Project: DRKNITE NISMO

Zthirty4NISMO

I decided to finally get around to starting a log of my build. I’ve now had the car for 2.5 years (bought new) and my list is starting to grow. First things on the list were exterior/cosmetic. The end result after a few years will be full TT so I want to start preparing for that with things I can upgrade before or that need some break in period (differential, clutch, etc.). It would also be helpful to know things I may as well tackle when upgrading those items since it’s easier to do that sort of thing when stuff is already apart .

2014 Nissan 370Z NISMO #543 - Magnetic Black


Factory options:
- Bose Audio Package
- NISMO carpeted floor mats
- Carpeted trunk mat
- Illuminated kick plates



Current mod list:

Exterior/Cosmetic/Dress-up:
- Fast Intentions license plate frame
- White LED license plate lights
- Coverking black satin stretch NISMO car cover
- Headlights by ONEighty Custom:

- Dual LED orb rings
- Matte black painted housings
- OEM magnetic black painted projector shrouds
- OEM magnetic black painted turn signal shrouds
- OEM magnetic black painted reflector swoosh

- 2014 two tone granite colored body parts color matched:

- Front fascia
- Rear fascia
- Side skirts
- Spoiler
- Mirrors

- Color matched door handles
- Color matched side markers
- Oil dipstick & “O” on strut brace painted force/cayenne red pearl
- NISMO rims & lug nuts sandblasted & powder-coated “Stone Black” (PSS-1168 from Prismatic Powders) (2 coats)
- Center caps sprayed flat black
- NISMO vinyl inlays on rims from forum member Mike!
- NISMO valve stem caps
- ZSPEC red engine fastener kit
- Z1 red silicone radiator reservoir overflow & breather hose set
- Z1 red silicone brake booster hose – engine side
- Z1 red silicone front PCV hose set
- Z1 red silicone radiator hose set
- Z1 red silicone power steering hose set
- 35% Panaflex Carbon Ceramic window tint
- The370z.com window decals!
- AROSPEED “NISMO” aluminum red oil fill cap
- ZSPEED vented aluminum splash shield/diffuser (PC black)
- ZSPEC black billet aluminum radiator cap covers (Z34 logo specific)
- Always Dry 9H-LDC ceramic coating
- Front & rear EVO-R ‘Z’ emblems - black w/ black carbon fiber backing
- CWorksDesign OEM style polished aluminum radiator expansion and power steering tanks


Interior:
- R35 GT-R red push-start button
- 2015+ red ring start button surround
- Covercraft UVS100 custom fit sunshield
- White LED interior light package (vanity mirrors, maps, hatch)


Performance:
- Magnetic oil drain plug
- FilterMag
- Z1 hood struts
- RJM Performance Fully Adjustable Fulcrum Point Clutch Pedal Assembly V3.1 w/ HD clevis end
- Fast Intentions 2.5” TDX cat back:

- Straight through lead pipes
- Non-resonated x-pipe
- Carbon fiber perforated core mufflers
- Polished SS resonated tips

- Trackspec Motorsports 370Z 3-piece OEM hood vent/louver kit w/ rain guards from forum member Rusty


General future plans:
- Fast Intentions push start button
- Z1 red silicon heater hose set
- Stillen engine grounding kit
- Tail light overlays
- Tein lowering springs
- SPL front & rear control arms
- SPL toe bolts
- SPL eccentric lockout kit
- Hotchkiss front sway bar
- Carbon Signal V1/Fly1 VF1/Varis Arising II fenders
- Front splitter (APR?)
- Side splitters (NLP?)
- Fender savers/mats
- Rear fog light wiring harness w/ switch for middle button blank space
- Black PC’d calipers
- Shave front bumper emblem
- Color match 370Z & nismo emblems
- Windshield tint strip
- Vanity license plate
- Show tow hook
- Craft square TCA-N1 side mirrors
- Mobile1 engine oil


