V28VX37

I was wondering about this, I'm seeing the same issue. It's not limited to avatars either, a lot of other images seem to be missing too, including the smiley in Matt's post above.

Ok peeps, I've been running Remsa (sometimes labelled Roadhouse) pads for a while now, generally ok except very very dusty. They're rated 650C. Thing is, I kinda killed them at Sandown last Sunday, fully glazed over after 3 sessions ( http://www.sau.com.au/forums/topic/463353-post-track-day-qs-rotor-wear-gearbox-oil-ps-pump-manifold-nuts/?do=findComment&comment=7763092 ) I'm now thinking of upgrading to something like Intima SR or Type D ( as per http://www.trak-life.com/intima-brake-pads-review-sr-type-d/ ) – not entirely convinced though as I had a bad experience with Intima SS back in the day; they completely melted on a mountain run. Another option is Brakes Direct's Forza line: http://brakesdirect.com.au/forza - maybe FP3, FR4 or FR5. I'm still after something that is somewhat streetable i.e. with a low-ish C rating at the bottom of the temp range. Any recommendations? EDIT: Also anyone know who might be able to supply cooling duct brackets to suit the R34 front hubs, to channel air into the inside centre of the disc to feed the veins? The OEM heat shields have been cut off.

Local shop 0 - Duncan 1 I just bled the system twice (except for the ABS unit), much better. There was a fair bit of air coming out of all four calipers, not sure if they actually bled it at all, grr. The pedal is still not brilliant, it's always been a bit funny in that it drops slightly when pulling to a full stop and the engine drops to idle revs. My guess is that it's something to do with the booster but who knows. Since I've already ordered the parts I'll get the booster and master replaced, interesting to see if that makes any difference. ... With overheating the engine, it looks like I might have gotten lucky, knock on wood. Can starts and runs fine, boosts well and has its original power judging from the driver's seat. I drove a long distance yesterday and gave it some stick just before with no temp issues. Also running it with the oil cooler cover due to the winter ambient temps. I will continue to keep an eye out for any leaks. I did notice something else just before when pulling into the shed, there's not loud but audible 'scuffing' sound (best I can describe it) from the gearbox when it's in neutral. It goes away when you put the clutch in. Not sure if it's nothing to worry about, an early signal that the clutch is on its way out, or something else.

Pretty sure it'll fit. You've got multiple options with the piping: Go return flow and run custom return pipe under the cooler to connect to OEM piping. Pros: Legal. Cons: Long runs of piping, reduced ground clearance. Go GTR style flow and run return pipe through the battery tray, then custom bends to connect to OEM plenum. Pros: Shorter piping. Cons: Defectable. Go GTR style flow and get a front-facing plenum. Pros: Shortest piping, best performance. Cons: Defectable, expensive. All that said the least amount of headache would be a ready-made aftermarket return flow intercooler with hard piping, something like Blitz or Cooling Pro. Sell your GTR one for a few $$, buy one of those, fit and plumb it up, trim front bar (and maybe reo) a bit, job done. Custom piping will get expensive unless you know someone or are good with the welder.

These are still available: 2. For sale an R34 GTT coupe steering rack with around 80,000kms on it, off a 1998 car. – $90 3. For sale used leaky Driftworks braided oil cooler hoses with crimped AN10 fittings, for spares – $50 4. For sale R34/R33 transmission parts – $100 See original post for details. All prices ono. Here's some photos of the actual Driftworks braided oil cooler hoses:

Thanks guys. Yes it has M/C stopper and braided lines all around. What I find weird is that back in December I did almost 40 laps of Sandown during the day in 37 degrees (with lots of cool down laps) with no brake issues, yet on Sunday I pretty much killed them in 20 odd laps across 3 sessions in sub-15 degrees (granted, not enough cool down laps). *goes googling for some brake bleeding instructions*

I got a local shop to replace the fluid and bleed the system today, still a very crappy pedal. He reckons I may have killed the master cylinder rubber seals with hot fluid across several track days, which is indeed possible. The question now is whether I should replace master cylinder only with a new BM50, or whether I should grab the whole BMC+Brake booster assembly off a wreckers (now very keen on used parts though cos you never know). What's the chances of a brake booster going on these cars? Edit: BMC's are like $500 new, ouch. Seems a little hard to find a rebuild kit, do they exist?

I just checked this then, it certainly doesn't spin freely but I'm not sure what the friction level is meant to be. If you spin it by hand it rotates maybe 2 blades' distance (is that like 30 degrees?) then stops. Not sure if this is within spec or not? Also somehow I would have thought the fan would make less difference on the track at higher speeds where there's more natural airflow through the rad? Edit: Just sanded back all glazing from front and rear pads, slightly improved pedal feel but still need to change the fluid. Mental note: Remember the cool down laps!

Thanks mate, I'll definitely check that. I just priced the OEM parts with Kudos, it's $176 for the fan blades, and $385 for the cooling fan hub / viscous coupling, eek.

Thanks Duncan and Bill, talk about helpful and speedy responses!! Duncan re comp test, the guys at the shop pulled out the plug at cylinder 1 and were happy with it, also the system pressure tested and bled fine. Not sure what pressure they tested at though. The thermostat was also removed and checked to be working. Bill yes it's a the stock rad, also originally being an auto I'm not sure if it's slightly smaller capacity than the manual unit given that the bottom part of if was originally connected to the auto gearbox. I'll look into replacing the fan.

Ok some updates, the workshop had a good look over the car that the main problem they found was a leak near the Defi water temp sensor which is at the radiator top hose. Pressure test is fine, car starts and runs well, no temp issues during short test drives. My working theory is that it may have leaked coolant from the temp sensor for a bit, run a little low and/or taken in some air, and then overheated when pushed hard. I also checked the Defi peak reading and it hit 125C at the highest, which is not good. This said the highest I saw on the OEM gauge was the 'hot' mark, the notch one down from the top end of the scale, so not off the chart. There's still a chance that I've damaged the head gasket or warped the head but I suppose I'll just need to drive it more to find out. Learning for next time is to take the warning signs more seriously – I saw a bit of coolant under the steering rack and near the overflow after session 2 but didn't investigate properly before heading off for session 3. Foolish. --- Couple of other things on the list to investigate: 1. The hose connecting the turbo coolant return line to the block always appears as if it's 'sweating' a little. Is it possible that there's a minor coolant leak at the turbo? 2. There's a sensor and bracket in front of the AC/rad that I've bent down to make space for the IC, what's this for? Does it need airflow on it i.e. is the current placement behind the IC end tank a bad idea? 3. I can see some pretty substantial cracks forming in the clutch fan plastic blade assembly, is this due for replacement? 4. There's this really curious little box in what I thought was the brake line running alongside the passenger side chassis rail, what's this for? Looks strange. 5. I've got beautifully glazed brake pads now and a crappy pedal feel with lots of travel. I'm assuming the pads will return once the glazing wears off, however the pedal is a little disconcerting – I'm guessing mildly boiled brake fluid and requires a bleed, or? Thanks again!

Thanks guys! It's already at the shop being diagnosed by people much more mechanically savvy than me. I was lucky to be able to drop it straight there on a Sunday to save the cost and hassle of a second tow. What do they say again, Run it, Break it, Fix it

Another track day, another issue. First time I had to tilt tray it back #carlife I took the car to Sandown yesterday, third session it started overheating badly. Normally when I back off it corrects immediately, not this time, just kept climbing. I crawled off the track and the water hit 120-125, spitting heaps of boiling coolant out of the overflow. I shut it down and let it cool down, still starts well but temps start climbing quickly. Btw oil temp was high but not outrageous during this. Some theories thrown around the track were: - Blocked rad - Dead thermostat - Air pocket in coolant - Issue with turbo lines Thoughts?

I've been happy with them with two different cars. Both were relatively iinexpensive though so can't speak for something that is 100k plus but perhaps ring them for some references?

You will definitely need a thermostat in a cooler climate unless it's track only car. Out of the two options the 86C sounds like the pick. Something to keep in mind is that if you go with a thermostatic sandwich plate there is always some flow through the cooler, irrespective of thermostat rating. I spent a long time battling my Mocal one, even swapping the wax pellet, and it's still slow to warm up on cold days -> too much flow through the cooler. From what I understand the Greddy sandwich plate is a better design in this regard. As a last resort, if your cooler is too eager even with a thermostat, what you can do is fab up a small plate to block the oil cooler during the colder seasons. That's what I've done. Also others have said make sure you have a properly positioned, working temp gauge as the first step! Some related reading: http://www.sau.com.au/forums/topic/462362-oil-cooler-too-eager-faulty-thermostat-or-incorrect-temp-sensor-location/ http://www.sau.com.au/forums/topic/461812-oil-cooler-recommendations-for-r34-gtt/

Just replace the whole lot with a full HICAS eliminator kit. These cars are getting old now and it's likely that your factory HICAS ball joints have never been replaced, the eliminator kit will take care of those too. Here's a great DIY from Trak-Life for this: http://www.trak-life.com/diy-hicas-delete-hicas-eliminator-kit/

Definitely. For me it's SAU and CAMS – both newsletters are great in helping find events. Many CAMS affiliated clubs accept event entries from other clubs as well, so you can look beyond your 'home' club's events also.

TTT

Slightly off topic but I thought I'd share. I got slightly older gaming rig off a mate and have been spending a bit of time in Assetto Corsa, running with Logitech G29 wheel, pedals and shifter. With the Sandown V2 track and Nissan Skyline R33 GT-R Drift car (in the more tame 350bhp RWD Matsuri config) mods it's actually a pretty decent approximation of what my R34 feels like on that track in real life. Doing a set of laps semi regularly I can see my times slowly getting more consistent, so it seems like good training from that perspective. I'll be very interested to see if this translates to the actual track - I've got a day at Sandown coming up on the 31st, fingers crossed!

I've had a weakened door lock actuator for a while in my R34 sedan, meaning that one of the doors had to be locked manually each time, not ideal. I managed to chase down the replacement part from the wreckers and finally got around to replacing it. This is not a full DIY but here's the general outline, mostly as a note to self for next time: For instructions on how to remove the inside door panel go here: http://www.sau.com.au/forums/topic/285604-tutorial-r34-gtt-door-panel-removal-guide/ . That guide is for a coupe but sedan front door is very similar. Note to disconnect the window switch plug, push in the clip on the underside of it Remove plastic lining inside the door. Take care with the gooey black glue, it spreads easily and sticks everywhere. Remove rectangular metal brace from the door (4 screws) to give better access to the inside of the door end. Remove the bottom screw of the window slide/guide and jiggle it out of the door. There are a lot of mechanical arms (thick wire looking things) going everywhere, they are the fun part of this puzzle. Most of them disconnect the same way: At each end, rotate the plastic clip thing to the side first to release it, then pull the end of the arm out of the hole. Remember there are two ends to each arm – only disconnect the easier end, not both. The door lock/actuator assembly is held in place by the three large screws at the edge of the door where the latch is. To get the assembly out you'll need to rotate is slightly to get it out of the O-loop in the door lock arm coming down from the top. I'm pretty sure there's a wiring connector for actuator but I got over excited with wire cutters so oh well. Once you've got the assembly out you can replace the actuator only, or the whole assembly, depending on what you have. To re-assemble, follow the steps in reverse. Make sure you put every single arm back the same way. Test everything before you put the door panel back on: door handle and locking mechanism inside and out, central locking on/off, window up/down. Note that for the window to work you'll have to reconnect the window switch plug. It took me a while to work out that the window slide/guide needed to come out of the way first. Generally it's an easy job, just fiddly.

Awesome midnight purple R34 Vspec1 and White R33 Vspec on Calder with C5 stickers, great cars!

Could be a million reasons, the RB loves to keep you guessing. My experiences here, can be used as a bit of a checklist: Anyway mine ended up being a busted CAS so it broke down past 4000rpm, yours sounds a little different.

+1 I'd also like to know, although mine are the Series 1 round type. Any tips on how to access the globes?

Ok after much deliberation I have the Nismo 1.5-way on order from Japan ( 38420-RS015-BA ). Will report back once it's in. Greg's just got his installed too, perhaps he can share some thoughts

Haha I knew, well played sir, well played. Keen to hear how it goes, especially with auto on decel when you can't clutch in if the going gets hairy. Now, what do people think, is there any point in going 1-way Nismo over the OEM viscous unit? The car is 95% street / 5% track (grip) so a 2-way would be too aggro but I'm guessing a 1.5-way would be a happy clunky compromise...?