It's a headlight washer. If the lights are turned on and you pull the windshield washer lever, it pops up and washes the headlights.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dD8Cilc5i8k

:eek::eek::eek::eek:

Yet another feature of the Z the US models don't come with. What else does the European models have that we don't? :icon14:

While waiting for my oil cooler to arrive, I'm preparing the oil pressure gauge. I bought the RSP gauge that seems to me like it has near exact font and color as the original gauges. I also bought a used ventilation duct to experiment, but as it's in perfect condition, it will just replace my current ventilation duct.

The idea for location and how to do it is inspired (stolen) from a forum member who showed his pics here: http://www.the370z.com/diy-section-d...ure-gauge.html
Thanks for the great suggestion!

So, prepared pressure gauge in the vent:

https://i.imgur.com/jXxwfANh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/zlHxa4dh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/0bb0mzdh.jpg

Will look like this when lit up:
https://i.imgur.com/izmoHB4.png

I'm planning to remove the door cards, put this in, and then pull the wires from it through the factory rubber hose connecting the door with the chassis, and then go from there onward.

Alright, we've got power in the pressure gauge :happydance:



It's not connected to the sensor yet, I'm tackling the oil cooler install tomorrow. Finally got ALL the parts, so tomorrow will be a long and I hope, a very successful day.

The oil pressure gauge has been successfully installed with no hassle whatsoever. Guiding the wiring through the factory door harness was a bit tricky but nothing too annoying.

https://i.imgur.com/mrn0bGyh.jpg

The ventilation hole for the door had to be blocked out, was quite a simple job too:

https://i.imgur.com/55tDohmh.jpg

And then the crazy business with oil cooler installation.
The oil cooler install was simple, I only have to note that you need to remove the crash bar to install it, otherwise you can't drill a hole to hold the oil cooler in place.
Also, don't forget to fill the oil cooler with oil all the way up before installing it - you don't want that engine to starve for oil once the thermostat opens and sends oil down the hoses to the oil cooler.

https://i.imgur.com/y5Xlyiqh.jpg

Routing the hoses wasn't a problem, I found out the nicest way to route it is beneath the washer fluid, but you need to cut a small hole (7x7cm) to route the hoses through it:

https://i.imgur.com/jBmyR6ah.jpg

The worst headaches caused were by the pressure sensor. I got the adapter necessary:

https://i.imgur.com/RZ2Flxnh.png

but there was just no room for everything. I had to add another small extender, because I would either have to get rid of the standard pressure sensor, or the anti-roll-bar or something else. It was a headache, but i managed. :eekdance:

Finally, put back everything together, looks unsuspecting but obvious to the trained eye.

https://i.imgur.com/E3l9KDXh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/Khx3hwbh.jpg


I just turned on the car once, to check for leaks, all is GOOD, however I couldn't run it up to working temperature in the garage, so that the thermostat would open and I could actually test the cooler itself, but that part will be tested in spring, once the car is out of garage.
This turn-on pressure read as ~7-8 BAR, then slowly dropping to about 5 BAR, when I already turned off the car as you can't really run it in the garage....

So yeah. One crucial upgrade done. Next part - upgrading brake lines, change of brake fluid and installing some brake cooling ducts.

Winter hibernation still ongoing, but lots of stuff is cooking.

1. Got new braided steel brake lines, and ordered Motul RBF 600 brake oil. 1,5l should be enough, right? That will be changed once the car is out, I don't fancy doing that crap myself.

2. Also ordered a diff brace from GKTech, I figure additional support on the diff should help. The car is still super low mileage (~17k miles), OEM bushings are practically as good as completely new, so I wasn't feeling like changing them yet.

3. While I was ordering from GKTech, I also ordered Tie rod spacers, along with new tie rods, which should give additional several degrees of steering angle. I'm not a drifter, and I'm not keen on going with some crazy angles, but I'd like a bit more degrees, so I figure this is worth changing, since it's such an unobtrusive change.

4. And while I'm still working on the front of the car, I will do the brake cooling. I don't feel like paying for a full kit, as I found 2,5" heat resistant tubing for about $70 locally, and I think I'll be able to guide and secure them well for some brake cooling. It's not that I absolutely need it, but it won't hurt, so whatever I get in terms of extra brake cooling will be good.

