Our Z Car Garage Big Brakes have been winning over Z-car enthusiasts locally and globally. Jason purchased a set for his 1974 Datsun 260Z and performed the installation himself. Before we go into his Big-Brake experience let’s hear his Z-story…

 

JASON: “I first heard about Z Car Garage by following Larry Chen’s 240z build on his YouTube Channel. I saw his various interviews with Rob Fuller and was really impressed with his knowledge and passion for the Datsun 510 and s30 chassis. Quickly, I started researching more about the pain points of the s30’s, and noted the lack of support from many other companies in the area of suspension and braking locally. The kits available were Wilwood, Endless, Star Road, among others. No complete kits that were torture tested and raced like what Z Car Garage was doing with their ZCG CV Axles , Brake Kits and other components they were selling. Research and development are key to me, and I was thrilled to see ZCG taking this on themselves. In addition, Rob is a real human being who’s on top of answering questions via email and in person at Z car events. That’s a HUGE deal to me, and it’s so rare to meet someone that of course is just as passionate about his cars as the enthusiasts building them.”

 

“My 1974 Datsun 260z is an Early model s30. When I purchased it, a few years ago I quickly removed the stock seats and reupholstered Recaro LX vintage seats in Black. I loved the netted headrest, and the clean recaro stitching at the center of the seat. I also removed the Greddy Oni wheel that was originally in the car and swapped it out with a new old stock Nardi Nismo Deep steering wheel with a Black and Gold finish. I went through the interior and purchased a NOS Datsun center console, and replaced the stock door cards with Skillard flat cards with leather pull straps.”

 

“In addition to the door cards, I added Skillard powder coated heel plates. The car came with BC adjustable coil-overs and Swift Springs which I will be updating in the near future. The BC Coilovers are perfectly fine for the street applications I’m using the car for currently. My suspension underneath the car is the full T3 catalog including the power cradle, control arms, bushings, and even their steering elements. It’s finally sorted, and I really enjoy driving the car the way it currently feels.”

 

“The car is equipped with a L28, ZX 5 Speed transmission, and 44pHH Mikuni triple carbs built by Taka at Kyusha House. The header and exhaust system are Fujitsubo Legalis R. The engine has since been updated in every way from the ignition system, oil pump, spark plug cables, and brake new seals and belt. The oil pan was replaced with a Moroso baffled racing pan with higher oil capacity.” 

  

“I have two sets of wheels and tires for the car. One set is Volk Racing TE37v custom gold 15×9 at 0 offset on Toyo Proxes R888 205/50/15, and the other set is Work Racing Equip 03 15×8.5 at -3 offset custom bronzed lip, and Gold Center on Falken Azenis RT660 205/50/15. The front bumper is a carbon MSA, and the rear tail light bezels are carbon fiber made by Vintage Carbon. The wing is a Carbon Fiber BRE spoiler.”

 

You can see Jason’s Z in action in the video below:

 

Z Car Garage Big-Brakes

  

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.

  

Big-Brake Kits Available For DIY Install!

Z Car Garage is proud to offer our Big-Brake Kit to Z-Car owners that want to perform the installation themselves. We can ship worldwide and each kit contains everything needed with a comprehensive (40-page) installation guide. Blog posts documenting all of our customers running the ZCG Big-Brakes can be found HERE. Enjoy these pictures of Jason’s beautiful S30 and his ZCG Big-Brake installation:

 

Our ZCG Big-Brake kit ships with everything needed to install and retains the factory parking brake function. Jason successfully installed the BBK on his Z with PitstopMotorTuning, and they look great behind both the Work Equip 03 and Volk TE37 wheels:

    

Beyond ease of installation and quality components, our Big-Brakes perform by offering superb pedal feel…everyone that drives our demo Z confirms! 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. Jason shares his feedback after replacing his existing Wilwood brakes with the ZCG BBK:

JASON: “The Stoptech ZCG Big-Brakes are really a solid kit. The lead time was pretty rough, but again Rob reassured me every month over the course of a year of waiting that it would be worth it. He was right! These brakes do not disappoint. Once the kit was completely bedded and broken in, I quickly put the brakes to the test on Angeles Crest highway here in Los Angeles. I know this road well, and that’s where I usually push the car at a safe limit, and see where the pain points lie. The ZCG brakes are worth every penny. They are precise, they are confidence inspiring, and also feel great under late braking situations. I had a blast carving around the canyon knowing my brakes would safely hold up. My next test would be to get a couple of track days on them, and see how they hold up under extreme conditions and multiple sessions.”

