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Targa New Zealand 2011: Racing Day 5 & Wrap-Up

Kyle@STILLEN — Sat, 29 Oct 2011 17:28:46 +0000

Well, the week long Targa rally has come to a close here inNew Zealand. It was a great week and Steve and jen did a very good job. Before arriving for the start of the week we installed larger fuel injectors, a new tune, and some stiffer springs in the shocks. We figured this would be a fairly natural and reliable progression. We had no idea what the other GT-R teams had in store! Tony quinn arrived with bigger turbos and an engine that had been bored and fitted with larger pistons, 410mm brake rotors and more. Proctor had a stroker motor with stock turbos as well as larger brake rotors. Steve said that as Proctor’s GT-R launched off the line he would spin all four wheels. Dodson’s R35 also came in with heavy modifications and increased horsepower. Last year we were all on a similar playing field and ran tight all week. This year everyone brought the big guns.

Steve and Jen pushed hard all week and were able to bring the car home with a fourth place finish. The event winner, Tony Quinn in his R35, won the event for his fourth time. Glenn Inkster in his high horsepower Mitsubishi Evo 6 came home in second place just a few seconds behind Quinn despite having a couple of offs and having to take a tire penalty. Glenn Smith rounded out the top 3 in his 600+ horsepower Mitsubishi Evo 10 which looked like it had just come out of a video game!

Steve was pushing hard the last day of competition and had a bit of an off. He was able to carry on with the stage and never actually stopped moving. We don’t think he lost more than a few seconds after it was all said and done.

These Targa rallies are a great way to test as well as develop new products. This year we brought down a few new STILLEN products like adjustable camber arms and some other performance components as well as the new generation Dunlop Sport Maxx tires. These Targa events are run on roads that would normally be open to the public so you can really see how the parts are going to perform in all conditions in the real world. The new Dunlop tires are an amazing tire and proved to work well all week long. In an event like the Targa where you only get 8 tires to last the week it’s important that your tires will offer supreme grip without wearing too quickly. The Dunlop Sport Maxx tires worked great in the wet and dry conditions all week long!

The 2011 Targa New Zealand rally ran the way these rallies are supposed to be run. There were hot days, there were rainy days, and all in all it was a lot of fun! Steve and Jen did a great job and really fought hard for a top five finish! On the drive North after the rally was over we had already started planning for next year and coming with ways to improve the car to make it even more competitive for next year! We have some pretty wild ideas forming and we’re excited to show you all what we come up with!

Check out the video below for a taste of the action, and more photos below!

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XUYTzOKVisI

All 2011 Targa New Zealand Coverage

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Targa New Zealand Rally 2011: Racing Day 4

Kyle@STILLEN — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 21:11:18 +0000

Fourth day down and one to go! New Zealand Targa rallies are generally ran in both wet and dry conditions. It is extremely rare for the entire rally to go completely dry, however last year it did happen! This year however, the weather has arrived and brought with it some more carnage.

Hopper has officially retired from the rally. We found out last night that the car may be a total right off. Initial conversations were that it wasn’t too bad but apparently the car endoed and the coil overs were relocated through the hood! I’m sure we’ll see Leigh back next year though. The white Maserati performed some its own air show this morning. The story is the car went flying off the road completely missing a turn. According to reports around the rally the driver said they flew a solid thirty feet in the air and the car kept going for about 200 meters down a hill before coming to rest at the bottom of another hill….thanks to the assistance of a tree stump! Apparently the car isn’t too bad though and may be back in the morning if they can find a new radiator. Best of luck to them!

Inkster also had a couple of moments today with one or two spins and a slide off the road and into a bank which re-designed the right rear corner of his Mitsubishi. No worries though as Inkster comes from a gravel rally background where these situations are common place. The crew pulled out the hydraulic spreaders and bent it back into shape again. He didn’t miss a single stage and is still running strong.

Today we traveled to the town of Marton which is home of the infamous “cop corner.” A few years ago a local police officer decided to blow the road closure after the sweep car went through but before the rally cars started. The story goes that the rally organizers tried stopping him but he informed them of his official position in the region and took off anyways. He ended up getting his just deserves as he blew through the 90 degree left hander and launched his car into the paddock beyond…Hence the name “cop corner.”

