WE LOVE RACING! Classic Sports Racing Group (CSRG) is hosting the 19th Charity Challenge at Sonoma Raceway, September 30 to October 2. Z Car Garage is participating and supporting several client’s Datsun 510 race cars running in B-Sedan Group (John Morton Cup). This vintage racing event is totally FREE to spectators so please join us! Bring the family, enjoy cool cars and even charity rides around the track.
See the 2023 Nissan Z as Pace Car!
Z Car Garage is happy to announce the 2023 Nissan Z will be on Pace Car duty at the Charity Challenge. Big thanks to Nissan for giving us the opportunity to share the new Z with enthusiasts for a good cause. Again, admission is FREE for this event and you will have access to all spectator areas on track. Parking is in Lot 2 overlooking the paddock.
Z Car Garage Supports Six Datsun 510s!
It is our pleasure to bring more enthusiasts into the world of vintage racing. Our services do include full race support and car-preparation to help make client’s race days seamless and worry-free so they can focus on driving. One of our specialties is dyno tuning. Before a race weekend we confirm that your car is running well and make necessary adjustments while on the chassis dyno:
#88 Todd Rueppel
Todd had his first Z Car Garage trackside support experience with us at the SVRA event, full report soon!
Since Nissan lent us the 2023 Z to enjoy during Monterey Car Week we have been attending events and sharing the Z with fellow enthusiasts. On 8/17 we started with the Motorlux kick-off celebration (formerly McCall’s Motorworks Revival). On Friday and Saturday we attended the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion at Laguna Seca. Finally on Sunday we closed with a visit to the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance. Enjoy our report with photos video from Car Week in the new Z!
Vintage Racing at Laguna Seca
We love vintage racing and had a blast at this year’s Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion. On Friday we parked the new Z in Row C of the paddock with our friends from Racecraft. Race car driver and restoration specialist Jim Froula piloted the Greg Alderman 300ZX and a Nissan 240SX, both in IMSA trim. The Z31 features our ZCG CV Axles:
The new Z was well-received at the race track. We showed people around the car and let them check it out, always happy to share with enthusiasts! Many people shared their love for the Z and posted photos on social media (thank you!). Below L to R: Larry Oka displaying Gary Cooks’ Z, Rob showing the new Z in Racecraft paddock and Meghan Fuller with the legend Pete Brock:
Hanging out with the Breakfast Club
Before heading to the track on Saturday, just before the races we joined the Breakfast Club Rally at their pre-rally gathering in Carmel. The BCR organizers kindly gave us a spot to park the new Z during their social hour from 8-9am prior to the event start. It was a great time chatting with new and familiar enthusiasts. We loved seeing our client Jay W with family creating memories in his Datsun 510 featuring our Z Car Garage CV Axles:
BCR’s rallies always bring a variety of vintage and modern metal, more photos in the gallery below and don’t forget to join us for Breakfast Club’s upcoming Tokyo Calling2 event 9/24!
From Carmel we headed back to Laguna Seca with the new Z for even more racing action. It is worth noting the complete absence of any vintage Z cars Datsun 510s on track at this year’s reunion. Have no fear as the upcoming Velocity Invitational will have a dedicated B-Sedan race group and many Z cars racing! Despite the lack of Datsuns on track we enjoyed the Trans Am and other feature race groups.
We left RMMR happy and ready for more Monterey Car Week fun. As if we did not receive enough attention in the paddock, Rob and Meghan were flagged down by CHP– only to inquire about the new Z 🙂
Pebble Beach Concours
A spectacular ending to Monterey Car Week was Sunday’s visit to the 71st Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance. Rob and I drove the Z one last time back to Monterey and spotted our friend Tony on the road in his mint 13B-powered Mazda RX-2. Arriving in Pebble Beach, event parking along the famous 17-Mile Drive was a car show itself with cool cars lining the shore:
This display showcased 17 historically significant Japanese cars within several categories including: Concept Cars, “Kei” and Small Cars, Luxury Sedans, Sports Cars, Coupes/Hatchbacks, and Trucks/Utilities. Z Car Garage was proud to support and help prepare the iconic 2003 Infiniti FX45, owned by former INFINITI designer, Julien Thiebaud:
Our friend Sean Morris and his team at Toprank International Vehicle Importers showed two stunning Nissan Skylines: an R34 GT-R in rare Midnight Purple II (above) and Kenmeri C110 GT-R:
Daniel Song’s Datsun 240Z built by JDM Legends, a “Hakosuka” Skyline and Jun Imai ‘s (of Hot Wheels fame) Datsun 510 Wagon. As with previous JAI displays this was free and open to the general public, more photos in the gallery below!
From the JAI we walked past the Concours Village and entered the ticketed, official Pebble Beach Concours….or so I thought. Here, Mercedes Benz had their own display and so did Ferrari. Apparently this was “just a taste” of what lie ahead!
Ferrari display:
Mercedes display:
The Concept Lawn in front of the lodge was barely visible due to the crowds of photographers and admirers trying to get eyes on the latest dream machines from Koenigsegg, Genesis, Hennessey and Guntherwerks. Lincoln’s new L100 Concept stood out as did Czinger’s 21C hypercar.
