Bonanni Motorsports Project 370Z
 

Well I finally got my hands on a new 370Z! Its a touring + sports package, 6MT.

I have SPL Parts rear camber arms already on the way for test fitment and this weekend I will get my scales back from a friend I lent them to and do various weight tests and test fit some 350Z wheels I have. From there, the car will go up on jackstands on Sunday and the stock suspension will be sent to BC Racing to finally confirm weather or not they are the same as the G37. If not, BC Racing will use the measurements to come up with a new set of coilvers for the 370Z! I will update this thread throughout the year with product fitments and tests.

Disclaimer: I know I am not good a potography or photoshop. :)
http://www.doubledownmotorsports.com...370zshoot1.jpg

http://www.doubledownmotorsports.com...370zshoot2.jpg

http://www.doubledownmotorsports.com...370zshoot3.jpg

http://www.doubledownmotorsports.com...370zshoot4.jpg

http://www.doubledownmotorsports.com...370zshoot5.jpg

http://www.doubledownmotorsports.com...370zshoot6.jpg

http://www.doubledownmotorsports.com...370zshoot7.jpg

Any companies out there looking for a test bed, a showcase, or need stock parts to be sent to them for development, let me know :).

Damn, I'm really jealous...
Sucks being impatient like me...

I am impatient too, thats how I ended up with silver lol. I wanted to hold out for black or red, but nobody knew when one in a 6MT was coming our way.

Initial Driving Impressions - Street Driving - Bone Stock

I must say I see a lot of potential in this car! I like it better than the 350Z in every way so far. The power feels better, the handling feels better, the steering feels better, etc. Although I haven't really rung it out yet, I can tell that it will be a better performer on track than the 350Z is.

Just cruising down the freeway, it is very comfortable, the Bose stereo is excellent for a factory system, and the interior is pleasing and easy to read. I really like that the tach shows you what gear you are in. My only gripe so far about the gauge cluster is the water temp gauge. It only has one little light that tells you where your water temp is at. This will be very hard to read at a glance when on track. I would have at least liked all of the lights to light up like the fuel level gauge.

Mechanically the car feels great. The clutch is light, but you can easily feel when it engages. The weight transfer front to rear on corner exit is really good and in stock form, the LSD does its job very well. The synchro rev-match transmission is a little wierd to me right now. I think the technology of it is awesome, but it is definately taking some getting used to. It is still my natural reaction to heel toe myself.

I am very excited to start unlocking the potential of this car!

Congrats on the purchae!!!!

A few more impressions after having the car for a few days...

Bluetooth Hands Free - I have never had a car with this feature, but holy crap is it awesome, especially with a manual transmission. This will be a must in my cars in the future. I also love how it shows your battery level and signal strength for your cell phone on the radio display.

Seat warmers - They are not very strong.

Blind Spot - Worse than the 350Z, or any other car I can think of for that matter.

Syncro Rev Match - Very cool when you are feeling lazy, but I turn it off now for the most part. Heel-toe downshifting is not a habbit I want to break since this is the only car with the technology to do it on its own.

Auto Headlights - Finally!

Car got tinted today! Just waiting on a host of parts for test fitment now...

http://www.doubledownmotorsports.com/370ztint1.jpg

http://www.doubledownmotorsports.com/370ztint2.jpg

looks sweet.

Thanks :)

Been busy scheduling some baseline tests for this car. Here is the schedule so far, check back for results!

1/22/09 - Test Fitment - SPL Parts Pro Rear Camber Arms
1/23/09 - Baseline Dyno
1/23/09 - Baseline 1/4 Mile **Cancelled. The track no longer accepts cars with temporary tags. :( Gotta wait until I get my plates.
2/8/09 - Baseline Road Course Test @ Spring Mountain Motorsports Park

The car will remain 100% stock for the dyno and 1/4 mile. Brake pads and fluid will be changed for the road course test for safety reasons.

Also coming soon...

1/24/09 - Test Fitment - Berk Technology High Flow Catalytic Converters
1/26/09 - Dyno Test w/Berk HFCs (assuming they fit)
TBD - Test Fitment - BC Racing BR Type Coilovers

Tomorrow's project :tup:

http://www.doubledownmotorsports.com...rcamberarm.jpg

The SPL Parts Rear Camber Arms fit perfect!

http://www.the370z.com/brakes-suspen...html#post23020

For Sale Thread:
http://www.the370z.com/suspension-br...mber-arms.html

http://www.doubledownmotorsports.com...cainstall1.jpg

Cool thread man, awesome how you are setting deadlines and keeping us updated. So far DDM rocks.

did u ever try the springs yet bro?

Nope, sorry. Both the 370Z and the 350Z the springs will be coming from are daily drivers for myself and my fiance so its hard to find a few hours of time when both cars are at the house (she doensn't live with me).

Next up! Hopefully I can find time to test fit tonight or tomorrow.

http://www.doubledownmotorsports.com/370zberkhfc.jpg

Coilovers please!

Just ordered:

Hawk HP Plus Brake Pads
http://www.doubledownmotorsports.com/hawkhpplus.jpg

Motul RBF600 Brake Fluid
http://www.doubledownmotorsports.com/motulrbf600.jpg

This will be installed this weekend or next week in preparation for a track day at Spring Mountain Motorsports Park in Pahrump, NV February 7th. Although I would like to keep the car as stock as possible, I will be changing the brake pads and fluid for safety reasons.

So be on the lookout soon for DIY threads on changing your brake fluid and changing your brake pads.

Just ordered...

