Every year, one of my favorite events to attend in Southern California is the annual Japanese Classic Car Show in Long Beach.  JCCS is like a big reunion of old school friends, surrounded by the finest vintage metal made in Japan. The iconic Queen Mary cruise ship and the Long Beach skyline is a perfect backdrop for Zs, 510s, Skylines, Rx-7s, Rx-3s, Celicas, Corollas, Land Cruisers and other interesting Japanese old school cars!

 

Founded by Koji and Terry Yamaguchi, JCCS has been running for 11 years strong now and the bar is set higher ever year. I remember the first year of JCCS, and it’s hard to believe the inaugural event was over a decade ago!  I love this show and the Z Car Garage crew keeps coming back every year to soak up the sun, see old friends and drool over some spectacular vintage builds.

  

Attendance was impressive but surprisingly not over-whelming like previous years and this made photographing cars a breeze!  Sure, a bulk of the cars are the same annually but the small percentage of new cars tend to be amazing.  At JCCS we love that every pass up and down an aisle of cars reveals a new detail, emblem, decal, or set of wheels.  Also, this is a more adult car show (no loud Drake/EDM, no booth babes, no car parents towing around scraping cambered-out red Power Wheels with kids in them) and a breath of fresh air compared to the “party” vibe of the larger California shows.

Nissan’s Debut at JCCS

The OEMs participated in record numbers this year. That’s right, in addition to Mazda, Toyota and Honda our beloved Nissan stepped up for the first time with a great showing of rare and unique vehicles from their vault. My favorite was the 1997 R390 GT1 Le Mans race car, sent over from Japan just for this event! Nissan’s collection also included included a 1975 Bluebird-U 2000 GTX, 1972 Datsun 510 and 1967 411. Our friends at JNC were lucky to drive the Dime and Bluebird over the Monterey Car Week.

Completing the “heritage” lineup was this little/big truck combo – a 1960 Datsun 1200 “surfer” Van towed by a 2016 Nissan TITAN XD pickup. Fingers crossed this new diesel rig “passes” emissions. Ha!

 

Here are few of my favorite Nissans and Datsuns, starting with that not-so forbidden fruit commonly known as the hakosuka.

 

There was no shortage of Skylines this year and my favorite was Eric Khamchan’s KGC10. It’s racing livery removed from previous shows revealed a stunning shade of metallic blue. The killer stance with wide, gun-metal Watanabe wheels stuffed under the flares set this one off from the rest:

 

We first saw this short-nosed Skyline at the Solvang Datsun Roadster Show and were surprised by its intact “surf line” rear fenders,  G-series 4-cylinder power and super rare Hayashi Racing Techno Phantom wheels:

 

Eric Bauer’s  Hako sported period-spec goodies throughout like these Dunlop CR65 tires and C-pillar vent:

 

The only 4-door with molded rear flares sitting pretty on deep step-lipped SSR MKII wheels:

Another red Hako with gold Watanabe’s and a striking peanut butter interior:

 

Finally, this Kaido themed racer replete with external oil cooler, livery and side-exit exhaust:

Z-Car Extravaganza

Z cars from all generations were in full force with cars spanning the tarmac near the Queen Mary to the bayside lawn.  I’m a big fan of subtle modified Z’s but I can also appreciate pristine, bone-stock examples and the occasional shakotan build. This S30 had subtle body-colored flares, deep Simmons wheels and a neatly executed RB25DET engine swap:

 

By contrast Richard Madlangbayan’s RB25DET-powered S30 is wildly flared with retina-searing paint and extensive aero.  To-die-for NISMO LM GT2 wheels were re-barreled and stepped up to 18″ by FiveOneWheels. Check out the rear diffuser, side skirts and spolier too:

 

 

This was my first time seeing Kevin Yeung’s “White DevilZ” in person. It had some ludicrously sized fenders, WORK Equip 03 wheels with a huge wing and more aero. My favorite part? The L-series powerplant force-fed by an HKS turbo kit. I think I overheard Kevin telling a fan that “he had plans to track it”…

 

The guys from JDM Legends displayed this immaculate, super sano S30. From the iconic Watanabe wheels to the triple-carb’d L-series this car was a real treat to view.

