scathing

Wot? We are talking about the Type-R, right? The "race car for the road" models? Of course it was designed to be firm and noisy. Its not like they accidentally seam welded the chassis and forgot to include sound deadening in the bill of materials. The VTiR was designed to "handle well and perform well on just 1.8L" while still being a comfortable streeter. Surely, if you owned one and you're an enthusiast you'd know what the design brief for any proper Type-R model is (i.e. not the shitty DC5 we got foisted upon us, or the CTRs the Poms made) to be a road car that is trackable off the showroom floor.

When BMW sold the E46 M3 CSL, they made buyers sign an agreement acknowledging that the R-Comps on the car had very little grip in cold /wet conditions, and BMW would take no responsibility if they slid off the road and crashed. I don't know what Porsche is like with its R-Comp shod models.

Maybe he likes changing gears using the window winder?

This is all that needs to be said. By doing things that make the car obviously not P plater legal, and thus irrelevant to this topic. The OP asked for cars that he could drive, and you just said the R31 is good for reasons that make it impossible for him to do so. Great job.

Someone who needs to seat 5 in comfort? Someone who doesn't want to get out of their car every time they drop off people? Someone who wants to tow something?

Porsche grabbed a US one, which wouldn't have a 180km/hr speed limiter. I don't know if the export models have any limiter at all. Nissan has said they designed the car to cruise comfortably at 190mph in a manner that permits the occupants to have a conversation. While that's only legal in Germany, I think they let the car do that anywhere. Given the fact that the speed limiter is GPS-based rather than hard coded and its been programed to de-limit itself at race tracks you'd think that Nissan would "easter egg" the GPS limiter and include the Nurburgring in all GT-Rs "exception lists", regardless of where it was sold, given the importance of the track to the car.

I'm glad those flamin mongrels at Hornsby didn't get it. They left their GT-R sign up for years after the R32 stopped being sold, but they were absolutely no help if you owned a grey or had aftermarket parts. You know, having really shit service is as "unparalleled" as having good customer serivce. Actually, when you're buying a $150,000 car then getting Nissan's typical customer experience would definitely be "unparalleled" since most of the Euro/Lexus dealerships I've visited have bent over backwards for you. The only time I've seen a Nissan dealership bend over for a customer is when taking a closer inspection on how to best f**k their customers up the arse. The reason its been out of the market for so long is also because of *drumroll* Nissan Australia. The only people enthusiasts can blame for the car needing to "return after a very long time out of the market" is you idiots. As an aside, Nissan UK got an official run of R34 GT-Rs so we're not the only country aside from Japan to officially receive GT-Rs in the past. You certainly do. I can just see the chapter in the annals now: "Nissan Australia Case Study - How not to sell the GT-R outside of Japan" I hope Nissan Australia does dislocate their arms trying to pat themselves on the back, as undeserved as it is. I've bought 2 cars from Nissan Australia and it was the strength of Nissan Japan's product, and not the Australian subsidiary's service, that sealed the deal.

Behold Porsche's new spokesperson:

So your acceptance of luxury car tax isn't out of principle, its out of selfishness. The principles of overtaxing the richer to bring them down to an "equal" level as the poorer is one of the central tenets of Communism. So you don't trust their proverbs, but you do like their government policy? Hang on, "culling off human life" is also government policy. Its not like you're the one getting culled, so since it doesn't "affect you" why do you even care? You've made it quite clear that your principles end outside of your personal bubble.

We still have Matt from Ignition. I also do a column for The Motor Report, so if I come then I'll write something up for the site and see if the editors will publish it.

Have you considered, I don't know, checking the web site of the government department that looks after licensing? This is not what SAU looks like. If you can't work out how to Google an answer to what cars you can't buy and what options you don't have, then maybe you shouldn't have a car with "power". There's a reason why they don't want certain people driving certain cars, and from what I've read of your posts so far you're it.

I've got some colleagues who work in the UK and are track mad. I'll ask. Most will say the E36, or a DC2R. If you have a little more to spend, an old Porker. Got a budget for me, to help with the enquiry?

Spoken like someone who's never bought a $60K car. I managed to talk my car down to just under the LCT threshold when I bought it. If I had to pay the LCT, I wouldn't have been able to afford it. There's a good chance if that happened then I'd be driving a *shudder* RX-8. Think about how terrible that would be.

