For the 2006 SEMA show in Las Vegas, Brian Fox had worked with a tuner and presented a 2007 NissanVersa turbo that was a hit with the Nissan crowd.Later in the year, Brian and car tuner Kenny (TurboChargers.com) were talking on the phone discussing the possibility of building another SEMAproject out of a new Nissan Altima Coupe.While Brian worked on a design, interested parties atat Nissan Corporate heard about it through the grape vine and contacted him concerning the concept.They where interested in showcasing the Altima Coupe for the SEMA Show this year if Brian and teamcould get it done on time.There was one HUGE problem, “we couldn’t find a car in the US with a 3.5L 6-speed as they where all sold”.The hunt was on.
Brian eventually contacted Craig Keys who does Advertising at Nissan and was able to track down a dealer that may still have one.Brian passed on Kenny’s info to the folks at Nissan and next thing you knew, Kenny received a phone call from a Nissan dealer in Houston.The vehicle they had in stock was a white 6 speed with black leather that was ready to roll.After working out the financial aspect of the vehicle the car was scheduled to be delivered to Kenny’sshop in order to start the transformation.
ENGINE MODS:
Artisan Performance GTK-650 Turbo Kit (457.2 hp at wheels on Dyno Jet)
Artisan Performance 650cc Injectors
Artisan Performance Fuel Rail
Artisan Performance Crank Pulley
Artisan Performance 3 inch Turbo back exhaust
Artisan Performance Battery relocation kit
AEM FIC Controller
Turbonetics Raptor BOV
Turbonetics Evolution Wastegate
EXTERIOR MODS:
BASF R-M White Paint
Custom Extreme Dimensions Front Lip
Custom Hood with turbo inlet
Impressive Signs Graphic Package
Meguiar’s Car Care Products
INTERIOR MODS:
STRI
– Boost gauge
– Oil Pressure gauge
– EGT gaugeYonaka Motorsports Black Leather Seats w/ Red Stitching
Rockford Fosgate Components
BRAKE/SUSP MODS:
Brakes
Front: AR Racing 13″ rotors with 4-piston calipers
Rear: stock
20×8.5 Privat Netz rims
245/30/20 Toyo T1R tires
Performance Springs (1.8″ drop)
The car was delivered the first week of October which gave a very tight deadline to have the carready for the October 30th SEMA Opening Day.While Kenny started working on developing a new turbo kit for the Altima Coupe, Brian worked on designing the car and getting the parts deliveredto Houston so Kenny could get them installed.From delivery to completion it had required two weeks to put the vehicle together and have it ready for SEMA. Quite a feat.
The cars debut received a strong response from the media, consumers, and Nissan Corporate.Bottom line, all the hard work and time had paid off exceptionally well with the short timeframe theywere allowed to get the vehicle completed.Looking back at the project and the timeline, Brian’sonly regret was the lack of time to get the vehicle to the level he would have liked.The performanceside had been completed but he feels there were other upgrades that could have been performed shouldtime had allowed.
Project Partners: Fox Marketing, Nissan USA, TurboChargers.com, Artisan Performance,Turbonetics, BASF Refinish, STRI Gauges, Privat Wheels, Toyo Tires, Meguiar’s, Rockford Fosgate, Yonaka Motorsports, AEM, AMSOIL, Subway and Impressive Signs