When all that is done, the car should be almost fully complete to my preference and no more modding is expected. My wallet will also be thankful :)

Routing 2" diameter hose for brake ducts isn't too hard. When you go bigger. It becomes a challenge. I went from 2" to 3". That took me a while to figure out.

These guys had 2,5" hoses that seem very fit for the job, I'm sure routing won't be a problem at all, it's more of a question of where I want to locate the intake side.

It's where the hose is in relationship with the sway bar and the front inside corner of the tire. You might have to oval the hose there for clearance.

Thanks for the heads-up! I got several of these (see attachment) just for that purpose, to make sure I can safely fasten them to a good spot. I guess it'll take some hacking, but I'll find a solution.

Awesome car man, I love how the euro spec Z's have certain features that we don't get here. I would love to have the rear wiper on my Z to be honest. My 350 had it, but the 370 doesn't for some reason.

Btw, how are the side view mirrors on your car? Does the drivers side view mirror have the extended view for blind spots? Basically, the first quarter part of the mirror has a wider view glass than the rest. It looks like this:
https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/slwAA...9k/s-l1600.jpg

If so, then I'll get a set of side view mirrors from Germany or something and install them on my Z.

Hey, I have to say that no, my mirrors are just regular ones, there is no part that's cut, so that you get that extra blind spot view. Not sure if it's possible that came in with later Z's, but I do believe that any glass maker could to that for you. Maybe it wouldn't be as original, but if you basically just do a cut on the mirror, so that the outer part is tilted additional few degrees, it would catch the blind spot.

Thanks for the info. The later Z's might have had these type of mirrors, but I'm not sure. I know we definitely didn't get it here in US and Canada.

Just to post a little update after running the car for 2 days for this season - I finally got a chance to test the oil cooler I bought. So, reminder - I bought a Setrab core, 25 row oil cooler with a thermostatic sandwich plate. I put it in the usual just behind the bumper spot.

The thermostat opens at around 82°C (180F) from what I could find online. This means that if I track the car and push it, but I keep speeds to about 60mph - the oil will reach maybe 110°C (230F), but never exceed it. It will quite quickly drop back to 90°C (195F).

The interesting part is on the highway. If I'm cruising at around 130-140km/h (80-85mph) my oil temperature will get stuck on around 75°C (165F) and will not exceed it unless I push it. In 6th gear that's at 3000rpm. I find it a bit too cool for my taste, but what the hell do I know.

All in all - super happy with it so far.

Go figure. In Europe, they have bidets, same thing with their headlights.

Gotta say I'm either stupid or forgetful, but today I looked at my driver side mirror and sure enough - it's got that cut on the outer side, so to show the blind spot. Whoops.

Completely unplanned but after last track day I decided that I should get a steering wheel spacer. Too many times have I thought that the steering wheel is just too far away for me.
I bought one off of spacershop.com - some other member has linked it in the thread about it. The harnesses for all the functional keys on the steering wheel need to be extended, but the airbag wires are OK, just long enough so that they don't need to be extended. Installation was not a problem, though I must note that I think that it's impossible to get the steering wheel perfectly straight. I think the grooves on the extender piece aren't completely aligned, because I tried to align it perfectly, and even did a realignment - I still don't have the perfect straight alignment. No big deal, I'll go for alignment and fix it - once I install the steering spacers to get a bit more angle on the front.

Went for a wet drive on the track yesterday and the steering wheel position is perfect, right in my hands, not that I need to be stretched out. That being said, there is a downside to it. Reaching for the turn signal stalk - that's just ridiculous. It's now FAR AWAY. Not kidding, but I literally need to move the hand off the steering wheel to reach the stalk - but it's worth it. The driving position is SO much better now.

Anyway, here's a few pics of the car, along with the other car that's actually practical to use. On the pics of the Z, you can also see little upgrades that I mentioned previously - the oil pressure gauge, functioning fantastically and looking nearly OEM, as well as the fire extinguisher in front of the passenger seat. Not a huge one, but better than nothing.

https://i.imgur.com/U6MZioOh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/nEdjomIh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/ahFsVOGh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/Xqb2YBah.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/ehLUCOch.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/8PxPf4jh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/PZkWCAjh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/jTj5tNHh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/rR7HFW5h.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/uN8Qctoh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/dyBqJBXh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/RebKTYSh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/zk34SWFh.jpg

Some pics from the track few weeks ago

https://i.imgur.com/0JS3Sf8h.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/tlqloYnh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/ae6zdtzh.jpg

Now go get your Takada air bags replaced!:tup:

How do you prevent from your seats getting dye transfer and no wrinkles?

