Pall K acquired this Pearl Red (AH3) R32 from our friend Sean and his team at Toprank International Vehicle Importers. It goes without saying, if you are in the market for a vintage Skyline (or any JDM car) IVI is the place to go. We love the gorgeous paint color and Volk TE37SLs:
Pall brought the R32 to ZCG for a full inspection in 2019 and we have serviced it since. On that visit we found one of the CV boots torn and he had some Nismo stainless lines for us to install. We checked the timing, changed the engine oil, transmission fluid, installed the new brake lines front/rear and performed a full alignment. He visited us again for a new clutch:
Pall has driven the Skyline frequently since we met in 2019, and he does most of the work on his cars himself. We spotted him last summer at the 6/13 Morning Motors Cars & Coffee event hosted by DrivingWhileAwesome (DWA) in Santa Cruz, CA:
I had fun chasing Pall in our shop Datsun 240Z (Mrs. Butters) on this earlier 2020 Drive:
Pall was experiencing some intermittent issues with car, so he purchased a Haltech Platinum Pro ECU from our client Kurt W since he’s going to an Haltech Elite box for his own R32 GT-R build.
“My car was pinging on 91 octane trying to run on the stock ECU at higher load / RPM. I purchased a Haltech Planimum Pro plug-in ECU to resolve the pinging issue and make the most of my modifications. Rob installed the Haltech with a wideband O2 controller and dyno tuned the whole setup. The pinging issue is gone and the car feels incredible. Smoother initial throttle tip-in and lower end, pulls hard all the way out redline. Extremely pleased!”
As Pall mentioned above, his R32 came in to Z Car Garage in Novemeber and Rob dyno tuned it using Haltech. It put down a very strong 381hp/320tq to the wheels on 91 octane:
This Skyline does have basic performance upgrades including: Apex’i intakes, boost restrictor removed (~14psi), Fujitsubo equal-length downpipe, HKS high-flow cat, Fujitsubo Legalis R-Type Evo exhaust, divided intake pipe, PRP R35 coil conversion kit. Despite the modifications, a subtle chop at idle and the dyno results may indicate aftermarket cams from Japan. Nevertheless it has great power, enjoy the dyno video!
Enjoying The Ride
Photo by Pall Kornmayer
We are happy to report that Pall is already back on the road in his R32, post ZCG-tuning. Just yesterday he attended the final Morning Motors in Santa Cruz:
Pall attended the 2021 Skyline Matsuri hosted by the Norcal Skyline Owners group, you can see Pall’s own photography from the event by clicking on the photos below:
Can’t get enough of this beautiful Skyline. It doesn’t get any better than driving a Skyline on Skyline!
Pall is a wonderful client and enthusiast with a pretty serious E30 M3 in addition to the R32. The 90’s were good for iconic sports cars!
Thanks to Norcal Skyline Owners group we get to work with many cool cars like Kurt W and Mike R (here for timing belt, tuning and clutch job, report soon). Thanks for your support Pall and for trusting us with your R32!
“Performance With Passion”. These are words that describe our work at Z Car Garage and we are passionate about making your Z perform as good as it looks. Photographer Larry Chen commissioned ZCG to transform his beloved SR20DET-powered 1970 Datsun 240Z from an “ok driver” to a no-excuses, multi-dimensional sports car with power, handling, braking, comfort, reliability and performance to match its eye-catching beauty.
Join Rob and Larry as they share the story of Larry’s Z, affectionately called “Ole Orange Bang”, featuring our Z Car Garage Big-Brakes, Z Car Garage CV Axles, chassis preparation, dyno tuning and more. Enjoy the videos with behind the scenes footage and photo gallery below!
Build History
Car enthusiasts and motorsport fans recognize the name Larry Chen as the greatest automotive photographer. Larry has made a career out of his passion for capturing the right moments in racing. We are huge fans of his work since the days of covering Formula Drift, time at Speedhunters, and recent work with Hoonigan Autofocus. Our favorite Larry Chen moment is his photography of Ken Block’s 1400hp Hoonicorn at Pike’s Peak for the filming of Climbkhana.
