Project: b1adeZmobile
 

This is the journal thread for Project b1adeZmobile.

Mods List:
35% Huper Optik Tint on sides/rear + 20% vinyl on brake light
Replica OEM Sport Spoiler
Berk Exhaust
Painted Tail Lights
Swift Spec-R Springs
Stillen G3 intakes
Evo-R Front Lip + Black out fangs
CNT Racing HFC
Plasti Dipped gunmetal emblems, and badges
Carbotech XP8 brake pads with Motul RBF600 brake fluid
Brake Calipers painted red
Z1 34 Row Oil Cooler Kit
Wheels painted gun metal
Headlight housing painted black with gun metal shrouds
Eibach Sway Bars
Ark Grip 2 V2 Exhaust
Uprev Tune by AAM

I have a 2009 Platinum Graphite 370Z 7AT Touring. I bought it on January 8th, 2011 from a dealership in PA. Bought it the weekend of a snowstorm because they dropped the price by $2k and drove all the way from/to MD in the snow for it.

Here are some of my first pics of it:

http://www.the370z.com/members/b1ade...ure27116-a.jpg

http://www.the370z.com/members/b1ade...ure27117-a.jpg

http://www.the370z.com/members/b1ade...ure27121-a.jpg

More pics here: Nissan 370Z Forum - b1adesofcha0s's Album: My 370Z


2/11/11
My first mod was tint for the windows and tail+brake lights, which I got done at Xlnt Tint in Owings, MD. Got 35% Huper Optik tint on the sides and rear and a 20% vinyl for the tail+brake lights. Total for everything was $285. This was a birthday present for me from a few of my cousins.

http://www.the370z.com/members/b1ade...ure28173-a.jpg

http://www.the370z.com/members/b1ade...ure28181-a.jpg

http://www.the370z.com/members/b1ade...ure28172-a.jpg

More pics here: Nissan 370Z Forum - b1adesofcha0s's Album: Bday Present from the BoyZ


2/24/11
This was my birthday present for myself. I bought a replica OEM spoiler from eBay for $140 and had it installed at Christian Auto Body in Columbia, MD for $80.

http://www.the370z.com/members/b1ade...ure28920-a.jpg

http://www.the370z.com/members/b1ade...ure28919-a.jpg


3/12/11
My biggest accomplishment with the Z thus far. Went to the drag strip for the first time in my life and did amazing on my first run. It was at Cecil County Dragway in Rising Sun, MD. I ran a 12.986 @ 107.46 mph and brian0128 was there watching/coaching me, thanks man! Still currently the 2nd fastest stock 370Z 1/4 mile time :tup:

Proof:

http://www.the370z.com/members/b1ade...ag-strip-d.jpg


5/21/11
Waxed the Z for the first time. Took some nice pics.

http://www.the370z.com/members/b1ade...ure33463-a.jpg

http://www.the370z.com/members/b1ade...ure33460-a.jpg

http://www.the370z.com/members/b1ade...ure33451-a.jpg


7/5/11
Installed Berk Exhaust. Thanks to blu370 for giving me an awesome deal on his exaust. Also want to thank Steve (m4ghey1mustang) for helping me install it :tup:

Here's a video I made of the exaust:




8/17/11
Had a lot of issues with the vinyl on my tail lights bubbling so I got a refund for them. Went to Wilson's Auto Body in Baltimore, MD and got them painted for $100 w/Bertaut discount :D. Thanks to Kirkster for helping me uninstall and then reinstall the tail lights.

Oh noes teh bubbles :eek:

http://www.the370z.com/members/b1ade...ure29150-a.jpg

This is much better! :happydance:

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...s/IMAG0014.jpg

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...s/IMAG0015.jpg

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...s/IMAG0017.jpg

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...8-17174118.jpg

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...s/IMAG0020.jpg



09/17/11
Installed Swift Spec-R springs. Want to thank 370zforMe!!! for selling them to me and Kirk for installing them for me! :tup:

Pics of the drop after I got it aligned:

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...s/IMAG0657.jpg

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...s/IMAG0658.jpg

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...s/IMAG0659.jpg

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...s/IMAG0660.jpg



09/22/11
Installed Stillen Generation 3 Ultra Long Tube Dual Intakes and heat wrapped them as well. Thanks cotizi for selling them to me and thanks again to Kirk for helping me with the install :tup:

Before Pic:

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...s/IMAG0372.jpg



Quick pics of the install at the gas station this morning:

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...s/IMAG0581.jpg

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...s/IMAG0582.jpg

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...s/IMAG0583.jpg



09/30/11
Went out to Capitol Raceway tonight and it was ok. Didn't do as well as I had hoped, but still good. Here is a video Jon (ZCarMan) made of my first 2 runs that night. Thanks Jon! :tup:

2/21/12
Blacked out my fangs with plasti dip and installed the Evo-R 3 piece front lip. Had the sides color matched platinum graphite and left the middle part black.

