Tuning Feature: Nissan ZD30DDTi Modified

"Comprehensive guide to tuning the Nissan ZD30DDTi engine!"

We are always getting posts about the premier ZD30DDTi upgrades. So let us look into Nissan ZD30DDTi upgrades and outline the best modifications on this great engine and point out some common pitfalls along the way.

TorqueCars will consider ZD30DDTi tuning and report on the premier mods that work. Nissan ZD30DDTi really good project engines and with carefully chosen parts like ECU maps, turbo upgrades and camshafts you will dramatically increase the drivers experience of your car.

When talking about the best parts for your ZD30DDTi engine, we are going to focus on the tuning parts that give the best power gain for you money.

Significant power hikes can be made on engines, and the ZD30DDTi is no exception, by means of camshaft upgrades. Altering the camshaft profile alters the intake and exhaust durations on the engine and can dramatically change the torque and power output.

NB: Fast road camshafts usually boost the bhp and torque throughout the rev band, you may sacrifice a little low end torque but the top end will be lifted.

Motorsport camshafts, boost the top end band but as a result the car will not idle smoothly and low end power nearly always suffers.

In a road car one, ideally, should ideally to match your bhp range to your preferences.

I would be surprised if you find a ZD30DDTi Competition camshaft is a pleasure to live with when in heavy traffic.

Different ZD30DDTi engines respond better to different camshaft durations check your engine on a rolling road.

The engine timing and injectors and fuel pump also will make differences on the power gains you'll get.

Extending exhaust or intake durations can alter the power band and on most engines the exhaust and intake durations do not need to match, although most cams and tuners use matched pairs there are some advantages to extending the intake or exhaust durations.

ZD30DDTi Tuning Stages

Stage 1 ZD30DDTi modifications: Drilled & smoothed airbox, Remaps/piggy back ECU, Fast road camshaft, Sports exhaust manifold, Panel air filters, Intake headers.

Stage 2 ZD30DDTi modifications: induction kit, Fast road cam, high flow fuel injectors, fuel pump upgrades, Ported and polished head, Sports catalyst & performance exhaust.

Stage 3 ZD30DDTi modifications: Competition cam, Twin charging conversions, Engine balancing & blueprinting, Crank and Piston upgrades to alter compression, Internal engine upgrades (head flowing porting/bigger valves), Adding or Upgrading forced induction (turbo/supercharger).

A remap helps to establish the full potential of all the mods you've done to your ZD30DDTi.

It will usually give around 30% more power on turbocharged vehicles and you can expect to see around 15% on NASP engines, but the end result may depend much on the mods you've done and the condition of your engine.

Forcing air and fuel into your ZD30DDTi is the aim to any engine modification job.

Headers transmit the air from the air cleaner and allow it to be drawn into the engine cylinders with fuel for the squish phase.

The shape and flow rate of the Air Intake manifolds can make a substantial change to fuel atomisation and engine efficiency on the ZD30DDTi.

I usually find plenum chambers are ripe for motorsport parts, although a few manufacturers provide fairly well optimized plenum chambers.

Larger ZD30DDTi valves, carrying out 3 or 5 angle valve jobs and porting and head flowing will also increase power, and importantly will afford you a greater power increase on other modifications.

Turbo upgrades for the ZD30DDTi

NASP engines need quite a lot of work when you add a turbo, so we have a separate guide to help you take into account the pros and cons of going this route on your ZD30DDTi

The more air you can get into an engine, the more fuel it can burn and uprating the induction with a turbocharger upgrade makes excellent power gains.

If an engine has forced induction upgrades are going to net you a larger power gain and turbocharged engines are built with uprated components.

There are common areas of failure for every engine, with some being extremely strong and some just sufficiently able to handle stock power

Research these restrictions and install better quality components to handle the power.

There are many guys spending a a stack of money on turbo charger upgrades on the ZD30DDTi only to have the engine throw a rod when it's been finished.

Bigger turbo units commonly suffer no power at low rpm, and small turbo units spool up quickly but won't have the peak rpm torque gains.

We are pleased that the selection of turbo chargers is always increasing and we are seeing variable vane turbo chargers, allowing the vane angle is altered according to speed to lower lag and increase top end bhp and torque.

Twin scroll turbo chargers divert the exhaust gases into a couple of channels and feed these at differently angled vanes in the turbo. They also boost the scavenging effect of the engine.

It is common that there's a restriction in the air flow sensor AFM/MAF on the ZD30DDTi when a lot more air is being drawn into the engine.

We note 4 bar air sensors coping with quite large power gains, whereas the OEM air sensor was restricting bhp at a much lower level.

Adding a supercharger or additional turbo will make large power gains, although more challenging to get working. We have this guide to twinchargers if you want to read more.

Uprating ZD30DDTi fuel injectors

Don't forget to increase the fuel system when you are increasing the bhp - it makes the car more thirsty. We would recommend you to be generous with your injectors flow rate.

The rule of thumb is to add another 20% when buying an injector, this allows for injector deterioration and gives you some spare capacity should the engine require more fuel.

We think this one is common sense, but you'll need to match your fuel injector to the type of fuel your car uses as well.

Best ZD30DDTi performance exhausts

You should look to uprate your exhaust if your current exhaust is creating a restriction.

On most factory exhausts you should find that the exhaust flow rate is still good even on modest power gains, but when you start pushing up the power levels you will need to get a better flowing exhaust.

Sports exhausts generally help improve air flow out of the engine but do not go too wide or you could reduce the flow rate. Stick to 1.5 to 2.5 inches for best results.

Usual exhaust restrictions can be traced to the filters installed, so adding a better flowing sports alternative will help avoid this restriction.

Problems and issues to look out for on the ZD30DDTi

The ZD30DDTi engines, if regularly serviced and maintained, are generally very reliable and have few issues. {But if neglected they can cost a small fortune|When neglected they get very expensive to run|They can however be quite expensive if neglected| }

Regular oil changes are vital on the ZD30DDTi, particularly when the engine has been modified and is putting down more power than the manufacturer intended.

For more information on Tuning your ZD30DDTi engine please join us in our friendly forum where you can discuss tuning options in more detail with our ZD30DDTi owners. It would also be worth reading our unbiased tuning articles to get a full grasp of the benefits and drawbacks of each modification.

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This article is flagged for an update, so please pass on specific tips below that I can include. All articles, and content was written by me, Waynne Smith TorqueCars founder. Some outlines are just too general so I appreciate your feedback and suggestions. This entry was filed under Nissan. You can leave a response below or join our forum to discuss this article and car modification in detail with our members.

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