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Barn Find 370z Build Journal
About 7 weeks ago I took delivery of a 2009 370z Touring I found in Kentucky with only 82XX miles on it. The car is literally spotless, with the only issues coming from it sitting for so long (cracked tires, crusty hoses, etc.)
The goal of this build will be to make a well rounded N/A car, while primarily focusing on handling and weight loss, for occasional track days, without making the car unenjoyable on the street. I don't want any crazy power, as I'll be using this reliable platform to help me grow as a driver. I'll be using this thread to document any/all work I do as a reference for later, since I have a bad habit of not documenting maintenance or mods I do. http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...online-ad.jpeg http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...1-mileage.jpeg http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...-first-day.jpg First thing I wanted to do was start replacing all the fluids. I'm not sure if they have ever been changed, but I wanted to run the same fluids I've had success with in my Evo: http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...3-all-oils.jpg Feb. 16th, 2022: I had to take care of 1 thing that was really bothering me before the fluids: http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...art-button.jpg Much better. Feb. 27th, 2022: I also went ahead and started transferring a set of Sparco Fighters I had in my Evo over to the Z. I'll be waiting another 2 months for a Bride seat bracket to come in before I can move the driver's seat out of the Evo: http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...enger-seat.jpg Once that was in, I drained the rear diff, which went smoothly: http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...diff-drain.jpg http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...5-diff-oil.jpg Mar 1st, 2022 I then moved on to the coolant, using the OEM Nissan stuff. I also noticed the radiator hoses were a bit crusty, so I swapped them with Z1's silicon. I may do the heater hoses at a later time, but this is fine for now: http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...-rad-hoses.jpg http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...-installed.jpg http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...89-coolant.jpg Mar 20, 2022 I then moved onto the trans fluid. This went smoothly as well, however I'm going to try and remember to buy an extra bottle of fluid for next time just to make sure it's completely filled: http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...rans-drain.jpg http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...rans-fluid.jpg Apr 5th, 2022 I then wanted to change whatever oil the dealer put in there with some AMSoil. I wanted to go ahead and get 2 birds stoned at once, so I ordered and installed a 25 row Setrab oil cooler from Z1 as well. Install was straightforward, however connecting the lines to the sandwich plate was a bit of a pain: http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...ooler-side.jpg http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...oler-lines.jpg http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...7-oil-fill.jpg The only things I did extra, was removed a couple connectors behind the front bumper that was making contact with the lines and zip tied them out of the way, and ran the plastic covering to try and prevent it from damaging the lines. We'll see if it helped. I also found a few reminders of how long the car had been sitting: http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...asp-nest-2.jpg http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...-wasp-nest.jpg Current project My next focus is a Nismo bumper conversion from Z1: http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...ont-bumper.jpg http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...nismo-rear.jpg I wanted to pick these up now while the prices are still reasonable. I'm expecting the prices to jump once supply starts to run out. I also have been waiting on a Greddy cat-back exhaust for a few months, which should hopefully be here in a few weeks. The weight savings on this alone make it worth it for me. That's it for now; I will update when I have more work done. If you have any questions or comments, just let me know. |
none of your images work.
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Welp, boomer moment I guess. Went to fix it and now everything is gone. I'll try again later.
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New members posts with images need to approved by staff to have images displayed. This is only till the new member gets to 8 posts. :ugh2: Quote:
Welcome! :hello: |
looks as your having fun,
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Apr. 9th, 2022
Got around to installing the front Nismo bumper, as well as the Z1 undershroud. Bumper has pretty good fitment, and installed smoothly. The undershroud was a bit of a pain, but fits nicely and is great quality. http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...wheels-off.jpg http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...ndershroud.jpg http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...-installed.jpg Only issue: http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...perfection.jpg Apr 18th, 2022 Finished the Nismo conversion by installing the rear. The fitment on this one is perfect, from what I can tell. http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...-installed.jpg Now to find a body shop to finish it up. I also canceled the Greddy exhaust order because of shipping delays, and ordered a true dual HKS Hi-Power that should be arriving on Friday. |
Coming together nicely.
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Apr. 23rd, 2022
Finally some fun stuff... the HKS Hi-Power exhaust came in, and I had a chance to install it. http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...ks-package.jpg http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...ks-exhaust.jpg http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...ed-exhaust.jpg http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...er-exhaust.jpg Review: Quality - Seems like nice materials, however the welds are a bit rough and the provided gaskets looks like they'll be burned through pretty quickly. Install - Straight forward enough, however I don't like that you have to remove your evap shield in order to prevent rubbing. Also, connecting the two pieces of the H pipe was a bit tricky because of the tight space. Fitment - I should've done more research here... I'm not a fan of the final outlet fitment on the 15+ Nismo bumpers. They fit great on the OEM bumper, not so much here. Sound - This is the perfect exhaust for someone concerned with noise. It's barely more noticeable than the OEM sound, even at WOT. That being said, it's not nearly loud enough for me. I'm hoping that adding test pipes and headers will open it up a bit more, but those will be done at a later time. Next up, wheels and tires. |
Been a bit busy lately, but found some time to get some things done on the Z.
