I hope the info i present here will be useful in helping bring your car up to speed so that the event will be safe as well as fun for you and everyone else.
I'll break things down into sections for somewhat easy reading but really everything here should be reviewed.
Suspension
Your suspension should be in good working order...this means NO BLOWN STOCK SUSPENSION or anything questionable.
to drive the dragon safely your suspension is key, if you are unsure about the condtion of the suspension components (shocks, struts, springs, bushings, ect) then you may want to rethink driving this road.
All bushings should be in good shape as worn bushings can cause sudden changed in steering inputs as well as hinder the cars' handling characteristics and capabilities.
An lsd is reccomended as there will be lots of tight turn-ins up hills, may or may not cause wheel spin depending on setup.
CHECK ALL SUSPENSION BOLTS! - check to make sure everything is tight to factory specs...this is the last place you want a control arm to come loose!
Balljoints, Tie rods, and any moving suspension component should be inspected for wear and replaced if worn out.
A proper alignment is a MUST as again there are quite a few switchbacks which if out of alignment can be quite hairraising.
Bald tires are a no-no, make sure you have some good rubber on the car even if they're cheapy all seasons, some tread is better than no tread however a UHP summer tire or r compound tire would be the best.
Brakes
The dragon is a very steep and curvy road, that being said it is VERY hard on brakes and the braking system.
I would strongly reccomend that if you do not engine brake to slow down that you may want to start getting comfortable in doing so as if you use the brakes non stop you will loose them very quickly!
Again with the suspension if the system is worn or not functioning properly the car is a SERIOUS hazard to yourself and others, i REAAAALY dont want to be infront of some one who's brakes have failed.
The brake pads dont need to be anything fancy, but performance pads will help with brake fade resistance as well as decreased stopping distance...good factory style pads should be just fine for most people as long as sensible braking is used; reader beware the el cheapo brake pads are just as good as wet cardboard when hot...so spend some coin on good pads.
Straight rotors are also another overlooked part of the system, i had a set of rotors that were just fine under daily driving but once they got good and hot were warped all to hell...but when cool were just fine again.
rotors in good shape and thickness are a must for proper brake operation.
One of the best 'mods' you can do is to flush the brake fluid out of the car...i have seen loads of modified cars with brake fluid that was as black as asphalt, this is not good and will not fly on the dragon (but you might when the brakes fail
)A good brake fluid flush should be performed and high quality fluid should be used, ATE Super blue racing DOT 4 or their TYP 200 fluid is great for street modded cars and holds up well on curves.
Another great fluid (and more readily available) is Pentosin Super DOT4 brake fluid which can be had for about 10$ at your local NAPA store (napa PN is DOT4...seriously), I run this in my s14 as well as my jag.
If you have the means to do so then airducts to the brake rotors will also help cool the rotors and pads and keep your brakes at optimal operating conditions.
Cooling
Its well known that one of the major achilles heel in rb swapped s chassis cars is cooling.
unfortunately due to the design of the engine bays and the fact that the car was never intended to house a big iron block inline 6 cooling an rb powered car will always be a challenge...however there are a few steps you can take to keep your car cool under stress.
I will say now that if you have trouble keeping the car cool on the highway where there is lots of cool moving air then you may very well have serious issues on the dragon due to the lack of airflow and the steep inclines that are found on the road.
Some things I've done in past with customers cars as well as my own to keep cool you may find useful
Big radiator - most of you have upgraded units already...if you're on the stocker then its nothing but borrowed time. Upgrade as budget allows, and fyi r32/33 gear FITS in an s chassis with almost no modification.
Thermostat - OEM nissan z32 tt stat is perfect, nismo helps but will only put off overheating if it is going to happen, can also cause the car to get stuck in cold start which is never a good thing. Only use nissan thermostats, the rest are garbage and cost more than OEM.
Coolant - old, rusty, used, or just generally nasty coolant should be flushed out. refill with a 30/60 percent split of antifreeze and deionized water works well...brand doesnt matter but honda coolant (blue stuff) is great...baller pentosin stuff is the best.
water pump - n1 is a great pump to have for mid to high rpm work, stocker will begin to cavicate and cause aeration of the coolant which will reduce cooling effiency...no good.
