In any scene, there are the people who come and go, there are the quiet ones who stay in the background, and then there are people like “ADD Steve”. Less commonly known as Steve Hays, the ‘ADD’ moniker becomes very obvious the minute you meet the Tauranga local – Steve is just one of those mile-a-minute guys with a million things to say and do, but seemingly never enough time to do them. This full-speed-ahead personality has come across in his car over the years, and has helped Steve and his 1990 Mazda RX-7 Savannah GT-R become one of the better-known pairs in the scene over the last decade.
Steve has owned his FC for more than ten years now, after first spotting it in a car yard in 2000. “I was driving past the yard and saw a bright red bonnet sticking out,” he says. “I pulled over straight away and bought it on the spot – I didn’t even test drive it.” Some might call that a risky move, but Steve doesn’t regret it for a second. “I’d always wanted a Series 5 RX-7 and I knew I would own one, one day, so I just bought it and haven’t been able to get rid of it ever since,” he tells us.
The car was completely stock-standard when Steve got his hands on it, but that wasn’t to last too long. By the time the year was out, the 13BT motor had been pulled from the engine bay and sent to Stu Lawton at Lawton Rotorsport.
 
“This is the first turbo motor that Stu ever built,” says Steve. “That was nine years ago, and it’s never been apart since.” Considering some of the driving we’ve seen Steve do over the years, this is a real testament to Stu’s abilities! Running various turbo set-ups over the years, the 13B was, at the time of the photo shoot, running a Masterpower T45 arrangement that gave the car a cool and easy 300 kilowatts to the rear 19×10-inch rims.
But in classic ADD Steve style, that’s currently in the process of changing once again. “I’ve given the motor to Dean Hargraves at Rotamax. I told him to give it back to me once it’s ready to make 400 kilowatts at the wheels on pump gas.”
This motor enhancement is all part of the latest rebuild, which came about due to an unfortunate incident (of which Steve has had more than his fair share), when on his way down to the V 4&Rotary South Island Champs.
“The brakes on the trailer failed coming down a hill and it all went to shit,” Steve tells us. “I tried to drive out of it but there wasn’t much I could do – I’m surprised we all came away without a scratch – but the RX was pretty beat up.”
Luckily for Steve, he had a pretty good relationship with sponsors NAC Insurance, and after a quick phone call, was told not to worry and it would all be sorted out, which we can only imagine would be a huge relief as you are standing on the side of the road looking at your bashed-up pride and joy.
Regardless of the help from Kate and the team at NAC, it was still a nasty blow for both Steve and the guys at Tauranga’s Class A Kustoms, who’ve been helping with the RX-7 for a few years now. “Leon and Mikey (The guys behind Class A Kustoms) set up shop right across the street from my work, so I just started going over there, and they started working on my car. They’re like my brothers now,” Steve says.
 
After four resprays in the past, the team decided to get rid of the simple gloss highlighter green that everyone knew Steve’s car for and enhance it with a metallic mixed in with a cool white pearl. Mikey, who is the paint and airbrush specialist, was simply told to go crazy on the car and do whatever he wanted.
The result is some of the best airbrush work we’ve seen, and something that’s very unique in the Kiwi scene. Immaculate pin-striping, enhanced with tiny details that take a keen eye to recognise – ghosted skulls, marbling and more.
With all the graphic work on the car, the Mazda is certainly something different in New Zealand, made even more obvious due to the lack of any body kit. Steve explains, “I’ve just never really been into body kits. I really like the original lines of the series 5, so I just removed the wing and left it at that.”
As a fixture of the car scene here in New Zealand, we wondered if Steve could ever sell his RX-7. He said, “I’ve thought about selling it plenty of times. I even had the cash in my hand at one point, but then couldn’t go through with it in the end. Everything else comes and goes, but this car has been with me through everything, and it’s given me most of my friends, and a lot of experiences I wouldn’t have had otherwise. It’s just got too much history and I’m not sure I’ll ever be able to get rid of it.”
With plans to start drag racing the car once it’s back together and in one piece, Steve doesn’t intend on ever being finished with it. “To me, it’s like my own little hot rod,” he says. “I drive trucks for a job, so a 300-kilowatt 1000kg car feels like a go kart as it is, let alone with the power increase that’s on its way. As long as I’m still having fun with the car, it won’t be going anywhere and it’ll keep being modified.”
After seeing Steve around the traps with this same car for a decade now, we aren’t sure we could ever imagine anyone else driving it anyway… See you for a re-feature in 2021 Steve!
 

Tuning menu 1990 Mazda RX-7 Savanna GT-R (FC3S)

Heart
ENGINE: Mazda 13BT twin rotary
BLOCK: Bridgeport, 3mm seals
INTAKE: S6 intake manifold, S6 throttlebody, K&N filter
TURBO: Masterpower T45
WASTEGATE: 46mm Tial
BOV: Turbosmart
EXHAUST: Class A Kustoms steampipe manifold, 3-inch stainless system, Promuff muffler
FUEL: 500hp Walbro pump, Turbosmart regulator, 4x1000cc injectors
IGNITION: Custom leads, NGK plugs
ECU: Microtech LT8S, Microtech hand controller, Profec B boost controller
COOLING: Davies Craig EWP 115 water pump controller and electronic pump, PWR oil cooler, aftermarket race aluminium radiator
OTHER: fully de-loomed engine bay, all alloy polished, side-mounted alternator, braided lines, Speedflow fittings
POWER: 306kW (410hp) at the wheels on 16psi

Drive
GEARBOX: Series 5 5-speed
CLUTCH: RE Amemiya twin plate
DIFF: Series 5 LSD

Support
STRUTS: D2 adjustable coilovers
OTHER: Factory sway bars front and rear, Whiteline bushes
BRAKES: Series 5 RX-7, Bendix performance pads

Shoes
WHEELS: (F) 19×8.5-inch TSW Zolder, (R) 19×10-inch TSW Zolder
TYRES: (F) 225/35R19 Triangle (R) 265/35R19 Triangle

Exterior
PAINT: Custom green/white pearl
ENHANCEMENTS: Custom bonnet, custom front bumper, custom rear bumper, custom airbrushed graphics

Interior
SEATS: Racepro
STEERING WHEEL: Nardi
INSTRUMENTATION: Autometer Procomp Ultralite oil pressure gauge
 

Driver profile Steve Hays

Age: 29
Location: Tauranga
Occupation: Truck driver
Build time: 10 years
Length of ownership: 10 years
Thanks: Stu Lawton and everyone @ Lawton Rotorsport, Leon & Mikey @ Class A Kustoms, Lee @ Courtney Road Panel, Kate and the team @ NAC Insurance, Mum and Kev, Cookey @ Promuff, Ruben, Dean @ Rotamax, Azhar and team @ 4&Rotary, Dad & Tanya, Mike Reid, Matt Locke, Todd @ B.O.P Polishers, RMD Transport, Stackbar, Shelley for all her support and help and everyone who gave a hand over the years
 
Words: Peter Kelly Photos: Adam Croy

A large (and ever expanding) range of professional car care products are now available in New Zealand at www.detaildepot.co.nz.

Detaildepot pride themselves in supplying top quality products from around the world, including Autoglym, Chemical Guys, Flex Tools, Kestrel machine polishers, Lake Country, Meguiars Detailer Range, 303 Products, and much much more! Sick of the same old limited range of consumer grade products, detaildepot have researched overseas markets and are bringing top-shelf and well respected brands to NZ – and there are still more arriving regularly.

Detaildepot reckon NZ is about 5 years behind the rest of the world in terms of detailing and car care, and it’s time to play catch-up! Machine polishing for example is no longer limited to panel shops and detailers alone – and they supply a wide range of machine polishers and accessories which will provide results unequalled by hand-polishing. Try the Flex XC3401 dual action polisher, and you’ll never go back to hand polishing, plus you’ll be able to remove scratches, micro-marring, oxidation, all sorts of paint defects.

