Nissan 370Z Forum - My long overdue GTM/ Baker Tuning TT build

Well, I finally found some time to sit down and write up the whole process. Some background first- I started to look at new cars late last year, and wanted to sell both my tired daily driver (2003 IS300) and the garage toy ( well modded 2004 STi) in order to downsize to just one car. This meant I needed something comfortable with a lot of gadgets since it would be my daily driver, and it needed to be faster than the Subaru in order for me to feel like I upgraded. I was looking at used 996tts, a new CTS-V, an IS-F and a few others. The GTR was out of the running, since the cost of upkeep on that car is unreal. The local Porsche dealer didn’t want my business, as even the receptionist wouldn’t speak to me when I walked in. The Lexus dealer told me they had an IS-F, but they didn’t want to go get it from the garage a few blocks away. I was really close to the CTS-V coupe, but they just wouldn’t move on the price and there is no way I was spending 73k on a GM product. A GT500 and Z06 would have offered the performance I was after, but the interiors of both were not nice places to be and I couldn’t handle the “Vette Guy” stigma. BMW/Audi/Benz were out due to reliability issues. I flirted with the idea of a Viper, but it’s just not a realistic daily driver.

A good buddy of mine has a G37s coupe, and I liked the car, but it didn’t have near enough go. I decided to run up to Baker Nissan to talk to Paul and Jason about putting a turbo kit on a G37. While I was there, I took a 370 out for a test drive, and I realized I preferred the two-seater vs the 2+2. I reached out to Sam at GTM, who was great about talking me through my options as far as forced induction on the Z. Paul and Jason at Baker made me feel confident that I could use a boosted Z as a daily driver without issue. It didn’t hurt that I’ve always had a thing for Zs, especially the 240 and 300.

It took some time to find the right car, as apparently it was fairly challenging to find a 370 Touring with nav and the sport pack in a color I wanted and a manual transmission. I actually had parts for the car showing up before I owned it, since I couldn’t pass up some of the Black Friday deals. I ended up purchasing the car from Fusz Nissan out of St. Louis. They had the car tinted and a clear bra put on, and I flew up to grab it on a Friday morning. The drive back took care of most of the break-in period. I rolled back into my garage at about 4 am Saturday morning.

Parts began to be installed immediately. First was the Blendmount and Mirrortap power cord for my Escort 9500. A GTR start button and Nismo shift knob followed. The clutch helper spring got yanked out at this time as well. The car was stock for less than 24 hours of my ownership. About a week later, I got bored and installed the Hotchkis sway bars and Z Speed under panel as well as dying the interior stitching red. EVO-R CF door handle covers were installed because the stock silver handles look like *** on any color car but silver. LED interior lights, black chrome badges and a JDM rear fog light topped off this part of the build. Once the car was broken in, it was strapped to a dyno and produced 280whp/230trq (Dynojet). Here is where a normal person would have stopped. Unfortunately, we’re not normal people, we’re car guys.

By now the big ticket items started showing up. Sam came through with his stage 1 turbo kit, oil cooler, 3” downpipes with external wastegates plumbed back in, boost and AFR gauges, and a few other goodies. All hot side piping was ceramic coated, and all of the intercooler piping was powdercoated black. The intercooler got his thermal dispersant coating as well. A CSF radiator and condenser showed up around the same time. NST provided the Spec stage 3 clutch and lightened flywheel. Along the way I picked up Eibach springs, a heavy duty CSC, stainless brake lines, a TurboXS manual boost controller, Whiteline endlinks and a crap-ton of sound deadener. Tony at F.I. sent me one of their 3” TDX systems, with cats and the mufflers ceramic coated black to cut down on the bling factor.

