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I think it's worth mentioning that the RX8 is a completely different experince to all the other options that have been mentioned. Someone moving from a skyline to an RX8 should be aware of a few things... Firstly in relation to the engine, power is delivered very smoothly and without fuss. There is a slight peak from about 5k onward to 9.5k. There is not a great deal of torqe forcing you into the seat like a turb coming on boost. If this is what you are after, do not buy an RX8 unless you're happy with the power/torque or planning for FI or other significant conversion. Having said this, the stated power/torque figures don't quite capture the whole experience of accelerating in an RX8 however more power/torque would be welcome if the opportunity arose. Secondly the handling is brilliant. By that I mean that moving from a spirited driving mindset to a comfortable traffic driving mindset is pretty much transparent. Seriously an exciting/thrilling drive. I'm aware of some criticism of other vehicles in that they are not able to achieve a good balance. Again if you want something more track oriented perhaps you need to look at improving the suspension with aftermarket parts, or going elsewhere. Thirdly the interior and build quality is a cut above the other options. The materials and design of the interior compliments itself. I was disappointed in the quality of other interiors, although i have to say the Liberty GT with the STI pack and McIntosh sound system was pretty impressive. The BOSE sound system in the RX8 is good enough unless you want to impress the crowd outside TGIs on Chapel. Then you need to look at aftermarket. When compared to the 3 & 6 MPS the interiors feel significantly more vanilla. The seating position is far more upright. I guess its all about trying to upgrade a 20-30k car to a 40-50k package? e.g. the gear boot on the 3 & 6 feels really thin, knobs on the climate controls are nasty... i could go on but i cbf... All in all, if you're still uncertain as to what you should buy keep test driving until you decide. If someone really wants to sell you something they will hand you the keys time and time again. Also accept the fact that the car you pay for will be the car you take home, by that i mean its not going to magically get more comfortable or more powerful on the way home. Modifications cost $. Plan with contingency in mind... P.S. That was definately longer that i thought... Hope the read was worth it...

Ey.. As silly as this sounds, i need the cap that goes on the coolant bottle (usually yellow) for an R33. Anyone got an extra they wanna sell?

I was able to source a DIN pocket which has fitted perfectly into the dash & the mounting holes. Exceptionally happy with the find as I was beginning to get peeved at the massive hole under the HU. I purchased it from Stylin Car Audio on Nepean Hwy... it was 39 bucks... I'll still need to play with the surround on the HU face... Fibre glass doesn't sound like a bad idea....

I'll try installing it on the weekend, fingers crossed i guess... As for the Nissan quote, the customer service rep asked me for my chassis number, and from there she searched for the part # of the JIN Pocket? She mentioned that there were many different JIN Pockets for R33s, something which i have no clue about... If this pocket doesn't fit, I'll pursue the Pulsar route... The situation is lookin' alot more hopeful now... i thought i was destined to have an ugly HU install....

Thanks for the input everyone... I've gone down to Central Car Radio and picked up a JIN Pocket. The pocket itself does not have a flap as mentioned by some of the others, but i'm positive it will provide the best fit so far... it also appears to have been manufactured by nissan... I'm happy... for now. Cheers...

Funnily enough the guys at JB Hi Fi mentioned that i'd have to source a pocket from the nissan dealer. They did mention that they sold pockets for Toyotas which i believe won't fit. I guess they don't sell the universal one here? I wonder if those 3 Gauge clusters fit cleanly, or if they require abit of fiddling... my main goal is to make it look stock i guess. prosman: Any tips on where to find that GTR Cluster?? I'm assuming their relatively pricey, i.e. 200+? Otherwise where'd you find your dash pocket? I think u bought the exact one that i'm after... looks like an ash tray with a fold down lid?? I wouldn't mind paying $30 for that... I think i may have to go round to the wrecker...

Hey All... I've recently swapped over the el-crappo stock head unit (wouldn't play cd's anymore) with a new, single DIN one. Nissan has quoted approx $60+ for a DIN pocket for the remaining empty space which i don't believe is value for money considering that the pocket is handy but still relatively simple... Out of curiosity, what has everyone done with the extra DIN Space? any brilliant ideas?? The only think of is to put gauges there? Autobarn advises that they may be able to order a cheaper universal DIN pocket made for a group of different make/models, but they don't appear to fit just right. Does anyone know where to get cheaper, correctly sized din pockets???

if you follow the bonnet release from the latch inside it will head almost straight into the fire wall.. there's some insulation there and behind the insulation is the grommet which you can pull out. Now it doesn't got straight into the engine bay, but heads up abit....u'll ne some LOOOONG cable ties or something similar to push it up and into the bay. Lemme know if u want a pic... it's too dark @ the mo & i don't have a flash... hehe

After 3 hours of pokin' around under the dash, i ended up pulling the grommet connected to the bonnet release line. I found it after following the bonnet release line into the firewall, and pulling away a tiny bit of the insulation there was a grommet approx 2cm wide. Then it was all a matter of threading through the hose (which was pain to get through to the engine bay)....