The Lawn at Pebble Beach
The competition field awaited us and I was not prepared for what lie beyond the Lodge…over 200 automotive treasures lined the 17th and 18th holes of the famed Pebble Beach Golf Links. Nestled amid prewar classics were Alfa Romeos, Aston Martins, Packards, and Duesenbergs. We were among well-heeled car enthusiasts sharing similar interests in admiring ornate sculpted hood ornaments, gleaming art deco designs and distressed leather seats.
Making this experience even better were our longtime friends Jan Trondsen and Dave Sholz. In addition to being die-hard car enthusiasts and Datsun owners, they are both seasoned Pebble Beach attendees and gave us the royal tour. With MOET in hand, we embarked on a journey back in time to admire metal, leather and artistry. The 100th anniversary of the 24 Hours of Le Mans was celebrated this year at Pebble. Our favorites included the 1979 Porsche 935 K3 Coupe and 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO Scaglietti Berlinetta:
Many attendees at the Pebble Beach concours dressed like it was the Kentucky Derby of motorsport. Party-style suits and dresses, bright colors, and feather-clad hats brightened the lawn during the morning fog along the bay. We had several celebrity sightings including Chip Foose, Wayne Carini and ex-Formula One driver David Coulthard!
The judging process at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance has two parts: Class Judges focus on originality and authenticity, while Honorary Judges focus on attention to design, styling and elegance. Dave pointed out that none of the cars we saw are allowed to participate the following year…
This Duesenberg caught my attention as the judges scrutinized it. I was able to capture video of the straight-8 engine firing up as well it was beyond impressive:
Enjoy this video showing our time at the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion and Pebble Beach Concours!
After a few intense hours of geeking-out on the cars we took a break for a meal. Huge thanks to Infiniti and Jul Thiebaud for hosting us!
So who was the Best of Show winner? That fabulous 1932 Duesenberg Model J that I captured being scrutinized by the judges! To be eligible to win Best of Show which is the event’s highest award a car must first win its class. What a machine!
With the show concluding we parted with our friends Jan and Dave. Rob and I headed home in the new Z. The bus ride back to the Z was again another car show along the 17-Mile Drive. We spotted an R34 Skyline GT-R and Z31:
Thank You!
We can’t thank Nissan and Infiniti enough for the opportunity to share the new Z and enjoy Monterey Car Week. Stay tuned for dyno testing, in-car and exhaust video for this 9-speed automatic Performance model. Enjoy the photo gallery below and Long Live The Z!
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!
Filed under: 350z,510,Events,g35
by Alvin G @ 5:10 pm on August 1, 2022
On Sunday 7/31 we attended the Morning Motors Cars & Coffee event hosted by DrivingWhileAwesome (DWA) in Santa Cruz, CA. The event impressed us again with a fun vibe and superb variety of cars. One of the many perks of DWA Morning Motors is its location surrounded by the best driving roads.
This morning’s pre-event gathering met at Alice’s restaurant at 8am. Our group started with 4 cars including Rob (Porsche 993 Turbo), Josh (VW bug), Kurt (Subaru 2.5RS) and myself in the Z Car Garage 1967 Datsun 2000:Our brisk run up HWY 9 was amazingly traffic-free and plenty of room to enjoy the twisty bits. A brief pause at the 9/35 junction to meet Nick in his Datsun 510 Wagon:
We joined our friend Naveed (thanks for organizing!) and few other enthusiasts at Alice’s. Below, Mark’s 1971 Datsun 510 and Erich’s1974 Alfa GTV give off B-Sedan vibes in the am light:
After re-connecting with friends we headed to the Santa Cruz via 84 and HWY1. The lot in front of the Old Wrigley building was near full a few minutes after 9am.!
Mandatory Nissan/Datsun
I was happy to see so many Nissans and Datsuns at Morning Motors.
This R33 Skyline GT-R was recently acquired by DWA co-founder Art C our friends at Toprank International Vehicle Importers. Super stoked for Art and glad to see him enjoying it! Love the BBS LMs!
Datsun B210!
There were several S13/S14 240SX sports cars, G35s and a Z33 on WORK T7R 2P wheels:
Another ZCG client, Eric’s Infiniti FX35 sporting upgraded suspension and R35 GT-R wheels. Parking next a mint 2003 FX!
In Search of J-Tin
Morning Motors did not disappoint if you are Japanese Classic fans. Representing Mazda was our friend Tony’s 13B-powered RX-2 and his Rotary gang:
90’s icons…Third gen (A70) Supra and FD RX-7 (on ADVAN wheels)!
So much variety! Enjoy this short video:
Euro Classics
Yearning for Porsche’s? Or something a bit less “mainstream”? DWA CnC did not disappoint. Citroen 2CV:
Porsche, Alfa and Austin Healey
Lone E38 7-Series BMW…peak 7 in my mind!
My favorite car was this Porsche 914-6:
American Muscle
From 60’s to 80’s. Mike Garret’s familiar purple Mopar with late-model drivetrain and really wild Ford Coupe with diesel engine:
DWA CnC is definitely my kind of cars and coffee. It’s a great venue with amazing driving roads nearby and the cars were so diverse. We highly recommend checking it out! Thanks to the DWA crew for hosting. If you haven’t already, listen to their podcast and make sure you give them a follow on Instagram.
More pictures in the gallery below!
