Hi everyone, I've been on this site for a while but hardly ever post anything. Gotten a lot of good info from members and threads. I thought i'd share my progress with my car as I said I would, and hopefully I can provide some help and shed some light to anyone going down this same route with their car.

Little backstory: I bought this car as I was advancing through my 20's when I finally got a steady job and could finally afford to build my dreams as a kid. Originally I had always wanted a S2000 but once I grew older and finally could afford one, I thought to myself why get a smaller car with 2 less cylinders that would cost a fortune to mod and bring up to what the stock power plant the Z could produce? So as a first time car buyer under my own name with my own money I went shopping for a hardtop Z. I looked around for a while and found an orange one with a 6 speed. When I got there it was beat to ****, automatic, and had way more mileage than advertised I was about to walk out the door when I was offered a chance to check out a silver roadster 6 speed with 50k on it. I said screw that convertibles are for chicks, and the chassis is gonna have too much flex if I track it. But I said screw it Ill check it out, 4 hours later I was driving away in it because I fell in love with it and I'm really glad I did.

The original plan was performance, suspension, looks. That didn't happen. I got in a fender bender, took the money, and said "welp, time for a body kit". So I did my research here and really felt that on a roadster aggressive is nasty so I chose something clean that I felt would fit the car.






Pretty nasty with stock wheels and suspension right?

I Built this with the street and track in mind so instead of going performance, I really needed to do something about handling, ride height, and wheels.
I ended up with stance GR+ss coilovers, Hotchkis sways, SPC adj camber arms (F&R), and Stance adj Toe arms in the rear to replace the spring buckets. Enkei RPF1's were the wheel of choice simply because of cost, weight, availability, and looks. So I threw it all together adjusted it, lowered the car, and had it corner balanced.









Side note: I did eventually upgrade the stock brakes to stoptech super streets and slotted rotors. Eventually will upgrade but for now I can stop well enough.

So after a season of driving like this I finally decided it was time to pull the trigger on FI, the entire car was basically planned out from the get go and while expensive I knew twins was the way to go if I wanted power on demand at the track and on the street. On our cars I feel over 500whp is overkill since they have a hard time putting the power down as it is without going sideways so I decided what the stock DE can handle is all i'm going to push it to for now. If(moreso when) my motor blows I'll do rods and pistons and build the bottom end but for now I decided i'd be happy with 8psi and about 400whp. So the build began.











































And this was the final product. I have plenty more pictures but I felt this was enough, I'm very happy with the way it turned out. Its final numbers were 404hp at the wheels and about 430 ftlbs of torque. It pulls like a freight train through all gears and with the top down its really a symphony of beautiful sounds.

As far as pointers for installing the turbo kit for anyone looking to do this with the motor in the car I can't say it was impossible but I recommend you make sure this is not the first project you attempt. I've been wrenching for years and even though ive developed a lot of patience I definitely got pissed off at some parts to the point I had to walk away and come back and try again. Like everyone says, there just isn't any room and you'll have to craft some tools and find someone with small hands to help you.

