Preview: NZ Performance Car Issue No. 242

242

FEB. 2017

ISSUE

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BUMPER ISSUE WITH HUGE MAD MIKE POSTER

B A G G E D D AT S U N 1 6 0 0

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1997 NISSAN GT-R V-SPEC (R33)

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EW E ENW HO HLOELN W W A A IS IS G GH U U HIS NO H THTIS ENEO H H ER— E— IT IT R O O W W , , F F E E R R C E E B B OY PLPALAECE RY ESEENEN K-K RUR S U SETSRTO E E E O O Y Y D D ’V ’V U U IN IN O O C C U U Y Y A A CR YO TRTR TOTO HA HTAT PEPEELEIN TO GG OS: ADAM PUPTUY LIN TW ARTIN PHOT REGTEW D D T T E E OG : JADEN M E E E E FO FR DS E E P P OR W R R S S ND FTST ATAIO AN AD OF OS NN TIO R R BRBEREEDED E E L L E E C C ACAC

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HEART ENGINE: Nissan RB34, 3400cc, six-cylinder BLOCK: RB30E, Spool billet 4340 full counterweight 94mm nitrided stroker crankshaft, Spool forged rods, ARP rod bolts, custom CP forged pistons, Tool steel gudgeon pins, Tomei oil pump HEAD: CNC-machined RB26DETT, Tomei Drag Procams, Tomei Procams valvetrain, Tomei oversized valves INTAKE: R.I.P.S Racing drag plenum, 102mm throttle body EXHAUST: Custom ST Hi-tec four-inch side-exit TURBO: Garrett GTX42R WASTEGATE: HKS 60mm BOV: Twin HKS FUEL: Injector Dynamics ID2200 fuel injectors, Aeromotive 2000hp fuel pump, Nismo lift pump, Aeromotive fuel-pressure regulator, 10-litre surge tank IGNITION: Splitfire coil packs, HKS race plugs ECU: HKS F-CON Pro V2 COOLING: Fenix Performance radiator, HKS GT intercooler, Trust oil cooler EXTRA: HKS boost controller, HKS electronic valve control, custom ST Hi-tec three-chamber catch tank

PERFORMANCE POWER: 900kW and 1430Nm of torque FUEL TYPE: E85 PSI: 32 (2.2 bar) ET: 10.60s at 142mph (228kph)

What New Zealand big-power RB30 would be complete without a component developed

by Robbie from R.I.P.S Racing? In this case, it’s the front-facing drag plenum Company director Iain Clegg, and Arnie Nguyen — who drove his first import car to run a sub-10-second quarter-mile in New Zealand — spitballed engine concepts just as a RB26/30 combination became available that had been built by Taylor Automotive, in Auckland. The team wanted to test the durability of the RB30 package, “This was to give us a baseline, like any experiment you have a control sample, so to speak. The RB30 was purchased as a research and development exercise to see for ourselves what they are capable of, and how the engine would respond to different components,” said shop general manager, Stewart Mearns.

As the Taylor Automotive engine was a solid runner and would provide a suitable starting platform, it was bought, and a few of the basic essentials were added, like a quality set of forged Eagle rods and pistons, and a virtually factory RB26 head with upgraded camshafts. Selecting the right turbo for the combination was harder, and they settled on an absolutely massive Garrett GTX42R. This basic pieced-together combination provided valuable data during dyno sessions on how different components affected the engine output, and what was required to achieve their final goal — massive, responsive power. “We knew it would be an average engine, as the cylinder head was close to stock, but what surprised us was how much power it did make for such a basic package,” Stewart explained. “Our main concern at the time was the RB30 being known to destroy stock cranks, and it was only a matter of time before that would fail with the amount of torque we were pushing out of it”. However, it wasn’t the crank that was the first component to let go — while testing the car at Meremere Dragway the diff and left-rear axle failed, and fearing the crank would be

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Although it appears black, the sunshine brings out the red candy flake paintwork on the Zeemax widebody

next, the team decided that the test engine had done its job. After more than enough dyno and testing sessions, it was retired while they furthered their research into building that ultimate package.

The team visited the GT-R festival in Sydney, and used the occasion to check out what the guys across the ditch were doing and the next step was to collect up a gaggle of super-tough parts, and piece these together into a usable package.

