The delivery of time-warping torque seen here is enough to make any grown man look for a part-time job on the weekend to fund his own project. That sort of horsepower doesn’t come cheap or easy, but when it’s done as cleverly and effectively as this RB26-powered Z car, it inspires men to cross oceans, climb mountains, and take on the Saturday night shift at the bowling alley.

Photo credit: Richard Fleming

An N1-spec RB26 motor, bumped up to 2.8 liters with a stroker crank, is fed by a Borg Warner EFR 8374 pushing 13 pounds of boost. As a testament to efficiency, that relatively mild boost pressure is enough to net 800 horsepower. Further harnessing the turbo six’s power delivery, which seems to grow and grow relentlessly as it nears redline, is a HGT six-speed sequential that delivers power to an R200 LSD.

That power, delivered to the driven wheels which lack much weight over them, could easily spin the rubber into a mist. Thankfully, sticky A050 Advan semi-slicks wrap the Volk TE37Vs; measuring 19×9″ and 19×9.5″ front and rear, respectively, they help cleanly deliver that power to the road like only a real racing car can.

As driver/owner Paul Henshaw is an admitted amateur, the car is set up on the safe side. Cajoled into Sydney Motorsports Park’s turn one, the Z exhibits a small amount of understeer, which Henshaw minimizes with a subtle lift off the throttle.

Everywhere else, the power is put down well, the engine almost always in the powerband, and the car shows great stability. It seems the brakes aren’t being used to their full potential and the corner entry speed could be quicker, but the car can’t be cheap. Scratch that – this is a 240Z cornering at ridiculous speeds; of course he’s going to be a little cautious.