One of the real joys this holiday season is the opportunity to say thank you and wish you the very best for the new year. From all of us at Z Car Garage we thank our friends, family and customers again for another exciting and productive year! Enjoy our 2020 recap and upcoming projects. Please note our holiday closure below:
ZCG will be closed from 12/23/20 and we will re-open for business on 1/5/21.
Before we take a look back at highlights from 2020, here several exciting customer projects coming along at the shop:
We also upgraded the interior with leather Recaro seats and sound deadening. Stay tuned for a full report!
Jim’s 1971 Datsun 240z returned for a Rebello 3.2L with triple-Mikuni carbs on a Harada intake and CD009a 6-speed transmission:
Dirk’s 1973 Datsun 240z is back for a 3.0L engine and tuning, we can’t wait to show you the dyno results!
This historically significant 1970 Datsun 240z was built by a team of Nissan employees to compete at Bonneville in the F/GT class. In 1976 their efforts resulted in a new land speed record of 166.037 mph, which stood unbroken until 1985. This Z resided in the Nissan Museum and is now in the care of Randy Jaffe. Lots of neat details the Z 432R seats and G-nose. More to come! Big thanks to Randy and Nissan for letting us bring this Z back to life.
One of many Z32s we are working on, Steve’s will get a full report soon:
Highlights from 2020
Even though 2020 was crazy year for all of us we still managed to have fun on and off the track. The shop made some really great progress as well.
Enjoy these highlights from 2020 and Z you in the New Year!
We love to see our products being installed and enjoyed on customer cars. Dustin is running our Z Car Garage CV Axles in his 1972 Datsun 510 4-door. This Dime is powered by a Nissan KA24DE/5-speed and wears a sweet set of NOS 15×7 Longchamp XR-4 wheels:
Z Car Garage is proud to offer a CV axle conversion kit for your Datsun S30 and 510. We have sold over 100 sets of axles globally, with customers installing and enjoying them on everything from street cars to full-blown IMSA racers. These CV axles will help transmit power to the ground and ensure smoother operation compared to your standard half shafts.
For years we have used aftermarket CV axles that utilize an aluminum adapter prone to loosening up over time. Despite efforts to keep things tight (Loctite, hardware changes) we had to keep an eye on them. We developed a better solution that eliminates the need for aluminum adapters and remains 100% bolt-in like a factory half-shaft.
Dustin is running a Cusco LSD (Subaru STi R180) with Toyo R888 tires and worried about excessive wear on the stock half shafts, having seen multiple sets of other CV shafts come apart. He heard about our CV Axles from fellow Datsun enthusiast/racer Glenn C and ordered a set from Rob. Dustin installed the CV Axles himself on his 1972 Datsun 510 and reports that it went smoothly:
“The installation was very simple and easy to understand. I really like that they came with Red Loctite.”
We were stoked to hear Dustin report the improvement over his standard half shafts:
“The Cusco LSD is very noisy but seems to have gotten smoother and a bit quieter with the new axles. I doubt I will ever run into any issues breaking one with a KA24. I would highly recommend them as the only CV option.”
Here is Dustin’s 510 in action, enjoying the new ZCG CV Axles:
We’ve known Dustin and Courtney for many years. Hagerty produced a video featuring the local Bay Area Datsun couple you can see it HERE.
The couple got married in 2018 and Z Car Garage prepared Courtney’s 240z in time for their special day. Learn more about ZCG’s work on Courtney’s 240z HERE. Keep Enjoying The Ride, you two!
They are also the founders of Fuel Supply Co in Fremont, CA. We had a great time at their inaugural gathering earlier this year. Thank you both Courtney and Dustin for your continued support and passion for Datsuns!
All of these parts were developed on Mrs. Butters to offer our clients a balanced performance package. Enjoy the article with photos and interview with Rob Fuller by photographer Naveed Yousufzai HERE.
Z Car Garage is sad to hear the passing of Johnnie (Ueda) Gable. A prominent figure in Nissan/Datsun heritage, Johnnie touched the hearts of many with her enthusiasm and dedication to preserving our favorite sports car.
Rob Fuller remembers Johnnie:
“Since coming to CA in the 90’s I had seen and spoken to Johnnie many times. She always had amazing stories including ones celebrating the magical times she had with Mr. K. I would say in the Datsun Legend category, she was definitely The First Lady. She was so full of energy you would never know she’d been around for so many years, like the cars we celebrate she was timeless. I really enjoyed spending time with her. As life goes on we are going to lose the people that inspired us and shared our passions. Thank you Johnnie Gable for your passion, inspiration and for being Mr. K’s right-hand lady. I hope you two are somewhere Enjoying The Ride.”