Keeping the weaker crank issue in mind, they hunted for a solution that wouldn’t fail while trying to push out big figures. Spool Australia came to the party with one of its billet crank kits, and while discussing the idea, the guys at Spool said, “Why not stroke the engine while you’re at it?”

The Spool RB34 kit covered off all the bases: a billet 4340-alloy full counterweighted 94mm nitrided storker crankshaft, forged rods, ARP rod bolts, and custom CP forged pistons, with heavy-duty wrist pins, and best of all, it increases engine capacity for a butt-load of extra torque — what more could you ask for from an RB30?

EXTERIOR PAINT: House of Kolor red candy flake

by Infinity Autoworks ENHANCEMENTS: Zeemax Racing widebody kit fitted by Infinity Autoworks, Top Secret flush-mount boot lid, high-intensitydischarge (HID) headlights

SPOTLIGHTS HISTORIC TOURING CARS

HE 00, TA 0 2 R O 92 T URING C ED 9 1 M FRO ORLD TO ESONAT G W SHIP R EAMIN ION OF SCR ITRES. P M A L H C OUNDATED 2.0-BER OF S E H TO T LLY ASPIR ING NUM ING UP ND RA OW K NATU ITH A GROURERS EKE A LOOT W PER T TA ES SU LAND, WE OF THE B ARD OPIE E S E TH W ZEA AT FIVE AND PHOTOS: RICH WORDS IN NE

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ndoubtedly, many readers look back fondly on the Group A era of touring cars. This was a time of generous advancement in turbo technology and motorsport electronics, and, of course, it gave birth to a segment of performance production cars so treasured by those looking to quench their thirst for speed. But, after the 1992 season, Group A was dead — and the formula that replaced it on a global scale was aptly named Super Touring, but the base cars were anything but super in production form.

In brief, the rules dictated that the base vehicle must be a four-door sedan, with a minimum length of 4.2m. Engines were restricted to 2.0-litre naturally aspirated, with a maximum of six cylinders, and manufacturers were required to produce 25,000 of whichever model they wished to homologate. The creation of homologation specials was, thus, a costly, pointless exercise, and the result was the appearance of cars like the Ford Mondeo, Nissan Primera, Toyota Carina, and Peugeot 405 as series participants.

Bland, boring, dad-mobiles the cars may have been in stock form, but, when built to Super Touring rules, the vehicles and the racing were anything but. Tarmac-scraping ride heights, slick-shod 18- or 19-inch wheels, and highstrung power plants limited to 8500rpm ensured that the cars provided a visual and aural spectacle. The take-no-prisoners, door-banging, kerb-hopping nature of the racing also proved hugely popular, and a new era of legendary tin-top battles was born.

Decades on, and, popularity of the Historic Touring Cars NZ group of enthusiasts is growing, we’re now lucky enough to be welcoming an influx of these super tourers into New Zealand, which are joining the grid for select summer meetings.

If you’re wondering, the Historic Touring Cars NZ group, founded around 10 years ago by a small group of racers interested in running their valuable Group A cars together, focuses on ‘genuine’ touring cars with race history, spanning the years from around 1972 to the mid to late ’90s. This ensures an eclectic group of cars, although it predominantly attracts Group A and Super Touring cars — the latter growing in popularity as the Group A cars’ purchase price grows ever larger, while the 2.0-litres remain slightly more affordable. Every car is turned out immaculately and raced with vigour, enabling spectators to see and hear an authentic touring car blast-from-the-past.

So read on, as we detail the past and present of some of the coolest historic race hardware found anywhere throughout our land.

1988 MITSUBISHI LANCER GSR

The Se soned

DRIVELINE GEARBOX: GRP-modified TH350, Hurst ratchet shifter, Auto Trans 7200rpm race convertor, ATI Performance Products trans brake, ice-box trans cooler FLYWHEEL: Custom flexplate DIFF: Modified Toyota Hilux housing, 3.9-ratio, billet full-spool, Mark Williams axles

JASON HORN RETURNS FOR HIS 12TH SEASON AND HE’S GOT SEVEN-SECOND PASSES IN HIS SIGHTS WORDS: MARCUS GIBSON PHOTOS: ADAM CROY, LANCE FARROW

SUPPORT STRUTS: (F) KYB shocks, (R) Strange alloy doubleadjustable coilovers BRAKES: Simpson parachute, (F) Legnum calipers and rotors, (R) Legnum calipers and rotors EXTRA: Jegs four-link kit, chromoly rose joints throughout, McDonald Bros sprung wheelie bars

