Opinions Welcomed On Track Car

[NakedSkyline]

Ive been lookin at this skline. If your piggy bank can handle it. comes with plenty of goodies out of the box. Unable to compliance for roadworthy from accident repair. looks like it was a timeattack car in japan. damn good price on it too for all the goodies.

Car: R33 GTR see below.

http://www.prestigemotorsport.com.au/modul...hp?StockID=4114

[Belsil80]

http://www.racetime.com.au/?page=newcal&year=2006

Most of the GTR times are in the WRX days.

[JAGR33]

cheers, putting GTR owners down would be stupid as i used to have a T517Z'd 1994 R32 parked in the garage, now in the old mans. Fantastic car but lets be honest i dare use the word again "MOST" GTR's i see at these track days would find a modded late model EVO tuff to compete with can someone give me the quickest times at recent track days?

I'm a little confused here, in one post you say 'For sure one with more mods will but from most of the cars ive seen at these days sport RE555's and bolt-ons.... ooh and big ego's.'

Then you say 'i dare use the word again "MOST" GTR's i see at these track days would find a modded late model EVO tuff to compete with can someone give me the quickest times at recent track days?'

So which days do you go to where there are GTR's that sport re55's and big egos?? Don't they do lap times at these events?? Why do you want the quickest lap times in recent events, I can assure you they ain't the 'MOST' GTR's your talking about.

Don't take this the wrong way but by reading your comments it seems like your highly involved in motorsport (circuit), your in the import scene and your from Melbourne, if you don't know what times the GTR's are lapping these days at the major tracks well then something is wrong. As I stated before, which days do you go to? It may give me more options for me to attend...

I guess the main reason some of the people in this thread are a bit harsh on words is that you've made a bold statement, without anything to back it up.

P.S No hard feelings....

[Marlin]

well marlin, I know of just such a car in nsw.

that car opened my eyes.

Then tell me more grasshopper? Is this one for sale or you teasin?

And yeah, full proper cages increase your confidence level immensly! lol... without one I don't reckon I'd find myself in the nav seat across the top of "The Sideling" into the morning sun on the edge of a cliff at 270 kays in the 34 at Targa! PPHHWWOOAAAWWWWW lol

Edited February 14, 2007 by Marlin

[Beer Baron]

Then tell me more grasshopper? Is this one for sale or you teasin?

And yeah, full proper cages increase your confidence level immensly! lol... without one I don't reckon I'd find myself in the nav seat across the top of "The Sideling" into the morning sun on the edge of a cliff at 270 kays in the 34 at Targa! PPHHWWOOAAAWWWWW lol

lol, well I met the guy at a aaron macgil day at oran park GP circuit maybe 1 or 2 years ago. We shared a pit bay and he gave me a few tips etc (which I was happy to take, as he was bloody fast). Having just been out for some passenger laps in gtrjasons 450kw, dog box etc etc race GTR (and scared to death in a stock seat, stock seat belt and my shoe melting to the floor!) and thought, yeah it's fast I then jumped into this little siliva. this car would be the complete oposite of jasons GTR. Jasons car had all the big driveline bits (big power, dog box, big brakes) but still had just a bolt in cage, stock passenger seat etc. The silvia had a stock engine, stock driveline, but proper cages, proper seats, propper harnesses and very nice suspension. That day I remember jason was in the 17s and 18s and the silvia was in the 19s and 20s with around 1/3 the power! A lot of that time was gained at turn 1 as the guy driving the silvia had big cojones and with no power could be nearly flat through there!

I'm sorry I don't have any contact details for him, but he was keen on dirt rally stuff, and in NSW so he wouldn't be hard to find I think as there wont be too many black S13s doing the dirty stuff in NSW.

[Marlin]

Thanks mate, I'll keep my eyes open for it.

[Roy]

...the RWD will have their day.

[phunky_monkey]

I think Trent's/CREATD's 32, driven well, would definately give a few GT-R's a scare.