Johnnie’s energy was contagious, and we were lucky to enjoy her conversations. Here she is being interviewed at the Japanese Classic Car show in 2019:
Johnnie’s career with Nissan began in the 60’s at their headquarters in Gardena, CA. There she was offered a position as secretary to Yutaka Katayama, affectionately known as “Mr. K” and father of the Z car. Among her many achievements Johnnie helped bring the Datsun label to the US and launch the Datsun Heritage Museum. We will always admire her support for Nissan/Datsun events like ZCCA (ZCON) convention and local events. At the 2012 ZCON event, Johnnie was presented with the Lifetime Achievement Award:
Photo: Joseph Keawkalaya
We remember the 2002 Z’s By The Bay Show held in Fremont, CA. Mr. K was to be in attendance and before the show started, Johnnie and a group of enthusiasts all enjoyed driving from San Diego up to Northern California along the coast. Johnnie piloted a 350z, shown with Mr. Yuykawa. (Right) Johnnie can be seen (as always) besides Mr. K’s at the show:
Our hearts go out to her son Kenny, his family and all Nissan/Datsun enthusiasts lucky to have been blessed by Johnnie’s presence. Mr. K said it best, “Love cars. Love people. Love life.”
We met Ken W last summer when he stopped by Z Car Garage to meet Rob and have his S30 inspected. Our Z Car Garage Big-Brakes and Z Car Garage CV Axles along with upgraded suspension parts and a Rebello 3L engine transformed his 1971 240Z into a fantastic sports car.
The Right Z
Before we dive in to the upgrades let’s take a look at how Ken got into Z cars and finally found the right one…
“When I was a junior in High School, the cool kids were driving Mustangs, Camaros, and ‘Cudas. Always different, my imagination was captured by the ’71 Datsun 240z. Being a Kansas farm boy on the lower end of the economic scale, had to settle for a ’64 Ford Fairlane 500 4-door with the 269 V-8. Knew that someday I’d own a 240z. Spent 2018 researching the 240z market. In January 2019, bought a red ’72 240z with Wilwood brakes, QA1 coil-over suspension, 17” wheels. A little rough but convinced me that owning a 240z as a daily driver, was going to make me happy.”
We inspected Ken’s red ’72 240z and found many problems. Rob suggested finding a chassis in better shape to make his own. After our evaluation Ken consulted with fellow S30 owner/racer Glenn C to affirm that ZCG was the right place to be. Ken was convinced that the S30 is a great rally car and began searching again, finding this green ’71 on Craigslist, near Sacramento.
“Rob gave this car his approval as a basis for the rally car that I wanted to build. ZCG is so popular that we weren’t able to get it in for the chassis upgrades before the Mother Lode 400 rally in June 2019 . The car was fine, but only fine. Yes, the brakes and suspension worked and the motor was dependable, but with the enthusiastic style of rally driving, showed they really weren’t up to the task.”
ZCG Big-Brakes and CV Axles
The upgrade process began, giving Ken the ability to brake on a dime, perform well and daily drive. We handed him the keys to “Mrs. Butters”, our 1971 Series 1 240z shop demo car and he was sold on our Z Car Garage Big-Brakes (for small wheels) and Z Car Garage CV Axles! Butters has a way of doing this to our customers 🙂
As fellow S30 owner/racer Glenn C mentioned in his review, on top of braking performance, pedal feel is extremely important and our Big-Brakes deliver. This is a direct result of working with Stoptech to create a totally bolt-in solution requiring no M/C change or additional proportioning valve/adjustments. All fitting behind a 15″ Watanabe or Panasport wheel and retaining factory emergency brake lever! A few details below:
Calipers: Stoptech ST42 4-piston front & rear race calipers (Alum 6061 mil-spec Type III anodized)
Rotors: 280mm x 20.6 with Alum 7075 hats
Pads: Stoptech 309 sport street pads
Blog posts documenting all of our customers running the ZCG Big-Brakes can be found HERE.
A few closer detail shots of the calipers, rotors and hardware:
We removed Ken’s brakes and installed our ZCG Big-Brake kit. The Z also received Tokico 5-way struts with Eibach springs and suspension parts from Techno Toy Tuning. New parts included adjustable T/C rods, rear control arms, new bushings, rack bushings, steering coupler, factory Nissan ball joints, new wheel bearings and more. We really appreciate Gabriel and his staff. They make some of the best suspension parts out there for Z cars.
