What Happens in SEMA . . .
Every year the Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) takes over the 3,000,000 square feet of floor space at the Las Vegas Convention Center for a weeklong trade show that covers everything automotive. Exhibitors feature cars, trucks or SUVs in their displays to showcase their products or simply to attract attention. In a town where weird is normal, the masses of over-the-top and extremely modified cars seem at home inside the multi-building center.

 

Tens of thousands attend the SEMA Show each year, and while a trade show and not open to the public, it’s the one auto show every enthusiast wants to attend. Despite the propensity for depravity that comes with a no-last-call town, SEMA is never anything short of a legendary gathering and we had a blast during our 2-day visit.

 

SEMA 2015 marked a special milestone for the crew at Z Car Garage as we prepared a special 1971 Datsun 240z for display at the show.  Through an exclusive collaboration with OS Giken we unveiled the world’s first North American (LHD) S30 to be powered by the legendary TC24-B1Z engine. This mythical twincam cylinder head bolts onto an L-series block giving it crossflow breathing and high revving operation.

 

 

The Z was well received by show goers stopping by the OS Giken booth which featured video displays of the engine being assembled and tested at ZCG. Jaws dropped at the sight of the TC24 and we also heard admirable reviews from fellow Datsun/restorers for the build. Our friends at Japanese Nostalgic Car (JNC) and Speedhunters featured the car in their SEMA reviews:
JNC
Speedhunters

 

 

The lucky owner of this OS Giken-equipped Z is our friend and customer Gary Stephenson. In short, his build highlights our restorative powers and sports full suspension (allowing 255/40/17 tires under stock flairs), our ZCG Big Brake Kit, nos OEM glass, integrated roll cage,  KA24 transmission, Recaro Competition seats and more.

 

 

 

In current tune/configuration the TC24 produced 376hp/281tq to the wheels on 91 octane, proudly displayed by the car at SEMA. This Z will be driven on the street and track so stay tuned for videos!

 

 

Huge thanks to the crew at OS Giken for a killer booth and memorable experience. Look for an in-depth story about our collaboration with OS Giken and TC24-B1Z build on the blog soon.  Long Live the Z. Here comes the TC!

 

 

Datsuns Everywhere at SEMA!

Our favorite vintage cars were in great numbers this year. One of the most prominent of course
was Sung Kang’s 1973 Datsun 240z affectionately called “FuguZ”.

Sung ( “Han” of Fast and Furious movie fame) chronicled the build through social media, enlisting parts from around the world with final assembly by Kenji at Greddy. Sporting the latest Rocket Bunny body kit, Volk TE37s and an ITB’d RB26 drivetrain this was a crowd favorite and inspiration to all. Congrats to Sung and the Greddy team for an epic build!

 

For the first time in SEMA history a Datsun roadster was on display courtesy of Socal specialist Kevin Desirello.

 

This fully restored 1967 SPL311 was treated to a complete S15 SR20DET drivetrain swap but Kevin and his team didn’t stop there. By adding a VVL head and punching the displacement out to 2.2L, they essentially made an SR22VE-T with power levels of 450whp anticipated!

 

 

Garret wanted the car for its SEMA booth and it was placed alongside the famous Mad Mike Whiddett’s insane twin-turbo FOUR-rotor powered Formula-drift Miata. We are especially proud of Kevin and his roadster for making it to the Top 21 in The Battle of the Builders competition!

 

 

This Datsun 520 pickup was actually a contender in the Optima Batteries challenge with a Mazda Miata drivetrain and double A-arm suspension F/R!

 

Hakotora! Take one Sunny ute and graft a Hakosuka front end on for a mean little pickup. This build had some great details and a built SR20DET under the vented hood.

 

This BRE 510 was on display in the Tokico booth. A celebrity driver car, this is now owned by Datsun-freak Adam Carolla. Our hero Pete Brock was not too far from the dime!

 

Eric and Josh from JDM Legends made the trek from Utah and displayed their superbly restored Ken and Mary Skyline. The C110 had all the choice parts from the triple-carb’d L-series, Comp seats and Watanabe wheels.

 

There’s a New Boss in Town . . .