Forced Induction/track list (TT370Z NISMO):
- Fast Intentions Stage 1 ‘Complete’ Twin Turbo Kit
- Fast Intentions 3-2.5” down pipes w/ recirculating wastegate tubes
- Exhaust components heat protected - black ceramic
- Wrinkle black intake piping - hot side
- Wrinkle red intake piping - cold side
- Fast Intentions Setrab 34 row oil cooler kit
- FAST-500/CJM return fuel system
- CJM Road Race Fuel Pump kit
- CJM fuel pump top hat
- Walboro/Aeromotive Stealth fuel pump (flex fuel capable)
- Bosch/Injector Dynamics injectors (flex fuel capable)
- South Bend clutch & LW flywheel kit
- RJM HD clutch master cylinder
- SS clutch line
- ZSPEED HD CSC
- Turbosmart E-boost 2 EBC
- HKS spark plugs
- Dual A-pillar gauge pod from forum member Galeforce
- Defi CR 52mm boost gauge
- Defi CR 52mm oil pressure gauge
- Defi CR 52mm oil temperature gauge
- Innovate Motorsports MTX air-fuel gauge
- Fuel pressure gauge
- Ethanol content gauge
- Specialty Z ECUtek flex fuel tuning w/ RaceRom features
- Zeitronix ethanol-content analyzer kit
- DIY brake cooling ducts (NACA ducts integrated into undertray)
- STILLEN hose & backing kit
- Z1 2-piece slotted rotors
- BBK
- Carbotech XP8 pads
- SS brake lines
- Polyurethane engine and transmission mounts
- Polyurethane Whiteline rear end differential bushings
- Bridgestone RE-11s or Michelin PSS/PS4S (F265/35R19 & R305/30R19) or Dunlop SP Sport MAXX GT600s
- Wavetrac rear differential
- Redline 57904 (75W90) synthetic gear oil for rear end
- Redline 50504 -85 (75W-85) GL-4 manual transmission fluid
- Motul RBF 600 clutch & brake fluid
- DIY vented fender liner
- MOMO Nero/Gotham knob
- TWM 4" shift rod extender w/ A6 Leopard or M1 Abrams knob
- Nissan motorsports RC front bumper mesh - black
- Fast Intentions front tow/crash bar
- ATI super damper (MA Motorsports)

Extras:
- SOHO dual air/oil separator system
- Higher capacity oil pan
- JWT C2 exhaust camshaft set



Now for some pictures :happy dance:

Delivery pics










First summer





Dat a**



First hibernation


First mod: cut down the bling factor on these headlights! Not too bad on getting them out..back in was a different story- at least for the drivers side one IIRC.







Ready to be sent off!


Aaaaaand they’re back! :happy dance:. I absolutely love them. Really blends with the rest of the car making it much more stealth looking. More to come later with the halos on.

















Spring is finally back!


Getting a bath


GTR start button








FilterMag & magnetic drain plug installed


5,000 miles!



More to come...stay tuned!

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Zthirty4NISMO

2014 two-tone body parts color matched. I wish they would’ve just stuck with the 2013 scheme so I didn’t have to mess with this, but oh well. It looks so much better this way IMO also in combination with the headlights















Time to get the rims powder-coated to complete the look even further!



I love how they turned out. NISMO inlays from forum member Mike to come!









Absolutely changed the entire look of the car now that it’s almost all blacked out.







Z1 hood strut install





Mean muggin’



35% window tint installed

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Zthirty4NISMO

A few pics from this summer highlighting the rim inlays and the LED halos/orb rings.









Added a 5th digit to the OD!

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God-Speed

Turning out nice, love how the wheels came out. I was actually thinking of the same thing, same wheels before I got my Forgestars. Keep it going!!!

Zthirty4NISMO

Update: edited initial post with future plans/wish-list (in no particular order) and also added to post #3 with a few additional pics. I welcome any feedback relating to the mods especially in the future section. As mentioned initially, I would like to begin upgrading necessary components for FI beforehand that may require a break-in period or is a good idea to do beforehand. Right now my thoughts are clutch/flywheel (incl. slave cyl.), master cylinder, SS clutch line, differential, diff bushings, brakes/rotors, coolings ducts, SS lines.

I do a lot of research on this forum and have read many of the important performance threads from start to finish (re-read, re-read, re-read..) including many product review threads, and following other members builds so I would like to think I have a decent vision and plan for the future of my car, even if it takes me a few years

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Zthirty4NISMO

I got to do a little work on the car this past weekend. Things on the list included ZSPEC radiator cap covers, Z1 radiator reservoir overflow hose set, ZSPEED under shield, and ordering a Fast Intentions CBE!

