We had fun participating in the inaugural Spring Classic event held on May 19-21 at Mazda Laguna Seca Raceway. The weekend was filled with vintage races celebrating cars from the 70s, 80s, 90s and the Datsun/Nissan presence was impressive!

Racing the Hakosuka

Our duty was race support for Driver/Owner Alex McDowell and his 1971 Nissan Skyline.  This Hakosuka was originally built and raced by Jim Froula who successfully raced it at the famous ROLEX Motorsports Reunion in 2014 and 2015:

  

This was our first time running the Hako at a road course, and a first time for Alex at the helm. One of the goals of this event was to familiarize ourselves with this machine. Alex, however, is familiar with the Laguna Seca road course having run Spec Miata and his own R32 Skyline GT-R on several occasions:

 

The Hako had fueling issues early on but with some sorting we finished the final race on Sunday, an accomplishment we are proud of.

 

Here is a short video showing the sights and sounds of the Hako on the racetrack, turn the volume up and enjoy!

 

Datsuns Galore in Trans-Am 2.5 liter

My favorite part of the Spring Classic was its “mini” Rolex event-like feel.  All the excitement of wheel-to-wheel battles with your favorite vintage race cars…in a relaxed atmosphere without the huge crowds. One of the most anticipated and action-packed races was the 2.5 Trans Am Liter group including almost a dozen Datsun 510s!

 

 

Our friends Jim Froula, Dave Stone, Steve Link and Troy Ermish put on a show in their B-sedan Datsun 510s. Heated battles can be seen in the nice video below assembled by Steve and Mary Walker:

 

Troy in his Blue/Black (38) 510 won both Trans-Am 2.5 Liter races on Sunday, dueling with a 911 and eventually passing him for the win.

  

Troy is an amazing guy and phenomenal driver.  See video below:

 

Adding to the Datsun Domination were several Z cars running alongside us in the 1967-1972 Formula B group.  John Wilkins 240z and Less Cannaday’s 280zx:

  

Glenn Chiou and his beautifully prepped 240z.

 

Trans-Am Muscle

I love muscle cars. The Trans Am group is my personal favorite and the Spring Classic did not disappoint. Despite the laid-back atmosphere these heart-pounding machines still got adrenaline flowing and ears blazing.

 

The line-up from pit lane for Trans-Am…HEAVEN!

 

Epic Paddock Finds

Another highlight of vintage racing events at Laguna Seca is finding eye candy in the paddock. Top of my list had to be this street-converted 1979 BMW M1 Procar, restored by Canepa. Look at those wheels!

 

 

Air-cooled magnificence. 356, 993-4S and race:

 

Radical race cars from wayback:

  

Lastly, how can we forget our very own Ms. ButterZ that Rob commuted in, followed by Alex’s Kenmeri Skyline. This is how you arrive and drive at ‘Seca!

 

Thank you for all the friends that stopped by to say hello and Michelle Schall for the track photos. We hope the Spring Classic becomes a yearly staple to keep historic racing fans happy!

Please visit our photo gallery for more pictures!

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Last week our friend Eric Straw visited us for tuning on his incredible RB26DETT-powered 1984 DR30 Skyline. You might remember Eric stopping by the shop last year on his way down to the JCCS show, where the DR30 put down 462hp/348tq on our dyno. Eric expressed interest in more power without sacrificing reliability:

“The only plans I have for it at this point is a pair of GT2860RS, new injectors and Haltech Platinum Pro Tuning by Z Car Garage in spring”

  

So spring arrived and Eric collected his parts including new GT2860RS turbos, Radium Engineering fuel supply, Injector Dynamics ID1050x injectors, and a Haltech Platinum Pro from ZCG. Rob began dyno tuning sessions and road data-logging.

 

Eric wanted the Skyline to run on Oregon’s readily available pump gas, and the result was 532hp/389tq to the wheels on 92 octane. Power delivery is very linear and Eric’s fastidious chassis-prep harnesses the power so well it is hard to believe you are riding in a 80’s Japanese car!  Here is video of the DR in action:

 

Our good friend Michael Spreadbury accompanied Eric on the roadtrip down from Oregon. Michael was instrumental in the DR build and is a well-known Datsun-guru building some killer SR20-powered roadsters from his shop at Spriso Motorsports. While the two were in town Rob shared the Nissan Patrol and had the boys put some miles on the DR30 after the fresh tune.