Not Datsun per se, but the following Nissan 240sx (S14) sports cars all have one thing in common: The “Boss” aero kit from RocketBunny/TRA Kyoto. The kit transforms the front end of an S14 into a B110/Challenger looking vehicle… it takes some time getting used to, but we dig it.

 
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You might remember this stunning S30 we featured a few years ago on our For Sale page that later made its way to our friends at Bring A Trailer. The metallic green color, tan interior and Appliance mesh wheels really give the car an irresistible 70’s vibe.

Several years ago we worked on the Z with previous owner Zack L prior to its sale. You can imagine how happy we were when new owner David J brought “THE 73 Z”  back to ZCG recently. It was running rough and David also wanted to tidy up the engine bay as well as a few other items. While sorting the driveability issues we found the crank pulley dampener was slipping making it hard to set timing. A new factory piece was installed:

  

The carbs were gone through and dialed in. A full tune-up was performed including NOS OEM spark plug cables and intake/exhaust manifold gaskets. This Z is so gorgeous on the outside that we wanted to make it just as nice once the hood is opened. The engine bay was treated to full powdercoating and zinc plating services, new clutch hydraulics and a refreshed radiator.

 

Here is a look before and after…an engine bay worthy of its shiny exterior!

 

We replaced the factory exhaust manifold with an MSA ceramic-coated header followed by our ZCG custom 2.5″ exhaust system with stainless resonator and slash tip:

 

Old twice-pipe setup:

 

Our ZCG upgraded door seals were installed and door fitment sorted to eliminate that “tinny” sound S30 owners commonly experience:

 

The fuel recovery system needed attention so hoses were replaced and tidied up:

 

Wheels undoubtedly make or break a car’s aesthetics. The dealer-optioned Appliance wheels originally fitted definitely look just right and maintain that vintage feel. David chose a set of Rota RB wheels to add a little modern flair and more rubber to the road:

 

With a freshened engine bay and new shoes David showed the ’73 Z at the Brisbane car show:

We loved working on your Z so thank you David for coming back to ZCG!

Check the gallery for more pictures!
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This car belongs to the one and only William of William’s Autobody fame.  The 240 came into the shop with a noisy valvetrain so we (Josh) removed the front cover and discovered that the timing chain tensioner had dismantled itself over the last few hundred miles.  Uh oh.  Normally this would result in the chain jumping a tooth or more on one of the gears which would cause terminal engine damage, we happened to get lucky.  Part replaced, Long live the L-series engine!!

Turning our focus towards the rear of the car, we have a slight overhaul in order.  What you see here are a set of T3 (Techno Toy Tuning) fully adjustable rear control arms.  These new pieces are light years ahead of the stock stamped pieces in terms of stiffness and adjustablility.  The perfect alignment is now achievable.  To accompany the control arms and their new bushings are a set of 250lbs/in springs (up from 175lbs) to firm up the rear a bit.

The new rear suspension pieces and and replaced tensioner will help our faithful painter enjoy one of his Z cars to its fullest.  ZOOM ZOOM (He has a Miata as well)  Long Live the Z!!

240Zs rule.  They are lightweight, handle amazingly well, and are easy to work on; but what do you do when the reliable L-series engine runs out of breath?   Simple, bring it to Z Car Garage and install a set of 44mm Mikuni carburetors, new header, and a slightly larger exhaust system…. and hold on!!

The amazing change in the dyno numbers only tell half the story.  The fun factor of this car is now light years ahead of where is was when the car first came to us.  The torque now stays strong through the entire rev-range and the increased breathing capacity now allows the engine to spin freely to six grand if you so desire.  There is an increase of FORTY horsepower and the same in torque through the last 1,500rpm.  This is a life changing difference.

One of the reasons this looks so drastic is the inefficiency of the semi-odd dual carb setup that this car came to us with, but the results prove that that this is one huge step in the right direction to making this car about as much fun that the owner can handle.  The car is now using three individual ITG filters to make sure that the newly found airflow is clean enough for government work so please don’t think that we sent this car on it’s way with no filtration.  Sorry that I don’t have any pictures.

On the horizon for this car is a possible camshaft change to get the last bit of power out of this engine so expect a post in the future if this comes to fruition.  The smile on the owner’s face hasn’t left since we gave the car back and it seems we have lit the fire under another early Z enthusiast, we are happy to help.  ZCG

There are a few more photos after the ‘read more.’

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