Jump to content
SAU Community

Recommended Posts

hey all,

im new to the forum and im half looking at getting my first import and out of the commodore.

need some advice ont what to get, im considering everything from silvias and skylines, to soarers for some luxury. i dont need a car stupidly fast but i want some creature comforts aswell.

what would be suitable and within a reasonable price range?

Link to comment
https://www.sau.com.au/forums/topic/382089-advice-on-first-import/
Share on other sites

  • Replies 72
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

there are wide selection depend on what you want. may be answer the following questions will help?

what is your budget?

How old is the vehicle that you willing to try?

RWD/FWD/4WD

leather seat?

Turbo or supercharge or V8

2 or 4 doors

Does the aftermarket support important to you or happy to go for custom jobs

what is the KWs you try to get out of engine

Well im looking up to 10k for now i guess. And i know about the KPGC10's being mega dollars these days. I'd prefer a manual coupe of some sort anything back to 1990ish, and i'd want one fairly stock so i can mod it myself, its a better feeling than getting a ready made machine. My mate has a 32 gtst manual which i helped him work on and i love driving it around when i can, and another friend has an 01 wrx which handles on rails. Maybe a 32 GTS4 because i like the shape and AWD grip feels awesome

haha the rb20 cops so much flack, i like it, kind of an underdog. im not looking for too much power right now anyway. that 33 v spec link looks like a scam too, 10k for a very low k's gtr with mods is way too cheap.

My opinion:

10 grand will get you a skyline I think however it won't get you into a soarer that is worth loving.

10 grand will easilly get you a series one twin turbo but of you're chasing a series 3 elec seat update interior update engine update body type then 10k won't be enough,

Same will go for skylines,

Like 91 models etc fine... But you won't get a 99 skyline or a 99 soarer with that budget...

Reason I say this is, you're new to imports, you haven't yet got the connects or the parts Hookups or the work arounds if things go wrong.

And so for your first import car you will want it to be a good experience not a bitter one, best wAy to get a good experience is buy right the first time,

Increase your budget slightly and you will save the money on repairs in the long run.

Not to mention picking up a less tired interior and newer seats etc

I know you're probably looking into "punk" kaido imports like skyline soarer Silvia etc,

But also don't be afraid to look into Lexus IS200 aka Toyota Altezza, they're ridiculously cheap now and with a nice detail (done by me) can really look the part with some nice wheels :)

Happy hunting !!

As a former Soarer owner I would say they are a lot of car for the money. Manuals still command a premium but even they can be had for around the 10k range now.

Not quite as good a handler as a Skyline but they are very easy to upgrade for straight line speed.

As a former Soarer owner I would say they are a lot of car for the money. Manuals still command a premium but even they can be had for around the 10k range now. <BR>Not quite as good a handler as a Skyline but they are very easy to upgrade for straight line speed.

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now



  • Similar Content

  • Latest Posts

    • $53.35 and a double din Pioneer head unit that I have...
    • Put a camera facing your dashboard so you can film the gauges. Head out to a straight but of road, and filming it as you go from a stand still at wide open throttle to as fast as you can/feel comfortable doing. Then film the dash board as you for example accelerate like normal onto a freeway. This will give us an indicator from Speedo of your expectation of slow, and will give us the rpm reading too to see if it's shifting. (Auto still has tacho from memory)
    • Buy yourself the cooling system pressure tester. Being able to pump it up, and have a gauge on it, AND have a cold engine makes it much easier / practical to diagnose. Additionally as the engine isn't running, you can listen for pin hole leaks as well as watching if pressure drops away. In addition, you can pressurise and while doing so, watch all the little rubber hoses. Some fail very brittle, and will just leak, while others can end up very soft and bulge. While a bulging hose isn't necessarily leaking, one of those small ones starting to stretch / expand in a bad way is an indicator that you'll be looking to replace that one soon   Depending on if this is a project car, or you'll be dailying it in the summer months would alter how I'd be most comfortable with driving the car and how I'd replace. If you're planning to use it as a daily, with no backup, I'd pull the engine, and replace all the external oil/water lines in one big swoop. At the same time do the timing belt, water pump, tensioners etc. Do not open the engine at all. We just want to replace all the things that are inexpensive as a single item, but a PITA when they go. By doing the above, you've made the car from a bunch of age related issues more reliable. If it's a project, and you like swearing while trying to reach into dirty hard to reach places to replace a single hose that may or may not be the leaky one. Just replace the leaking/bad ones as they need it. If it's a project and you'd rather swear at the car once and enjoy it as much as possible, then refer to the process I mentioned in how I'd want to do it if it were a daily. However, the approaches above do come down to how much spare pocket change you have. Pulling the engine and dropping over a thousand dollars on parts, may not be practical for you. Oh, if engine outing, I'd replace as many silicon/rubber inlet joiners as possible too.
    • Yeah, they're pretty dumb though...ie; they'll throw a solenoid error if the solenoid is dead, shorted, wiring is open circuit, or even if the driver transistor has failed (they can't self-diagnose much, they can only test inputs/outputs)... but if you wanted to try, I believe it's this protocol....(uses a long pulse indicator with short pulse counter)...    
    • Yeah I'll do what I can without taking off any major parts for now. If it becomes clear I won't get far with the engine in the car I'll have to think about the next steps. I am not too stuck on keeping everything 100% OEM, if there is better solutions, like converting most lines to braided with AN adapters, I'd rather do that than buy overpriced new "shit" parts.
×
×
  • Create New...