  

On Saturday 4/15 we had a great opportunity to take the DR30 to Laguna Seca and watch
Patrick Chio race in the USTCC and our customer Kevin B enjoy a track day. I had to join in on the fun with my roadster 🙂

 

The Skyline was impressive to watch on the freeway. From inside it feels like it is carved from billet with surprising balance between ride stiffness/NVH. Oh, and that RB26 is velvety-smooth with thrust for days. We think Eric is quite happy look at that RHD smile!

   

Laguna Seca was filled with plenty of eye candy. We even saw a few BAYZA Z32s/Z31s! Always fun to see owner’s solutions to the ever-changing sound restrictions:

 

Laguna Seca also makes a fantastic backdrop for photos.

 

 

At the end of the day we snuck into the garages to capture some “pretend” race-day shots:

 

The trip home was exhilarating. The DR30 has some glorious 80’s lines and those after-burner tail lights glow just right at dusk:

 

We had a rad time with you Michael and Eric!  Enjoy The Boost!

More pictures in the gallery below

More pics in the gallery
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Alix V comes from Salinas, CA and we first met him in 2014. With 4,641 miles on the clock he brought his 2012 370z in to have us correct several items from a dealership that tried to install a GTM Twin-Turbo kit.

 

We installed a Z1 25-row oil cooler, resolved the turbo kit installation issues and got it running well.  Over time the GTM exhaust manifold started to crack. With GTM going away we had to wait for the new company Gamma Motorsports to release a V2 of the manifold.

  

They changed the metallurgy with a new updated design as well and gave Alix a set for us to install. Although power levels stayed about the same (383whp/371tq), boost was no longer able to escape from an exhaust leak so we were able to make more area under the curve:

  

 

We also installed new Whiteline diff bushings:

  

Finally, the PLX Devices is a great product that is perfect for any owner with a forced induction setup on their 370z. We all know the clock is the clock.  No need to keep time when driving your Zed, just need the vitals:  coolant temp, air intake temp, and of course A/F ratio:

  

Enjoy The Boost, Alix!

 

 

 

 

 

 

We worked on Alex M’s 2004 Z33 ‘vert about 5 years ago and it is a familiar Z sporting Central20 bumpers, 5Zigen wheels and a host of bolt-ons. Alex travels around the world on business frequently so his car sat idle for a long time. With just 56k miles on the clock he brought it to ZCG for a thorough once-over.

 

A full 60k-mile service was performed, new battery installed, new thermostat and we sorted out all of the issues. First, the car was lowered without adjustable camber arms so we installed SPC f/r control arms and Whiteline diff bushings. A full alignment followed:

  

A few other issues were corrected like a failed oil pressure sending unit, passenger seat problem and blown stereo fuse. The Stoptech brakes were old/weathered since their install in 2004.  We upgraded them to yellow ST40/ST45 calipers, turned rotors and our favorite 309 pads:

  

The 5Zigen SMB wheels were re-refinished and wrapped in new Bridgestone S-04 tires:

 

The Z had many bolt-ons but had never been tuned so we put it on the dyno. Baseline numbers of 234hp/230tq to the wheels indicated it was low on power. Rob UPREV tuned picking up power everywhere in the rev range for a total of 254hp/257tq to the wheels, gains+20hp/27tq. This is a great example of having a proper tune to maximize gains from your bolt-ons whether it is DE, Rev-up, HR or 370. Alex is happy with the final product:

 

Nick K has been coming to Z Car Garage for several years. He makes the trek all the way from Sacramento and we’re proud to be the only shop that gets to work on his 2004 G35 Coupe. In 2012 we first met Nick, UPREV flashed his car and performed routine services.  He had daydreamed of one day doing a supercharger kit.

 

A year later Nick K’s engine was tired. With 209k miles on the clock he dropped the G35 off at ZCG in preparation for a fresh start and…boost!  We removed the ailing VQ35 engine and installed a complete VQ35 from a customer who wrecked his car with 50k miles on it:

 

With the engine out it was prudent to install a JWT HD clutch/aluminum flywheel. We did a Vortech tuner supercharger kit using our recipe of 1000cc injectors, GT MAF, and Aeromotive 340 fuel pump. To keep everything cool in Sactown heat we installed a 25-row oil cooler. In 2013, Nick was on his way with a new engine and boost, enjoying a nice 140hp/105tq bump in power for a total of 386hp/334tq to the wheels:
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