of fresh air compared to the “party” vibe of the larger California shows.

Nissan’s Debut at JCCS

The OEMs participated in record numbers this year. That’s right, in addition to Mazda, Toyota and Honda our beloved Nissan stepped up for the first time with a great showing of rare and unique vehicles from their vault. My favorite was the 1997 R390 GT1 Le Mans race car, sent over from Japan just for this event! Nissan’s collection also included included a 1975 Bluebird-U 2000 GTX, 1972 Datsun 510 and 1967 411. Our friends at JNC were lucky to drive the Dime and Bluebird over the Monterey Car Week.

Completing the “heritage” lineup was this little/big truck combo – a 1960 Datsun 1200 “surfer” Van towed by a 2016 Nissan TITAN XD pickup. Fingers crossed this new diesel rig “passes” emissions. Ha!

 

Here are few of my favorite Nissans and Datsuns, starting with that not-so forbidden fruit commonly known as the hakosuka.

 

There was no shortage of Skylines this year and my favorite was Eric Khamchan’s KGC10. It’s racing livery removed from previous shows revealed a stunning shade of metallic blue. The killer stance with wide, gun-metal Watanabe wheels stuffed under the flares set this one off from the rest:

 

We first saw this short-nosed Skyline at the Solvang Datsun Roadster Show and were surprised by its intact “surf line” rear fenders,  G-series 4-cylinder power and super rare Hayashi Racing Techno Phantom wheels:

 

Eric Bauer’s  Hako sported period-spec goodies throughout like these Dunlop CR65 tires and C-pillar vent:

 

The only 4-door with molded rear flares sitting pretty on deep step-lipped SSR MKII wheels:

Another red Hako with gold Watanabe’s and a striking peanut butter interior:

 

Finally, this Kaido themed racer replete with external oil cooler, livery and side-exit exhaust:

Z-Car Extravaganza

Z cars from all generations were in full force with cars spanning the tarmac near the Queen Mary to the bayside lawn.  I’m a big fan of subtle modified Z’s but I can also appreciate pristine, bone-stock examples and the occasional shakotan build. This S30 had subtle body-colored flares, deep Simmons wheels and a neatly executed RB25DET engine swap:

 

By contrast Richard Madlangbayan’s RB25DET-powered S30 is wildly flared with retina-searing paint and extensive aero.  To-die-for NISMO LM GT2 wheels were re-barreled and stepped up to 18″ by FiveOneWheels. Check out the rear diffuser, side skirts and spolier too:

 

 

This was my first time seeing Kevin Yeung’s “White DevilZ” in person. It had some ludicrously sized fenders, WORK Equip 03 wheels with a huge wing and more aero. My favorite part? The L-series powerplant force-fed by an HKS turbo kit. I think I overheard Kevin telling a fan that “he had plans to track it”…

 

The guys from JDM Legends displayed this immaculate, super sano S30. From the iconic Watanabe wheels to the triple-carb’d L-series this car was a real treat to view.

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Our friend Patrick Chio has been racing his Nissan 350z competitively for several years and we’ve had the pleasure of helping him tune/maintain the car for events. Recently he campaigned the Z in the USTCC (US Touring Car Championship series) with impressive results, enjoy his report! For past updates on the Z please follow the links below:
z car garage tuned 350z gets 2nd place
2nd place finish for patrick in zcg tuned 350z
cool it now patricks time attack 350z.html
time attack winner patricks z33

This marks the first debut of Z Car Garage Nissan 350z full race car in USTCC (US Touring Car Championship series) at Buttonwillow Raceway for the 2 hours enduro race. This is also the first wheel to wheel race for Patrick Chio as a rookie in his first season.

 

In the field, we have the only Nissan race car, majority of the field are BMW M3s, with a mix of Hyundai Genesis, Mitsubishi Lancer, Mazda Rx-8, Acura RSX:

 

Since it is a 2 hours endurance race, we decided to have one driver change. We have invited Andrie Hartanto (Pro Driver) for our second driver. His experience on racing, strategy will be a big contribution to our team.