I enlisted a buddy of mine to haul a truckload of parts up to Baker, and the car got dropped off. This was very strange for me, since I’ve always been a DIY guy. Paul tormented me (at my request) with the occasional shot of my car in pieces, with new parts being bolted on. It was like Christmas Eve, but it lasted for almost two weeks. It was the worst case of blue balls I’ve ever had. A few weeks later, I got the call to go pick it up. I didn’t get a chance to open the car up much on the way home due to traffic, but over the next few days I began to really appreciate the changes over stock. Obviously, there’s a ton more power. It’s still a little deceptive, as the butt-dyno seems to be completely disconnected to the speedometer. Punch the throttle, and you’re going much, much faster before you even really notice. You still don’t get the push in the back of a CTS-V or GT500, but the speedo needle is climbing like you wouldn’t believe.

Throttle response is great, and the stage 1 turbos spool up quickly. Boost threshold is low, and there’s only a touch of lag (and I’m blaming that on the DBW). Sam got me exactly what I was looking for- a responsive, smooth, quick-spooling set-up without the “floor gas, nothing, nothing, nothing, oh crap- tire spin, rev limiter, shift” feeling of a big turbo car. I was willing to sacrifice a little power up top for the responsiveness. Other than the power, and turbo-related noises, there’s not a huge change from a stock vehicle in terms of driveability. Credit on that has to go 50% to Sam for designing a great kit, and 50% to Jason for doing a terrific anal-retentive job putting it on. The 3” TDX exhaust sounds fantastic. It’s deep and menacing, but not overly loud or droning. It’s perfect- it’s only loud when you want it to be.

It took some getting used to the new clutch. It’s got the narrowest of engagement windows, and the light flywheel makes things trickier. It probably took me 500 miles before I stopped looking like a rookie, and I’ve been driving only manual transmission cars for 15+ years. Down the line, that adjustable pedal assembly will probably find its way into my car. For now, it’s almost an anti-theft device. Jason installed the springs while he had the car apart, and I’m perfectly content with both the drop and the ride quality. I’m sure I’ll eventually do something completely different for the suspension, but it’s fine for now since 90% of my driving is commuting around town.

I still have no idea how much power the car makes over stock, since I have no real desire to put the car on a dyno in August in Houston. It’s just too damn hot, even early in the morning. I’ll get the final numbers once it’s cooled off in a month or two. I’m just blown away by how much of a different car this is with the turbos installed. I’ve still got to put on the end links and brake lines, and I’m sure I’ll pick up camber arms for the front and rear soon. Eventually, I’ll get around to re-doing the audio in the car, but the Bose is just good enough for now and I have yet to install the sound deadening. Once I fry the rear tires, a set of 265f/295r Michelin PSS will be put on.

A few things that may help you if you decide to go this route:
Do your homework. Understand what you’re buying.
Buy the good parts. It’s cheaper to do it right the first time.
Add 15% to your budget for parts that you decide to put on “while you’re in there”.
Have enough money set aside for a motor. Things can happen. This is an expensive hobby.
It will take longer than you expect it to.
It will cost more than you expect it to.
Ask the people installing your kit what they recommend. Don’t just buy parts based on internet hearsay.
Call people. Don’t pm them, don’t email them or Facebook message them. Pick up the phone, call them and ask your question. You'll get an immediate answer.
Don’t be a guinea pig. Make sure the people you choose to work with have a proven track record with the platform. Pay more if you have too. It’s cheaper long term.

Special thanks to:
Paul and Jason at Baker Tuning
Sam at GTM
Tony at Fast Intentions
Z1, NST, Courtesy Nissan, The Z Store, Z Speed and Concept Z

P.S. Some constructive criticism for the vendors involved with this project- Very few of you saw fit to send me a sticker with my purchase. I’m a little disappointed. I’ve come to expect two whenever I buy a part- one from the part manufacturer, one from the vendor. They’re not for my car, they’re for someplace far more important- the beer fridge in my garage. There’s a large blank spot where your logo should be. NST and CSF were the only ones to include this very important component of the order. Z1 did not include a sticker, they went well above and beyond by sending a selection of large posters featuring scantily clad chicks posing on Zs. Bravo, gentlemen. Well done. For those of you not mentioned above, step it up.:p

P.P.S. Sam, I’ve got to commend you for hands-down the best instructions I’ve ever seen from anyone involved in aftermarket car parts. Wow. I didn’t install the kit myself, but the instructions made it seem like I could.