Torque?

Johnny don't play around when boost. His shop is top!

YzGyz

Test pipes (we added) and Invidia exhaust (one of a few mods that came on the car). Not sure what the boost is. Embarrassingly, we never had time to install the boost gauge! This build came down to the wire. If I hadn't wrecked and the instructions were really good, we would have made the original time line no problem.

412.8 ft-lb's

538whp run:
http://www.the370z.com/attachment.ph...1&d=1451792352

520whp run:
http://www.the370z.com/attachment.ph...1&d=1451792352

Notes from today:
We got the fuel pump installed today and got the exhaust on too. I had some cheap test pipes and either they didn't quite fit, or the Gamma o2 housings didn't quite fit, or the engine mount spacers from the kit moved things too much - but we had a difficult time getting the exhaust on and it's not the most professional looking installation - but it works and no leaks.

Tried to start the car up.. it starts.. it revs for about a second, then dies. Everything looked tight so we figured we'd just tow it to JTRAN since they could diagnose a lot faster than us. Turned out to be a good move as it was an error in the base tune for the MAF tube size - Johnny had it up and running in about 5 minutes in the parking lot. We did spring a coolant leak, but it was just a loose hose clamp on the heater hose into the firewall (not my handiwork, I blame my BIL.. he signed up for an account on here so ridicule him mercilessly). Other than that the install was tight and Johnny complemented us on the work. With the engine cover on and strut brace in place it just looks factory.

Johnny is awesome. Really likable guy and we had a great time hanging out. He finished the tune in a matter of hours, then he and a tech (forgot his name now) helped us put the bumper, fender liners, covers, strut brace back in... I am not big on stickers, but I asked them to send me one to put on when they get more in stock.

Initial Impressions
Holy Crap! This thing hauls ***. Throttle response is like a hair trigger. Boost comes on fast and smooth. The power never seems to stop. The delivery is so smooth and linear it just feels factory. It's BY FAR the most powerful vehicle I have ever driven, and yet it feels totally manageable and predictable. That being said, the go-pedal can be an on-off button for traction depending on what gear you are in and I didn't get much chance to drive it since it was late and raining... Hopefully tomorrow morning will be dry. I am also still on the stock clutch (Johnny mentioned the slight dip in the torque curve was the clutch slipping a little - though he said I could limp on it for a good while) so I am taking it easy and trying to learn how to drive the thing. Groove - you are going to love this thing.

Overall, I am really happy with this project and proud we were able to get through it. It's nice being able to say I was the first DIY installation of a particular kit and I hope to be able to help other folks on here who end up going the same route. I know the installation forwards and backwards and all the places I am going to need to inspect regularly. That being said, I couldn't have completed this without immense help from my BIL, his sweet garage/tool obsession, and the support we got from Jason Rubio with Gamma. I'll do all I can to help them refine the instructions, and I am hoping in return they can hook me up with some deals on more parts in the future.

More to come in the coming weeks. I have a zillion pics (and videos from today) to sort through. This thread is not dead! There is a lot more to come.

BOOOOOOST!

My kit has arrived! WOOOOOP!
 

I would of expected more torque for that HP level. Not a bad thing and probably much more manageable on the street.

I also agree that installing your own turbo kit makes you feel so much more comfortable with maintaining it in the future. I know mine backwards and forwards.

Set the car up to run 12 to 13 degrees on spool up and midrange and trickled timing up to redline. It definitely hAs a little more in it. Awesome build and thanks for letting us tune it!

Got as far as Tallahassee last night and stopped to get some sleep. Car threw an SES light around Pensacola (9ish hours into the trip) but visual inspection looked good, temps looked good, car is running well. I texted Johnny and he said I'm most likely fine. I ordered an obd2 Bluetooth so I'll be able to read the code tomorrow. Getting 24mpg. Fuel computer is reporting 12. Heading off to St Pete!

Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk

You can stop off at a big box auto parts store, and often they'll read the code for you for free if you want to know asap?

Yup

AutoZone will do it for sure.

When I was a child, my Dad was a little overprotective with me. Maybe not overprotective, but definitely overly cautious. Let me give you an example. On the 4th of July, when all the other kids my age were shooting Roman Candles at one another - I was the frowning dork holding a single sparkler... while wearing safety glasses.

Why am I telling you this story? Because today, I am that kid again. And the overprotective parent... that part is being played by my OEM clutch. I can drive around, but full torque just causes immediate slip. I am officially in the clutch market. Already got an HD CSC ready to go in. Being that I am back to my small garage, no tools, jack stands, and scarce time - I'll probably have to farm out the installation. Plus, installing a clutch is not nearly as fun as installing a turbo kit.

Good idea! I did get the car home and parked in the garage today and immediately fell into bed. Got a ton of things to do and the OBD2 reader gets in tomorrow so I'll probably end up using it anyway.

The car runs awesome. Pulls HARD. A little touch of throttle in 6th = 120mph before you know it. It's an absolute joy to drive. I probably stopped about 6 or 7 times over the whole drive to do visual inspections, etc and didn't have a single issue besides the SES light popping up right after a refuel. I did a whole tank cruising at about 78mph to get a good fuel economy test. I only boosted 3 times, but an accident put me in stop&go traffic for about an hour and a half.. still got 24mpg! For some reason the fuel computer reads 12. Not sure what is going on there, but I am not terribly concerned. My passenger for the entire trip was a big fire extinguisher, and I am happy to report it never got off it's lazy a$$.

The idle hunts a little bit here and there.. Johnny tells me the ECU will learn eventually and it should settle out.

One more bit of great news, I forgot to report! I found out on Saturday that my 2011 PW (orange plasti) was a total loss. You can imagine I was hoping for this when I went ahead and bought another Z.. I just forgot with all the 500+whp excitement. Guess how much they are giving me for it!? $21,698. $98 more than I paid for the 2013 which is 2 years newer and 20k miles younger (not including Tax, Tag, Title of course). Between the accident, the loss/repair of the PW, buying another Z, the installation with substandard instructions, the tune, and the 1000 mile journey with little testing there was a lot of room for things to go wrong for me and somehow I squeezed through no worse for wear. Johnny's actual words were "I would have told you you're retarded" when I explained the train of decisions I had made. Sometimes I guess it pays to be lucky! =)

Now.. What do I do with this big box of stock parts? The effort to go back to stock could likely never be worth it and I have no space to store this stuff. Not to mention, I am so in love with the car now I will never want to sell it anyway. Anyone know how I might get hold of a Nissan parts recycler or something where I can unload this stuff for a few bucks? Got stock exhaust (leftover from the PW), airboxes, cats, exhaust mani's, washer reservoir, etc.

Also, anyone TT have a solution to getting the washer pump back? Maybe with a smaller reservoir? I get going TT requires some sacrifice, but I wouldn't mind having this back.

Tomorrow I will go sign the papers on the PW. Insurance even told me I cold bring some tools and yoink off some of the aftermarket stuff I left in there... So I'll grab my homelink mirror, speakers, amp, escort mount/wiring. Probably swap the center console too since the one in the new car is a little scratched up.

Probably won't have time to start sorting through media until next week.

Thanks for all the support Johnny! I couldn't be happier with the experience. Don't forget, I want a sticker!

My kit has arrived! WOOOOOP!
 

Funny thing is that's exactly what Johnny would say!

The original GTM turbo kits had an option for a smaller relocated washer bottle. You might want to call Gamma and ask them if they have one.

Oh and no shock on the stock clutch.

Yupper, Johnny would say that out right to your face then smile. I would yank out every part possible from the old car including OEM parts. Pedal, bezels, floor mats, door panels, entertainment console parts, shifter boot, everything.

Congrats on the car man. I would get a South Bend clutch set. 6 puck, and RJM pedal.

YzGyz

Wow dude, awesome to hear on the insurance. Pretty sure that wouldn't work out that way for anyone else ever.

I've had pretty good luck with my Z1 clutch. Full face disk and it held 465wtq no problem before I retuned to 440wtq.