All the products necessary to make your ride look the part are available, plus seeing as they’re local, service and support are easy. Head on over to their website and check out the huge range of supplies (probably the biggest in NZ) – plus if you’re wanting something particular that isn’t in stock, they’ll bring it in for you!

Over the weekend the 4&Rotary Jamboree took over Manfeild Raceway in Feilding, the one day event featured not only a huge show in the hall, but  plenty of on track action in the form of Super Lapp and Drifting. Be sure to check out issue 186 of NZPC for a full event rundown including results.

It’s videos like this that get us excited for the local launch of the Toyota FT-86. We can’t wait to see people start modifying these awesome cars!

There are many different schools of thought when it comes to building a street car. Some say it’s all about looking the part, but not actually being the part. Others say it’s all about being as low and loud as you can possibly be before the cops catch up to you, while others, like Jesse Blake, have a different point of view altogether. His 1999 Nissan Silvia S15 packs some serious punch, but you might not know it at first. It also doesn’t attract too much attention from the cops, but even if it did, there’s nothing to ping him on. In fact, Jesse could drive his car to work every single day in complete comfort, and yet it has the potential to run a 10-second pass and win a show trophy all in the same day. And that’s exactly the way he wants it.

In the beginning, Jesse’s idea for a street car was a little different to his current approach. “I originally built this engine for a R32 Skyline I owned at the time,” he explains. “It was pretty rough.” That all changed when the motor was put back together, though. It was just too good to put into a ratty old R32. Jesse needed something nicer: “I did heaps of research, and decided on an S15 Silvia. It’s light, modern and stylish. And I knew my motor would fit, with a bit of work.”
The motor in question is an immaculate Nissan RB30DET. The big 3-litre 6-cylinder has been built up to provide a nice, drivable engine package using a mildly ported RB25DET head and some basic strengthening components to allow for anything up to 450kW at the wheels. Sitting in the perfectly detailed S15 engine bay, the RB30 shares space with a Garrett GT35/40 turbocharger that is currently only pushing 8psi of boost through the big front-mount intercooler and into the GReddy intake, which is the native spring setting for the 50mm Turbosmart wastegate. With more than enough fuel provided by a monster system in the painted and detailed boot, the set-up currently makes 300kW at the rear treads, thanks to a Link G4 Storm ECU tuned by drag-racing legend Glenn Suckling at GSM. “Glenn is confident the motor will make a lot more power. I had problems with a leak the first time round, so we stopped at 300kW. I’ve just got to find the time and money to get it back on the dyno,” Jesse explains.

Externally, the Silvia has remained true to factory form – no big bodykits, wide guards or giant wings here. Jesse wanted a subtler feel to the car. “We do a lot of aftermarket suspension work at my work, and I’d seen so many cars come in with big bodykits that were cracked and bent – I didn’t want to go down that path.”
Instead of spending money on the kit and guards, Jesse put that cash into making what he already had absolutely perfect. Although, that said, his base vehicle wasn’t too bad a place to start off with. “The car only had 80,000kms on it when I got it, and it was nearly immaculate. It was in my garage for a couple of weeks, then I just stripped it down completely.”
The biggest modifications to the body came when it was time to fit the wheels. Jesse says: “I bought the wheels before even getting the car, then I had to make them fit.”
Considering the TSW Nagaros measure 19-inch at the front and 20-inch at the back, that took a bit of doing. “I had to section the chassis rails in the rear to get them to fit when the car was dropped right down.”
Working with suspension every day, Jesse knew exactly what he wanted to do in the handling department. Tein Flex 2-way coilovers with EDFC support the car, while Tein caster arms, adjustable rear arms and a GT-R rear sway bar all help to create one seriously well-behaved Nissan on the street or track. “This car is completely legal – it’s a nice street car,” Jesse says, “But I still built it to be driven to the track and drifted, grip raced or drag raced. My end goal is to be able to drive it to Meremere, run a few 10-second passes, then drive home again.”
Considering the quality of the build and its target power figure, that should be more than achievable. Perhaps next year Jesse could be one of the only guys out there who wins a show award and a race class at the V 4&Rotary Nationals? With no intentions to sell the car, and a full-power dyno run the only thing left on his “to-do” list, it could well happen…

Tuning menu: 1999 Nissan Silvia (S15)

Heart
ENGINE: Nissan RB30DET 3000cc straight-six cylinder
BLOCK: Factory rods and pistons, shot-peened and balanced crank, chromolly rings, race bearings
HEAD: Ported RB25DET head, HKS cam pulleys
INTAKE: GReddy polished intake manifold, 80mm throttle body, 4-inch intake pipe, 6-inch Simota filter, 300x600mm custom intercooler, 3-inch intercooler piping
TURBO: Garrett GT3540
WASTEGATE: 50mm Turbosmart
BOV: HKS sequential
EXHAUST: Custom steampipe exhaust manifold, 3-inch stainless exhaust system
FUEL: Custom 55-litre fuel cell, x2 Bosch 044 pumps, SX fuel pressure regulator, 1000cc Sard injectors
IGNITION: Redline coil packs, NGK 888 plugs
ECU: Link G4 Storm, HKS boost controller
COOLING: Alloy radiator, twin 12-inch fans, aftermarket oil cooler
OTHER: custom rocker cover
POWER: 300kW (409hp) at the wheels on 9psi (run in tune)

Drive
GEARBOX: R33 RB25DET 5-speed, short shift kit
CLUTCH: Exedy 5-puck
DIFF: Shimmed S15 Spec R

Support
STRUTS: Tein Flex 2-way coilovers
OTHER: Custom strut bars, Tein caster arms, custom adjustable rear arms, GT-R rear sway bar, Nolathane bushes
BRAKES: 355mm rotors, R33 Skyline calipers

Shoes
WHEELS: (F) 19×8.5-inch TSW Nagaro (R) 20×9.5-inch TSW Nagaro
TYRES: (F) Nangkang NS2 235/35R19 (R) Nangkang NS2 245/35R20

Exterior
PAINT: Factory silver
ENHANCEMENTS: Ducktail wing, Sparco fuel filler cap, JDM-style tail lights

Interior
SEATS: Sparco
STEERING WHEEL: Sparco
GEAR KNOB: Sparco
INSTRUMENTATION: Auto Meter
OTHER: Sony head unit, Sony components

Driver profile: Jesse Drake

Age: 29
Location: Auckland
Build time: 3 years
Length of ownership: 3 years
Thanks: Ronnie @ R.S.L, Chris @ AutoSparx, Glenn Suckling @ GSM, everyone @ B&T New Lynn, Greer @ Nisbits, Hirepool New Lynn, everyone @ A1 Auto Finish New Lynn, Steve Miller and all my work mates @ Steering & Balancing Specialists New Lynn, Travis @ Progressive Polishers & Electroplaters, Aaron Rollan, Emma Finny, Phil Dean, Angela Humble and all my family

Words: Peter Kelly Photos: Adam Croy

Thanks again to the thousands of people that turned up to NZPC Hardpark Wellington – it was absolutely packed!

The weather was perfect and the quality of cars were up a huge amount. Full coverage in the next issue of NZPC. For now, check out the full gallery below:

 
Five years ago a young Aaron Keach was standing on the grassy bank alongside the then Champion Dragway at Meremere. It was the weekend of the 4&Rotary Nationals and Aaron was happily taking in all the action.
Then, out of nowhere, inspiration chugged into life in the staging lanes to his right. An angry howl filled the valley as Craig Dyson and his Dyson Rotary team fired up their famous Series 5 Mazda RX-7. The yellow, 1200hp, 20B-powered Aussie machine blared its unique 20B sound out to the crowds as it jerked towards the water trough.
Once onto the strip, Craig brought up the revs and dropped clutch. The 20B howled and the big rear treads billowed smoke as the car thundered down the strip. After backing up and inching up to the line, the lights dropped and the RX-7 leant back on its hind-quarters, fired off the line and barrelled away.
After buttoning off at half way, the Dyson machine still pulled a high 8-second quarter out of the bag. It was well off the car’s 7.45 @ 305kph record, but it had done more than enough to change Aaron Keach’s life forever.
 
