Photograph courtesy Mat Beck.
What are friends for, if not for sharing race cars?
“I am driving my friend's car,” Mat Beck wrote on the entry form. “We have co-driven and raced together for almost a decade here in Austin and San Antonio with our local car club.”
And the shared race car in question? A 2009 Nissan 370Z that, thanks to a VPFTuning-built VQ V6 fitted with a Rotrex centrifugal supercharger, puts out upwards of 700 horsepower.
While the Z started as an F-Prepared autocross car, it has since been upgraded with JRZ Suspension three-way coil-overs, a Nismo GT limited-slip differential, 18x11-inch wheels plus a rear wing and front splitter–in addition to the previously mentioned built engine and supercharger, of course.
“Considering the stock car came with less than half the horsepower of the current engine, coupled with wide wheels, sticky tires and a full aero package,” Mat adds, “this vehicle was made to chop it up on track.”
Mat and the 370Z are among the latest to enter our annual search for the fastest track machine on four wheels, the Tire Rack Ultimate Track Car Challenge, set for October 22 at Texas’ Eagles Canyon Raceway.
Virtually anything is welcome to compete, all that’s required is that both car and driver can pass a safety inspection. If you (and your car) can manage that, enter today.
And, because more friends are almost always more better, we’ll be joined by the Tire Rack SCCA Time Attack National Championship.
The Tire Rack Ultimate Track Car Challenge is presented by Grassroots Motorsports in association with Wilwood, Vitour Tire, CRC Industries, Red Line Oil and Racetech, with trophies from BimmerWorld, American Muscle, Falken Tire, Vbox Motorsport, Vorshag Motorsports, Nine Lives Racing, Cobalt Racing Brakes and Deatschwerks.