I put on 5 of the 6 bolts tightly.... The bolt in question i did not install... As for the allen key bolts... I think that might work (as its the head of the bolt that prevents it from being fitted)...I'll pop down to the local auto shop & see if i can find something.. Cheers.

PM Sent RE: Timex Gauges

Good Stuff... All is well now. All the water/oil lines are in and there appear to be no leaks. All that's left now is to keep an eye out on the engine temps (as i think there is still some air in the water system which i need to bleed out).... Car is running well... doesn't make that whining spool noise that i've become accustomed to..... Boost is heaps laggier, but more solid (if that's the correct description) i'm hoping that it will slowly become more responsive as i break in the turb.... Thanks for everyone's input. I gotta say the 'HOW TO' by JimX contributed HEAPS to getting the old turbo out: http://www.skylinesaustralia.com/forums/sh...ead.php?t=22118 Fingers crossed that nothing else decides to blow up (metaphorically speaking).....

The exhaust half is not standard anymore. It looks as tho they may have modified it/replaced it during the hi flow process as the oil line that sits on top still fits, but it is not the same as it was before (i took photo's of the entire setup prior to removing the turbo and although all the lines are roughly in the same spot, the connection doesn't look the same). Either way, All bolts except for the water line on the engine side of the turbo fit fine. mmm... I think i may modify the bolt for the exhaust as well.... because that too is a length issue. I'll take photos nex time so it's easier to picture what's happenin'....

1. The water lines were shifted slightly. Approx 2mm on the banjo with the length problem. I found that after I removed the turbo, and investigating how deep the banjo bolt actually went, that it was actually the length of the banjo bolt (too long) that was preventing it from securing the water line in place. 2. I managed to wiggle the dump enough to get one of the centre bolts on properly. I couldn't tighten it with any tool in my posession, however the centre bolt on the opposite side is making contact with a slight bend in the dump pipe. The bend appears to be from the round pipe being flattened to fit the exhaust side of the turbo. Abit annoying...that's why i'm curious as to whether or not i even need it....

Both washers are on there... made 100% sure i didn't lose any of those... I can actually see inside the hole where the bolt inserts a small mark where the end of the bolt made contact with the housing. Not happy bout it, but I didn't even realize the bolt was too long until i got to a point where i thought "stuff it i'll take it off again......"

Hi Everyone, Just wondering if anyone's ever had the following problems fitting a turbo to an RB25DET, and if so, what did you do: 1. When fitting the turbo, being a highflowed standard unit, you've found that the original banjo bolts for one of the water lines, that used to fit perfectly, is now too long and effectively prevents you from screwing them in all the way... 2. When bolting on the dump pipe, the 2 centre bolts (of 6) are IMPOSSIBLE to insert due to the widened neck area of the dump pipe where it connects to the turbo. Now logically thinking, but not being of sound mechanical background, will simply grinding the banjo bolt a couple of threads shorter effectively fix problem 1? As all i can see is that the bolt is too long, so shortening it seems the most logical action? As for the second problem...can you leave these 2 bolts unbolted? Or at the very least, screwed in but not completely tightened? So frustrating having the hardware ready to go but coming across problems like these... P.S. Have a Fantastic Christmas all... and the enjoy new year celebrations after that.

Just read about that chasers STI... Geez that guy pumped alot of cash into that thing... Looks pretty mean tho. I wonder what he says to the STI techs when they do his service...

I've been watchin' that thread with interest... quite informative and would've saved me alot of time if there were threads with similar info on other garages as well. At the very least, it would've saved me a few hours instead of doing kamikaze searches on a few forums and makin' phone calls.

I'm not quite sure how big they are in melb, but i only managed to find a handful of posts mentioning them. I did find this on autospeed.com.au tho: http://www.autospeed.com.au/cms/A_0726/article.html Whether or not it's relevant is questionable.... but at least they're doing something in their spare time...

I sourced my 'shortlist' by searching "Turbo" in the Yellow pages so I guess that wasn't the most complete of approaches. I've called around and was quoted a varying number of prices.... just about all of the businesses I contacted where "strictly" turbo shops (if there is such a thing)... I haven't contacted either of those that you've mentioned... might be worth the call tho for my own piece of mind.....

It'll be a high flow as well... I looked at buying brand new, but $2000 for a turbo in addition to the modifications required for compatibility/support didn't sound too appealing...

Hi All... Just wonderin' if anyone has dealt with Johnson's Performance Centre in Thomastown. I plan to get some turbo work done and need feedback from customers that have had work done by them. Maybe some results pre and post upgrade??.. I've been told good things, but i'm lookin' more opinions...