SHOES WHEELS: Max Racing three-piece, (F) 15x5-inch Performance Challenger, (R) 15x9-inch three-piece billet drag TYRES: (F) 24x4.5-inch Mickey Thompson ET Drag, (R) 28x9-inch Mickey Thompson ET Drag

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he 2016 drag season began at Meremere last month with the Spring Nationals. Among the import cars in attendance was a little yellow Lancer, kicking off its 12th season on the fly. Jason Horn and his 1988 GSR Lancer have not missed a season since the early 2000s, back when the car was 4WD and dominating the Night Speed Drag Wars. As for most, those were the events that began it all for Jason and his little yellow Mitsi, which proved extremely competitive. The factory 4WD configuration was pushed to its absolute limits with a 9.54 at 232kph, which is a New Zealand record for the quickest factorygearbox 4WD. Soon, an unquenchable thirst for quicker times took hold, street driving became a thing of the past, and he set a goal of running into the eights.

In 2011, the decision was made to swing the engine around in the ‘wrong’ direction and bolt a much stronger Turbo 350 trans onto the back. A tubular front cross member was put together, and the factory rear four-link set-up was retained with the addition of a ‘Japanese nine-inch’ — a Toyota Hilux diff with a billet full-spool; suspension-wise, it ran some basic King springs and KYBs from its street-driven days. But the motor package was anything but street, feeding in excess of 600kW to the 26.5-inch slicks.

INTERIOR SEATS: (Drivers) Parts Shop Max STEERING WHEEL: Nardi 330mm INSTRUMENTATION: Factory EXTRA: Carbon door cards, RS door pulls, new headliner, retrimmed interior, dash recovered in suede by Midnight Upholstery

less than convinced that such sizes were even possible to put on the ’70s-era chassis. What they didn’t count on, though, was that Vince planned to chop into the factory metal and replace the tiny rear arches with the much larger 930-style flares, along with carbon 930 front guards, bonnet, and boot lid. It seems he’s a Jack of all trades, as he also grafted a custom front-bumper blade with a 934 valance on top of the factory option and added an RSR rear bumper and RSR 964 carbon wing down back for good measure.

Adam from C’s Garage lent a hand with the front-bumper support and oil-cooler mount to ensure that Vince didn’t destroy the one-off bumper.

While that was underway, attention was also turned towards the interior, which had seen far better days. The idea was to go big on the exterior and stay refined on the inside, so all the factory kit was retrimmed in black, and the dash was recovered in suede by Midnight Upholstery.

Ask anyone who has worked on a car’s interior and they will no doubt tell you about the hordes of downright weird things that appear from the crevices during a retrim, but Vince wasn’t expecting to remove the headlining and have two American $20 bills fall out onto his lap — perhaps that wealthy company exec was interrupted

ou’ve got to appreciate the finer things in life, and, back in the early ’80s, there would have been nothing better than a wealthy company exec railing a line of Columbia’s finest off the dashboard of a brand-new Porsche 911 SC while on the way to a company-bankrolled ‘party’.

That’s the quintessential American dream that many a European sports car has become associated with over the last few decades, anyway, though the description is a scene more likely to be found in a Hollywood film than in the real world — such ideas don’t come out of thin air, though …

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Well, Vince Pieterse is not a company exec, nor does he attend company-bankrolled parties after railing lines from the dashboard of his ’78 911 SC. He’s spent the better part of his involvement in cars and motorsport at the other end of the spectrum, frequently found piloting the likes of Silvias, as he has a severe soft spot for vehicles of the Japanese variety. A self-confessed serial seller, he tells us that, after selling up whatever car he had when the urge to push away from the rough-and-raw door-to-door proximity of drifting grew, he began eyeballing luxury European cars. A fan of the sleek 911 since his childhood, Vince couldn’t help but buy one of his own, and went through three other examples before obtaining the car you see before you.

“The first lot were already modified, and I spent a lot of time reverting them to stock,” he says. “They are getting to be quite valuable cars, so, each time I finished one, it wouldn’t hang around for long, and I wanted to buy a stock one to modify it in my own way.”

This car had been on his radar three years prior to purchase but hadn’t been within his price range. When it was the right time, Vince had to hunt the owner down through an old work email, and, as he had changed jobs twice in the interim, the car was hard to find. When he finally found it — the kicker being that the seller had lived only 500m from Vince the entire time — he discovered that it had been deregistered and rust had formed.

