Good Morning from Misawa JP,

Dislike being the new guy, but wanted to ask for advice. I have recently purchased a 03 Fairlady Z. Pics to be loaded likely tomorrow.

My goal is obtain close to if not 400hp on the stock VQ35DE. Not looking to necessarily sell a kidney but at the same time I am in no way willing to grab cheap parts to reach my goal. I'd like my dream car to last.

So my question to Z enthusiast is should I be directing my search towards FI or better internals to reach my goal?

Thank you all

 

You won't reach your goals NA. From the builds I've seen, you should be fine FI around that power with stock internals.

 

Thread moved to Engine & Drivetrain

 

If you're looking to get no more than 400 hp I would look into getting a vortech SC. There's a really big thread on it and there's a ton of information behind it.

https://my350z.com/forum/showthread....770&styleid=69

But before you jump into buying everything get a compression test done to check your engines health!

Another route you could go is single or twin turbo but for the cost and ease of installation the vortech kit is probably the best.

 

+1 to what he said. Before you go on the hunt for more power, you definitely want to go over everything as thoroughly as possibly to make sure your VQ can even handle it. Compression test, leak down test, etc. What are the miles on you Z? Do you know if they were easy highway miles or did it see track days every week end and live close to the red line?

If all checks okay and you have a "budget" to stay within and want to even begin approaching your 400whp goal, say buh byyyeee to the N.A/bolt on route. Not going to happen. To get around the 400whp mark, in MY OPINION, going the Vortech sc route would be the most cost effective and easiest. All around best bang for your buck. Keep your eyes open. Great deals can be had on used Vortech kits.

 

Well put advice,

I was so happy with receiving the car, I had not thought of testing the engine to confirm its actual health.

Thank you.

And here's her current state.

 

What's the mileage on the Z? Why is the Z everyone's 'dream' car? Mustve come from a civic?

 

With what everyone is saying about it being impossible to get 400hp from a NA engine is true. Basically you're asking for a 30% plus power increase and that is an impossible dream. What are you intending to use the car for as this could have quite a baring on what form of FI you take. E.G. AutoX you'd be better of with a twin turbo set up. Drag, then a big single would serve you better. For ease of fitting and more reliability then a SC would be your best bet. That's a tidy looking 350 you've bought yourself and don't worry, we were all new guys at some time. I'd definitely get a good health check on your motor as it'd be a shame to go FI and then a couple of weeks later have your engine go bang!

 

It was always my "reasonable dream car", whenever I could find a sweet deal on one. 5 years later I can still eat, afford a house, 4 month old, a Titan, and my wife's Murano.
My "dream car" is a GTR.

I would be looking at rods and pistons as well as the turbo kit with supporting mods.....lots of them.

 

OP is in Japan and has a RHD car (look closely at the pic). So some non-JDM FI kits may not be compatible on his Fairlady Z.

OP, the stock internals should be OK with forced induction if you keep the boost levels modest and the torque below 400 ft/lbs. Contact Top Secret! You are so lucky to live in Japan where you have access to JDM tuners like Smokey Nagata. Take advantage of that! A lot of us in the USA would sell a kidney or kill for the opportunity to have a Top Secret built Z.

http://www.topsecret-jpn.com/

 

Currently sitting at just about 55k miles.

Sadly Tokyo is a little far. However I for sure will look into it.

 

Oh ya youre good as far as mileage goes. I'd just have compression test just to be safe and boost her. My dream car would be something like a R8 or crazy baddass turbo Porsche. Guess boosted NSX wouldn't hurt either.