pixel8r

On power figures alone, the stagea s2 doesn't appear to be detuned compared to the r34GT-T. But the findings above show that there are clearly differences between them and I'd agree with the point about more low-down power in the stagea, sacrificing some top-end. My S2 stagea (completely stock) is good off the line but runs out of puff at about 3000-3500rpm after which its a slow climb up through the revs. Great discovery wolverine!

Haven't seen the video but if we're talking factory performance, the R34 GTR Vspec2 Nur would be at least as quick as the WRX sti, and probably quicker I'd imagine. The GTRs have always had 0-100 times around 4.8 - 5.0 seconds, and the Vspec2 nur is improved on this. The Sti has always been around 4.9s or thereabouts. So either way it would be a very close match performance wise. Cant say which is the better performance round a track but I'd still lean towards the GTR with superior AWD technology and a million other gizmos to improve handling and traction. Not saying the Sti is bad, we all know its not. Anyone know what the Ztune is like compared to Vspec2?

Yes I believe you can get a DAYZ S2. Check this link. http://www.j-spec.com.au/list/index.php?ID=7172 Nice price too for anyone that might be interested in buying one... (btw this is not a plug. I'm not affiliated with j-spec in any way)

I believe its been "covered" before, but not really 100% solved. TV is easy enough, just get a portable (DC/battery powered) tv tuner that reads PAL signal and outputs to NTSC. But apparently satnav is not possible to get working here because no maps are available for Australia, and the company has no plans to support Australia or convert the satnav to english. I've got one of those units and if anyone finds out how to get the satnav working I also would like to know. But as far as I know it cant be done. probably cheaper to just get an australian satnav system anyway.

Its very rare for wheelspin to occur even without the 4wd button on. The way I see it, if your wheels aren't slipping without using the 50/50 mode, then there's probably no need to use it. Also, the way ATESSA works, I'd imagine fuel economy would suffer if you left the 50/50 4wd on all the time.

Ok so my bro's probably do have a point there. Just wanted to put the question out there and see what people had to say. Its not going to make me buy a Ford in any case as there is more to a car than making it safely past 400,000 kms. Of the cars I've driven, the Nissan imports give a superior ride and driving experience than the equivalent aussie cars, but thats just my personal opinion. At the risk of sounding arrogant, I'd rather drive my Stagea for 200,000 km's than drive a Ford Falcon Futura wagon for 500,000 kms lol. I dont plan to do too many mods to the stag, so I do expect it to last a long time, hopefully above 300,000 kms. And I'll tell my bro's when it goes past 400,000 i'll take a photo and send it to them.

Yeah I agree with most of the above. Personally I've driven a few different fords, mostly wagons and I've gotta say they are a piece of crap. The handling is crap. The styling is crap (personal opinion). The interiors are basic...and crap. The performance (excepting FPV/GTP etc.) is crap. The suspension is waaaaay too soft, making it feel all floaty, especially at 100km/h. Really all I wanted to compare was the reliability - in terms of how long they last - ignoring how much work has been done to them in the meantime, without actually rebuilding or replacing the entire engine. I know for certain that very very few fords make it to 300,000 without some serious trouble along the way. I reckon if you leave the ol' RB engines stock, they'll be pretty much trouble-free for a long time. And if the ford guys think 240kw for the XR6T is good, how's about 206kw for the 3.5L na VQ35DE? I stand by Nissan engines as being at the front of technology and reliability all the way. The Found On Rubbish Dumps etc. slogans have been around for a looong time. And trust me, there's nothing you can say to a Ford lover to make them change their mind about Fords. I just wanted some more assurance with my car so next time they try telling me it wont last much past 200,000 kms I'll be able to smile and tell them that when it clicks past 300,000 i'll take a photo and send it to them.

Hi guys - just posted this on the skyline section but thought I'd post the link here as well just if anyone has any thoughts. Basically I have 2 brothers who are ford fanatics telling me their fords are way more reliable than my stagea and that ford engines are better and more reliable than the rb25's etc. because of the number of fords out there with over 300,000 or 400,000 km's on the clock and still going. Just wanted to know if anyone knows of skylines or stageas lasting this long?? http://www.skylinesaustralia.com/forums/in...howtopic=128218 cheers.

Hi guys! I'm a regular on the Stagea section of the forums as thats what I drive, but I wanted to ask a question to all the skyline owners out there. I'm continually getting told by 2 of my brothers who are Ford fanatics that the Aussie cars, ie Ford falcons are more reliable than the japanese imports because #1 they have a good motor (me starts laughing) and #2 there are loads of fords (and holdens) out there with 300,000 or even 400,000 km's on the clock and still going. They tell me that skylines/stageas etc just wont last that long. I very much doubt they are right but I thought I'd pose the question and just ask who out there has a skyline or stagea or any RB25 or RB26 powered car that has done more than 300,000 kms? To me the RB engines and other nissan turbo engines are among the best in the world in their class. I just thought I'd find out for myself the answer to how long the RB engines will last if treated fairly nicely. The whole aussie cars vs jap cars thing is a bit like apples and oranges because most import car owners tend to modify their cars a bit, but even so, lets see how reliable they are.

Just added myself - woohoo!

ATS do all the work themselves - not sure where the actual Garrett GT30 Turbo comes from but it is genuine Garrett and it is brand new with Garrett 12 month warranty. Bill from ATS is very honest, great to deal with, and has a very good reputation for his work on turbos. Even without him having done the hi-flow on my turbo I'd recommend to anyone in Adelaide looking at a turbo upgrade to at least go and chat to him first.

That would've been a great option but GCG didn't have any R34 turbo's in stock and neither did ATS and we couldn't find any second hand ones anywhere in Adelaide so that option was kind of ruled out. Those R34 turbos are very hard to find here so I decided we're best to use our own. At least we know it fits. Will be ok though - we have some very generous friends who have agreed to let us borrow their car for the days when ours is getting worked on so thats saved us heaps of trouble.

yeah thanks for the info - using R33 turbo on R34 was something i was a little concerned about. But I will be using my stock turbo for the hiflow so its R34 all the way - makes me feel more comfortable. The internals will be replaced with a Garrett GT30 ball bearing turbine, compressor wheel etc. etc. Didn't want to mess with anything that wasn't ball bearing. I'm coming from a turbo with problems so my first and foremost priority is reliability. ATS recommended this option above the GCG option (they are both great turbos) as it is a slightly better turbo and apparently should give slightly better response due to the compressor wheel setup. Either way I basically went this option because it was way more convenient and doesn't need my turbo to be sent interstate. So yeah thanks for everyone's help and I'll definitely post my results once it gets done on Monday 7. May not get the car back until Tuesday 8th August but will post as soon as its done.

Apologies Alex, I had completely forgotten about your offer and have already committed to getting the GT30 through ATS. I'm not a mechanic and a turbo install would be a big thing for me. If I go with ATS I get 12 month warranty on the turbo and 6 months on the install. For a newb like me thats worth paying for IMO. I have read many of your comments on this forum and I never doubted that you are a genuine guy. I trust your advice. I wouldn't even consider your turbo to be "second hand" as it has only done ~7500 kms. Hopefully you do sell your turbo soon and I hope you are not too disappointed with my choice to upgrade my turbo through a local company. My reasons are mainly so that I can keep my R34 turbo housing and guarantee that everything will bolt on as before (I understand the R33 one will not fit an R34 engine/exhaust without extra bits??). Either way its just a matter of keeping the process as simple as possible and whilst it costs a lot more to pay someone to fit it, the turbo is a major part of the car and it guarantees that it is done right and I also get warranty.

Just a quick update. Have booked the car in for the GT30 turbo option with ATS. Apparently the GT30 should be more responsive than the GCG because of the way the compressor wheel is housed tighter. It also will mean the car is only off the road for a maximum of 2 days, rather than possibly 5 days with the GCG option. Sounds good. Its a lot of money but hopefully it will be worth every cent. Wont be in for a week and a half yet but will let everyone know how it goes.

The stock turbo starts spooling around 2000-2500rpm so 3500rpm seems a bit laggy to me. I'm after something that gives a good response and good midrange. Top end is less important to me. It seems the GCG hiflow option would be better to achieve this. Am I on the right track here?

I've looked for exhaust leaks and found nothing wrong. It actually all looks very tidy in that department. Bill from ATS had a look at it with the car running and confirmed that the turbo is the problem. From what he said, leaving it much longer is not a good idea. Apparently the ceramic turbine is attached to the shaft with glue and that is what is wearing, causing the turbine to "wobble" instead of spinning cleanly. At the moment its boosting ok, but I dont know enough about turbos to disagree with a turbo specialist. IF the car has done such low kms, then being a 1999 model it has done a LOT of sitting around, which could explain the suspension issues and possibly the turbo as well? There are a few scratches on the body but hardly noticeable and the interior is literally spotless. Sitting inside it you'd think it was brand new.

Thanks for that. Apologies for the two posts in one but this answers that part very well. Also, I realise the standard turbo does wear out - but as with all imports I'm still trying to figure out how many km's this stagea has actually done. It says 35,000 kms but so far we've replaced the rear suspension (leaking shock absorber) and the fronts make a rubbing sound occasionally, and now the turbo problem. But the interior and exterior of the car are both pretty good, no signs of wear on the seats or anything. A turbo shouldn't wear out within 30,000 kms should it? Everything else about the car seems fine - so after we fix the turbo it should be a very nice car finally :-)

Ok so I really need to send my turbo off for the hiflow job. 2-3 days without my stag....ouch.

Yeah I'm not real clear on what his GT30 option was. I think from memory it was a GT30 machined to fit the standard housing or something along those lines. Either way it would bolt up to the standard manifold and exhaust and oil and water etc... I'd prefer the GCG option just because I dont need the extra airflow and dont have the mods or the money required to get the real benefit from the GT30. The GCG seems like a great unit but my dilemma is the possibility of having no car for 3 days which comes down to extra cost either in time getting to and from work or hiring a car or whatever we choose to do to compensate. Can anyone confirm if the R33 GTST and R34 GTT turbos are the same? (or at least the same externally). If they're different then I'd rather the hiflow kit goes in my R34 turbo housing and not an R33 one...

Yeah time off the road is an issue - its our only car and I need it to get to work - only other option is 2 busses which dont line up timewise so it takes like 1.5-2 hours to get to and from work. I was originally looking for a 2nd hand turbo thinking it would be a cheap fix on its own. But now I've decided to go the better option and will probably go ahead with the GCG hiflow through ATS. $1750 plus installation. It depends if Bill at ATS has a spare turbo housing he can send off to GCG, otherwise it would mean having the car off the road for 2-3 days and I'd rather avoid that if I can. The other option is to use Garrett GT30 internals instead of the GCG kit which gives more airflow etc. but its about $2250 plus installation. It still bolts up to the stock exhaust manifold etc. and oil and water lines. I dont really need performance tho as the car is stock and any increase in boost will require either more airflow (exhaust) or more cooling (fmic) or both, and then if I go above 10psi it gets more complicated with fuel pressure, ecu etc. etc. and brakes would have to be upgraded at some point too. The cost all adds up as soon as you start talking of increasing power levels and I'll be finding it hard to afford the $2k or so for just the turbo upgrade. Bill confirmed for me that my turbo is in fact the problem - the turbine appears to be moving side to side and wobbling, making the strange whining noise on boost. So the whole reason for the upgrade is simply better reliability. The extra airflow and strength of the turbo is just a bonus at this stage. An SAFC2 is probably the next step - to hopefully lower my fuel costs a little. I've been trying to find a place with a 4wd dyno here so GWW sounds like a good plan.

Yeah it sounds like its a worthwhile upgrade in any case. I was just concerned it may not be wise on an otherwise stock stagea. I will be getting it checked out at ATS to make sure 100% that I do need to replace the turbo and if so I'll probably get them to do the lot. Wasn't thinking when I typed the original post - even if I could fit it myself it would mean somehow getting home without a turbo...duh. So yeah a lot of money, but something that should also add value (and fun) to the car. My concerns are mainly what effect it will have and what other mods should really accompany it - if any. I've been toying with the idea of an Apexi SAFC2 for a while - purely for improving fuel economy (currently 14L/100km in town). And I realise that to get the most out of a bigger turbo a fmic is needed but that is probably out of my price range right now - hence my reason for just running low boost on it for now. Would still improve performance either way, just not achieving its true potential. But with everything still stock on the fuel/injectors side of things its probably better to keep it pretty mild for now anyway.

Hi Stagea/skyline owners! I recently posted a thread about a whining noise on boost that could possibly be the turbo itself. I did have a close look at the turbo and the shaft does move slightly side-to-side (about 0.5mm up and down and about 2-3mm in and out). There is also a film of what looks like oil all over the inside edges of all the piping from the turbo right through to the intake on top of the engine. There was also black all down the outside of the induction end of the turbo where the induction hose connects - so much so that I didn't need to loosen that clip to take the hose off the turbo - it just slid off due to oil all over the connection (the induction part, not the pipes to the intercooler). Anyway, thats not really my topic. Basically I may be looking at replacing the turbo and have not been able to source any R34 GTT second hand turbos anywhere here in Adelaide. I've been speaking to Bill from Adelaide Turbo Services and he recommended either reconditioning the stock turbo, or getting it hiflowed using Garrett GT30 internals etc for only $500 extra. I'd like to go the hiflow option if we need to but I just want to know if there would be any problem with this option on a completely stock series 2 stagea. My understanding is that as long as I keep boost levels near stock (say ~5psi) there should be no problem, as it would just be a bit more airflow than stock, and probably a bit more lag, although power delivery will be stronger and continue through higher revs. The stock turbo seems to reach full boost around 3000rpm and then its a slow climb through the rpm after that. If there is anything else I should be considering in order for this turbo upgrade to be safe please let me know. Also, because it bolts straight on in place of the stock one - using stock water and oil lines, would I be able to install it myself without any trouble? (i'm not a mechanic but had no difficulty removing piping and heat shields etc to inspect my turbo) or should I pay the quoted $550 to get it installed?

I always thought this was just down to slightly different configuration between the two cars. To use another example, look at where the VQ35DE engine is used, its in like 5 different nissan cars (probably more), including the 350Z, stagea M35, maxima, skyline v35, patrol?, and there are sure to be others I've missed. In all of these cars the power figures differ - either in kw or torque or both. I figured it was just that the setup is configured differently depending on the purpose or the target market of the car.

Hey where can I get those small covers over the top of the front headlights?? The little bit that makes the series 2 lights look more like series 1...looks nice! Grill looks nice too.