Feral In Car = 0 Tree = 1

[iseekool]

Hehe...

tree needs hug

I thought VNs hugged trees automatically - by wrapping itself around it. It's just nature taking course, by killing off the stupid...

[GTR-N1]

Re: Tree-hugging ^^^

Sh-h-h-h-h-h-h-h. VNs are very very smart!

They even recognise wooden telegraph poles as being (former) trees - and hug them too.

They even recognise aluminium light poles as NOT being trees - so they run right over them.

[Duncan1]

Sorry to hear.

Like the bollard idea though!

Cul-de-sac in a quiet area FTW!

[bozodos]

god there is sooooooo much VN hate on this forum!

Yeah they can be a bloody hard car to drive to its limits (I used to own a modified SS), but trust me the Skyline was sooo much easier to drive after it, it takes real skill to throw a VN sideways and not hit things, even with an LSD and lowered suspension! That said there are a lot of horribly loud V6 ones around, but they do do mean skids for what they are, and kids love skids!

VL's are actually a worse handling car FYI, especially the Calais.

[l_uk3y]

god there is sooooooo much VN hate on this forum!

Yeah they can be a bloody hard car to drive to its limits (I used to own a modified SS), but trust me the Skyline was sooo much easier to drive after it, it takes real skill to throw a VN sideways and not hit things, even with an LSD and lowered suspension! That said there are a lot of horribly loud V6 ones around, but they do do mean skids for what they are, and kids love skids!

VL's are actually a worse handling car FYI, especially the Calais.

I see the main hate against them is not actually the car itself, but the general demographic that drive them. Cheap rwd car that pulls a skid, easy to throw lots of power into them with the right engine choice. Lacking handling but once again it was produced to be used as a family car. Nice big barge to cart the family around in. Also, most VN people seem to be into skids and straight line stuff.

I find the same thing with my 1999 VS Statesman. It is good for its designed purpose. Its a bit like a gts and a gtr. It can be made to compare to a much sportier car. But you will always be playing catch up.

[bozodos]

Haha most non hoon bogan VN owners are over the age of 50 and have owned theirs since new.

[ARTZ]

seen a VN accident a few months back..in a 60 zone, mid afternoon.. somehow this young VN driver had managed to get airbourne enough hit a van carrying 2 people in the windscreen..

Needless to say they guy from the van was on the side of the road in severe shock after being hit in the face by a VN

The VN was laying about 50 mtrs up the road with the whole rear end, diff and all sheared off from the window back, laying in somebodies front fence... the guy was still sittin in it looking quite dumbfounded as to why the back of his car was so low..

.no doubt he felt cool for a moment.

Was quite a sight,i have no idea how the hell he done it

Also that family that ran into the truck yesterday....nudda VN...VP actually...there fun to drive but id hate to crash one..deadly

[GTR-32U]

god there is sooooooo much VN hate on this forum!

Yeah they can be a bloody hard car to drive to its limits (I used to own a modified SS), but trust me the Skyline was sooo much easier to drive after it, it takes real skill to throw a VN sideways and not hit things, even with an LSD and lowered suspension! That said there are a lot of horribly loud V6 ones around, but they do do mean skids for what they are, and kids love skids!

VL's are actually a worse handling car FYI, especially the Calais.

hmm....Dont know about that. I have had a VL and also a VK as well as 2 VN's...I still think the VN's are more dangerous. VN's seem to have a higher level of grip and then they just totally let go of the road and spin out. VL's and VK's seem to have a lower traction threshold but seem to have a lower centre of gravity and are more progressive when they do let loose....my 2c

[daisu]

I thought VNs hugged trees automatically - by wrapping itself around it. It's just nature taking course, by killing off the stupid...

Natural selection

[bozodos]

Stock for stock VN's are more of a boat IMO, especially with cheesecutter tyres, an oversize steering wheel and a fair amount of low down torque, modified, VL's just seem to feel 'loose' to me, never been in a properly modified full house VL though.

