Z Fever / Fever Racing

My name is Doug Mitchell and I am the President of Z-Fever, Inc. I started this company in 1988 while in college. I was 21 years old at the time. When I started out I had no idea we would grow to be the company we are today. All I knew was that I liked cars and working on them came very naturally to me. It all started when I bought a 1976 280Z that needed a LOT of work. I was in college and could not afford to pay anyone to work on my car so Instead, I bought a service manual and a few tools. Before long I developed a pretty good understanding of the different systems that make a car work. It wasn’t long till I started asking why? Why can’t you add a turbo? Why can’t you just turn up the boost? Why can’t a smaller Japanese engine get the same horsepower as a larger V8 American engine? I set out to build my Z into a turbocharged beast! I guess I was lucky that I never worked for any other shop. I was pretty stubborn and didn’t like hearing that something couldn’t be done. So, I had to do it myself. I used untraditional methods because I didn’t know any better, all I knew is how the systems functioned and knew that I could manipulate them. The outcome was a very unique and fast (for the time) turbo 280Z. It put down about 300rwhp and used a suck through carburetor system. After racing around town and beating some Mustangs and Camaros people started asking about my car and me. In no time at all I was helping others build their cars. After 3 years of working out of my car I decided to quit my job at UPS and start the business now called Z-Fever, Inc.

I incorporated in 1992 and got my first location, a 1-car service bay in a small industrial rental area. I was always a little crazy and used to follow Z-Car owners until they got to their destination, pull them over going down the street, jump out of my car at red lights, or pull over to help stranded Z motorists. I would do all this just to get my business card in their hands. I worked 12+ hours every day 6-7 days a week. Because of my hard work and honesty it wasn’t long until we had outgrown our first location. Our second location didn’t even have a building on it but had lots of room to grow. It was a one acre piece of property with a 10’ x 10’ storage area for my tools that I rented from a tow service. After 3 years of being there we had added 140+ parts cars to our inventory. The tow service sold the property and we were given 30 days to move. We had to sell all that inventory for scrap and we moved again, this time to a 2500 sq/ft facility. We were there for 8 years. We really gained our reputation for building the best, cleanest, and fastest cars with the 1990-96 300ZX Twin Turbos. We hired very good employees, we kept all the performance upgrades in stock, and I was available at all hours. It was common to find me hard at work well into the early hours of the morning. We knew these cars better than the Nissan technicians did and that still holds true today. The late 90’s brought us much success and prosperity but then Nissan did the unthinkable……they quit producing and selling the Z-Car. In 1996 Nissan announced they would no longer import the Z to the USA. We still had a good clientele base at that point but knew we needed to start looking for other avenues of attracting business. We had to start developing new products and services. We had to expand! We did our first SR20DET swap in 1998. It would start us down a whole new path and open up entirely new markets to us. For me, it took me back to that same feeling I had building my 1976 280Z. But technology was improving and we needed more equipment and more space. We moved again to our current location. A 6500 sq/ft facility with 7 lifts, in-ground Dynojet 248C, full fabrication department, computer diagnostic and reprogramming department, Showroom, and office space.

Our services have expanded to include:

• Paint and body services
• Engine building
• New and used OEM and Performance parts
• ROM Tuning ECU’s
• Dyno Tunning Services
• Powder CoatingPolishing
• Wiring Harness
• Fabrication
• Race Prep
• Engine Swaps (VG30DETT, SR20DET, RB26DETT, RB25DET, VQ35DE, VK45DE, VK56DE, 2JZGTE, 1JZGTE, LS1), and much more.

In short, if you have a Nissan car and want anything from normal repair and maintenance to all out motor swaps or you want to go professionally race then we are your one-stop-shop. Since being at this location we have had 15+ cars featured in the top 4 import magazines in the country, Sport Compact Car, Super Street, Modified, and Turbo (not to mention many other smaller magazines). Our Z-Fever owned company cars have won trophies in just about every car show we have ever entered them into and we have amassed tons of trophies. The quality of the work we do is far superior to most. Employees are still the key to any successful business and we are no different. Our head technician has worked for us for 11 years. Before us, he helped to open Tampa’s local Infiniti dealership and was the lead technician for them for 11 years. Before that he worked for Nissan as a technician for 10 years.Our #2 tech has been with us for 2 years but worked for Nissan for 4 years and did his first SR swap at his house 6 years ago. He is a fabricator and a builder as well.Our Main tuner is Martin Struck. Martin is a brilliant individual with a huge reputation. He started working for us about 8 years ago. He was a customer that reminded me of myself. He used to come in asking the most obscure questions that I had to go research to find out. He has a huge background in electronics, computers, and engineering. He is the heartbeat of most of the work we do. He can do it all!Through the skills of our employees we are able to offer superior quality and a wide variety of services. Through our 20 years of experience and history we are able to offer the reassurance that we will be there for you in the future.

In an age were performance shops come and go, we are the rock that refuses to go away. And me, I still love what I do and look forward to serving you and your needs in the future.

Sincerely,
Doug Mitchell