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R33 Gts-t Having Rings/ Pistons Replaced. What Would You Do At Same Time?


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A factory motor is more than fine - depending on the application.

Hence if you tell us how much you have to spend, what your intended use of the car is etc etc - people can help rather than just keep throwing ideas around that might not offer you any real benefit at all.

Stock heads are fine, stock bottom ends are also FINE if you only want say 250rwkw.

So why put forged pistons, rods, N1 pumps etc etc spending cash on the head and all sorts of stuff in there?

All you need is a new turbo, dump, injectors, AFM, ECU, clutch etc - That's 5k just there.

Dont forget suspension, most likely some attention to brakes and then suddenly its 7k-8k-9k

Ok, so i'm not going to be racing the car for the forseeable. It's got to be a reliable daily driver firstly, and up to 250rwkw would be more than adequate for my needs for a long time, I'll maybe have $2-3k extra to spend a year on it so I'm not chasing massive power.

So it does seem i'm best saving my money for now and just getting the car back in a running start first eh.

Looking at the brakes will be one of the first things I do though since they don't pull it up quite as well as I thought they should, then start having a good look at anything else that's not been kept on top of maintenance wise. I'm learning more about all the other mods I can do and mostly bolt on, so I'll start making a plan for those things after it's reliable first.

Is it a car yard? Im guessing they will give it a quick hone in the car, new rings and slap it back together. If the piston is damaged, they will only replace one with a factory item(they are $80) Thay really arent obliged to do any more if it is covered by warranty.

It's a yard but they have their own workshop and have been up front about everything so far, they could have just given it to me as is and told me that's how they run etc.

Maybe they will just do that so I guess it depends on what caused that in the first place eh? I'll be asking about the cause too, at this stage i'm more concerned about what else might be stuffed on there. Been trying to read about why they might fail eh, bad oil/ wrong oil/ not enough oil/ overheating/ dirt in the chamber etc.

If it's just one cylinder and they hone it and replace piston/ rings, is that alright?

I think i'll ask for the readings for all 6 cyls and see if they are just gonna do 1 or however many or them all so it's even.

Bollocks, now i'm worried it's been abused a lot and it might be one thing after another...

So is the "rebuilt" stock turbo now containing steel wheels?

No-one would rebuild it and put ceramic wheels back in there.

I would really hope not... I'll ask about that too. Is this obvious/ visible without taking the turbo off completely?

So it's cylinders 1 and 5 that have damaged rings and pistons. Mechanic reckons it's just been overheated at some point.

Would the cylinder numbers indicate a particular problem?

Getting the head checked and fixed next.

What can I do to prevent similar in future... I'm obviously going to take better care than the last guy but given that I live in sunny central Queensland should I be looking at anything to improve the cooling system?

Would it be related to the fact that there could be something wrong with the engine coolling?

Could running an FMIC or R34 GTT SMIC help precent this in future if say I wanted to drive it in a spirited manner occasionally? :-)

So it's cylinders 1 and 5 that have damaged rings and pistons. Mechanic reckons it's just been overheated at some point.

Would the cylinder numbers indicate a particular problem?

Getting the head checked and fixed next.

What can I do to prevent similar in future... I'm obviously going to take better care than the last guy but given that I live in sunny central Queensland should I be looking at anything to improve the cooling system?

Would it be related to the fact that there could be something wrong with the engine coolling?

Could running an FMIC or R34 GTT SMIC help precent this in future if say I wanted to drive it in a spirited manner occasionally? :-)

a good fuel system is a step in the right direction, as for cooling i never used to get more than couple degrees warmer when giving it some even around the track except when it dropped its coolant out the tell-tale hole when it was parked once. but up to you if you want more piece of mind. if it was 1and6 or 3and4 maybe 1and5 prob nothing in it.

It's a yard but they have their own workshop and have been up front about everything so far, they could have just given it to me as is and told me that's how they run etc.

Maybe they will just do that so I guess it depends on what caused that in the first place eh? I'll be asking about the cause too, at this stage i'm more concerned about what else might be stuffed on there. Been trying to read about why they might fail eh, bad oil/ wrong oil/ not enough oil/ overheating/ dirt in the chamber etc.

If it's just one cylinder and they hone it and replace piston/ rings, is that alright?

I think i'll ask for the readings for all 6 cyls and see if they are just gonna do 1 or however many or them all so it's even.

Bollocks, now i'm worried it's been abused a lot and it might be one thing after another...

Have you already bought this car? If you've only put a deposit down I would walk away at this point.

a good fuel system is a step in the right direction, as for cooling i never used to get more than couple degrees warmer when giving it some even around the track except when it dropped its coolant out the tell-tale hole when it was parked once. but up to you if you want more piece of mind. if it was 1and6 or 3and4 maybe 1and5 prob nothing in it.

Thanks. I'm still puzzled as to how the dude managed to do it if it's not obviously crap getting into the cyinders. Been discussing with someone else and the possibility of it being overboosted at some point is also a consideration.

Have you already bought this car? If you've only put a deposit down I would walk away at this point.

This has gone through my mind but I'm also thinking if they've had this good a look at the motor then I'll probably have the best history of the car I could hope for and I get something with a rebuilt engine that will last me a good while.

can you tell us the name of the car yard? Pm if you like. If its who I think it is I have a tale to tell you that should have you walking away quick smart!

This has gone through my mind but I'm also thinking if they've had this good a look at the motor then I'll probably have the best history of the car I could hope for and I get something with a rebuilt engine that will last me a good while.

Lol - you think a car yard trying to sell you an import is going to rebuild an engine that is going to ast you a while considering you're on a tight budget. Lol... Take the advice of people who have been there an done that - walk away from it! Seriously, you dont sound too mechanically inclined or knowledgable so I would walk or run as fast as you can...

Then again, buy it and we'll all have something to shake our heads at when you're back asking similar questions when it let goes in a couple of months time.

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