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...p/IMAG1005.jpg

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...p/IMAG1008.jpg

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...p/IMAG1009.jpg



3/3/12
Installed the CNT Racing HFCs today. Big thanks to Rob (MightyBobo) aka the DemonBoltmeister for spending all day with me installing these. Surprisingly, the demon bolt was the easiest part of the whole process :icon17:

Here's the only pic I have from the install, courtesy of Rob

http://images51.fotki.com/v303/photo...513_901-vi.jpg

Don't have any videos yet, will try to make one when we get some nice weather on the weekends.



3/19/12
Plasti dipped my wheels and went with a gunmetal color. Started off with 4-5 coats of black plasti dip and then used 3 coats of the silver plasti dip metalizer. Also did my emblems and badges with the plasti dip I had left over after doing the wheels. Kind of rushed through these a bit, but they look ok.

You can't really see the metallic effect in the pics, but you can in person.

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...s/IMAG1116.jpg

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...s/IMAG1117.jpg

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...s/IMAG1118.jpg

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...s/IMAG1119.jpg

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...s/IMAG1144.jpg

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...s/IMAG1143.jpg

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...s/IMAG1142.jpg

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...s/IMAG1141.jpg



6/3/2012
Installed Carbotech XP8 brake pads and Motul RBF600 Brake fluid. Since I had to take my calipers off to do these, I decided I should paint them red. I used VHT Caliper paint which should withstand temperatures up to 900 degrees. I'll have to see how this paint holds up when I go on my hyperdrive at Summit Point Raceway in 2 weeks. I ended up using 2 cans of paint for the calipers and brackets with 2 light coats and one heavy coat of paint applied to each part. The total cost for all the painting stuff was like $30-40. It's a cost effective mod that looks great, but be prepared to spend all day working on it. Here's a before pic some after pics:

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...z/IMAG1296.jpg

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...z/IMAG1305.jpg

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...z/IMAG1310.jpg

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...z/IMAG1311.jpg

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...z/IMAG1316.jpg

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...z/IMAG1317.jpg

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...z/IMAG1319.jpg

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...z/IMAG1320.jpg



6/16/12
Had my first track experience today at Summit Point Raceway for Hyperfest. Here's the video of my session. More details of my experience in the thread below:

http://www.the370z.com/track-autocro...xperience.html





6/19/12
Installed a Z1 34 row oil cooler kit on my Z today with a lot of help from Rob. The oil cooler works really well, my temps stayed steady at 170 on my 20 min drive home. Definitely need to add a blocking plate soon so I can get my oil up to optimal operating temperatures.

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...s/IMAG1385.jpg

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...s/IMAG1386.jpg



9/15/12
After taking the plasti dip off my wheels (which was ruined after I had my tires changed) I decided to paint them myself in a similar color. Couldn't get that exact same shade of gray as the plasti dip, but it still looks good. I started by taking the wheels off, cleaning, and then sanding them. Then hit it with 2 coats of primer, 3 coats of paint, and 3 coats of clear. I used VHT Wheel Paint in Graphite color along with VHT Wheel Clear. The first day I did this, it was really hot and humid outside so the paint didn't go on smoothly. Had a lot of orange peel and bubbling in the paint as well as a very rough finish. I had to refinish them by wetsanding and adding 2 more coats of clear. This smoothed the paint out and gave it a nice wet gloss finish, which is what I always wanted with my wheels.

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...917_170816.jpg

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...917_170843.jpg

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...917_170919.jpg



9/22/12
Decided to paint my headlights. Did the housing in black and the shrouds in a light gun metal. The color of the shrouds ended up lighter than the car's color (I wanted it to be darker), but it still looks good. Had an incident with one of the lights where the lens was melted in the oven. At this point I'm just gonna leave it as is, but I might buy a used headlight later down the road to swap out the lens.

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...923_185616.jpg

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...923_185708.jpg

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...923_185714.jpg

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...923_185807.jpg

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/...923_185834.jpg



12/6/12
I got Eibach front and rear sway bars installed today. Sorry no pics, was in a bit of a hurry. I'll try to get some next time I'm under my car. Set it to the soft setting in the front and middle setting in the rear. Steering feels a lot tighter and sharper, but I won't really get the full effect of the sway bars until it gets warmer and I get summer tires back on the Z. It was still a pretty noticeable difference in the handling/steering. At least as much of an effect as installing the swifts were, if not more. Highly recommend them :tup:

Feb 2013
Uprev tuned at AAM Competition. Put down 304 whp, 240 tq before the tune and 318 whp, 254 tq after the tune.