I NEVER wear jeans when driving this car. It's most often just sweatpants or some super light pants. I condition the leather once every month or two, and I make sure to NEVER sit on the side of the seat. I was taught loooong time ago to not make those mistakes :tiphat:

You have the cleanest seats I've seen, like brand-new-out-of-the-box clean lol.

They really do look like new :happydance: but to be honest, the car itself has just 16k miles, so it wasn't that hard to take care of them...

True, but considering your car is a 2009 AND the previous owner(s) seemed to have taken care of it (at least the time they drove it when they were in town anyway), so props!

I remember back when I got my '07 350Z, the car had maybe 8K miles when I got her, and the seats looked like some fat@$$ sat on them and never moved.

That's why this baby is a unicorn :)

Thanks for the confirmation! Now I have to find a pair of mirrors and replace mine. Are they also heated?

Not sure how I can tell, other than feeling with a hand? I don't have the specific button to activate the heater. I do think they are heated, because they never fogged up, even after entering the garage on a rainy day. I suspect they are heated.

Few more updates I didn't post yet.

So, during winter hibernation, I also said I'll refurbish the wheels. I felt too lazy to go over full wheel refurbishing, then complete repaint, so I just did a quick fix.

This is what the worst wheel looked like:

https://i.imgur.com/CWkKiV3h.jpg

It's not just a surface scuff or scratch, it's PROPER curb damage. I asked the tyre shop if they can fix this, and they said that it would take some welding and additional work, and it seemed too much for my taste. So I looked into alternatives and found that there's a metal epoxy that can be used for fixes exactly like these. So I ordered JB Weld - being a metal epoxy resin which when hardened, should be virtually the same as metal. So I decided to give it a shot and see what happens.

I first used a very rough sandpaper and roughened the surface, then added some metal epoxy, then next day I used the sandpaper again and made sure it's smooth. I didn't document that process, nothing special there - just the smoothened surface:

https://i.imgur.com/XaR0B3Vh.jpg

Then I did a complete shot in the dark and bought a rattle spray can color that looked the same as my wheel color.

https://i.imgur.com/tjWaa9Ah.jpg

And once out of garage, this is the result......

https://i.imgur.com/Er9BwuPh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/rW1VBbbh.jpg


In normal daylight the end result is actually alright! It's not perfect by any means, if you look very closely it actually looks horrible....but it's better than it was. It'll have to do for this season. Maybe next year I'll take some time and do a proper refurb of the wheels.

Another update, but this time more meaningful - I installed steering rack spacers. I got them from GKTech, they weren't too expensive, but it did involve getting new tie rods as well. The end result is not crazy, but it's a bit more degrees of angle than original. Check pics of before and after.

https://i.imgur.com/mucb2dRh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/umKZz4Eh.jpg

Another few bits checked off the list today:
-RBF Motul 600 brake oil
-braided steel brake lines
-EBC Bluestuff brake pads

Just one more piece of the puzzle remaining - the brake cooling ducts. Haven't gotten around to installing them yet, I was always a bit discouraged until now, because I'm not *entirely* sure where to put them. I was looking at how to route the pipe but I can't find the optimal way. I also looked through several solutions that I found on the internet - but none were clear enough. Any tips?

Hopefully these can help:

http://www.the370z.com/diy-section-d...ing-ducts.html

http://www.the370z.com/diy-section-d...lots-pics.html

http://www.the370z.com/brakes-suspen...-pictures.html

Was a bit busy these days so didn't post updates.
The trip is on! Yesterday we reached out destination

https://i.imgur.com/iZD9tGUh.jpg


On our way here, we drove the Autobahn and I had a chance to freely test how the car performs at high speeds. Reached 250km/h a few times, it could probably go a bit faster, but the traffic was too busy to force such speeds. At cruising speeds of 180/190km/h, the car can be calmly driven with one hand, oil temp stuck at 90°C, all perfect. After 1000km checked the oil, not a drop missing. So far so good!
The brake pads I installed - EBC blue stuff, behave fantastic, strong bite and absolutely no fade.

