scathing

Where are you getting your RE55S from? I'd agree that they are far better than the R888s, but everywhere I've called has had them around $50 more expensive per tyre for a given size. I've been calling the major distributors in Sydney, so its possible that some of the smaller shops are doing better deals.

The thing is, the primary function of that switch is to take off with less tractive effort in low grip conditions. The button's existence isn't about "the easiest and best way to do things" all the time, its about the easiest and best way to do things in a specific situation. Even if high load at low RPM caused no extra stress on the drivetrain/powertrain, the button would still be there as you don't always want to take off in second gear with a less sensitive electronic throttle. It'd be like if someone asked if turning up the stereo to a certain point would damage the speakers, and then replying that if the speakers were meant to go that loud then there wouldn't be a volume knob then the stereo would just be made to play that loud in the first place. I'd agree that it probably does more harm than good, though. Taking off in second does load up the driveline and cause extra wear, and that is a bad thing. The few bucks you save in fuel won't offset the cost of reconditioning your engine because you've made it lug for a lot of its shortened life. Its not like the V35 is a tow vehicle, and first gear is just there to provide more tractive effort while pulling a trailer.

For those 3 shenanigans I mentioned earlier, check out the posts from Pirate: http://www.zgeek.com/forum/f60/three-still-haunt-me-t12547/ http://www.zgeek.com/forum/f60/if-you-are-...e-for-a-t11189/

Sorry. Check Engine Light.

More info from the cop I asked: I hope that helps with the "should I hang around or should I leave if I think the person pulling me over is not a cop" questions people have been having.

Can't remember. A couple of weeks, I think. Nup. I kind of broke them when I slid off the track at Wakefield Park and banged my exhaust on their huge ripple strips. I was due for another track day recently, and my mechanic said they were so cracked they'd probably fall apart completely I swapped them out for my mate's. They also weren't economically repairable, since they're stainless steel and apparently that's tricky to weld. If/when I destroy these cats, I'll order another set of Crawfords. I bought them when the Aussie dollar was worth less than it does now (USD $0.86). With shipping, they worked out at about $100 more than getting the cats UAS advertises on their site. When I called UAS, I found out they weren't off-the-shelf parts but a generic biscuit with the flanges welded on when you order them. The advertised price is also for one cat, minus the cost of adding flanges, and you need two. Since some cats/delete pipes are known to trigger the CEL in VQ35DEs, I decided to go for a product I knew wouldn't cause issues for the extra cash.

No idea. I was using 2nd to 3rd gear. My 2nd gear hits the cutout at around 98km/hr, but on the street I don't rev it to the limiter. Chasing...following. I wasn't trying to overtake him, nor was I wanting to crash into the back of him, so I gave him a decent amount of space. He didn't pull away from me, so he wasn't going that much quicker.

The R35 GT-R's gearbox is a dual-clutch electronically controlled manual. Its not a torque converter gearbox like the V35, so its not even remotely comparable. The R35's gearbox is more comparable to a manual that just happens to be missing a clutch pedal, and lets you do lightning fast changes. I own a manual 350Z, and I've driven an auto V35. I don't mind the auto if you're just going to cruise in it, as it was quite convenient to drive around town in without worrying about easing the clutch in off the line, or changing gear. However, once you open it up and drive a bit faster I'd still prefer the control a manual gearbox provides. The fact that the V35 doesn't come with steering wheel shift paddles is also really annoying from a sports driving perspective. The shifter's action is also logically backwards (forward for up a gear, backwards for down) unles you're from America.

That's random. You'd think they'd use standard flanges, so everything can bolt back onto the stock items if you don't replace it. I used Crawford HFCs from the US. They bolted on to the stock manifolds, and connected to my Hitech exhaust (which connected to my stock cats before I replaced them). I've got a set of second-hand custom made ones now, that I think are using Metal Cat biscuits, but they don't flow as well and don't sound as good as the Crawfords.

Nissan Australia has an "outstanding range of vehicles that excite and inspire"? The current 350Z is so far down on power compared to its competitors that its no longer the good buy it was back when it was released. As for the rest of the range......I don't think its possible to get any blander than the Maxima, and the only thing the Micra inspires me to do is vomit.

Just for everyone's information, I sent this link to a mate who's a cop. This is what he came back with. 1. Any plainclothes police officer must provide their badge when enacting a power 2. The earliest model Falcons still in NSW service is a 2000 model, so technically AUs may still be getting around. Still, since the plates were clearly dodgy its not really as relevant. Scary shit. I'll be linking this on other sites, and I'd suggest everyone else do the same to get the word out.

f**k, if I pissed $15 billion up against a wall, you can guarantee the car I built would be an absolute monster.

Any public road, at the speed limit, is going to be boring in any modern car. The car's limits are going to be so much higher than what the engineers envisioned all those years ago when they came up with the limits, that either the driver or the car has to be defective in order to make it anything but a snoozefest. In terms of enjoying the scenery I'm really fond of the Royal National Park, heading south from Loftus and following the coast all the way to Thirroul. The RNP has nice trees and other views, the roads are reasonably windy. The only issue is, between the Loftus and Waterfall entrances, the road is really rough and a lot of people bottom out. When you pop out at Otford you get a great view of the coast from the top of the cliff, and you follow a very tight winding road that hugs the coast. On the way home you can either retrace your route, go up the Bulli Pass and onto the Princes Highway, or angle back via Appin Rd / Mt Keira Rd to the Hume if you live out west. Mac Pass is about 30 mins south if you turn back on to the Princes Highway at Otford, which means it adds over an hour to your journey home after more twisties. The road itself is spectacular, though. The Old Pac is OK, but there's only so many trees you can look at. Putty is boring, unless you like looking at farms. There are some great bits in it, and the last set of twisties north of Howes Valley is the home to my favourite road driving experience ever (under the cover of trees, with a serene babbling stream on one side and a rock wall that echoes engine notes on the other, chasing a Lamborghini Gallardo having its V10 wrung out) but its a 2hr+ drive from Windsor and only 20 mins of it is fun. Bells is reasonably good, but its also got more long monotonous straights than I'd like. Old Pac and RNP have very few straights so you're not sitting there in top gear on part throttle vegetating because you don't want to drive flat out. However, the run into and out of the Jenolan Caves is amazing (especially the eastern side, which is more open than the narrow hairpin-on-hairpin west side), and you can do Springwood Pass on the way back into Sydney.

I know a NSW cop on another forum. I'll PM him this thread and ask him if what happened is standard operating procedure. The thing is, I somehow doubt your average detective is going to pull you over. When they get promoted out of general duties, I'm pretty sure they see petty shit like this as "beneath" them. I've only ever been pulled over by an unmarked plainclothes once, and that was when I accidentally got a little sideways in front of them. Also, they didn't RBT you...which pretty much every cop does these days if they don't catch you in the act of doing something stupid, since they need a "reason" to pull you over for such a random check.

You thought right. If you also thought that the body of the first post of this thread contained the phrase "feeling pumped to unleash some of the car's potential", you'd also think right. Now either his car's a shitbox and an "unleashing of its potential" isn't going to be particularly fast, or there's going to be shenanigans involved. Bells is alright, but I find its a bit rough. Its still a lot better than Putty, that starts near the same point out of Sydney, which is 200km each way that has like 170km of yawnfest country road and 30km of actually interesting twisties.

I think you're thinking of the S-Comp R1Rs or R-Comp RA1s, both of which have low activation temperature requirements that make them popular with hillclimbers and motorkhanas. The T1Rs are a regular street radial, not a motorsport tyre. They shouldn't require any activation temperature. I wouldn't use an R-Comp as a street tyre. Most require heat to work, which makes them a handful in the wet when you're just tooling around town, and the tyre roar will give you headaches. I daily drove on R-Comps once - my tyres lasted 8000km, the headaches were uncomfortable (turning the stereo up still wasn't enough), and every time it rained I'd have an oversteer moment no matter how careful I was. If you're having traction problems and you need a grippy tyre, get an S-Comp like the R1R, Falken RT615, Bridgestone RE-01R, or Federal 595RS. They'll work well enough when cold or wet, although I wouldn't be trying to corner carve without warming them up. S-Comps are noisier than regular street radials, but they're nowhere near as bad as R-Comps. Turning the stereo up will get rid of their tyre roar. If you have no traction issues, the longer life and better wet/cold weather performance or a regular street radial like the T1R is the best bet. They're also cheaper to buy.

