Gary M came to ZCG to have Stillen intakes installed and an UPREV tune to maximize the benefits of the new breathing mods. His G37 Convertible already had a custom exhaust installed so here is the baseline with mild gains from the Stillen Gen3 intakes alone for a total of 294hp/244tq to the wheels:

Rob’s UPREV tuning yielded +8hp/9tq to the wheels for a total of 304hp/253tq. On the dyno note the improvements from low rpm all the way to redline:

Just another example of how UPREV tuning can optimize your bolt-on power mods!

This G35 sports a built engine with a complete Vortech Supercharger kit and SI-trim upgrade.  A full supporting cast of components were installed by ZCarGarage including:

• Stillen headers
• Stillen exhaust
• Berk Hi-flow cats
• 600CC injectors

Rob and the ZCG crew extracted significant power gains using the UPREV software and PMAS MAF. A solid 20rwhp and 18rwtq were gained bringing total output to 456rwhp and 364tq!!!  Gotta love how the Vortech blower delivers a smooth ramp-up of power as rpm rise.

Jim’s G35 is a powerhouse but braking and traction were two items that needed attention.

We spent a lot of time making a decision about the look and size of the wheels. No offense to Jim but the chromed out Foose wheels were destined for a slammed Chevy Silverado! Take a look:

It is amazing how a wheel/tire combo can transform a car’s aesthetic. 19″ SSR Professor SP3 wheels look absolutely brilliant on the G and allowed us to install much needed larger tires. Icing on the cake was the Stoptech 14″ ST60 front brakes with ST22 13″ brakes in the rear:

Front:

Rear:

The combo is incredible!
Rob

More pictures in the gallery, enjoy!
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ZCarGarage is performing their first Stillen Supercharger installation for the 370Z. You might recognize this sharp Z from its great power gains with the Stillen exhaust system and Berk high-flow catalytic converters. It also received several suspension and cosmetic upgrades since last year.
Here are a few pics of the supercharger kit, note  how the dual throttle-bodies are oriented compared to the stock location:
      

        

Keep an eye on the blog for more install updates and you can count on some dyno action too as this boosted 370 makes some serious power!

Hello Z car fans,

As ZCG gets ready to leave for the ZONC Hearst Castle Cruise, we have a Blog entry from Bill (a Z car fan and spirited driver).  He gives us a full report from his last track day at Infineon Raceway.  Have a great weekend and don’t forget your Valentine’s day card for your special someone.

Long live the Z

Rawb

 

The photos and videos are from Hooked on Driving’s January 27th track day at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma.

This 2003 350Z Touring model has seen a handful of track days. It started going to the track on the stock 1-piston brakes and street tires with only a few upgrades: Stillen dual exhaust and AEM cold air intake. Recently added (from ZCG) were StopTech’s small front and rear brake kits with Performance Friction 97 pads. This was the car’s first event on track tires: 245/40-18 BF Goodrich g-Force R1s on the original 18″ wheels. Track tires with tire pressure monitors! The car is otherwise stock (with heated leather seats to take the chill out of winter track days). Despite the upgrades, this is not a track-only car. After swapping back to street tires, it handles the daily commute to and from work.

Infineon is a very technical track, which is challenging but makes for a lot of fun. It has elevation changes, two hairpin turns and the famous esses. The track was wet in the morning. There were a few spins and other incidents, including this car’s slide off the pavement at turn 3a (notice the mud on the left front tire). Nothing hurt but the driver’s pride. A wet track really helps a driver learn to be smooth, a very important part of going fast when the track is dry.

The sun came out in the afternoon and speeds went up. The driver reports that the tires are great, but the StopTech brakes are amazing! With the track pads and regular bleeding with high-performance fluid, they haul the car down from speed over and over without a hint of fade; a huge increase in braking performance over the stock brakes.

This video is from the last session of the day in the intermediate group. It starts out with a few laps of lead-follow with an Audi S4. This run group started out small and by this session, many drivers had packed up for the day, leaving very little traffic. Gotta love having room to roam!

Video Part 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nv4Md5XmSpw

Video Part 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XOXHgn8PCUs

Hooked on Driving, a longtime ZONC supporter, is well known for putting on quality track events. With a strong emphasis on education and safety, it’s a great place for beginners to get started. The event prices include a catered lunch and individual coaching for beginning through advanced drivers. At noon, the coaches fire up their own cars and give beginners hot laps around the track. Big fun! Their web site, www.hookedondriving.com, has lots of information and videos for first-timers.

Even though most of this blog’s track day posts feature modified cars, a stock Z33 is a great track car if properly prepped. Track prep is not complicated. It includes checking the wheel bearings, lug nut torque, belts and hoses. It might also include replacing old brake fluid to help the brakes handle the higher temperatures generated on the track. ZCG can take care of prepping your car for the track.

Please note that in addition to providing full-service maintenance and upgrades, ZCG can also supply parts for do-it-yoursefers. This car’s StopTech brakes were sourced from ZCG and installed by the owner.

We have done a couple of these modifications before to other HR equipped 350Zs with great results.  This round of upgrades differs in two areas.  First off, this is the first set of headers that we have done on an HR car, and secondly, this car is an automatic.

The other changes we made to the car were the tried and true Injen intake system and a pair of Stillen high-flow catalytic converters, both of which we have installed on numerous cars that have come through the shop.  Both of these parts have made nice gains in the past so we pretty much knew what to expect here.

Looking at the dyno graph you can see that the automatic transmission is certainly using up a little more power than in the manual cars but the power gains are more than noticeable.  The car is now more powerful throughout the entire rev range and the torque curve in the middle is now gonna give that push in the back that we all love when you stab the throttle.

I have a feeling that we will be seeing this car again for another round of modifications.  Now that we are an Up-Rev software retailer maybe we will get the chance to play with the fuel and timing tables to get the car where it needs to be.  We can’t wait to get the chance.