Tere

Y'all crack me up! That might be sorta close about 25 years ago. I am still a blonde though. Just to put your curiosity to rest. Most of my flying time is in this little hot rod... These two aircraft are based at Randolph AFB, where the photo above was taken with my other little hot rod.

Although it may be a bit apples and oranges, I do have some experience with afterburning turbojet engines with variable nozzles. Up through 100% rpm, the nozzles (exhaust) are closed down quite a bit. When you kick in the afterburner, the nozzles open up significantly (sounds like going to FI). Point being if you get a nozzle stuck wide open, you lose a bunch of thrust at 100% rpm. Basically, if you're moving less volume of exhaust, with the same exhaust diameter (nozzle stuck open) the gas expansion causes a loss of velocity (and therefore thrust). Now I'll grant you that a car doesn't make power through exhaust gas like a turbojet, but the analogy of exhaust gas velocity still holds true. If you open the exhaust too much, you'll lose velocity of exhaust gas movement. If the nozzle doesn't open when you light the burner the engine pretty much stalls because you're not moving the volume you need to move. So in my mind, there has to be a balance between too wide open an exhaust and an exhaust that is too restricted, and the balance is based on the volume of gas being moved. In other words, you have to have the correct size funnel (turbojet nozzle or auto exhaust) to maintain the optimum exhaust flow velocity. Here's a quick excerpt from a Rutgers University physics student's paper (he got an A on it): As mentioned before, if the diameter (and hence cross-sectional area) of the pipe is increased too much, the velocity of the air flow will decrease more than the area increases, so flow would be adversely affected and power would be lost. Oh yeah, I guess I didn't mention to y'all I flew supersonic jets for about 17 years -- hence the FLYIN Z license plate -- I don't drive fast, I just fly low.

I'll defer to Adam's analysis since he has a bit more experience than I with squeaking ponies out of an NA 350. Although, I do remember reading what appeared to be a reasonably reputable article on problems asssociated with opening the exhaust too much. I'll have to see if I can find a reference to it. On the NOS methodology, progressive metering is probably better unless you just want to go for broke at the dragstrip.

Spraying will get you more hp quicker, and more than you can get with the typical NA mods. But the obvious price is a little more wear and tear on the engine. Your first option of NA mods is pretty challenging to squeeze out the ponies. A lot depends on your personality -- if you enjoy taking on a challenge and have time and patience, option 1 is for you; if you don't have much patience and "gotta have it now," then option 2 is the simple way to do it. I'd think some more about high-flow cats on an NA Z. You need a certain amount of exhast backpressure. If you open your exhaust up too much, you'll actually lose hp. If you go FI, then high-flows or testpipes are advantageous. Generally a good guide when modifying an NA Z is "a lot more of something good is not necessarily better." Five plus five might actually end up minus ten (sorta like going to the pub; a couple pints might be good, but a lot of pints will make you commode hugging and belly crawling -- a definite hindrance to your performance). If you want to see the absolute doggiest 350 in the world, just remove one of my supercharger belts. All that cool stuff that works with FI would kill an NA Z.

LOL... I've always said the Nissan oughta pay me for "beta testing" the 350. If it's breakable, I've probably broken it. The correct set of cams for your FI application really helps. More air/fuel in coupled with the need to get it all out, means cams of the correct duration and lift. On an NA application, I don't think cams help all that much since you haven't appreciably changed the volume of air you're moving. In most cases, Nissan optimized the 350 pretty well for NA, so basically you can make small gains here and there, but nothing really substantial. Individual component gains are not additive -- 7 here and 10 there does not necessarily equate to 17. A stock 350 can handle an occasional 50-60 shot of NOS, but I wouldn't use it routinely since it will increase the wear and tear on the engine. I think the instantaneous destruction threshold is around 375 shot (pistons, rods and valves shooting everywhere). On an NA Z: CAI, plenum/plenum spacer, and dual exhast (but don't open it up too much) will get most bang for the buck. Good equilength headers can help if you want to spend a good bit more (more uniform exhaust flow). Don't bother with headers if you plan to go turbo down the road. Bore and polish of the throttle body can help a little in throttle response. And you can tweak the fuel maps and timing a bit with a reputable flash of the ECM. Increasing redline to 7,100 probably won't help much since the hp curve starts to drop rapidly around 6,300. An FI application can see gains by increasing the redline since you don't have the big hp downturn at 6,300. A better solution than the above is just buy a NISMO 350 -- it's all set up for you, and it gets you pretty close to the max you can get out of an NA Z, plus you get better suspension, brakes, and aerodynamics (and a dealer warranty).

