Which One Should I Buy?

[GTR-N1]

Ooooh! A tingle up your spine perhaps ??

Tez

[Torques]

Ooooh! A tingle up your spine perhaps ??

Tez

Of course ... since I'm entering the land of the unknown

I already talked to http://www.abbeymotorsport.co.uk and they have been quite forthcoming.

I'll pay them a visit on my virgin drive home ....

As for insurance I have called quite a few and it was a bit frustrating.

I had to convince them that I'm neither 18, nor a drift kid.

But in the end I've got a good deal ..

Cheers and good night,

Andrew

[Torques]

Another newsflash from London!

After much searching I found a reasonably priced insurance for the car.

It's still a bit expensive, but who said driving exotic cars comes cheap?

I now got a comprehensive coverage, for AUD 1300 (per year).

The initial quote I got was AUD 5000.

I don't know about insurance in Oz ... ?!

How high are your rates ?

As for my Skyline (I can call it finally mine) I have paid the full amount and the car is ready for pickup.

However I have asked the dealer to store the Skyline in a dry and warm place, till the beginning of January.

So the car will have it warm and cozy while the bad weather stays outside.

Cheers,

Andrew

[GTR-N1]

Per year Andrew, I pay Shannons $2050 to cover both of my cars whilst they know full well that I can only drive one at a time.

Last year I paid the same company $2480 for the same, but the payout figure of both has dropped due to depreciation.

The payout figure on the '95 Honda Prelude VTiR would be $11,300 and the '00 GT-R would be $75,000 ATM.

All of the above is subject of course to certain security measures that the company demands; namely...

i) I am of mature age (whatever that means when you drive a Skyline)

ii) I've never lost my Driver's licence

iii) The car has at the very least, a 3pt. immobiliser (when in fact many Skylines here have back-up systems)

iv) The car is garaged securely

v) The car resides in a certain risk-category-suburb

vi) Extra modifications that the car has (of value) whether they be of engine or sound system (or both ie. exhaust syst lol)

If I'd insured with Just Car (underwritten by AAMI), I think that the GT-R premium would be about AUD$1500-1600p.a.

Some others probably would charge an annual premium 10-20% more than Just Car or Shannon's.

More companies have started to see the light and are now willing to risk insuring grey imports because so long as the company does their checks and balances, they realise that these cars are primarily owned by enthusiasts rather than hoons. So their premiums have started to become more competitive month-by-month.

Cheers,

Terry

Enjoying your new car at all even on test drives? Does it still have a new smell? Looks like you're keeping your car in an electric blanket - either that or cotton wool!!! Winter arrives tomorrow for you. Miserable and wet most of the time?

[Torques]

Hi Terry,

Yes .. indeed Winter is not pleasant.

So it's even better that the car stays inside, at least for another 6 weeks.

It wouldn't be of much use in the rainy and possible icy conditions.

As for the insurance, same here ..

1. I have a no claims record of 9 years

2. Am 'mature' (as can be despite buying an import)

3. Have a garage

4. And won't use the Skyline on a daily basis

Otherwise the insurance would be much more expensive.

Enjoying your new car at all even on test drives? Does it still have a new smell? Looks like you're keeping your car in an electric blanket - either that or cotton wool!!! Winter arrives tomorrow for you. Miserable and wet most of the time?

Well to be honest, I had no feel for the car when I drove it, so there was not much joy in it (more muted excitement).

I pushed the throttle a bit at 3000rpm, and the car accelerated quickly without any hesitation, then I had to brake since there was traffic.

I wouldn't want to crash the car on my testdrive, so I took it easy.

The guys from the Toyota dealership just handed me the keys and let me drive alone.

In fact they did not even come with me to the car so I could familiarize myself with the Skyline's condition without any pressure

(I hate it when pesky sales people breathe down my neck ..)

I'm quite looking forward to next January when I will pickup the car.

In addition I will get all the documents next week.

The Skyline has been imported 2/2008 and there is just one registered owner (who apparently bought a smaller Toyota from the dealership)

I have a good feeling about the transaction

Cheers and goodnight,

Andrew

[GTR-N1]

You must have remarkable self-control!!!