Odyssey PC680 Battery:
http://www.doubledownmotorsports.com/PC680.JPG

Battery Tray:
http://www.doubledownmotorsports.com/PC680TRAY.jpg

Mishimoto Universal Oil Cooler Kit:
http://www.doubledownmotorsports.com/MMOC-U.jpg

Hopefully soon I will be able to offer the 370Z community complete do-it-yourself battery relocation kits and oil cooler kits specific for the 370Z using these products. :tup:

Nice thread. I will definitely be keeping up to date with what you guys are doing.

Do you guys plan on making your own parts at all?

Thanks! No plans to make our own line of parts as of now. We are purely retail sales oriented right now. Taking it slow for now, maybe in the future we will come out with our own stuff. :)

w3rd.

Its looking like my baseline track test will have to be in the rain...

:eekdance:

Although I do enjoy a chance to brush up on my wet weather driving skills, I would much rather have done the baseline test in dry conditions. Hopefully it doesn't rain too bad.

Vids!!

For sure! I will be using the GoPro Motorsports HERO. Waterproof up to 100 ft. deep :).

Well, this weekend was supposed to be a big weekend for me and the 370Z. I had a list of things to do, none of them got accomplished thanks to mother nature. :owned:

Back Story:
The weekend was supposed to start on Friday night with a small list of prep work and the creation of a few more DIY threads, followed by the baseline road course test out at Spring Mountain Motorsports Ranch. Here's the list of stuff I was planning on doing, but couldn't...

1. DIY Brake Pad Install and Hawk HP Plus Brake Pad Testing and Review: This was supposed to happen Friday night, but mother nature decided against it by dumping rain down on the Las Vegas valley. Seeing as the Hawk HPS pads are more of a track/autocross pad, I was worried that with the wet track conditions and slower speeds that I would not be able to get them into their optimal temperature range. I decided to keep the stock pads in, and bring the Hawk HP Plus with me to the track as backup.

2. Corner Scale the car with the spare tire/sub/tools removed: This was also supposed to happen Friday night, but again because of the wet track conditions that were sure to follow, I decided against removing weight off the rear tires in an effort to keep more traction under acceleration in the wet. The spare/tools/subwoofer stayed and the car was not scaled without them.

3. Baseline Road Course Test: This is what I was really waiting for. I was hoping that the rain would either stop, or be light enough not to make pools of standing water all over the track. Unfortunately, it rained all day and it rained hard. We were the first run group out on track and I took it REALLY slow so I could pay attention to where the water was pooling on the course and get a feel for the car and the track condition. Unfortunately, that's as far as I got because the event was canceled before I could get back out on the track. The track conditions were so bad and the speeds were so low, that I really couldn't tell you anything I learned about the car.

So the weekend was a bust, but I will make it up soon. I am hoping to re-attempt my plans in the coming month and get this car out on a dry racetrack. Sorry to everyone who was patiently waiting for the results.

Odyssey PC680 Battery and Mounting Tray just arrived! I will take some time today to figure out a mounting location that best effects front/rear balance. If I can find a suitable mounting location I will then order some long battery cables and put together a complete battery relocation kit and instructions for the 370Z! If I cannot find a suitable mounting location, I will just replace the stock battery with the lighter weight Odyssey PC680 and call it a day.

hope you find a spot

I have certain criteria and upon a basic visual inspection, its probably a 50/50 chance I will re-locate it. Here are my criteria:

1. Must fit in the trunk area, passenger side for weight distribution.
2. Must be able to still store the spare tire, subwoofer, tools, and trunk mat in their original location.
3. Must be easily accessible when trunk mat is removed.
4. Must be able to run a wire to it from the engine bay. (obviously)

#2 is the problem. There is absolutely nowhere to mount it without cutting something, however, I think all that may need to be cut is some styrofoam though. If thats the case then I will go ahead with it.

Jim Wolf Technology Pop-Charger Dual Intake System is on its way!

http://www.jimwolftechnology.com/ima...LLED_SMALL.jpg

JWT Pop-charger intakes came yesterday and I installed them last night. Install was easy, the intakes look great, they sound great, and they feel great! Another exceptional product from JWT! Here are some pics, video coming soon...

http://www.doubledownmotorsports.com/370zjwtintake2.jpg

http://www.doubledownmotorsports.com/370zjwtintake3.jpg

Track time yet?

Not yet. Trying to plan it out. The first time attack of the season is March 28-29 and I am getting married the weekend after so needless to say I am pretty busy until mid-April. There is one weekend I have available for a track day, but priority is to test the time attack 350Z first before the race. So I probably won't have the opportunity to get the 370Z on track until mid-April at the earliest. :(

BC Racing ER Type coilovers installed!

http://www.doubledownmotorsports.com/370zbccoils1.jpg

http://www.doubledownmotorsports.com/370zbccoils2.jpg

http://www.doubledownmotorsports.com/370zbccoils3.jpg

http://www.doubledownmotorsports.com/370zbccoils4.jpg

does it rub?

No, not at all.

sexy...it looks like it has more negative camber too. i dont know man. it looks so good!, but i dont live on the best roads. i scrape sometimes now!

Yeah it for sure has more negative camber in those pics. That is one of the bi-products of lowering your car. Fortunately I have the SPL Parts Pro Rear Camber Arms installed so the negative camber in the rear is fixed already. Unfortunately, I am still waiting on the front Camber arms from SPL to be released. :(

I finally got around to installing the Mishimoto Universal Oil Cooler Kit on the 370Z today! Fairly easy install but I did have to fab up a mounting bracket to mount it where I wanted it. Next step is to track test the oil cooler and make sure it is sufficient enough for heavy track duty. If it is, I will put together and offer a mounting kit and DIY install instructions to sell along with these oil cooler for you guys.

i envy u guys...i want everything! ur making me spend money...who needs groceries anyway. lol