^ Well, on the brighter side at least you are getting over the humps and not sitting scratching your head for too long! Hopefully the rest of your plans come together smoothly. Again, as jwick has said there are some around willing to lend a hand or beer if you need some!

Really appreciate it! Knowing there is support in the area has bumped my confidence even if I have not yet taken advantage of it.

Today... was an excellent day! Didn't get as far as we'd hoped, but we finally (I think) solved the last puzzle.. We found some issues with our drivers side turbo inlet pipe (which we have nicknamed "the bitchpipe" since it has sucked a 1.5 days of our time banging our heads against the wall).. in the configuration we settled on yesterday, it looked like a lip in the chassis was going to wear a hole in the coupler over time.

Here is what you need to know:
There are two inlet pipes, they are packaged together and not labeled differently as if they are identical.
They look, at first, to be identical.
They are NOT identical.
One is slightly longer than the other. This is the drivers side pipe. The short end goes towards the turbo.
The slightly shorter pipe (passenger side pipe) has the long end going towards the turbo. Groove, this information will extend your life for years in missed stress. We went through what felt like a zillion permutations of the configuration and it just felt like nothing worked.

With those pipes finally figured out, we mocked up the rest of the pipeing and it went in like a breeze. The coupler between the drivers side compressor outlet pipe and intercooler inlet pipe seemed waaaay too short. When we finally got it on, it just looked like it would pop off at first boost. After speaking to support, we found out that some of the pipes got manufactured a half inch too short, and on some kits that coupler wont reach enough to tightly couple both pipes so they sourced longer couplers.. Our support guy, Jason, grabbed one and overnighted it to us. Should be here tomorrow and that issue should be solved.

We marked the two inlet pipes and drilled/tapped/barbed (for PCV) and did the same for the passenger charge pipe (for wastegates) and reinstalled. We cannibalized the old horn bracket to make a new horn bracket, flipped the horn around, and mounted it to the passenger side top intercooler mount. Looks like another horn on the drivers side will need to be adjusted to fit the air filter, but we haven't installed it yet to see. Got the BOV's installed, and also cut the snorkel outlets to fit the intercooler outlet couplers.

Got the upper intake manifold drilled/tapped/barbed as well for the BOV's, will reinstall tomorrow...
Speaking of tomorrow.. if we have an excellent day we could finish the build... but nothing ever seems to go as fast as I think it will. Most likely we'll be ready for base tune on New Years Eve. In 2016, I resolve to boost.

To do list (in orderish):
Run wastegate lines
Run power steering lines
Install upper intake manifold
Replace way-to-short coupler between driver's IC inlet and turbo charge pipe (hopefully the coupler will be in)
Run BOV lines
Install air filters
Install MAF tubes and MAFs
Install steering shaft coupler
Install o2 sensor housings onto turbos (along with o2 sensors)
Install Y-pipe
Put wheels back on car.
Install big *** GTM oil pan and plumb turbo oil drains
Install new fuel pump

Looks like a crapload of stuff, but a lot of it is small jobs. We would have to crush tomorrow to get it all done, most likely sometime the day after we will finish up. I really don't see too many snags ahead, just a lot of hooking stuff up.

http://www.the370z.com/attachment.ph...1&d=1451457840

Another great day.. thinking we could finish today was stupid ambitious, as we came no where near, but still very productive... a lot of time was spent making small adjustments here and there. For instance, we noticed the passenger side water feed to the turbo was up against the chassis... the stainless steel lines are like sharkskin and there was already some abrasion on the paint. We reclocked the fitting to be a little freer and also split some heater hose to wrap the line in. I also heat wrapped a portion that was near the manifold.

I also felt the fuel line extension-OEM fuel line connection was in a high heat area near the manifold and the connection is plastic, so I heat wrapped it as well and we repositioned the line so it reached the fuel rail inlet without strain.

Reinstalled the intake manifold.. that felt like a milestone! Found all the vacuum ports and harness plugs and those look good.

Modified the starter cable (just flatten out the angle on the terminal) and shrink wrapped the new boot into place, heat wrapped the portion of the run that ran near the manifold and reconnected it.