If I didn't have my car I'd definately look at buying it, would be a very quick car, and a ball to drive I'm sure!

[garage5ran]

wow..lots of discussion, im still looking at my options. I will certainly not be getting a 4WD, im just a fan of rear wheel drive and i can if i want to down the track then enter the car in classes like sports sedans, marque sports (as a 2A) etc if budget grows.

I did do some PIARC days a few years back in my 260..lol actually was a lot faster than a bunch of sklines, wrx's and Evos..LOL i shouldnt have been, but then my Z was a full race car and the others were road cars, was great fun. I thought of doing a Z but it would work out more to do so, which is kinda crazy but with all the off the shelf parts available for later model cars its just the way it is. I had to custom make everything for the Z, anyway will let you all know what i do when i do it. Cheers again for the thoughts.

[Roy]

What sort of lap times was the old Zed punching out. They are cool cars. But liek all old cool cars they fetch big money these days which makes it all even more expensive

[garage5ran]

Well, was still shaking down car and myself..lol so 1.58 was my best which is nothing that great, i have in car footage and i was making many errors, we think that it would do a low 50. It didnt have full slicks either. But as i said i was only quicker than the newer cars i think as they were road cars and maybe still learning themselves, was a great feeling to be on the track with such cars though.

My younger bro does a 1.47 around the island is his 240z, that full slicks and a fairly sorted Z, he has a r33 half cut arriving this week which will have a heart transplant into the Z, so hes hoping for quicker times.

Its not that the car stock is more as a Z suitable to race can still be had for under 2 - 2.5K its just that you need to spend a fair amount on the suspension/ brakes etc, and u still have an old car, we figure for the same cost you can do a newer nissan or similar.

[Dale FZ1]

An older model Z might be "old school" but still mighty effective if sorted.

Bit like Grandad's old axe - put an edge on it and it will still cut your foot off.

With some thought the L series donk is no nail either (check Jon Siddins times/results in Targa in that pink Z), but the newer engineering improvements in an RB would make them attractive if you've got to spend money.

By far the best upgrade would be brakes, suspension and a cage in whatever you end up with.

Edited February 19, 2007 by Dale FZ1

[88silhouette]

lol, well I met the guy at a aaron macgil day at oran park GP circuit maybe 1 or 2 years ago. We shared a pit bay and he gave me a few tips etc (which I was happy to take, as he was bloody fast). Having just been out for some passenger laps in gtrjasons 450kw, dog box etc etc race GTR (and scared to death in a stock seat, stock seat belt and my shoe melting to the floor!) and thought, yeah it's fast I then jumped into this little siliva. this car would be the complete oposite of jasons GTR. Jasons car had all the big driveline bits (big power, dog box, big brakes) but still had just a bolt in cage, stock passenger seat etc. The silvia had a stock engine, stock driveline, but proper cages, proper seats, propper harnesses and very nice suspension. That day I remember jason was in the 17s and 18s and the silvia was in the 19s and 20s with around 1/3 the power! A lot of that time was gained at turn 1 as the guy driving the silvia had big cojones and with no power could be nearly flat through there!

I'm sorry I don't have any contact details for him, but he was keen on dirt rally stuff, and in NSW so he wouldn't be hard to find I think as there wont be too many black S13s doing the dirty stuff in NSW.

richard i'm racking my brains over this one

i remember those blokes

i even got down his details from him

i'll do my best to find them

and christ he was quick

[Beer Baron]

good man! I remember you got his number. Yeah, he had massive nuts at turn 1. very fast through the kink. but a good cage and good suspension would have to do something for the ol' confidence I reckon.

[Marlin]

Well boys, this S13 thing has started rolling for me. I've found a race/rally only combatible 1996 180SX thats screaming for a strip and rebuild! 5 grand will see my arse in it, and there's plenty of things already on it that can either be sold to fund the project or kept aside for use at tarmac track days (read: HKS suspension etc).

