Christian370Z's Progression Thread

[Boost_lee]

I'm on the fence about getting a wing for mine, so I look forward to your review, Christian

[chuckd05]

Christian are your front spacers stud replacent ones ? They may be the only knees that completely eliminate any sort of vibration.

[christian370z]

Originally Posted by Boost_lee

I'm on the fence about getting a wing for mine, so I look forward to your review, Christian

I will be sure to document it as always, I got the carbon fiber one so it will be interesting to see how it looks on PG and also if the darker CF color gives it a little less visual impact that the paint matched ones have.

Originally Posted by chuckd05

Christian are your front spacers stud replacent ones ? They may be the only knees that completely eliminate any sort of vibration.

I am still holding onto my 20mm H&R DRS spacers for that very reason, there is a slight but definite vibration in the steering wheel around 80mph. I just need to gather the motivation to install them haha, not quite as quick or easy as the bolt on Ichibas.

[christian370z]

Just took a quick picture in the garage last night too since I loved the way the garage lighting really made the paint sparkle:

[christian370z]

I had been following the first group buy of Esfourteen's clutch helper spring but since I was in China, I hoped I could hold off ordering until I got back... Well, that didn't work as I has no patience. Temptation was too much after seeing all the rave reviews and thankfully, Nick still had a few left so I took him up and finally got it installed today.

Installation:

A number of people have commented that you need to file/sand a few areas to get the pins on the top and bottom back in. My observation is that you should leave the bottom pin in as you do not need to remove it and will make re-installation that much easier. The part that prevented me from sliding the pin back in the top was that the top hole in the actual spring assembly was a close fit with the pin so I used a round file to take the internal edges off. After losing a circlip after it shot off into the footwell, I went to Autozone and bought a kit of them and had to file one of the kit circlips to get it to fit. Otherwise, it was a pretty straightforward if not physically awkward install haha.

Impressions:

First thing I noticed is that pedal effort was reduced slightly. It does not have that springy over-boosted feel that the stock spring had which is absolutely awesome. There is a noticeable amount of slack at the top of the pedal but I can live with that. The best way I can describe the new feel of the clutch is that it is much more natural. The pedal movement is more linear through the entire range of the clutch's actuation and instantly allowed me to shift more smoothly and consistently in stop and go traffic. It also makes me feel like I can modulate the clutch with much more smoothness than before as the clutch pedal isn't pushing against your foot as much since the stock spring over-boosted the rebound.


Bottom line is this is one of the best mods I have done to the Z to date and for the price and prompt delivery Nick commands, is one of the best bang for the buck drive-ability improvements out there at the moment.

[christian370z]

I drove over to the Z store and made a few acquisitions today for the Z, a carbon fiber sport package rep spoiler and a GTR start button. My original plan was to add a VIP Status type 3 carbon wing but I feel like it is just too big for my purposes without aftermarket wheels and some additions to the lower valence/front bumper to balance it out.


After returning from the Z store, I unpacked the spoiler and while it looked good, have some heavy marring/swirls and a general haze on all areas of the wing. I got out my Makita, some Meguiar's 105 compound, Menzerna Power Finish, and an assortment of pads and went to work.


Some examples of the overall condition:





Good from afar but far from good...






Time to tape up for some 50/50 shots: you can see the haze, but also some of the deep RIDs that were in the resin/clearcoat






After one pass with Power Finish and a white LC pad, it was clear a more aggressive pad/polish combo was needed:






One pass with a purple foamed wool pad and some 105 made significantly more progess:





Before:






50/50: left untouched, right after one pass of purple foamed wool and Megs 105





Here, you can see the 50/50 line out of direct sunlight: the left side is milky and hazy while the right is clearer, deeper and more glossy.





Some deeper marks remained unfortunately as they were underneath the clearcoat.





After polishing the underside, here is how it turned out:









I am going to a well respected auto detailer/body shop guy tomorrow or Saturday to have it installed.



On to the GTR Button:

Thanks to Triple's excellent guide, I was able to easily pop in the GTR button. I love it as it adds some contrast and color to an otherwise dark interior. The red is a really deep red that almost has a candy effect to it, I definitely am happy to finally install it.


Before:




After:










As always, thanks for reading. I know this isn't the most exciting or extreme build but I appreciate any comments, suggestions or concerns you might have too.

[SPOHN]

Nice work on the spoiler.

[370Z JT]

i need to do the same to my spoiler.

[Boost_lee]

nice progress. Sucks about the change in plans, only for my sake I think you made a sound decision.

Funny about losing the circlip during the spring install; mine flew into the opening that leads to the door molex and I lost it also.

[christian370z]

Originally Posted by SPOHN

Nice work on the spoiler.

Thanks SPOHN.

Originally Posted by 370Z JT

i need to do the same to my spoiler.

Do some 50/50s, those are always very satisfying. Pretty shocking how much marring there was though...

Originally Posted by Boost_lee

nice progress. Sucks about the change in plans, only for my sake I think you made a sound decision.

Funny about losing the circlip during the spring install; mine flew into the opening that leads to the door molex and I lost it also.

Haha, well you have the body mods to balance out the larger wing so I say go for it! The only other thing holding me back on the VIP wing other than the size is the fact that it rises to a point, I wish it had a flatter top. The workmanship is top notch, but I think that it would just be a bit much for my otherwise stock exterior.

[docaam]

man you went all crazy with polishing great job waiting for installed pictures

[christian370z]

Thanks docaam, I figured I might as well try to make it perfect before it goes on the car. I love polishing, I rarely need to polish the Z since my wash routine is to the point where I don't get any marring/swirls so I take every opportunity I get to polish stuff haha.

[chuckd05]

Christian if you are ever in NY bring your stuff, you can polish my car.... At 20k and some lazy wash habbits ( going to car wash ) my car can use a nice correction... nothing crazy but could use some work...

I was going to buy a porter cable and stuff products and try to learn on my own but not sure if thats a good idea or not

[christian370z]

Originally Posted by chuckd05

Christian if you are ever in NY bring your stuff, you can polish my car.... At 20k and some lazy wash habbits ( going to car wash ) my car can use a nice correction... nothing crazy but could use some work...

I was going to buy a porter cable and stuff products and try to learn on my own but not sure if thats a good idea or not

I would definitely help you out if I still lived in Greenwich, I have given a bunch of "tuition" details to friends on other forums before and every single person says "Wow, that was so easy. I can't believe I didn't try this before!"

Trust me, get a solid kit of one medium polish, one finishing polish, a Porter Cable, an assortment of pads, a whole lot of microfiber towels, a good sealant and that is almost everything you need. Not only do you learn how to properly polish your paint, but it will cost the same or less than paying someone to detail and you will do a better job (plus you will have all the stuff to polish as needed).

PM me if you want some recommendations on products and stuff.

[Flushnismo]

I always love your write-ups and pictures. Awesome job