Winter hibernation still ongoing, but lots of stuff is cooking.

1. Got new braided steel brake lines, and ordered Motul RBF 600 brake oil. 1,5l should be enough, right? That will be changed once the car is out, I don't fancy doing that crap myself.

2. Also ordered a diff brace from GKTech, I figure additional support on the diff should help. The car is still super low mileage (~17k miles), OEM bushings are practically as good as completely new, so I wasn't feeling like changing them yet.

3. While I was ordering from GKTech, I also ordered Tie rod spacers, along with new tie rods, which should give additional several degrees of steering angle. I'm not a drifter, and I'm not keen on going with some crazy angles, but I'd like a bit more degrees, so I figure this is worth changing, since it's such an unobtrusive change.

4. And while I'm still working on the front of the car, I will do the brake cooling. I don't feel like paying for a full kit, as I found 2,5" heat resistant tubing for about $70 locally, and I think I'll be able to guide and secure them well for some brake cooling. It's not that I absolutely need it, but it won't hurt, so whatever I get in terms of extra brake cooling will be good.

When all that is done, the car should be almost fully complete to my preference and no more modding is expected. My wallet will also be thankful :)

Routing 2" diameter hose for brake ducts isn't too hard. When you go bigger. It becomes a challenge. I went from 2" to 3". That took me a while to figure out.

These guys had 2,5" hoses that seem very fit for the job, I'm sure routing won't be a problem at all, it's more of a question of where I want to locate the intake side.

It's where the hose is in relationship with the sway bar and the front inside corner of the tire. You might have to oval the hose there for clearance.

Thanks for the heads-up! I got several of these (see attachment) just for that purpose, to make sure I can safely fasten them to a good spot. I guess it'll take some hacking, but I'll find a solution.

Awesome car man, I love how the euro spec Z's have certain features that we don't get here. I would love to have the rear wiper on my Z to be honest. My 350 had it, but the 370 doesn't for some reason.

Btw, how are the side view mirrors on your car? Does the drivers side view mirror have the extended view for blind spots? Basically, the first quarter part of the mirror has a wider view glass than the rest. It looks like this:
https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/slwAA...9k/s-l1600.jpg

If so, then I'll get a set of side view mirrors from Germany or something and install them on my Z.

Hey, I have to say that no, my mirrors are just regular ones, there is no part that's cut, so that you get that extra blind spot view. Not sure if it's possible that came in with later Z's, but I do believe that any glass maker could to that for you. Maybe it wouldn't be as original, but if you basically just do a cut on the mirror, so that the outer part is tilted additional few degrees, it would catch the blind spot.

Thanks for the info. The later Z's might have had these type of mirrors, but I'm not sure. I know we definitely didn't get it here in US and Canada.

Just to post a little update after running the car for 2 days for this season - I finally got a chance to test the oil cooler I bought. So, reminder - I bought a Setrab core, 25 row oil cooler with a thermostatic sandwich plate. I put it in the usual just behind the bumper spot.

The thermostat opens at around 82°C (180F) from what I could find online. This means that if I track the car and push it, but I keep speeds to about 60mph - the oil will reach maybe 110°C (230F), but never exceed it. It will quite quickly drop back to 90°C (195F).

The interesting part is on the highway. If I'm cruising at around 130-140km/h (80-85mph) my oil temperature will get stuck on around 75°C (165F) and will not exceed it unless I push it. In 6th gear that's at 3000rpm. I find it a bit too cool for my taste, but what the hell do I know.

All in all - super happy with it so far.

Go figure. In Europe, they have bidets, same thing with their headlights.

Gotta say I'm either stupid or forgetful, but today I looked at my driver side mirror and sure enough - it's got that cut on the outer side, so to show the blind spot. Whoops.

Completely unplanned but after last track day I decided that I should get a steering wheel spacer. Too many times have I thought that the steering wheel is just too far away for me.
I bought one off of spacershop.com - some other member has linked it in the thread about it. The harnesses for all the functional keys on the steering wheel need to be extended, but the airbag wires are OK, just long enough so that they don't need to be extended. Installation was not a problem, though I must note that I think that it's impossible to get the steering wheel perfectly straight. I think the grooves on the extender piece aren't completely aligned, because I tried to align it perfectly, and even did a realignment - I still don't have the perfect straight alignment. No big deal, I'll go for alignment and fix it - once I install the steering spacers to get a bit more angle on the front.

Went for a wet drive on the track yesterday and the steering wheel position is perfect, right in my hands, not that I need to be stretched out. That being said, there is a downside to it. Reaching for the turn signal stalk - that's just ridiculous. It's now FAR AWAY. Not kidding, but I literally need to move the hand off the steering wheel to reach the stalk - but it's worth it. The driving position is SO much better now.

Anyway, here's a few pics of the car, along with the other car that's actually practical to use. On the pics of the Z, you can also see little upgrades that I mentioned previously - the oil pressure gauge, functioning fantastically and looking nearly OEM, as well as the fire extinguisher in front of the passenger seat. Not a huge one, but better than nothing.

https://i.imgur.com/U6MZioOh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/nEdjomIh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/ahFsVOGh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/Xqb2YBah.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/ehLUCOch.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/8PxPf4jh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/PZkWCAjh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/jTj5tNHh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/rR7HFW5h.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/uN8Qctoh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/dyBqJBXh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/RebKTYSh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/zk34SWFh.jpg

Some pics from the track few weeks ago

https://i.imgur.com/0JS3Sf8h.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/tlqloYnh.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/ae6zdtzh.jpg

Now go get your Takada air bags replaced!:tup:

How do you prevent from your seats getting dye transfer and no wrinkles?