The 2023 Nissan Z arrived at Z Car Garage on Monday for Monterey Car Week. To start things off right we attended last night’s Motorlux event (formerly McCall’s Motorworks Revival) located at the Monterey Jet Center. Founded by Gordon McCall in 1991 and now run by Hagerty, this annual gala features a preview of “VIP” cars to be featured/auctioned during Car Week and an evening filled with dining among private jets and vintage cars.

 

The 2023 Z at Motorlux

Tuesday was early load-in and we enjoyed driving the Z down to Monterey from Z Car Garage. This is the Performance model in Two-Tone Ikazuchi Yellow TriCoat / Super Black and 9-speed automatic.

   Wednesday evening we arrived at the Monterey Jet Center to find the Z in a prime location near the main entrance and in good company. This venue historically features British, American and European cars so it was pleasant watching folks express interest in the Z.

 

On that J-Tin note, an even bigger surprise was seeing 80s and 90s cars proudly displayed nearby from the RADwood Car Show. It was great to see DrivingWhileAwesome (DWA) friends and Radwood founding members Lane Skelton and Art Cervantes. That is Art’s R33 Skyline GT-R!

 

Hangers Full of Cars

 

Motorlux had everything from supercars, concours-level restorations, resto mods, motorcycles and even helicopters. With the sun setting and hanger lights on we ventured inside to find some really cool machines.

 

People

 

The fun evening was also made memorable by seeing friends. (above) Peter and Gayle Brock, (Below, L) Lane Skelton and Ali Javidan, and (below, R) Chris Brewer of Amelia Island fame. We also saw David and Howard Swig!

 

My favorite display of the show was the Meyers Manx airplane. This enormous vessel was surround by those famous Meyers Manx buggies including the very first one:

 

Enjoy this video from the Motorlux event. We also captured the Z in action while driving down to Monterey:

 

Thank You!

  

Thanks to Gordon McCall and Hagerty for hosting Z Car Garage we had a wonderful time at Motorlux and we are happy to see the event carry on in grand fashion. We also want to thank Nissan for lending us the 2023 Z to enjoy during Monterey Car Week. While there were endless cars to feature from the evening, we will let the photos do the talking. Enjoy the gallery below, and stay tuned for a full report from the Rolex Reunion and Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance. If you see us or the new Z in Monterey or at Laguna Seca be sure to tag us #zcargarage!

LONG LIVE THE Z!

 

See more of our time with 2023 Nissan Z in June. Dyno results and video incoming for the Yellow Z!

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Hello and good morning Dear Zcarblog readers! We have many customer car and event reports to bring you this week, so let’s get to it.

If you are a fan of Japanese classic cars there’s a good chance that you have visited Japanese Nostalgic Car. JNC’s senior minicar correspondent and all-around J-Tin guru is Ricky Silverio and he is also a Z-car owner! Here is his pristine, 10k-mile 2003 350z Track model that we will be performing services on soon:

   

Enough about Z cars let’s talk about the other steed in his stable…Ricky recently visited Z Car Garage with his 2017 Mustang GT:

“Although the public knows the shop specializes in Nissans, I am aware of the broad range in specialty that ZCG possesses. What really stands out in the cars no one knows about is the DSE equipped Camaro that was done a few years ago as well as the myriad race and special projects. That’s what makes me know that ZCG is a misnomer as everything can be accommodated at the shop.”

 

 

The Premium-package equipped Mustang came to us with only 226 miles on the odometer and we happily obliged Ricky’s request to begin modifying it. Ride height and handling were addressed with an Eibach Pro-kit:

 

We discussed Ricky’s driving preferences and intentions (neutral, good turn in, street-use) when choosing alignment settings following the new spring installation. He was stoked:

“Although I chose mild springs I was surprised that brake dive was eliminated, turn in was very crisp and the car became more tossable. Firmness was slightly higher but the difference is huge which surprised me. But I must add the alignment specs really made the difference and ZCG delivered as always!”