“After seeing the Dyson car run, I realised that no one had really built a cool FC (Series 4 and 5 RX-7) in New Zealand,” Aaron tells NZPC. “I decided then and there I’d build one.” Of course, Aaron didn’t quite realise how much of a nightmare he had just created for himself, or how many years it would take to complete; but as they say, you’ve got to pay the cost to be the boss. After finding himself a rugged 1988 Series 4 Mazda RX-7 to use as a base, he slowly began his dream build.
While he was figuring out exactly what he wanted to use between the struts of his car, Aaron also sat down with Grant Walker of GT Refinishers in Auckland to figure out exactly what he wanted to do with the exterior of the RX-7. He had some big plans for his wheels, and that meant a wide-body conversion to allow for the big rollers was definitely on the cards.
 
Grant is a bit of a maestro when it comes to steel fabrication, so it was decided that the car would use bolt-on Dmaxx fibreglass front guards (due to good availability and low cost) and custom hand-formed steel rears. Sure, working with steel is a lot more expensive and time-consuming, but the end result is more than worth the extra effort.
The new guards, which pump the car 80mm wider than factory on each side––=, are complemented by a full BN Sports body kit, but it’s the paint job that really sets this car apart. Aaron tells us: “I was going to get Grant to paint it in a gold/brown colour from a Toyota Corolla, but in the end I decided to go with my West Auckland roots and paint it satin black. There were plenty of matte and satin black cars around, but no one had really done a good quality one.”
It was while this work was being completed, over two years ago, that we first saw Aaron’s RX-7. We were impressed by the quality of the build, and the plans for the motor and the wheels, which were being test-fitted when we turned up. The massive 19-inch 3-piece Work Meisters, ordered brand new from Japan, looked amazing in black/polished-lip form, and measured 9-inches across at the front, and 12-inches at the rear. We told Aaron we’d love to shoot it when it was running, and told us it shouldn’t be more than a few months away.
 
However, as happens with many projects as big as this one, it has been a tough few years for this car. Every time we saw Aaron out and about, we’d ask him if the car was ready for the photo shoot, and every time he would say it was nearly done.
The car originally ran a Curran Brothers Racing 13B race motor – in fact the very same motor that powered Brent’s RX-2 to seven quarters before it went triple turbo triple rotor – but Aaron ran into big problems with the electrical and ignition system at the dyno.
We had planned to shoot the car straight after its tune, but that obviously was not going to happen now.
“The wiring was really messed up – I was pretty pissed off,” Aaron says, “so I eventually just decided to start again. It kind of worked out well though; the 13B was way too serious for my car. Brent [Curran] had a milder-built 20B sitting in his workshop, and he offered to swap motors.”
 
While the new bridge-ported, dowelled and balanced triple rotor was making its way into the RX-7, Aaron decided to look at rewiring the car himself. Taking his time and carefully going through the whole car, the West Auckland native methodically overhauled the entire system, which now performs faultlessly and fearlessly.
It was about this time that Aaron hit phoneys, an imitation crisis which shook him to the core: “I’d owned the Work wheels for a couple of years now, but since I bought them people had started making copies – fakes. They look pretty similar and they’re about a fifth of the price. I needed to do something different with the Meisters to make them stand out more.”
In a brilliant move, and one that really makes this car in our opinion, he took his Works back to Grant at GT Refinishers and asked him to paint them in a brilliant custom green hue, and had the rotor housings on his 20B painted to match. The resulting clash between the flat black body and the aggressive wheels is nothing short of spectacular.
 
