The 2019 Coastal Range Rally was held March 15-17 and we had an absolutely blissful driving experience. Hosted by Driving While Awesome, this 3-day event brings together interesting cars and their drivers sharing a common passion for enjoying the best driving roads in California. This year the rally began in Southern California heading back to the Bay Area and we participated with the Z Car Garage 1970 Datsun 240z. Here is our report from the weekend filled with open roads, seemingly endless stretches of curvy mountain passes and good company.

 

The ZCG Datsun 240z

 

Rob and I planned to run this event together but he had to race in Spec Miata at Thunderhill. He handed me the keys to “Ms. Butters”,  a 1970 Series 240z that has become the shop demo car and I happily obliged. While this S30 deserves its own feature, here are a few details on the build:

Engine: Stroked L-series with triple Mikuni 44 carbs and special cam profile (full spec/dyno soon)
Suspension: Full KW coil-over suspension (ZCG-spec)
Brakes: Z Car Garage Big-Brakes (for small wheels)
Drivetrain: ZX close ratio 5-speed, Z Car Garage CV Axles, OS Giken 4.11 LSD
Wheels: 16×7 Panasport with 225/50/16 Bridgestone RE71R
Interior: Recaro LXF seats

   

The Z performed admirably without a single problem over the 1200-mile event. This is a testament to thorough rally-prep (thanks ZCG crew) and the wonderful upgraded suspension/chassis. These modifications offered a great balance of ride compliance and stiffness for the canyons with a seamless transition between rough to smooth surfaces. The ZCG Big-brakes also delivered great feel and zero fade…truly confidence-inspiring. Enjoy this video of Ms. Butters with extended Fujitsubo exhaust footage and hear that L-series sing!

 

 

Day 1: Palmdale to Ventura

This year the rally was dubbed CRR “Rewind” as the starting point was in Southern California heading north through the Central Coast. I joined fellow enthusiasts Glenn (R32 Skyline) Naveed (Porsche 911) and Gen (E30 M3) Friday evening to blast down to the starting point in Palmadale, CA. Instead of taking the highway we took an exciting route through HWY 25:

 

The next morning all rally participants met just outside of Palmdale to grab their swag bags and rally maps. The DWA organizers encouraged us that CRR isn’t a race, and to enjoy the roads at our own pace. I can’t emphasize enough how great this group of folks is. A good portion are 3rd-time CRR rally drivers and the positivity was contagious.

  

I hopped in the Z and joined Naveed and Gen on this stage towards Agua Dulce. Gen led us on a slight detour through Angeles Crest and it was exhilarating. We stopped at a lookout, realizing our cars represented the 70’s, 80’s and 90’s icons!

  Lunch in Agua Dulce and back on the road to Ventura. Mandatory Datsun content: I was happy to see 2 other Z cars (grey is Lloyd’s) and a special ’69 Datsun Roadster (Kevin and Heather). Sporting engine/suspension upgrades this little roadster surprised many with its performance:

 

Lake Castaic overlook heading westward:

  

The Ventura hotel parking lot was a car show representing a great feature of CRR: diversity. So many cool cars from all era’s and marques! This was a fun time chatting with fellow rally’ers followed by a DWA hosted dinner:

 

Day 2: Ventura to Paso Robles

The second day (3/16) was my favorite stage of the rally. Our destination was Paso Robles, with a stop in Taft. I had no idea how breathtaking the scenery would be on this stage as it was filled with Alpine scents, pastures, desolation, oil fields and small sleepy towns. Truly a feast for the senses, and EPIC driving. The kind of driving that makes your arms fatigued!

Through Ojai via HWY 33, in the sky through Frazier Mtn. Park:

  

Lockwood Rd. had several streams we had to drive through. Ali Javidan took some really cool shots of cars fording through!

 

After lunch in Taft, Naveed spotted an oil field. Carb’d inline 6, EFI flat 6, and a 2.5L 4-cylinder:

 

Our next stage was HWY 58 heading to Soda Lake. This stretch of freshly paved road was so much fun that many of us turned around to do it over again! My absolute favorite part of CRR. The Z was such a joy to drive through here:

 

At the junction of 58/7-mile Rd. was a super bloom. We definitely stopped to take it all in after the brisk drive. Erich in his modified EVO:

  

Glenn let me drive his R32 to Soda Lake and he took the Z, thanks for the picture Matt!