Larry Chen is regularly exposed to some of the coolest builds across the globe, so you can imagine our joy hearing that Larry’s personal car is a Datsun 240Z. Larry’s Z is a Series 1 (VIN# 2868) that he purchased on his 21st birthday for $3000. He started autocrossing immediately with his buddies circa 2006, and it became an integral part of his life:
“It’s been such a big part of my adult life, and it will continue to be a part of it for the rest. The name actually came from a Mexican drink that we love in SoCal. My car is Orange and it backfired a lot when I got it especially when I was low on gas. So it was only appropriate to call it Orange Bang. On my wedding night instead of being ferried away in a fancy limousine, I drove my beautiful wife home in the Z, after some wedding burnouts.”
Following years of autocross and track use, in 2013 the tired L28 was replaced with an SR20DET straight out of a former Formula Drift car.
Like many enthusiasts, Larry continued to modify and upgrade the Z to fit his needs…adding A/C, coil-over suspension and creature comforts along the way. We spotted a freshly painted Ole Orange Bang at the 2019 Japanese Classic Car Show:
“In 2019 my friends at Bells and Vaughn in Pasadena, California did a full ground up restoration. It has all new paint and it was taken all the way down to the metal. Just this month I picked it up from Z Car Garage in San Jose California. ZCG pretty much went through the entire car and they fixed everything that was mechanically wrong with it.”
When Larry Met Rob: A ZCG Story
We first met Larry when he visited us at the 2018 Japanese Classic Car Show in Long Beach, CA. We talked about Z cars, and how he really wanted to get our Z Car Garage Big-Brakes and ZCG treatment on his personal Z. In 2020 he trailered his Z up from LA to ZCG in February, literally a few weeks before the pandemic.
“I actually found out about ZCG on Instagram and met Rob for the first time in SoCal at JCCS. I inquired about getting brakes for my car since it couldn’t stop even with a Toyota 4×4 conversion and Nissan Maxima rear disk brakes. They were absolutely horrible. There is a reason why people ship their Z cars across the country to ZCG. The passion is there and you can see it on everything they touch.”
While visiting Z Car Garage Larry featured a few of our client cars and did a shop tour for his YouTube channel Hoonigan AutoFocus. You can click on the thumbnails below to watch the videos:
We couldn’t leave our readers hanging without our own ZCG-style feature complete with dyno videos and behind the scenes footage, so if you can’t wait any longer here it is below. Turn those speakers up and enjoy, read on for an in-depth look at our work.
The ZCG Touch
Larry and Rob developed a plan for Ole Orange Bang. The Z had past work performed by many folks including Larry’s buddies. We simply wanted his Z to be a multi-dimensional sports car with power, brakes, handling and comfort. Cosmetics were already handled, it just needed some mechanical love with ZCG-products that you will find on many of our ZCG builds. Let’s begin with the chassis upgrades, then go into dyno tuning/engine bay work and final details like the interior and weatherstripping.
ZCG Big-Brakes and CV Axles
We handed Larry 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 clients 🙂 Read below for a brief description of these parts:
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 engineers at 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 some 14″ wheels) 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 Larry’s existing Toyota 4×4 front calipers and rear Maxima setup and installed our ZCG Big-Brake kit front and rear:
He got a new, OEM brake master cylinder as well:
At the rear, the Maxima setup was replaced with our ZCG Big-Brakes. Factory handbrake functionality IS retained!
Larry was impressed with the braking performance:
“The ZCG brakes and axles really give the 240z an update with modern top of the line performance where the Z badly needs it. These cars are lightweight and easy to make fast, but everything else that goes along with it is very lacking. While the 240z is a great car to drive in stock form, there is nothing like having a lightweight turbo rear wheel drive sports car.”
Z Car Garage CV Axles
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 140 CV axle kits on customer cars and we are stoked with all of the positive feedback.
Larry has CV Axle set #328. Stock half shafts (L) and ZCG units bolted in to the Subaru STi LSD diff. The stock suspension parts had been long replaced with Techno Toy Tuning parts. Larry does not have to live with those loose CV axles anymore!