I recommend re-using the stock exhaust manifold studs but shaving the torx heads off them instead of using the SS ones that come with the greddy kit, also re-use the OEM nuts and shave off the excess skirt around them. I used copper washers on all of the exhaust studs so that they crush and apply somewhat even torque to the greddy manifolds because they really are some horrible quality cast iron and I can see why they're so prone to cracking. Also if you're installing test pipes I recommend cutting and installing flex pipes about three inches from where they bolt up to the manifold, I've read that people who have done this have not had their manifolds crack but I have read that people have done this and they still cracked so it's up to you but if there's a chance theyll last longer i'll take it because trust me you don't want to pull these out in 6000 miles. I converted all the oil feed lines to -4an with premade SS teflon coated lines from summit, if the stock greddy lines leak or are lost it is damn near impossible to find them in the states. For oil return hose I used silicone lined rubber hose and hose clamped it at both sides, shouldn't have an issue there. Also a few of the charge pipes rub against the body and either you cut away what they're rubbing on or I recommend wrapping them in header wrap and securing it with mechanics wire or zip ties. Also zip tie all of your vacuum hose just as a precaution. I used Tband clamps for all the silicone couplers because I got a great deal on them and I don't trust the worm gear ones for charge pipes, you're not gonna want a boost leak because it may be in a place thats very hard to access(most of the places lol). Use high quality hardware and make friends with summit, I can't count how many times they saved my *** with little odds and ends you cant get anywhere else local. Loctite thread locker and torque specs are your friends when you are doing the intake plenum because it has been a year since I installed a plenum spacer and in 4k miles all the bolts came loose because i was too cheap to buy a good torque wrench and I followed motordynes instructions of tightening them down to hand torque with a nutdriver. As far as power steering cooler goes I relocated it as per the turbonetics single turbo install instructions and didn't bother relocating the wash tank since it's put in a useless location anyway. Also investing in a fire extinguisher like I did may be a good idea considering how close your fuel lines run to the pass side turbo, 8/10 times you'll be fine without one but in the event something does happen its nice to have considering how much time and money goes into this.

That being said, I apologize if my paragraphs have given anyone headaches.

Mod list includes

Body:
-Nismo V2 front and sides, Chargespeed rear
-Fenders Rolled
-Eyelids because need for speed yo

Wheels:
-Staggered RPF1's 10.5" rear, 9.5"front

Tires:
-Bridgestone potenza s-04 pole position 265/40/18(Front) 285/40/18(Rear)

Suspension and brakes:
-Corner balanced Stance GR+ss coilovers(spring bucket delete in rear)
-SPC front adjustable upper control arms, SPC Rear adjustable arms, and Stance adjustable toe rods to replace the spring buckets
-Hotchkis F&R Sways
-Whiteline polyurethane diff bushings
-Stoptech superstreet pads and slotted rotors

Audio and Gauges
-Pioneer h/u
-2 AEM uego A/F gauges(one for each bank), AEM boost gauge

Drivetrain performance
-Greddy 18g twin kit with intercooler add on and greddy type-S BOV
-Motordyne 5/16 plenum spacer
-HKS Hi-Power true dual exhaust
-TurboXS test pipes with custom added vibrant turbo flex pipes
-AAM fuel return system with walbro 255 and RC440 injectors
-TurboXS MBC
-ACT HD-SS street clutch and Streetlite flywheel, SS Clutch rubber hose upgrade
-Optima Red Top(Not really performance but in the engine bay)

Oils
-10w40 Royal purple full synthetic motor oil
-Royal purple synthetic gear oil for the trans(Made shifts like butter)
-Valvoline Synthetic diff oil
-Redline ATF for power steering
-Nissan OEM coolant

If you've read this far thank you and if you have any questions feel free to ask, also thanks to the members on here who helped me out with my questions it really pulled things together and helped me out.

 

Very nice work. I really like the look. You went with some very high quality parts. I may have missed this in the post, but how long have you had the car "completed?" I use the "s because it will never be truly completed. You'll likely continue adding, changing, etc over time. I think you'll want to push the power, but without a built motor, that would be a disaster.

I know firsthand the work that goes into a build and I applaud you on a very nice result from all of that work! Congrats and enjoy!

 

Thank you, I checked out your roadster as well.... very nicely done. I'll probably go down the same road you did for the engine or just build a shortblock so it can withstand 500whp reliably. That'll happen when my stock motor blows or becomes problematic, for now I'm just gonna take some time and enjoy the car because I haven't really got much time to enjoy it behind the wheel. It's been completed since July but I just got it back about a month ago because the tuner shop I took it to kept having problems and what was supposed to be 2 weeks for a tune ended up being 2 months so I got it back just in time to put it away for winter . I too know how hard it can be to get parts and make things work, I had plenty of setbacks with having to custom make oil lines (which I now have a saved parts list for), getting the right test pipes and flex pipes (the test pipes were advertised as 2.5" and only measured 2.3" so I had to fab up the deficit to weld the 2.5" flex pipes to them), valve covers were found leaking so I had to replace them since the spark plug tube seals aren't serviceable.