A magnificent destination! Enjoy your time there :driving:

Okay, it's been exactly 1 month, time to tell the Nürburgring story.

So, I've been a big fan of the Nürburgring and last year I made a decision to go to the Ring this year in Spring. I chose end of May, as I expected nice weather but not too hot. The Ring is super hard on the car, there's no need to torture it with additional heat outside. Late May proved to be really *the best* time of the year. No crazy traffic, and we hit the week of sunshine every single day. Kinda pity, because I really wished for at least a shower or some rain, because I really wanted to try the ring in the wet as well, but eh, next time.

The plan was 1 week of travel to the Ring (stopping in München and Stuttgart, visiting museums), and then enjoy 1 week on the Ring, and then go home.
We traveled with 2 cars (370z and M2) with walkie-talkies which are absolute recommendation, as it makes communication so much easier.

In München we went to the BMW museum and BMW Welt. Welt is kinda meh, contemporary cars, nothing special to see really. BMW museum however, is amazing. Several floors of everything to see; from classics, to prototypes, to incredible new stuff.

Check some of these pics out:

https://i.imgur.com/hZJGLQha.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/Al35It5h.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/2QMq2N0h.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/UmnmfMhh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/SQtFIUDh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/eYWcMZ2h.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/nOdjoAch.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/EaZaFX1h.jpg

There's PLENTY more, but I'm not going to be uploading pics endlessly, can't be bothered, sorry �� also, museums must live off of something, so go there and see for yourself! There's a whole huge tech part where you can see all engines BMW made and how they're developed etc. It's really worth it.

Beside the BMW stuff, we went to the Museum of Technology, which is also fckn awesome. I didn't make a lot of pics there, but trust me when I tell you, it's fantastic. Just a couple of pics here:

https://i.imgur.com/mbRR9sRh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/ww9eOGHh.jpg
full resolutions of these two panorama pics - worth checking:
https://imgur.com/mbRR9sR
https://imgur.com/ww9eOGH

In one of the garages where we parked, we also saw a small carpark by obviously the same owner - very separate spaces, all cars with nearly the exact same license plate. What's interesting is that the cars are.....a perfect choice for every occasion. You've got the big jeep, little jeep, cheap sportscar, expensive sportscar, a rally sportscar, a PDK sportscar, a manual sportscar....

https://i.imgur.com/HhEMuryh.jpg

That guy has good taste, no question about it. Anywho....



After that we went to Stuttgart. On our way there, we meet these dudes:

https://i.imgur.com/Lm4ZSnRh.jpg

Bought a car somewhere in Germany, something broke, so they had it brought to the Porsche specialist in Zuffenheim (porsche HQ), and now they're on their way back home to England. Lovely 356 there.

So, Stuttgart. The plan there was of course, to check out Mercedes Benz museum and Porsche museum.
Mercedes has a huge museum, 8 floors IIRC in total, you can be there the whole day. The museum is not just cars cars cars, it's basically everything that somehow included Mercedes. First world war, second world war, industrial revolution of sort, everything. It's a really interesting place to be and to see everything. The security is super tight and they are very strict. I'm saying this, because for some cars, they don't allow you to come close at all. Not saying that I should be allowed anything but looking, but in Porsche museum, you can sneak a peek inside anything, you can almost sit down in some legendary cars - it's ridiculous how relaxed and laid back they are there. But more on that later. The Mercedes security might be so tight also because of the fact that some cars there are ridiculously expensive (1 out of 2 MB300SLR, that's worth 135M euros - yes, 135 million euros!).
So, some pics from the Mercedes museum:

https://i.imgur.com/DzX8WOVh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/US9Za7sh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/j24qub2h.jpg

This thing may not look that way, but it's HUGE. Also, Apparently it could hit 190km/h :eek:

https://i.imgur.com/dJo5pf6h.jpg


All of these are quite big, people in the background are actually standing pretty close to them

https://i.imgur.com/6tnQqRah.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/csCMG8Rh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/QM8zfQph.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/8iQMaJKh.jpg

And this car...the original SLR

https://i.imgur.com/QOpCMOXh.jpg

This thing is worth €135M. For this one, I'm amazed you can basically touch it, if you dare. Security is right there next to it, but you may come quite close to it. It's crazy. Made in 2 pieces, one is bought by some sheik who knows what, and the other one is here in the museum.

