This Altima has been transformed from front to back and top to bottom!  Proving that even the smallest, subtle changes can make big impacts!  Here is the long list of modifications performed to the Altima.

Engine / Handling / Performance

• Injen Short Ram Intake
• STILLEN Rear Sway Bar
• STILLEN Crankshaft Pulley / Gates Belt
• Jet MAF Sensor
• SentientByDesign (NICO Club) Grounding Kit – Blue
• Racingline Front / Rear Endlinks
• STILLEN Strut Tower Brace
• STILLEN Header
• STILLEN Cat-Back Exhaust
• Bullydog GT Gas Tuner
• Eibach Lowering Springs

Exterior

• BlueBatmobile – GT-R Headlight overlays, Eyelids**, GT-R Taillight Overlays
• AIT Carbon Fiber Roof Spoiler
• Nismo Trunk Spoiler
• STILLEN Front Fascia
• STILLEN Side Skirts
• Painted Roof Black
• Nismo A34 Rims with Yokohama S.Drive tires (245/40/19)
• Upper & Lower Billet Grille**
• Ebay Sport Mesh Grille**
  ** – not currently on the car

Future Plans

• STILLEN Big Brake Kit
• STILLEN Rear Sport Rotors
• Carbon Creations GT Concept Carbon Fiber Hood
• Aftermarket rear bumper, if a company makes one that I like,                                     which is unlikely.. lol.. STILLEN?
• BC Coilovers
• Set of wheels/tires for the track, undecided on both

As it stands now this car is “finished”.  Future plans are in every modders mind but so are new cars.  Nick says he has his eyes on a new 370Z, preferably a Nismo.  However, he is also a fan of the STILLEN front fascia for the Z so who knows!  If you see this Altima rolling around Nick’s home state of New York be sure to give him a wave.  If Nick’s not in the car anymore then watch out for what’s sure to be a beautiful Z soon to come!

 

With the STILLEN GT-R down in New Zealand for both the Speedshow (NZ’s largest auto show) where it was on display with the matching orange STILLEN Ford GT, and the upcoming Targa New Zealand Rally,  it was the perfect opportunity for Steve Millen to meet with Kyle Cassidy, Editor of NZ Autocar, and get his take after experiencing the STILLEN-built R35 GT-R.

To quote Kyle Cassidy from the September 2010 issue of NZ Autocar: 

“For crushing performance, we thought we couldn’t do much better than the Nissan   GT-R – but we were wrong. Strapped into a modified STILLEN version, we recorded our fastest four-wheeled 80-120km/h time ever.”

“…it’s ludicrously loud, and the ride is uncompromising, but the leap in performance of the STILLEN car over the alerady quick stock offering is staggering.”

-Click Here To Download PDF Version of the Article-

 

Images are smaller for web view – To read the full story click here!

The V-3 utliizes a very simple stainless braided hose that is designed to hang down near the shassis of the car.  Oil changes are made easy by simply removing the drain bolt, and refilling to the specified level.  Please follow these guidelines in servicing your supercharger unit. DO NOT OVERFILL!

STILLEN / Vortech V-3 Supercharger Mainteance Schedule & Procedure

• Check the supercharger fluid level using the dipstick at every 2,500 mile intervals.

• Initial supercharger fluid change must be performed 2,500 miles after installation, and must then be changed at least every 7,500 miles from there on.
  • Drain the fluid; re-fill the unit with only 4 oz. of the Vortech supplied lubricating fluid.
  • Confirm proper oil level using the dipstick. DO NOT OVERFILL!!

• Fluid level checking procedure:
  1. Ensure that the .06″ copper sealing washer is located on the dipstick base
  2. Thread the clean dipstick into the unit until it seats.
  3. Once the dipstick has seated, remove the dipstick from the unit. Fluid should register in the crosshatched area at the bottom of the dipstick.
  4. DO NOT OVERFILL! Drain excess fluid from the unit if it above the maximum level on the dipstick.

WARNING: Use of any other fluid other than the Vortech supplied special lubricating fluid will void the warranty and may cause component failure.

GT-R Front Active Brake Cooling System

The front cooling kit consists of weather resistant electric fans, polyurethane air diversion splitter, all appropriate mounting brackets, and includes a wiring kit as well as a switch.

GT-R Rear Brake Cooling System

The rear cooling kit utilizes polyurethane air scoops which work in conjunction with the factory NACA ducts in the belly pan to route air to the braking system, and also features polyurethane air funnels, accordian tube and all necessary mounting bracketry.

 

For detailed information on the design and testing of the STILLEN Active Brake Cooling Package, please visit the STILLEN website for much more information.

Truckin’ editor Dan Ward pushed their 2004 GMC Sierra “Project Novakane” to the limit with repeated 80-0 mph stops beginning with the factory setup, swapped brake systems, and repeated the aggressive testing on the truck after outfitting the AP Racing setup onto the truck.

Below is an excert from the article with performance data from their extensive testing:

Truckin’ Magazine – October 2010 Issue

“Rather than test the truck from 60 mph, we hit the ‘whoa’ pedal at 80 mph, after all, do you really drive 60 mph on the freeway? Factory braking performance was dreadful, as a combination of grooved rotors and newish pads made for chassis vibrations when stopping and a weak pedal. After bolting on the 20-inch wheels and tires to the Sierra, the sticky Nitto tires actually improved the stopping distances, which confused us at first, but then we released the overall weight of the new wheels and tires wasn’t much heavier than our OE combo.

GM touted the redesigned ‘99+ fullsize trucks as having the best brakes in their long history of building trucks. That’s nice marketing hype, but GPS data acquisition doesn’t lie and the new AP Racing brakes are the double-D cups to the OE’s training bra. We weren’t surprised to have better overall stopping power, after all, that’s what we expected from a company with a rich racing heritage, but what did surprise us was the pedal feel. Without being touchy, the brake pedal is now very linear with minimal inputs doing an impressive job of bringing the 4,300-pound truck to a standstill. As expected, the aggressive brake pads are heavy on the dust, which provides us another excuse to wash the wheels/tires more often. This upgrade was expensive, but unlike in many cases, you actually get what you pay for from Stillen.

With the AP kit bolted on, we made several 80-0 mph test runs and came away with an average of 226 ft, more than 144 ft than better than stock. That’s equivalent to stopping in only 5.56 school buses or basically stopping before going through an entire intersection and saving the lives of more than 350 kids in those buses.

Also, the green AP heat paint that was applied to the stock rotors burned white, meaning they exceeded 430 degrees Celcius during hard braking, but the new AP rotors didn’t burn through the green paint. This translates into the drilled holes and vents doing their job by keeping the rotor surface cooler, longer. If safety and performance are high on your list, bringing your truck to an immediate halt doesn’t get much better than with AP Racing’s bolt-on big brakes.”

You can read the full article here, and below are some images from the story: 
Truckin’ Magazine Project Novakane Part III: AP Racing

 

 
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!
• STILLEN GT-R at Spectre 341 Challenge – Ongoing Updates
• Spectre 341 Challenge – Final Recap [Current]

Friday 6/25 – 11:20am (Kyle via text)

Phone works okay.. no real updates.. did drivers meeting this morning and the drivers got a tour of the race course with tips from Amir from Spectre

The HRE Porsche is pretty nice and looks well prepared and the LG Vette is nice.. light weight good tires.. all good

There’s a hearse here too!  I don’t know about it though.. I think they are just here

 

Friday 6/25 – 11:43am (Kyle via text)

The hearse now has numbers.. looks like it’s running!

Friday 6/25 – 12:33pm (Kyle via text)

Just started sprinkling and apparently they’re delaying the start (we’d really like to run!)

We haven’t even left the hotel.. were trying to convince them to let us run

There is 700-1100 horsepower Porsche.. there are some huge horsepower cars up here

Friday 6/25 – 12:33pm (Kyle via text)

We did find out though that they aren’t posting any times until tomorrow night.  We have a stop watch that we’ll keep track of our time, but we don’t know how everyone else is doing

Steve and Jodi Millen

That’s not a typo on Jodi’s race suit!

Friday 6/25 – 2:27pm (Kyle via text)

We were two minutes from starting but the safety crew had to leave for a local accident… no go on the restart.  The accident was not on the course.. the same crew is on call for the other highways as well.  Unfortunately this is cutting down on the number of possible runs.

Friday 6/25 – 2:52pm (Kyle via text)

Cars are away!!!  The GT-R was second in line!

Friday 6/25 – 3:20pm (Kyle via text)

First run was good.. they’re just going to increase boost.. tires are still a bit greasy but starting to come in

Friday 6/25 – 3:46pm (Kyle via text)

GT-R just took off for its second run.. looks like he’s chasing it harder this run

Friday 6/25 – 4:15pm (Kyle via text)

Here’s a quick video from a corner I’m standing on of the GT-R

Here’s a video of the Viper coming around the same corner

Friday 6/25 – 4:59pm (Kyle via text)

Done for the day.. Steve is pretty happy with the car and is still trying to scrub in the tires.  Only made three runs but I think they’re happy with what theyre seeing.

The high elevation has caused a big drop in boost but the TurboSmart boost controller is allowing them to adjust that and increase pressure.

Look for more updates tomorrow..

Saturday 6/26 – 9:08am (Kyle via text)

First run of the day they shaved 3.5 seconds off from their fast time from yesterday.

Saturday 6/26 – 9:34am (Kyle via text)

They just shaved another three seconds.

There is a really fast EVO up here with really sticky nittos and the driver has a lot of experience.

Saturday 6/26 – 9:59am (Kyle via text)

If we had some better tires like the Dunlops we’d be much faster.  Unfortunately the Dunlops are on national back order otherwise we’d have them on the car.. according to Nissan they’re good for around a second a mile faster.

Saturday 6/26 – 10:16am (Kyle via text)

 

Saturday 6/26 – 10:25am (Kyle via text)

We softened the STILLEN front sway bar last night, and Steve is saying its helped a lot and he can start turning the back of the car today.. I’m sure that’s where some of the time is coming from.

Saturday 6/26 – 10:40am (Kyle via text)

Quick video of the ZR1

Quick video of Steve and the STILLEN GT-R

Saturday 6/26 – 10:50am (Kyle via text)

Steve and Team STILLEN are done for the day.. the road is extremely slick, and the tires don’t have any grip any more.

With having to ship the car to New Zealand for the Targa Rally in a couple of days, and not having good tires, Steve’s just taking it kinda easy.

This is a fun event and we will be back for sure next year.

More Coverage:

• Team STILLEN Attacks Spectre 341 Challenge Hillclimb!
• STILLEN GT-R at Spectre 341 Challenge – Ongoing Updates [Current]
• Spectre 341 Challenge – Final Recap

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:

• Team STILLEN Attacks Spectre 341 Challenge Hillclimb! [Current]
• STILLEN GT-R at Spectre 341 Challenge – Ongoing Updates
• Spectre 341 Challenge – Final Recap

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

Click here to view the embedded video.

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 OFFERS NEW AP RACING
2008-2010 BMW M3 (E9x)
FRONT AND REAR BIG BRAKE KITS

Features innovative Strap Drive System for road and track day applications

Costa Mesa, Calif. – AP Racing, the braking technology choice of professional race teams worldwide (including Rahal Letterman IMSA ALMS GT2 M3, BMW Motorsports FIA GT2 M3, etc), has introduced front and rear Big Brake System for the 2008-2010 BMW M3 (E9x). Available from the Brake Pros product division of STILLEN, these new brake upgrades fit most 18″ and 19″ OE wheels. They are compatible with OE ABS, traction control, stability systems and factory brake master cylinder.

Front systems may be ordered with AP Racing’s newly updated 6-piston CP5555 calipers finished in black (AP7100), red (AP7100R) — or — limited-edition Comp Gray (AP7100G). For optimum mechanical and thermal balance, complimentary rear systems are advised. The rear systems are supplied with AP Racing’s new CP5306 4-piston calipers in matching colors (AP7150 / AP7150R / AP7150G).

Manufactured for maximum stopping power and minimum brake fade, the kit offers high performance braking capability with race proven technology and comes complete with calipers, rotors, brake pads, coated stainless steel braided brake lines and all necessary mounting hardware for immediate bolt-on.

Two-piece modular rotors float on an aluminum hat and have 72 directionally curved vanes to maximize cooling in extreme brake situations. Both front and rear rotors are available in a cross-drilled and slotted pattern for an aggressive pad bite and better face cooling or can be purchased slotted only for aggressive track use. The AP Racing Strap Drive System has been developed for both road and track day applications. It uses a series of stainless steel straps to locate the disc to the mounting bell, producing a flexible coupling between the hub and the disc faces. This allows the disc to run true in the caliper under all conditions and also permits the disc to expand and contract without being restricted.

Strong, durable and designed to withstand any punishment, AP Racing Brake calipers are manufactured with a lightweight, pressure cast aluminum alloy 2-piece body and finished with a hard anodized 2-part paint finish. This 2-piece design is more rigid than commonly available monoblock calipers. Differential piston bores eliminate pad taper and maximize braking efficiency, and the anti-rattle clip eliminates pad knock and noise. A fixed radial mount ensures minimal caliper flex for the best available brake feel under all operating conditions.

To learn more about AP Racing Big Brake upgrade kits for the 2008-2010 BMW M3 and other high performance vehicles, visit www.stillen.com, e-mail pr@stillen.com, or call (888) 221-2012.

 

For high resolution images, please view the main Press Release here.

# # #

About STILLEN

Developed by enthusiasts for enthusiasts, STILLEN is a manufacturer and distributor of premium high performance products for late model import and domestic vehicles. Founded in 1986 by renowned professional driver and race car builder, Steve Millen, STILLEN incorporates cutting-edge race proven technology and advanced aerodynamic designs into the company’s proprietary performance and appearance product lines. Millen is known worldwide for achieving the greatest number of wins in IMSA GT history during the course of an impressive 30-year racing career. Family owned and operated, STILLEN branded products include exhaust systems and components, superchargers, fuel systems and components, brake kits and components, and urethane body styling products. In addition, STILLEN is an online reseller of many high performance products for late model cars and trucks, import and domestic, and creator of unique, one-of-a-kind performance project vehicles.  For more information, visit www.STILLEN.com.

For Further Information, Contact:

Josh Biggers
Marketing
STILLEN
(714) 540-5566, ext. 157
jbiggers@stillen.com