DTA (UK)

Bianic - Thanks for your call - glad to have been of service. Regards, Dan

Thanks for pointing Bianic in my direction! :) Got A'PEXi (APEXERA) in stock at the moment - £85 delivered. Also have the pipework for the twin kit in stock. The one sold by a "well known" 200SX tuning company is NOT made from stainless steel - hence the price differential - and will most likely not fit correctly in a 300 due to different space requirement. Best to stay with stuff that was specifically developed for the 300. Drop me a PM, e-mail (info@dta-motorsport.co.uk) or call 07044016586 to order. Cheers chums! Dan

Sorry about that Scrawni - I didn't mean to stop your idea ... I will be selling it through my website and carry a discount scheme for car clubs/forums. To be honest, I think you'll probably find Meguiar's a little difficult to work with as they require anyone who is selling their products to be an operating business. I've had to submit all sorts of documents to become an official reseller. I initially went down the route of just buying stuff as and when needed directly from them but they didn't want to hear about it and suggested I made a deal with a motorfactor's instead. I hope you understand that my initial post was to inform people of what was coming - I didn't mean to stomp over your idea. I would have put something in the DTA section tonight anyway. Cheers! Dan

Hi Scrawni, I'm in the process of becoming a reseller for Meguiar's - both their "liquid" products and their accessories (ie microfibre cloths, application pads, etc). In my opinion Meguir's is a top product and I have been using it for some time now. Their alloy wash and car shampoo is non-acidic and their polishing compounds do not contain any chalk (like Autoglym) which can cause excessive abbrasion if you don't know what you're doing. All in all their products are top notch and used by a lot of professional car detailers around the world. Their full product line will be on my website in the next few weeks (when I get time to finish it ...) Regards, Dan

Yes, and the reducers/brushes are essential so do not leave them out. I know some people are running without these but they are there for a reason. I will be offering a full silicone replacement kit in the not too distant future with properly shaped hoses. Keep your eyes on the DTA section. Regards, Dan

I can't vouch for Falken tyres as I've never tried them but if you're after excellent tyres (wet/dry) with rim protectors try Toyo Proxes T1R or Bridgestone SO-3 (if you can get them - they've been discontinued a little while ago). I've had both these tyres on my car (all round) and have been very impressed by them - there's not much between them performance wise. Good place to get Toyos is either Rochford Tyres (01702 545689 - speak to Mike) or http://www.mytyres.co.uk. Good luck. Dan

Hi Pete, Thanks for reaffirming Mr Stevson's reputation - I too have dealt with him in the past (and present) and can confirm both he and his firm are top notch. I did not spot the website link to Stevson's site in the original post Wez put up :headvswal His firm is fairly local to me and I've bought a fair few items from them in the past (not all Nissan related). That being the case I stand corrected on my initial evaluation of the "suspect" hoses. The hoses will most definitely be the correct Goodridge hoses for the 300 BUT as stated earlier Goodridge currently DO NOT fabricate hoses with the correct ends for our cars. I am working with them to rectify this. My suggestion is to refrain from buying and 300ZX specific braided hoses for the time being - I will be able to let everyone know when Goodridge are producing the correct type of hoses. They still won't do them with line locators so if you want to be legal come MOT time you'll still need to get in touch with me. Geeky Hawkes - due to the ends currently on the "old style" hoses it is not possible to use adapters. Sorry about that but we are all at the mercy of Goodridge at the moment ...

Will check for you - responce by tomorrow (probably ...)

£48 is indeed extremely cheap and I would be sceptical about their authenticity as these hoses cost around £75/set from Goodridge themselves (and that's a trade price). You'll also find they wont have put line locators on which, if not on the lines, is an MOT failure. I'm currently working with Goodridge (yet once again ...) to get the hoses made up with the correct ends and adaptors. I thought I had already sorted this out with them about 5 months ago but apparently the redesign wasn't taken up into production and I was only sent two sets with the new style ends :headvswal. I'm now having to go through the whole process again ... which is a major pain in the arse. I'm now at a stage where I've given them my last set of "old style" hoses and shown them exactly what needs to be done. I'm now awaiting confirmation that they are going to rectify the situation and start producing the lines with correct ends on them. This may of course still take some time but at least we're on the right track. To all my customers who are currently waiting on information from me regarding new style lines - please take note of the above paragraph. I will be in touch with you individually when I have confirmation the new lines are ready to ship. Many thanks for all your patience. Regards, Dan