The 350z was supercharged before the race, but due to the touring class rule of USTCC, we have to remove the supercharger and back to naturally aspirated with 11.9:1 Power to weight ratio. Since it was a 2 hours race, reliability is the key for success. Rob at Z Car garage has been spending his time to dyno tune the Z with max reliability and good fuel consumption while having sustainable power to be competitive in the field.

During practice, we have set the fastest TC Class time of the day, drawing some extra attention from the tech officials, warranting further inspection. Following further scrutiny, (re-weight and check horsepower rating) Chio’s 350Z was found to be fully compliant and legal.

During the qualifying session, we have qualified 3rd position in traffic. The 1st and 2nd places are all within a sec in time.

 

When the race started, Chio found himself sitting on the pole position due to the top two competitors arriving late to the grid. He was caught off guard when a competitor lined up on the far inside of the grid before the start, boxing him in and leaving the rookie with nowhere to go.

In a frenzied start, Chio dropped back into fifth position shortly after the green flag dropped, but ran a clean consistent race. His steady driving among a tough field allowed Chio to quietly work his way back up to third place in the TC Class field when it came time to hand the car over to Hartanto.

 

After a strong initial showing in Chio’s first ever race, a stroke of misfortune hit the team. The team executed a flawless pit stop and driver change, however the safety car was dispatched right as Hartanto was sent out to resume the race, thus holding the 350Z in seventh place after the pit stop.

 

Once the incident on-track had been cleared and the all-clear had been given to resume racing, Hartanto pushed hard until the last lap of the race. By the time the race had ended, Hartanto had clawed back to regain all of the positions lost after the pit stop and lengthy safety car period. At the end, Chio earned his first podium finish of the USTCC TC Class and a podium finish in his first race of his rookie season.

 

Post-race, it was determined that the race winner was underweight, thus bumping Chio and Hartanto into second position.

 

“The Z is surprisingly competitive,” Chio remarked after the race. “There are a few things that we still have to figure out, such as the brakes, but we should definitely have a good chance of finishing within the top positions.”

Hartanto echoed Chio’s comments. “We got the 350Z in the mix right away and we even topped the time sheet in practice. The car is fun to drive and shares a lot of similarities with the BMW. I had a lot of fun and would be glad to do it again.”

At the end, big shout out to Z car garage for the help to getting our 350z performed so well and was able to endure the full 2 hours race without any problem. Our next race will be at Utah, Miller Motor Sport Park. Stay tuned.

 

USTCC Round 2, Miller Motor Sport Park, UTAH

 

This time, our Z Car Garage Nissan 350Z traveled all the way to UTAH Miller Motorsport Park for the second round of USTCC (US Touring Car Championship). This was our first time at this race track and we were running the east side configuration. The east side of the track is known for middle speed corners and tight road course. Compared to our last Buttonwillow 2hr endurance race, this time is a 45mins sprint race.

With the high attitude of the UTAH race track, all the NA cars are suffered power lost. The car feels much slower than in California race track. On Saturday, we will be doing 2 practices and 1 qualify session for the Sunday race.

On Saturday, we have qualified 2nd in position. This first place pole sitter is a turbo Mitsubishi Lancer which benefited from forced induction in a high attitude environment. Unfortunately, due to a miscommunication, we missed the entrance of post qualifying weighting and disqualified from the result. We have to start all way back in the field during the race.

 

On Sunday, as much as we were disappointed from the qualifying result, we focused back to winning the race. We were able to climb back to the third position within 15mins into the race. Since the first leading car was so far ahead, we were aiming to finish 2nd. By the last lap, we were able to chase down the 2nd place BMW M3 bumper to bumper. At the very end of the race, we decided to make a pass on a tight corner, it was now or never. However, due to brake locked up, we sightly tapped the m3 rear bumper and lost all the momentum. At the end, we finished 3rd place of this round USTCC race.

 

At the end, we realized that we are still in the learning period on wheel to wheel racing and the rules as the first season. We will be back next time at our home track Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca.

As a side note, we stopped by the world famous Bonneville Salt Flats on our way back. 🙂