To start with, 2.5-inch stainless steel tube is cut in bundles using the STILLEN hydraulic CNC controlled band saw. From the saw the tubes are processed on our CNC Mandrel Tube Benders. Every tube coming off the bender is verified in our proprietary bend check fixtures to ensure each tube meets our specifications.
CNC Milling Machine and STILLEN X Pipe Fixture
The STILLEN X pipe has been engineered for optimum performance and exhaust gas flow. To achieve the best performance possible the X pipe tubes are loaded into the CNC milling machine and are precision machined for perfect fitment into the weld fixture.
Once the machining process is finished the machined tubes along with the weld fixture are taken to the production welding booths where our craftsmen tig weld the tubes and braces to form a single X pipe.
When merging dual 2.5” exhaust tubes into a single tube, the equivalent size tube required is more than 4 inches in diameter. Because we cannot fit a 4-inch tube through the chassis and a true dual 2.5” exhaust did not sound good on this platform. We chose to merge the two banks for the best sound, but to do so in a way that allowed for optimal exhaust gas flow without causing a restriction.
STILLEN Mufflers
To assemble the mufflers our production team begins by assembling the perforated tube inner core. Then form the end caps for the body of the muffler. The inner core and one side of the muffler is tack welded together then the muffler goes back to assembly to have the high temperature ceramic wool inserted.
Once completed the mufflers go back to welding. The outer cap is tacked back together. This is the only time where the exhaust system or any of its components leaves the STILLEN facility. The mufflers are sent to an outside processor for polishing before they’re finished welding.
STILLEN Proprietary Rotational Welding Positioner
After the mufflers return from polishing, it is placed on our proprietary rotational welding positioner. Our engineering team created this positioner so that our welders could accurately control the speed. Also the orientation of the mufflers to give a precision tig welded finish. The mufflers are purposely left with a fantastic “burn” finish to show the tig welded craftsmanship.
Final Welding and Assembly
Now we enter final welding and assembly. Every single exhaust system goes through our pre-assembled weld fixtures. These weld fixtures located all of the key components. The weld fixtures also align everything to ensure perfect, repeatable fitment on all of the various components.
Since 1986 STILLEN has been a leader in exhaust system manufacturing. STILLEN is dedicated to manufacture all our exhaust systems in the United States of America.
STILLEN is excited to release the All-New “Street Series” Cat-Back Exhaust System for the 2023 Nissan Z. During the development of this exhaust system the STILLEN engineers went through multiple different exhaust configurations and prototypes. They determine what would provide the best performance, best flow, and best sound for the new Z.
Features and benefits:
Limited lifetime warranty
304 stainless steel
Made in America
Tig welded construction
CNC Machined
CNC mandrel bent
Dyno tested
2023 Nissan Z “Street Series” STILLEN Cat-Back Exhaust
After months of exhaustive testing the team determined that the best design starts with a stainless steel flange with precision tig welds. The flange is tig welded to 2.5” tubes that lead into a CNC bent and CNC machined X pipe.
During the development the team tested a true dual exhaust system. The team determined that it was too loud and too “flat” sounding. Something that is very common with the twin turbo V6 engines. However, in an effort to get the best performance possible we didn’t want to restrict the engine by going from dual 2.5” tubes to a single 3” mid-pipe.
The perfect solution was an X pipe which offered a cross-sectional area of around 4”. Most importantly, this allowed the team to merge the left and right banks. Therefore, the merge improves the sound tremendously without restricting the exhaust flow. Additionally, it allowed the team to fit the largest possible collector through the narrow chassis tunnel in the center of the car.
Its goes from the X pipe to CNC mandrel bent 304 stainless steel tubes. After that, the tubes lead into a pair of precision tig welded high polished finish, mufflers. To design these mufflers the team at STILLEN created new proprietary machinery to complete the assembly and welding process in-house.
This equipment along with the manufacturing procedures developed exclusively for this muffler. Above all, it allows the team to precisely tig weld the polished stainless steel muffler bodies and end caps. By tig welding the mufflers, it leaves behind a “stack of dimes” finish with a fantastic multi-color burn trail.
In addition, the exhaust system is supported by a STILLEN branded cross-brace. This cross-brace accentuating the exhaust system.
To conclude, the exhaust system the customer has a choice of 3 different exhaust tips. We are extremely proud to offer this exhaust system. Most importantly, we’re proud to continue our many decades of American manufacturing.
Kyle from STILLEN was able to test drive the new 2023 Nissan Z and he taught the Z was absolutely amazing. He has taken the Nissan Z through a canyon road near his home and it was an absolute blast to drive.
Kyle from STILLEN was able to test drive the new 2023 Nissan Z and he taught the Z was absolutely amazing. His done exactly what anybody with the keys to the new Z would do. He has taken the Nissan Z through a canyon road near his home and it was an absolute blast to drive.
It handles extremely well, just hugging every single turn. No tire squeal, no drama. It just soaks it up and it just goes. Point and shoot steering, you get on the throttle and the rear end starts to come around.
The Nissan Z has excellent power delivery from the VR30 V6 Twin Turbo 400 horsepower platform. It’s absolutely phenomenal to drive. You can definitely see the areas of enhancement that Nissan has made to the new Z.
STILLEN can’t wait to get there own Z and start to make some improvements. But again, these are improvements and modifications that are for the enthusiasts. They’re going to be for the enthusiasts who wants that extra power. The enthusiast that really wants to push it a little bit further and this car is going to respond so well to it. You can already tell that the new Z wants to go faster and wants to push harder.
From a styling perspective, Nissan has really hit a home run for the new Z. This is one of the best looking cars on the road. “I have to be honest, I didn’t love the original photos I saw. I didn’t think that the front end was really what I was looking for. As soon as I saw the Z in person for the first time, I knew I was wrong. The photos just don’t do it justice. This is a good looking car.” – Kyle.
The front end of the Z is designed to look like the older Datsun Z, similar to a 240 and a 260. Then you move around to the back of the Z and you get that 300ZX rear end immediately. The tail lights are a modern 300ZX tail lights, they’re absolutely fantastic. We can all agree that the rear tail lights are the best part of the design of the vehicle.
The katana down the roofline of the car is a very cool easter egg, but overall it’s just an amazing car. From a performance perspective, it handles incredibly well. You can tell that the power is there as soon as you put your foot down. It just scoots and gets going right away. This car wants to run, it wants to run hard, and you can already tell it’s going to be a lot of fun.
Steve Millen History
In 1989 our company founder, Steve Millen, started working with Nissan. Nissan hired Steve to be the lead driver for their new sports car program. They were bringing in the 300ZX at the time. They were going to bring in two race cars; number 75 and number 76. It was a twin turbo V6 VG30 based engine and they took those cars to dozens of race wins, dozens of pole positions, two world championships, wins in Asia, Europe and America.
To this day, I believe Steve Millen still holds the record of being the only driver to win the 24 hours of Daytona, the 12 hours of Sebring, and the 24 hours of Le Mans in the same year. They had a crazy amount of success with that 300ZX racing program.
Steve really translated that success on the track into STILLEN’s road car program. He also worked very closely with Nissan, refining the 300ZX and giving them more power and developing all these parts through STILLEN.
Towards the end of the 300ZX in 1995, Nissan celebrated his relationship with them as well as the culmination of the Z. They built a special limited edition SMZ 300ZX. It was a Steve Millen design 300ZX. This was a car that you could also buy through your local dealership. They only made a little over 100 cars in North America and these cars were sold through the dealer network.
The dealers would call up STILLEN, and they would place their order for the cars. All the SMZ packages were the same. It was just the color of the vehicle that was different. The SMZ package came with different wheels, brakes, body work, and a little bit more power through an intake and exhaust. I think there was a computer reprogram and some interior enhancements too.
The SMZ package was a 300ZX that you could buy from the dealership with the factory warranty. That’s the type of relationship STILLEN has with Nissan. Working with Z’s goes through our blood, all the way back to the late 80’s and early 90’s.
We don’t want to just do an intake or exhaust. A lot of the times when STILLEN brings other vehicles in for product development, that’s all we’re doing. We’re just doing an intake and an exhaust system, maybe a body kit.
On the Z’s we tackle the entire car. It becomes a passion project for STILLEN because of that relationship and that connection that STILLEN has to the Z and to Nissan. We really want to refine it as best we can. So we’ll go front to back, top to bottom.
The Z’s are so special to us that we just want to give them as much attention and as much love as we can. That basically comes out by all the parts and all the enhancements that we make for the Z’s.
2023 NISSAN Z
We continue to work and develop new parts for the 2023 Nissan Z. The new STILLEN products are nearing their completion. Make sure to have your social media notifications on to be the first to hear about the new products. Hopefully your as excited as we are to bring the new products for the 2023 Nissan Z.
In early 2018, STILLEN President and CEO Kyle Millen purchased a new Toyota Tundra. With every new vehicle purchase Kyle sets a goal for the vehicle. This one was simple, a family hauler that would allow his family to go off roading, camping and have fun. Occasionally it would be used for towing project/race vehicles or parts but it was never intended to be a test bed for product development.
Right…
Well that obviously didn’t last long.
While installing a set of aftermarket headlight bulbs and a color matched grill assembly Kyle noticed that there was a large amount of room between the radiator shroud, core support and air box. After a little bit of tinkering and conceptualizing Kyle came back to the office Monday morning and showed the product development team what he’d found.
This is when the team began creating prototype parts to test. Following with our series of videos showing the testing of the best air intake for the Toyota Tundra 5.7 liter.
3-Day Intake Air Temperature Challenge for the Toyota Tundra 5.7L
If you have any questions about the TruPower by STILLEN Cold Air Intake or any other STILLEN product, give us a call at (866) 250-5542, email sales@stillen.com, or message us on our website Live Chat.
STILLEN® released one of the most powerful cat-back exhaust system for the Infiniti Q60 3.0T. The twin turbo V6 VR30DDTT engine from Infiniti is a very exciting power plant that comes with a tremendous amount of potential and opportunity. STILLEN is excited to get to work tuning this baby GT-R platform!
To start with the development of this Cat-Back Exhaust System, STILLEN created multiple prototype systems. Ranging from true dual to X pipe to Y pipe with varying diameters of tube in each configuration. Having been in the business of developing high performance exhaust systems for more than three decades we have learned that there is no formula or cheat sheet for creating a performance exhaust system. The only way to find out what works best for an engine and vehicle configuration is to build and test.
Having developed a wide range of prototype exhaust systems our engineering team hit the dyno to see which configuration produced the best results. After all of the tests were completed, we were a little bit surprised to learn that the best exhaust system was lying in front of us the whole time. The twin turbo V6 Nissan GT-R favors a dual into single back to dual configuration and after our testing was complete we learned that the Infiniti Q60 VR30DDTT does too. This exhaust system features a 2.5” Y pipe which flows into a 3” mid-pipe. The 3” mid-pipe then carries the exhaust gases to the rear of the vehicle where it branches back into 2.5” dual rear exit.
Upon meeting the rear exhaust pipes the exhaust gases flow through the STILLEN engineered and manufactured mufflers. During our development, the STILLEN engineering team struggled to get the exhaust note “just right” with traditional off the shelf mufflers. This can be a common problem when working on a turbo engine as the turbo acts like a muffler and restricts the engines exhaust note. Our engineering team struggled to find the balance between too loud and too quiet until the decision was made to develop and manufacture our own muffler bespoke to the VR30DDTT platform. STILLEN has been manufacturing their own mufflers in house since 2002 with great success.
These pieces are constructed of 100% durable polyurethane, able to withstand the abuse of the racetrack as well as a night out on the town.
As with all STILLEN urethane components, these also feature a limited lifetime warranty. See below for additional photos and information. Pricing is available on the STILLEN Product Page.
Enhancing the aerodynamic performance of such a finely tuned car like the GT-R is no small feat. When developing the car Nissan did a great job of developing an aero package that works well, but left some room for improvement for the true enthusiast. One of the most common complaints of GT-R owners is the car has a tendency to “push” when exercised hard on a race course (understeer). Two ways to fix this condition are through the suspension, or increasing downforce via aerodynamics of the car at higher speeds. Increasing the aerodynamic downforce keeps the front end of the car planted and therefore improving front grip, reducing the “push” effect.
The STILLEN Urethane Lip Spoiler adds 2″ of length to the OEM fascia, and installs directly onto the vehicle over the factory piece. This lip spoiler is designed to hold additional air onto the nose, with flares on the side corners producing a canard effect for extra control.
Another major benefit of the front lip spoiler is the durability. Constructed out of high-quality polyurethane, this front spoiler is nearly indestructible and carries a limited lifetime warranty. This means it can stand up to the hazards of the race track or the drive around town with 100% driver/owner confidence.
Also available: 2012-15 STILLEN Nissan GT-R Front Splitter
Continuing the aerodynamic stabilization of the GT-R, STILLEN has developed new 2009-15 Nissan GT-R side skirts with a 2 inch ledge built in to apply more downforce to the car. This design comes from the testing performed on the legendary IMSA Nissan 300ZX, campaigned in the IMSA sports car series at Le Mans, Daytona, and Sebring. Tested in the Lockheed Martin wind tunnel, the Nissan engineers found that by enhancing the side ledge on the rocker it applied a incremental amount of downforce at higher speeds thus keeping the car planted and more stable through high speed corners.
Another major benefit of the rockers is the greatly improved appearance. Offering a much more aggressive look and race proven engineering these rockers are sure to catch attention and compliments.
Just like all STILLEN body work these are manufactured in durable polyurethane, ready for paint, and offer a limited lifetime warranty. Perfect for daily driving or track days and utilize the factory skirt mounting points to ensure a perfect fit and finish.
STILLEN is excited to announce the launch of our complete line up of products for the 2018 INFINITI Q60 at the 2017 SEMA show.
The INFINITI Q60 redsport is a very exciting car as it brings performance back to the INFINITI marque. Featuring a potent 400 horsepower twin turbo V6 badged the “VR30.” This car offers the driver an exhilarating experience and inspires the driver to push the car aggressively.
STILLEN has been involved in performance parts for off-road trucks, supercars and street performance cars of a variety and makes and models, but STILLEN is perhaps best known for our experience in tuning NISSAN/INFINITI vehicles… we’ve been involved with developing performance parts for Nissan (and later Infiniti) for over 30 years now. When the opportunity came to work with Infiniti on this platform, we jumped at the chance and let our engineers run wild.
INTAKE
To kick things off, we took a look at how we could beef up the car’s performance. Our engineering team immediately began dissecting the air intake system to study it and determine how we could optimize airflow. While the engineering team was busy with figuring out how to get every last pony out of the intake, our fabrication team were hard at work under the car, reviewing the exhaust routing, tube diameter, configuration of the system and the construction of its muffler, all in order to see what gains could be made.
After going through more than 20 prototype intakes trying to achieve our goals, our induction specialists produced a Q60 Intake design that yielded a huge gain of over 20 horsepower at the wheels, and that’s without the need for further tuning or any modifications to the vehicle. Not every ‘high flow’ intake on the market works with the OEM ECU map, so making sure our intakes benefit the car with the stock tune is a high priority for our design team. The end result is what you see above – the urethane airboxes offer a significant advantage over an exposed conical filter, as the airboxes ensure that the intakes are drawing in only cool, outside air, rather than sucking in hot air from inside the engine bay (which robs you of power). Designed as a complete solution, the STILLEN Cold Air Intake for 2017 Infiniti Q60 comes complete with silicone couplers, CNC machined and tig welded aluminum MAF tubes as well as poly-urethane air boxes to keep the engine fed with cooler air, helping to deliver maximum power output.
EXHAUST
Turbo V6 engines are notoriously difficult to get the sound “just right.” In the end, our team was not satisfied with any of the common mufflers we could source “off the shelf.” The only option was to build our own. So, we engineered our own mufflers, manufactured them in house, and pack them with a high temperature ceramic wool. These tuned mufflers truly allow the heartbeat of the car to be experienced. The final exhaust design was selected after 15 different prototype systems were rigorously tested on our Dynojet chassis dyno. It took quite a while to determine what the engine wanted in order to produce the most power across the entire powerband. The end result is a tuned Y-Pipe, leading to a single Mid-Pipe which branches back into a dual outlet exit.
BODYSTYLING
With the performance parts development underway, now it was time to address the exterior styling. The Q60 is a fantastic looking car straight out of the factory, but like a nice tailored suit, it can look even better with the addition of the right accessories. To bring out the car’s flowing lines, we opted to wrap the car with a red chrome wrap. The brilliant luster of the red chrome accentuates all of the angles and curves of the body of the car and truly ‘makes it pop’. The Q60 has a very organic, free flowing design, and the hyperreflective red chrome shows off these daring curves and deep creases exceptionally well. Like any car, we felt it could be a bit more aggressive and could do with some aero styling to really accentuate the curves the car comes with. The STILLEN design team then set to work shaping a Front Bumper Splitter featuring STILLEN Front Bumper Splitter for 2017 Infiniti Q60 – (with Winglet Extensions). With the front end spiced up to our satisfaction, we shifted our attention over to to the rear of the car, the STILLEN craftsmen then created a set of side splitters and rear spats to suit the aggressive feel we were going for. Both of these parts were custom fabricated exclusively for the STILLEN Q60.
Finishing off the ground effects package, STILLEN designed a Rear Diffuser for the Red Sport V36 Infiniti Q60 with a set of aggressive air channels and openings for a larger-than-stock dual exhaust. The STILLEN diffuser for Infiniti Q60 is no “one off” for a show car – this part is a production item you can purchase and install on your own Q60, along with the rest of the aero suite, including the STILLEN front splitter and winglets. While these days the majority of aftermarket manufacturing seems to be done overseas, but at STILLEN, we make all of our products right here in the USA. Every single STILLEN aero or appearance upgrade, intake and exhaust system is designed and manufactured in the USA, right here at STILLEN headquarters in Costa Mesa, California. Not everyone realizes that here at STILLEN we fabricate pretty much everything in-house, exterior parts, intakes, exhausts, suspension bits — our CNC machines, benders, welders and a team of experienced and talented craftsman makes it possible to do everything here. Now that we had the ground effects completed, the team still felt like our Q was still missing something. The rear end still lacked something, so next, the STILLEN artists then turned their attention to the rear spoiler. The initial idea was a simple, clean spoiler that would added a bit of height to the deck lid. After a few design studies, the team decided to step it up and came up with something that would compliment the dynamic lines of the Q60’s design, and created a custom hand crafted rear wing that completes the car and ties in beautifully with the overall design concept.
SUSPENSION
With the power and exterior styling completed it was time to focus on supporting all of that extra power and downforce. To do so, the STILLEN team partnered with RSR suspension, who used the STILLEN Q60 to develop and prototype a set of coil overs that are truly incredible. One difference that sets STILLEN builds apart from other SEMA showcars is that our cars are built to be driven. Our Q60 Redsport is no trailer queen – this car was driven to the show and then driven home. Since this car would be seeing hundreds of miles of actual road use between STILLEN HQ in Costa Mesa and Las Vegas, it was vital that the car not only look good, but could also retain its handling performance. The team at RSR hit another home run with the RSR Coilovers for 2017+ Infiniti Q60 we had fitted to the car – we really enjoyed these dynamic coil overs. The ride quality is fantastic when cruising on the freeways and the car carves through the canyons with ease.
To make sure that the alignment was correct after the coil over installation and subsequent ride height lowering, SPC suspension provided a complete set of adjustable suspension including front upper control arms and SPC Suspension Rear Camber, Toe and Setback links for 2017 Infiniti Q60. By installing the adjustable SPC suspension the STILLEN technicians were able to precisely dial in the alignment ensuring excellent handling characteristics
No car would be complete without the right wheel and tire package. Wheels are one of those items that can make or break a car. For years STILLEN has chosen VOSSEN Wheels for 2015+ Infiniti Q50 / Q60 and NITTO tires for their vehicles. On this car though they wanted something a little different. To accomplish this the STILLEN team selected the Vossen X Work line of wheels. Particularly, the VWS-1. Work wheels is a leading Japanese manufacturer of high end wheels and the collaboration between Vossen and Work has resulted in a melding of Japanese technology with American style. These two piece wheels feature a high luster polished lip with a matte gunmetal center and polished anodized barrel.
NITTO tires have been the preferred tire for STILLEN for many years. Offering a wide range of tire selections for everything from race cars to passenger cars and even offroad vehicles. For the STILLEN Q60 project STILLEN selected the INVO series of tires. INVO tires are designed specifically for the luxury sports car enthusiast. They offer excellent performance and grip without sacrificing comfort.
We’re thrilled with the end result of how our 2017 SEMA project came out – the team here at STILLEN feels that the Q60 we put together strikes the perfect balance between high end street luxury, with design inspired by our race-winning heritage tempered with elegant style.
STILLEN Vice President Kyle Millen had this to say of the project: “The STILLEN Infiniti Q60 project car is one of my favorite cars out of the many projects we have created. The team at STILLEN did an amazing job and made a car that is truly one of a kind. From the work of the body craftsmen, the engineers and fabricators working tirelessly on the performance parts, I am extremely proud of the effort put into this car and the end result.”
If you have any questions about the Infiniti Q60 3.0t or any STILLEN products for the Infiniti Q60 on our website, give us a call at (866) 250-5542, email sales@stillen.com, or message us on our Live Chat!
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 X 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!
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
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
