Photography by Nick Stanley
Often times we find what we were looking for in a place we hadn’t thought to look, and that’s exactly what happened with Josh Gonzales and his 350Z. Back when Gonzales was in the process of building his Subaru STI, he picked up the 350Z you see here as a daily driver. The more he drove the Z, the more he realized it was more fun to drive and to push the limits with compared to the Subaru. It wasn’t long before his attention shifted, and when the Rocket Bunny kit came out, that was the final nail in the coffin. The 350Z was now the project.
Gonzales takes pride in having done everything on the car himself, with the help of some friends at most. Despite encountering a few challenges along the way due to having very little experience, he persevered, and says he couldn’t be happier with the rewarding feeling of doing it himself. It also made for a great learning experience!
As a show car, Gonzales wanted his 350Z to be well-rounded, and he definitely hit the mark. “I like that the car is balanced,” he says. “It's not like most show cars that have no power under the hood, but it's not like a track car that is only focused on performance and nothing more. I think my car has the right amount of every aspect.” Well done, Gonzales!
With 23% of the Popular vote, Josh Gonzales was the winner of the Tuner Battlegrounds #TBGLIVE award category competition at Hot Import Daze: Seattle at Evergreen Speedway in Monroe, WA!
ESSENTIALS
OWNER: Josh Gonzales
VEHICLE: 2004 Nissan 350Z
LOCATION: Buckley, WA
ENGINE: Nissan VQ35DE 3.5L V6
HORSEPOWER: 430 whp
TORQUE: 333 lb-ft
Facebook: Josh Gonzales
Instagram: @elephantjosh
ENGINE
- Vortech (V3 supercharger kit, intercooler, air intake, fuel pressure regulator, fuel pump, timing control)
- Mishimoto (radiator, fan shroud, hoses)
- Cosworth intake manifold
- DressUpBolts hardware
EXHAUST
- Exotic Speed exhaust
- Strup headers
- Z1 test pipes
DRIVETRAIN
- Exedy stage 1 clutch
- Ugrades axles
- Kaaz 2-way LSD
WHEELS/TIRES/BRAKES
- Art In Motion MA50 – 19x12 -15 (f), 19x13 -55 (r)
- Continental tires – 275/30/19 (f), 305/30/19 (r)
- Hawk brake calipers
- Z1 Motorsports drilled and slotted 2-piece rotors
CHASSIS/SUSPENSION
- Air Lift Performance air suspension
EXTERIOR
- Rocket Bunny V2 body kit
- Big Country Labs spoiler
- IJDM toy taillights
- 3M Matte Metallic Brown vinyl wrap
INTERIOR
- WeAreLikeWise shift knob
- Grip Royal steering wheel
- Prosport gauges
- Bride Low Max seats
- Sparco 6-point harnesses
AUDIO/MULTIMEDIA
- Kenwood head unit
- JL Audio 10-inch subwoofer
- Kicker sub amplifier
SPONSORS
- Art In Motion Wheels, Air Lift Performance, Mishimoto, DressUpBolts
