Competitor number five for the 2014 Import Meet Street Car Competition is Dan Nguyen and his 2010 Nissan GT-R. The IMSCC is an event that will compare some of the best import cars in multiple categories (drag racing, autocross, dyno, car show, etc.) on August 8-10 in Seattle, WA.
Other competitors will be announced leading up to the competition so be sure to check back regularly. Join the Facebook event page for notifications.
Dan Nguyen’s fascination with import cars started while working his first job as a clerk at a grocery store. When he was pushing carts in the parking lot one night, he randomly found a brochure for the brand new Acura NSX. Since that day, Dan’s made it his goal to own an NSX as soon as he was able to.
Dan joined the Navy shortly after graduating high school and served overseas. Once he finished his service, he knew it was time to buy his dream car—the Acura NSX. He bought his first NSX and modified it mildly. Then a few years later he bought his second NSX with the plan of turning it into an NSX-R replica. He spent years sourcing rare parts from Japan and building the car and it was even featured in Honda Tuning Magazine.
Dan applied to compete with his NSX-R replica last year but due to unfortunate circumstances, the car ended up not being able to compete. This 2010 Nissan GT-R was his replacement for the NSX.
Text and photos by Matt Haugness. Video by Dustin St. Hilaire (Jessup Visual Works).
Watch 2010 Nissan GT-R on YouTube.
There were multiple reasons why Dan decided to get a GT-R, but most of them came down to it just being a better performing car out of the box.
“When I owned the two NSX’s I enjoyed autocross and road course racing. I also enjoyed drag racing but with the lack of power in those cars it made it hard to perform well in all styles of racing. The GT-R is a great all-around car and can do well in all types of racing. It was a great replacement for my NSX,” Dan explained.
Dan started the build by doing some minor performance modifications to max out the stock turbos. He installed AMS 3” downpipes, AMS 3” midpipes, 3” XS Turbo intercooler piping, and Injector Dynamics 1000cc fuel injectors. He also purchased a Cobb Accessport in order to tune the car and maximize the amount of power he gained from these mods.
After the car was making a bit more power than stock, Dan moved on to exterior modifications. This is where he tried to do things a little different from other GT-R owners. He installed a Top Secret style front lip, Zeal style side skirts, HKS Technical Factory carbon fiber rear spoiler risers, and a WALD carbon fiber trunk lip. He also customized a set of NSX JGTC side mirrors that he owned to fit the doors of the GT-R. Lastly, he installed a retro Hakosuka Skyline badge that he had to modify to fit perfectly on the R35’s trunk.
“Some GT-R owners hate my badge and that’s fine with me. To me the R35 is still a Skyline as it was born from that line of cars. I modify my car to my own taste and I don’t really care what other owners think about my styling choices.”
Dan decided to stick with 20” diameter wheels but didn’t want the standard stock GT-R wheels. He found a set of OEM Black Edition wheels and fitted them with 255 Dunlop SS tires up front and 285 Dunlop SS in the rear.
In terms of suspension and brakes, Dan has mostly left the car alone. His only mod is a KM front strut brace which helped stiffen up the front of the car.
“Nissan did such a good job engineering this car that it’s hard to improve in those areas. Eventually I’d like to upgrade to carbon ceramic brakes.”
Dan’s favorite modification is the Cobb Accessport. It has already allowed him to increase the output of the stock engine and will allow him to tune it when he installs future upgrades.
When asked why he thinks his car will do well in the IMSCC, Dan responded with:
“First and foremost I would like to have fun at this event. If I still had my NSX I would still enter and compete for fun. Recently I have encountered car enthusiasts who are too afraid of losing. I am not saying I don’t like to win, but having fun is a win-win for me. I like the way this competition is structured because there isn’t one car that will win in every category. I think my GT-R will have a good chance because Nissan made a well-rounded car for a beginner driver.”
For future mods, Dan would like to upgrade the stock turbos and install carbon ceramic brakes.
“I’d like to thank Tim Bailey of Cobb Tuning and the NW GT-R Owner’s FB group.”
Modifications:
Exterior/Wheels/Tires:
Carbon fiber Top Secret style front lip
Carbon fiber Zeal style side skirts
Carbon fiber HKS Technical Factory rear spoiler risers
Carbon fiber WALD trunk lip
Custom fit NSX JGTC side mirrors
Hakosuka Skyline rear badge
20” Nissan GT-R Black Edition wheels w/ 255/40/R20 Dunlop SS tires (front) and 285/35/R20 Dunlop SS tires (rear)
Engine/Transmission/Differential:
3” XS Turbo intake piping
3” AMS downpipes
3” AMS midpipes
ID 1000cc fuel injectors
Fringe XVO exhaust tips
Cobb Accessport
Godspeed coolant overflow tank
Interior:
Misc. carbon fiber trim pieces
Recaro NSX Type-S driver seat
Buddy Club Seat rails
Suspension/Brakes:
KM front strut brace
Hawk HPS brake pads
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