We met Greg in 2015 when he purchased a set of Panasport wheels for his S30. He returned later in 2019 for our Z Car Garage Big-Brakes and Z Car Garage CV Axles along with upgraded suspension and triple Mikuni carbs. Greg is a pilot residing in Reno, NV and when he is not flying passengers all over the US he is a 100% gearhead with an award-winning 1970 Dodge Charger. He has owned the ’73 Z for 42 years and we love the story behind it:

“I bought this Z from the original family (two owners, same family) just weeks after I graduated from high school in June of 1978. I had previously owned a 1970 Sublime Green Dodge Charger R/T, but I thought it just wouldn’t be cool to show up to college in a ‘lime green’ car, so I went on the hunt for something that had great looks, and great performance to match. I kept my pursuit of a 240Z a secret from my high school sweet-heart (now my wife of 40 years), who was two years behind me in high school, until I had actually purchased the car and had a chance to give it a good detailing. When I pulled up that first evening with the new Z, she was very surprised! See didn’t know what it was, but she thought it was just “So Cool!”

As life went on Greg moved from Idaho to Reno and the car ended up getting stored for about 20 years.  When their re-acquired ’70 Charger did not make it back from a resto-mod in 2015, Valerie suggested getting the 240z running to enter in Hot August Nights in place of the Charger.

“After sitting for 20 years it needed some work – we called on Dave Rebello for a 3.0 stroker L-28 engine (SU carbs), and while the engine was being built my son and I got busy.  We pulled the fuel tank, dipped it, and refreshed it with a new sending unit, as well as all new hoses.” 

In 2015 Greg purchased a set of 16×7 Panasport wheels from us and though the Z was really nice it was time to take the next step.

 

Taking the Z to the next level

After months of planning, last July Greg and Valerie drove their Z down from Reno to Z Car Garage.  They spent the day with us while we installed new parts, made a few repairs and cleaned up the engine bay.

 

The Rebello 3L was treated to a fresh set of triple Mikuni PHH44 carbs on a Harada intake manifold (Rob’s favorite intake). We anodized the linkage from blue to black to suit Greg’s taste.

 

Out with the old SU carbs. A new 6-into-1 MSA coated exhaust header (merged to existing exhaust system) and ZCG heat shield were installed:

   

Greg also wanted the fuel hoses and AN fttings black which is becoming common from our vintage racing builds like the Rocketbunny Z. Finishing it off is our favorite fuel rail from Japan.

 

The engine bay received lots cleanup. We wanted Greg’s attention to detail to match his Mopar’s. Before/After, triples are hard to beat!

 

Dyno Tuning

 

After the addition of triple Mikuni carbs and an updated MSD ignition we went through the car to ensure it ran well. With Rob’s dyno tuning we greatly improved the way this Rebello 3L drives. Baseline was 186hp/189tq and after tuning it made 215hp/203tq to the wheels:

 

Listen to those triple Mikuni’s sing on the dyno. Also watch for a test drive with Rob running through the gears making sweet L-series music!

 

 

We sorted a few additional items like repairing the parking brake, replacing a lazy tachometer with a nice unit from Rob’s stash and fixing his shift boot.

 

Greg was pleased with modifications and repairs:

“One of the not-previously talked about items that I was most pleased with was the Tension Rod Bushings that Rob replaced. After I installed the new front-end parts a few years back, the car still had a tendency to follow slight grooves in the road. I had written this off as non-stock wider tires, but when Rob took the car he noticed it in his test drive and replaced those for us as well.  The car now literally drives and handles better than new, and the triple carbs with Rob’s tuning magic REALLY brought out the beast in the Rebello motor! The car’s performance now is quite simply stunning!!!”

ZCG Big-Brakes and CV Axles

 

With great power from the Rebello 3L Greg needed braking to match. We installed our Z Car Garage Big-Brakes (for small wheels) and also upgaded to Z Car Garage CV Axles!

     

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:

 

We went ahead got Greg dialed in with the ZCG big-brake kit for small wheels with parking brake and a new 240z brake booster/master cylinder. More pics in the gallery!