May 16th, 2022 The HKS catback was just too quiet for me, so I went ahead and ordered a set of AAM resonated test pipes. I love everything about these so far, from the fitment, to the updates they give you while they're being built. I will most likely go with AAM again if I choose to replace the HKS exhaust: http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...test-pipes.jpg http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...-installed.jpg The sound is really nice with this setup. No drone or trumpet, and sounds great around 3500-4k. You still get the typical hiss with the test pipes, but I believe that's unavoidable and I'm fine with it. May 20th, 2022 The tires that came with the car were dry rotting to the point where I didn't feel comfortable driving the car much, so I went ahead and ordered some wheels and tires. I went with what I will be using as my track setup for now. http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...nig-wheels.jpg http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...homa-tires.jpg http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...eels-tires.jpg http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...wheel-poke.jpg http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...wheel-poke.jpg Wheels - Konig Hypergrams 18x10.5 +25 (19lbs) Tires - Yokohama Advan Apex 275/35/18 I know it badly needs a drop, and I know it needs a spacer in the rear... 20mm spacer is already ordered, and suspension is coming after brakes. June 29th, 2022 I finally got the car into a body shop. It took them 4 week to complete the work, but I think it turned out really nice. I still need to get the DRL plugs fitted correctly, and the rear reflector installed, but here's how it sits for now: http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...er-painted.jpg http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...er-painted.jpg I'm really happy with the emblem deletes, and the semi-gloss black. I also drilled some holes in the HKS tips to pull them out a bit more. It's definitely better than it was, but still not happy with it. Next project is brakes - I ordered a full set of Akebono calipers, Z1's two piece rotors and brake lines, and some new street pads and fluid. I'd like to be able to do an event after the brakes are in, even on stock suspension, just to start getting a feel for the car. Hopefully more updates coming soon. |
it's annoying that most HKS pictures show the welded H-pipe and then when you order it you're stuck with a fiddly bolt together part
https://capture.dropbox.com/yZiRAIotxzcHEEYY?raw=1 |
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I still really like the exhaust, but I think it's better suited for a daily Z than what I'm going for. |
Everyone on this forum hates AAM as they have a history of shady bs, and a history of shoddy workmanship.
I would much rather see made in Japan on pretty much anything I buy, vs made in america. Just commenting on this specific HKS exhaust has been updated and no one updated the picture. But if you go to HKSusa.com the picture is correctly updated to the new version |
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I'll keep that in mind if I decide to change the exhaust later on, though. |
Nov 3rd, 2022
After a lot of misfortune, I finally got the Akebono calipers, Z1 2 piece rotors, and stainless lines installed. Quick tip - if you decide to get refurbished calipers, make sure the bleeder valves seal and work properly before fully committing. I ended up leaking my master cylinder dry and it took A LOT of bleeding (lines, MC, etc) to get the air out. Anyway, here's how the car is sitting currently: http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...re106957-a.jpg http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...re106958-a.jpg http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...re106959-a.jpg In the past couple months, I decided that I won't be keeping this car for very long. The new Supra is just too tempting, and I won't be selling the Evo to make room, so this will have to go. I just haven't decided if I should buy one now, or wait to see if there's a final edition at some point. So, with that in mind, I'll be leaving the engine stock on this car and hopefully getting a couple track days in before selling. Next up is suspension. Looking at Fortune Auto coils with SPL front upper control arms to get me started. |
Dec 28th 2022
The battery that came with the car died, so I swapped the lightweight Odyssey battery in my Evo into the Z. Turned out pretty nice, and can back to OEM if needed later on. http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...re106981-a.jpg http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...re106982-a.jpg Jan 3rd 2023 Made some good progress on the car finally. I got a set of FA 500s for Black Friday, along with SPL's FUCA, rear toe arm, and rear camber arm all installed. Everything went surprisingly smooth. http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...re106989-a.jpg http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...re106983-a.jpg http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...re106984-a.jpg http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...re106985-a.jpg http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...re106986-a.jpg http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...re106988-a.jpg http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...re106987-a.jpg I'm getting the car aligned and wheel balanced soon. I tried my best to keep the OEM arm lengths, but the car is way off and probably too low. Not sure what I'm going to do next yet, but I'm excited to get this thing on the track. I also went ahead and ordered the Greddy single exhaust to shed some more weight. I like the HKS, but it's just too heavy for what I want out of this car. It'll be for sale soon, if anyone is interested. I may have 1k miles on it. |
Good ol' build threads....