With a new acquisition like her (and just like dating a new G/F), I wouldn't be able to keep my hands off her. lol

[Torques]

You must have remarkable self-control!!!

With a new acquisition like her (and just like dating a new G/F), I wouldn't be able to keep my hands off her. lol

Hi ... self -control and reasoning ..

The thing is that it has become quite cold here in England, winter has arrived ..

I want that the car is well kept away from all the misery on the streets.

If it was spring or summer it would be a completely different story.

In addition I don't have much time this month ..

I have already ordered a Blatz cable and software to diagnose the engine and got possession of many

manuals and files regarding the GTS-T.

In my idle time I familiarize myself with the technology of the car .. interesting reading!

I now got all the import documentation.

There is an JUMVEA certificate stating that the original millage is 47,00km.

Is that worth anything at all?

Cheers from chilly London,

Andrew

[GTR-N1]

That certificate and odometer reading Andrew would have some meaning if...

i) objectively, it corresponds with any evidence that you can glean with regard to service history &/or logs

ii) subjectively, the wear and tear of the carpet, bolsters, steering wheel and upholstery condition is just like 50,000Km plus...

iii) the engine, steering and susp'n condition (which you've already checked over) is all sound.

Me? I just can't read manuals without being in the car at the same time. I'm more visual and tactile these days.

We're coming into summer now - yes, I hate to say it, but - we're coming into summer now!

Cheers, Terry

[Torques]

We're coming into summer now - yes, I hate to say it, but - we're coming into summer now!

Cheers, Terry

Hahaha!

You have my full blessings, I'm not a winter type myself.

I love the sun, swimming and the BBQ.

Besides I have a dirtbike which I love riding as well, so I prefer open terrain without much traffic.

If I add it all up, I should be moving to Oz already.

For December (and I hate to say it ) it will be Miami

(do they have Skylines over there?)

Alrite ... off to breakfast I am

Have a gorgeous weekend,

Andrew

[Torques]

Well,

I just want to continue my story with the Skyline ..

I have finally picked it up in the UK .. that was a week ago.

(it stood 3 months in a garage space where the dealer kept it for me)

)

It was a bright sunny day, so I was quite lucky with the conditions.

I took the train from London Waterloo and got out at my station 80 minutes later.

The dealer said he had the car prepared, but when I arrived atthe dealership the battery was dead and the

car would not start.

I opened the bonnet and could not find the battery .. LOL .. a new car to me.

The dealer was helpful and offered to replace the battery if they had one ..

So the Skyline went back to the Lexus-Workshop and some mechanic (a former Nissan mechanic) located the battery

in the boot and removed it.

I was a a bit surprised about this tiny and light battery .. never seen one of these before.

They put it on a charger and I went for a walk to kill some time.

By chance I came across an auto part warehouse, but they wouldn't know anything about Skylines.

I roamed to store and checked the batteries they had and there was one Nissan Micra battery that looked like a close

match. (only 50 quid)

So I measured this Micra battery and walked back to the Lexus deal (about an hour later)

When I arrived they said the Skyline battery wouldn't draw much current from the charger - not a good sign.

We agreed to give it one more try with the old (recharged) battery.

I installed it myself and for some reaon the battery was quite warm from the charging process.

I turned the key, and the engine came to live with a healthy noise from the starter motor.

I took my chances and drove the 140km back to London ..

(but that's another story to continued here)

BTW:

I found out that my GTS-T is a 1997 SPECII model

Cheers,

Andrew

Edited March 15, 2009 by Torques

[GTR-N1]

Hi Andrew,

If your battery is positioned in the boot like mine, it should be a completely sealed unit.

I'd also double-check the specifications of what's required as a battery for your car.

With an alarm system (3-way), the charge of your battery can drain fairly easily unless it's up to spec.

140Km without incident?

Now the camera comes out hehe! With the spring sunshine.

Tez

[Torques]

Hi Tez,

Yes .. the battery was/is sealed, that's correct.

I could not find anything on the specs .. do you have any? (what's good for the R34 should be fine for the R33)

As for my first contact with the Skyline:

I drove the car home safely, and taking no chances with revving the engine or anything.

It was a smooth ride and I was really impressed with how well the suspension/steering worked.

Every bump in the road was firmly ironed out without being too soft or too firm.

