To Mod Or Not To Mod - That Is The Question?

[DJBarnstar]

Skylines are slow stock.

(Bar the 35)

[C4a0s]

Which car has more character: the showroom pony, the forgotten-now-restored showpiece or the modified car that pushes the limit of its design and production?

definitely the modified car

I also think regardless of whether you modify or keep it stock it's meant to be used/enjoyed/driven.. not sit in a shed for its life and hauled around to shows on trailers.. whats the point? To say yours is better than theirs? Enjoy the car for what its worth

yes...but that said, i rather the car enjoy a simple and safe life before i bought it....hahahahahaha so i can buy a pristine, low kms beauty then modify it...

So you own a nismo 400r, you going to rip out the computer and put a microleb in it, and some BC coilovers?

no...but i will put a motec/vipec, with high quality parts in it then get the ideal HP

what about someone who modifies a nur?

http://www.street-cover.com/feature/daniels-r34-gtr-v-spec-ii-nur/

http://www.pasmag.com/features/rides/3300-2002-nissan-skyline-r34-gtr-v-spec-ii-nur

[PN-Mad]

Nurs, while very nice, are not rare.

There is more to enjoying cars than shoving bits that please you on them or making them super fast. That is simply one aspect of being an automotive enthusiast.

Put a 800hp R32, and Bobs pretty much pristine R32 ADM next to each other at a car show/cruise and I bet the ADM would get more attention.

This is a good example. Rare car. Not been molested by 3 different owners who knew what were the best parts for it. This is a keeper.

http://www.skylinesaustralia.com/forums/topic/441409-1996-r33-nissan-skyline-gtr-lm-limited-vspec-1-of-98-made-1-of-14-vspecs/

[zebra]

Anyone who modifies a 400r should be shot.

Factory specials are rare and expensive. ..modify it and it becomes just a modified R33 worth nothing.

Eg 69/70 boss 302 mustangs are wirth a shit load in original condition...same goes for ones restored to original. ..

Ones thst were modified are worth nothing..in fact people won't buy them.

[gtr jet]

I doubt my old man would have any drama's selling his Boss 429 even though it's far from original.

In saying that he would never get the $200,000 asking price of an original.

[BoyWhoCriedWolf]

Pn's hit it on the head.

I'd never mod my 32 but would be happy to go balls deep on a "normal" 32. The Vspec would be the highest I'd go with mods, everything rarer than that I would leave well enough alone and probably in the shed more often than not.

[zoomzoom]

Factory specials are rare and expensive. ..modify it and it becomes just a modified R33 worth nothing.

It has more than a whiff of the emperor's new clothes about it.

[The Baron]

I have a virtually stock R32 VSpec II. The only mods are a new stereo (kept the original one - btw if anyone knows wherther Nissan ever supplied a 'microdisk player' as an option ?? - coz that's what was in it and it had a Nissan sticker on it.....), and a quick release steering wheel (strictly for security)

The car is what I've always wanted and even though I top out at 196 rwkW, it seems plenty. To me the car is almost like an original japanese sword - yes there are cheaper ones, sharper ones, better ones out there but to me that does not detract from its inherent value.

Please don't misunderstand, there is a part of me that would love to take a $20K R32 GTR and throw a bucket of (good and tasteful) mods on it........I just can't imagine doing that to my car.......

Maybe the only solution is to have one of each......

Now where did I put that spare $40k........

Cheers

The unmodded Baron

[Jazzadub]

My preference is function over form, without a doubt.

I think a mostly original looking car, that is reasonably well maintained (but not "show spec") with power and handling to run with the best, has a lot more soul than a show spec car that isn't driven like it's meant to be, or a mint original car that's just kept garaged all the time.

I guess what I mean is I am one that believes cars are meant to be driven. The exterior doesn't mean much in that regard, so it's all about how it feels to drive, and how it performs.

If you have a car that's so valuable you don't want to drive it (show spec car or rare mint car), then it's become an investment item, and has lost the purpose of being a car. Nothing against people that have mint condition cars, I appreciate them just like anyone else. It's just personally I would have a hard time not driving something how it was meant to be driven.

Full kudos to people who fully restore cars to a mint condition and then drive them how they were meant to be driven!

[V28VX37]

...

Once upon a time we bought Skylines to Modify (GFB) and then there is a swing to unmodify and go all OEM

...

Never heard of that swing, I thought all Skylines were meant to be modified??

[scotty nm35]

The most expensive skylines I have seen sold are the Gibson 32's, also the most highly modified examples I have seen...

[zebra]

The most expensive skylines I have seen sold are the Gibson 32's, also the most highly modified examples I have seen...

Because bathurst winner

[Leroy Peterson]

Because bathurst winner

Even with that, i still dont get the hype.

Will an ex-brocky bathurst winning V8 fetch the same price?

Or a craig lowndes V8?

[zebra]

Even with that, i still dont get the hype.

Will an ex-brocky bathurst winning V8 fetch the same price?

Or a craig lowndes V8?

Brock, f**k yes

Lowndes, maybe

But...have you seen what the LeMans winning GT40 sold for, or a Group C Sauber Mercedes

or the Bud Moore Transam Boss 302

Winfield GTR is chicken feed compared to them

[PN-Mad]

Even with that, i still dont get the hype.

Will an ex-brocky bathurst winning V8 fetch the same price?

Or a craig lowndes V8?

You bet your ass!

The GMS cars were/are still racing. Brock's cars aren't. They are all holed up because of the value of them.

[PN-Mad]

People derive pleasure in different ways. It immature to think that modifiers are somehow the ultimate form, or restorers are the ultimate. We all enjoy different aspects of the automotive lifestyle. It's only my opinion, but some cars are best left original, while others are great modified. When I see someone wreck a significant car by modding it, it's kind of like when a modifier sees someone JDM a Kia rio! Lolz

If you need to see passion, just talk to someone who has researched their car so much they have restored the chalk build markings on the undercarriage. They love it just as much as anyone who installs coilovers and a exhaust.

[Leroy Peterson]

Brock, f**k yes

Lowndes, maybe

But...have you seen what the LeMans winning GT40 sold for, or a Group C Sauber Mercedes

or the Bud Moore Transam Boss 302

Winfield GTR is chicken feed compared to them

but those cars are cool... that GTR is just... so similar to other GTRs. its not like DTM widy body or GT40 rarity or LeMans concept or something.

i know how much all those cars sell for, but its pretty sad the people who spend that money. so $$$ for servicing of a car that doesnt get driven. its all just an ivestment.

[zebra]

A lot of them do get run these days

awesome to see

[PN-Mad]

Hahaha, you even had a close look at a Gibson GTR?

There isn't all the much oem GTR left to be quite honest. It's just the engineering is under a plain looking shell.

[PN-Mad]

A lot of them do get run these days

awesome to see

A field of 45 cars in the group A and C class at Phillip Island supports this. Plus another GTR is being rebuilt to race.