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On Sunday we attended Cars & Coffee at the Blackhawk Museum in Danville, CA. Hosted every first Sunday of the month since the New Year, turnout continues to be phenomenal with impressive cars. Our dear friend Ken P. has been a regular at this gathering with his supercharged Datsun Roadster but Sunday’s event would be his last one before moving out of state. As one last hurrah to Ken we assembled a bunch of Datsuns to park together.

 

We left the shop at 6am with a brisk pace headed to Danville. Enjoying the Ride in our eight-car caravan was Rob’s ’67 2000, Kurt’s ’70 Datsun SPL, my ‘67.5 SPL,  Matt’s Datsun 510 wagon, Andy’s 1971 240z, Tom’s APS G35, Kurt I’s C5 Z06, and Lou’s R32 Skyline GT-R:

 

Arriving in Blackhawk just before 7am was indeed mandatory to secure parking as cars were already lining up at the entrance. Thankfully Ken and Dave P taped off a section just for Datsuns, and the showing was great with more roadsters, Z’s and 510s!

Francis ’67 SPL, Ken’s supercharged SRL, my ’67 SPL and Dave P’ ’67 2000:

 

Matt D’s 510 wagon and Matt G’s KA-T 510 two-door:

 

S30’s were in strong attendance, both in our corral and scattered through the lot. From mild to wild flavors it was great to see everything from Z32 TT’s to S130’s.

 

I spotted even more Z-cars lurking in adjacent lots, but this one really stood out with a freshly restored vibe and pretty white/red color combo:

 

Even more JDM gems hiding in the lots like this FD RX-7, first and third generation Toyota Celica’s:

 

Ultra-clean 2JZ powered Toyota SC300 and modded Genesis:

 

We were blown away at the variety of awesome machinery at Cars & Coffee. From exotics to muscle cars and literally everything in between we had a wonderful time perusing each aisle. Here were a few highlights for me, and don’t forget to cruise our extensive picture gallery below!

A Fiat 850 and 1200 Cabriolet, the latter shares some styling elements with a  Datsun Roadster!

 

Craziest engine swap: A 1936 Ford Pickup with an insane supercharged 5.4 modular drivetrain:

 

The Aston Martin club was the featured marque with stunning examples:

 

We love muscle cars! Simply mouth-watering cars from GM, Ford and Mopar:

Movie cars like this “Bandit” Trans AM and two(!) Deloreans:

 

Oh, and lots of modern/supercars too, if you’re into that kind of stuff 🙂

 

Big thanks to CNC Blackhawk and Dave P for arranging parking for our Datsuns.  We want to thank all of our friends who made the trip too, the ride back home was a blast!

 

Ken, we wish you luck and great Roadster weather in Seattle, “DATSTER” will be missed!

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Dan J is the owner of this gorgeous 2015 GT-R. The numbers are impressive: Zero to 60 mph in under three seconds; a top speed of 196 mph; 545 horsepower courtesy of a hand-built 3.8-liter twin-turbocharged V6 assembled in a clean room so high-tech that those fleeing scientists on the silver screen would kill to have one. This beast has also been finished in premium Regal Red paint embedded with 24-karat gold flakes! We think it is mesmerizing under varying light conditions:

 

Combined with an Ivory interior this R35 exudes a level of refinement and luxury not typically seen on earlier models:

 

Sidenote: I met Dan in December ’14 while helping his neighbor with a Datsun Roadster. Dan kindly let me park the 510 next his GT-R and I might have mentioned how we love them at ZCG 🙂

 

So what does one do with such a beautiful sportscar? Add more power, of course! Dan came to us for a full AMS Alpha 7 package installation.

 

The package includes:

• ALPHA front mount intercooler
• COBB big SF intake pipe
• Alpha 90mm Mid-pipe
• Alpha 90mm Downpipes
• HKS Legamax Exhaust System
• Injector Dynamics 1000CC Injectors
• Cobb AccessPORT V3

Let’s start with the exhaust and a closer look at the new mid-pipes and down pipes:

 

OEM vs Alpha downpipes:

 

Mid-pipe:

 

Completing the system is the HKS Legamax exhaust. Fresh from the box, compared to the OEM system:

 

Great, OEM-like fit with factory underbody Aero:

 

Looks fantastic here and sounds even better!