 

What’s next for the Mustang? Since Ricky is comfortable with ZCG, on his next visit we will perform a baseline dyno and intake/exhaust mods. Ricky will have joined the ranks of a rather peculiar correlation between Z car owners and Mustangs demonstrated by our customers Jeff V, Kevin B and Scott L. Z/Mustang associations aside, Ricky is a car enthusiast with a love that started with Japanese cars and encompassed all:

“I love all cars and although I have been versed in Japanese cars since the day I was born, I dig everything! I used to have old minis and European Ford escorts and my uncle was into restoring old 60s American cars (Mustangs too) so that’s where my love for muscle cars were born.”

Here is Ricky’s ridiculously clean, 30k-mile NA Miata sitting on Enkei RPF1s and tasteful interior upgrades:

  

Ricky and I had some lively discussions about his latest Ford purchase and the new S550 Mustang’s design.

“The S550 Mustang chassis when it came out gave me the best of both worlds. Iconic car and platform but now with IRS and finally true world car engineering and refined elegant and beautiful design. The Americanness of the car can be found in its size (I’m still getting used to its length and width) as well as its V8, typical ford panel fit, rattles and various hard plastic surfaces. Other than that the experience is vastly different as the car really is a now a “normal” globally accepted and designed car. From its IRS, Getrag 6 speed, it feels more European / Japanese in dynamics.”

 

We both agreed that the new Mustang is the spiritual successor of the S15 Silvia, an “S16” if you will or the car Nissan should have built!  Ricky then took it up a notch drawing a connection between an old school Toyota and the Ford:

“Totally agree Alvin that by subliminal design (even chassis code with an S and 5) that with the Ecoboost the Mustang truly channels the S15 Silvia! With the V8 it even channels the true first release of the original Celica Liftback (twin cam 2 liter) which the US never got, especially in white”:

 

“That’s what does it for me. It channels those Japanese cars but also caters to the heritage of the Mustang which is what inspired the Japanese cars in the first place! Imagine Japanese cars inspired by the original Mustang, and now the newest Mustang channeling the qualities and design of the cars that were inspired by it. Mind blown.”

 

Even though we are a Nissan specialty shop we never leave our customers hanging with their other rides. We love the new S550 and Ford is one of those companies that gets it. More to come as we work on Ricky’s Z33 and GT!

 

No, this is not a Nissan. It is not even a Z. This is a 2011 Ford Mustang GT, and it’s wild with plenty of horses. How many? The 5.0L engine is rated at 412hp from the factory, but the ZCG dyno reveals it’s true output! Rob tells the story of how this GT gets a serious boost in power from an already potent powerplant:

Michael L lives in Santa Cruz, Ca. He was referred to ZCarGarage by Vortech engineering in Southern California. ZCG is a top tier installer of Vortech products and we have performed several non-Nissan installs. You might remember the 2010 Camaro from last fall. Michael and I spoke and decided to meet. I told him we would love to add boost to his new ‘Stang as long as he didn’t mind that all the other horses in this stable would be Zs. Once again Vortech delivers with an amazing product. The kit parts and installation are as if Ford designed it to be a dealer add-on. This is a limited edition kit to celebrate Vortech’s 20-year anniversary in the performance aftermarket and most of the components are finished in matte black.

Back to the car… this Mustang marks the return of the 5.0. Rated at 412 hp at the crank this pony put down some strong baseline numbers: 376hp/364tq. So the 5.0 is really making close to 440hp at the crank!

ZCG’s Josh C comes from a Ford background. Growing up his Dad’s pride and joy was a 1970 XR-7 Cougar ‘vert. Only 1700 were made in the 351 and 4 speed set up. We hope to help Josh’s father restore this car someday. During his younger days Josh owned a ’69 Mustang and a ’65 Ranchero so he was excited to add his touch to the late model Mustang. The Vortech kit is intercooled and is going to be completely smog legal delivering its 8 psi. Post-install dyno numbers are very impressive: 496hp/436tq! The car starts and drives like a stock car until you press the go pedal. Great job Vortech! Enjoy the ride Michael and may your second car be a Nissan.
-Rob
Here are a few more pics of the install, enjoy!
Intercooler, very low-key:

Blower install: