Nissan 370z Tuning

"Eeeee Zeeee Tiger"

The 370z is a good car tuning project to play with. Nissan took all the best bits of the 350z, improved the weak spots and produced the stunning 370z.

Criticisms of it's earlier brother includes a lack of low down power which has been addressed to a large degree in the 370z.

TorqueCars particularly like the automatic throttle blip when you change down, making you look like a driving pro. 

Improving the handling should be your first priority in your 370z tuning project. The standard handling is pretty good but aftermarket suspension kits will tighten things up just a little more.

We have  a new article comparing the 350Z vs 370Z.

TorqueCars would recommend a maximum drop of 20mm on the 370z. You'll risk rubbing on those lovely flared arches if you go lower than this and it would be shame to compromise the great setup of this car. (You should always get the camber reset to zero or slight negative camber as the car is lowered.) Always get adjustable shocks to allow you to set the car up for your preferred driving style.

Top end power should be your overall aim on the 370z with a nice fat peak torque band. The new engine is a real stormer but some still find it a little Torque shy lower down the rev range. Thankfully there are a number of impressive turbo conversion kits coming on to the market including a twin turbo 370z kit and a range of supercharger kits.

Nissan 370z Tuning modifications.

Beware of high oil temperatures, these engines can run pretty hot on track days and we suggest you keep an eye on the oil temps. If you suffer from high temperatures then you will need to get an oil cooler fitted.

Getting the correct grade of uprated upgrades for your planned usage of the car is essential. Stage 3 competition upgrades just won't work well on the road and will make the car undrivable.

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Stages of Tune

Stage 1 mods: Remap, Sports exhaust, Alloy wheels, Suspension upgrade (drop 30-40mm), Lighter flywheel, Panel air filter.

Stage 2 mods: Fast road cam, Ported and polished head, high flow fuel injector, Power/Sport clutch, fuel pump upgrades.

Stage 3 mods: Sports gearbox, Engine balancing, Adding or upgrading forced induction (turbo/supercharger), Competition cam, Internal engine upgrades (pistons/head/valves).

Peak power is nice in motorsport but for a daily driven car you need a long power band and perhaps extending the rev range.

The aim of our guides is to give a limited introduction of modifying performance parts and point you in the right direction, our forum is best place to go if you need more detailed advice and tips on your car tuning project, the best performance upgrades and all aspects of modding cars.One of the most cost effective mechanical tuning modifications you can do on your NASP engine is to fit a fast road cam .

The exhaust and intake durations play a large part in your cars power band, but be careful here, getting this wrong can upset the idle and make the car difficult to drive in traffic. You'd need to follow a cam upgrade with other mods and finish with a performance chip for the best performance gains.

Don't forget to pay attention to the fuelling when you are increasing the power - it makes the car more thirsty.

Using higher octane fuel is another option if you find you are suffering from detonation or premature ignition on your Nissan project after fitting other uprated modifications. Improved injectors will enable you to supply sufficient fuel to the engine.

If you are increasing your fuelling with bigger injectors you will also need to get a bigger fuel pump to supply it.

We also note that the engines NEED high octane fuel. If you put low octane in them you will suffer from a risk of detonation and premature wear. If there is no choice and you have to use low octane fuel then keep the engine speeds down to minimise the risk of damage.

There was just one (at the time of writing) engine options on the 370z, the VF37VHR. This is much much stronger and better for tuning up than the early 350z engines, coping with up to 450hp with few issues, the former is safe to around 400hp.

A fast road cam with a duration of around 265 degrees will be one of the best power mods you can do mechanically to your engine (other than adding forced induction). You will need to ensure that the engine is not starved of fuel so will need to uprate the fuelling.

To get sufficient fuel you may need to uprate the injectors on your engine. When increasing your fuelling with bigger injectors you will also need to get a bigger fuel pump to supply it.

Nissan 370z Intake and Exhaust Tuning.

Breathing mods are usually next up. For the 370z engine, if power is what you seek go with a washable panel air filter. If you want induction roar then get an induction kit with a cold air feed.

Maximum power gains come from a full induction kit with a cold air feed on heavily tuned engines, this can be sited within an air box but a performance panel filter should suffice for most applications. TorqueCars suggest you use a panel air filter as these are easy to clean and maintain and generally perform better than paper ones.

Do not go with the largest exhaust you can buy this will slow the exhaust rate - the best for power gains are usually between 1.5 to 2.5 inches. It is the shape and material more than the bore size.

Getting the cylinder head ported and polished will further help more air into each cylinder. This is definitely a job for a pro with a flow bench. A good heavy duty fast road sports clutch will help to keep that power going where it should. Never skimp or expect your standard clutch to cope. The best mods we recommend for your 370Z are Remapping or piggy back ecu, fast road cam and air intake and exhaust.

NASP engines do not achieve big power gains if you remap them, unless you have done extensive modifications. With turbocharged engines this is another story. A remapped turbo will give big power gains and take full advantage of the strength of the block.

We've also seen some tuners playing with twincharging applications and making some seriously high power gains.

The most impressive power gains for NASP engines usually involve the addition of forced induction. Superchargers are usually easier to add than turbos. It is harder to map a turbo as the boost increases exponentially with revs.

Superchargers will give a boost which is correlating to engine speed so is simpler. Alternatively you could perhaps fit water injection to minimise knock.

Nissan 370z Wheel modifications.

The benefits of alloy wheels include a lower unsprung weight and more efficient brake cooling. Large 370z alloy wheels can decrease performance. If you get big alloy wheels you will be changing your final drive ratio. Although some people have gone larger we would stick to a 18 inch rim size as the maximum with low profile tyres.

For more information on Tuning your car please join us in our friendly forum where you can discuss 370z options in more detail with our 370z owners. It would also be worth reading our unbiased Nissan 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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