  

Front brake installation:

    

At the rear, the OEM drums brakes were replaced with our ZCG Big-Brakes. Factory handbrake functionality IS retained! They also look great behind the Panasport wheels:

 

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 70 CV axle kits on customer cars and we are stoked with all of the positive feedback.

  

Greg received ZCG CV Axle set #282.

 

Enjoying The Ride

 

After their visit to ZCG, both Greg and Valerie continued to enjoy the Z at several Hot August Nights shows. It appears they enjoy driving it more than the Charger 🙂

“The Hot August Night Virginia City meet this year.  We had intended to take the Z Friday, and the Charger on Saturday, but we had so much fun driving up and down Geiger Grade with the new ZCG triple Mikuni‘s and the ZCG Big brakes that we took the Z both days!!!”

 

Valerie driving the Z to a local ‘Ladies only’ car show. We love her “all blue” theme! (Right) Their 1970 Dodge Charger:

 

“Valerie and I are very happy with the service and modifications ZCG has completed on our ’73 240Z.  I doubt anyone else has the experience, the knowledge base, and most importantly, the PASSION for working on Z Car’s that Rob Fuller and the staff at the Z-Car Garage have!”

 

We really had a great experience working Greg, thank you both for letting us make your Z car an enjoyable sports car! More pictures in the gallery below:

 

 

LONG LIVE THE Z!

…[read more]

 

What sparked your interest in Z Cars? For Scott W it began when he was about 15 years old, and eventually led him to Z Car Garage:

“My best friend’s brother’s friend had a silver 240z. He would take us to lunch and we had to lay down in the back. From that time on I wanted a Z! I started reviewing zcarblog.com and found a very nice 260z for sale that was owned by an older retired couple. Based on all the work performed by ZCG I met with Rob and I purchased it. The 260z was originally gold with the 5mph bumpers.”

 

Indeed the gold 1974 260z was our very own customer Geri R’s. When she retired and moved to San Diego she told Rob, “If you are not in SD my Z car can’t come with me…please find it a new home.” Scott W visited ZCG in 2013 and purchased the Z, well before the S30’s garnered high prices! He had a very clear vision of building the ultimate Z Car:

“I told Rob my plan was a car that was great to look at but I’m going to drive it! And drive it hard. My goal was to keep it looking 1974-ish on the outside but modern under the skin.”

So we began the process of upgrading an already solid, clean chassis that Geri lovingly maintained.

Drivetrain

The first item we discussed was the engine. Scott wanted more power and Rob suggested a Rebello 3.2L Stroker engine. Supporting parts included an MSA 6-into-1 header,  ZCG exhaust system, KOYO race radiator (custom upper hose) and ZCG heat shield. A few pictures of the engine build/installation with many more in the gallery:

 

Induction is handled by Jenvey individual throttle-body fuel injection, managed by a Haltech Elite 750 standalone system.

 

A NISMO Competition oil pan was installed to cope with high cornering loads from road course driving. Also shown is the Nissan 240sx 5-speed transmission. This “KA24” unit is significantly stronger than early S30 transmissions. It handles the 3.2L’s extra power, and we offer this conversion to customers.

 

When we upgrade the transmission we also install a JWT HD clutch with aluminum flywheel. Helping put the power down efficiently is an OS Giken LSD. The R180 houses a 4.11 R&P and the assembly is setup in-house (by Joshua Corwin). Rounding out the drivetrain upgrades are a set of ZCG CV Axles(shown below)

 

The ZCG Exhaust system using 2.5″ piping to a stainless resonator and Magnaflow muffler with slash-cut tip. Listen to the sound in the video below!