This corner can be tricky in the best conditions but the local council just laid down new tarmac last week. Apparently the term “laying down new tarmac” in this region means…opening a giant bag of rocks and dragging it from one side of the road to the other! It was nothing but gravel! Add to that the wet weather conditions and you can imagine how tricky this corner became! The drivers ran the stage twice today. The first time around a Ford escort panel wagon about three cars in decided to park it in the grass/fence. So all of the upcoming cars had to slow way down to avoid them. (Video Below)

A WRX (drivern by Leigh Hoppers helicopter instructor, not kidding!) performed a perfect job of parallel parking as he slid directly between the Escort and the armco for the single lane bridge. With the assistance of the all wheel drive in the Subie he was able to get right back on the road and continue on. The Escort meanwhile had to be pulled out after the stage had closed. (Video Below)

After the cars had gone through the first time we heard a report that Proctor was being towed down the transit stage on the back of a tow rope. Rumor has it he has blown his transmission…Which is a HIGHLY modified unit. He missed the repeat of “cops corner” which was the last stage of the day. Hopefully his team can repair the car and get him back out in the morning.

Steve and Jen are doing a great job of pushing hard and doing their best. We didn’t get off to a great start with the differential issues we had early in the week and that put us in a hole which has been basically impossible to climb out of. The team is doing well though and we are coming up with new ideas on how to prepare the car for next year! The car is running well and we had a nice team dinner tonight to celebrate Jen’s birthday. These races are a lot about competition and winning but the biggest thing is having fun and bringing the car and drivers home safely.

Last night more footage was added to the video capturing Steve Millen racing the STILLEN GT-R against Leigh Hopper and his helicoper as well!

Footage from local spectators is beginning to hit the web as well, here’s a quick shot of the STILLEN GT-R rounding a corner on Day 1

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JntzIFKCnkY

All 2011 Targa New Zealand Coverage

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Targa New Zealand Rally 2011: Racing Day 3

Kyle@STILLEN — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 15:04:44 +0000

We are officially past the middle of the week and the car is running very well! Tonight we swung by a local auto shop to do some simple service work. Just an oil change, brake pad replacement and general inspection. Everything looked great and we can’t wait to see how Steve and Jen do the next two days. Today consisted of a lot of running around and trying to help the service crew and I wasn’t able to get on any stages. However, i assure you there will be more photos coming in tomorrow.

There’s no lack of support for Steve Millen, as shown by his youngest fan, his grandson Braeden!

There have been quite a few interesting developments over the day. Quinn was experiencing a damaged oil return line from one of his turbos but that is/was a pretty minor repair. The car is back in overnight parking now and ready for tomorrow. Glenn Inkster in the Evo 6 Mitsubishi is still going strong, actually had a bit of an off today on one stage damaging his hood and front bumper. Nothing too major though as he only lost 15 seconds on the stage! Rumor is that he actually spun one or two times after that stage and is still able to continue taking time off the leaders! man, this guy can drive!!!

Leigh Hopper, the guy dad raced in the helicopter yesterday, apparently though he was still in his helicopter…The story is he tried doing a barrel roll on the fifth stage of the day before realizing his car doesn’t fly quite like the chopper…Haven’t seen the car yet but apparently it was on its roof. Hopper, always in good spirits, was sited on the side of the stage throwing rocks at the Giddy car, good friends of his, as they went by! Best of luck to team HTR in getting the car back out in the morning.

Overall the car and the team are working well. Steve and Jen are doing their best and we’re hoping for a good result!

More photos and updates to come tomorrow!

Another angle of yesterday’s GT-R vs. Helicopter drag race

Quick interview with Steve Millen at 3:00 in on the official Targa NZ daily recap

All 2011 Targa New Zealand Coverage

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Targa New Zealand Rally 2011: Racing Day 2

Kyle@STILLEN — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 18:50:29 +0000

Well we had an eventful day today!!! I wrote last night’s first blog post from the hotel room prior to everyone else arriving. Conrad and I got there a bit early so we checked in and started getting things organized for the rest of the teams arrival. Once Steve and Jen arrived we ran down to the town they were in and went straight over to the local Nissan dealership who were kind enough to offer the use of their facilities so we could go over the car after the first days events.

Steve had lost considerable amounts of time because the car was going into limp mode due to high transmission temperatures. We wanted to inspect everything and see what was going on. As soon as we dropped the diff fluid, we knew we had found the culprit. Inside the diff fluid there were clear signs of metal wear. The fluid had taken on a metallic shimmer. We inspected the transmission fluid and it looked fine. For those of you who don’t know, the GT-R rear differential, transmission, and transfer case all share one big assembly. So, we figured that the differential was getting so hot it was cooking the transmission as well. The only thing we could do was pull out our spare assembly and install it.

Normally, if we were in a GT-R certified dealership working with the right tools, this would be a 3-5 hour job. However, this was not a certified GT-R dealer, and we did not have all the tools! After a lot of swearing, some busted knuckles, and some frustrating moments, we finished the swap….at 5:15 a.m. this morning!!! We went back to our hotel rooms, got an hour of sleep and packed up to take on today’s adventures.

That was a lot of work and a real pain but boy was it worth it!!! Steve was pushing hard today and according to early reports finished second in a couple stages. Had he been able to push harder yesterday like he did today we would be in a much better position!!! Unfortunately, we’re a little out of luck as it is what it is, but that’s racing!

Attrition is already showing on some of our competitors cars! Dodson blew up one of their gear boxes yesterday and was having more issues today, keep in mind their transmissions are HEAVILY modified and far from stock. Proctor cracked three wheels yesterday and arrived to the parking garage this morning with a brand new set on all four cars! A couple of cars have gone off but fortunately nothing major and everyone has been able to carry on and make the necessary repairs.

While it was awesome to see Steve and Jen pushing hard today and making big strides, it was even more exciting when Leigh Hopper challenged Steve to a bit of a drag race at this afternoon’s extended stay lunch stop on an airport strip. Normally these stops are only an hour or so, but to avoid the evening traffic crossing the bridge in Auckland the organizers set up a three hour event at Sunny Hills airport in Warkworth. Leigh challenged Steve to a drag race in the GT R….against his acrobatics helicopter!!! It was insane! Leigh is an amazing pilot and was performing some amazing aerial acrobatics, including sliding his helicopter along the grass for a good 100 feet or so. They raced twice and Steve won the first time but Hopper took the victory the second go around. Check out the video on-board to see the race! The GT-R’s ECU has been set with a top speed limiter of 200km/hr, which is the maximum speed allowed in the rally.. Leigh’s helicopter doesn’t have such a limiter!

All in all, it was an awesome day! However, as you can imagine, I’m exhausted!!! Enjoy the pictures and video, I’m going to bed!

All 2011 Targa New Zealand Coverage

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Targa New Zealand Rally 2011: Racing Day 1

Kyle@STILLEN — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 17:55:59 +0000

Today was the first day of actual racing. It was a great day and Jen and Steve did a fantastic job. Their still getting to know each other’s styles and figure out what the other one wants to say as well as hear. It always takes a bit of time to develop that relationship between driver and co-driver.

(Team STILLEN – Steve Millen, Jodi Millen, Jen Horsey, Kyle Millen, Conrad Healy, Joe Nagy, Mark Ungles)

The car is running well. We’re ending the night in Whangarei (“wonG uh ray” or “phonG uh ray” if you say it the Maori way). We’re very excited to be on new roads this year. It really helps level the playing field. When the organizers put these events on they have to get the approval from every single person who lives on the roads we’re going to be racing on. It takes about five months and they see around 9,000 people. It’s truly impressive and even more impressive that they were able to branch out to new parts of the country! Peter Martin and the crew at Targa New Zealand have worked hard to put on the best possible event!

Conrad and I did quite a lot of traveling today and got to see three stages! Got some great action shots as well as a few “uh oh” moments from some of the competitors. Steve has been up and down in the standings all day. The first couple of stages were a bit rocky but later in the day they started making some great times and even beating some of the front runners like Tony Quinn. It’s still very early in the race though.

Wish us luck and follow along as the rally continues!

All 2011 Targa New Zealand Coverage

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Targa New Zealand Rally 2011: STILLEN GT-R Back in Action!

Kyle@STILLEN — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 17:14:33 +0000

Well, we’re back in New Zealand for the Targa Rally. Today was the first official day of the event and it started with scrutineering in the viaduct in Auckland Harbor. Last night was pretty exciting as the All Blacks (New Zealand rugby team) won the world cup! Today was a bit busy in Auckland as they shut down the main streets and had a ticker tape parade for the team. GO ALL BLACKS!!!!!

Once we got down to the scrutineering location we let Steve and Jen (more on Jen later in this post) do their thing with the organizers of the event. Mark and Joe (you know them from years past) have to follow up with their crew meeting. Conrad and I cruised through the park ferme (parking area) to check out some of the competitors cars. The BS has already started as some of the other GT-R teams are telling us they aren’t running as much power as we know they are….That’s OK…we’re not going to tell them everything we’ve done either!!!

Joe Nagy of Nissan North America tech center joins the team again this year. This is Joe’s third event with the Team STILLEN Nissan GT-R. He worked with Steve on the initial launch of the GT R at all of the magazine and dealer demonstrations and knows these cars inside and out. He and I flew into New Zealand on Thursday and spent Thursday and Friday preparing the car. On Saturday Mark Ungles flew in and joined us while we worked on the tuning and further preparation. Mark has been with the team since 2006, the first year of the Ford GT. He brings a lot of knowledge of rallying and great mechanical aptitude. We spent Saturday and Sunday wrapping up the final adjustments to the car, ride height, tuning (special thanks to Jack at Horsepower Logic) etc. Overall preparation has been relatively easy. We added some adjustable rear toe arms as well as changed springs, injectors, and a few other little tweaks.

Jen Horsey is new to the team but not new to racing, especially rally! Jen has been involved in North American rally racing since 2004. You may remember her from the X Games in car commentator. She was also the co-driver in the Evo that decided to do an endo in X Games competition over the jump in 2008…We’ve already told her that she was brought on board for her navigator skills…not acrobatics abilities.

You all know Steve Millen. Steve is the President and CEO of STILLEN. Steve was born and raised in New Zealand, competing in rally and hill climb events before progressing into saloon and open wheeled race cars. After moving to America, racing all over the world, and winning multiple championships Steve still looks forward to coming home every year and competing in the Targa rally. These events are always a fun time and a great way to see the country and catch up with friends for a week. Plus it doesn’t hurt to “sight see” at 100+ MPH through back country roads!

Steve’s wife Jodi is kind of the team mom. Taking care of the service crew as well as making sure Steve and Jen have everything they need. There is no more important job on the team than making sure the driver and co driver are happy and the service crew is fed and ready at any moment.

Then there is me and Conrad. I’m Kyle Millen, I’ve been coming on the Targa’s every year since 2006. I have done some navigator work but after a couple of bad experiences with motion sickness we’ve all agreed I’ll be most useful as the reporter sending updates back to everyone back home! Conrad Healey has been on every Targa New Zealand Dad has ever done.

We’re ready to go, the car is running great! Steve and Jen are working on the route books and how they want to call the instructions. Jodi is getting the crew sorted with everything they need. I need to get to work to make sure all the cameras and what not are ready. Check back tomorrow for the first update of actual racing news! By the way….the first day is allllll new stages! Needless to say we’re very excited!

Here’s a quick video of the STILLEN GT-R, lots more to come as the Rally begins!

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6uswbSqzSs4

If you missed the previous years coverage, here’s a compilation video of some of the NZ courses from 2010, and links to previous years coverage:

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pcg-wGjyZGY

2010 Recap: http://blog.stillen.com/2010/11/targa-new-zealand-rally-2010-recap-and-wrap-up/

2008 Recap: http://blog.stillen.com/2008/11/2008-dunlop-targa-rally-new-zealand-wrap-up/

All 2011 Targa New Zealand Coverage

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Spectre 341 Challenge – Final Recap

Kyle@STILLEN — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 00:14:59 +0000

Steve Millen and the STILLEN team have returned home from the Spectre 341 Challenge. We had a great trip and we are already thinking of ways to improve the car for next year and see what kind of car I (Kyle Millen) can bring up there to compete in! The team at Spectre did a great job for their first event and we are really looking forward to heading back next year!

Photo courtesy of Larry Chen / Spectre 341

The GT-R finished 2nd overall, missing the top time by 1 second. Next year we’ll be bringing back some Dunlops and should be able to pick up at least 5 or 6 seconds. Unfortunately the Bridgestone run flats did not offer enough grip for the hill climb. But, we knew that going into the event as the Dunlop tire is the NISSAN recommended performance tire. Unfortunately they were out of stock though so we had to run the Bridgestone’s.

Virginia City is an amazing little town and if anyone is ever in search of a fun destination that will take them back to the old western movies, this place will make you feel like John Wayne…It is truly unbelievable! The town is nearly 300 years old and I’m pretty sure the only modern updates are the paved roads. The sidewalks are still wood, the buildings are hundreds of years old and they are awesome! The locals are also extremely nice and friendly.

Steve ran his fast times of the day early in the morning on Saturday morning and around noon made the decision to pack up and head home. He reported that the road had become too hot and the tires too slick so he felt like he had gone as fast as he could go. As you know, we had two days to turn the car around and get it into a transporter headed for targa New Zealand on Tuesday so we all decided it was best to just save the car and head home a little early.

Here’s some photos of some of the cars at the event:

Around noon we were on the road home. I made the 480 mile road trip in about 8.5 hours in our supercharged 370Z. I was also really impressed that I did it on one tank of gas which means it averaged around 27 MPG! Not bad!

Unfortunately one of the other competitors Alex (VRAlexander) Djordevic had gone off the road in the fastest section and did not survive. All of us at STILLEN would like send our thoughts and well wishes to Alex’s family and friends.

Photos by Boxtergirlie01 via 6speedonline.com

More Coverage:

Team STILLEN Attacks Spectre 341 Challenge Hillclimb!

