350Z SR20DET Drift Car Build :)

[SR240Z]

Yes this is for real! We are in the midst of building the roll cage for our 350z to Formula D rule standards.

The car is going to primarily be a competition drift car which I (Alex) will be driving. I will be documenting progress on www.AlexVillabrille.com as well as through this thread. I was able to get some semi-sponsorships to help with the build from Daryl Alison at JustDriven.com, M1 Autosports, and Dynamic Autosports.

I do not have my license yet but have been practicing and once the car is ready will go out to get my license.

Attached are some teaser shots for your viewing pleasure:

May 7th:
http://forums.hybridz.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=13913&d=1241756250

http://alexvillabrille.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/img_0975.jpg

http://alexvillabrille.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/img_0979.jpg

http://alexvillabrille.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/img_0985.jpg

May 8th:
http://alexvillabrille.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/img_0986.jpg

http://alexvillabrille.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/img_0987.jpg

May 9th:
http://alexvillabrille.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/img_0991.jpg

http://alexvillabrille.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/img_0992.jpg

Roll Cage COMPLETED!!! May 12th:
http://alexvillabrille.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/img_1000.jpg

http://alexvillabrille.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/img_0999.jpg

http://alexvillabrille.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/img_1002.jpg

http://alexvillabrille.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/img_1003.jpg

http://alexvillabrille.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/img_1004.jpg

[C-unit]

Very nice!! but i am more interested in the R34 at the back!!

[Twenty4]

and that red s15 hiding back there!

[SR240Z]

The R34 just got the bottom end all forged built with complete tomei head and HKS 2530s and the Red S15 we are in the process of building the roll cage since it will also be a drift car...

[SR240Z]

Well I went to Pro-Motion Distrbuting on Friday and picked up their final stock of the Sparco Pro2000 Seats as well as some aluminum side mounts.

I also got my Momo steering wheel hub but still trying to decide on which steering wheel to do with...

Keep your eye out for the ETB Instruments DigiDash coming soon :)

Check the seats out:
http://alexvillabrille.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/img_1040-225x300.jpg

[Antihero983]

and that red s15 hiding back there!

Very nice!! but i am more interested in the R34 at the back!!

lol fanboys much??

anyways....

what SR will you be using, and what are your power goals?

[SR240Z]

We are going to be pulling the built SR out of our S30 but mate it to a Z32 trans for a stronger and more reliable setup.

The motor runs great and super strong and was dynoed at 508whp at 26psi and race gas... should be around 450-470 on pump.

[SR240Z]

Been trying to clean up the rest of the interior so we can prep it for paint and begin to move onto the rest of the good stuff!!!

The rubber seem sealer is a pain in the ass to wire wheel all off, but it is finally done! Oh and I used dry ice of course to remove all the tar.

www.alexvillabrille.com

http://alexvillabrille.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/img_1042.jpg

[arkive43]

cool, will definatly be checking this thread, since there are no engine pics :confused:

[SR240Z]

Well this would have been a productive weekend usually, if we had actually liked the final turnout of the interior paint. We spent the entire day on Saturday prepping the car to be ready to paint and we got to the interior on Sunday morning and were going to start painting the exterior of the car but it was drizzling and not a good day to continue. The end result of the interior we didn’t like so much, but you guys be the judge. Going to re-paint it this weekend hopefully.

http://alexvillabrille.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/img_1152-300x225.jpg

http://alexvillabrille.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/img_1154-300x225.jpg

http://alexvillabrille.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/img_1155-300x225.jpg

http://alexvillabrille.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/img_1156-300x225.jpg

http://alexvillabrille.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/img_1159-300x225.jpg

http://alexvillabrille.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/img_1160-300x225.jpg

TODAY:
We brought the infamous SR20 powered 240Z to rip its heart out! It was sad to take the car back home on a trailer but it had to be done at some point. In the future the 240Z is likely to get a 2JZ for some street fun. (Don’t mind the tow straps as were pulling the engine, its super light and didn’t have the transmission attached to it anymore)

http://alexvillabrille.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/img_1174-300x225.jpg

http://alexvillabrille.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/img_1176-300x225.jpg

http://alexvillabrille.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/img_1177-300x225.jpg

Be sure to keep up on www.AlexVillabrille.com

[s13silvia123]

wow fukkkkken amazing

[surge s14]

yes hell freaken YES!

[jdizzy204]

put a KA-T in the s30!!!

