1999 R34 Gtr

[syfon]

Obviously I'm not going to be expecting the reliability of a brand new toyota corolla out of it, so I'm expecting to be spending some dollars in the way of maintenance etc, however I just want to know if they are a generall reliable vehicle, coz hey, being a GTR, you're going to have a little bit of fun with it, right?

[gersfan]

Obviously I'm not going to be expecting the reliability of a brand new toyota corolla out of it, so I'm expecting to be spending some dollars in the way of maintenance etc, however I just want to know if they are a generall reliable vehicle, coz hey, being a GTR, you're going to have a little bit of fun with it, right?

I have fun with mine and no problems so far (touch wood). Are you interested in looking over east? Much better selection and you could probably pick up a s3 if that's what you really want. That's what I ended up doing and as they are slightly cheaper over there you still end up with it on the road in perth for a good price.

[syfon]

I have had a look over east and there are some nice S3 GTR's but i really can't be bothered trucking it over (risk of damage to the vehicle even though it is insured), and getting it rego'd. I'd rather look around and buy a nice one over here that's already rego'd and complied.

[ohno1]

^^Totally agree. Remember that when things go wrong on a GTR (32,33 or 34) they are go in multiples of $1000. If you have the money to maintain and repair it then go for it. If you need it checked over go to XSpeed as they are the experts with these things. No one else in Perth comes close.

unless they get some apprentice to work on your gtr

i took my car to a toyota specialist of all places to use the correct grade of oil to put in a skyline gearbox

yep they are definitely the experts

Edited April 28, 2010 by ohno1

[bubba]

Bubba why must you assume that my foot will be welded to the firewall at all times

Yeah I know it may not be a cheap exercise, but yes you do have a very valid point.

How reliable are the R33 RB26's? I mean say it has a few resonable mods and is either running stock boost or slightly more than factory? And assuming you give it some curry every now and then....

They have a better oil pump drive compared to early 26's and really, as long as you maintain it well and have a good tune, it should live a reasonably long life.

[syfon]

Yeah, I am aware that the oil pump drive's on the 32 RB26's were weak, so Nissan did strengthen them..

Maybe I'm just being a bir paranoid about buying a GTR, but I just want one that won't give me any trouble or throw a rod lol.

Now, onto the modifications you can do.

Say if you do a turbo-back exhaust (de-cat), pod filters, boost the turbo's a few pounds higher than factory and install a power-fc, how much awhp should if expect within reason on a safe tune?

[bubba]

Should be able to get somewhere around 240awkw on 1bar and if you can drive, maybe a high 12 down the quarter?

[ecentrix]

Its easy to get performance from a GTR with minimal mods, its just a matter of finding a good example, then you can do as you wish. For example, worst case scenario would be buying a GTR that has supporting mods like full exhaust, fmic, injectors and a fuel pump but has had bigger turbos and other bits pushing horsepower out of it with stock internals.

All comes down to money.

Edited April 29, 2010 by ecentrix

[syfon]

Yeah, I know it all comes down to money. If i can get a high 12 out of it with a few mods and still have reasonable fuel economy, I'll be happy

[Hanaldo]

Lol it's gonna be a shock going from your ~600-1000km a tank fuel consumption, down to like 400km a tank. Much more fun though, welcome back to the world of real cars

[MLCrisis]

Maybe I'm just being a bir paranoid about buying a GTR, but I just want one that won't give me any trouble or throw a rod lol.

Now, onto the modifications you can do.

Say if you do a turbo-back exhaust (de-cat), pod filters, boost the turbo's a few pounds higher than factory and install a power-fc, how much awhp should if expect within reason on a safe tune?

My car, in its first incarnation, had pod filters (arguable that these are needed), Apexi turbo-back exhaust, factory cat (why would you de-cat when the factory cat is high flow and legal???), Power FC and a Greddy electronic boost gauge. Everything else was stock. This gave 280 kW at the wheels, with 1.2 bar boost (which is OK on an R34 - normally ran 0.8 bar). It could have been more with a straight-through muffler, but I had a quiet muffler on it. I added a Tomei fuel pump for peace of mind, as the stock one was nearing its limit. (Hard wire the fuel pump, too.)

You can get over 300 kW (400+ hp) with a few more tweaks. The stock FMIC and injectors are fine for such power levels. You will be getting close to the limit for the injectors, but you only need the expense of new ones if you are taking the next step with everything else. Same for the standard air flow meters (which you can take higher, with a tuner who knows his stuff).

But you need to start addressing oil issues, if you ever intend to take it to the track. At the very least you need to have an oil catch can/separator, plumbed back into the sump. (I also had the breather line plumbed back into the intake, which kept it legal.) Consider the Mines cam cover baffles. If you can do it without taking the engine out, get a head drain fitted. If you do take the engine out, as well as fitting anything other than an N1 oil pump (even the stock one is stronger), fit an extended sump and baffle kit (Imports 101 do a good kit ).

Then, an oil cooler and radiator upgrade will help in the WA Summer.

Then … … … … then … … … …

I did say "first incarnation", didn't I?!!

Cheers.

[Nic_A31]

No offence but why do you want a GTR if you want reliability and no issues?

There is a good reason they have a bigger engine, twin turbos, thicker sway bars, stiffer suspension, carbon fibre parts, less interior, etc.

Perth of all places, if full of muppets who know sweet FA about what theyre driving, they'll happily thrash the shit out of their cars, but have no clue how to fix it when it breaks - I can safely say this applies to SAU, WA and even a few in this thread. Good luck finding a good condition GTR, with low kms, treated nicely, for those prices.

RE: changing oil pumps as soon as you buy a car ?

...yeah what the f**k? you know how much money that costs (/time it takes if you do it yourself) ?

If something is about to throw in the towel you should be able to pick it up when you see the car running or drive it.

RE: Shipping from over East to here, vehicle carriers like CEVA do have prestige service, where your car travels in a container the whole way, and they use longer run-up ramps or lower vehicles, etc.

it's an extra grand or two...not alot comapred to a $30k-40k car.

[Brandon]

My car, in its first incarnation, had pod filters (arguable that these are needed), Apexi turbo-back exhaust, factory cat (why would you de-cat when the factory cat is high flow and legal???), Power FC and a Greddy electronic boost gauge. Everything else was stock. This gave 280 kW at the wheels, with 1.2 bar boost (which is OK on an R34 - normally ran 0.8 bar). It could have been more with a straight-through muffler, but I had a quiet muffler on it. I added a Tomei fuel pump for peace of mind, as the stock one was nearing its limit. (Hard wire the fuel pump, too.)

You can get over 300 kW (400+ hp) with a few more tweaks. The stock FMIC and injectors are fine for such power levels. You will be getting close to the limit for the injectors, but you only need the expense of new ones if you are taking the next step with everything else. Same for the standard air flow meters (which you can take higher, with a tuner who knows his stuff).

But you need to start addressing oil issues, if you ever intend to take it to the track. At the very least you need to have an oil catch can/separator, plumbed back into the sump. (I also had the breather line plumbed back into the intake, which kept it legal.) Consider the Mines cam cover baffles. If you can do it without taking the engine out, get a head drain fitted. If you do take the engine out, as well as fitting anything other than an N1 oil pump (even the stock one is stronger), fit an extended sump and baffle kit (Imports 101 do a good kit ).

Then, an oil cooler and radiator upgrade will help in the WA Summer.

Then … … … … then … … … …

I did say "first incarnation", didn't I?!!

Cheers.

280awkw? Thats very good. I would like to see how the car drives. Most 33gtrs I know are around the 250awkw mark give or take with 0.9bar-1.1bar boost.

[Ten Four]

280kw = 375whp. Thats more than mine makes with all my list of mods at 1.3bar. You ran 1.2bar/17-18psi on stock turbos? Where did you get yours dyno'd?

Say if you do a turbo-back exhaust (de-cat), pod filters, boost the turbo's a few pounds higher than factory and install a power-fc, how much awhp should if expect within reason on a safe tune?

Syfon: Rohans GTR has catback only, pods pfc and running 14psi (1bar) - made 240awhp on that 40deg day at autoworx a while back where everyone elses' numbers were hammered.

Edited April 29, 2010 by Ten Four

[gersfan]

just over 12psi

Edited April 29, 2010 by gersfan

[MLCrisis]

Correction - it was 1.3 bar. My apologies. It was tuned by Steve Thomas using the dyno at Top Racing (in Shootout mode, see attached). This was a good example of what you can get out of a GTR with only a few mods.

Dyno_Graphs_1.pdf (Sorry again - attached wrong graph first time!)

Cheers.

Edited April 29, 2010 by MLCrisis

[gersfan]

how safe is 1.3bar?

[MLCrisis]

how safe is 1.3bar?

On an R34, I was reliably informed, it is fine. But probably as high as you would want to go. R34 turbos are steel bearing but still ceramic wheels - but the ceramics were a lot better than the earlier models, where you would not want to go that high.

[Ten Four]

http://www.skylinesaustralia.com/forums/12...34-t242506.html

I'm not being a dickhead, merely trying to understand.

[sveer]

I'm considering selling my 34GTR at the moment as I'm looking at getting back into my bike racing which I had to give up to enjoy the GTR.

Happy to come show it to see what you think and have a chat about it. Would be be chasing ~$47k for it but would consider offers.

Was bought as Vspec but VIN check shows it as a std GTR, its been fitted with VSpec options though...carbon diffuser and front diffuser.

Has original instrument cluster in it which reads 58800kms at the moment and the condition of the car supports the low mileage.

Fitted with Blitz pods, Power FC, Apexi N1 exhaust...Tuned and Dynoed at Xspeed and then again later when I wasn't happy with the tune at Allstar garage.

I had a 100,000km service completed when I got the car so I could be certain of everything, complete fluid change, belts, water pump, gaskets etc

Top end has been checked by a few mechanics and each has said its clean as a whistle and looks as new.

Recently installed HKS Twin Plate clutch..it was 2nd hand but does the job, it's a little fiddly to get used to the friction point but otherwise fine.

I drive the car almost daily and it's well cared for (had it over 2 years now) and never had a hiccup with it. Will regret selling it but racing is in my blood and I've gotta start thinking about buying a house too.

So yuh...not officially for sale but will happily come and show it to people to give an idea of what a good condition 34 GTR looks like in the flesh and if someone can convince me to part with it...I may well do so.

PM if youre interested in any more details/catching up