ian

Been searching the posts, can't find anyone who has changed the oil in an R34 auto box. Does anyone know - 1) How often should we do it (ie I'm not having any problems, but the car has a few K's, should I change it)? 2) I've heard that there is a oil filter in the box as well, is that so? 3) What oil is right for it? 4) Anybody done it and can share their experience - including the filter change (if there is one)? Ian

the factory optional LSD (which I have on mine) doesn't make any noise... Ian

hmm, sounds like I didn't do quite enough research. Though I tested mine last night and they seem good. Wifes out in it now, I'll take pictures tonight. Ian

try doing some searching on this forum - we discussed this in detail a few years ago (including pictures) - and most of us ended up with custom ones being built (mine got done here in Melb).

Done. Got one - made up of two different parts ie the feet and the clamp to go under the door frame (both meant for a citron). Wasn't cheap (about $300) but it is very solid and will do what I need. I'll post a picture if anyone wants to see. Ian

I want to put some long (light) ocean kayaks on, so need something a bit better than the inflatable or magnetic ones. I'm heading down to a big store this morning, I'll see if one made for any other car fits...

wouldn't touch it with a barge pole - you might be lucky, you might not be.. You might get it through, but then you might be caught... You also have to wonder why someone would have converted it in Japan, as they could have just bought the 'S' or the autech... Ian

..not looking good, they got back to me today and said they were no longer making the skyline one... Looks like I've got a problem! Ian

they can't be standard if they are 9inch, so they probably have a different offset.

Has anyone put a roof rack on a R34 four door? (ie two cross bars that attach to the top of the door frame front and back) I'd normally take the stagea when I need to carry long stuff, but am about to head off with the skyline instead.. Thus I need to be able to put some long stuff on the roof.. Went to a shop this morning, and they said that thule did make one that should fit, but it would take two weeks to get in - which is when I'm going, so I need a backup plan in case it doesn't arrive/doesn't fit! Anyone done it?? Ian

Not quite true, the series 2 stagea has the NEO rb25det (and intercooler/turbo), and that has the same power as the VQ25DET in the M35. I never feel like I lack power in my stock standard rs4s - but as it is a series 2 manual it's got 20% more engine power than a series 1 (at least) and no torque converter... So I suppose the only reason the M35 would feel underpowered is the auto box - and I don't know which one they used in it.. But my R34 with the same power (and the MAT box) goes very well - though it is 200kg lighter than a stagea... Ian

Hi Alex there were a few different R34 GTT wheels - for example my factory standard AVS ones on my R34 WILL NOT go on my S2 RS4S stagea (even though they both came with 17inch wheels) - the R34 ones are 8 inch rims and have a different offset - they run into the stagea suspension (I have tried putting them on, which is how I found out).... The ones on the Rs4s are 7.5 inch rims... So anyone else, be careful.. Ian

I'm currently getting about 12.5l per 100k with a mix of town and country driving (about 50.50). Ian

are you changing the dial background (like in the video) or the whole cluster to another one?

Given this thread has just resurfaced, I thought I'd update it a bit.. Go look at drive.com.au ie http://www.drive.com.au/Search/SearchResul...A%7c&from=4 I'd say the bulk of the stageas on it are wound back, as many simply don't match the types of km's coming out of japan. Yes, there are cars with this many km's on them, but unless every one is coming to a few particular dealers in Australia, and they are not passing on the premium.... Of the adds that give kms - Year Km's 2001 34k 2000 54k 1999 71k 1999 49k 1999 37k 1999 36k 1999 59k 1998 56k 1999 28k 1999 44k 1999 36k 1997 57k 1997 42k 1997 75k 1997 62k 1997 60k 1997 39k 1996 77k 1996 62k 1996 59k There is no correlation between the age of the car and the km's! You can almost tell which dealer each car was at by the km's! Do they really think that anyone is going to believe that they have a 1997 car (almost 10 years old) that has done 39K? When I was looking for my stagea, it was very hard to find a 2001 car (in 2005) that had done less than 40k (genuine) - and boy were they at a price premium! Ian

They do look similar to mine - but it's not home at the moment so I can't take a pic.. Speaking of pics, does anyone know why I just see the text "IPB Image" instead of the image in the above post? (I had to manually get the link from the repply box..). Ian

- not to mention you could SELL the fully working NEO engine if you wanted to upgrade to a r34 rb26.. :-) Having a quick look around the internet a few minutes ago, I reckon (if you could do the work yourself) it would only cost a few thousand (net) to swap over... Ian

but seriously, do you have a series 1 or 2? If it is a 2 you can just remap them with a daughterboard (manual or auto) - and do that much cheaper and better ('cause you keep all the default functionality) than an ECU replacement..

I just have to be another one..

It sure does.. If the wife ever moves onto another car (she likes this one) I can see it wouldn't need many $'s to be a very very very quick wagon :-) Makes my decision not to buy an older rs260(the newest onest are still 2 years older than my 2001 rs4s) even better in hindsight - as I simply don't think they are worth the (large) price differential given my use ie the wifes wagon that I don't mind driving.. :-) Though, while I'm happy driving the stagea, I still do take the R34 when I have a choice - I like the 200kg lighter feel, it is quieter, and more comfortable than the stagea. Ian

Update -> Been out to one of the performance shops (nothing to do with the stagea, just happened to be driving it) and they had a quick look at the rear driveshafts and diff. Seems that they ARE the R33 GTR ones :-) I'll update my top post.

That makes sense. And I still don't notice the body twisting..

Do we know if the series 2 body was stiffer than the series 1? I know for my r34 GTX that one of it's selling points was that nissan had stiffened up the body compared to the R33. To be honest, and I agree I'm probably not hooning my stagea like a few guys here (which I did at your age in a galant - including breaking the back diff 3 times drifting ), I don't notice any body flex issues in the rs4s. In fact, part of the reason my wife prefers the stagea to the R34 is that the back doesn't 'twitch around' so much.. Ian

The condition of the car would be far more important the the one year difference. Which would be the same when comparing a 1998 and 1999 autech stagea, but would NOT be the same between a 1998 and 1999 stagea as they fundemantally changed key components...

a lot of lot of lot of differece between these two cars... Not even worth comparing. Which is why they shouldn't have called a 1999 autech a C34 one (as it is misleading - though great for marketting..). That is exactly the problem - if you use different series to describe essential the same car ie R33 GTST S1 and S2 you shouldn't use it to describe major changed cars. ie nobody calls a R34 GTT a series 3 R33, it's a different model... So if we call the stageas the R33 Stagea and the R34 Stagea, then you could call the 1999 autech a R33 series 2 stagea without confusing people (as per the bit I've written above.. :-)... Anyway, it's all just naming. The 1999 autech is still a nice car, I just wouldn't be paying a lot more for it than a 1998 autech as it has the same motor, turbo, intercooler, etc etc. ie a bit more yes, a lot more no.. Same for the autech 1999 vs a RS4S - I'd pay more for the autech, but I wouldn't be paying double! Ian