[SR240Z]

hahah no KA-T for the S30. We already played with the KA motor in NA form for the 510 which is still up for sale and this time were going single turbo 2JZ for some easy street fun....

But again the 350Z project is priority now and the S30 is on the back burner for a while :(

[blueshark123]

more pics of 240z please

[SR240Z]

Pics of the 240Z are back up and hosted on the SR240Z.com site: SR240Z | SR20 Powered 240Z. (http://www.sr240z.com/sr240z/sr240z.htm)

[C-unit]

lol fanboys much??


I probably own more skyline than you've own any of your cars combined. :keke::keke:

anyways..prop for all the work!!

[SR240Z]

A few updates over these past few days.

The motor pulled from the 240z was dropped into the 350z :) Fits very nicely and just need to modify the top-mount manifold so that the turbo clears the strut tower and is closer to the motor and further away from the brake parts.

I went ahead and pulled the brake pedal (was automatic before) to cut it down to size and also install the clutch pedal and master cylinder at the same time. Brake booster and master were also set in place and re-installed

We also got started on the re-wiring of the standalone and complete car. The factory wiring harnesses for the car weigh so much its ridiculous. This new EZ-Wire setup definitely comes in handy but is very time consuming.

http://alexvillabrille.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/img_1261-300x225.jpg

http://alexvillabrille.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/img_1230-300x225.jpg

www.AlexVillabrille.com

[SR240Z]

We are trying to have continuous updates and progress on the car while still working on customer cars during the day. These past two days I have been doing routine service and prepping cars for swaps while my dad started to work on the dash center panel.

He found some carbon sheet lying around the shop and got to fitting it into where the old navigation and Bose stereo used to be. The gauges fitted into the pod are temporary for fitment purposes only.

Check it out:

http://alexvillabrille.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/img_1265-225x300.jpg

www.AlexVillabrille.com

If you go to the blog page you can click on all the pictures to view them in full size.

[Z33dori]

wow that S30 is mad clean

looking forward to more of this build

[SR240Z]

Chet at Galek Motorsports came through with the ETB Instruments DigiDash 2 Lite. It finally arrived today after such a long time in deciding what we were going to do with the central gauge setup.

We will have it installed and wired as soon as the rest of the sensors come in the mail and get some new lit up pictures! Dont forget that if you go to the blog page you can view the pictures in full size when you click on them.

http://alexvillabrille.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/img_1325-300x225.jpg

www.AlexVillabrille.com

[LoneStarSilvia]

Always been a fan of your guys swapped S30's, good luck with the build, its gonna be pretty sweet

[SR240Z]

I know I haven’t lived up to my word in supplying updates for this build but we have been hard at work trust me! UPDATED!!!!!!!!!!!

The entire blog post can be viewed at www.alexvillabrille.com

Here is a preview:
“…KA24 510 tuned but ended up blowing the motor due to tuner error :/ We brought the car back, pulled the KA24 and swapped in an SR20det instead…”

http://alexvillabrille.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/img_0161-300x225.jpg http://alexvillabrille.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/img_0166-300x225.jpg

“…new brakes for the 350z track car (Wilwood 6-piston front and 4-piston rear), new front windshield installed, as well as painting the roof…”

http://alexvillabrille.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/img_0168-300x225.jpg

[Torque Master Joe]

ooh. nice. I like the stitching. sweet.

[superdooper]

fucking dope

[Omegared99]

wow im throughly impressed looks like a freakin awesome project

[GSXRJJordan]

Nobody noticed the main hoop in the cage pics? WAY over 180* bends.

You'll never get that tech'd, I'm afraid.

Main hoop: 4 bends maximum, totaling 180 degrees ± 10 degrees.

The rest of the build looks promising... I'm assuming you got the 350z for cheap without the VQ in there...

[DataXUnknown]

Nobody noticed the main hoop in the cage pics? WAY over 180* bends.

You'll never get that tech'd, I'm afraid.



The rest of the build looks promising... I'm assuming you got the 350z for cheap without the VQ in there...

I'm pretty sure he will be able to pass tech easy with the cage. Last year they weren't supposed to let people with bolt in cages go, but I looked at a lot of the cars and half of them were bolt in cages (mainly the ones from out of country, maybe that has something to do with it?)

[GSXRJJordan]

I'm pretty sure he will be able to pass tech easy with the cage. Last year they weren't supposed to let people with bolt in cages go, but I looked at a lot of the cars and half of them were bolt in cages (mainly the ones from out of country, maybe that has something to do with it?)

