Hello all...pictures and details to come by the weekend. The procedure was done to Toby's blue HKS supercharged 350z.

 

Guys I am telling you steve is one hell of a guy to work with. I have never seen somebody look at the manufacture's way to install something and put his own twist on things to make it 40% better.

I feel like a kid in a candy store right now. cant wait to see my car in person much less photos.

 

Normally, this is the extent of detrimming, according to GTF instructions.



This step is necessary in order to remove the original door studs from the inside of the door as well as insert the 3 bolts that will torque the GTF bracket to the door





That bracket pictured behind the bottom part of the black wire loom is the lower door stud bracket. It is an additional brace that hold the 2 door studs in order to help stabilize the door. There is a spot weld in the middle holding it to the door. It must be drilled through in order to remove.




MB Quart speaker. Awesome speaker....huge pain in the *** for the installation because the speaker housing is much larger than stock. The fiberglass door panel doesnt' like this speaker. Additional bracing and custom mounting must be done in order to keep this speaker with the door conversion

 

Again, top quality crossover, but it made me really want to take a 20 lb monkey wrench and smash it right in the middle. The sheer bulk of this unit gave me a big headache when fitting the fiber panels.



Mark the door with guidelines in order to mark the bracket


Place the bracket in exact position and then mark for drilling.



Marked for drilling.



Drill with high pressure, low speed, and lots of coolant/lubrication.


Use appropriate size bit in order to tap threads into the holes.

 

Tap holes using.......a tap.



Better use cutting oil, or else you will go through lots of taps. The alloy used in the door hinge is super high quality. It seems like it has either a high nickel or stainless content, probably both. It is very difficult to drill through. Unless you have a drill press, go back to sleep.



Before I forget...Toby's cool bonnet dampers. Adds such a nice touch to the Z. A car of this caliber should have come with them from the factory, in my opinion.





Sand the area under the bracket and around it to ensure a strong weld.



From inside the door, bolt the 3 bolts in place.
The lowest bolt had something in the way from inside the door, so I slid a bolt through and place a nut on the other end.



Many of you may be wondering why this whole bolting process is even taking place if the door is to be welded anyways. GTFactory does not include this step in their installation manual, nor did they suggest it when I had called several times. If you look closely at the door where the bracket is to be welded, it is not a flat surface. There is a step on the skin, where when you press the bracket to it, it DOES NOT sit flush with the door skin. In my opinion, that would cause a problem. The total surface area of the bracket that makes contact with the door is about...nil. Literally, probably 0.1 square inches, because it consists of only 2 lines....one where the step is, and the other at the lower end of the bracket that also hits the door skin. Which means there is a gap between the door and bracket around the ENTIRE perimeter, with the exception of the 0.1 sq. in. where the bracket touches the door.

It's not that big a problem if you weld a large amount of material, but therein lies an additional problem. The door hinge is made of high content nickel/stainless steel. It is also around 0.63 inches thick, whereas the door skin is only about 0.1 inches thick. The bracket requires a very high amount of heat to melt it and transer material to the door skin. But, because the door skin is so thin, it wants to melt almost immediately, leaving you with....a hole where you wanted the bracket to meet the door. If the door skin were thicker, this would not be as big a problem. But it's always a little weird to weld such a thick guage bracket to such a thin guage skin.

My solution was to bolt the door to the bracket first, to ensure a tightly torqued door, which would flatten the door skin as the bracket is tightened....to the point where the bracket sits flush to the door. When this process is done, welding isn't even necessary, depending on how many bolts you use and where you position them. With the door tightly bolted, and no gaps between the door and bracket, I could weld using less heat and more precision, not needing to melt too much material being my door was already mounted. I welded very neatly around the bracket in order to use it as a big "rectangular washer" that helps provide stability.

 

With the bracket mounted to the door, reinstall the door and mark the perimeter for cutting into the fender inner frame. The other end of the bracket must sit INSIDE this cutout, so precise measuring and cutting is a must.


Grind corners into sharp 90 degree angles for the tightest fit.


Final preparation for welding bracket to door.





Mask area around bracket to prevent sparks from destroying the paint.

 

Weld the bracket to the door.



I realize I'm using no protective clothing or welding mask. I do not recommend to do this without those types of items. I was thinking real hard while I was working so I was sweating a lot. It was too hot for a shirt. I just don't have a welding helmet right now. I broke mine and am waiting for snap-on to bring another one.



GTF does not do this step either. I hadn't planned on it, but I couldn't stand the site of the welds because I knew they would be visible with the doors up.
I chose to grind them to a smooth finish since the bolts had already stabilized the door.







I was doing this through the night and morning in order to attempt to get the car back to Toby by Saturday morning. It did not happen. I lost a few soldiers along the way.

 

Grinded the weld all the way around the door in order to give the best appearance. The grinding part takes much longer than the welding. I don't know if anyone has done this step besides me. I always looked at Japanese installation and saw how they prided themselves on going that extra step. Always making sure the fit and finish is OEM in nature is my motto as well. I strive to make all my installs look like they were a factory option.