Installed the passenger side charge pipe..

Ran the wastegate lines.. There is a small heatshield around the pass wastegate and it looked like it could cut into the vacuum line so I bent it slightly..

Ran the PCV lines...

Ran the power steering lines...

Relocated the drivers side horn to clear the air filter (just had to move it up an inch or so).

Cut off a nub on the radiator support to clear the pass air filter.

New coupler for the Drivers side turbo outlet/intercooler inlet connection arrived and is WAY longer than the old one. No worries there about the pipe popping loose under pressure anymore.

Installed the MAFs and MAF tubes...
One note here, before we put in the MAFs, we taped the holes, left the tubes off the throttle bodies, and ran a shop vac from the air filter end of the pipe to make sure we sucked out any dust that might have fallen into the intake path... We figured the turbos would spin a little but they actually spun up quite a bit and we got to hear them whine a little - it was pretty exciting! Only did this for a few seconds on each side since there isn't any oil in the snails yet.

Also torqued down the intercoolers in their final position and went ahead and installed the air filters. We would have run the BOV's but the length of vacuum line Gamma provided is barely enough to run one of them, much less both and the auto parts store was closed.

That is one thing that has been a slight annoyance - the kit is extremely stingy on the hoses. The PCV and wastegate hose was barely long enough (none left over), they forgot to include power steering hose, and the BOV hose isn't nearly long enough. There isn't much provided for oil drain either, we'll have to see if we have enough when we install tomorrow... we know they left us short two hose clamps there as well. Another thing is, there is no spare hardware. You get just as many nuts and bolts as you need and no more.. god forbid you lose one! Gamma has spoken to us several times about working with them to refine the small details like this and to refine the instructions so hopefully all these notes I am streaming onto the forum will help me write up a pretty comprehensive report for them and the kit can be improved. The clamps were no big deal, as I hate the factory spring clamps so we just went to Ace and bought a big bag of screw clamps.

Overall, this was a really satisfying day as we accomplished a lot of things and were able to cross a lot of items off the list. Even filled the radiator before bed to let it settle and hopefully let some air out.

Still left to do (in orderish):
BOV lines
Turbo oil drains
Steering coupler
o2 housings
test pipes
Y-pipe
wheels
oil pan
fuel pump

Then we'll be ready for the initial startup! I'll probably leave the bumper/fender liners off until after we see no leaks. May even leave it off for the tune and flatbed the car to JTRAN. Haven't decided yet.

Hate to derail the thread here but How bad does the weather affect that garage? Like is it unbearable in the winter/summer? Reason Im asking is I recently got an acre lot to build my new home, and I want a huge garage in the back. I know that a wooden garage with insulation will probably be better in terms of weather, But a brick one would be waayyyyy cheaper lol

Can't wait for the intitial start of this badboy btw:tup:

can't wait to hear this thing start man!

Happy New Year!

Could have finished today, but we didn't.. Haven't been able to get hold of JTRAN to find out when we can base tune, so we didn't feel rushed. I figure they are probably trying to get some semblance of a New Years Eve without people like me pestering them.

We ran the BOV lines, changed the fuel filter, installed the massive oil pan, plumbed the turbo oil drains, tried to installed the crash bar (Gamma forgot to send us the hardware), and reinstalled the steering coupler. It was at this point where we noticed the steering coupler barely touched the drivers side oil drain and the water crossover, so we decided to rerun some of the lines which involved changing the positioning of some of the intercooler clamps, etc. Once we got that sorted, we started installing the o2 sensor housings and we are kind of stumped on how to get torque on some of the nuts. We think we can get to it with a crows foot... Neither my BIL or I have ever used one so we didn't think of it... a picture Groove sent us while we were texting back and forth turned us on to the idea. Thanks Groove!

Speaking of Groove, that mofo is flying through his build and making us look bad. If you call me tomorrow talking about starting your car for the first time I will fly to your house and leave a flaming bag of dog poo on your doorstep =)

Anyhow, the only things left before base tune are running the rest of the exhaust (test pipes and y-pipe) and the fuel pump, which we still didn't start since the car is on the lift. Tomorrow we'll put the wheels on in the morning and pick up some crows feet.. my BIL will finish up the exhaust and I'll do the fuel pump and hopefully we'll hear from JTRAN!