 

Underhood, better breathing is achieved through larger intakes and K&N air filters. Stealth black tubing is nice touch:

 

Rounding out intake mods is a larger Alpha front mount intercooler. It boasts 75% more internal flow area over stock and direct bolt-in/no cutting fitment! It doesn’t hurt to have the “Alpha” logo peeking through the front bumper too:

 

Fueling demands are met by larger 1000cc injectors:

 

How do all these mods add up to increase power? To find out we strapped the red beauty to the dyno:

 

Utilizing the CobbAccessPORT V3 for tuning we saw peak gains of 80hp/86tq for a total of 577hp/562tq to the wheels. The dyno plot reveals tremendous gains from 2500rpm to redline. For example at 4000rpm the GT-R is now making 560tq vs 460tq stock!

 

Dan’s GT-R was already blindingly quick from the factory and now it has even more power to enjoy while maintaining its Regal composure. Thank you for bringing your R35 to Z Car Garage! More pictures to enjoy in the gallery below.

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For folks that live in the US, it’s hard to imagine a bigger piece of forbidden automotive fruit than the Nissan Skyline.  The Skyline has never been sold in the United States, yet it’s still managed to develop a fanbase and aura that can easily rival the best foreign or domestic metal. Most of us are familiar with classic Skylines and modern GT-Rs, but the DR30 you see above is still relatively unknown among non-JDM lovers. Reid B. scored this lovely red Skyline 2000 RS-Turbo almost four years ago.

 

The pillarless windows,  angular body shape and killer graphics package create an unmistakable 80’s vibe. We love it!

 

Soon after Reid purchased the DR he started making it his own while preserving the classic OEM goodness. He brought the car to us initially for a dyno and tune after noting that the Skyline had a flat spot in mid-range power delivery. When we inspected the car we found the front suspension was severely rubbing on the tires and this was addressed first.   We installed Techno Toy Tuning (T3) coil-overs with custom springs, RCA’s, Energy Suspension T/C rod bushings and AGX shocks:

 

Although Reid was hoping to fit a 215-width tire up front the DR now sports 225/50/16 Yokohama S-Drive tires at all four corners with great clearance. Watanabe wheels look so right on these!

 

This being a 1983 model, it sports Nissan’s legendary FJ20ET powerplant underhood. Reid was concerned about potential fuel delivery problems and our A/F monitoring revealed lean conditions under load. We discovered a failed fuel-pressure regulator and our solution was to replace and modify a 280zx fuel pump and FPR to fit.  A new oxygen sensor was also installed.

 

Further inspection revealed over-boosting so we lowered the base boost rate with a lower pressure spring in the external wastegate. Dyno results were great and we’re happy to report the DR makes more power at less boost now! Baseline numbers were 160hp/177tq and after 201hp/197tq to the wheels:

 

 

We liked working with Reid as he is the type of owner that wants to bring the car back to life the best he can. Z Car Garage lives for reviving Japanese classics and hearing our customers satisfied with their cars keeps us going. Listen to Reid’s impressions after picking the DR30 up:

Rob,

So the drive home was awesome. I still cant believe it. I didn’t get to drive it to work today but tomorrow for sure. I could drive 80 and then roll on the gas and it would just go and not want to stop. The new front suspension makes the car drive so much better, it doesn’t feel like it rides on cut springs.  I drove the car from Newark to Roseville and it was awesome going from 75-95. I could roll on the gas it would start boost and just keep going. I feel like when I am driving now that I am holding the car back cause it just wants to go and go.  I am still in awe. 

Reid

Enjoy The Ride, Reid and thank you for giving us the pleasure of working on your Skyline!

 

How do you start the New Year off on the right foot? Drive your Nissan/Datsun! Today I joined Rob and Lou for a nice drive through the South Bay foothills. Rob and shop dog Kane drove the 820hp ZCG 300zx Twin Turbo, Lou drove his 470hp R32 Skyline GT-R and I drove the 460hp Datsun 510.

 

Our route included stops at both Uvas and Calero Reservoirs with a nice mix of long sweeping curves and windy, single lane farmland roads with picturesque bridge crossings:

 

 

At Uvas Reservoir we met a nice gentelman and his tubbed ’66 Chevelle:

 

Before departing we made our final stop to admire just how “right” Lou’s R32 looks with the new VOLK TE37SL wheels. Amazing car!

 

 

We hope you can enjoy driving your car in 2015. Follow the blog and Facebook for upcoming fun runs!

Click after the jump for more pictures!
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