What does that have to do with the main hoop design? Nothing.

The rulebook specifies that bolt-in cages are legal, but even if you run a bolt-in cage, they like them to be welded in. Here's where you can sometimes get hung up:

2. Removable roll cages and braces shall be very carefully designed and constructed to be at least as strong as a permanent installation.

It's not the construction or the materials (although I can't verify that it's the right material - I'm guessing it's 2500lb+ race weight and needs to be 1.750x.095" DOM), it's the design that's suspect - and the main hoop is not a "borderline"/"fringe" section of the rule book, it's a staple ~ my advice is to have it teched before the build gets any further.

[SR240Z]

Our cage fabricator is going to re-make the main hoop if he has to.... We already told him the issue and he surpassed that when we gave him the rule book.

This 350z was the best deal I have ever gotten and it was a complete running car, but since it was pre-production it was not "allowed" to be registered...FREE!!

[GSXRJJordan]

Our cage fabricator is going to re-make the main hoop if he has to.... We already told him the issue and he surpassed that when we gave him the rule book.

This 350z was the best deal I have ever gotten and it was a complete running car, but since it was pre-production it was not "allowed" to be registered...FREE!!

Wow, killer deal! Glad your fabricator is willing to fix the problem. On with the build!

[slideways2004]

damn! free car. that's badass. HOw did you work that out?

[UNITEDMASTER]

Its a nice build,but that really sucks about the main hoop,it will all have to be redone if it is to be correct. The only advice I would say is, finish the inside of the car & have it pre teched by the organization your gonna run with & do whatever you can to get a current logbook with SCCCA &/or NASA. If its FD that should/would make it through no problem VS some of the crap out there.

[cbcustoms]

Anymore updates?

[SR240Z]

There are more updates.... but I am just waiting for all my parts to arrive so I can finally make an update again!

[SR240Z]

Well finally got some of our parts in that we have been waiting for, WHEELS!!!!!!!!! Check out the full post over at www.drftmytail.com (Redirects to www.alexvillabrille.com)

http://alexvillabrille.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/IMG_0403-300x225.jpg

[SR240Z]

Well the man behind my blog site is Joey Todaro who has been a friend of mine since we were in high school. He does all the graphic design, logo work, and upkeep with the blog as far as the look and function of it.

I made a new post about his site JDM FTW - Awesome Shirts and Gear Inspired by the Japanese Domestic Car Market (http://www.jdmftw.com) on my blog which you can check out the full post at: Alex Villabrille - BLOG (http://www.drftmytail.com)

[SR240Z]

Aside from basically completely tearing apart the 240z we now want to re-do some things for better selection of wheels and aftermarket parts so we are swapping to mostly all S13 suspension/brake setup.

The 350z I am waiting on my FRP body parts to get here.... Please read the entire post I just put up on Alex Villabrille - BLOG (http://www.drftmytail.com)

Thanks for all your support and thanks to Gruppe-S/Dynamic Autosports!

[SR240Z]

Another update on the 240z this week! The s13 suspension conversion has been completed, check out the entire post at: Alex Villabrille - BLOG (http://www.drftmytail.com) but here is a little sneak preview for you guys.

http://alexvillabrille.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/IMG_0446-300x225.jpg

[franklin93zx]

Put it on the ground!!

[SR240Z]

Guys, I admit I really lacked on keeping the blog updated. Thankfully, the reason of this happening is because we received multiple customers that wanted to do swap projects so we had to put our projects on hold.

But the wait for an update will be over tomorrow night. We have been hard at work lately and actually switched to a different drivetrain platform. To know what it is you will just have to wait and see a little bit until we get the mock-up done... but it will be turbo!

The body of the 350z has been painted a Satin White and we are going to be painting the rest of the parts tomorrow: doors, fenders, side skirts, and the front/rear bumper. The roof was already previously painted satin black and the hatch and hood may also be painted satin black, we have yet to make the final decision.

Be sure to check it out late tomorrow night or Monday morning: Alex Villabrille - BLOG (http://www.drftmytail.com) or Alex Villabrille - BLOG (http://www.alexvillabrille.com)

[SR240Z]

Well the car has finally been painted as promised. Its been a long weekend and we left the shop a mess! Oh well, tomorrow is another day.

Here is a small teaser of what we did over the weekend:
http://alexvillabrille.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/IMG_0633-300x225.jpg

To see the final product make sure to check out the blog page. Leave comments if you like!