On the outsikirts of West Auckland, Aaron is very happy that his FC3S has finally reached the photo shoot. However, when the new 20B triple rotor set up was being tuned a few days earlier, it made 391kW at the wheels at only 5000rpm, and then ran out of fuel.
“It needs another wastegate and bigger injectors to get more power out of it,” Aaron told us. Despite this, a quick strop reveals one seriously vicious machine, both in beautiful boosted 20B sound, and pure straight-line performance. Surrounded by a 9-point cage and strapped tightly into RPS seats, we couldn’t think of anywhere better to be.
Sure, the edges of his rear rims have been scraped to the metal by the guards and the perfect satin paint will probably see a few stone chips sooner, but that’s life and doesn’t matter to Aaron any more.
His car is running, it looks amazing, it’s damn fast and soon to be much faster, so Aaron’s happy. He has plans to enter the Mazda in everything from Superlaps, to burnout comps, shows and everything in between. After all those years of frustration you can be sure about seeing Aaron finally enjoying his RX-7 during the coming months.
Five years after gaining inspiration from a car that once graced the cover of NZPC, Aaron now finds his own car in that exact same spot – and that’s exactly what makes our culture so great. You never know, his car might inspire someone else out there to build their own weapon. Look out for a full feature in 2013 – fingers crossed!
 

Tuning menu 1988 Mazda RX-7 (FC3S)

 
Heart
ENGINE: Mazda 20B rotary
BLOCK: Bridge-port, dowelled, balanced, 3mm Mazda seals
INTAKE: Frank Wigg custom intake plenum, 4-inch throttlebody, custom intercooler, 4-inch intercooler piping
TURBO: Borg Warner S500 K44
WASTEGATE: Tial 60mm
BOV: Tial 50mm
EXHAUST: Custom RSL manifold, 5-inch front pipe, 4-inch exhaust system
FUEL: x2 Bosch 044 fuel pumps, Carter lift pump, 2-litre surge tank, braided lines, 60-litre Jazz fuel cell, 3x RC 750cc injectors, 3x1600cc Bosch injectors, custom fuel rails, SX fuel regulator
IGNITION: Microtech igniters, Bosch HEC715 coils, MSD leads
ECU: Microtech LT16, Turbosmart Eboost2
COOLING: Griffin alloy radiator, Davies Craig water pump, Real Deal Radiators oversized oil cooler, braided oil and water lines
OTHER: Gilmer drive, side mount alternator, custom wiring, custom radiator overflow, custom oil catch can
POWER: 391kW at the wheels on 13psi (run in tune)
 
Drive
GEARBOX: S5 RX-7 5-speed
CLUTCH: Quarter Master twin plate clutch, custom flywheel
DIFF: Locked
 
Support
STRUTS: D2 coilovers
OTHER: Custom strut bars, custom camber arms, custom toe arms, nolathane bushes
BRAKES: Zonelli rotors, rebuilt factory calipers, Willwood pedal box, braided lines, D2 Hydraulic hand brake
 
Shoes
WHEELS: (F) 19×9-inch Work Meister 3-piece (R) 19×12-inch Work Meister 3-piece
TYRES: (F) Toyo 225/35R19, (R) Toyo 285/30R19
 
Exterior
PAINT: Satin black respray
ENHANCEMENTS: Dmaxx front guards, BN bumpers, BN skirts, custom steel wide body rear guards, custom wing
 
Interior
SEATS: RPS
HARNESS: Momo
STEERING WHEEL: B&M shifter
INSTRUMENTATION: Defi oil temp, boost and water, B&M line locker
ROLL CAGE: 9-point
OTHER: Carbon door cards, custom control panel
 

Driver profile: Aaron Keach

Age: 22
Location: West Auckland
Build time: 3 years
Length of ownership: 4 years
Thanks: Brent Curran @ CBR, Grant Walker @ GT Refinishers, Craig Baker @ Mag & Turbo North Shore, Clinton and Nyle Buckley @ GSS, Pat @ Microtech NZ, Ben @ Repco Kelston, Monster Engineering, Frank Wigg, my dad and the rest of the family, Cody [YRUWET] and all my friends that turned a spanner

Words: Peter Kelly Photos: Adam Croy

A huge prize pool is on offer this weekend during the grand final of the Monster SPL series held at Hotwire Car Audio 4099 GT North Rd Kelston. The action kicks off at 11 am, so get on down and check out New Zealands loudest SPL machines going head to head.