   

The completed engine bay. All hoses, hydraulic lines, fittings etc were removed and restored/replaced with new parts. Zinc plating hardware throughout:

 

On the dyno, Rob tuned the Z with the Haltech making 257hp/229tq to the wheels. An improvement from the stock 121hp/130tq:

Chassis

 

Suspension upgrades were next, focusing on the ideal setup for open track days while remaining comfortable on the street. Scott outgrew the Tokico 5-ways and now has Koni Yellows with our Ground Control coil-over setup from back in the day. Techno Toy Tuning control arms, T/C rods and more complement the total suspension restoration. All parts were powdercoated and hardware plated.  We really appreciate Gabriel at T3 and his staff. They make some of the best suspension parts out there for Z cars.

 

Panasport Wheels

 

Custom sized 17×9 Panasport C8 wheels allow us to run a wide 255/40/17 tire at all four corners, without flaring the fenders:

 

Bridgestone RE-71R tires are shown below. The 17″ diameter wheels also give clearance for our ZCG Big Brakes!

  

ZCG Big-Brakes and CV Axles

After driving our customer Lou’s Fairlady, Scott was sold on our Z Car Garage Big-Brakes.

  

Not to be confused with our familiar Z Car Garage Big-Brakes (for small wheels) that we currently offer, this Big-Brake kit was our initial setup from many years ago. Our first collaboration with Stoptech, this 328mm sized kit requires 17″ diameter wheels and the massive ST-42 calipers are finished in bright red. This kit was installed on our OS Giken TC24-powered 240z and a few other customer cars.

 

 

The ZCG Big-Brakes framed nicely behind the black-spoked C8s. We are currently re-vamping this kit using Stoptech’s latest ST-43 caliper.

    

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 70 CV axle kits on customer cars and we are stoked with all of the positive feedback.

   

Scott’s 260z received ZCG CV Axles set #250

  

More pictures of the ZCG axles installed, also visible are the T3 control arms and ZCG exhaust system:

  

Comfort

 

Scott’s 260z had an interior in fair shape. We gave it the full ZCG treatment with a refurbished dash, new carpet and creature comforts like Bluetooth, radar detection and functioning HVAC. In-progress shots below with more in the gallery:

 

New carpet throughout, integrated speaker box in hatch:

 

The stock seats were in bad shape Scott was sliding around on them so we upgraded to leather Recaros. Perfect for keeping him locked in place during track days.

 

The heater system from core to blower was completely restored:

 

Full A/C setup using a smaller Toyota compressor with existing A/C parts:

 

Performance

 

Balance. This Z has power and the chassis upgrades to transform it into a well-rounded sports car. Remember Scott’s goal of building the Z to drive really hard? He has been taking his S30 to Buttonwillow Raceway every month, putting our ZCG products to the test on the track.

 

Enjoy the sounds of Scott’s Z in this short video below:

 

 

Exterior

 

You didn’t think we would forget to mention the total paint color change, did you?  About six months into his build Scott called to request a color change from gold to a Mercedes-Benz shade of Gun Metal. Our man William painted the body, retaining all side-markers to maintain a stock look:

 

Scott however was adamant about changing the stock impact bumpers. Rob located Euro-style 240z bumpers and had them sectioned/re-chromed:

 

Thank you Scott for letting us build your Ultimate Z Car! We are proud to see you enjoy it on the track and street.

LONG LIVE THE Z!

More pictures in the gallery below!
…[read more]

 

Brian P hails from Canada and lives in the Bay Area with his family. We met him in 2014 when he visited ZCG for minor sorting and upgrades on his pretty 1973 S30.

 

Attention to the engine bay included changing all fluids, new motor mounts, upgraded alternator and a fresh Koyo racing radiator:

 

Rob dyno tuned the stock, SU-carb’d L24 before and after the addition of our ZCG exhaust using 2.5″ piping to a stainless resonator and Magnaflow muffler with slash-cut tip. We saw gains of 13hp/5tq and improved power throughout the mid-range:

 

Brian returned in 2016 for suspension upgrades. We installed 5-way Tokicos, Suspension Techniques sway bars, Techno Toy Tuning adjustable rear lower control arms, TC rods, and rack bushings.

 

Everything was powdercoated black and we zinc’d all hardware. With fresh bearings and a few more new suspension parts he was out and enjoying the Z.

