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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Chris B is a long time ZCG customer and we have been with him through various stages of his build. Affectionately called “Lucy”, this beautiful G35 coupe has won numerous awards at shows including Hot Import Nights. Chris fanatically detailed the engine bay with polished and stainless parts abound. Even the Cosworth intake manifold was customized with candy-red carbon fiber to match the valve covers and huge Brembo calipers at all 4 corners.

 

 

Low compression in one cylinder and a feeling that he’d reached the limits of the Vortech supercharger sparked a call to ZCG. Rob and Chris discussed the next stage of boost for Lucy and it would be in the form of two turbos courtesy of a GTM Stage 2 kit! Parts arrived and the drivetrain was removed.

 

The built VQ was re-assembled with care and attention to detail considering how Chris insanely polished parts like the entire front end.

 

Behold the shine. Once you start polishing it is hard to stop!

 

With the engine buttoned down the GTM twin-turbo kit was installed. Note details like the manifold heat shields and insulation protecting oil/wiring lines near downpipes.  The fresh GTM stage 4 automatic transmission is a prudent upgrade to handle big power:

 

Twin-turbo VQ, welcome home!

 

Polished hot/cold pipes feed the GTM FMIC:

 

Rob’s conservative 91 octane tune yielded 450hp/421tq to the wheels. More power to come!

 

We love working with Chris and look forward to turning up the wick when the urge arises! Enjoy the boost and that wonderful engine bay!

Lots of pictures of Chris’ build in the gallery below so don’t forget to click after the jump!
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Congratulations to Patrick Chio for his 2nd place finish in the Modified RWD class in Round 6 of the 2013 Redline Time Attack race! He has been a top contender in this series with 1st/2nd place finishes. Recently he added a Vortech supercharger and this compounded the 350z’s high oil temp issues under hot race conditions. Read Patrick’s report and how Z Car Garage helped tune his 350 to survive the blistering temperatures and demands of the Auto Club Speedway:

Due to a City Tech Auto Body track day at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca we missed the practice day on Saturday. Arriving on Sunday early morning we completed the check up, tech, registration and temperature was rising to 77 degrees right before our first session.

Auto Club Speedway is known to put a lot of stress on the motor because of the NASCAR banking at high speed. Our Z hit 5th gear, full throttle, 6k+ rpm on the bank over 140mph. During the first time attack session, our Z was able to keep the oil temperature just about 200F through out the whole session at around 82 degree ambient temperature. However, during the 2nd session ambient temperature rose up to 100F+. We saw many M3, STi and highly modified cars forced to pit after the 2nd lap. Despite the high heat, we managed to finish the full session and oil temperature reached 260F right before the checker flag.

We were amazed that a supercharged 350z was able to last the full session in this harsh environment. Rob and his crew at Z Car Garage have done an amazing job again keeping our time attack Z alive! Below is the video in one of the session (Count how many super cars we have passed):

 

Keep up the superb driving Patrick and thank you for letting ZCG work on your Time Attack Z!

 

 

We love the Datsun 510. We also want to see these cars driven and road-worthy instead of sitting. Earlier this year Rob got in touch with a friend from Georgia to help keep this yellow 4-door Dime from a rusty, idle future. Almost two decades ago Rob and Steve met for the first time under true, Datsun-geek circumstances…Steve was driving the 510 in traffic when Rob spotted him while moving in the opposite direction. Rob stepped out of his car and ran all they way back to catch Steve and introduce himself as a fellow Datsun fan,  thus beginning their friendship.

 

When Steve purchased this car in the early 90’s it had already been setup for autocross duty with Carrera coil-overs and a roll-cage. Steve even muscled a rear seat in between the roll bar so his kids could enjoy the ride with him.  At one point in time Steve scored a set of Mikuni carbs from Rob which are still on the car to this day! This Datsun has got character.

