Irl N. heard about Z Car Garage from our friends at Stillen. He purchased several parts and wanted them installed correctly on his 2017 Q50s Red Sport. We started with the Stillen cat-back exhaust system:

 

Stock Vs. Stillen:

  

Next, an AMS Heat Exchanger:

   

The suspension received SPC front/rear control arms, lowering springs and a rear sway bar:

  

Braking improvements included new rotors (from Irl) and we provided the Stoptech 309 pads that we love:

   

With just a few upgrades Irl’s Q50 really boogies now!

 

We have worked on the new Q’s before and now they are beginning to come through our doors often–look for more VR30DDTT goodness on the blog!

 

Dan J is the owner of this gorgeous 2015 GT-R finished in Regal Red paint with Ivory interior. In June ’15 he visited Z Car Garage for more power via the AMS Alpha 7 package making 577hp/562tq to the wheels.

  

Dan has been enjoying the newfound power on the street and racetrack. Speaking of the racetrack, Rob was at Laguna Seca recently with a few other customers and spotted Dan who was also tracking his car. Rob noticed that the GT-R’s front tires were worn and he had braking trouble. Immediately following the track day Dan reached out to us and discussed upgrading the brakes and suspension to reign in all that new power.

 
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Carlos S visited Z Car Garage to supercharge his 2014 Nismo 370z.  At his request, we installed a Stillen supercharger kit with the larger intercooler (frozenboost) and full PLX Devices gauge package. After driving the Z for some time Carlos came back yearning for more power and inquired about a new air-to-air intercooler setup that was all the rage on the forums at the time. Keeping forced-induction limits and CARB status in mind with the 370z we started discussing the prospect of GT-Rs.

 

Within days Carlos was actively searching for R35s. After our buddy Lou S came down to the shop and demo’d his black 2014 GT-R Track Edition…Carlos knew he had to have one and became the owner of a 2015 R35 in Vibrant Red. In addition to being a cool dude Carlos also has a very supportive girlfriend, Amy, and two French bulldogs. And we all know that frenchies are the bee’s knees 🙂

 

Carlos couldn’t wait to start modifying the car and to keep him happy we installed a Boost Logic cat-back exhaust system and 90mm Quadzilla mid-pipe:

 
Our plan for more power included a complete flex-fuel setup for E85 tuning. Shown below are 1300cc Injector Dynamics injectors, DW300 drop-in fuel pumps,  SpecialtyZ 3″ Intakes,  SpecialtyZ Flex-Fuel Set up and AMS Downpipes

 

When increasing boost levels it is wise to upgrade the factory, non-adjustable by-pass or blow-off valve (BOV). Here we used new, adjustable BOVs from Turbosmart:

 

Before/after shots of the new intakes and BOVs:

  

 

Installing the SpecialtyZ Flex-Fuel sensor kit. This key component monitors the ethanol content of fuel for running different octane gas/ethanol blends. Also shown are the ID 1300cc injectors and dual DW300 fuel pumps:

 

Using EcuTek software and help from our good friend Sebastian at SpecialtyZ we tuned the GT-R on 91 octane and ethanol/E85.  On 91 octane we saw gains of 50hp and 62tq above stock for a total of 542hp/507tq at the wheels:

On E85, the GT-R made 632hp/612tq to the wheels. This is a significant increase of 94hp/105tq over the 91 octane tune and a whopping 144hp/167tq at the wheels over stock output!

 

Carlos is extremely happy with his 600whp Nissan GT-R and he has already ordered a Stage 2 kit from Spray Racing with upgraded turbos…to be continued but for now Enjoy The Ride!

 

 

Dan J is the owner of this gorgeous 2015 GT-R. The numbers are impressive: Zero to 60 mph in under three seconds; a top speed of 196 mph; 545 horsepower courtesy of a hand-built 3.8-liter twin-turbocharged V6 assembled in a clean room so high-tech that those fleeing scientists on the silver screen would kill to have one. This beast has also been finished in premium Regal Red paint embedded with 24-karat gold flakes! We think it is mesmerizing under varying light conditions:

 

Combined with an Ivory interior this R35 exudes a level of refinement and luxury not typically seen on earlier models:

 

Sidenote: I met Dan in December ’14 while helping his neighbor with a Datsun Roadster. Dan kindly let me park the 510 next his GT-R and I might have mentioned how we love them at ZCG 🙂

 

So what does one do with such a beautiful sportscar? Add more power, of course! Dan came to us for a full AMS Alpha 7 package installation.

 

The package includes:

• ALPHA front mount intercooler
• COBB big SF intake pipe
• Alpha 90mm Mid-pipe
• Alpha 90mm Downpipes
• HKS Legamax Exhaust System
• Injector Dynamics 1000CC Injectors
• Cobb AccessPORT V3

Let’s start with the exhaust and a closer look at the new mid-pipes and down pipes:

 

OEM vs Alpha downpipes:

 

Mid-pipe:

 

Completing the system is the HKS Legamax exhaust. Fresh from the box, compared to the OEM system:

 

Great, OEM-like fit with factory underbody Aero:

 

Looks fantastic here and sounds even better!

 

Underhood, better breathing is achieved through larger intakes and K&N air filters. Stealth black tubing is nice touch:

 

Rounding out intake mods is a larger Alpha front mount intercooler. It boasts 75% more internal flow area over stock and direct bolt-in/no cutting fitment! It doesn’t hurt to have the “Alpha” logo peeking through the front bumper too:

 

Fueling demands are met by larger 1000cc injectors:

 

How do all these mods add up to increase power? To find out we strapped the red beauty to the dyno:

 

Utilizing the CobbAccessPORT V3 for tuning we saw peak gains of 80hp/86tq for a total of 577hp/562tq to the wheels. The dyno plot reveals tremendous gains from 2500rpm to redline. For example at 4000rpm the GT-R is now making 560tq vs 460tq stock!

 

Dan’s GT-R was already blindingly quick from the factory and now it has even more power to enjoy while maintaining its Regal composure. Thank you for bringing your R35 to Z Car Garage! More pictures to enjoy in the gallery below.

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The 2012 Nissan GT-R is an impressive machine leaving little to be desired for most mere mortals…well everyone except Walt P. You might remember Walt’s new, brilliant blue beast that he picked up earlier this year. After driving the GT-R on the track at Laguna Seca and enjoying the twisty backroads of the Bay Area Walt is now ready to add more power.
Before ZCG begins upgrades a baseline dyno run was acquired. Rob enlisted the help of Christian at 034 Motorsport and convinced him to let a Nissan run on their all-wheel-drive dyno 🙂

496hp/469tq at the wheels! Remember, Nissan rates the ’12 at 530hp/448tq at the flywheel. With a 15% drivetrain loss that puts Walt’s GT-R at 570hp! Nissan underrated it just a smidge. If you are Walt, 570hp just doesn’t cut it so several choice upgrades from AMS with their Alpha 6 package should bring 1/4 mile times into the 10’s. Will Walt be satisfied then? Stay tuned for install pics, videos and dynos!

PS Did I mention that the GT-R is an incredible car? Check out Motor Trend’s current issue where they test 11 supercars in search of the Best Driver’s Car, see article HERE