Panasport Wheels

Complementing the new springs and shocks on Brian’s Z are Panasport wheels! We replaced the old-school Western Turbine wheels with 16×7 Panasports and Hankook R-S3 tires in 225/50/16.

Bottom left picture from Brian:

“This was taken on the day I picked up the car from the PO, a retired writer in Oakland, who only sold me the car after a 3 hour interview/visit 2 weekends prior, before the car was officially ‘for sale’ (I felt like I was being vetted as the car’s next custodian).”

 

Here is Brian Enjoying The Ride in his Z at last year’s Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion at Laguna Seca:

ZCG Big-Brakes and CV Axles

After a few years of driving, Brian came back early this summer for more upgrades. We handed him the keys to “Mrs. Butters”,  our 1970 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 customers 🙂

     

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:

 

We removed Brian’s stock brakes and installed our ZCG Big-Brake kit.  We also took his Tokico 5-ways in trade for a full coil-over (Koni) suspension from Techno Toy Tuning. T3 finishes the suspension in our signature color and we really appreciate Gabriel and his staff. They make some of the best suspension parts out there for Z cars.

 

ZCG Big-brakes and T3 coil-overs replacing stock setup:

    

At the rear, the factory drum brakes were replaced with our ZCG Big-Brakes. Factory handbrake functionality IS retained! T3 coil-covers also installed:

 

Brian really wanted the look and feel of Mrs. Butters Z so we obsessed over ride height until we got it exactly where he wanted it. The Z looks fabulous from any angle:

 

 

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 70 CV axle kits on customer cars and we are stoked with all of the positive feedback.

  

Stock half shafts (L) and ZCG units:

 

More pictures of the ZCG axles installed, also visible are the T3 control arms and ZCG exhaust system:

    

Driving is Believing

Brian was impressed with the ZCG Big-Brakes and how well they work: like having late model brakes on a vintage car!

“The brakes are amazing. I push the car hard on weekend drives on the Peninsula, normally taking different routes out to Alice’s, now without any fade or fear (except from passengers).”

 

With suspension and drivetrain sorted, Brian had a few remaining things on his mind. He reported a heavy fuel smell in the cabin so we replaced all of the vapor hoses to the fuel tank and installed a new hatch seal:

 

Finally, his hood had little specks on it so we had our man William repaint and blend it.  Icing on the cake: Rob installed a NOS “Datsun” emblem on it after adjusting the hood.

 

Enjoy this short video of Brian’s Z:

 

 

We enjoyed working with Brian:

“Rob and team are the best, and the only shop that will ever touch my car. I have supreme confidence that my expectations will be always be exceeded, and Rob’s enthusiasm is infectious. On a lighter note and as a Canadian transplant down here in the Bay Area, it’s a pleasant surprise to find someone who doesn’t feel the need to insert ‘ice’ before saying ‘hockey’.”

Thank you for entrusting us with your S30, Brian. We are so fortunate to work with owners that appreciate the Z and believe in our ability to make them better! LONG LIVE THE Z!

More pictures in the gallery below!
…[read more]

 

It really is a small world. When Jim H walked into Z Car Garage and told us about his Series 1 S30 we immediately recognized it from over 12 years ago. Our customer and fellow Datsun roadster owner Peter V. purchased this Z in the early 2000s from Les Cannaday of Classic Datsun Motorsports. We worked on the car until Peter sold it in 2006 and it eventually ended up in the hands of Jim:

“Based on old receipts, I’m at least the seventh owner. At the recent RMMR races at Laguna Seca, Rob introduced me to Les who once owned the Z in the early 2000’s, then sold it to ZCG customer, Peter V. After that, the Z had two owners in Connecticut, one in New Jersey, and one in Michigan.”

Here are pictures from a 2006 Fun Run I organized in San Jose, CA showing the Z driven by former owner Peter V:

 

Before discussing our work on Jim’s Z car we want to share the amazing story leading up to his ownership, enjoy!