 

View from the overlook revealing Soda Lake. It was also reached via an optional dirt Road if you dared!

 

Don’t let the perspective fool you 🙂

  

A breather just before reaching our hotel in Paso Robles

  

It is difficult to describe the driving experience through photos, so please enjoy this video I made of Day 1 and 2 of CRR!

 

Day 3: Paso Robles to Laguna Seca

I decided to join Glenn and conclude our CRR with a visit to Laguna Seca to see our friends vintage racing. Dave Stone was in his B-Sedan 510 and the entire Racecraft crew was also participating:

   

It was a beautiful day check out the gallery below for more pictures! Here is a video from ‘Seca:

 

Thank you DWA!

The Coastal Range Rally was a surreal experience. I am still day dreaming about those incredible roads that we travelled all in one weekend. I’m not alone, as many participants are also suffering through “CRR withdrawals”.  See what I mean by all of the #CRRRewind posts on Instagram. The event was that good. Big thanks to the crew at Driving While Awesome and old/new friends met during the rally. We are definitely signing up for the next CRR! Enjoy the picture gallery below and LONG LIVE THE Z!

 

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We have several exciting projects at the shop that will have full reports coming soon to zcarblog. From Z32 Twin Turbo builds…

  

…To S30 Z’s getting our ZCG CV Axles and Big-Brake Kits:

 

Z34 on new Yokohama AVS F50 wheels:

 

Just a few S30s from resto-mods to OEM-level restorations:

 

Race car tuning! More to come watch for updates on our Instagram and Facebook pages!

 

The Golden Week Kyusha Festival is coming to Northern California May 4th! This will be a fantastic gathering for Japanese classic cars at the Crane Way Pavillion in Richmond, Ca. We are proud to be a sponsor of this event and look forward to hanging out with friends and appreciating some J-Tin! Registration closes April 20, so sign up fast, details can be found HERE. You can also follow the event updates on Facebook and Instagram.

 

 

It’s 90’s Monday at Z Car Garage! We had two R32 Skylines in from our friend Sean at IVI. The (AH3) Pearl Red Metallic GTR came in for stainless brake lines, timing adjustment and alignment. Kurt’s (KH2) Grey GTR will be getting wheels(though we dig the R33 setup!), Stoptech BBK, Haltech and more ZCG R32-specific upgrades.

 

The shop 300zx, representing our favorite 90’s-era Japanese sports car also got a set of Volk GT-C wheels:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Don T is the long time owner of this 1992 Nissan 300zx Twin Turbo finished in one of our favorite Z32 shades, Sapphire Blue:

 

Don felt the need to find a Z car enthusiast shop and last summer he visited Z Car Garage for routine maintenance on this 34k original-mile beauty. We offered our inspection services because he’s a new customer. During the inspection we fixed his coolant temp sensor, allowing the gauge to show correct coolant temperature.

 

We performed a full 60k service including timing belt replacement. Whenever we do the timing belt service, everything proximal to this is taken care of so you don’t need to come back for another 60k miles.

 

Timing belt service parts and front end coming off:

   

Old vs new timing belt:

  

The factory T/C rod is a sore spot on the Z32. Silicon gel that is inside the bushing leaks out after the T/C develop cracks.

 

To give the Z a precise steering feel we only use SPL T/C rods. We also replaced the rack bushings and performed a full alignment:

 

The one thing that totally sets this whole car off (besides the pristine status and Sapphire paint) is one of my favorite wheels of all time, those Manaray Sport MS-6s.

 

These wheels are 90’s rad with their 3-piece construction, 6 spokes and exposed hardware. They look so good rolling in 17×8/9 sizes. Let’s not forget those super intense locking center caps!

  

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. Thanks for bringing your 300 to us Don!

 

To our dear Zcarblog readers, our last few posts have been throwbacks as we catch up on customer projects. Please be patient we want to share your stories with our followers. We appreciate any/all feedback and suggestions, let Z Car Garage be your shop! Long Live The Z!