https://i.imgur.com/qIgL6BVh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/4i29Jndh.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/pSaaVZFh.jpg

Grids like these are particularly interesting, because they made sure to put the correct type of asphalt as on the track here beneath the cars - an actual fact lol.

https://i.imgur.com/XvJNzEwh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/uQZMkfoh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/kxohaFVh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/VEV0JuWh.jpg


Landspeed record vehicles are especially interesting

https://i.imgur.com/OABR9zeh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/jgAYlVRh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/GvQcyixh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/IeWdATIh.jpg

After Mercedes Benz museum, we go to the edge of Stuttgart to Zuffenhausen to check out the Porsche museum. That museum is small, but man, they made it SO GOOD. You get in, walk around looking at porsche history for maybe 1,5h, and you get out thinking - "Porsche is the best car in the world and I will sell my kidney to get one". Not sure how they made it, but that's the feeling you leave with after you go through their museum.
Some pics....

Yes, these are actual cars:

https://i.imgur.com/tAf59cZh.jpg

Beneath every car there's a plaque with a story behind it. Whether it's "the first XXX model" or it's some curiosity about the particular model...

https://i.imgur.com/4XepeIzh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/ANvE30Hh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/3K2Ue08h.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/2N6p2Yfh.jpg

The first turbo:

https://i.imgur.com/3b6K9Csh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/iLPQJfMh.jpg

This car actually has 35km from new. That's cca 20 miles in freedom units. 20 miles from new!!!

https://i.imgur.com/ZkZI3UFh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/WvbiQEVh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/CUghZB8h.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/kKEgQ7lh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/NuU47Uhh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/Js5qPTdh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/m7gJIz6h.jpg

The 911R, manual, naturally aspirated 500hp.

https://i.imgur.com/L0YUk6Eh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/3EFA9q9h.jpg

Not sure what a Subaru Impreza is doing in a porsche museum, but still, it looks nice
https://i.imgur.com/Nv6HKR5h.jpg


Part 1 complete. Preparing part 2 now.......

Part 2.

So while in Stuttgart, one evening we were drinking with the night guard of the hotel, who is one very interesting dude, let's just keep it at that. We tell him our plans, our next stop being the Nürburgring, and he hits us with
"Oh really? If you're going north, you guys gotta go see the Sinsheim museum."
-Sins-what?
"Sinsheim museum! It's the best museum ever!"

Okaaaay, let me make a note. So I check google reviews, the museum has 4,7 / 5 rating, out of 24k reviews. :o aaaalright, so let's check it out then.

Before going to the ring, we go to Sinsheim museum. Little did anyone know, this would be *THE BEST* museum we've ever been to.
The museum is huge. They've got a huge outer area, and several halls.

From the parking lot, you can already see a lot airplanes, but two that immediately stick out are the Concorde and Tupolev. These aren't just models, those are actual plans and you can go inside them!


https://i.imgur.com/YF8U6bMh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/X0SJn9hh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/Bb5VaPyh.jpg


Inside the Concorde:


https://i.imgur.com/JbxEqP4h.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/dBUA478h.jpg


Inside the Tupolev:


https://i.imgur.com/9yqPLesh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/CWejKMvh.jpg

There's plenty of other planes, but I didn't take pics inside. So let's go inside and see what we have there....

Brutus, the car with a 46 liter engine....


https://i.imgur.com/6HG6JSGh.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/Sd1EkwRh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/b8ZnHCHh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/9QO1ECdh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/31CQiF8h.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/HobfQoGh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/Vt1DeaJh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/C9boqith.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/kNosrgKh.jpg


This room has so many classic Ferraris and Lambos that it's just incredible to see them all together like that.


https://i.imgur.com/1nryLrNh.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/OKHRgJuh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/ms0UqNuh.jpg

What the hell is this thing


https://i.imgur.com/koMZrJih.jpg


Well that's an Alfa Romeo Aerospider. Made in the 1930's! 1934-1937. 2,3l 6cyl, 105hp


https://i.imgur.com/v0jsQjYh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/3TkPc7uh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/sukwq41h.jpg


And other classics....


