Benihana's 14 Black Nismo Journal
 

I decided I wanted to make a Journal of the progress I make with my new beloved toy. The intent is that my contributions might hopefully enhance other people's experiences. If others can learn from me, as I have gathered so much info from the contributions of you other fine Z owners, that would be great.

I bought my Z pre-owned with 288 miles on the Odometer. A car lover bought it new in the Fall of 2014, he drove it home, then drove it back a few months later and traded it on a GTR. The old adage of driving a new car off the lot reduces its value by 30+% is true. I was lucky enough to have had good timing and swooped in to buy it. During a snow storm.....

My car was purchased to start doing HPDE events and continue my Auto-X fun. Most mods will be track focused with some creature comfort and aesthetics adds to make it mine.

Car:
2014 Black Nismo #545
Bose Stereo
Sat Radio

Current Mods:

Aesthetic/Body:
- MA legal window Tint
- Removed dealer installed red vinyl pinstripe.
- Removed factory red stripes from mirrors, bow and stern
- Chrome Delete (I do this to all of my rides) - Mostly Plasti-Dip or other techniques
- Door handles and side markers
- Black badges for and aft but rear but left the O in Nismo red

Electronic:
- Ipad integrated into cubby (completed thanks to this site)
- I Used an iSimple Jamlink integration kit connected to the Aux port
- iPad runs music, Navigation with CoPilot connected to Dual XGPS150 Bluetooth receiver.
- DashCommand with ELM 327 wifi OBD-II sender

Wheels/Tires/Brakes:
- Stock Nismo staggered wheel/tire setup.
- Motul RBF600 brake fluid
- Carbotech XPS10/8 Front/Rear

Suspension:
- Nismo Stock setup
- Removed Shipping blocks. (Yes they still were in there when I got it Pre-Owned)

Engine/Breather:
- AFe Dry filters and HPS post MAF tubes
- Berk High Flow Cats

Brakess:
Carbotech XP10/8 F/R
Motul RBF 600 Fluid
Stillen/custom brake cooling kit

Other:
- Z1 34-row oil cooler kit w/thermostatic plate (I think I could have done fine with the 25 row)

Countermeasures:
- Valentine V1 on Blendmount
- May add AntiLaser or 'parking sensors

This pic was sent to me by the salesman who is also an amateur photographer.
http://www.the370z.com/members/benih...ure84630-z.jpg

I actually tried to buy This Car from another 370Z member and have it shipped back here to the east coast. I was litterally messaging Ebb559 while he was trading it in on a mini-van. Ug...

Long story short, the dealer 'couldn't' sell it to me because of all the crazy Kalifornia smog rules. I tried and tried to work a deal but they were too afraid of the lawyers to allow to to happen.

So the search continued and I wound up finding my Nismo and very happy about it.

I think this is still one of the nicest looking Zs I have ever seen. I need to learn how those headlights were done. Nice job man.
http://static.squarespace.com/static...g?format=1500w

Congrats on the car.
And good luck to the rest of your build.

And as far as your oil cooler goes, Better go the best thn regret later :D

Thanks Leroy,

Living in a cooler climate, I could have got away with the 25 row in addition to the water/oil cooler in the car already. With the temps still in the 40s-50s I couldn't' get the oil temp up to a level I felt safe flogging it.

So... I made some blocking plates out of black foam board and attached with the super high strength velcro-like stuff you would get with an EZ-Pass transponder. I simply cut the board to the length of the cooler and made it into two sections. One each above and below the Yamaha chassis dampener. (The dampener has to be flipped over to the passenger side when the cooler goes in.)

With sections blocking plates, I can remove one or both pieces as needed for warmer temps and track days. By adding or removing sections I can tune my engine oil temps as needed, it works great.

http://www.the370z.com/members/benih...-plate-off.jpg

top blocking plate off and on
http://www.the370z.com/members/benih...ock-plates.jpg

Congrats man! Nice nismo and let the fun begin!:tup:

3 Dummy Button Box
 

So after looking into what other folks did with the seat heater button space I decided to make in into a little extra storage space. The Z is tight and lacks storage space to begin with so every little bit helps.

I simply removed the screws holding the faux switches in and sliced up some black foam board from Michael's. I was just cutting and taped it together as a test fit and after no more than 20 minutes I had a finished box. It is press fit in, no glue or fasteners required. I drop my phone in there when it is time for spirited driving and I don't want it flying accross the seat onto the floor.

I think it cost about $6 to do (along with the oil cooler blocking plates) and total install time was 20 minutes while shooting the breeze with a buddy in my kitchen.