Hah!! Glad to hear you guys are putting the finishing touches on everything! Thanks again for such detailed info on how to tackle some of the areas. Wouldn't be able to make such progress otherwise!

Umm what is BIL?

YzGyz

Brother-In-law

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Got crows feet. Going to finish the pump and JTRAN is going to try and come this afternoon for the base tune!

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dude(s)/Gal(s)!! post when you will be there. I live around the corner so I might show up.

YzGyz

Apparently everything is closed, or we would have pushed tonight to start the car.

Johnny came by and loaded the base tune, seems like a really great guy and super knowledgeable. I am really happy he is going to be doing the tuning. I was also surprised to learn that, with Ecutek, the stock fuel computer even works properly. This is going to be like a factory turbocharged car in terms of functionality (and hopefully, but not necessary expectantly, reliability). He did tell me we should get to about 480whp pretty easily with the 600cc injectors and, for a street car, that is all I am really looking for right now. It will be BY FAR the fastest and most powerful car I have ever driven seeing as how my stock Z was already the fastest and most powerful car I had driven (though only marginally over my 350z and my RX-7).

Unfortunately, two things derailed starting the car tonight:

1) During the fuel pump install I got pretty sick off the gas fumes and had to call it for several hours.

2) We don't have enough hardware to put the exhaust back together.. it never occurred to us that 3 the 5 flange mounting points on each stock cat were based on studs in the cat itself... I got test pipes, but don't have enough hardware to install them and all the hardware stores were closed =( Also, WTF autozone does not have bolts/nuts.
Do we need any kind of special heat resistant hardware for the o2 housing-to-test pipe junction?

So anyhow, o2 housings/sensors are in (CROWS FEET ARE THE BOMB), oil filled, wheels are on, fuel pump is installed in the housing and spliced in, ready for reinstallation to the tank. Tomorrow we'll install it and get hardware for the exhaust (and crash bar), pray, and push the start button. If she fires up and drives safely around the block, we'll put on the bumper and undertray and drive to JTRAN. HOPING to be there late morning, like 11am'ish. I will update this thread when we are headed there for anyone who would like to meet us there!

Groove - the fuel pump installation has changed. The instructions show a billet bracket to hold the new pump in place, but that has been deleted. I freaked today thinking Gamma forgot to include it in the kit, but Jason informed me that it has been replaced by that big rubber sock. Cleanly shave all the retaining plastic out of the housing, put the sock on the pump, lube it up a little (we used some motor oil) and stuff the thing in the housing. It fits snug. Orient the pump the same as if the bracket existed.

When are you scheduled with Johnny to tune?

Hoping to be there late morning.. but no specific time scheduled. He just said "I'll be there tomorrow, come on by."

Give us a window. I might bring the G by and watch the tuning.

Honestly not terribly sure. We spent all morning looking for grade 8 bolts for the exhaust (Ace Hardware had them) won't really know until we actually start the car successfully

I'll update this thread as soon as I have any idea!

We're on the way to JTRAN now. The car starts but dies pretty quickly so it's on a flat bed.. Hopefully up and running shortly!

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I just found your thread yesterday. good luck with everything ! post some videos on the dyno

It runs! Had to adjust MAF tube size in the ECU. Had one coolant leak on the heater hose but right otherwise. Just pulled it onto the dyno!

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Good luck!

Post a video!

Awesome!

Johnny "do you want the good news or the bad news?"
Me "bad news first"
Johnny "you're out of injector."
Me "what's the good news?"
Johnny "you just made 500whp"

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Nice!

Still adding timing. 520 now.

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Leaving it or backing down?

Good stuff I was there this morning swapping my ecu out. Hope you have some media to share!

Got to 538. Backed it down to 520. 16 degrees of timing, 11.4afr, 7000rpm

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Johnny is the Man to go to for VQ tuning in Houston!!

This is on a stock exhaust/cats too? Do you know what pressure you're at?

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!

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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.