More pictures of the ZCG axles installed, we will discuss the KW coil-overs below:
Wheels By Love20bee
Complementing the new Big-Brakes and suspension on Larry’s Z are a fresh set of Southern Ways Epsilon mesh wheels from Love20bee. It was an absolute pleasure working with owner, Matt K. to adjust the offset on the wheels just before Larry picked his Z up from ZCG.
We wanted Larry to be able to use the KW Suspension and ZCG Big-Brakes to their full potential and put all the power down effectively without clearance issues. The offset was a bit too aggressive causing fender rubbing and excessive camber reducing the contact patch of the sticky Yokohama tires.
Larry’s Z already had a set of KW Coil-overs. Not to be confused with our ZCG-labeled KW Suspension with adjustable rebound and dampening that we’ve developed over several years (releasing soon). We adjusted Larry’s KW’s for best ride and corner-balanced the car using his weight. With the wheel barrels adjusted and suspension aligned Larry can now throw this Z into any corner with confidence. No rubbing, no excuses.
Engine
Larry had a long list of problems he needed resolved with the drivetrain. The SR was running an older AEM standalone setup for racing duty so it would drive roughly on the street: poor cold/hot starting, erratic idling, stalling on deceleration, overheating and the A/C wouldn’t blow cold under hot conditions. Before sorting these issues we cleaned up wiring and hoses in the engine bay. Here is what the cooling setup looked like before:
The oil cooler was mounted in front of the intercooler and there was a small deflector plate placed across all heat exchangers. We re-designed the ductwork with help from TCDesignFab to seal the intercooler/AC condenser/radiator to direct air flow and eliminate heat soak. Serious SPAL fans were added to a new Mishimoto rad:
The oil cooler was relocated below the FMIC:
With air now directed through the heat exchangers the SR operates well under heat soak conditions, even with the A/C on and blowing cold. Even though the SR20 isn’t Rob’s first choice of engine swap it works really well, looks awesome and makes great power. Speaking of looks, we couldn’t resist adding our body-color matching valve cover (like Rob’s 510 and Rb-powered Z cars):
Hardware was removed and re-plated throughout, more pics in the gallery!
Dyno Tuning
We are huge fans of Haltech engine management. We use their Elite line of ECUs exclusively on our EFI engine builds and Larry’s SR received an Elite 1000 unit, mounted on the passenger foot well. Rob dyno tuned the SR20DET using Haltech. Baseline was 245hp/223tq and with Rob’s tuning it made 295hp/277tq at the wheels:
Larry was absolutely blown away by the performance, response and night/day improvement in drivability. Beyond peak gains of 50hp/54tq at the wheels, much of the increased response can be seen in the huge area under the curve from proper wastegate operation. Haltech is so user friendly and the benefits are priceless. You can see the dyno runs and road testing with Larry and Rob in this this video.
Interior
After driving our client James Stephens’ turbocharged 1972 Datsun 240z for an episode of Hoonigan Autofocus, Larry knew right then he had to have a set of Recaro seats for Ole Orange Bang. We removed his old seats and installed a new set of Recaro Pole-Position seats. He loves them:
Any bodyshop can install weatherstripping but Larry really wanted ZCG do tackle it and we happily obliged. One of our favorite upgrades to the interior of an S30 is our ZCG sound deadening package. Usually found in our full-blown ZCG restorations, the result is a less tinny sound and almost Germanic-like “clunk” when you shut the doors. We also refurbished his window tracks to ensure smooth operation:
We are really proud of the HVAC system in this Z. Larry mentioned the A/C wouldn’t blow cold..we tested Larry’s A/C after our ducting upgrades and it blows cold even after full throttle applications and heat soak.
Details
The little things are what we excel at. A common problem with Series 1 cars is exhaust fumes entering the car through the hatch vents and tail lights. We replaced the hatch and tail light seals and sealed the hatch vents. No exhaust smell in the cabin. (below) It made us happy when Larry called out these little details while filming…an OEM Nissan oil filter and re-plated hood latch hardware:
Please check the gallery below for more detail shots, there are too many to list in this blog post!