https://i.imgur.com/YAADLhCh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/lfZIPRDh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/lOloGyMh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/jwZEtmYh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/J2IbIyfh.jpg


There's a whole part dedicated just to cycling, a lot of bicycles and history, but again, not gonna spend eternity uploading all pics, sorry :D here's a sneak preview...


https://i.imgur.com/SxtQAIJh.jpg


Then there's a huge large hall with war stuff. Cross section of a half blown tank is interesting to see


https://i.imgur.com/zIWTJrBh.jpg



So let me also tell a short story here. We go into one of these endlessly huge halls, and we see locomotives, steam ones. They're just huge, probably 25m long. And I'm looking at them, and there's trays beneath them, some full of oil that's been dripping in them. So I'm confused - there's oil dripping from them, yet some are 100+ years old. What gives? And then I see.....not just locomotives....some tanks as well, and other stuff. They've got 1€ slot near it - you can throw in a coin, and IT WILL TURN ON FOR A SHORT BIT OF TIME. :happydance: That's just amazing. So of course - it will not blow steam, but you will actually see it move. Seeing a huge tank turret move, or a 100 year old locomotive run its wheels - that's just amazing. And Sinsheim delivers with everything. Apparently next year they'll be getting a submarine! Just AMAZING museum. I didn't show 1% of actual stuff you could see there.


But let's move on. Our destination, Nürburgring, awaits. We finally get there, and go to the Fan shop. There I spend way too much money but hey, if you drove the ring, you are allowed to have a ring sticker on your car and wear the merchandise without being a poser, right? :tup:

While on the ring, we came just in time to see the Nürburgring Classics races. One day they were driving on the Nordschleife, the other two days on the GP track.
There are many different classes, but what's interesting - you can freely go to the drivers paddock and see the pits/boxes and how the cars are prepared. Some pics from various classes:

https://i.imgur.com/G1pjJJnh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/6uHRlaFh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/9Jrdo1Sh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/UNskBouh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/rQbpMUFh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/7OEwsqbh.jpg


So, let's come to the main point of the trip, THE Nürburgring Nordschleife.

I could write endless posts about it, but I'll try to stick with just the important/interesting stuff.

Before coming to the ring, I did around 1000-1100 laps on the simulator (Assetto Corsa). The track in the game and real life is *the same*. Exactly the same, everything, every curb, every inch. So that helped A LOT. The track is very difficult, very long, you're not alone on it. there's a whole bunch of guys who are so good and who drive so fast, that you wouldn't believe it. You think you're fast in your GT3RS, then all of a sudden, you see flashing lights behind you - a beat up e36 needs to run by you, because the dude in it is making sub 8min laps like it's a joke. So there definitely is no room for error, and you definitely don't want to lose time and concentration by thinking where you are on the track, is the next corner hard or not, whether a particular corner is slippery, what's the camber, if there's a blind jump, etc etc. You want the track layout to be last of your concern - so that you can focus on everything around you, and your car. On our way to the Ring, we drove the autobahn - speeds at 220-250km/h for quite a bit of time. But that's straight line. I have a lot of experience with that, sure, but I never drove 150-180km/h in a corner before. And I mean real corners, not just a curved road. Driving dynamics are completely different when you skid along the track at 60km/h and 160km/h-

That being said, if you don't have a well prepared car, you're in for a bad time. Every day we've seen cars get towed from the track. Whether it was a mechanical issue or it was a crash, you could see everything. The track is ruthless. I saw a dude go out after one lap in his RS4, smoke from all four wheels wells, he panicked as he was leaving the carpark due to so much smoke he was creating.

My 370z - man, that thing rodeo'd the ring like it's a joke :happydance::happydance: I did 10 laps in total - no problem whatsoever! I guess I'm not a bad mechanic at all :tup: so what's worth noting - oil cooler is a must. Upgraded brake lines, brake oil and brake pads are also a must. Knowing how to setup your suspension is a must (ARBs, camber, tyres).


Onboard footage:



Only thing that would improve the experience is if I had better tyres. I had all 4 new tyres on the car, almost a square setup (245-255) but they overheat very quickly and they aren't the best in the grip compartment. This last lap could probably be improved easily by at least 30s if I had better tyres. But I'm not complaining, I chose these tyres specifically to be just OKAY, because I like throwing my car sideways, and if the tyres are too sticky, 370z doesn't have that much torque in the low revs, so it's struggling a bit and I'm not on this type of track often, if at all. My local track is a small curvy one which I like to just have fun on, throwing the car around. But anyways, I digress.