Down the road I think I'll get a spare De engine and build that in my free time that way if I grenade I already have a built block to drop in. When I pull the motor I will also most likely remove the exhaust manifolds and find a good fabricator to make me a higher quality set since by then I'm sure greddy will have discontinued this kit for the new one they're releasing soon. For now I'm going to save money for a while for other stuff, I've been eying racing seats(the stock leather ones are rock solid), polishing the intake plenum like you did, and upgrading the brakes so that may happen soon but other than that I'm content with the build.

 

You should be more than content with the build! It looks great, makes great power, and sounds like it drives well. It's a convertible, so you can enjoy when the weather is good. In Arizona, this is perfect "top down" weather. To say that I ran into issues and delays during my build is an unbelievable understatement, so I understand being anxious to get it and frustrated with the hurdles. It's a great feeling to finally have it.

It sounds like you have a good plan for the future. I would highly recommend you move forward with your plan to build a motor. I don't have the skills and knowledge to do all of the work you did, so that's a huge advantage you have to keep the costs under control if things pop up (which they usually do over time).

If the weather isn't too brutal, you should take it out and take some video. Have fun and be safe.

 

It's been beautiful here considering it's October, if it wasn't for the scorpions AZ was one of the places i thought of moving to lol. Motor will come in time, I did manage to get some videos of before and after the flywheel install and a 80 to 140 pull this past weekend. Unfortunately I don't know how to post a video on this site without uploading to my public youtube account that I don't use.

 

Nice!

 

Very nice, very thorough build. Thanks for sharing!

 

nice write up and install! turned out great. very similar to my numbers and setup. What ems are you using? UpRev? Haltech? Only things I would suggest is a 3" exhaust, the 2.36" hks is a bit restrictive for TT. You could prob pick up a few HP there for sure, also get some new air filters, the greddy mushrooms of death are junk. I went with AEM dry ones so you dont have to mess with oiling like the K&N. Well done!

 

Thanks guys! I went with uprev, I didn't feel the need to go overboard on ems. I just watch the a/f ratio on each bank and keep an eye on boost psi, shouldn't have a problem with knock or detonation. Since the hks is true dual and I have the 18g's, I haven't had a problem with turbo lag. If I go WOT boost is there pretty much instantly. Did you mean 3" single all the way back? Oh and would you mind shedding some light on why the greddy shrooms are so bad? I've read elsewhere other people hate em but I don't remember why, just poor filtration?

 

Just for information purposes, I've had the Greddy filters from day one with no issues of which I'm aware. I did go with aftermarket full stand alone EMS (pro-EFI 48 PIN) and 3" true dual exhaust (AMS). If you aren't having any issues, I'm not sure I'd change anything if I were you, but others may have more insight.

 

I meant true dual 3", but if your happy with where your at no worries. Maybe something to consider if you ever switch to open dumps...I went with uprev as well, I didnt feel the need to run haltech either with the same power goals. As far as the greddy filters go, they just dont filter much. A lot of members have seen tons of trash in the piping from them.
https://my350z.com/forum/forced-indu...-tt-setup.html

just search "mushroom of death" and read some threads. For the minimal cost its worth protecting your turbos imo.

 

Thanks good information, 3" may be something to look into down the road when im making more power... import parts pro longblock is looking kinda tasty if I decide to be lazy and not build my own motor. For the price it seems like if I shell out a couple extra bucks I can save myself a lot of headache and just have a motor ready to drop in.

Those air filters are def something I'll have to do though, I kinda like the look of the shrooms over cones but if the filter element is that bad it's a no brainer.

 

yea they do look cool, but function over form. ipp engine would be sweet for sure. I'd just enjoy what you got for now, if the tune is good it will last for a while hopfully. You could buy a engine from a junkyard or whatever, and just throw it on a stand and build it part by part over time...when and if your engine goes, you will have a longblock ready to go and just drop it in over a weekend. thats what im going to do eventually.