My DD

[96_zjlarado]

yeah, about 3x what i have into mine. everything on it costs more because it comes straight from japan. Front and Rear bumpers and carbon fiber diffusers are from Top Secret (Crazy amounts of) side skirts are from C-West, Custom offset 19x11 HRE wheels F&R. Status Carbon Fiber Seats ($4 geezles per seat... again ), half the interior is custom carbon fiber panels (a,b and c pillars, numerous trim panels and inside the trunk). Ferrari F50 6pot Brembo's up front and F50 4pot brembo's in the rear which makes 18" wheels the smallest you can run on it.
I could go on for a while, but you get the picture. Since it's our shop car, no expences were spared on making it one of the most badass street legal GT-R in the U.S.

We're planning on converting it to run on E-98 and we're gonna try to get between 600-700awhp out of it on the E-98. should be a fun adventure.

[J B]

I guess this is one of those "gotta see it to believe it" things because I don't believe that at all.

I see what you're saying, and I was in the same boat until I saw it a few times. You have to understand that every road course is different, and every car is different. The combination of HP, torque, acceleration, braking, cornering, etc., will yield different results from track to track.

On certain tracks, A bone stock Camaro will leave an S2000 in the dust, and on other tracks, the Camaro would be left behind by the more nimble, yet much slower S2000. The key is to have a car that does everything well, and then be able to tune the suspension setup for a particular track.

I don't think an AWD car would be that much easier to drive, different...yes. It takes a different skill set because AWD cars have a tendency to understeer.

The AWD is much more forgiving when any sort of acceleration is involved. With a 400 HP RWD car, you better know what the hell you're doing, or instead of moving forward, you'll just be making expensive smoke with the rear tires. That's why I stressed the driver so much in my above comparison. The AWD largely removes that risk. And look at accleration numbers for AWD vs. RWD cars. The AWD cars often have SICK 0-60 times, but the 1/4 mile times are nothing special. It's simply because the RWD cars don't have the traction to pull that off. You have to be aware of that.

And keep in mind most of these AWD cars are quite nose heavy, so that makes the handling dynamics kinda messed up.

I'm pretty sure Ford built the V6 Mustang and the GT this way so they could leave room open for higher end models such as the Shelby etc. I think the GT is a great car, and just like the Evo, it is a great platform for building off of. And I think it is a definite competitor in the performance aspect. My buddy's GT is faster than my Dad's G35 Coupe and my other buddy's Z (all three equipped with manual tranny). It still won't touch my Dad's old 89 Carrera though!

Meh, I'm not impressed with the Mustang. I haven't driven one of the newer GTs, but I think Ford is still sandbagging on the power. A friend of mine has a V6 car, and if the manual transmission in it is like the one the GT gets, then that alone is a deal killer for me. Plus, the interior sucks. It has the quality of an 80s Cavalier. And the GT500 is tons of power in an otherwise shitty package....kinda like the Pontiac GTO, but worse.

[96_zjlarado]

And the GT500 is tons of power in an otherwise shitty package....kinda like the Pontiac GTO, but worse.

Hahahahahaha! Well said!

[DarkXJ]

JB, I'm with ya on that for the most part. The Corvette C6 originally ran with the Viper on the track, even though it was 100hp short, thanks to its excellent balance and more forgiving nature. Then came the Z06 which beat the Viper. Viper increased its power to 600, and now they run fairly even again. But Chevy's got the revived ZR1 comin soon. 620+ supercharged horsepower. Designed to be the fastest Vette yet, even though they're still gearing the Z06 towards the people looking for the ultimate track Vette.
The new Evo X really does take advantage of its AWD system with the computer controlled power shuffling it does. Come into a corner too fast and understeering, it kicks more power to the outside rear tire to "slide" it around a little.
That said I'd happily take any of the cars mentioned in this thread.

[96_zjlarado]

that skyline is NICE. i bet that costed more than yours too. i would take either of them

yeah, it's got about 6 evo MR's worth into it....... and about to get more.

[Jeeperoni91]

your dd is a beautiful machine.

[96_zjlarado]

your dd is a beautiful machine.

why thank ya sir!

[96_zjlarado]

got a few pics of it at Lewis AFB when we drove up to pick up my buddy's Deuce that he won on a Gov liquidation auction for $1600. I've never seen so many deuces in my life!



my buddy's deuce is in the background with the lights on. we had just got it started and i thought it would be a pretty cool pic.

[96_zjlarado]

well, i finally decided to get off my arse and refinish the carbon fiber wing on the Evo. the factory clear was starting to flake off. pretty common issue on the Evo VIII's. What a pain in the A$$!!! can't go too far because you start getting into the carbon, but you have to go far enough to get all, and i mean ALL of the clear off. Anyway, on to the pics. Thumbnails.



after a LOT of wet sanding, this is the first coat of clear.



I sprayed 4 more coats on it and then had a little boo boo. didn't clear the tip between coats and a drop of clear formed on the tip and got sparyed onto the wing causing a big run. once it cures i can scrape it with a razor blade to level it, wet sand it and put a few more coats on it. hopefully without any F-ups this time.

[stockzjwnc]

whats the mpg like

[94zjcrawlr]

Nice DD! And super sweet R34. Always loved those cars. If you don't mind me asking, whats the shop called that you work at? Just curious.