- With a potent twin-turbo V-6, the Z32-generation Nissan 300ZX was a performance icon.
- Steve Millen’s outfit, Stillen, made it even more potent and dubbed the resulting creation the SMZ.
- Between 50 and 60 SMZs were built.
In the mid-1990s, no Nissan was hotter than one driven by New Zealand-born racer Steve Millen. A former rookie of the year at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, Millen piloted a monstrous, widebody 300ZX IMSA GTS to the series championship in 1994, the car’s 800-hp twin-turbo engine belching fire on every downshift. If you were after a more powerful 300ZX for the street, Millen again was the man to see.
The 300ZX twin-turbo was already a pretty stout performer in its day, its 300-hp engine providing enough steam to take the fight to the likes of the mighty Toyota Supra. Steve Millen Sportparts (Stillen) comprehensively reworked the car. Stillen’s version broadened that performance envelope, not just with more boost, but also with improved braking, a stiffer suspension, and an aero kit. Further, the SMZ wasn’t merely a hastily tuned special, but a performance upgrade developed with Nissan’s blessing. The cars were 300ZX twin-turbos shipped from Nissan directly to Stillen’s shop in Costa Mesta, California. After the modifications and bodywork were completed, the cars were then sent to specially selected Nissan dealerships where they were sold with a full new-car warranty.
Fewer than 60 of these cars were built, and of those, only a handful in the 1996 model year, which was the final one for the 300ZX in the United States. This 1996 300ZX SMZ is up for auction on Bring A Trailer—which, like Car and Driver, is part of Hearst Autos.
This example is designated 96-102, although SMZs were numbered in a somewhat haphazard fashion (reportedly a car numbered 95-098 was built for a Microsoft employee who was working on Windows 98 at the time). It has 41K miles on the odometer and has had some major maintenance items done. The spark plugs and coil packs were replaced last year, and the clutch was replaced in 2014. The car was sold new by a New Mexico Nissan dealership, and had a sticker price of $66,371—that’s more than $130,000 today.
With a new boost controller and improved flow for the air intake and exhaust, these cars had a claimed peak output of 365 horsepower. Car and Driver tested an SMZ in June of 1995 and recorded a 0-60 mph time of 5.3 seconds, a 70-0 mph stop in 187 feet, and 0.92 g on the skidpad. A 2023 Nissan Z Performance is less than a second quicker in a sprint to 60 mph, and only out grips the SMZ by 0.01 g. By 1996 standards, Stillen’s creation was a performance monster.
The auction includes all manner of extra goodies, including spare wheels, an SMZ-branded car cover and apparel, and a copy of the Car and Driver issue with the SMZ road test. This Z is still quick by modern standards, and rare enough to raise eyebrows when you pull up at your local cars and coffee.
The auction ends on October 19.
Contributing Editor
Brendan McAleer is a freelance writer and photographer based in North Vancouver, B.C., Canada. He grew up splitting his knuckles on British automobiles, came of age in the golden era of Japanese sport-compact performance, and began writing about cars and people in 2008. His particular interest is the intersection between humanity and machinery, whether it is the racing career of Walter Cronkite or Japanese animator Hayao Miyazaki’s half-century obsession with the Citroën 2CV. He has taught both of his young daughters how to shift a manual transmission and is grateful for the excuse they provide to be perpetually buying Hot Wheels.
