QUICK LOOK: Chris Forsberg's Flawless 1975 280z
Photos: c/o Larry Chen & driftfotos.com / Speedhunters.com
Words: Mickey Andrade
At first glance, this Z may appear to be a run of the mill "resto-mod" 280Z with some "bolt-ons" and arch extensions. Au contraire!
The truth is, Chris has gone through the whole machine and tastefully upgraded every bit to be better than OEM, adjustable and more durable. You see, the champion Formula Drift driver didn't only want a bitchin' street car, he wanted a vehicle he could wring out at the track if the need or desire arose.
The most obvious upgrades are on the exterior. CarbonSignal manufactures the carbon fiber "G-Nose" conversion and over fenders. Chris and his team masterfully fitted the kit making it look as though this may have been something available during the vehicles production years. Over top of the upgraded Wilwood big brakes are SSR MS-1 wheels in 16×9 inch on the front and 17×10 inch on the rear matching the subtle exterior theme quite nicely. We'd be cheating you if we didn't point out the tasteful LED/Projector combo headlights and LED tails, all adding to the ultra modern update Chris was after.
On to the meat and potatoes. Under the bonnet lies the venerable Nissan RB25DET making 500hp. As with the rest of the car, literally everything has been upgraded or renewed. The three headed monster in the engine room are the carbon fiber/billet intake manifold, TiAL Xona Rotor 3071 turbo with an OCD Works ‘T51R Turbo’ mod and the custom billet head cover. That trifecta along with all the crimped AN lines and tidy configuration make this bay outright drool worthy!
As you can see, the interior got the same attention as the rest of the car.
Taking the OEM panels and covering them in alcantara suede or replacing them with custom carbon fiber components from CarbonSignal. Very nice and modern approach!
In the spirit of the "Quick Look" style blog format we have omitted some details for quick reading. If you have questions about the car, feel free to ask in the comment section and we will address them.