 
What’s in store for Jason’s Z?

“The goal for the 260z is to refine my current setup. The paint is a bit rough since it was a garage paint job, and I would love to repaint the whole car including the interior. At the moment, I’m building a high compression 3.1L stroker motor with Jenvey 50mm ITB being managed by a Haltech Elite 750 stand alone ECU. My goals long term are for big power, but with street car reliability. I would love to confidently do a track day, but also be comfortable driving my wife to car shows, and even to grab a cup of coffee together. The engine has a custom designed valve cover designed by myself, and commissioned to be created by BSpeed in New Zealand. Big updates to come in the new year!”

 

Thanks for your support Jason we love that you are Enjoying The Ride and Long Live The Z! More photos in the gallery below

The Last Stop in Braking for your Z

 

Z Car Garage Big Brakes are one of the best systems available for your S30 Z Car with over 200 kits sold worldwide and unanimous positive feedback. See our ZCG Big-Brakes on client cars HERE and enjoy the photos below:

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We love to see owners installing our Z Car Garage CV Axles on their Datsuns. Chris M recently performed the installation himself on his 1970 240Z. You may have seen this Safari Gold Series 1 beauty at events in the Atlanta area or online features. We are proud to be part of it!

 

Our Z Car Garage CV Axles help transmit power to the ground and ensure smoother operation compared to your standard half shafts. We have over 130 CV axle kits on customer cars and we are stoked with all of the positive feedback.

  

Chris has CV axle set #0353 and we are happy to report that he installed them himself with ease:

“Install was a breeze, old axles come out, these new ones go right in in their place. Couldn’t ask for an easier installation.”

 

He sent us a few pictures of the unboxing and before/after replacing his old half-shafts. Nice work Chris!

 

Simple and Satisfying

 

Chris’ Z is not a fully-restored example. Aside from the paint he’s gone through the entire car making it an ultra-clean driver that is still show-worthy. The stance is achieved through full air-suspension. It was one of the first S30s to be on airbags, gracefully tucking those gorgeous 15×9 Work Equip 01s:

 

The engine remains an L-series with triple-Weber 45DCOE’s and 10:25:1 CR ported E31 head on a stock 280Z bottom end. We do love his choice of Fujitsubo Legalis exhaust.

 

Listen to it sing:

Chris’ Z and the great story behind it has been told many times we encourage you to read his Petrolicious and Speedhunters features.

 

Datsun/Enthusiast

 

Chris loves his Nissan/Datsuns but also enjoys other marques as an enthusiast. Check out his R32 Skyline GT-R, 280Z (bought by his uncle brand new in 1978, and has been in the family since) and R30 Skyline 4-door!

 

We’ve been following Chris on Instagram for years and met him at SEMA and when he visited Rob at our shop. Stoked to see a fellow Georgian and be a part of his Z car journey. Thank you Chris for your support and we are happy to see you Enjoying The Ride (and CV axles)! Enjoy the photo gallery below

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Our ZCG Big Brakes have been winning Z-car enthusiasts locally and across the US. In April we were stoked to hear from our friends at JDM Legends installing the brake kit on their customer’s 280z project:

   

Big-Brake Kits Available For DIY Install!

Z Car Garage is proud to offer the Big-Brake Kit to Z-Car owners that want to perform the installation themselves. We can ship worldwide and each kit contains everything needed with a comprehensive installation guide.  Blog posts documenting all of our customers running the ZCG Big-Brakes can be found HERE.  Our first customer to receive and install the BBK was Duffy M, owner of this 1971 Series 1 S30 in Safari Gold.

 

Duffy expressed interest in our BBK and helped us validate its installation for future customers. He was impressed with the kit from the beginning:

“I am blown away by the quality and engineering that went into this Z Car Garage BBK (big brake kit). The kit was designed by Stoptech engineers and ZCG from the ground up for the Z. I am sort of a guinea pig to see if consumers can install this kit. They have an amazing detailed 40 page instructions, which in the car world is rare. I’m stoked to get them installed. Kit comes with everything needed to install and retains stock parking brake and MC. Fits 15×8 wheels as well! So light!”