Z Car Passion

Jim’s passion for the Z began in 1971 when he was stationed at Fort Carson, CO:

“My roommates both owned early 911’s so I decided to replace my aging and problematic ’68 Firebird. Came across a low-mileage, green ’70 240 sitting in a used-car lot(pictured below). At $4,800 I thought this could be a mistake (remember, back then dealer price was fixed at $3,600). Enjoyed the Z for another 150,000 miles then regrettably sold it in the late 80’s to a local guy. On a side note, Bruce L (the local guy), restored the Z and found a willing buyer. This bit of history was unknown to me until recently when I looked him up. Bruce currently owns an early Z that has had performance upgrades done by Rob and crew. Small world, as they say.”  Thanks Jim for the wonderful photos below!

 

The Best Birthday SurpriZe

With the sale of his 1970 Z, here is how Jim became the owner of the ’71:

“Soon after our daughter Paige was born and before son Grant arrived, I sold the Z to Bruce L. Through the years while the kids were still home, my nostalgic interest in Datsuns remained, but never to the point of owning another one. Son Grant, who just left the US Army (1st Special Forces Group) to pursue his education, spent several years looking for a Z that closely matched the year and color of my original one. He found one in Michigan through Bring-A-Trailer and out-bid the crowd of interested parties. His last minute jump by $2k, effectively ended the auction.”

 

“He says “last minute” because he was set to board a flight; to stay in the auction wouldn’t have been possible once he was airborne. Grant had it shipped to Tacoma, WA and kept it hidden in a storage locker for six months. This past January, my wife Shary and I flew to Tacoma to celebrate a belated Christmas with the kids. The next morning we agreed to meet the kids for breakfast at a favorite local café. In the parking lot sat a green Z. I motioned to my kids (already seated in the café) to join me curbside so that I could point out the similarities to the one I owned 30 plus years ago. After some obsessive minutes of my poring over the car, son Grant declared it was time to eat. Through breakfast, I kept glancing over my shoulder hoping to see who would get into the car. Even the wait staff claimed no knowledge of the owner. Once the table was cleared, Grant placed a single key in front of me. Not thinking anything other than, “oh, you got me a Datsun memento for my keyring,” I took a few moments before declaring….”oh, s__t, you’re kidding me.” He says…. ”Merry Christmas and Happy Birthday, Dad.” It was only when I placed the key in the ignition and it growled to life, did I realize the enormity and love represented by this gift.”

 

The Journey Begins

We are in the initial stage of an epic build for Jim and his Z with more work scheduled for Fall. Here is what we have performed recently and a taste of what’s to come.

 

Our first order of business…get the Z ready to drive for the summer. We went through the cooling system and fixed several leaks, hoses and replaced the fan clutch.

 

The failed radiator was replaced with a Koyo unit:

 

Outside, the body was treated to our favorite side mirrors, the Nissan OEM #E4600. These units replaced the “bullet” style single driver’s mirror:

 

Jim visited ZCG and drove “Mrs. Butters”,  our 1970 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 customers 🙂

 

ZCG Big-Brakes and CV Axles

     

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:

 

We removed Jim’s stock brakes and installed our ZCG Big-Brake kit.

 

ZCG Big-brakes replacing stock setup up front:

 

 

At the rear, the factory drum brakes were replaced with our ZCG Big-Brakes. Factory handbrake functionality retained!

  

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 60 CV axle kits on customer cars and we are stoked with all of the positive feedback.

 

Stock half shafts and control arms (L):

   

Panasport Wheels

We replaced the old-school Panasports with our favorite, new 16×7 Panasports and Bridgestone’s killer new S-007a tire in 225/50/16:

Enjoying the Ride

With summer driving in the air we prepped Jim’s Z and his son even got to cruise with him. Jim enjoyed driving along the beautiful coast:

“Resto/mod of my ‘71Z began this past June with initial emphasis on mechanical upgrades. Rob Fuller’s suggestion was: ”let’s do this so that the Z remains a work-in-progress but still be available to the owner.” To that end, I’ve been regularly driving the Z after upgrades to the brakes (ZCG BBK 280mm), radiator and fan, suspect hoses and fuel lines, and rear axles (ZCG CV axle set). 16×7 Panasports with 225-50-R16 Bridgestones and OEM mirrors rounded out this first step. This past July, I drove south to Bixby Bridge as sort of a “Big Sur check ride” but then impulsively decided to continue south to Cambria -> Hwy 46 -> Paso Robles -> Hwy 101 -> home. Total trip came to 250 miles with nary an issue, unless you count the 105+ degree temperatures between Paso Robles and Soledad.”