Have a chat with some of the sponsors. They regularly do deals, and at least you know you've got a recourse and some contact details for them on here.

* Carrying Shit Around / luxobarge - Upcoming Audi RS6 Avant - probably $320K after options, considering just the car with ceramic brakes is $285K. * Daily Driver - Volkswagen EOS 1.8T DSG - $52K with options, nothing beats top down motoring when you're just cruising. * Track Car - Not sure, either a West Cars WR1000 or a Radical SR8 assuming I can afford it. Otherwise I'd build up a 350Z. $30K for the car leaves me about $100K for mods. What can I say? I like RWD.

I'd report it to the cops anyway, just in case. I'm pretty sure all the AU Falcons have been cycled out of police duties by now. The cops also have a severe dislike to people pretending to be them. If they were potential car thieves, its better to let the cops earn their pay and f**k these guys' shit up before they come for your mate's car. If I ever get pulled over and the cops refuse to show me a badge, I'm shooting through and making a bee-line to the nearest police station. If they're legit, we can discuss their failure to adhere to standard procedure at the station.

Eastern Creek Raceway It has everything you want, and is cop free! I thought SAU frowned on these "potential unleashing on public roads" shenanigans?

The Michelin Pilot Sport Cups are R-Comps, but when I read the review for the BMW E46 M3 CSL they're meant to be a grand a pop.

I've had mates who were on 3. If its working then its great, but if you need customer service....don't expect any of the latter, and don't expect to stop being the former either. Their billing/accounting team re-define the term "f**ked". One of the guys I know couldn't close his account for months after he wanted to leave, despite repeated calls and unknown hours navigating through their IVR and sitting on hold. In the end they cancelled him but continued sending him $0 bills...which he ignored, only to find out it got sent to debt collectors. That's the worst I've heard, but I've had other mates with similar accounting department stories. My girlfriend's on 3 and, to their credit, their coverage is excellent. I'm on Vodafone, and most of the time she'll have reception in places I don't.

Daily driver, F6 would be superior as a total package. I quite like the Falcon turbo too, and I'm really looking at buying one with the ZF 6 speed auto. For a daily, I'd much rather have an intelligent auto, which the GT-R doesn't have as an option. The extra space would also be great. I wouldn't mind seeing the economy figures, but the RB's a thirsty bitch and the F6 is newer and has better controls so I'd guess the extra weight would be offset.

OEMs are penny pinching, unless their brand's reputation can let them afford not to be. If they can save $5 a car they will, since over a hundred thousand cars that's $5 million. Imagine saving $5 a part, on all the parts you replace. Why do you think most mass produced cars have such nasty press-bent exhausts with ugly welds? Its because doing the job properly takes time and money, two things OEMs hate to lose. One OEM used to brag that the entire speaker set in their most popular car only cost them $20 - that attitude explains why most factory stereos have traditionally sounded like shit. Manufacturers don't want you modding your car anyway, especially in "undetectable" ways. They overengineer their cars (for the performance provided) to last a long time, for warranty and reputation purposes. If they put bigger "bolt ons" while keeping the core block etc as "affordable" (read cheap) as they do, the cars become less reliable. If they upgrade the core, that's even bigger dollars. If you choose to mod your car, the hardware changes are easy to detect and they can just void your warranty should something break.

Nate's still alive (I don't think he's gotten so smashed that he's fallen off a balcony yet) and in business. If you can't reach Nate on his mobile, post up. The last I checked he was working with a girl named Lisa, and so she might be reachable.