Not yet I'm afraid but I have asked them to get in touch with me when they do. I think they're going for replacement strut braces for the 350Z first. I'm an official TEIN reseller so should be able to get some decent prices sorted. Will keep you all informed. Dan

Simon - I will have a look to see if I can find a link to the instructions or whether HKS Europe and send you some printed ones. May take a few days as they aren't the quickest to respond to e-mails, etc. Regards, Dan

Yes .... twice :headvswal Pain in the arse birds just know when the targas are out. On the second occassion I saw the bird in question sit on a branch in the tree about 5 metres away from the car. Thought to myself "glad I'm not directly underneath the tree" ... and what do you know ... the little t(w)it takes a dump and the wind splattered it all over my passenger side door and onto the seat :rant: By the way, once it's on your seats you won't get it off (at least not on my bloody tweed interior ... got a nasty white spot now ...)

ASC is/was an American company famed for quite a few "soft top" conversions on unusual donor cars. Whilst I was living in the States in the early 90's (and an avid reader of Road & Track) they succesfully converted Ferrari Testarossas (including a T-top version), Ferrari 348, Accura (Honda) NSX, and various American cars like the Caddilac Eldorado (also the four door Seville) and a few Buicks. As far as I know these were all "one-offs" or specially commissioned projects. If the company still exists I'm sure that they would be happy to convert your "Zee X" - provided you have the $$$$.

Yes and No. The ALC will maintain pressure on the lines during shif points. This pressure is equal to the normal operating pressure and so can't be classed as "increased line pressure". The reason the auto boxes went "pop" is probably more due to their internal state than the fact that the ALC was maintaining line pressure. The addition of the ALC may well have speeded up the point of failure but rest assured, the box will have gone pop eventually.

The most up-to-date HKS ALC is version 2 (ie HKS ALC2) and this has been for sale for quite a few years. I'm not sure whether they have updated the software but will find out for you. I had this on my car upto about a year ago and removed it following some dodgy gear changes ...

Hi mate! That was me! Had just picked up my wife from Birmingham and came off the motorway to get out of the traffic jam (M42). Decided to go cross country and got lost! :headvswal Nice to see you - nice car! Are you local (B'ham area I mean)? Cheers, Dan

That doesn't mean that they weren't already on the car whilst in Japan ... Bulbs will deteriorate over time but usually they will just fail rather than become dimmer over time. In theory, 3 year old bulbs should be fine. However, if you want to experiment I would suggest you replace them with something like our H3C Xtreme White bulb - which is rated at 4500K (55W) and matches the colour of a 4500K HID kit. Light output is obviously not comparable to HID though. Let me know if I can help in any way. ATB Dan

I think you may have been supplied a N/A radiator instead of a TT radiator (or vice versa) That is the only difference in radiators - well, that's not entirely true. Jap spec radiators incorporate the autobox cooler in the end tanks - UK spec radiators do not have this as they use a separate cooler. If you have a jap spec auto TT it is strongly suggested that you mount a separate autobox cooler somewhere in front of the main radiator. This will allow for far more efficient cooling of the autobox oil and also allow the main radiator to operate more efficiently (as it doesn't have to cool the autobox oil as well). Like Greg said, have a look in the for sale section or phone one of the breakers on this forum - they are bound to have spare radiators for far less money than a brand new one from Nissan. Alternatively, purchase a Koyo radiator and an autobox cooler and you won't have any problems again ... HTH Dan