Compared to my former BMW with a M-Tech (Sachs) suspension the Skyline did sooo much better!!

The only thing that bugged me was the loud exhaust which is an Apex (3.5) straight through system.

It was way too loud for daily driving .. (nice sound though)

Next day at home I browsed the classified section at www.skylinowners.com and found a guy

just an hour drive away who was selling a complete genuine R33 exhaust.

(He thought I was insane since no one ever goes back to the original system it seems)

And .. he offered me to fit it for a few extra quid on his driveway.

(He had done it about 4 times recently and knew exactly how to position the car)

An hour later I had the original exhaust under the car and the Apex in the boot

And as for power I think the original exhaust delivers more torque at low to mid rpms ..

Cheers,

Andreas

Here's the (good) guy fitting the exhaust:

[Marsss]

This thread is a very good read.... congrats on your purchase and may the series 2 be with you for a loooooong time

[Torques]

This thread is a very good read.... congrats on your purchase and may the series 2 be with you for a loooooong time

Hi Marsss,

Gad you like the threat since I thought I might bore people to death.

I actually heard first about the Skyline in 2005 in a (UK) TV-Series called Top Gear (not a very good series by now).

They showed some crazy Japanese people on a drag strip and the commentator mentioned that they were using a Skyline

which could be easily tuned to insane HP. (I had now idea what a Skyline was, but I quite liked the name of the car and it somehow stuck with me)

A year later I was working in Tokyo for 8 months and on my daily commute trough Tokyo I saw a Skyline for the first time for real.

(Of course I had forgotten about the Top Gear reportage, but when I saw the car it all came back to memory)

The driver was a normal looking family guy in a suit and the car was looking quite standard.

I liked the car from the moment I saw it and when it disappeared into Tokyo's traffic the thought was born to buy one ...

2 years later I finally bought a Skyline (after having seen about 5 and doing much research).

Cheers,

Andreas

Edited March 19, 2009 by Torques

[GTR-N1]

Any battery around 585 CCA (rating) or N66 (model) plus or minus a little would be good enough for a Skyline. It's not quite up to speed with modern BMs tho'.

Do they still hold Skyline days at Rockingham Andreas?

For technical advice, over there, you can always source some info from

Middlehurst Motorsport GT-R

Nissan High Performance Centre

Jackson St St Helens

Merseyside WA9 1AW

Ph 01744 457161

Lynda Boyle is currently the GT-R Liaison Mngr

E-Mail: [email protected]

www.middlehurst.co.uk

Hope this helps as a reference! All the best on the learning curve with your new wheels!

[Torques]

Hi Terry,

Thanks for the information, much appreciated.

I tried driving to Abbey Motor Sports for an Oil change.

http://www.abbeymotorsport.co.uk/

However they wanted to charge 125 GBP, that's 270 AUD.

I found that too expensive, since my car is not modified and not pushed hard at the moment.

However, my oil looks a bit on the used side, and since I don't know how the car was serviced I'd like to have an oil change soon.

The spark plugs would be worth changing as well (unless they look alright)

I will not go for pricy iridium, rather for copper or platinum.

The air filter has been changed already by me, the old one looked a bit clogged:

http://www.strangelanding.com/skyline/filter.jpg

As for the battery I'm inclined buying a new one, but for now the old battery seems to be in good health.

Cheers,

Andrew

Edited March 20, 2009 by Torques

[GTR-N1]

Hi Andreas,

1+ Extra...

If it's Jap water/coolant in the car, I'd have it flushed out > new coolant

Many a radiator, heater core, have rusted out due to old water being in there.

Yes that oil change cost is excessive. Top quality oil can be purchased by you and DIY or a local guy can put it in. If the latter, ask him if you can inspect the car from underneath his hoist and check bushings/cat/exhaust etc.

Cheers,

Terry

[Torques]

Hi Terry,

Good point!

I'll see after the coolant ... I don't want any rust in the system ..

In addition I spotted a huge dragon fly that dented the AC condenser (sits before the water cooler)

maybe the dragon fly is from Japan .. since it has Godzilla size however the AC seems to be working in order (apart from a gurgling sound)

What an adventure ... but I am starting to like it

Cheers,

Andrew