Brings back OG forum days. Keep it up! |
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The red paint, nismo bumpers, track spec wheels/tires/fitment… this thing looks too clean!! Love it Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk |
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Jan 26th, 2023
I got the Greddy RS exhaust as a replacement to the heavy HKS dual installed. It is much lighter, but sounds like a typical single exhaust. I'm fine with the noise for how little I drive it, but I don't think I could daily a car this loud. Like the HKS, it was too short for the Nismo bumper, so I ordered a longer tip from Greddy and am fine with how it sits: http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...re107114-a.jpg Mar 2nd, 2023 I got the car corner balanced and track aligned at SPS Performance in St. Louis. Car feels very planted in the back roads, and should be ready for the track: http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...re107110-a.jpg http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...re107109-a.jpg Mar 11th, 2023 I went ahead and swapped out the OEM radio with a new Alpine unit, as well as got a Z1 shift knob installed. I managed to get the OEM knob out undamaged, so I can swap it back when it's time to sell: http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...re107113-a.jpg http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...re107111-a.jpg http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...re107112-a.jpg I have my first track day scheduled for this month at WWT Raceway, so I got some Carbotech brake pads ready to swap in before the event. Very excited to see how the Z performs. With that said, I'm still planning on getting the new Supra on its last year of ICE production, which rumors are saying could be 2024. I'll be keeping the Z how it is now, just enjoying it on nice days and track events when I can until it's time to sell. It's been a fun car to work on, and hopefully a great track car too. |
Love how clean this build is. Nicely done.
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April 18th, 2023
First track day in the books. I was ****, but the car did great besides cooking the power steering fluid. I flushed it with AMSOil fluid and it has been fine since. Also ordered a power steering cooler just to be safe. Oil temps got a little hotter than I expected, so I swapped to AMSOil Dominator racing oil and it has also been fine since. http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...re107182-a.jpg http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...re107180-a.jpg May 9th, 2023 Second track day. I'm still ****, but the car had no issues at all. http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...re107179-a.jpg June 13th, 2023 Third track day. Car made it 2 sessions, but I was then greeted with a clutch pedal that stuck to the floor a bit. My guess is that I cooked the clutch fluid since it returned to normal by the time I got home. More concerning, when I arrived home the car sputtered and stalled at idle. Started back up fine, but tried to die again at idle. Hopefully nothing serious. Next up for mods is the power steering cooler and a new Z1 front strut brace that I couldn't resist picking up. Next track day won't be until September due to my schedule. |
Let us know how you like the Z1 strut brace, I'm replacing the RJM one I have and wanted something that cleared the EPS TBs and Admin intakes, everything else rubbed
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June 25th, 2023
Got the Z1 CF strut brace installed. Was a bit of an impulse buy, but the quality and fitment are great. You can run the engine cover if you want, but it only fills up half of the middle section and doesn't look great. You'll also need to cut or remove the upper piece of trim that covers the top bolts: http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...re107191-a.jpg http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...re107192-a.jpg Need to clean the honeycomb and some of the lines that are no longer hidden, but I'm happy with how it fits and looks. Quote:
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Winter 2023
Been a while. My last track event in July didn't go so great, and I ended up having to leave early due to my clutch pedal sticking to the floor. What I thought was going to be a quick flush and bleed, ended up being a failed master cylinder. To fix/upgrade, I decided to go with the full RJM clutch package (RJM pedal, Tilton MC, etc). The install and tuning process was pretty painful due to the location of everything, but thanks to some great instructions and e-mail exchanges to RJM, everything is in and working great. I also installed the Z1 clutch lines while I was in there which removes the junction in the driver's wheel well and adds insulation to the line running to the slave cylinder: http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...re107446-a.jpg http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...re107455-a.jpg http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...re107454-a.jpg http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...re107449-a.jpg After fixing my clutch issues, I decided to upgrade the front sway bar to the very stiff Hotchkis bar w/ Z1's adjustable end links. Install was pretty easy, and made a huge difference on the track. Probably the best bang for buck mod I've done: http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...re107452-a.jpg http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...re107451-a.jpg I also upgraded to some better rubber, replacing my set of Advans with a set of Falken RT660s. I'm still running 275/35s but these run wider than my Advans did. Between these and the sway bar, the car feels very planted on track: http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...re107450-a.jpg Other small things were replacing my Odyssey half weight battery with an Anti Gravity 5lb battery. I've been running this in my Evo for a couple years and have had no issues. I also replaced some crusty hoses: http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...re107447-a.jpg http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...re107448-a.jpg April 9th, 2024 Had my first track event of the season. The new clutch pedal and master cylinder felt great, and the new tires and sway bar made a huge difference in handling. I'm still cooking my power steering fluid, so I'll be installing the Z1 cooler soon. More track pictures to come, but I ran with my friend's GR Corolla and his dad's Mach 1. http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...re107453-a.jpg |
Sub'n. I like your progression and the car is awesome. Im surprised you dont need to run any numbers on the car at the track.
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Thoroughly enjoying the story of this Z. Keep it up!
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April 17th, 2024
Finally installed the Z1 power steering cooler kit and silicon hoses. Install was messy, but straightforward. The OEM cooler is really flimsy, I accidently bent 5 rows of fins just pulling the OEM hose off of it. Filled the new one with AMSoil fluid, hopefully that solves the overheating issue: http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...re107459-a.jpg http://www.the370z.com/members/jrah2...re107460-a.jpg |
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