Enjoying The Ride
Larry picked his Z up from Z Car Garage in February of 2021. He immediately started enjoying Ole Orange Bang by driving to various events and gatherings in SoCal. We were so stoked to see him happy with his Z again.
Getting updates from Larry was rad:
“It finally performs as good as it looks! Rob and the team are so detail oriented. They know these cars inside and out and my car has never driven so well in its lifetime. I can’t wait to bring it back for some more goodies.”
We were reunited with Larry and his Z at this year’s Japanese Classic Car Show at the Anaheim Stadium. The Z was on display in the Leen Customs booth where fans could get his autograph:
Orange Bang with FuguZ and Medusa. We are beyond happy to have our Z Car Garage chassis parts on these high-profile Z cars.
As happy as we were to see Larry driving around SoCal what really made our day was seeing him drive Ole Orange Bang in anger at a local autocross event! He put our Z Car Garage Big-Brakes, Z Car Garage CV Axles, suspension and dyno tuning to work:
“I decided to take a personal day and do a bit of driving for fun. I haven’t auto crossed in almost 15 years. I went to the CornerExit auto-x at California Speedway and it was an absolute blast. Orange Bang held up amazing, and everything @zcargarage did to it paid off. I ended up getting 2nd place in mod class!”
We will have video of Larry ripping through the autocross on our Instagram story. For now, don’t miss the video we made of the Z in action here:
UPDATE 6.30.23
Larry just dropped an amazing video about his Z including its history and canyon driving, enjoy!
Thank You Larry!
Our journey with Larry is just beginning. Thanks for entrusting Z Car Garage with your Z and believing in us. We appreciate all that you do for automotive culture and your work is inspiring. Always Do It In A Datsun and LONG LIVE THE Z!
This is Greg S’ 1970 Datsun 240Z in Monte Carlo Red. We have known Greg for a long time, actually preceding the opening of Z Car Garage. It’s always been a pleasure to see Greg with his beloved Z plus he’s a Nissan enthusiast with a few Patrols and mint RL411 wagon. His Series 1 S30 received our Z Car Garage Big-Brakes, Z Car Garage CV Axles and Panasport wheels.
Our relationship with Greg goes back well before social media and our photo documentation. Greg performs his own work on the Z, and we finish the small extra things that let him Enjoy The Ride. Let’s take a look at how Greg became a Z car enthusiast.
History
Greg does not have glorious restoration pictures of the Z with fresh parts all laid out on benches etc., as the car has never been through that process. He simply just replaced or rebuilt parts as needed to keep the car running and looking good. He acquired the car from the original owner,VIN# 4052 with a 5/70 build date:
“My old man purchased the car for me in 1992. I was 19 and we had been looking for a decent 240z for about a year. We found this one in one of those auto traders printed on recycled paper. It was basically ‘Original owner, runs great, 83K miles $3,500 OBO’. It was bone stock, totally straight, unrestored and completely unmolested. The original sales receipt for $3,300 was in with his service records. Seemed like the car had spent its whole life in northern California.”
“The photos with the basket style 14” rims were after a trip to the junkyard for said rims, new tires and some elbow grease polishing and waxing it. It cleaned up pretty nicely. I went to college in Santa Clara and first ran into Rob when he was a mechanic working at the shop I would take the car…I did most of the general maintenance work but had that shop put in a set of Suspension Techniques sway bars, springs and Tokico struts. At the time I didn’t know enough to appreciate what a good shop that was.”
The car was repainted in 2000 by Lakeville Auto Body in Petaluma, matching the original #905 Monte Carlo Red. At about 150,000 miles Greg decided to replace the motor, even though it would have happily ran for a bit longer:
“Nissan was selling remanufactured L28 280ZX long blocks for $1,400 which seemed like a smokin’ deal. It was about the same price as you could buy the parts to rebuild the L24. I had moved back to Sonoma county and my dad and I did the motor swap in his garage. I took the opportunity to add the Redline triple Weber 40 DCOE kit, a sportier cam and a set of headers. I worked with a speed shop to sort out the jetting. It ran decent, but was pretty rich down low, would stumble at times and got poor gas mileage. I drove it like that for several years, replacing the intake manifold, fabricating the heat shield and air filter assembly.”
