sven laptop

I would also be interested in the same (as long as it fits a series 1 R33 GTS-t sedan).

A5h, as you say it's your car & your decision. However if you don't want to be instant cop-bait, then DON'T put those attention-grabbers on your car. Let your car's innate style & class speak for itself. You'll probably save yourself some unwanted hassles in the process.

Also remember that the broker can give you an idea of how much the car will end up costing, but in the end there are several variables & it might cost you considerably more than you expected. If it does, there's no-one to complain to. It's not like going to a car yard & seeing the price of a car rise by $2,000 overnight. You can't bargain it down if you're already financially committed to buying it. My R33 GTS-t sedan ended up costing me $3,000 more than I was told it would, but there's nothing I can do about it now. Mind you, the car is here now. I love driving it & it was probably still a little cheaper than buying it here, but the wait & the hassle made up for that.

It wasn't going to be on Today Tonight. It was going to be on Channel 7 News. Dunno if it was though. PS: Did you all notice thew Skyline tail-lights on one of the cars they showed on the promo?

If you don't like surprises, or you're impatient, then buy locally. If you don't mind waiting & you think you can trust your import broker, then go for it, you might save some $$$. But having just received & registered my R33 (more than 4 months after I signed on the dotted line with the import broker) my advice would be to be patient & don't believe what you're told about how much it will end up costing. Good luck.

Are any of you honestly surprised that we have some tossers driving Skylines (and giving the rest of us Skyline owners a bad name) when so muchy of the talk about them in this forum & elsewhere is about how much power we get out of them. Logically if a person spends a lot of time & money modifying a car to produce more & more power then they're going to want to use it. Now, when you consider the speed limits and the penalties for breaking the law, you have to wonder why anyone needs 500hp at the wheels, but people keep doing it. No-one's perfect - I've had more speeding fines than I care to remember - but I like to think that the most important consideration when driving (and in life) is how your actions affect other people. Happy (& safe) driving

PS: If you want to learn about how to beat parking fines - in the courts & otherwise - try this site. www.biziworks.com.au/parkingfinesmadeeasy/

We all hate parking fines & of course that translates into hating the people who hand out the parking fines. I've had plenty of them myself, so I know how you feel But remember a couple of things: - Parking fines are the responsibility of local councils, not State or Federal governments, so don't blame Bracks, or little Johnny F**k-knuckle, or even George W. Brainless, 'coz they've got nothing to do with it. - If you know the inspector comes around at 11:01 each day, then make sure you're there at 10:59. Not always easy, I know, but that's the best way to beat them. Good luck!

1: performance 2: ride & handling (there's nothing like a well-sorted rear-wheel-drive chassis with plenty of power & good tyres 3: appearance (inside & out) What I don't like is that mine came with a CD stacker MINUS its cartridge, and it's a Japan-only model which is no longer being made. So time to shell out more $$$ for a whole new stacker. Any suggestions?

I know the new system isn't (quite) in yet, but do you have any idea how much we should expect to pay for these 15 year-old R32s next year? Specifically I'm interested in GTRs, GTS4s and 4-door GTSTs. I hope you can help.

I went to the Vicroads office in Carlton (should've gone to one up the bush somewhere!). It wasn't the VIN number, it was definitely the compliance plate he was referring to - the green one. My appointment there is at 10:45 tomorrow morning, so maybe I can get up to Oakleigh beforehand & have that workshop look at it. Still, in the meantime I've printed off all the rego & compliance info from the Vicroads website & it doesn't mention tamper-proof rivets anywhere, so if worst comes to worst I'll ask the bloke to show me the rule that says I need them to be tamper-proof. Anyway, thanks for the help & advice.

Any other suggestions also welcome........

Thanx, I'll give him a try.

For what it's worth, I just got Pirelli P6000s all round on my car for $219 each (fitted) from Bob Jane. It's a lot of money, but not much more than you pay for crappy tyres. So far they're great wet & dry.

OK, so the R33 GTSt has arrived, I've had it complied (costing 50% more than the import broker said it would), I've had it roadworthied (after fitting new front discs & disconnecting some dodgy wiring) & made the appointment at VicRoads to have it registered. Everything's going smoothly until the VicRoads bloke decides that the compliance plate is stuck on with the wrong type of rivets!!!!! He says they need to be "tamper-proof rivets", so the plate can't be removed & swapped onto other cars. So he says it can't be registered until the right rivets are used. Fair enough I say & go looking for someone to remove the old rivets & attach the new ones. However, no-one seems to know about these rivets except Carizma in Richmond & they're too busy to do the job until next week. SO ..... can anyone recommend a place that can do the job at short notice? Any decent compliance place should be able to help, but I'm struggling to find any in the yellow pages. PLEASE HELP ME if you know of a compliance workshop in Melbourne that I can try. PS: This is urgent. Thanks in advance.