Alex Villabrille - BLOG (http://www.alexvillabrille.com)

[SR240Z]

Today was another progressive day and got some work done on the car. We modified the temporary suspension we have on the car to get an idea of the stance we want to achieve once our new spring rates arrive and we actually install our track suspension. Installed the Arizona Z Car 6-piston front brakes and 4-pistons rear. Also put on the rear bumper. Pictures are courtesy of Joseph Todaro from JDM Threads - Awesome Shirts for JDM, Drifting, and Racing Enthusiasts (http://www.JDMThreads.com)

Check out the blog for the complete details and more pictures, but here is a teaser for you:

http://alexvillabrille.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/DSC_0083-300x199.jpg

Alex Villabrille - BLOG (http://www.alexvillabrille.com)

[SR240Z]

A couple more days of super long hours we are able to complete quite a few things on the car. In short we are getting closer and closer each week as we are trying to work on the car every day after 6pm when we stop working on customer cars.

Car is all painted, 1 set of the MB Battles were painted gold, DigiDash installed and pleanty of other parts installed. Check out the entire blog post for complete details at www.alexvillabrille.com (http://www.alexvillabrille.com) but here is a small teaser of how the car sits curently:

http://alexvillabrille.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/IMG_0702-225x300.jpg

[SR240Z]

More updates! I painted 1 set of the MB battles gold already. Waiting to get tires so that i can pull the current ones off and paint these wheels gold as well.

We also mounted the engine/trans and got tons of new parts in this week finally after selling the individual throttle body setup. I will be updating the blog again with the final welding/position done on the mounts and many of the parts installed onto the motor to continue the build.

A little teaser, but check out the rest on: Alex Villabrille - BLOG (http://www.alexvillabrille.com)

http://alexvillabrille.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/IMG_0712-300x225.jpg

[jmac636]

New thread title should read "350z Ls1 turbo build". Good decision! (I'm not a fan of installing a smaller displacement engine anyway).

[SR240Z]

I cant believe how long its been since the last update. We have been trying to catch up on all the work we had come into the shop so that now we can make time after hours to work on our projects again.

Motor and trans are now permanently installed which can be seen in the picture attached and also read the entire new blog post at: Alex Villabrille BLOG (http://www.alexvillabrille.com)

http://alexvillabrille.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/IMG_0986-300x225.jpg

[teamsprock]

Looks very nice although I was excited to see the SR in there. I have wanted to put my SR in my 350 for a while now. If I still had the SR I would probably do it this winter, oh well keep up the cool work.

[SR240Z]

More progress these last few days on the fuel system and some more suspension parts installed too.

Read the full blog post at: Alex Villabrille BLOG (http://www.alexvillabrille.com)

http://alexvillabrille.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/IMG_10221-300x225.jpg

[91300zxttkid]

wow!! that thing is really coming together.. the cage looks wild!!
-George

[SR240Z]

Continuous progress thankfully this past week which has really began to motivate us everyday. This time the exhaust system has been finished and is ready to be heard!

Check out the full blog post at: Alex Villabrille - BLOG (http://www.alexvillabrille.com)

http://alexvillabrille.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/IMG_1066-300x225.jpg

[91300zxttkid]

Damn, shes gonna sound mean!
-George

[SR240Z]

Well we had been hard at work but realized the car wouldn't be ready before I leave to Argentina. So we decided to buy a practice car in the meantime so I can hit events and get some more seat time while we can finish the 350Z at a calmer pace. We will end up upgrading the cam now and do tuning on E85.

I posted a new blog entry over at Alex Villabrille - BLOG (http://www.alexvillabrille.com) that you can read about the new purchase and the upcoming event I will be attending!

Here is a teaser photo:
http://alexvillabrille.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/37486_1339659371654_1236265699_30810722_65474_n-300x200.jpg

[apexis13sx]

Man this is gonna be one sick 350z!!!!!

[SR240Z]

I feel bad for the lack of updates to the blog, but we have been working so many hours to do as much customer work as we can during the day and then at night stay after and work on the missile car to get ready for the next and coming track day.

Check out Alex Villabrille - BLOG (http://www.alexvillabrille.com) for the complete post and more pictures!

I updated the blog with a long post of what we have been up to lately since before I left to Argentina in September. Here is a sneak preview picture of what we are up to:

http://alexvillabrille.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/IMG_1393-300x225.jpg