Addtives - i SWEAR by redline water wetter, its about 8$ and available at almost every major parts house. definately helps.
Radiator cap - most people never replace them but they should be replaced yearly, stock is about 13psi (0.9bar) but jumping to a 16psi cap will stave off overheating by raising the boiling point of the system...i run an 18psi cap on my car.
Fans - Cheap is no good, personally its SPAL or go home...some people have luck with flexalites but i've had mixed results...forget the ebay specials as they move NO air what so ever. A bit more coin spent on fans is worth it in the end. You want a minimum of 3000cfm combined airflow from the fans, more is better or if you can fit a clutch fan!
Oil cooler - coupled with a thermostatic control this keeps the oil at optimal temp but is also a great way to dump heat from the engine.
Power
Everyone likes power, fast cars = fun, its a simple equation.
For people on stock ecus a quick and effective way of making a bit more power is to reset the ecu by unplugging it from the car or using consult to reset the ecu...this will clear any self learn and allow for maximum timing advance from the ecu.
might not be a whole lot but on most cars this is good for a 10-15hp gain over an unreset ecu.
Check and set base timing via a consult scan tool or a proper timing light, 15* for manual ecus or 20* for auto ecus.
However moutain driving is a bit different for cars as there is the element of atmospheric changes.
For modified cars with aftermarket fuel pressure regulators I'd strongly reccomend that when you start set your base pressure to ~46psi w/o vacuum to compensate for elevation changes that you will encounter during the drive; car may run a bit rich but its better than leaning out unexpectedly.
Stock fpr does a pretty good job of compensating for elevation changes so those on stock fpr should be ok...
If you're on a map based ecu then all should be well assuming that the elevation compesation scaling is working on the ecu, i'd assume if the car was professionally tuned (and the tuner was worth a damn) that this will be setup to avoid any potential headaches.
Maf based cars have no worries, maf measures the actual amount of air going in so the ecu is self scaling for pressure changes.
One thing to consider is that the altitude changes also brings in the change of boost pressure change, the quick and dirty method is for every 1000feet above sea level you'll loose .5psi of boost...at the blue ridge parkway's peak this is 6500ft, or almost 3.5psi lost!
You may want to run higher than normal boost to compensate for the pressure changes but I have found that the power reduction, while noticable, is not that irritating but can actually be useful...to each his own.
In short if you normally rock out at 10psi, then you'll want to run closer to 14psi to mantain your 'normal' power output.
Driving
The dragon is a very twisty and curvy road, while not impossible for everyone to drive on it can be a bit daunting as well as dangerous.
My main advice here is that you should not try and drive past your own abilities, some people will be able to drive the dragon faster whether due to driving abilities or a better setup or both...dont try to copy some one elses line and style, you may end up in a rock face.
For those of you driving the parkway the roads are rated with a speed limit of 45mph, however I can comfortably cruse at 65...however at 70 it is on limit so your mileage may vary...again these speeds are not guide lines but is purely based on driver skill and car setup.
DONT STEP OVER THE DOUBLE YELLOW LINE!
There are park rangers and troopers all over the place as it is well known that the dragon is a drivers road...dont be stupid and speed (and if you do dont get caught!).
There undoubtedly will be motorcycles on the dragon as well, and they tend to have big brass balls which means they will try and pass in blind curves and be wreckless...remeber to obey traffic rules as some bends if you're not in your lane you've over a cliff; best to just let them pass and roll with it.
Thats about as much as I can think about at the moment...there might me more im missing but if i remember it i'll add it in.
I attend school at WCU in cullowhee,nc which is approx 45min to an hr away from fontana village, if you need help with something or a lookover on the car my schedule is somewhat flexible so please feel free to ask...email is the best form of contact.
I'll have a few odds and end spares with my for the trip so if some one needs something I may have a backup.
If you'd like a tune for a bit more oomph on the dragon well, email me and we can discuss your needs.
Hope everyone finds this useful, and hope to see you there!