Installed view
http://www.the370z.com/members/benih...switch-box.jpg

Friction Fit
http://www.the370z.com/members/benih...ch-box-out.jpg

Mower Deck Axle License Plate Bracket
 

After debating whether to risk running no front plate at all, then installing a ghetto zip-tied temporary plate bracket in order to get an inspection sticker, I decided to bite the bullet and plunk down the shillings on the Mower Deck Axle front plate mount bracket.

I have to say, this is a quality unit for sure. After reading other members' reviews and learning that Larry at MDA would be accommodating, I placed the order with and simply provided some info in the PayPal notes field with my special requests.

I wanted the bracket to fit tight up inside and under the Nismo front bumper. And have angle to it to match the contour of the passenger side of the car.

Larry happily obliged and sent a shorter shaft and an angled washer in my kit. Although the shaft could have been 1/2 to 3/4 of an inch shorter to really tuck it in there I think the install is clean, the parts are very high quality and Larry shipped very quickly and the kit was packaged neatly and professionally.

All in all I couldn't be happier with the setup and it should prove easy to uninstall/re-install for the coming HPDE events, car maint etc.

If you are considering one of these plate relocation brackets don't hesitate to get one of these from Mower Deck, you will be pleased.

http://www.the370z.com/members/benih...-install-1.jpg

http://www.the370z.com/members/benih...ate-inside.jpg

http://www.the370z.com/members/benih...da-plate-2.jpg

Z1 Oil Cooler setup
 

I forgot to mention an issue I had with the Z1 oil cooler installation.

I got the top of the line setup with the 34 row cooler and all the chaffing material pre-installed.

The anodized aluminium fittings are supposed to be tight when they are assembled and should not require any tightening when you get them. Unfortunately, 3 of the 4 connections were not properly tightened when they were made. 2 of them leaked a bit. So, I had to go back and tighten them again. So far they are bone dry but I will be checking them frequently to be sure. Other than a couple of wrench marks on the fittings, they should be fine and I don't expect any more issues.

I did confirm with the fine folks at Z1 that end user tightening is not required or even mentioned in the instructions and they noted the minor mishap in my account.

Sooo. If you get one of these kits you may want to check but do not over tighten these connections. Better safe than sorry.

Nice plate relocator thing..can u provide a link to their parts website or something..
Nice work on the oil cooler, i myself have to gt mine, but i dont know if 34 row is overkill, i do plan on going FI in the near future.
And i am mechanically handicapped so i wont be able to do what you did with ur oil cooler

I'm with you on this one brother Leroy...........:iagree:

Wishing your Doggie - Snickers a nice day in Dubai :tup:

-Clifford

Sure. I thought I put a link in there but must have spaced it.

Click here for the Nissan/Ferrari plate mounts.


Also, I emailed the owner, Larry, that I wished the shaft were a little shorter and he emailed back that he is shipping me a shorter one and I can send the longer one back when I get it swapped.

Now That is Customer Service!!!

I just got the z1 19 row oil cooler(cuz I live the same cold place as you). Planning to install it today. So you are saying I should check the fitting to see if they are tightened properly? Do you use a torque wrench to tight them?

No. Not exactly. They are large dual hex fittings so torquing would require special shorty open end wrenches that adapt to a torque wrench square drive.

The fittings are supposed to be tight when you get them. I'd suggest just making sure they are snug and don't move easily.

Just put two wrenches on and make sure they don't move. If I had done this it would have saved us over an hours work rechecking everything after we found a slight seep. Please keep in mind that them not being tight is an anomaly and I probably got the one set in a run of 100 that wasn't tightened properly when assembled.

Z1 was quite surprised and apologetic about this so I'd guess the likelihood of it happening to many others is pretty low. Just better to check before but be careful as over tightening them is very bad and will make them irreparable.

Great! Thanks for the tips.:tiphat:

First HPDE
 

I am happy to report that I did my first HPDE event recently and it was just awesome. I did the Spring Fever event at NHMS with the BMW CCA.

First off, I would like to thank the board as a whole and especially members like AK and Rusty and others that have shared so much useful information. It is contributions like theirs that make it possible for the rest of use to do good research, modify our cars and get them to perform. I am a research junky and have spent countless hours on various forums learning, but only contributing the limited amount I am capable of giving.

Thank you, thank you, thank you! and if you read any of my contributions please keep in mind that I do not consider myself an expert but rather an informed participant.

So, based on what I learned here, my Nismo was well prepped for the first of what will surely be many great track days.

My instructor was impressed with the setup of the car. He took us out on our first 3 laps of the day and commented many times how well the car was setup. Obviously I can't take much credit for the Nismo itself, but having the right brakes/fluid and oil cooler made my Z super reliable. His first comment when he stepped on the brakes was "That's Authoritative!" :-)

Pics and some video to be posted. soon.