 

If you follow Duffy on his Instagram page or epic build-thread on Classic Z Car Forum its clear that his attention to detail is impressive. He got the BBK installed on his Z, complete with functioning parking brake:

 

Front and rear:

 

Easy fitment behind his 15×8 Watanabe wheels:

 

Beyond ease of installation and quality components, our Big-Brakes perform by offering superb pedal feel…everyone that drives our demo Z confirms! Duffy was very happy as well with great feedback:

“They work amazing.  Hands down the best mod I have done in a while.  Modern/race feel. So the BBK kit by Z Car Garage is literally amazing. Honestly it’s the best stopping power of any car I have ever driven. Pedal feel is great. Clears everything nicely. Wants to throw me through the window. I’m not an expert, but I think the bias feels amazing.”

 

Remember how we said Duffy has an impressive attention to detail? Check out his Z, from engine bay…

 

…to chassis/suspension:

   

Duffy is also running a V2 Fujitsubo exhaust system, OS Giken LSD and many other goodies!

 

We also hooked Duffy up with an OS Giken clutch that he installed with a breeze, backed by a KA24 transmission:

   

We enjoyed working with you Duffy and we are very proud to have our Big-Brakes on your Z!

 

Stay tuned for more customer installations of our ZCG Big-Brakes! Check out our ZCG CV axles HERE

Long Live The Z!

  

“Love cars. Love people. Love life”…this motto was immortalized by Nissan legend Mr. K, and embodied perfectly by car enthusiast Ben Y with his 1974 Datsun 260z. We met Ben in Fall of 2016 when he visited Z Car Garage for a full mechanical restoration and it’s been a joy helping him realize his sportscar dream. Read on to learn about the Z’s history and how our restoration efforts culminate with a memorable father-son roadtrip.

 

A Family Affair

Ben has owned this S30 for nearly eighteen years. The car really is a family affair beginning with his father:

 

“I was showing it a lot as a college student and won best stock 260Z at the MSA nationals in 2002. The picture below (left) of me and my dad with Matsui-San was a great time in my Z life. I was learning so much and he was and still is one of my hero’s. The car he is pictured in is Katsuaro-San’s (Kats) 1970 240z. On the right,  I mounted a free set of stock steelies/hubcaps because I thought the factory fresh look was what I was going for. I waited until I found the right set of Watanabe’s.”

 

“In 2005 I took my 260Z to a show in Fremont at Ohlone college where I saw Rob with his green 240z complete with red Porsche brakes, RB25, and the photo of his “Z” tooth.  His car was unforgettable and with me pursuing a career in dentistry I would never forget his tooth.”

 

Ben has written a blog dedicated to his Datsun addiction HERE. His ultimate goal with the 260z is to complete a coast-to-coast trek of the United States for the 50th anniversary of the Z car in 2020 with his family.

Let’s move on to the restoration…

Building the Dream

  

Ben’s vision of his perfect Z car comes from his admiration of period-style Japanese tuning:

“My concept is to create a 260Z as if it was owned in the 1970’s in Japan by someone who worked at the Datsun Sports Corner. When looking at the car’s engine-bay, interior, and exterior it is neither original nor modified.  I am open to making modifications to improve the car’s drivability, but outside of the Datsun Competition parts the changes will need to be internal.”

We performed a full inspection on the Z and it had a long list of needs. Ben reported the car lacked power and we found cylinders ‘3’ and ‘5’ in bad shape, necessitating a rebuild. The engine was removed while a 3.0L Rebello was built.

 

We wanted to build the car exactly to his specification and Ben decided to not leave a single rock unturned with engine, cooling system, exhaust, suspension and braking refurbishment. We would also install his prized Datsun Competition racing seat.