The Z Car Garage Touch
About 12 years ago Greg was looking to resolve the jetting on the Z and seriously considered ditching the Weber carbs altogether. He spent some time trying to find that original shop in Santa Clara but found Z Car Garage instead. It didn’t take long to figure out that he had already worked with Rob and that alleviated any reservations about dropping his Z off at a shop a few hours from home:
“As expected, Z Car Garage did an excellent job re-jetting carbs. The car idles perfectly, pulls cleanly, makes more power and gets a respectable 18-20 mpg. Now anytime I need help sorting out a problem with the Z, advice on an upgrade, part availability or just need someone to sing some ballad rock to me, I call Rob.”
Greg is really happy:
“Since then Rob has set me up with:
The correct 16″ Panasports that saved me the hassle of getting wheel sets that rub or rims that just look OK.
ZCG CV Axles axles that were a joy to install, run smoothly and don’t make the racket that the other (hateful) CV kit did.
Recaro seat that is actually suitable for driving long distances and keeps you from sliding into the footwell.”
ZCG Big-Brakes and CV Axles
We are proud to have several of our ZCG products on Greg’s 240z. As he mentioned above, Greg installed our Z Car Garage CV Axles and we installed our Z Car Garage Big-Brakes (for small wheels). These products have been standard on numerous ZCG builds.
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:
Greg brought his Z down on May 20 and with a one-day turn around we installed our ZCG Big-Brake kit with parking brake assembly. We also replaced his brake M/C with a new OEM Nissan unit, bleeding the system and setting it all up. He’s super impressed and he also had fun visiting us:
“While I was down at ZCG, Rob took the time to show me around. The shop is clean and even the parts storage container is expertly organized. The quality of the cars and race cars in the shop were a joy to see.”
“Most recently I dropped the car off to have ZCG install their excellent brake kit. Super clean installation, perfect pedal feel and stops great. They clearly put a lot of effort into this kit and did such a nice job installing it.”
Front brake installation:
At the rear, the OEM drums brakes were replaced with our ZCG Big-Brakes. Factory handbrake functionality IS retained!
Z Car Garage CV Axles
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 140+ CV axle kits on customer cars and we are stoked with all of the positive feedback.
Greg was experiencing significant vibrations in the back of his car. In February 2020 we sold him a set of ZCG CV Axles and installed it himself…he loves them. Standard half-shafts shown on left:
Greg is having a blast in the Z and sent us this video he made from a recent drive in Petaluma, enjoy!
Panasport Wheels
In 2014 we sold Greg a set of Panasport wheels which were finished in a slick, gumetal shade. Our ZCG Big-Brakes also look great behind Panasport wheels in our offset allowing 225/50/16 tires (Bridgestone S-007a). The Z was fully aligned afterwards.
Interior
The stock seat was replaced with a single Recaro Specialist, we love these seats for the S30. Time for another seat, right Greg?
Bluebird Wagon
“I have only called Rob to cry about the 411”
In addition to the Z, Greg has had a few Nissan Patrols and still have this 1967 WRL411. A true labor of love, this little wagon showcases Greg’s work/fabrication and aesthetic. It was also stock, complete and unmolested when he acquired it 15 years ago. The 411s are close to our heart as they share some parts with their Datsun Roadster siblings. We have also helped out client Kevin M with his SSS Bluebird.
Greg freshened up the interior, replaced the headliner, carpets, front seat covers and made the gauge cluster insert. Originally it had a 3 speed automatic that was replaced with a Roadster 4-speed. The front brakes and hubs were replaced with larger units also from a Roadster. This required fabrication of new steering arms.
Under the hood is what make this 411 wagon a true sleeper: with a little machine work you can use the crank out of a U20 and turn the R16 into a 2.0 liter:
“The motor barely fits into the 411 and it’s especially tight near the radiator requiring a special shorter water pump. The exhaust exits through the fender well and all the stock units have long since rusted out so I was forced to weld up a new header for it. The SU’s were replaced with flat slide Mikunis and I made a new 3-D printed airbox and throttle assembly. I am still working out the final tune with some updates to the exhaust system likely required. I want it to run as perfectly as the Z. Maybe I need to put a set of 40mm DCOEs on it and have Rob re-jet it.”