Here are some pics that the event organizers put up for us. How nice is that?

http://www.the370z.com/members/benih...urn-3-nhis.jpg

http://www.the370z.com/members/benih...z-401-nhis.jpg

http://www.the370z.com/members/benih...urn-2-nhis.jpg

I still need to edit some video down and decide if I want to post or not. I actually need a new mounting solution for a better view.

subscribed!

So I registered for a 2 day HPDE event May 9-10 and of course I must add some kind of mod prior, so I went with a set of black HPS post MAF tubes and a pair of aFe dry panel filters. From everything I can tell from past experience and via user reviews I should expect to get a little better airflow.

My only complaint about my Z is that I think the revs should spool up a bit faster sometimes. I figure between this intake mod and a future set of HFCs or TPs I should be about where I need to be.

I wound up getting everything from Amazon for about $200 and 'should' see everything by the weekend, after which I'll post installation info and a review for y'all fine folks.

Auto-X
 

So I did an Auto-Cross day on Saturday on a decommissioned airfield in Devens MA. FWIW I have done many before in am SM Miata I had some years back and ran with mostly a Miata club, so the course was really set up for those cars.

Considering I had what was probably the least prepped car on the field, I did ok finishing about 2/3rds down the list of about 60 cars.

However, those stock Bridgestone Potenza S001 tires pretty much suck for AutoX. The 280 wear rating is just plain too hard to ask that much grip from. I really fought to keep the rears from spinning which slowed me down a lot. Then add in the tight corners this club is known for and, well, hence my not so great times.

I think a set of stickier sneakers could realistically reduce my times 4-6 seconds if not more. My first run was a 1:29.5 and my best run was a 120.4 so I feel good about my progress over the day but the tires certainly fought me the whole day.

If anyone has suggestions for a set of tires I would love to hear about them. And I'd also love to hear from you if you might have wheels and/or tires for sale. I plan to run primarily HPDE events but I can see running a few AX days in between. That way my lady can drive too.

Auto-X No Mo
 

So upon the recommendation of my first instructor I did a 2 day event next and I have to say it was well worth it.

I ran with the Porsche club at Thompson Motorsports Park. First a quick plug about Thompson.

I understand that the track was reopened in 2013 after a change in ownership and major rehab. They have a huge new garage/paddock area, a 'pro-shop' of sorts and a great staff. Thompson utilizes about half of an old oval track, but, they added a new road course that dwarfs this small section.

http://www.thompsonspeedway.com/site...k_1_7_mile.jpg

I head heard that it was kinda flat and boring, well, maybe a bit lacking in the elevation change area but I would not consider it boring at all. Especially at my level.

It is mostly a 3rd gear track with a change to 4th wide open down the one main straight. I think I was regularly hitting about 115 before getting on the stop pedal before turn 1.

I am please to say that my Nismo performed beautifully and after my second day I was told that my instructor is recommending me to advance 1 level up form total noob to beginner. I'll take that!

What is also pretty cool is that while I probably had the lowest cost and least prepped car of the weekend, I was constantly surrounded by people asking questions about my car. Telling me how much they like it and how surprised they were with the performance on the track.

I did get the pleasure of passing several boxter/caymans and a couple of 911s.

http://www.the370z.com/members/benih...mpson-oval.jpg

http://www.the370z.com/members/benih...ridge-turn.jpg

http://www.the370z.com/members/benih...5-thompson.jpg

Very nice!

Auto-X No Mo
 

Thanks.....

The reason why I titled these posts as I did is that although I used to enjoy Auto-Xing with my miata, the Z is just not cut out for it. I suppose I could do better with stickier tires, the bad habits you pick up throwing a car around on the AX course have to be unlearned on the track. Pitching a car around cones is nothing like being smooth on a track. So, No Mo!

Or we could talk about costs..... AXers say track days are too expensive, but when you consider how much actual seat time you get, 5-6 runs totaling 8-10 minutes all day vs 4 x 20+ minute runs totaling over 80minutes of seat time the cost per smile is clearly in the HPDE column!. So.... No Mo!

Next Mods
 

Although I have done the most necessary items to track my car and am actually learning to drive it with some skill, it might soon be time to take it up a notch.

First, I am about to install a brake cooling kit. I have not experienced any heat issues, ice mode, or fade but why take any chances? So the Stillen kit is going in, just waiting on some ducts to arrive to custom mount up front. I'm not looking to cut holes in my bumper just yet so I figure I will hack up some ducts to fit in the grill opening. I'm pretty sure I can make it happen and since everything will be black and tucked down in there, it really won't be noticed unless you crouch down and look for it, and then you'd say, "Cool, brake cooling ducts!" I will take and post pics of the install when it happens, hopefully this or next week.

The Carbotech xp10/8 setup is great and has performed well for the 3 track days I have done, so I went ahead and ordered up another set. I figure I will do a swap and in the process, compare thicknesses and maybe gauge how many days I should expect to get from them. Plus I will have a spare set with me at the track just in case. Up till now I have been carrying my stockers as spares just to get me home from the track in case I cooked them.

