Reece995 Posted June 2, 2008 Share Posted June 2, 2008 Hi all, I'm the new kid on the block, I've had my 2005 350Z GT for about 18 months and now thinking about making it faster - I can't seem to find anyone who can give me a good indication of what is better the 'supercharger or the twin turbo' option? i'd like your feedback and advice on what is the best supercharger/turbo kit to go for I'm not looking for a 700bhp monster - a reasonable high 300s or low 400s would be ample and @ what cost/garages to use. I live in the south east of the UK and so if you know anywhere local then please advise. I use the zed as a daily runner so the reliability of the kit will play a big part. I would also be interested in knowing if anyone has had a lambo/ferrari style gear stick fitted and if so where from? Thanks for your thoughts. Reece Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shire350Z Posted June 2, 2008 Share Posted June 2, 2008 your best bet is to talk to Dan from advanced motorsport!!!! dont think theres's anything he doesnt know!!! plus he's built one of the fastest if not the fastest road going Z in the country with around 720BHP Twin turboes will get you alot more power around 400-450bhp in standard form but will cost you between 8-10 grand Where as a supercharger will be cheaper but not quite as much power but speak to Dan and he will help you out as best he can!!! But be warned nothings cheap on getting more power out of the Z Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lexx Posted June 2, 2008 Share Posted June 2, 2008 There is alot of good info in the 350z wiki (click link up there ^ ) about the pro's and cons of each. remember that if you start pushing 400bhp you're gunna need new internals which will cost LOTS! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reece995 Posted June 2, 2008 Author Share Posted June 2, 2008 Cheers for your info, will look into it as not got a clue about what is involved in adjusting the engine to cope with it. Do you know what the twin with 400 does performance and fuel wise as currently donating £500 per month to Shell to run it in standard mode. cheers, R Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ekona Posted June 2, 2008 Share Posted June 2, 2008 Neither is 'better' as such, it depends on how you drive the car more than anything. If you really like the feel of the thump as the torque really kicks in and don't mind sacrificing the smoothness of the engine then a turbo is going to suit you more, whereas if you prefer an engine that is smooth all the way through the revs then an S/C is the way to go. Having come from two turbocharged cars before, I made the deliberate decision to go for an N/A engine this time as I was a bit tired of having to balance so very carefully on the corners as the turbo would sometimes kick in and throw the balance of the car out, yet I miss the thump so very much. That said, provided I keep the car long enough to make it worthwhile I'll personally be going down the S/C route myself to keep the characteristics of the car as close to stock as possible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reece995 Posted June 2, 2008 Author Share Posted June 2, 2008 Hi Ekona, Thanks for the info, you live near me, do you know of any local garages that offer this facility and the costs involved for the S/C option please? Cheers, Reece Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cool Hand Luke Posted June 2, 2008 Share Posted June 2, 2008 When you say 'Lambo/Ferrari' style gear stick in your first post - do you mean the actual gear knob or the gated metal gear surround at the base of the gear stick? I was thinking about this the other day as i noticed Audi had fitted the gated gear surround from the R8 on to one of the new TT's. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ekona Posted June 2, 2008 Share Posted June 2, 2008 Hi Ekona, Thanks for the info, you live near me, do you know of any local garages that offer this facility and the costs involved for the S/C option please? Cheers, Reece Zed specialists, sadly not. That said, Engine Advantages in Witham have worked on cars of mine previously (including an MR2 Roadster I turbocharged) and I was very happy with the work they did. Their speciality is Fords really (they've taken a Focus RS past 400bhp reliably in the past), but I'd trust them to work on anything after seeing the work they did for me. If you're looking for someone to fit it, I'd be going in their direction personally. Moving on to the topic of gear surrounds, I've used them in the past and found that, while they do look very nice, they slow up your shift horribly. Keep for looks if you like, but you can expect to be changing gear far slower. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cool Hand Luke Posted June 2, 2008 Share Posted June 2, 2008 Yeah good point on the gear surround Dan - probably better keeping it standard even though it might look good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ekona Posted June 2, 2008 Share Posted June 2, 2008 Still doesn't stop me wanting one Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reece995 Posted June 3, 2008 Author Share Posted June 3, 2008 With regards to Ekonas comments I agree that a mock-up machined version may be awkward and difficult to change quickly & smoothly. I'll look into what difference the shift times make, what makes me think that it can't be too bad is, if the metal gates are such a slow option for changing gear, then why would Ferrari & Lamborghini use it in their supercars?! I've been looking into having a 'genuine' Ferrari Gate surround converted to fit the Zed, they do a 'slick shift' version which is meant to speed up & smoothen the gear changes take a look its down the bottom of this page http://www.midland-ferrari.co.uk/sports ... sories.asp I want the full kit, gate, gear stick & knob - I estimate that completed I'd be looking at £250-300 for the whole kit using genuine parts. Cheers guys, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reece995 Posted June 3, 2008 Author Share Posted June 3, 2008 Open to all here guys; what do you think of this as a reliable and relatively low custom job - I don't want to have to spend ££££££ on a 500bhp engine. http://envyperformance.net/index.cfm?fu ... ct_ID=6028 has anyone experienced this supercharger or can recommend another? cheers, R Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Digsy Posted June 3, 2008 Share Posted June 3, 2008 Open to all here guys; what do you think of this as a reliable and relatively low custom job - I don't want to have to spend ££££££ on a 500bhp engine.http://envyperformance.net/index.cfm?fu ... ct_ID=6028 has anyone experienced this supercharger or can recommend another? cheers, R A good solid set up but you need to have their hideous bonnet bulge which has put most sentient human beings off in the UK. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ekona Posted June 3, 2008 Share Posted June 3, 2008 With regards to Ekonas comments I agree that a mock-up machined version may be awkward and difficult to change quickly & smoothly. I'll look into what difference the shift times make, what makes me think that it can't be too bad is, if the metal gates are such a slow option for changing gear, then why would Ferrari & Lamborghini use it in their supercars?!I've been looking into having a 'genuine' Ferrari Gate surround converted to fit the Zed, they do a 'slick shift' version which is meant to speed up & smoothen the gear changes take a look its down the bottom of this page http://www.midland-ferrari.co.uk/sports ... sories.asp I want the full kit, gate, gear stick & knob - I estimate that completed I'd be looking at £250-300 for the whole kit using genuine parts. Cheers guys, Like I said, it's all down to the style. A supercar has to look good both inside and out, and that's why it remains: They've also got more than enough power to make any slight delay in shift time redundant. Bear in mind that the link you found is for the older, more clunky 348 rather than a more modern Ferrari, so it could well have made for a more positive shift action as older supercar gearboxes are akin to stirring a bucket full of bricks when trying to change gear Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reece995 Posted June 3, 2008 Author Share Posted June 3, 2008 A very good point! Thanks, Reece Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cool Hand Luke Posted June 3, 2008 Share Posted June 3, 2008 Also you'd need to check the thread patterns on the gear knobs to see if they would fit - i think Nissan use a 10mm thread. The gated gear shift surround for the Ferrari also has the wrong shift pattern on it. Interested to see how you get on though. Stillen make good parts but as Digsy said - the horrid bonnet bulge puts most folk off going for this conversion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tmJak Posted June 3, 2008 Share Posted June 3, 2008 Welcome mate The Vortech is the kit i'd go with for supercharging, so much info on it on american sites and how to make your car as safe as possible with it on. Seems like the best all round IMO. For turbo's I'd go for the Power Enterprise, which Envy have fitted to their car. It retains the original character of the car whilst giving ridiculous performance Not as tuneable as others but if you want 380bhp then it's perfect. Envy can source and fit for less than 6k. Have you considered Nitrous? Just another option if you don't always need boost. . . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cool Hand Luke Posted June 3, 2008 Share Posted June 3, 2008 Zmanalex might be the man to speak to for a good comparison - he has had a supercharger conversion and is now running a twin turbo set up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Digsy Posted June 3, 2008 Share Posted June 3, 2008 The Vortech is the kit i'd go with for supercharging, so much info on it on american sites and how to make your car as safe as possible with it on. Seems like the best all round IMO. +1 Looking at the US sites S/C is far safer than TT and Vortech seems to be the one to go for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarnie Posted June 3, 2008 Share Posted June 3, 2008 I'm suprised that only one person has mentioned the PE TT kit. Its only about £6k, 380bhp ish...................... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Digsy Posted June 4, 2008 Share Posted June 4, 2008 I'm suprised that only one person has mentioned the PE TT kit. Its only about £6k, 380bhp ish...................... Wasn't that the price to run it with a standard JDM ECU? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reece995 Posted June 4, 2008 Author Share Posted June 4, 2008 Thanks for all info guys, much appreciated. I've found this one; http://www.superchargersonline.com/prod ... abactive=1 Looks to be the one to have without having to go too mental on extra mods. Does anyone know anything about this model as claims to be able to deliver 412bhp which would be ample and come with a 3 yr warranty!!!!! The reviews seem to be in favour of the Vortech chargers so thanks to tmjack for that reco , but as I say, this is all new to me so any extra advice would be greatly appreciated. I think that the TT option would require too many changes to the engine and would leave me with an option that would be maybe too brittle for everday use. Do you know if the Vortech Superchargers can be turned on and off like the one featured in the 'Nissan 350z GT-S' shown at Goodwood below are some links to read about it; http://www.testdriven.co.uk/news.cfm/ni ... ay-special http://www.pistonheads.com/doc.asp?c=146&i=15344 http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/carreviews ... _350z.html This gives the best of both worlds, the go when you want it and the economy (seems wrong saying that about a Z) when you're just cruising. Cheers, R [/img] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tmJak Posted June 4, 2008 Share Posted June 4, 2008 Read this bud here Also have a look around the my350z forum. Loads of people have blown their engines up and you get a feel as to why they have. Better to be prepared for the worst and see if it's still a viable option. Or just go for it and to hell with the consequences Think the PE TT may need an aftermarket ECU on UK cars Digsy, not too sure. Would bump the cost up a bit but it's only money Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StephenG Posted July 21, 2008 Share Posted July 21, 2008 For what you are wanting - regarding cost, power, reliability - Vortech, Vortech, Vortech. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reece995 Posted July 21, 2008 Author Share Posted July 21, 2008 Thanks for your input. R Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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