ZCG Big-brakes up front:
T3 T/C rods and new brake master cylinder/booster:
Suspension Techniques sway bars installed front and rear:
At the rear, the factory drum brakes were replaced with our ZCG Big-Brakes. Factory handbrake functionality retained! Ken was pleased with the brakes:
“I really the brakes. Having experienced stock brakes and the Wilwood’s (Stage 4 front and rear), was really interested to discover if the ZCG Big Brake kit was all that I’d heard about. I’m here to say that the Big Brake kit exceeded all expectations. Under hard braking, feels like I’ve just driven into a huge pool of thick super glue or that someone immediately behind me has just switched on a huge electromagnet. Undeniably shorter braking distances. Huge confidence when diving deep into corners.”
Our Z Car Garage CV Axles help transmit power to the ground and ensure smoother operation compared to your standard half shafts. Ken’s Z received set #298. We have over 100 CV axle kits on customer cars and we are stoked with all of the positive feedback.
Stock half shafts and control arms (L):
Before/After suspension upgrades. Not shown is the ZCG exhaust system using 2.5″ piping to a stainless resonator and Magnaflow muffler with slash-cut tip:
Great feedback again from Ken regarding the suspension upgrades:
“In August 2019 it went into ZCG shop for the upgrades. Let’s talk about the suspension first. My red ’72 had QA1 coil-overs and it wasn’t particularly balanced or optimized. Too soft in front, too harsh in back, little squirrely under brake or gas. By comparison the ZCG components showed care in selection, thought in design and clear goals in creation of a balanced package. The car is impressive under braking, squatting uniformly and smoothly. Under hard acceleration, it tracks straight. The CV axles are works of art and well suited to handle the Rebello motor to come.”
More Power
With braking and suspension sorted all Ken needed was power to match. Without going too wild we opted for a Rebello 3L, retaining SU induction. The 3L still leaves room for aggressive cam/Mikuni induction upgrades should he feel the need. A few pictures of the fresh motor, more in the gallery below:
Ken enjoys tinkering with vintage motorcycles and rallying. While running the Snowball Rally the car did really well and he had a great time but unfortunately, it was hit by a motorist (not part of the rally). We called upon our man William from William’s Auto Body to fix everything and re-spray.
While the motor was out, we cleaned up the engine bay. Everything came out, the bay was painted, new seals around all hoses going through the firewall. The engine got an MSA 6 to 1 header, all intake/exhaust gaskets, MSD6Al box with tach adapter, Koyo race radiator, zinc’d hardware and new alternator/starter. We ensured that he would be able to rally wherever and whenever.
Backing the 3L is a 5-speed with JWT aluminum flywheel and Exedy clutch:
Rob dyno-tuned the Z with the stock L24 (109hp/128tq) and the 3L, now making 199hp/209tq to the wheels:
Enjoy the L-Series music!
Panasport Wheels
What is the perfect companion for Ken’s Z, now that it has full suspension and wicked brakes and fresh paint? Panasport wheels! We replaced the old-school slotted wheels with 16×7 Panasports and Bridgestone’s killer S-007a tire in 225/50/16.
“The Wilwood Stage 4 front brakes required a spacer to move the generic Japanese front wheels out far enough to avoid fouling the calipers. This meant running 215/45/17 tires. A drawback to the 17” wheels is that the space-saving spare can’t exceed 16” in the spare tire well. I totally love the beautiful Panasport wheels! When I take the car to Z car meet-ups, everyone says “this car has been to ZCG, right?” The wheel and brake combo means I gained 10mm tire width and no spacers. We agreed that for rally purposes, I’d change the tires every 3 years, so Rob picked out some nice sticky ones.”
Rallye On!
Ken was smiling ear to ear and told us we built him a Z car he really enjoyed:
“The results are fabulous! My car is such a hoot to drive. Quick off the line, easy to spin the tires. Now I understand why Rob recommended the CV shafts. The car was awesome on the 2019 California Melee. Had so much fun driving the rally with my brother who flew in from Kansas. He drove it much slower than I did, so when I took my first shift, diving it deeper and deeper into the corners, accelerating harder and harder out of the corners, that I proposed establishing a safe word if he wanted me to ease off the fun.”
We have been checking in with Ken and he’s happily Enjoying The Ride. We even spotted his Z cars while cruising through the neighborhood.
“I’m so happy to have met Rob and provided him with a car that has ‘good bones’. Enjoyed working with ZCG. A key for me is that ZCG has been able to provide all the upgrades, in an integrated package. Didn’t want to use multiple shops and fight through finger pointing. Trust Rob and his crew, they’ve done these upgrades 100 times or more. They know what works and what doesn’t. Personally, I care more about the quality of work performed and the result, rather than shopping for the lowest price.”
Thank you Ken for allowing us to help you achieve your vision of the ultimate Z car. We loved working with you. Long Live The Z!
