Cost Of Maintaining A Skyline?

[ScottyF]

Hi all.

I've been researching for the past month and decided upon a R33 GTS. I'm an 18 yr old.

The one thing holding me back is the price of a service and or spare parts and their availability. Any info on this would be awesome.

I'm located in Melbourne!

Thanks in advance

Scott

Edited November 1, 2008 by ScottyF

[GTR-N1]

Hiya Scott and Welcome!

A R33GTS will not be too complicated or costly to keep it sweet if all of the services (rcpts/logs) have been done during its history.

Check for those things and if you're not mechanical, take a mechanic along for inspection. One list for him and one for you to check.

Look out for rust (on rails, boot, wheel well etc), tell-tale signs of damage (such as worn edges of panel bolts, engine mounts, crossmembers etc), numbers on the odomometer out of alignment, oil leaks and seepage (since an oil pump replacement can be expensive), uneven tyre wear, cracked rotors, oil in the coolant reservoir, milkiness or burnt smell on the dipstick, sludge underneath the oil filler cap. And this is before you turn the key.

Don't baulk at getting further advice here. Only 10% of us bite!

Tez

[ScottyF]

Thanks for the response!

Yep! I've got the "what to look for when buying a skyline" thread bookmarked!

I'm really after information on the cost of replacement parts, and how long they take it get to Melbourne?

also how much does a regular service cost for a skyline in comparison to a similar ADM car?

(I'm trying to find info to show my dad... He will be lending me half of the cash and isn't too keen on an import )

[CARSICK]

As Terry hinted, the services aren't that expensive...

<$200 for a minor service with a workshop that's familiar with Grey Import Skylines. They do not charge like specialist Nissan Dealers. More like $70-$90/Hr

Maintenance parts are not really expensive either. Oil and air filters can be obtained from Nissan. The workshop can supply high quality oil like Motul, Elf etc

Dif oil is easy to get from Autobarn, as are pads and rotors.

Availability of specialty parts is not hard via Nisswreck, Just Jap, Powerplay, Unique Auto, Toy Shop and many others.

Australia, UK, Indonesia, Hong Kong, Malaysia and Thailand are places that have absorbed export Skylines from Japan.

[some_cs_student]

Be warned that some parts are hard to find though, its not a commodore so its difficult to find some parts and easier to find others

Importing parts now costs quite a bit due to the yen so that is something to take into consideration as well...

[ScottyF]

Thanks for all the info!

As I live in Melbourne, Can anyone recommend a quality workshop for servicing?

[Johnny]

If you are friends or family friends with your local mechanic just take it to them; servicing a skyline is very easy but make sure you check up and learn what fluids go where so you can make sure the mechanic wont put in the wrong thing.

when it comes time for tuning, mods etc: take it to one of many SAU recommended places; racepace, creatd ms, re customs and status tuning being the best of the best.