 

Steve enjoyed the 510 for many years and it was a big part of his life.  Unfortunately it had been sitting for awhile and he decided to pass the car on his brother-in-law Jonathan who then sold it to Rob as its next steward.  I joined Rob the day the 510 arrived to ZCG from Georgia via transport. The little Dime fired right up though it was smoking heavily. The head was pulled:

The stock bottom end was left alone but it was time to send the head to Rebello to work their magic!
Before/after:

Port/polish with fresh valvetrain:

 

With the Rebello head, dual Mikunis and 91 octane the L20b made an impressive 147hp/130tq to the wheels.  Over 100tq from 3k to 7krpm. Great, NA L-series power:

I drove the 510 with it’s freshened motor and I was amazed at the power delivery. It rips, listen to this video clip:

A little stoplight action against Turbo Box Flare

The car is an absolute blast to drive. It can be chucked into corners and there is plenty of power to leave a grin on your face. The suspension is really the highlight of the car but now has an engine to match it!

 

Since the foundation and history of the car is so great we didn’t do anything radical. Rob’s plans are to make the car comfortable enough for daily driving yet capable and fun at open track events. The extensive roll cage wrapped in hot pink nerf padding had to go as it was intrusive. Nissan 350z seats on factory rails are a welcome addition to the interior with the cage removed:

 

Crystal-clear outward visibility courtesy of a new windshield. She is now sporting 14 x 6 Panasports (+15mm) from the ZCG Datsun 2000. We like the look compared to the Italian 15s:

 

What’s next? A factory tach install, minor cosmetic restoration and some wiring cleanup. The car is sweet. Yellow 510 just got a new exhaust system and Porterfield R4S pads to do a track day at Laguna Seca. Thank you Steve for keeping the 510 in the family!

 

We’ve known Patrick for a long time and when he is not running City Tech Auto Body he is out on the track his Time-Attack prepped Porsche orange 350z. Patrick was running an NA motor then made the jump to forced induction via the Vortech supercharger. He installed the kit himself and visited ZCG for tuning and advice on how to keep the VQ cool during blazingly hot track days ie. Buttonwillow Raceway. Here is an update from Patrick from Round #5 of the Redline Time Attack:

As some of you might know, our Z Car Garage and CityTech Auto Body Sponsored 350z has been through a lot of struggling with overheating problems after we installed the a Vortech Supercharged Kit. We have spent tons of time and testing to make it cool down. Our goal is to make it last through the whole 20mins session without worrying about overheating with full power.

07/20/2013 Saturday: The first practice day of the Redline Time Attack event was at 102F, a perfect day to put a ultimate heat test to our new setup. Compared to our last event which the Z lasted only 2 laps before overheating, we installed a 2nd oil cooler, running 50/50 Methanol water injection and de-tuned. Also, Rob suggested that to remove the aftermarket electric fans and put back the stock fan with shrouds. With all the help from our crew and Z Car Garage, we double checked all the fluid levels are full, adjusted tire pressure and started our first 20mins session. The Z felt great with the supercharged power on the first lap, pulling on every gears to the redline. But will it last full 20 mins without a drop of power? 4th lap passed by, our Nitto NT-01 tires started to get greasy due to the heat, but Oil temperature still stayed at 230F, intake and water temp stay cool without a sign of overheating, no power dropped. We are so amazed because our last event only last 1 ½ lap before oil temp reached 290F. We managed finished with the best lap time of 1’58.8 running CW13 configuration.

07/21/2013 Sunday: This was a much hotter day at 107F. In our first qualify session, everyone was running slower time than yesterday. We managed to qualify at the lap time of 1’59.5 which placed us third in our class. All other vehicles in our class were full race gutted car and our Z still have the full dash, door and windows in place. During the race session, temperature got worse which rose up to 108F. Despite the burning sun and air, the Z’s water and oil temp were both stayed cool and no overheating throughout the entire race session, however, the tires were giving up after the 2nd lap from the heat. We couldn’t get any better time than the qualifying session due to the hot temperature and traffic on the track and ended up the time 2’00.391. We ended up third place in modified RWD Class.

Special shout out to Z Car garage crews for their awesome work keeping the Z at operating temperature while making great power in this extreme operating environment.

The next event will be at AutoClub Speedway, Fontana on Sep 15, 2013. We will be doing some more modifications and possibly installing a full roll cage on the Z. We will keep you guys updated.