Firstly let me respond to the above - the dip beam bulb you took out should be a H3 55W (or H3C 55W if you have a JDM Z). PIAA bulbs have a nominal rating of 55W but due to the inclusion of Xenon gas in the bulb they "appear" to burn as bright as a 85W bulb - but in essence it is still putting out 55W of light on the road. If you look carefully on the packaging it'll state the amount of "lumens" the bulb puts out - this is the effective measure of the amount of light that is produced. You'll probably notice that the amount of lumens is the same for a standard 55W bulb and an uprated 100W bulb ... Secondly, I have done exhaustive research into headlight bulbs (as well as other bulbs) as part of my new venture (http://www.ultimatecarbulbs.co.uk - not up and running yet so not much to see on the website). I will here very briefly (with the emphasis on briefly) summarise a few points: In relation to the ZX headlights - the main culprit for bad light output is dirt build-up on the inside of the projector lens and the main glass. Once this is cleaned you could potentially be looking at a 50% increase in both brightness and efficiency. Secondly, both halogen and HID bulbs can potentially "dazzle" oncomers if the headlight is incorrectly alligned. When upgrading to HID lighting it is crucial that you get the alignment checked and adjusted. HID bulbs spread the light differently (due to the fact that the bulbs are naturally longer than their halogen equivalent, thereby producing a different spread pattern). Thirdly, upgrading to say 100W bulbs without cleaning the headlight glass is going to be of very little use. In light of the above I would recommend the following course of action to anyone who's looking to get more out of their headlights: (1) remove the headlights, carefully split them and clean both the glass and the projector lens (2) replace the old bulbs with new ones; If you don't want the same yellowy glow then go for bulbs with Xenon gas in the bulb - like the Xtreme White bulbs we [DTA] sell. Stick with the stock wattage first (ie 55W H3© dip beam, 55W H1 main beam) (3) get the headlight alignment checked and adjusted accordingly. Any garage which performs MOT tests will have special equipment to test the alignment. If your budget allows still complete step (1) and then replace the system with a HID kit. Then get the alignment adjusted accordingly. If I can be of any further assistance to anyone relating to bulbs and headlights then please feel free to ask. I hope the above has been of some help. Regards, Dan

That's nothing - when they first came out a couple of years ago they were in the region of £14,000 (yes, £14K :shock: ) I think you can go more expensive than that but it's custom made to your requirements and I guess that sky's the limit in that case. Nice phones though - they use Nokia OS which is handy. Robust too although I'd be sh*tting myself if I ever dropped one ... Imagine phoning up to arrange insurance on it: "Yes sir, it's a mobile phone" "Purchase Price?" "£4500" "What the ....?"

One of my NSX customers has one of these ... a Signature Platinum Solitaire Diamond IIRC - concierge service (24/7), etc. Then again, he also drives a Fezza F430, Murcie and has a Pagani on order (for when he's at his Marbella villa ...) Lifes good for some people ... Now, where did I put that winning lottery ticket .....

Just to clear everything up: (1) Alfo - I've posted a response to your post in the DTA section regarding the silvertec bulbs (2) Alfo has ordered the clear side repeaters (not crystal front indicators). Therefore, I can offer the silvertec side repeater bulbs which flash amber. When the clear side repeater lenses are ordered they come with amber coloured bulbs. HTH Dan

I'm not an expert on exhaust systems but when I had my system custom made I did some reading-up on the subject. Basically, the bore of the original TT exhaust is 2.5-inch. If you up that to 3-inch you are allowing the exhaust gasses to flow more freely but at the same time you are slowing the flow down (I think that's what it was). Anyway - the crux of the story is that a bigger bore exhaust will reduce the back pressure (as you've somewhat correctly stated - albeit for a different reason). The central box you removed most likely acted as a flow restrictor allowing sufficient back pressure to build up. Running two fully separated exhaust pipes (ie one per bank and not joined) is not what is causing the drop in back pressure. The fact you've had the box remove is the root cause of this. By adding a "H-pipe" (as suggested by the garage) you are allowing the pulsating exhaust gas flow to equalise - this has nothing to do with back pressure. You can also make the two pipes cross over in what's called an "X-pipe" - which has the same equalising effect. So, in summary, you want to increase the bore of the exhaust pipe to allow the exhaust gasses to flow more freely but not the negative effect it has on back pressure (the two are inversely related - as in small diameter pipe = higher back pressure). Finding a happy "middle-of-the-road" is the difficult bit. My suggestion is to see if it is possible to either reduce the bore of the exhaust pipes to 2.5-inch (upto the back boxes) or introduce some sort of a restriction in the pipes. I hope the above makes sense and that I am quoting correct information. Remember, I'm no expert and am going by what I can remember from reading various technical publications. Good luck! Dan

That is a seriously beautiful car. Although I have to say that IMO everything aft of the c-pillar seems very dated and 80's ... Other than that it's a stunning piece of art.

That's an amazing quote Andy! That's about £200 less than the renewal quote for my wife's 98 Mazda MX5!! I spoke to Carole Nash today as well and they couldn't get any lower than £860 ... Guess it depends on the circumstances.