June 2015
Back to (mostly) stock and getting prepped for sale. Time to move on to bigger and better things :tup:

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-z...0617150904.jpg

SUB'DDDDDDDDD. Pics of new tail lights MON!! ;)

I'm getting there bro, be patient. ;)

Gotta go to class now so I will have to work on this later.

In on the gheyest thread in human history

Sorry bro you already got that title. I know how it gets you all excited though. No one can ever rival your gheyness. Except maybe Isafag.

Ok so I think I've got everything updated now!

Buy my stillen splitter

Hey, I'm not the one driving a car painted "blades of ghey"


Jus sayin

LOL. Nice pics, I just love what Frank did with your taillights.

Maybe next year :p

Gotta get a new bumper first. Spending too much money on crap and didn't get as much money back from school as I was expecting. Otherwise I would have. Maybe for my bday in February if you still have it then.

Fixed. :tiphat:

Me too, wait till you see them in person. I should stop by and show him them some time. I know your tempted Bert, go for it!!! You've already gone all out with the rest of the car. Might as well complete the look.

Cover damage with splitter= winning

Maybe, but I prefer the clean look. I'll let you know if I change my mind. How much you want for it BTW?

Berk sounds mean!

When are you going to get the lift kit and the Pakistan flag vinyl graphics? :icon17: :p

Whenever you get the designs made for me. You never did that PS :shakes head:

:yum: Looks good sounds good. Killer 1/4 mile time too BTW. In for updates! Sitting in NYC traffic the other night...wish I had an AT.

Thanks, I really appreciate it! I deal with DC/VA traffic during rush hour pretty much everyday so AT was a must.

Yeah - luckily (or unluckily) I take NYC public transportation to work, which lets my Z be a more of a weekend car...

Going to look sick. The sport rims have to be some of the slickest looking stock rims on any car ever. I love them...lets me focus my money on other things and don't have to go out and rush to buy rims.

I had an STi that came w/the stock BBS rims - those were nice too. Keep it going man!

Thanks. I agree with you about the sport rims, I just wish I had gotten the sport package to begin with. Would have added a HU but you know what happened with that ;)

Gonna search around the rest of the internetz to see if I can find another good one for around the same price.

Hurry up and buy this HU:

Amazon.com: INA-W910 - Alpine 7" Touchscreen Multimedia with In-Dash GPS Navigation: Electronics


DO EEEET

:bowrofl: Only if you pay for it ;)

Actually trying to buy this one:

Pioneer AVIC-X920BT 6.1" In-Dash Double-Din AV Unit | eBay

awwww snap! you're not stock anymore!

The AVIC is a solid unit. WAYYYYY better than the weird blue light one you showed me earlier. :icon17:

You can actually change the colors of the buttons to match the factory orange of the Z's.

Hellz yeah! Actually I've been not stock for like 2 months now. Hasn't helped though with this hot summer weather. Going to hit the strip again this month after I get my intakes. Also gonna try AutoX this month.

But I like the blue :p

Just hope the reserve isn't too high. Aiming for like $350-375 max.

Dammit, won the auction but the reserve wasn't met. Contacted the seller to see how much he is willing to sell it to me for.

Good luck dood! :confused:

subscribed with an option of getting update every 6 months :)

:tup:

We can't all be like you Aamir ;)

Anyways I need your guys help deciding what to get for my next mod. Here are my choices:

-Off brand head unit
-Swift Spec R Springs
-Stillen Front Splitter + black out fangs
-Replace my front bumper

All of those are around $200-300. Head unit will be a bit more with all the accessories. I'm leaning towards either the Swifts or the splitter right now.

I'm voting for springs or splitter.

Be aware that the springs will show just how weak the base offsets are though.

Swifts + 20mm spacers all around. :tup:

echo "springs + splitter";

Buy Dan's Stillen splitter and paint the fangs...fo sho

Hmm still undecided. Got someone offering me the bumper for $200. Could have it installed this weekend. Since I know nothing about spacers and I need a decision on this quickly, which brand/type should I get?

Splitter would be impossible to hide from my parents so I think I'm leaning towards the springs or bumper. My parents think spending money on mods for my car is a stupid waste of money and they get mad at me when I do it. So I have to get mods they won't notice. If there isn't a huge visual difference, they will never know. They never really sit in my car, just see it parked in the parking lot. Springs I could get away with and replacement bumper has already been pre-approved by them :p

Bumper.

I think I'm gonna get the bumper. I will probably keep the old one for track days.