Basically, the info I've been tossing out is more 350 specific, and things I've picked up by experience. I've been one of the early testbeds in FI applications (since September '03), and moved to progressively higher levels of boost (each with it's own problems to resolve). My destroyed piston is one of the hard lessons learned -- like sticking your hand on a hot stove burner to see if it's hot. When I leaned her down, I knew I was taking a risk, I just didn't know at the time how big it was since I was looking at an average A/F across pistons 2, 4, and 6. I haven't kept track of which systems are CARB legal -- we've got so many FI applications available now, I've had a tough time keeping up with any of them. Choosing a system shouldn't be a snap decision, I'd do some heavy homework. At the time I went with ProCharger, it was the only bolt on FI application available for the 350 -- the others didn't hit the market until late '03 and early '04. If I were doing it now, I'd probably go turbo since they're easier to work with when you go to the next level of boost (based on experience with the 300ZX TT).

Now that's downright nasty! Last show, just before the judges arrived, I had a little kid decide to plaster his handprints all over the driver's side! He was about a nanosecond short of having a very abbreviated life span when his father finally pulled him away.

I forgot, there's a fourth option -- don't ever put the pedal to the metal... Yeah, right... Here's my advice for a few different FI application levels. 6-7 psi is easily handled by the stock Z -- recommend a little extra fuel capabilty and a methodology to control it. Due to the quirky plenum design, front cylinders run rich and rear cylinders run lean, it's a good idea to go to a new plenum or put a spacer in. 9-10 psi can be handled by a stock engine, provided you get some extra fuel going with fuel management, and you definitely want to change the plenum. The following is a photo of what detonation can do. In this case, I was racing and leaned her a little too much to squeak out a few more ponies. It was also before we knew about the plenum design flaw, and I based the decision purely on my air/fuel ratio (an average across 3 cylinders). I still took first, put paid the price, finishing on 5.5 cylinders (at 145mph -- smoked the finish line, literally). Number 5 piston broken off at the first ring land on the exhaust side. If you go above 10, an engine rebuild is going to be needed, and you'll need a completely new fuel system. The exhaust is also going to have to be opened up a little more. A good engine management system is also a necessity. Do your homework and plan your setup out in every detail. If you intend to go above 20 psi, I recommend reducing compression to 8.5:1 or 9:1 (stock 10.3:1 would be on the ragged edge of destruction). I consider a good wide-band O2 a necessity for any FI application -- keeping an eye on A/F ratio can be very critical.

Yep, the higher the octane the less the tendency to detonate under the strain of FI and the Z's stock compression. Basically, you have three options to prevent detonation. 1. Increase octane (toluene is 114 octane -- years ago F-1 race cars used an 80% toluene fuel mix because of the high boost levels they were running) 2. Richen the air/fuel mixture (more gas and less performance) 3. Reduce the engine's compression (rebuild the engine with different pistons generally) So because of the lower octane in California, you have to be very careful with tuning if you want to run a high performance Z on pump gas.

Slightly off topic, but y'all should be able to see in the side shots that she's dropped about an inch all around -- Tein Flex coilovers... Along with the big brakes and Goodrich KDWs, it makes her a really wicked tracking Z.

If you want to bring home the trophies at shows, and have a dark colored Z, you're going to find it tough to beat Zaino for depth, reflectivity and luster. When your Z is parked next to the others in the show, it's guaranteed to stand apart because the shine is so unique and distinctive. It works well for other colors, but it's not quite as overpowering in shows. I don't know how the judges are in the UK, but in the US, you're likely to lose points for overly oily looking tires. Same goes for your interior. Basically, if you use something like ArmorAll, don't set your sights on getting a trophy. That's where the Zaino tire cleaner/gloss strikes just the right balance to keep points on your tally sheet. It would be a rare show that my 350 loses more than 3-4 points -- the last show, the judge spent one hour and ten minutes going over her with a microscope, and he was very nit picky, even looking at the underside. He also ran his fingers over a tire to see if they came away with an oily residue -- they didn't. My 350 probably has close to 50 coats of Z-2/Z-5, and with every coat it gets even better.

Zaino is for you! It will not sling off, and I haven't seen it nibbling at my tires in the least.

Oh, yeah, she has also withstood the great Texas monsoons of '07 which contributed to no polishing for 3 months. Sun, wind, rain, it doesn't matter, Zaino just keeps right on shining. By the way, I polish my windscreen with the stuff and even during the monsoons, I didn't need to use the wipers.

The thing with California is they have very strict emissions standards, and I think the best pump gas is only 92 octane (versus the 93/94 in most of the other states). Not to worry, just dump a couple gallons of toluene into the tank and you'll be at 94. Or you can go to race gas suppliers and get higher octane. So if you want to go forced induction, you have to be careful to tune it for the lower octane, which means running on the rich side -- no leaner than 11:1 on 92 octane.