After that ordeal, modify one he did. He tells us the plans were much to Porsche purists’ disgust — Porsche owners are a very specific bunch of enthusiasts, and there was much discussion about the ‘overly ambitious’ choice of feet and the huge guards that encompass them. The special-order Work Meister 3Ps measure in at 18x9.5-inch (+12) up front and a massive 18x12-inch (-20) down back — needless to say, the old boys were

Vince says that when he consulted a few Porsche enthusiasts about his plans, he was told the wheels would never work and that he was a fool for trying.

What those folk didn’t count on was the huge 930 flares he also planned to run

EXTERIOR PAINT: Bare-metal respray in VW/ Audi white (X3344) ENHANCEMENTS: Porsche 930 front guards, bonnet, and steel rear quarters; custom front-bumper blade with 934 valance; RSR rear bumper; RSR 964 carbon wing

HEART ENGINE: Porsche, 3000cc, flat-six (air-cooled) BLOCK: Factory HEAD: Factory EXHAUST: Two-inch serrated stainless system FUEL: Bosch K-Jetronic injection IGNITION: Factory ECU: Factory COOLING: Front-mount oil cooler

The 1978 car’s 3.0-litre heart features the era’s pinnacle of fuel injection technology — Bosch K-Jetronic. This fueldistributor system is controlled by airflow, which determines how much fuel is sent off to each injector — cutting-edge stuff back then, not so much today

EVENT DEMON ENERGY D1NZ ROUND ONE

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THUNDER DOME

DEMON ENERGY D1NZ NATIONAL DRIFTING CHAMPIONSHIP GOES INDOORS FOR THE FIRST TIME IN HISTORY WORDS: NZPC PHOTOS: RICHARD OPIE

The hype leading up to the event was unlike anything we had seen before, and come Thursday — when all the teams rolled into town and got their first look at the surface — excitement had peaked.

The event format was slightly different for the new season, in that both Pro and Pro-Sport practiced and qualified on day one, with day two reserved for the real action — the battles. Pro-Sport had a Top 32 format and Pro an all-new Top 24. To put even more pressure on the Pro drivers, the top 16 qualifiers advanced straight to the Top 16.

Fans got their first taste of the venue under lights on the Friday, when they discovered what it’s like to have a 2JZ banging the antilag inside a stadium. The Pro-Sport field saw surprise entry — Bruce Tannock in the Achilles Radial S13 — who is doing double duties this season, running both championships with only a tyre change to the 235 required for Pro-Sport. Bruce showed his experience when he nabbed P4, but it was Cody Pullen-Burry in his K-Spec S15 who grabbed P1 with an 83-point run. Mechanicals plagued TJM driver Ben Jenkins, who blew an axle during warm-up and skipped his first run while the crew repaired the car, only to have two axles blow during his do or die run. He was not the only driver who didn’t qualify, as Keiran Stewart also failed to post a score in his MX-5.

With a new season comes new looks, and new liveries. Brad Smith’s now-turbocharged 350Z was certainly a standout in the looks department

unedin’s Forsyth Barr Stadium has played host to many different events and sports in its lifetime, including rugby, with the mighty All Blacks. But one thing that was never on the radar for the stadium was motor sport, until the Demon Energy D1NZ National Drifting Championship Series came a-knocking with what was the most ambitious track project in the series’ history — a complete custom-built track inside the indoor stadium. To make it happen, crews worked around the clock the weekend before to lay plywood, plastic, and boxing before 37,000 square metres of fibre-reinforced concrete was laid 90mm thick. It was then semi-polished to reduce the chance of smoke killing the visibility, and the resulting track surface was a challenge for teams, with grip levels changing throughout the weekend as more rubber was laid. Reportedly, some teams ran tyre pressures as low as 10psi in an attempt to find maximum traction.

A less grippy surface and a very tight, technical track promoted one thing — door-to-door action all weekend long.

This is the type of drifting we love!

No this wasn’t a Pro-Sport entrant, the NZ Silver Fern Rally was in town and put on one hell of a sideways show

D1NZ D1NZ NATIONAL NATIONALDRIFTING DRIFTINGCHAMPIONSHIP CHAMPIONSHIPBROUGHT BROUGHTTO TOYOU YOUBY BY 64 themotorhood.com/nzperformancecar