The RRP advertised never includes LCT. Its calculated after a price for the vehicle is agreed between the dealer and the customer. If the GT-R is a round $150K RRP and that's what you agree to "pay" for it, with the old LCT it would have cost $187K + dealer & onroad. With the new, it would be $199K + dealer & onroad. I could think of plenty of things to do with $12K that don't involve giving arse-face a car and driver for the rest of his undeserved life.

I'm with you. I agree with the idea behind why the law was made, but not the actual rules they enacted. "Great idea, bad go at it" in other words. My opinion is that we need a sports car license. I couldn't care less if you're 17 or 70, if you can't qualify to drive a high powered car then you don't get one. I'd probably set the minimum age to 20 (to make sure new drivers get time behind the wheel of a normal car before stepping into something fast) and work from there.

There are a number of cases where Luxury Car Tax does not apply on vehicle purchases over $57,123: * if the vehicle was sold or imported prior to 1st July 2000 * if the car is supplied over two years following the local build date or, if imported, the vehicle compliance date. * if the vehicle is supplied by private sale So in other words, it only applies to reasonably new cars sold by a dealer.

The problem is that few of the Aus 350Z owners have twin turbos to justify a bottom end upgrade. I only know of a half a dozen in Sydney, and all but one of them have rebuilt bottom ends already. The last one is upgrading handling/stopping/drivetrain right now. There's a dude in Melbourne (ZTRACK, who helped APS develop their TT kit) who runs a stock engine. I'm not sure if his finances will cover this, though.

Debadge. I reckon BLISTC's looks hot.

I'll name one, off the top of my head. The Lotus Elise/Exige. You hardly ever see poseurs rolling in those things, despite the blue-chip racing-rich badge and the aura of a lightweight British roadster, because people who buy status symbols can't deal with the flipside of how the Elise earns its reputation. I'm sure if you could gracefully get into and out of one at the golf course it might be a little different, but as it is its people who care about how the Elise drives that actually buy the car. And those generalisations aren't aimed just at Porsche drivers. If you watch Top Gear you'll know that M3 drivers in the UK have the same reputation (its not quite as bad down here), which they've now shifted to RS4 owners. Those reputations don't come out of sheer jealousy without some basis in fact - in the M3 heyday Audi and AMG owners didn't cop the same flak even though they were the same price and class. Why don't Lambo owners get tarred with the same "small pen is" brush that Fazza owners do? They're just as excessively outlandish, if not moreso. Generalisations may not fit everyone in the demographic, but causality should tell you that they have to come from somewhere.

Bugger that shit. Typical f**king idiots trying to sting the "rich", and make cars with more safety features less affordable. Those with higher incomes already sit in a higher tax bracket than those earning less. Why should they have to also pay extra tax to buy a nicer car as well?

Usually because they are. There's nothing wrong with Porsche cars, and I would love a Cayman S if I could afford it, but the vast majority of them out there seem to be investment bankers or other people wanting to flaunt the fact that they have enough wealth to not get stuck in something as common as a tarted up repmobile (M3), but not enough money to own a Ferrari and another car for when the Ferrari breaks down. Most of them are like (and I'm donning my flamesuit right now) 2WD Skyline owners. They're buying into the brand name because they want to be seen in a Porsche, not because they appreciate the engineering behind them. Most of them couldn't tell you what race car holds the outright Nordschleife lap record, but ask them about Titleist products and they'd talk your ear off. There are plenty of enthusiast Porsche owners, but unfortunately (like a lot of things) the people that can afford them are the people that shouldn't have them. Lets put it this way. Most Cayenne sales have gone to people who already owned another Porsche. People who think that a Porsche SUV is a good idea are people that shouldn't be buying Porsches, because they just don't get it. I'm not jealous. If they bought an AMG or some other high powered Euro luxo sports car for people who don't care about how their car goes, then I'd give them the thumbs up for buying the prestige car with lots of poke that suits them. I just don't see a Porsche as being the right choice for those types of people.

Fnark me those are some great shots.

Depends on your definition of better It doesn't really snow in Australia. I don't think I've heard an M3 I like (I've heard an E30 Evo 2, E36, E46 M3 and CSL). Too rattly, especially at low RPM. I'd love to hear the V8 though.

I think everyone's got one of those shots. I'm trying to remember where mine is.

I don't think any place has ever "gotten back to me". I've always had to call back. Just keep calling them - you'll get info eventually.