Switched from a drift-spec S14 “Silvia” to a Fairlady Z
Dirk, a native of South Africa, came to Japan when he was in his early 20s and bought a Nissan Z33 “Fairlady Z” four years ago. He fell in love with Japanese cars after watching the anime “Initial D” in his home country, and before the Fairlady Z, he drove a Nissan S14 “Silvia” that was designed for drifting. Why did Mr. Durk choose the Fairlady Z?
Priority was given to the ease of spending time indoors
Mr. Durk’s previous Nissan S14 “Silvia” had a blown engine, but he still has it on hand. The reason he purchased a Z33 “Fairlady Z” after the Silvia was that the vehicle price of the S14 Silvia was higher due to the so-called 25-year rule in the United States. He chose the FAIRLADY Z because he likes Nissan cars after having a hard time deciding between the Toyota 86, which is relatively easy to buy, and other models.
When he bought the car, it was almost stock except for the shocks, and he customized the wheels, tires, and audio system after purchase. The reason why he did not make it a drifting machine was because he works in the video industry and often carries equipment, so he wanted to make the interior more comfortable than the drifting machine he had been using.
“The front spread is McIntosh, the rear subwoofer is Nakamichi, and the tweeters are Focal. The amp is a Carrozzeria and I put in the wiring myself, and the console was custom-built. I love music, so I want to hear every note of the guitar in a good sound. Wouldn’t it be great to be able to turn on the air conditioning and listen to good music even in traffic?”
In addition to convenience, we want to enhance the driving experience
Darc chose the Fairlady Z, although a minivan or similar vehicle would be more convenient for his work. However, the car would be too big if loaded with light stands, tripods, and other photographic equipment, so he plans to customize it to make it more convenient, but that does not seem to be the end of it.
“A friend’s company is building a hitch member for the Fairlady Z, and I’m going to attach a rear carrier to it when it’s finished. I would like it to be able to carry two or three pelican boxes, which are waterproof cases for storing equipment and other items. Other than that, I like sports cars, so I want to replace the muffler with one that has a better V6 sound, and I also want an LSD.
For me, the car is a 1/1 Tomica. I would also like to drive it with more mature specifications, so in the end, I don’t know yet what direction my future customization will take.”
translated by DeepL