When all the grinding is complete, I will go over the welded/grinded area with Evercoat and color-matched Dupont paint. The finish will be as smooth as glass and appear to have rolled out of the factory in Japan as is. There will be no evidence of welding.

 

Prepare the area to be welded on the frame.




A perfect fit. Only precise measurements can guarantee a perfect fit after the bracket has been welded to the door and the door put in exact position with the door shut. In my opinion, if the door is not bolted to the bracket, installers would have much higher variance in where the bracket actually ends up after welding is done.

Even if the bracket fits exactly, one must figure out EXACTLY how deep you have to place the bracket inside the void you cut out. There are several parameters one must keep in mind. Fitment left to right as well as up and down. These affect the gap between the fender and door and door to rear quarter, as well as gap between door and sideskirt and door window to weather seal. Then you have to figure out how positive or negative the door must lean on it's X and Y axis. This is to make sure the front/back/top/bottom of the door doesn't stick out in any direction. These parameters are what makes the install hard. Cutting, sanding, welding, grinding.....anybody can do that, well that's not true...you know what I mean. It's the measuring and precise execution of where the bracket must be which makes it so difficult. Weld just an 1/8 of an inch off in any direction, and the door will be tarnished for life. Metal warps when heated to high temperatures, especially thin sheet metal. Very high heat must be applied to weld the bracket to the car. The installer only gets one chance to make the welds. GTF claims almost every 350z/g35 install has problems......I guess we'll see when I'm done.

 

Happy to see pics but painfull also. Worth every look though

 

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Whewwww man that's a lot of work! Looks like a lot of dudesweat going on too lol Can't wait to see the finished

 

how much $$ do you charge for this type of labor?

holy crap it seems like a lot of work....

turbo install or vert doors ? which one is more difficult? haha.

 

I think after seeing my car last weekend I will put money on turbo install

 

Steve,
I'm sure the final product will speak for itself, but it LOOKS like you are doing a top notch job on Toby's car, and it will be amazing when it's finished. It's not every shop that can do this kind of stuff, and I'm happy to have you here practically in my back yard. Damn good stuff man....damn good.

 

I can't wait till the finished product please do keep us informed

 

A turbo install is much easier. Which is not to say one can't get good at installing GTF doors. It is definitely possible to become proficient at installing these doors, as difficult as they are. Repetition is the only way. Learning from the last install, the last door. Information I processed from the first time I installed VDC's in '02 affect how I look at future installs, as well as this current kit.

Turbo installs always work the same. Smooth as many bends as possible; maximize air velocity and volume by varying pipe diameter and length, as well as porting; maximize cooling efficiency via intercooler/radiator/oil coolers; Maximize power with a ball-bearing turbo, tubular equal-length manifold, and stroked crank; Fortify with forged pistons/rods; Promote efficient fuel flow; ECU tuning to adjust air/fuel ratio and timing. Sure, there are many things left out, but it's the same every time. It's not a mystery. It's physics. And the driver with the most amount of money wins. If the tuner/builder understand how the turbo works, and what will help it, it's the same everytime. Every part on it has a reason for being there. If it is installed wrong the first time, you can check it and change it if you are smart enough.


I'm sorry guys. I just read that and realized that's a lot to remember at the same time as well. You know, I now realize there is no correct universal answer being that the term "easier" is relative to each individual's knowledge and experience. As well, there was never set an agreed upon definition of "turbo kit install."

I am really not like this. I speak normally too if you get to know me. I got excited because this topic coincides with a turbo kit install I'm currently doing. In short, I'm attempting to break every record regarding the Evo 8 and power output, as well as drag and time attack times.

Currently we're going for the "stock turbo" power record. Modified Mag claims it's 436 on 118 oct. and 28 lbs of boost on a dynojet. Started with 204 on a dynojet. Initial pull last week was 320 (dynojet). Long block and drivetrain entirely stock besides a pair of camshafts. Stock turbo AND manifold. Stock fuel system. Only 21 lbs of boost. Exxon 93 pump gas. Untampered UTEC set to map 1...default modified.

Put in 116 octane and raised boost to 22 (because of lack of fuel), and verified the lack of fuel by gaining only 2 whp. If we had our injectors and fuel pump installed, we would have pulled much much more power. Although it may sound dumb, I think it's gonna be easy to break this record. The customer has allowed me to pick each component myself, with a budget ceiling of $125,000 for the entire project, not including the car. I'm using mainly HKS power components (3240R turbo kit, Kansai only), ARC cooling, magnesium wheels.......damn. Sorry. I never shut up.

 

And....being blown DEFINITELY provides some SERIOUS happiness.

 

Sound's like you love what you do. I wish you were out here in CA. I would love to have an installer that dedicated.

 

Thank you very much. I do love what I do. Cars are all I've thought about since I was 3, the first time I drove a car. My goal is always to install it better, even if it increases efficiency by only 1%. Do that to every piece installed, and things just work better.

I should have more pictures tonight of working GTF doors.