Greg made the CAD for the exhaust header and welded it up himself. CAD was also used to make a new gauge cluster to accept a tach and modern signals. It’s the icing on the cake on a sweet build:
“The gauges out of the early roadsters are beautiful so I was originally intrigued with them. They are expensive if you can find them and the diameter is too large to fit nicely in the stock cluster housing. I ran across a few images of this SSS cluster in a car but it appeared to also have a larger cluster housing. Both seemed impossible to source. The new electronic tachs and speedos are way easier to get working than fussing with MSD tach adapters or speedo gears etc. If you look at the CAD image you can see that I gutted the original speedo housing and added the toothed wheel and sensor to it. It’s driven from the stock cable running to the transmission.
We admire Greg’s ingenuity and determination to keep his cars on the road. Thank you for your support Greg, and keep Enjoying the Ride in your Z! More picture in the gallery below…
We love working on cars and what really fuels the passion at Z Car Garage are the stories that connect each owner to their cherished rides. Christine K visited our shop earlier this year for routine maintenance on her 2004 Nissan 350Z 6MT Roadster and we were pleasantly surprised by her history linking to Datsun legends, mutual friends and family!
It’Z a Small Datsun World
Christine is a local San Jose school teacher and it truly is a small world as she was the kindergarten teacher for my two daughters just a few years ago. You can imagine how surprised I was to see her at Z Car Garage one day while I was there to work on zcarblog.com. At the time we were wearing masks and I did not greet her but later reached out via e-mail:
“Good morning, I am so happy you reached out to say something. I was so sure it was you, but I could not think of your first name in the moment and did not want to say “hi” Meena and Sophia’s dad. I inherited my Dad’s 350z when he passed away 3 years ago. I love that car and am so thankful we found the Z Car Garage. My dad worked at a Nissan/Datsun car dealership in my hometown in Corvallis, Oregon. He also ran the used car portion as well. I remember one of the first cars I got practice driving before I got my driver’s license was the Datsun 210 station wagon.”
(Above) Leaving the wet and snowy northwest and bringing the Z home to their driveway in sunny California.
Not only was I excited to see Christine at the shop, her reply left me intrigued about that Nissan/Datsun dealership in Corvallis….could it be THE famous Scoville Nissan dealership? I reached out to our fellow Datsun-enthusiast and friend Michael Spreadbury who worked for famed race car driver Jack Scoville and inquired about Christine’s connection. Incredibly, Michael confirmed!
(Above) Jack Scoville images courtesy of Michael Spreadbury and Datsun.org
“Amazing — her dad would be Roy Robinson and he was a wonderful human being— we were friends indeed and it was quite the shock of when Roy passed away. Roy was a sales guy for Scoville’s for many years, but he retired before I started working for Jack— but Corvallis is a small town and Roy was in to see us at the dealership every week where I got to know him well. Roy always had Datsun/Nissan’s, and I always think of him with his spotless white Z32…After he retired he drove school busses, and took both of my kids on outings as the bus driver— whenever I would pick the kids up in the roadster from the grade school, Roy would pop out if his bus to admire the car for a few minutes. A great guy— sure miss our chats…Michael”
Michael connected the dots for me….Christine’s Dad indeed worked for Jack Scoville, the racer who gave Nissan their first national championship by winning the 1969 SCCA run offs at Daytona in a 2-liter Datsun Roadster. The Datsun Destiny got even better as I learned that both Michael and Christine attended the same high school in Corvallis.
(Above) Christine and daughter Audrey heading out for a Sunday drive. Visiting Mt. Umunhum when it first opened.
Christine recalls her Datsun story and eventual 350Z ownership:
“My dad started working at Jack Scoville’s when I was 5 years old. He had been a high school art teacher and then quit to sell motorcycles and finally ended up at Jack’s for the rest of his career. I would help out on the car lot. Back in the day, he would have to go around with a huge ring of keys and lock up all the cars for the night. I always had fun doing that job. At the time Jack’s son Jeff was still racing and took me out for a ride in his race car.