I’m really digging how my engine bay is coming along:




The under shield installation went pretty smoothly except I did over tighten one of the ‘Jack Nuts’ that go into the aluminum core support, which snapped the bolt used in the tool. Oh well..I just drilled the hole out again. Good thing ZSPEED sends plenty of extras! I am really going to enjoy not having to take the entire tray off for oil changes now.

It was also nice doing the under shield swap at the same time as the reservoir overflow hoses because it provides easy access to the long breather that runs down behind the fans. There are two retaining clips that hold it in place and they do not give a whole lot so getting the old hose out of them from the top would have been challenging as well as putting the new one in.

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Zthirty4NISMO

Monitoring my email for a Fast Intentions tracking number..

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Zthirty4NISMO

My Fast Intentions exhaust arrived yesterday! The wait is over!!

Going to do the install this weekend. It worked out pretty nice as I've only had the car out of storage for a week.

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Zthirty4NISMO

Got the car in for a full exterior detail this past weekend. I had a good amount of micro marring and swirl marks accumulated that I couldn't stand seeing when I had the car out in full sun. I also probably didn't use the correct methods for paint care right off the bat. The buffing got virtually all of the marks out of the paint. It looks absolutely gorgeous now. I also had 9H-LDC ceramic coating by Always Dry applied for the ultimate protection.

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Zthirty4NISMO

Got some polished aluminum tanks on the way from CWorksDesign here on the forum. He works for admin tuning, but still does the work. 2012+ style radiator expansion tank and power steering reservoir. Will retain all OEM bungs and cap locations. Seen a couple pics from a set he did for another member and they look great so can’t wait. Very reasonable price for the set compared to the other options out there. Will post pics when they arrive.

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Zthirty4NISMO

The tanks are done and ready to be shipped. My Z1 red hose kit is gonna look nice with these.

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CWorksDesign

Glad I could help you out with the polished aluminum toys. Let's see some pics!

If you need more parts let me know.

https://youtu.be/_BTEx7awtAc

Zthirty4NISMO

So this update is long overdue. As I posted above, I picked up some polished aluminum tanks from CWorksDesign. I actually got them installed back in November before I put the Z away for the winter, but didn't take any pics until recently. I also had still been sitting on the Z1 lower overflow hose and upper/lower rad hoses since this was going to require draining the coolant anyways and I figured I'd knock them out at the same time. The install went pretty smoothly and I was impressed by how little of a mess I made when draining the coolant. It was a little work getting the old hoses off and getting the new ones on and positioned correctly so no pinching occurred. I even trimmed off the ends a little as they seemed slightly too long. I removed the power steering fluid from the old tank with a small syringe and hose attached to it. That worked really well as I got nearly all of it out and had minimal leaks/drips when disconnected. As for the new tanks, they fit into place perfectly and look great. Just beware the overflow tank is a giant heat sink and is no joke with a hot engine/coolant!


Edit: I ended up having to remove this power steering reservoir as it was not functioning correctly. I realize this came after 6+ years of it being installed but the miles accumulated in that timeframe was only a measly 4k so it really didn't take long to rear it's head. The problem is that the baffle inside is too porous and the constant bubbling of the fluid as it was being returned to the tank was forcing it out of the cap causing a slow constant leak until I was low on fluid and the pump started screaming. Pretty bummed as I really liked the polished aluminum look instead of the plastic OEM.

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Zthirty4NISMO

Got the Trackspec hood vent kit installed recently. I couldn’t bring myself to do it so I popped the hood off and dropped it off at the body shop. The installation went well and everything looks good. They commented that the large middle vent wasn’t quite formed to the contour of the hood (too flat) so they took it upon themselves to form it better. It only took a little coercing down the middle I guess. I also picked up some of Rusty’s rain guards for the vents but haven’t got around to throwing them on yet. After taking a few normal cruises it was great to feel how much heat was coming out of them.

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Zthirty4NISMO

Ordered some goodies from Z1 over Black Friday: power steering reservoir silicone hose set, stainless steel brake lines, and the 2015+ start button surround. I ended up having to call them since the power steering hose set wasn’t on sale with the rest of their silicone (20%). I talked to Spencer and just asked if they would honor the power steering set as well and it was no problem. Great customer service!

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