Some more pics from the carpark:

https://i.imgur.com/wbMRtT4h.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/vpEXOGah.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/l4yVEGbh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/7cw0nVgh.jpg

E36 gang going to lunch:

https://i.imgur.com/06YK8edh.jpg


A couple of nice NSX's

https://i.imgur.com/eInu23vh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/4Az0qEAh.jpg


Maybe this 1 minute video actually shows best, what it's like to be on the Nürburgring. I shot this literally after a lap, after we had coffee, before going for another lap. You quickly become immune to being amazed by nice Porsches because....there's an endless supply of them. Them and all other nice cars.




While on the Nürburgring, maybe it's only OK to visit the Nürburg - the castle itself, right?

https://i.imgur.com/DWJhZFLh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/4ARKgzHh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/yBEfhOFh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/p8U6tJMh.jpg


On the way back, the car hit another new milestone, 30k km.
https://i.imgur.com/4UZCaybh.jpg


After a great week on the Ring, we have a multiple day trip back home where we stop in Nuremberg - a nice city, homeplace of Albrecht Dürer, after which we also stop at the Red Bull Ring - where the missus had a Porsche Cayman S training course. We had great fun there, but that's a story for another time.

Over and out.

Awesome write up and great photos!

Had a silly idea to film the sounds this car makes and I made an ASMR video.

A bit of updates on the Z. Stock suspension allows virtually no adjustability which sucks, so a few weeks ago I installed adjustable rear camber arms and adjustable rear toe arms. I first did only camber arms, but they were heavily closing the toe, so it was necessary to add those as well.

Sorry for very dirty pics...

https://i.imgur.com/plMFkqqh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/hSZfyL7h.jpg


This allows me to set alignment a bit more than what stock allows, so right now the rear is set at:

Rear:
Camber -1°20'
Toe 0°02'

The front comes in at
Camber -2°
Toe 0°00'

This alignment seems very good to me, perhaps I'll close the rear toe just a bit more to about 0°04'. But I'll do this next season.

This season was full of great adventures, driving, we did quite a bit of mileage in the Z, about 7000km in total (~4500miles). Most of the mileage (almost 2000 miles) was spent on the trip to the Nürburgring, which I'll repeat in a few years for sure. Otherwise there were several trips to the local tracks, including Grobnik (the track in Croatia) during rain, which proved an awesome challenge to practice driving with all electronics switched off. The tires are completely busted, which is funny, as I put on a complete new set in the beginning of this season...but that's what they're for.

So today I gave the car a thorough wash and concluded the season

https://i.imgur.com/3Xw0qOnh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/Itr9Ff9h.jpg


This winter's plans are quite humble, as the car is almost completely done in the way I wanted it to be. Plans are:
1. change oil and fluids
2. install a servo oil cooler
3. install brake cooling ducts
4. replace the final drive gear with a shorter one (3.69 out, 4.08 in)

What factors made you decide on the 4.08?

I recently went with the 4.08. Debated back and forth between a 4.08 and a 3.90, but after deciding that I was primarily looking to use the car for back country twisty roads and some autoX, I went with the 4.08.

Makes the gears pretty short ngl.. lol

70mph in 6th, the engine is somewhere near 3500rpm and 80mph encroaches on 4krpm. Might want to keep that in mind depending on how much highway driving you do.

Hey, thanks for the input. Two factors played a key role in my decision.
First I watched many different videos with Z owners, as well as read through the forums here to hear what people have to say.
Next I played in my simulator (Assetto Corsa). The stock Z in it has 3.9 ratio and while it's definitely shorter than mine, it doesn't seem short enough. I then tried similarly powered cars with shorter ratios, as well as even shorter ones (drift cars) and they are surely way too short. This 4.08 to me seems like the perfect fit for driving. The only thing that might be different is higher gearing on the highway....but seeing as this is primarily my fun car / road trip car, I'm OK with that. I'm not in a rush, I can drive it slower on the highway with the cruise control. So yeah, I really do appreciate your input. I'll post updates next year once it's installed and I make a drive with which I can then compare and comment.