My dad had ordered the 1970 240z, but my mom had become pregnant with me and when it arrived on Jack’s lot my dad realized there was not going to be any room to carry me in the car and ended up getting a Volvo. He finally bought his first Z in 1990. He purchased the 300ZX in white with the T-top. Then in 2004 he purchased the one I have now.”
Enjoying The Ride
In addition to our race efforts and early-Datsun support, ZCG’s daily operations include routine maintenance and modification for the 2003-2008 Nissan 350Z as well as 370Z sports cars. With only has 47k on the odometer Christine came to us for a full inspection. We wanted to ensure the car would be ready for the next generation of Z car enthusiasts….Christine’s kids:
“My dad loved cars and motorcycles and cleaned them all with q-tips. When I was 4 years old I was responsible for scrubbing the wheels and tires. And as I grew older I was giving interior detailing duties with the q-tips. I have now passed those skills onto my son. It seemed an unnecessary luxury to keep my dad’s car, but he always drove it when he came to visit so he could drive Nathaniel around. Nathaniel has the best memories of long drives with my dad in that car. Nathaniel and I have kept up the tradition with long Sunday drives. He is also in the process of getting his driver’s license in the next six months and can not wait to drive it on the road.”
(Above) Top down in Christine’s Dad’s driveway with son Nathaniel on a Sunday drive.
We made a plan to perform general services plus a few little touches plan for service to make the Z more enjoyable. A very common problem on the 03-06 z33/G35 is in the valve covers; the spark plug o-ring seals will dry up over time and allow oil to leak into the well eventually compromising coil pack performance. The valve covers and and valve cover gaskets were replaced along with new spark plugs and new drive belts. All fluids were replaced and the car got received full 50k services. All this family needs is to Enjoy The Ride:
Making the Z fun to drive are a few popular performance upgrades including the JWT POP charger intake and Hotchkis sway bars front and rear:
Front T/C rod, control arm and diff bushings were replaced with new units from Whiteline. The diff bushings are the most common failure as see in previous blog posts. Christine’s Z also had a CV axle click–this occurs when the splined axle shaft gets dried up without lubrication. We took care of that and installed a new set of tires followed by a full alignment:
Icing on the cake was a dyno tune. Rob UPREV tuned picking up power everywhere in the rev range for a total of 254hp/250tq to the wheels, gains of+9hp/8tq. This is a great example of having a proper tune to maximize gains from your bolt-ons whether it is DE, Rev-up, HR or 370.
Love Cars. Love People. Love Life
Mr. K’s motto is what we Nissan/Datsun enthusiasts live by. We enjoyed working with Christine’s wonderful family and she is stoked with the Z:
“Our experience with ZCG was amazing. It was personalized to our needs. Rob is an expert in what he does and gave great suggestions based on how we want to drive the car. We were very fortunate to find ZCG through a web search. When I inherited my dad’s car and after having it here in California for about 3 years, I knew I wanted to get it serviced and keep it in tip top shape. It had never been stored outside of a garage. Once we got it to our home here in California we cleared out space for it in our garage. My dad had owned the car for 13 years before he passed away. Over the years I had driven it occasionally. Nathaniel and I kept up my dad’s Sunday drive tradition and took it out each week for a spin. After getting serviced at ZCG it runs like never before. Everything is so smooth and quiet. I don’t even know how to describe it. We all agree it purrs.”
Thank you for your support Christine and Long Live The Z!
Filed under: 240z,r32,R35,Racing,z32
by Alvin G @ 5:10 pm on November 9, 2021
Z Car Garage Shop Update for 11/9/21
We are doing final track preparation for this week’s (November 11-14) race at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca hosted by the Velocity Invitational. Z Car Garage will be participating and providing support for several client cars. We are excited to be racing in Group 7A (1966-1977 IMSA GT):
We will be supporting our client Randy Jaffe who recently acquired the Transcendental Racing Datsun 240Z. This famous 1976 IMSA-GTU Championship-winning 240z will be driven by ex-driver Brad Frisselle’s son, Brian Frisselle:
