JDM 99 Spec - VIG 232

[TheRealNips]

Awesome trip and great photos!

[craig]

On 25/09/2023 at 09:54, sumshiftyguy said:

Of course..here you go!

Day1: Calais to Meiringen (830km / 9hrs)

https://maps.app.goo.gl/XDRXabScqPEEbRbg7

Day2 AM: Meiringen-Grimsel Pass-Furka Pass-Gotthard Pass-Tremola-Airolo (120km / 2.5hrs)

https://maps.app.goo.gl/ccYKqsEHfwhWXKgj8

Day2 PM: Airolo-San Bernadino-Julier Pass-Zernez (279km / 4.5hrs)

https://maps.app.goo.gl/6cCAQ9GbKLZyqwXPA

Day3 AM: Zernez-Umbrail Pass-Stelvio Pass-Tirano-Bernina Pass-Pontresina-St Moritz (132km / 2.5hrs)

https://maps.app.goo.gl/Nv8XesjpjAkCVCHA8

Day3 PM: St Moritz-Albula Pass-Tiefencastel-Oberalp Pass-Andermatt-Wassen-Susten Pass-Meringen (228km / 4.5hrs)

https://maps.app.goo.gl/SXzLsqai8niFvAc97

Day4 AM: Meiringen-Susten Pass / Grimsel Pass-Furka Pass-Andermatt-Oberalp Pass-Lukmanier Pass-Bedretto-Nufenen Pass-Ulrichen (208km / 4hrs)

https://maps.app.goo.gl/qAxkfsQC9Kc3tv4x6 - via Susten

https://maps.app.goo.gl/RHaYEtmCiLcWPyBu9 - Grimsel/Furka

Day4 PM: Ulrichen-Colmar (306km / 4.5hrs)

https://maps.app.goo.gl/3CA8XB2aApV5pbSt5

Day5 AM: Colmar-Circuit Reims Gaux (358km / 4h)

https://goo.gl/maps/yCjTEwLiSs7etEoT8

Day5 PM: Circuit Reim Gaux-Calais (273km / 2.5h)

https://goo.gl/maps/Gw5ppRweVydNfJoD8

 

 

Thank you very much for posting those. That is awesome. I am trying to work out a bike trip for next year, taking in the passes, and you have just made my planning so much easier. 

Could you post any details of hotels that you would recommend, and have fairly secure parking? Although i will be drilling down to the towns mentioned to check them out as well.

Thanks again.

[sumshiftyguy]

10 hours ago, craig said:

Thank you very much for posting those. That is awesome. I am trying to work out a bike trip for next year, taking in the passes, and you have just made my planning so much easier. 

Could you post any details of hotels that you would recommend, and have fairly secure parking? Although i will be drilling down to the towns mentioned to check them out as well.

Thanks again.

You're welcome! I had to trawl the internet a bit to find the best passes and then took a little while to link them together for the best / most efficient routes!

Here are the places we stayed - all very comfortable and not too expensive. Parking wasn't a problem at any of them - everywhere is 'secure' in Switzerland in the sense that I believe there's very little interest in or theft of vehicles.

Meiringen - https://www.booking.com/hotel/ch/herberge-balmweid.html?aid=304142&label=gen173nr-1FCAEoggI46AdIM1gEaFCIAQGYATG4AQfIAQzYAQHoAQH4AQKIAgGoAgO4AvPmyaMGwAIB0gIkNzViODNhYjEtYWI5OC00MDdkLWE0YTUtZDgwZWIxMjY1Njdj2AIF4AIB&sid=4d9aee21564ba9506ae55d5c6035cdcc&all_sr_blocks=894753602_362145856_3_2_0%2C894753603_362145856_1_2_0&checkin=2023-09-18&checkout=2023-09-19&dest_id=-2553106&dest_type=city&dist=0&group_adults=4&group_children=0&hapos=2&highlighted_blocks=894753602_362145856_3_2_0%2C894753603_362145856_1_2_0&hpos=2&matching_block_id=894753602_362145856_3_2_0&nflt=hotelfacility%3D2&no_rooms=4&req_adults=4&req_children=0&room1=A&room2=A&room3=A&room4=A&sb_price_type=total&sr_order=popularity&sr_pri_blocks=894753602_362145856_3_2_0__18960%2C894753603_362145856_1_2_0__10220&srepoch=1685222393&srpvid=df0795f7e1f8006b&type=total&ucfs=1&activeTab=main