Kyle@STILLEN — Tue, 22 Jun 2010 17:50:09 +0000

The busy schedule for the STILLEN R35 Nissan GT-R has finally finished with the shows and now it’s time to get back to racing! Team STILLEN will be bringing the orange beast to Virginia City, Nevada for the first annual running of the Spectre 341 Challenge being held June 25-26, 2010.

This event is held on a closed section of Highway 341 that would normally be opened to the public. Originally started in the early 70’s this event was pioneered by the local Ferrari clubs. The event ran until 2002 before being shut down. 2010 marks the re-organization of the event and the new promoter Spectre 341’s involvement. The course is 5.2 miles long with plenty of high speed long turns and narrow switchbacks. In barely over 5 miles the event travels 1,200+ feet in elevation!!! The current record up the hill is three minutes and 10 seconds. Held by the president of Spectre Performance and his highly modified F40 Ferrari. Steve Millen and Team STILLEN hope to break that record and perhaps dip under the three minute mark!

To prepare for the event the Team headed out to Spring Mountain Raceway to do a little track testing. Spring Mountain is a good test area for this event because Highway 341 offers pretty flat, high speed turns, and a few tight twisty areas as well, very similar to a track like Spring Mountain. The main priorities at Spring Mountain were tire testing, suspension development, and increased boost pressure. Further development back at the shop consisted of installing GReddy Intercoolers, GReddy Hard Pipes, and a GReddy Cold Air Intake.

Never one to miss an opportunity to challenge themselves, Steve and the Team will tow the car up to Virginia City on Thursday, race on Friday and Saturday. Then head home Sunday. That seems pretty simple. However the added twist, Steve has to have the car in the container headed for New Zealand on the following Tuesday!

That leaves the team just 2 days to take the GT-R from a hillclimb car to rally car. We’re sending the car down a little early this year as it will be one of the main exhibits in the New Zealand Speed Show event. The New Zealand Speed Show is the largest automotive show in the country and both STILLEN Targa rally cars will be on display! The STILLEN Ford GT will be coming back out into the spot light and will be positioned right next to the Nissan GT-R.

There is a lot going on here at STILLEN and we would like to invite you to follow along with us!!!

More Coverage:

Here’s a quick video introduction to the Spectre 341 Challenge

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Ybahw79Muw[/youtube]

STILLEN GT-R On DSPORT Cover July 2010 Issue

Josh@STILLEN — Fri, 04 Jun 2010 00:00:38 +0000

We recently met up with the guys at DSPORT Magazine at a local studio to shoot the STILLEN R35 GT-R for the cover and feature of their July 2010 issue. We’re happy to announce that this issue is currently on the newsstands, and has been delivered to subscribers!

In addition to getting some fanastic studio shots of the GT-R with the beautiful Ariel Marie, DSPORT also shot Steve Millen’s Championship IMSA 300ZX Twin Turbo inside this issue. Richard Fong also spent some good time with Steve Millen discussing both the exploits of the R35 GT-R as it tackled Targa Newfoundland, it’s plans for the rest of 2010, and some history of the IMSA 300ZX and racing stories of Steve.

This is the largest issue yet of DSPORT, their 91st in fact, with everything from event coverage, some very cool vehicle features, product tech and testing, model photos and interviews, and industry news.

Be sure to hit the newsstand and check this issue out before June 30th!

STILLEN GT-R On Cover of Road & Track Dec 09 Issue

Josh@STILLEN — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 18:54:04 +0000

The December 2009 issue of Road & Track is out on the newsstands now, and features the full Targa Newfoundland Rally article written by R&T’s Feature Editor Mike Monticello, the Co-Driver on the rally in the GT-R with Steve Millen.

Check your favorite newsstand and see this issue, it’s a neat story from Mike’s perspective on taking part in this 6-day rally, and what it was like being at the mercy of Steve Millen pushing the STILLEN modified R35 GT-R to it’s limits over city streets and tarmac.

Excerpt from the ‘Tackling Targa’ feature:

“The second to last to start the stage, Millen launched the GT-R with fury into the waning light, carbon rotors a-glowing, belching blue flames from the exhaust and sending onlookers scattering for cover, the GT-R was in its element. And so was Millen, 4-wheel-drifiting through corners with near reckless abandon while I tried to keep up with the pace notes…”
– Mike Monticello, Road & Track

Here’s also a link to a video from Road & Track discussing the stories in this packed issue: Road & Track December 2009 Video Preview

There are also tons of video and information on the build of the STILLEN GT-R, comparison tests against a stock 2010 Nissan GT-R, and information on the Targa Newfoundland at Road & Track website: 2009 Targa Newfoundland