LOL... Y'all are too much! Yes -- first you prep the surface, then you put down some resin in the area of the part to be overlaid, press the CF into the resin (make sure it's smooth with no bumps or wrinkles), then another layer of resin (making sure the CF is thoroughly impregnated with resin), then spray topcoat of high-gloss gel coat. It's not all that difficult. Start with small, easy pieces to get the hang of it. This site has a good bit of info... http://fiberglast.com

You'll be in Z mod heaven in SoCal! And you'll find some awesome Zs out there. A huge percentage of the aftermarket sellers of Z car mods have stores/offices within a short drive. There are also quite a few tuners in the area.

Here's a Borla dual clip -- pre-supercharger days... http://zchickz.com/borla-z1.mpg And Borla dual clip with supercharger and NISMO headers (7 psi, no BOV)... In final segment (3+ minutes in the video, the left - right S sweeper is at 130mph); all 4 segments hit more than 100mph... And what you don't hear is just as I clicked the camera off, my radar detector went bonkers -- I was virtually sitting on top of a cop! http://zchickz.com/tere-zrun3.mpg

Now, class, repeat after me... Zaino is for Z cars! (I can't help it, I've been an educator for over 30 years.) Here's what Zaino cleaner/gloss looks like... And here's a Zaino Z car that hasn't been polished in 3 months -- note the extreme reflectivity... Just imagine what she'd look like if I'd given her a few coats of Zaino polish today! Oh, heck, here's a couple more, all of these taken today... Keep in mind that this Z has seen almost 5 years of blistering Texas sun and heat and she looks better than the day I drove her off the lot! Ain't Brickyard the coolest color??? In one photo she's about 16 different colors!

I don't think it's available in the UK, but Zaino tire cleaner/gloss is number 1 in my book. Goes on with a towel, actually cleans the grime off the tire (so the finish lasts longer), and gives a nice very black silky satin finish. And it doesn't sling off the tire either! The bonus is that this stuff also works great to detail the interior soft plastic. It even conceals small scratches on the door sills. I use all the Zaino products exclusively -- the polishes give a long-lasting deep wet look.

No one mentioned Hawk HPS. I rate these near the top for daily street use (don't even think about taking them to the track -- they fade fast at track temps). About as dust-free as you can get (hardly any grime on the cleaning towels after a week of driving). No squeaks or squeals or chatter. Very good brake pedal modulation. AND about 20-30% better grab than stock with a properly bedded pad. When I went to big brakes, they came with Axxis Ultimate -- I couldn't deal with them, and in less than two weeks she had Hawk HPS all around. The Axxis had horrific dust (horrific is an understatement), the most annoying squeal (fingernails on a chalkboard x 10), and very bad pedal modulation.

I finally bought my own roll of carbon fiber (50" x 3 yards) to do my own CF accents.

Hiya Adam! I'd guess it comes down to how the rest of the components are set up, primarily intake and exhaust. I think a lot of the NA folks may open up their exhaust too much, which probably contributes mightily to a loss. I think quite a few folks don't really put much thought into setting the car up as a whole, so it becomes a case of getting lucky if everything happens to work together. So how about we caveat the hp gain with a planned build of correct components for the application. Here's some real proof of that: Say I shred a supercharger belt and have to run NA (which I've done)... Well the Z isn't set up for NA; I can tell you for a fact that I now have the doggiest Z on earth (probably less than 200 ponies at the wheels and richer than fresh poop). So, all the cool components in the world don't do diddly for me unless they all work properly together.

Good points, which all explain why I actually went to aftermarket cams -- more air (and fuel) in and more air out. In an FI application, swapping cams is a good thing (duration and lift increased). In an NA application, you may very well reduce performance.

Basically, all I've done to the SC itself is change pulley sizes -- she's got the largest off-the-shelf drive and smallest driven pulleys. Along with that, the entire fuel system is redone -- RC 550cc injectors, Walbro 255lph fuel pump (about a full tank in 6 minutes), new rails (billet aluminum you can see in the closeup), braided fuel lines, fuel pressure regulator, and a return fuel line to the tank. And you can't stop there, the engine needs to be redone: .002 overbore to true up the cylinders, balanced crank, better bearings, stronger rod bolts and studs (ARP), forged rods (Pauter), ceramic coated forged pistons (CP), ported head, cams and springs (JWT), trued up valves, etc. Your basic "bullet proof" engine.

In an FI application the Kinetix SSV is good for around an extra 50 ponies -- dyno proven. In an NA, it's good for about 20. The original Kinetix plenum that resembled the stock plenum I believe was the one that was more problematic.