Zernez - https://www.booking.com/hotel/ch/schweizerhof-sta-maria.html?aid=304142&label=gen173nr-1FCAEoggI46AdIM1gEaFCIAQGYATG4AQfIAQzYAQHoAQH4AQKIAgGoAgO4AvPmyaMGwAIB0gIkNzViODNhYjEtYWI5OC00MDdkLWE0YTUtZDgwZWIxMjY1Njdj2AIF4AIB&sid=4d9aee21564ba9506ae55d5c6035cdcc&atlas_src=sr_iw_btn&checkin=2023-09-19&checkout=2023-09-20&dest_id=-2554903&dest_type=city&dist=0&group_adults=4&group_children=0&highlighted_blocks=46796301_332426667_4_33_0&nflt=hotelfacility%3D2%3Boos%3D1&no_rooms=4&room1=A&room2=A&room3=A&room4=A&sb_price_type=total&type=total&ucfs=1&activeTab=main

Colmar (was actually Fraize about 50mins away) - https://www.booking.com/hotel/fr/le-gite-des-vosges-ii.html?aid=304142&label=gen173nr-1FCAEoggI46AdIM1gEaFCIAQGYATG4AQfIAQzYAQHoAQH4AQKIAgGoAgO4AvPmyaMGwAIB0gIkNzViODNhYjEtYWI5OC00MDdkLWE0YTUtZDgwZWIxMjY1Njdj2AIF4AIB&sid=4d9aee21564ba9506ae55d5c6035cdcc&dest_id=-1421049&dest_type=city&nflt=oos%3D1%3Bhotelfacility%3D2%3Bpri%3D2&room1=A&room2=A&room3=A&room4=A&group_adults=4&group_children=0&no_rooms=4&checkin=2023-09-21&checkout=2023-09-22&highlighted_blocks=913238201_362703525_12_0_0&atlas_src=sr_iw_title&ucfs=1

 

 

 

[craig]

5 minutes ago, sumshiftyguy said:

You're welcome! I had to trawl the internet a bit to find the best passes and then took a little while to link them together for the best / most efficient routes!

Here are the places we stayed - all very comfortable and not too expensive. Parking wasn't a problem at any of them - everywhere is 'secure' in Switzerland in the sense that I believe there's very little interest in or theft of vehicles

brilliant, thanks. 

I created a 10 day route across Spain, Pyrennees, Andorra and up through France a couple of years ago and took me ages to plan and book hotels near to food, fuel, reasonable mileage each day, and backup plans. 
 

i need to go further down into Italy this time, so the Swiss passes section you have will let me move straight onto that section now. 

[Joely P]

Cracking pictures Vig 😎

[sumshiftyguy]

Making the most of the balmy weather this past weekend, I joined the JDM Dragons at the Japshow Finale (Santa Pod). This was my first event with them and I thoroughly enjoyed it! I counted 17 300zx's at the event, 15 of which were with the Dragons. A very friendly bunch and several owners I've not met before but a surprising number I've 'known' via FB and IG.

Coincidentally the last time I was at Santa Pod was in my previous 300zx which went down thew strip twice, facing off against a modified V8 CL55 AMG (which smashed the 300!) and an AM DBS which only just pipped the 300zx. I didn't go down the strip this time as my interest no longer lies in straight line speed and I didn't want to goose it in front of so many specatators! I did however have the car dyno'd so I would have a baseline for any future work and the car surprised me with a readout of 273fwhp. So approx 7fwhp lost over 24yrs.

I've made a video of the day over on my IG: Jashow Finale - Santa Pod (JDM Dragons)

Dyno readout - nice and smooth!

[sumshiftyguy]

No new work to the car but I had the idea of organising a 90's JDM photoshoot recently so with a little bit of networking, I managed to locate a '91 NSX, a Mk4 Supra and a RX7 FD3 along with a very well known automotive photographer and this past weekend we headed into Central London for out shoot. The final edits should be released in a week or so but here are some BTS shots I took. The cars travelled in convoy from one location to the next and drew a considerable amount of attention from the tourists and public that were out and about. It was great to see and experience!

 

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Edited October 18, 2023 by sumshiftyguy

[AndrewG]

Lovely, lovely, lovely - great photos!

[RichardS]

On 18/10/2023 at 14:25, AndrewG said:

Lovely, lovely, lovely - great photos!

Yup - what Andrew said..... 😉 

[TheRealNips]

On 18/10/2023 at 14:17, sumshiftyguy said:

No new work to the car but I had the idea of organising a 90's JDM photoshoot recently so with a little bit of networking, I managed to locate a '91 NSX, a Mk4 Supra and a RX7 FD3 along with a very well known automotive photographer and this past weekend we headed into Central London for out shoot. The final edits should be released in a week or so but here are some BTS shots I took. The cars travelled in convoy from one location to the next and drew a considerable amount of attention from the tourists and public that were out and about. It was great to see and experience!

 

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That is my 4 car garage right there! Although:

Mazda = Yellow with blit mirrors, spoiler, etc

NSX = White with black wheels

Supra = Toyota red

Nissan = Nissan red

😍😍😍😍

[sumshiftyguy]

It's been a little while since the last update. The car spent the dark months in its cocoon on the drive but came out this week for it's first proper outing - a open pit lane track day at Snetterton with my car club. Following on from the epic'ness of my Swiss roadtrip last year, I was very excited to find out how it would handle on track. Bilstein shocks and stock springs, stock ARBs, stock power and working HICAS!

Overall, the car was a blast to drive. It wasn't the fastest on track but I really didn't care as it FELT fast though I would definitely prefer a little less body roll in the corners!! I was also surprised that the brakes held up perfectly with no fade at all, even with at least 2 x 40min+ sessions on track. Then again, I wasn't hitting very high speeds and the morning was very wet and damp. Nonetheless, I have now sourced my new calipers and they'll ve shipped off to be refurbed imminently. More on that in future posts!

For the first time in my driving life I span the car...3 times! The first 2 were on my first 2 laps of the day in pouring rain which made it feel like I was driving on ice. My intention was to take it slow and practice getting comfortable with the car going sideways but both times, it span so quickly that I wasn't able to keep it under control. I can't have been doing much more than 30-40mph each time and one of these saw me sliding across wet grass towards the metal barrier. Thankfully the car stopped a mere 2-3m shy. That could have turned out to be really shit day! I crawled back to the pits and decided to passenger in other cars until the track was dry.

By the late morning the track started to dry and confidence (and speeds) into the corners increased which led to a bit of racing with others and the inevitable dry track spin. Very embarrassing as it really shouldn't have happened. Hey ho...was all a good experience and I'm itching for the next one! Currently planning for Bedford and Anglesey later in the year as well as a trip down to the Nurburging.

A few photos from the day...surprisingly not the only JDM. I was joined by TWO MKIV Supras. Clearly we were the best looking cars on track that day but far from the fastest or most nimble!

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[Gaz 300]

Thanks for the update Vig the Z is looking great.

[Joely P]

Looked like great fun 🤩 

[AndrewG]

That should have bedded in your new '99 spec box!

[sumshiftyguy]

29 minutes ago, AndrewG said:

That should have bedded in your new '99 spec box!

Ironically, the car was driven much harder on my trip to Switzerland last year!

I forgot to post a link to a little compilation video I made...it was primarily for the other club guys to see their own cars but I did inc my dry spin around 16:55min

https://youtu.be/GmqEqbO2GYU

[sumshiftyguy]

Something that has been cooking in my head for a while has finally come to be - I upgraded changed my brake setup to the Akebono discs + Brembo 18z calipers and matching pads. I didn't have much to complain about with my old setup - 4pot Porsche Brembo fronts + larger discs and stock rears - but they looked small and were black so blended in a bit too much. Throw in the tiniest amount of brake fade after blasting around alpine passes last year and the thought of change had taken hold in my mind.

Initially I was planning to go with a full Akebono setup as I've heard they are smashing. Unfortunately a test fit with the template showed they wouldn't work with my BBS LMs. On a visit to see Zed Performance ( @cbr ) last year, Dan showed me a spare set of Brembo 18z he had and that was enough to set me on my voyage of discovery! A short 7mths later and I finally pulled the trigger on some calipers off ebay and followed up with a refurb service from BCSS. A quick call to Dan to get myself booked in whilst I ordered the remaining bits and we managed to pull it all off within a week. I had to grind down the rear calipers to make the adapter brackets fit and Dan had to pull some magic to get the fronts to fit perfectly but all obstacles were overcome and the brakes are on the car.

I haven't tested them out properly yet as want to bed them in properly first. I have a trip the Nurburgring coming up in early May so planning to be ready for that!

Parts List

• Refurbed Brembo 18z calipers with matching 4pot rears
• 370z Akebono single piece discs all round
• Brembo HP2 pads
• Front adaptors from ECP
• Rear adaptors from MFS

I already had braided lines and a AMS brake master cylinder brace installed

     

     

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Edited May 5 by sumshiftyguy

[sumshiftyguy]

I have saved my old setup - it turns out that my rear discs were 330mm as well as the fronts and that my stock rear calipers were using an adaptor plate. All appear to be in excellent condition and once I'm satisfied that I've made the right move with the 18z, I'll likely list my old setup for sale. I would love to figure out which Porsche my calipers came from though - the Porsche and Brembo branding is in the cast of the caliper itself rather than stickers!

 

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[TheRealNips]

The 18z was fitted on a few cars. There is a bit of info here:

http://www.rotorlab.com/brembo-18z

There is also a thread here in TTnet:

http://twinturbo.net/nissan/300zx/forums/general/view/2601662/Re-Porsche-18z-Calipers.html

 

[sumshiftyguy]

When the car went up to @cbr for the brakes, I also had some boost jets fitted along with retrofitting an older ECU so I could add a custom chip. I haven't had the chance to drive the car too much aside from the drive back home but the performance is night and day. One thing that concerned me was not having an accurate boost reading and one that could measure beyond the stock 7psi...enter Enginetix! I've been following these guys for a while and it seemed like the perfect solution for someone that doesn't want to add gauges and keep a more OEM feel. The screen itself is tiny and 3d printed. It can be stuck anywhere which is handy but I went for directly in line of sight on the steering column! It looks a little ungainly from the side but from the driving position, is perfectly placed to give a live boost readout!

It took about 4weeks from order to delivery as it's shipped from Vancouver and with Easter hols in between, I only managed to install it a week ago. I was keen to get it in before the Ring.

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Edited May 5 by sumshiftyguy

[sumshiftyguy]

My car came with stock orange side lights and powered corner markers and whilst I usually don't like orange on sports cars, the contrast with the black body was appealing and I thought it gave it a rather retro appeal. However, I do also like the look of red corner markers so over time had collected an old pair of empty markers with the idea of fitting them when I finally figure out what to do with the side lights.

As far back as when I won the car at auction but before even taking delivery of it, I'd also managed to source some original Nismo smoked side lights off Japan ebay for a not-so-insignificant sum of money! I finally fitted them to the car and took them straight off...the smoked colour blended in with the body way too much unfortunately. Thankfully, @dipone had also offered me his old clear side indicators a while back so on they went and I think they actually suit the car quite well as they almost match the wheels and the 99spec headlights!

Figured I'd de-carrot for a while and see if it stick. Worst case, I'll set everything back to orange!

CARROT:                                                                                                                                  DE-CARROT:

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Edited May 5 by sumshiftyguy

[sumshiftyguy]

Last weekend, I finally went on my long awaited trip back to the Nurburgring. I’ve been a few times before but always opted to take a rental on track versus taking my own car, driven mainly by insurance cover limitations. This time I was planning to get my own car on track, albeit I planned to drive quite calmly and with my right indicator on the whole time!

We drove down very early on Friday morning, straight to our hotel a few miles down from the Ring with a brief lunch break in Belgium. It’s always such great fun driving in a pack, especially through Europe where drivers are generally so much better at understanding lane discipline! After checking into the hotel, we tried to get to the track but unbeknownst to us, that weekend was a long weekend in Germany as a commemoration / remembrance of the Second World War so traffic was crazy as every German with a BMW decided to visit The Ring! We didn’t get anywhere close so quickly bailed and went for dinner instead!

On Saturday, we had planned a morning of spirited driving through the winding hills and forests around the Ring. We set off very early and enjoyed lovely empty roads. All the cars performed beautifully and it really got us all in the mood for the weekend ahead. After a stop for lunch in Adenau by the Ring, we headed off to do some karting at the Ring centre. Great fun on any occasion, even greater fun with a group of good drivers where a second split 1st to 11st driver! After karting, we were free to do what we wanted so I took the opportunity to get some laps in on the Ring as a sort of sighting lap ahead of the main track day on Sunday. It will probably come as no surprise that after a warm-up lap, the red mist descended in the green hell and I was pushing the car to its limits (vs taking it easy as I'd initially planned!). Thankfully the weather was clear, hot and dry and the car performed brilliantly over the 2 laps that day. We ended the day with dinner at Pistenklaus, a firm Ring favourite.

Sunday was the big day - no plans except laps, laps and laps of The Ring! Another very early start to get ahead of the traffic and in total, I managed to get in 5 laps throughout the day. I played around with the adjustable shocks to firm up the suspension (something I had forgotten to do on my previous visit to Snetterton) and the results were remarkable. The car handled very well and the back only stepped out a handful of times when I got a little too eager on the exit. One component which did disappoint but probably shouldn’t have been a surprise were the brake pads (or my assumption it’s them). A lap of The Ring is almost 13miles and 154 corners but after the first lap, I started getting judder on hard braking. Initially it would present towards the end of the lap but with each subsequent lap, the judder would present earlier and earlier. This despite letting the brakes cool for 20-30mins after each lap. All the brake components were brand new prior to the trip and there was no fade so my thoughts are it’s the pads - Brembo HP2s which aren’t a track pad and perhaps couldn’t take the repeated abuse. It was disappointing as this was the only limiting factor in being able to push the car further than I had been…and it certainly felt capable of more!

For my next track outing I think I’ll source some track pads to pop in and see how I get on. As for other improvements / new parts following the trip, I hadn’t replaced the tyres before the trip and probably should have but I definitely will be now. I’m keen to get a slightly bigger sidewall and believe I can go wider than I have today with my LMs. Otherwise the shopping list just has the thicker ARBs and a decat as the car definitely needs to be a little louder, especially if I continue rolling with the same group of mates!

Monday saw another spirited drive in the morning up to Cologne and the Motorworld museum which houses the Michael Schumacher personal collection. A fairly interesting site, not too dissimilar to Bicester in its feel and habitation by car specialists. This is also where you can stay at a hotel where your car sleeps by your bed. It looks a LOT better on social media than in real life. After lunch there, it was a sprint back up to Calais and the train home.

Overall, the trip and the car were fantastic. I never had any occasion to doubt its health or ability to perform and really can’t wait to get out in it again on another long trip or track day. The recent improvements of the brake setup, the digital boost gauge and the stereo setup were all absolutely perfect (except for aforementioned pad judder). I was planning to visit Anglesey in June but unfortunately that event has been postponed til August and I’m no longer able to make it. The hunt for events is underway….

Obligatory photos for your enjoyment...

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Edited May 21 by sumshiftyguy

[Gaz 300]

Nice write up mate. Thanks for sharing.

[TheRealNips]

Awesome! I want to do something like this for my birthday!

[sumshiftyguy]

A few things to update over the past few months!

I have a (new) garage! Well sort of. The previous 'carcoon' turned out to be a massive mistake. Whilst the theory of 'nothing touching the car' was sound, the reality was that each time I needed to access the car, the carcoon itself would need to touch the car. And even though that was relatively smooth and clean, the car usually wasn't. Over time, this mean that the paint was being sanded down. It didn't take long for the car to look like an old banger!! I needed an alternative and fast!

I searched for local garages to rent but there just wasn't anything nearby and I hated the idea of not having easy access to the car. So the search returned to more creative and temporary solutions. All manner of tents and shields and covers were considered but none would allow me ease of access, not damage the car and not invite condensation and mould. There was only one product which ticked all the boxes and it just so happened to be from the same manufacturer as my carcoon. The price was 3x what I'd paid for the carcoon so I decided to email them pictures of all the damage the carcoon had done in an attempt to get a discount on the new product...and it worked! They gave me a 50% discount of what I'd paid for the carcoon and let me keep it and sell it, which I did for 60% of the price I paid...so a 10% 'profit'. I couldn't really ask for more than that! The new 'garage' was ordered and arrived within 2days.

It\s been up and in use for almost 3mths and I absolutely love it! I can also now utilise a trickle charge and there's enough space around the car and height for me to access the boot and engine. If anyone needs a similar solution, I can highly recommend the Ultimate Outdoor Car Shield from InTheGarage:

(the lean is because of the drive)

Video of the setup - 

 

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Edited August 11 by sumshiftyguy

[sumshiftyguy]

The car came with genuine 18” BBS LMs in silver with a satin lip which I love but ever since seeing a modded red NSX at JapShow years ago, I’ve always lusted after a set of gold LMs. Seeing as how one of my rims was damaged on my trip to Switzerland (see this previous post), I was considering refurbing them all and having the faces painted gold. The only reason I hadn’t pulled the trigger on this plan was that I wasn’t entirely sure how gold would look on the car and as these were my only LMs, there’d be no going back. Plus I wasn’t sure if painting them a different colour would affect the resale value in case I changed my mind. But manifestation is a wonderful thing and one late night on Facebook and I was presented with a listing by someone near Cambridge selling 18” Gold LMs for a not so unreasonable price! These were a larger offset than mine but the seller introduced me to the method of reverse mounting the faces to achieve the desired offset. A bit (a lot!) of googling and researching later, I haggled him down on the price a little and we struck a deal.

The LMs are not meant to be reverse mounted as the faces have a slight curve to them so don’t sit perfectly flush with the mounting face of the barrel. However there appears to be countless examples online of folks who have gone ahead with it and experienced no adverse effects. Before I get berated….yes, I know I could get them machined flat, etc, etc but I was willing to take the chance. A couple of nights of breaking down the new gold LMs and rebuilding them back up later and they fit perfectly! I was even able to remove the spacer I had added to the back and return to the 5mm spacer on the front that the car came with and still clear my new 18z calipers.

Tyre choice was another matter. I’m not such a fan of the stretched look anymore and prefer the thicker sidewall aesthetic. Fortunately the gold LMs came fitted with 245/40s so I had the chance to see how they might look on the car and as you might expect, terrible! I was hoping for a tyre that could perform on track, be comfortable and give a thicker sidewall look and spent countless hours reading reviews of 10s of tires and seeking personal recommendations from friends. One tyre consistently came out on top which was the PS4S but unfortunately this tyre isn’t made in the spec I was looking for - 235/40 (up front). The next best option were the Conti Sport Contact 7s. I ended up going with the same width I had previously up front but wider at the rears. My previous tyres were PS3s.

Old: F235/40 + R255/35

New: F235/40 + R265/35

I’ve had a few drives with the new tyres and they seem grippy and noticeable less comfortable than the PS3s I had on before. I’ll be heading to Thruxton on September so look forward to testing them out properly then.

And now for some pics….

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Edited August 11 by sumshiftyguy