[GTR-N1]

Plenty of info out there about VN/VP 'Clunk' with any problems assoc with rack, bushes, loose struts, bendy arms yaddayadda

I loved the 'look' of the SV5000 in racing green, but 'forewarned = forearmed'

[bozodos]

Yeah I always wanted an SV5000, but SS $5k vs $15k for an SV 5000

I have seen one, owner used it to transport his dogs and tow a boat :facepalm:

Yeah they can be clunky with worn suspension components, I got all my bushes changed to Nolathane ones for around $300! Wish the Skyline was that cheap haha

[mad082]

the poblem with the VN isn't the car itself, its the price of the car (can be bought for unde $1000) and the type of peson who drives any car bought fo under $1000.

as for suspension issues, what do you expect for a 20 year old car than on average has driven atleast twice as far, on worse roads that it's jap equivilant, the r32. come and look at some of the s13's and r32's getting round gympie and you'll start to think that some of the vn's you see are clean. i saw a s13 the other day at my mates workshop that had coilovers in it with both front camber tops adjust fully to the left and the camber was still out (needed more adjustment to the left), had play in both front wheels, had a rust hole under the drivers side door sill you could nearly fit your hand through, headlights held in by zip ties, same with the front bar, radiator and cooler, front left 1/4 panel also had some zip ties tolding it on at the bottom, miss matched wheels, half melted rear bar from the exhausts (twin 2.5" that stuck out about 25cm past the back bar, also had no mufflers at all), painted dodgey in matt camo colours with a spray can, and an oil leak and radiator leak. needless to say that it had been defected the night before and was in to get a bit of work done (although all i think he was getting my mate to do was to change the exhaust and wheels).

as for the sv5000, there used to be one getting round town here. also a sv3800 and both a VL and VN formula. the VL got written off by the guys brother though when he rolled it about 6 times into a paddock

[Peter89]

if there was no VNs, people would find another car similar to do similar things in. now, you claim speed bumps would help, might reduce it a bit however VNs aint imports, you dont go over a speed bump @ 5kph in a VN. since i still drive a VN (only a week to go before s14), speeds bumps @ 50kph isn't too bad, tried 70kph before, that was a bit of a bump and yeh, suspension wouldn't last doing that either.

clearly in this story the car isn't to blame, the drive had been drinking and the driver was 15 so i doubt the car would have mad much for a difference.

VNs are commonly totaled for a few reasons. 1) common. 2) the worst security ever (crime stats put VNs as the most stolen car of 2008 in vic). 3) cheap, can be had running for $500-$1000 4) somewhat light for the cars size (tare 1.4t) with v6 and rwd. no supercar but powerful enough to do stupid stuff with.

the suspension isn't the worst in the world, driven my friends old excel (mid 90s) and that car is unbelievably bad. also, the driver should know how to drive, how the car handles and not attempt to follow a skyline or pretend it is and take the corner at double the limit. the car handles poorly but it's not like you wont notice as soon as you start driving it, thus the drive should take corners slower etc. cant blame the car for driver error. you wouldn't attempt to go fast around corners in a van or truck, neither should you in crappy old cars.

in the end, be thankful it was a VN and not a skyline or another import cuz the media would have blamed the car no doubt.

edit: forgot to add, vn brakes are shocking.

Edited January 10, 2010 by Peter89

[bozodos]

haha VN brakes and security shit all over VL trust me

and marc you can't compare apples to oranges unless its purely in the case of blemished apples tasting liek crap vs blemished oranges!

[mad082]

the other thing to remember is that a majority of vn's etc have usually done well over 300,000kms by now and for the last 150,000kms probably haven't had anywhere near the amount of servicing they actually require. that is why they all seem to noisey, etc. most of them are probably still running stock/factory fitted suspension, etc, so you can't expect them to still be like new.

[bozodos]

Most R32's I've seen are still running original engines and suspensions with god knows how many k's as well marc

When I sold mine it had done 380k, 80k since engine rebuild, the paint was starting to peel for the second time (had been resprayed before I bought it), lasted well in fact.

mine is coming up to needing bushes replaced which is fair after 20 years of use lol.

[mad082]

but how many kms has the average 32 done compared to the average vn, and what sort of road condition have they been diven on. the average australian road would be much worse than the average japanese road, plus the fact that the commodores and falcons cost less to buy in the first place.

[bozodos]

its a case of anybody's guess marc since nearly all have had odometers wound back. Also the mechanical side of a VN is hugely simplified compared to the R32, its like comparing a Model T Ford to say a 60's Cadillac with all the fruit. Simple = easier to maintain.

[GHOSTrun]

The wife and I were out there today considering putting in a hedgey garden out the front with the plants hiding Metal Bollards in concrete for a bit of extra protection. (She been scared this would happen for over a year now.)

That's a very good idea Luke!