 

We were pleased to see Jim bring his Z to the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion. He participated in the highly successful Bring-A-Trailer Alumni Gathering held at Turn 3 at Laguna Seca:

 

    

A little video of Jim’s Z:

 

 

Stay Tuned!

“So Rob and crew at Z Car Garage will help me realize a dream that really wasn’t one until Grant decided to surprise me for my 70th birthday. What an incredible present — a highly-desirable Series One Z-car!”

ZCG looks forward to making Jim’s dream a reality. After driving Butters, Jim wants more power and Rob has an old Rebello 3.1L from his stash that will be installed.  A set of triple phh44 Mikuni carbs, Harada intake manifold, Fujitsbo header/exhaust system and much more will follow. Thanks to Jim and his family for believing in Z Car Garage and the power of the Z!

LONG LIVE THE Z!

 

  

More pictures in the gallery below

 

Nickhil’s beautiful 1973 240z needed some love. He acquired it a few years ago and took it to another shop since ZCG was backlogged. They tried to fix the ignition system and the car came to us barely running.  We performed a full inspection, compression/leakdown test, cleaned up the engine bay and handled some interior items at his request. He would return for full suspension and chassis upgrades!

 

The main culprit for poor running was the timing being set incorrectly and very retarded.  We removed the existing ignition setup and installed the factory distributor with correct advance curve. The coil was replaced and we got it running really well:

 

New door window glass replaced scratched units. We also installed his newer center console:

 

Outside, the body was treated to our favorite side mirrors, the Nissan OEM #E4600:

 

Those groovy louvers were removed:

   

Nickhil visited us to drive his Z and he was so impressed that he signed on to do more work with us. We handed him the keys to “Mrs. Butters”,  our  1970 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 customers 🙂

 

ZCG Big-Brakes and CV Axles

     

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:

 

We removed Nickhil’s stock brakes and installed our ZCG Big-Brake kit. The Z also received entire full coil-over (Koni) 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. T3 finishes the suspension in our signature color and we really appreciate Gabriel and his staff. They make some of the best suspension parts out there for Z cars.

 

ZCG Big-brakes and T3 coil-overs replacing stock setup up front:

 

T3 T/C rods:

 

Suspension Techniques sway bars. Front installed:

 

At the rear, the factor drum brakes were replaced with our ZCG Big-Brakes. Factory handbrake functionality retained! T3 coil-covers also installed:

 

Our Z Car Garage CV Axles help transmit power to the ground and ensure smoother operation compared to your standard half shafts. Nickhil’s Z received set #285. We have over 60 CV axle kits on customer cars and we are stoked with all of the positive feedback.

 

Stock half shafts and control arms (L):

 

S/T rear sway bar and T3 control arms installed. Also visible is the ZCG exhaust system using 2.5″ piping to a stainless resonator and Magnaflow muffler with slash-cut tip:

Panasport Wheels

What is the perfect companion for Nichkil’s Z, now that it has full suspension and wicked brakes? Panasport wheels! We replaced the old-school Western wheels with 16×7 Panasports and Bridgestone’s killer new S-007a tire in 225/50/16:

 

We kept in touch with Nickhil and he has been out Enjoying The Ride. We even spotted him attending the successful Golden Week Kyusha Festival in May:

 

Thank you for entrusting us with your S30 Nickhil. We are so fortunate to work with owners that appreciate the Z and believe in our ability to make them better! LONG LIVE THE Z!

More pictures in the gallery below