I have been trying to put it off but the thought of a louder and more free flowing exhaust is getting to me. I have been searching for the right combo and have to say it is tough!! Youtube videos are all so different and I don't feel give the correct representation of the cars' sounds as some are done with phones or too far away or in parking garages, etc.

Right now my choices are either a quality resonated test pipe, Berk HFC or Motordyne ART pipes. I want performance, volume and growl without hiss. From what I can tell by videos and reviews, the HFCs won't be loud enough with the Nismo CBE.

If anyone has any recommendations for me that would be great. Thanks in Advance.

PS.< I will probably cross post this last part at some point in a different section of the forums.

Post MAF Tubes and Drop Ins...
 

Somehow I forgot to post that I did the highly recommended Post MAF and Drop in upgrade prior to my last track day. I went with HPS tubes and the Afe super-pro-turbo-dildo filters. The drop ins literally could NOT have been easier and the MAF tubes were pretty straight forward too.

I did not have to disconnect the strut bar, only the engine covers. I did have a little more trouble with the passenger side tube. I didn't experience the kink issue that so many other people have but it was a bit harder to line up and get right. I wound up having to trim the breather tube slightly. The cut had to be a little shorter and slightly off angle to make it work but I don't think it would be noticeable to the untrained eye.

I don't know if I notice any gains, but I haven't done the cats yet so.... I might have preferred the gargly aluminum sound of a different intake but I didn't want to go through the hassles of the Gen3 and I will need all the space I can get up front for my oil and brake cooling components. This is primarily a track/hooligan car for me.

http://www.the370z.com/members/benih...-maf-tubes.jpg

Beautiful car and perfect purchase scenario. Interesting hack of the heated seat switches area.

I went to Thompson last year for opening day SCCA. Beautiful track and garage area. Im sure after a year of racing the pavement is less oily and more grippy.

I can't say for sure but would have to agree. There were zero oil issues on the pavement and nobody complained about the grip. I think it is a great track and easy to get to. Oh, and there is only one slight transition in the pavement compared to the 14 off-camber and super bumpy disasters to try and navigate and NHIS.

MB, I am digging your headlight overlays. How tough are they to install?

Thanks, I heard not bad at all. I had a friend of blue bat do them while I was out to sea. I did the rear tail and third brake light and those were a breeze. If you have done any type of vinyl then it shouldn't be that bad. Two people and a hair dryer makes all the difference in the world.

Brake Cooling Duct Install
 

Since I am planning many more HPDE events I wanted to be sure I had the brake cooling issue solved beyond the brake fluid and race pad upgrades. I wanted to Be Sure that I don't overheat the brakes and experience that dreaded Ice-Mode issue. Especially considering that I may be sharing the car for some events in the future.

I ordered another full set of XP10/8 pads front and rear. While I had the car on the lift at my local speed shop I swapped the pads on all 4 corners. After 3 track days and some street use there is hardly any material missing from any of the 4 sets of pads. I was quite surprised. Clearly I can brake harder......

Stillen Brake Cooling Kit Install
 

Instead of cutting the OEM shields I went ahead and purchased the Stillen Brake Cooling Kit from Z1 as I think the angled aperture of the Stillen kit shield is optimal. Not only is it a little cheaper, the hoses are supposedly longer and I didn't have to pay for the non-nismo brackets I could not use.

What we wound up doing was using a set of NACA ducts from Racer Parts Wholesale. NACA Ducts - Small, Black NACA Duct
We trimmed them down to fit in the sides of the Nismo upper opening and attached to the aluminum bumper member with a custom aluminum circular bracket.

I also used a set of the 3 to 2 inch adaptors as getting a 3 inch hose snaked through the chassis would certainly be an issue, as others have noted.
NACA Ducts - 3 to 2 NACA Duct Adapter

I did not use the suggested routing procedure from Stillen nor the Moto IQ Blog but routed it a different way with less cutting and the least amount of sharp bends possible. Additionally, we added a light spring between the shock tube and the flexible duct that sucks the tube up and in when turning lock to lock to minimize the possibility of tire rub down the road.

All in all I think it came out great. The ducts are minimally visible and should take in a good amount of high pressure air. Removing the nose for future work only requires the removal of one easily accessible screw per side.

Sorry for the phone pics, I forgot the real camera. I can supply more detailed pics later if anyone is interested.

http://www.the370z.com/members/benih...duct-pass.jpeg

http://www.the370z.com/members/benih...ct-driver.jpeg

I'm happy to report that my Berk HFCs are in. Loving the sound and can definitely feel the performance bump. The car revs more quickly and pulls harder throughout the RPM range. Well worth it.

Makin good progress. :tup: