djr81

Quick question: What is a reasonable price for a 94 R32 Gt-R complied under the SEVS scheme. The car in question has 81,000kms (Log booked) & is said to be in immaculate condition. I am trying to get an idea of the price before I go and look at it. I understand they carry a premium over the 89 models, so I was wondering how much.

Had a look and discovered that all was left was the resonator & the front air duct. You are welcome to them if you want em, but really they are only half of what you need.

Booster, I have some bits from the airbox at home. If you can post up which of the airbox pieces you want I may be able to help out.

Since beginning of 2004 Nothing of note. Is a much easier car to own/drive than I had been led to believe. Oh yeah & it came with the world's gheyest pair of rear speakers. Engine is in very good condition. You should expect to pay about $25k for a good one. Perhaps more depending on what extras it has. Perhaps less is it is a ordinary example or is uregistered. Later models 92/93 are not so common & the seller will expect a premium. If it has been imported under the old rules inspect it for damage to the chassis and/or a general bodge fest. The best advice I can offer is: Buy a good one, not a cheap one.

Don't get too hung up about brake pads. How you modulate your braking effort (ie how hard you push) & how well you heel and toe down change will determine how effective you braking is - much more so that the last little bit of friction coefficient on the brake pads. In any case I struggle to get more than one gee out of the brakes of my R32 GT-R. This means I usually get hosed by such cars as Westfield 7's or early series RX-7 which can crack 1.2 gees with relative ease.

If you are ordering some pads from RaceBrakes make sure you tell them you are a member of a car club (eg WASCC) & you will get a 10% discount or thereabouts. Also, it pays to order them a bit before you need them. Racebrakes seem to have problems getting the backing plates for the pads & hence you sometimes have to wait. They will sell you a Toyota pad modified to fit a GT-R, which works fine.

More of a risk than, say, importing one from Japan?

I am running DBA 4000 series rotors & RB74 pads on my R32 Gt-R. They are good for both street & track use. Be aware that they will start to squeal if you haven't given them a pasting for a while. The rotors come with thermographic paint on them. The paint on mine have flashed off which indicated temperatures above the 600 degree mark (From memory) The brakes still worked well at those temps, however the hotter they get the more pad wear you get. Make sure you warm them up & cool them down properly. Rotors stand up well to the pads. If you do some track days you pads wont last anything like 40,000 kms. Mine are set for the bin after about 5,000kms. If you just want them for road use, you may be better with something other than RB74's. Also, use some Motul RBF600 fluid with them. No point having flash pads if the brake fluid is boiling its arse off.

The double sided tape works well. You wont have any problems with clowns trying to remove anything. There are also various types of glue the panel shops use to attach spoilers and/or various add ons.

GT-R's are an extremely well engineered car - they were homologated for group A racing after all. They are reliable if looked after, bit like most things in that respect. If you are doing track days and the like you need to accept that the maintenance requirements will greatly increase. People will by their nature want to push the componentry to its outer limits - the number of cars that can acccept 50-100% higher power outputs is not much more than a handfull. For example try doubling the output of a WRX & watch the gearbox explode into a thousand pieces. Or in a rotary & lunch housings every 10,000kms. The reason the GT-R has the status that it does is because it is so well engineered. There are very few weak links in the whole set up. My R32 has been more reliable than my AU Foulcan. Although that isn't saying much...

One way of doing it is to purchase some new front seats (eg some recaro, bride etc) & then match up the fabric for the rears & the doors etc. Then you can sell your existing seats to recoup some of the money.

That is a bit harsh. The bloke is trying to find the best way of doing something, not looking to be told by others not to do it.

How you tell how long the car is in the country is by looking at the shipping documents/import approval/auction sheet... My first 89 GT-R has been on the road in Oz since the beginning of last year. I bought it late in 2003.

$30k is more than enough to get a good GT-R. But be aware that the on road costs of an import may need bolstering with things like (on the first of my R32 GT-Rs): New brake rotors. New pads (all round) New clutch (Mostly because I hated the button clutch in the car) Lots of minor things that Iwas fussy enough to fix because it was a new car to me. You don't need new turbos really. Not yet anyway. The stockers are good for over 300kW at the flywheel. Which is enough to get anyone into real trouble.

The genuine ones are almost always warped around the locating bolts. So there aren't really any second hand items nor ways of fixing them. Best bet is a reproduction item. From memory Japanese Motorsport do one, Unique Autosports may be worth a look & also UP imports. Let us know howyou get on - I may need the whole N1 kit, ie front lip, bumper cut outs, side skirts & rear lip.