Engine Bay

With the tired engine removed we began the clean-up process.  Many more pictures of the teardown and assembly in the gallery:

  

All new hydraulic lines replaced corroded parts:

  

In keeping with Ben’s desire to have a factory-looking appearance, the new 3.0L engine retained SU carbs, built by Z Therapy. A JWT Aluminum flywheel and HD clutch back the powerplant:

    

Ben’s excellent choice of exhaust: the Fujitsubo Legalis R twin-pipe system:

 

From header to twin tail-pipe we love the craftsmanship, finish, sound and performance this setup offers.

  

We added our own touches like a factory-like silver finish at the rear and O2 bungs for Wideband tuning in-house:

   

Small details in the engine bay make a huge difference:  powdercoated air filter assembly with reproduced OEM decals throughout,  proper plating, wire clips for hoses, ZCG mods to intake/exhaust manifolds and a stock radiator updated to 4-core:

 

The completed engine bay:

 

Chassis

As the engine bay started to come together we realized the chassis needed to match the rest of the car. The drivers’s side inner fender had enough rust to compromise the sway bar mount. We cut it out, built a new brace for the sway bar mount and welded in a replacement panel.  All inner fenders were cleaned/undercoated.

 

The entire fuel system was gone through including all recovery hoses/lines, fuel sender and boiling out the gas tank:

  

The Z received entire front and rear suspension refurbishment with full coil-over suspension from Techno Toy Tuning. New parts included adjustable T/C rods, rear control arms, new bushings, rack bushings, steering coupler, ball joints and more. All parts were powdercoated:

 

Steering rack before/after and the T3 suspension going in. All nuts/bolts were bagged for zinc plating:

   

T3 f/r coil-overs and Suspension Techniques f/r sway bars:

  

The braking system was restored to factory spec to keep it vintage. Mild performance upgrades included Stoptech 309 pads with slotted front rotors and stainless steel braided brake lines.  All wheel bearings were replaced. Up front we replaced the front calipers with NOS units:

 

In the rear, stock suspension and old brakes vs new:

  

The drums were turned and new Nissan wheel cylinders/shoes installed:

   

The T3 coil-overs allow ride-height adjustment and Ben’s Z now sits much lower over those gorgeous Watanabe wheels with generous sidewalls:

“One of my hero’s had Watanabe’s on his car and that sealed the deal in terms of me eventually deciding on a wheelset.  My set’s dimensions are 14″ x 7.5jj (+1.5mm) for the rear and 14” x 7jj(+8mm) for the front, Type B. “

Stock suspension vs T3, more pics gallery!

 

We love it:

 

Datsun Competition

Ben’s appreciation for Datsun’s Competition-specific parts can be highlighted in the interior where he has an original rallye shift knob, steering wheel and for the tifecta: the competition seat. He even tracked down the matching headrest from a Bluebird.

   

He’s super passionate about the Comp seat, you can read more about it in his personal blog post HERE. We removed the factory seat, made a bracket to allow his comp seat to fit and installed it. It looks great with that un-cracked factory dash!

  

We paid attention to all of the little things that make a Z car fun to drive everyday. Finalizing door fitment and getting the vintage A/C unit working again was important:

“I want to drive it across the country. That is a big goal of mine, but really I just want to drive the car always.”

Since A/C had been on Ben’s mind, we fixed and made one of the lines, all mocked up to clear the Fujitsubo header. More details in the engine bay to satisfy’s Ben’s penchant for the vintage look: we passed along our rare factory spark plug wires and OEM choke cable set.

 

  

Enjoying The Ride

With the mechanical restoration completed, Ben embarked on his originally planned road trip with his father.

“I got back last night from my trip with my Dad. We went a bit north of 1000 miles in three days in my Z Car Garage 260Z! The car is perfect. I really want to thank you for building such a glorious machine. It does everything it should. Handles well, makes all the right sounds, is comfortable, and soaks up the miles. I took it up to an elevation of 7500′ without even a hiccup. My Dad drove a lot and he loved it too. He got it up to 100mph on the highway and I didn’t even know it the car was so smooth. He told me later.”

 

 

We were stoked for Ben. Seeing him drive the Z everywhere, including a visit to the epic 2018 RMMR where Datsun was the featured marque. Being on the road is really what he loves and the S30 is a scalpel.

 

Love for the Z, with Family

Ben’s family is an integral part of his Z passion. He even had these T-shirts made for his crew. Rob has one as well 🙂