Don't be in a hurry if you're importing. I began the importing process for my R33 GTSt sedan just after Xmas & the car finally arrived at my place last week. It's in good conmdition & there weren't any big nasty surprises, but be prepared for a lot of stuffing around if you're importing it yourself. Also allow extra $$$ because mine has ended up costing $2,000 more than the import broker told me to expect. Good luck. PS: The car's great & will be fully rego'd & legal on Thursday. WOOOO HOOOOOO!!!!!

WOOPS! Sorry, the email address should be [email protected] (not "nust")

Please can anyone help? I've just got my R33GTST complied & ready to register (at last!!!) but here'sone small problem. It arrived from Japan complete with the Sanyo 10 CD stacker in the boot, as described by the import broker, BUT the bloody CD cartridge is missing!!!!! To make matters worse, it'sa model that was never sold here & Sanyo Australia hasn't been much help. So, does anyone know where I can get a cartridge for a SANYO EXCEDIO model CDF-C6F ????? If you can help then please let me know by PM or email to [email protected] If I can't find the cartridge the system is useless & I'll have to get a whole new stacker, so pleasae let me know anything that might help. Thanks everyone - Sven

Pops, you're right about the valet key - I read about it in the owner's manual. The idea is you can give that key to the valet parking guy when you go to the opera (hahahahahaha) & it lets him drive the car but not get into the parts where you keep your valuables - ie: glovebox and/or boot. it's a nice idea. Buggered if I know how many people ever use it.

Alrighty then (and please forgive my ignorance, I'm a first time importer), I'm now told by the import broker that: "It should take 3 days to get it cleared from the wharf and a week for compliance. Then a further week to get it to Melbourne." So, does that sound realistic? Anyone who's imported a car knows that you put quite a bit of faith in people you've never met to do the right thing by you. I'm hoping and trusting that in my case they are doing the right thing. If anyone can convince me why I shouldn't trust them then I'm all ears......like Andy Caddick ...and by the way Red17, if I

Well, tell me how long you reckon it'll take. The boat is due to land in Brisbane on Monday the 3rd. The compliance plate is there waiting for it & the car's booked in for the work to be done, or at least started, next week. So please, give me some words from the wise!

It's interesting to read of all these experiences, as my R33 GTSt sedan is now on the boat & will, I hope, be parked at my place within 2-3 weeks. I'm waiting nervously. Most people I speak to have never heard of private imports so I'm writing an article on the process and my experiences with it. I'd love to hear from anyone who's done it & how they've found the whole process, whether it's been good or bad & why. Please feel free to PM me or email to [email protected] Cheers - Sven

Why didn't you like it? What was wrong with it? Do you mind if I ask how much you got for it? What are you looking for now?

It's good to see some wise heads offering advice. We all love Skylines because they're great cars to drive. Part of that reason is that they're very powerful (the turbo ones anyway). Insurance for a 17/18 year old is bloody expensive for a good reason: because 17/18 year olds have the most accidents. You WILL make mistakes early in your driving career. We all do. So be smart about it. For the first year or 2 drive something that will get you into less trouble & cost you less so you can save for something like a Skyline in a couple of years when a: You'll probably be a better & smarter driver b: Your insurance premiums will be lower c: Hopefully you won't still be paying off an accident you had when you were younger & less experienced. There are plenty of cars around that are cheap but still fun. Make your mistakes in one of them, then get something fast. Good luck!

Also remember some golden rules of test driving a car... 1: Don't go to look at it at night (unless you've already seen it in sunlight). 2: Make sure you get to start/drive it from cold, rather than after someone has already got the engine up to running temp. 3: When you're driving it, turn the stereo OFF, so you can hear the squeaks, rattles & thuds that will give you the sh*#%ts within 2 weeks of paying for it. You can suss the sound system out when you're parked at Macca's. 4: Take it for a good long drive in a variety of conditions - ie: stop-start, freeway, steady cruising, good & bad roads, etc 5: Assume that everything the seller tells you (especially if it's from a car yard) is complete rubbish. He's trying to sell a car for maximum $$$, not do you any favours. 6: Listen to the car, not your dad/mum/mates/girlfriend sitting in the back And finally, remember: THE WORLD IS FULL OF CARS, so if you don't get this one then another one just as good will come along. Good luck!