Just need to take a look at it underneath to make sure it's not a rusty dog and she'll be comin home with me!

[phunky_monkey]

Very nice choice mate, nice to see someone has seen the light

[Marlin]

Very nice choice mate, nice to see someone has seen the light

OUCH!!! lol

[Sydneykid]

When choosing a circuit car I always look at the 3 factors;

Power to weight

Brakes to weight

Tyre size to weight

Notice the common thread, “weight”. That’s the killer, if a car is too heavy for its power, brakes and tyres, then no matter what you do to it, it will always be slower than a lighter car with the same power, brakes and tyres.

The fact is GTR’s are heavy, for example I busted my guts to get an R32GTR down to 1,360 kgs, but without any real effort, my R323GTST weighs 1,180 kgs. Simplistically the GTR would need 15% more power, 15% better brakes and 15% bigger tyres just to keep up. If I stick around 600 bhp in each one, with the same brakes and tyres, then the lighter one (the GTST) will be faster. But once I get over 700 bhp the GTST simply struggles to get the power to the ground and the GTR uses its 4wd traction to good effect.

Another consideration, high powered GTR’s are faster over a race distance (than there 2wd competitors) because they are gentler on their rear tyres. However they may (or may not) be faster over 1 lap. That’s the problem with simply looking at individual lap times, there are plenty of examples of one lap screamers that are useless in a 20 minute race.

Keeping the above in mind, I did my research long and hard before I bought the 1990 R32GTST M Spec (for $5K). I rejected buying another GTR on the weight and cost grounds. I rejected the S13/14/15 group because they were basically no lighter than the R32GTST, secondly because they had strut front ends and then lastly on engine grounds, I simply don’t like SR’s. I looked at buying an S13 with RB25DET, but it weighed the same as the R32GTST with RB30DET.

So, there you have Sydneykid’s logic, flawed as it may well be

cheers

[Marlin]

Keeping the above in mind, I did my research long and hard before I bought the 1990 R32GTST M Spec (for $5K). I rejected buying another GTR on the weight and cost grounds. I rejected the S13/14/15 group because they were basically no lighter than the R32GTST, secondly because they had strut front ends and then lastly on engine grounds, I simply don’t like SR’s. I looked at buying an S13 with RB25DET, but it weighed the same as the R32GTST with RB30DET.

So, there you have Sydneykid’s logic, flawed as it may well be

cheers

And that ^^^ is why I respect some forums.

I've chosen to search for an S13 because of;

a) although not really lighter, better front/rear balance could be obtained due to the use of an all alloy/shorter engine (although I have absolutely no basis for this as I've never corner weighted an S13)

b) it has a strut front end and although fundamentally flawed, copes well with dirt rallying and is simple to obtain struts for and set up.

c) I love SR's because I've seen them cop a pizzling and hang together forever (well, a long time anyway haha)

So, although I'd actually prefer a Silvia due to having less garbage like pop-ups etc in the front and a stronger starting body due to it's parcel shelf (not to mention easier quarter panel repairs since the Silvia quarter glass is a little further from THAT BLOODY BIG GUM TREE!!!), there's something in me that says it could be cool to see a 180 jacked up and sliding through the forest.

Edited February 19, 2007 by Marlin

[garage5ran]

at the moment a 180 is now at the top of my list, i just think it can grow into a great track car over time, and also offer some fun straight out of the box. A S13 is cheaper but it just doesnt have the right look in the rear, and part of the package is the look. I know i know, but remember im a designer, im a very visual person, yes i know it shouldnt be about looks, but hell it is to degree for me. a 180 should be a fraction slipperier (not sure if thats a real word) also. R32/33 are wicked and i still might go to that side but a 180 is looking strong. Mind you the mention of a mr2 has sparked some interest too. LOL the search goes on, and i still need to save some more $$ so im in no hurry. keep the thoughts coming, lots of great info flowing here.

Cheers all.