Andyn

Cillham: can u post some picts on ur setup. im keen on doing this, if its quick and easy.

I have the exact same issue as you and I have just replaced my spark plugs with new ngk iridium ones. Still have the same issue. Would be interested to hear other possible causes. Fuel pump? (it seems like it's thirsty for fuel). When I give it a bit of throttle as I start the car it is fine.

Hey thanks for the heads up. In the end I bought some NSK ones for $100 for both bearings. Bit lighter on the wallet, and from what I hear they are just as good. Only time will tell

Thanks for ur replies guys. I checked with an import mechanic and they said it wasn't an issue. If anything they can machine it down to make it smoother and it should be fine. If worst comes to worst I can pick a 2nd hand one from the wreckers for $65.

Hey, There is a chip in my Harmonic balancer (r32gtst), as per picture, and just wondering if this is a big problem or not. I called up Nissan and it costs $639!!!! for a new one... I'm guessing I will need to replace this, and wondering if anyone has bought an aftermarket one that works just as well? If you can let me know the price, and where you got it from it would be appreciated. Andy

Hey, I rung Nissan today and was surprised how much they are charging for genuine idler bearing(331!!) and tensioner pulley bearings(112). I'm just wondering if you guys have used some aftermarket parts which are a lot cheaper, but still do just as good of a job? If you can post some part numbers, approximate prices and where you got them from, it would be greatly appreciated. I have read a few thread of ppl buying aftermarket ones and they seem happy with it. I just can't justify paying $450ish for bloody bearings... Cheers Andy

Agreed.

Thanks for the explanations SK. Makes sense now. My fault for assuming looking at the radiator reservoir is a good indication of how full the cooling system is. How would you check the water level in the radiator actually? I will do all the necessary things this coming week. Haha - Overanalysing is in my nature, but better to know a bit of background knowledge, before you get to the mechs (who sometimes aren't as honest and as knowledgble, as ppl on this forum). Also it's long weekend and I can't get any parts till tommorow. Anyway should be good to get it back on the road. p.s Grigor: For the record, I did thank SK indirectly in the posts and directly in PM's we have had, so don't make any silly statements without knowing all the facts. No hard feelings though. Also not sure about the air thing - My ex-mechanics did it. It's not very substantial anyway whether they did now. Just gotta make sure when they flush it this time its all done properly. You live and you learn. Thanks again for everyone who contributed.

Thanks everybody for your replies so far. Has been good to confirm and introduce other things that I was thinking. Well it sounds like the water pump was the culprit all along and I am convinced that the Front seal is gone and this needs changing. I didn't notice the coolant leaking, and there wasn't many stains residues where it is normally parked, so I'm guessing it wasn't leaking for that long. Apologies if this is clear to others or has been touched on in the post, but its still not clear to me. This is what I think has happened, after doing some research and reading ppls replies, please correct me if you disagree with "ANYTHING". Let's assume that the front seal of waterpump was worn out and it's coolant has been leaking from the water pump hole (This hole) Then the coolant level dropped to a very low level. Then this caused the engine to overheat - which makes the revs higher and idle higher (Question 1: I'm not sure how exactly it impacts on revs - if someone can explain this it would be great). As the engine was overheating it was boiling the coolant and so the steam caused the weakest part of the cooling system to crack - which was the radiator top tank. Now in theory this sounds all good and logical, but there are still somethings that don't match up with this story. I looked around the area where it's normally parked and there is no real evidence of a huge leakage (there was some coolant around but that could of been when i was flushing the radiator out, before I took it out). So if it was leaking it hasn't been for a long time. To add to this, the first instance when the radiator top tank cracked I checked the coolant reservoir but it was still a between 1/3- 1/4 of the tank full. (Question 2:) Shouldn't it have been around the min mark (or empty) if there is not much coolant in the cooling system? When I flushed out the coolant from the radiator the day after the incident - I only got under 500mls of coolant (which was perfectly green). Maybe the coolant reseirvoir was telling me lies before the incident? I know after the top tank cracked (This Part of radiator) the coolant can't transfer from the cooling system to top tank but it should have been fine before the crack. Also my temp sensor is sensing something (as it moves to the middle position when the car is warm), but when I was driving before the incident, and revs are higher (which we think was the cause of overheating) the temp sensor was still in the middle. (Question 3 My temp sens is reading something but could it have been faulty? I would have thought they would either work or not work)? (Question 4: Can someone explain what they think could have caused the Overheating, keeping in mind the extra facts I mentioned in this post?) (Question 5 Also to replace the Waterpump do I have to take all the things off to replace the timing belt? If so then I may as well do timing belt together, however if not then I will just change waterpump, due to budget constraints and not knowing the condition of the engine after this incident.

Thanks for the words of encouragement Can u elaborate on "have fun changing it as it's a bastard"...?

Hey guys, Just got radiator all fixed and was flushing out the old coolant out of the pipes around the engine with a hose, and what should of happened is i feed water from top hose and it should come out bottom hose. But water came out from a hole under the engine. Doesn't look right to me. Is that the relieve hole you guys are on about? Can anyone shed some light on this? I have a sneaky suspicion what could have caused all this... but keen to hear ur opinions.

Mate this is spot on and sounds exactly what happened to me. Now Im trying to figure out why/how it was overheating in the first place, before the radiator cracked... It was working the day before fine. Just when i started it up that morning it was idling higher/revving higher. Aircon/Fuel pump? Any input is appreciated guys.

Chrissso: It's relating to my thread from the other day (http://www.skylinesaustralia.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=114933&hl=) I didn't get enough feedback on the cause of the car idling higher/revving higher, before the radiator crack incident, so I'm doing further research on all the possible causes. So I was thinking whether the water pump could have died, which caused the revs to be higher than normal, and since there is no circulation and the water/coolant, the liquid is not being cooled which made it rea hot and hence my radiator top tank burst. I just want to confirm with someone, whether a dead water pump may cause revs to be higher, or is this unlikely? Otherwise let us know possibly reasons how revs could be affected. I know air conditioning is another one. I want to get to the bottom of this issue, so when i replace the radiator it won't happen again.

I'm after a new/2nd hand (but plenty of metal left) set of rear rotors. Let me know if u have some for sale in Brisbane. Cheers

I know most of the braking is done with the front rotors so I will definately invest in some decent slotted rotors coupled with decent brake pads. However how about the rears? I am on a budget and was looking to get some plain rotors for the rear (just jap ones for $100 each), as i thought they don't do too much, but will use decent brake pads to go with it. My r32 gtst is mainly for daily drive and the occasional track day/mountain cruise now and then. What do you guys reckon? Would it be greatly noticable if i get decent rear rotors too?

dies? I'm curious what chain reaction of events will unfold once the water pump dies, and what will be noticable when driving. Eventually it will end with the car overheating...

Hey, I'm looking for a good condition Radiator - tested would be great. Let me know if you have one to be sold in the Brisbane area. Andy

Freddy - How did you go about fixing your radiator? You just get another one from wreckers? How much did u pay for the system and labour for installation? WOnder if its worth upgrading the radiator while Im at it. ONly if the price isnt that much diff.

Yeh coolant looks fine and no sign of oil. Actually i was reading a thread and there was this: "1. Turn the ignition on and set the climate control to max heat (32 degrees). The R32 GT-R workshop manual actually says to "remove the external sensor connector" once the ignition is on, but later manuals (for R33/34) say just to set the heater to max (which is what I did). Apparently this is meant to release any fluid in the heater." I remembered that this morning I did tape up the temperature sensor thats plugged on the middle dash of the car (see picture). Could this have been the culprit? My climate control has been playing silly buggers - reporting higher than actual temps. When the air con is off I can still feel some 'cool' air from the left side of the drivers footwells.

Ok is this a normal thing for it to crack for no reason? I wonder if it has something to do with the coolant flush/pressure test, which i did 3 weeks ago? No i didnt notice the engine temp being higher than normal... Im hoping it didn't damage the head - but if it did - theres not much I can do about it apart from rebuild. Touch wood.

Hey all, I'm wondering if this is a normal thing to r32gtsts. This is what happened to me tonight. Pretty interesting experience to say the least. Hopefully not too Expensive to fix to get it back on the road. I was casually driving to dinner tonight and I noticed the revs were a lot higher than normal on idle. Also when I used the throttle it was reving a lot higher than before (to get to the same speed I had to rev it a lot higher). Also the car fully died a few times when I was clutch coasting (i.e When i was turning a corner and slowed down to 2nd gear and put the clutch in, it died and I had to restart the car quick smart). So something felt strange but I didn't want it, to spoil the night so I kept going. The recent things I have done to the car is flush out coolant and brake fluid 3 weeks ago. Changed engine oil, oil filter and fuel filter a week ago. As I was parking the car something burst under the bonnet and I can see steam coming out. I popped the bonnet up and I see all this liquid everywhere. It was green and the coolant level was low so obviously it was the coolant. We went out for dinner and came back and I tried starting up the car and it was fine. So I drove off but I took it real slowly as I knew something was not right. On the highway the car after about 15 mins of driving the car stalled. I tried to start it back up but it wouldnt (similar situation as if u had a flat battery) and I saw steam coming out again - no explosion this time though. Some of you would already know what 'actually' happened - yes there was a crack in my radiator piping (picture attached). Thankfully the car was towed back home and is safe and sound. I'm just wondering what options I have from here. Can I just replace this top plastic section (with the crack) or do I have to replace the whole radiator system? If anyone has had the same experience before and can give some rough prices to fix it, it would be greatly appreciated. Also can anyone pinpoint what could have caused this burst. Is it just old age and being a plastic pipe? Or I wonder if I had anything to do with the coolant flush that I got the mechs to do? I guess it could have been worse

Thanks for the links

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I have looked around for what is recommended on a r32gtst, and for gearbox u are supposed to use 80w 90 oils. As for Diff - its any good oil for lsds. What oils do you guys use and are there any you would stay clear from?

Hey all, The trim on the side window sill is damaged. Has anyone replaced this whole part before, so it looks good as new? Im hoping u can pick up this plastic bit from wreckers and its easy to just replace. I can't just glue the existing one, as it the corners are damaged, and missing some chunks.