It is worth getting an idea of what to look for - even if it is just to sort out the wheat from the chaff nbefore taking to a specialist & shelling out $100 or $200 dollars. Things to look for are: Burnt paint on the manifold - an RB26 that has had a hard life will have almost all the paint scorched off the induction manifold. One with an easier life will still have some missing. Look for the usual oil leaks etc. Look for dodgy/low rent/badly done engine mods. The Japanese are renowned for installing equipment & not tuning motors properly. Ask if/where the car has been dynoed and/or serviced. Check for a replacement cam belt (about a $500 job, so better if it has been done) Check for service stickers on the airbox (if it still has one) Talk to the owner & see if he actually knows what he is on about. Also it is better if the plug cover is still on the motor - replacements are $600 ish from Nissan. Check to see if the boost restrictor is still in and for EBC. If it is an old school boost controller chances are the motor has been running at higher boost for a while.

Fair enough, but there is not necessarily anything wrong with this. Someone has spent time/money importing it & is offering it for sale. If it isn't much of a car then the price should reflect this. Like all imports there is a risk involved. By buying a car already imported you are obviating that risk. It is only reasonable that there be a (small) cost associated with this. As someone famous once said:It aint what it cost, it's what it's worth. Anyway, maybe we should let the bloke who started this thread have it back...

I agree. Good questions to ask are: Why did you buy it? How long have you had it? Why are you selling it? If you elicit honest answers then you are probably half way there.

Have a search - you will find a fair bit on this topic. Engine bay: Look for burnt paint (particularly on the intake manifold) & general signs of heat stress. Look for service stickers on the airbox. Ask if the timing belt has been changed. (Should be a sticker on the cover) Interior Be aware that alot of GT-R's have had their odometers tampered with. So have a good look at the interior & decide whether or not the wear is compatable with the claimed kms. Particularly look at the state of the steering wheel (be wary of aftermarket wheels) & the seat fabric, particularly around the bolster. If these are stuffed & the car is claiming <100,000kms, run. Gearbox Check for worn synchros (mostly third & fourth) Brakes Check the rotor thicknesses & the pad condition. General Make sure everything works. Check the state of the panels & paint. Stick your head underneath & check for damage from forklifts. (Most will have some) Don't buy it because of shiney addons. Buy it if it is a good car. Question the owner & find out whyhe bought it, how long he has had it & why he is selling it.

Not everyone trying to sell a car is trying to profiteer... There are some, but you only have to ask a couple of straight forward questions to figure it out. On the other hand there are also alot of people trying to talk down the prices & the desirability of the GT-R's. Their motives are less straightforward... Buying a Skyline is not inherently different from buying any other car. You need to know what you are looking at and be realistic with your expectations.

Most of the wings are genuine ex Japan - which also means that they are (mostly) warped around the locating bolts.

Unless you can get one in under RAWS/SEVS you are basically too late to import one. The 15 year rule is gone. A compression test is not a bad idea. Don't take the head off it - you don't need to. Stock turbos are cheap (a few hundred dollars each) so you are better to concentrate on the engine than the turbos. Not sure why people with good experiences keep quiet about it - but there are plenty out there. Also, be aware that has been in Oz for a reasonable length of time is likely to have had things fixed. Buying a car like this means you don't have to fix everything yourself - stuff is already done.

IMHO you are better off paying a little more for a better car than buying the cheapest R32 you can find. Don't get fixated on a $20 grand mark. $20 grand GT-R's do exist, but by and large they are not pretty. Budget about $25k for a goodun & look after it. Take time finding it & make sure you get it looked at by someone who understands them. By the way - parts and gear are not necessarily that expensive. Costs rise because people mostly want all the good gear going in when they rebuilt engines etc. You don't for the sake of the argument have to put forged pistons in a rebuilt RB26. Also, running costs are alot more than for an ordinary car. 98 octane will be about 10% more expensive per litre, you will use much more of it, tyres are more expensive, synthetic lubricants more expensive, as is insurance etc etc etc. Having said that - a GT-R is probably going to be the best car you will ever own. Certainly mine is. I have had it two years now & no engine rebuilds, no gearbox replacements, just the normal servicing requirements. The only money spent on upgrades/replacements is because I wanted it to go harder.

If you just want the lip spoiler they can be bought without the cutouts that fit the wing - ie with a straight leading edge instead of one with notches in it.

For my 10 cents worth you are much better off spending your hard earned on a better set of tyres rather than set of larger tyres. The most marked difference will be in the amount of wet weather grip the tyres have - ie grip when you need it most. By and large there are cheap tyres & there are good tyres. If you want a set of 18 inch rims for looks then that is a completely different argument. Remember though, that for an equal quality rim a 17 inch set up will be lighter than an 18 inch. If you end up with a cheap 18 inch rim then it will be much heavier - to the detriment of your ride & handling.