Need Help. Buying An R33

[Arjunsumra]

I'm looking into buying a 1996 Nissan skyline GTS R33. What should I look at when checking the car out and what issues come up later on during use of the car. It's at 96k right now. Any help would be great. Thanks.

[Burger]

Did you have to post this 3 times?

[V28VX37]

This was the list I collected from various sources when I first started looking at Skylines. You gotta be committed to get and run one. Good luck.

General

• View car in daylight, preferably when sunny
• Check the car only when it's clean
• Stay in control and don't buy the vehicle the first time you see it. Think about it over a couple of days.

Body and rust

• Check car close up and from 3-5m away
• See if the car is level
• Open and close doors/boot/bonnet/windows
• Look for rust in areas water may sit
• Look for rust around the bottom of the doors and fenders, and around the boot area
• Inspect the welded seams for rust in the front door sills just below the plastic kick plate
• Inspect underneath the car for signs of corrosion
• Look along the bumper bars for scuff marks and broken exterior trim pieces
• Check all windows for cracks/chips
• Check for leaks around the windscreen and rear window
• Check for bubbles along moulding or chrome, indicates rust underneath
• Be on the lookout for exposed body kit holes e.g spoiler

Body repairs

• Check for slight to moderate panel damage
• Look at paintwork and panel alignment
• Check colour matching, paintwork ripples, signs of blending (standing at an angle)
• Look around the car and underneath for signs of over-spray
• Check for serious suspension or chassis damage
• Check wing nuts for signs of removal and the front support bar
• Check the nuts along the front quarter panels and the radiator support in the engine bay
• Look under sills at chassis legs that run from back to front of car on both sides. Make sure the small mid-way weld has not split (repaired shunt)
• Inspect behind the front and rear bumpers by crawling under car
• Check underneath for rust and damage
• Check panel gaps, kinked chassis rails and for mismatched lights
• Check front guards and bonnet for dents
• Run a magnet over the car to check for bog
• Look at the exhaust for a buckle in the muffler or the pipe
• Check headlight/tail-light alignment and water or condensation
• Look for paint runs along the bottom of window seals, the bottom corner of the rear quarter window, the bottom of the A-pillar, etc
• Look for blending marks, usually along the top or bottom of the C-Pillar
• Look for masking marks i.e. rough lines of paint
• Check for paint defects, dirt on car when resprayed

Boot

• Check for an inflated spare tire. Has it been used?
• There should be a jack and a lug wrench and wheel chock
• Check around the water galleries for rust
• Pull out the spare wheel and check the boot floor for rust and accident damage/repair
• Check under carpet in boot
• Check under rubber around the boot rim for rust
• Look in the side panels and make sure they are not full of water
• Feel inside the panels in the boot where the jack is for debris
• Watch for glass, maybe broken rear window or taillights
• Check the spare wheel well for water after hosing (worn out sealing)

Interior

• Check dash for discolouration
• Check wear of steering wheel and seat bolsters, compare to odometer
• Check the condition of the seats, belts and carpeting
• Compare mileage on service stickers (door jam/under hood) to the odometer reading
• Check the windows to see if they open and close easily
• Check that mirrors work properly
• Check the brake, accelerator and clutch, all should work smoothly with no strange noises
• Check all exterior lights e.g. head/tail/brake/fog lights and flashers on the car
• Test that the air conditioning blows very cold air
• Check the glove box for the service manual and owner's manual
• Check condition of air vents
• Watch out for aftermarket steering wheels vs. HICAS

Electronics

• Make sure that the engine check light comes on at start up but does NOT stay on when driving, same with the HICAS light
• Check for removed HICAS bulb when system is dodgy
• Check all electronics function correctly
• Check radio reception
• Check for a Cat 1 alarm/immobiliser

VIN, engine number and plates

• Check BLUE Build Plate (with Japanese chassis number), GREEN Compliance Plate (with import chassis number), and VIN stamped on strut and firewall
• Check the Blue Nissan Build Plate at the back of engine bay. The plate shows the chassis number and fixed by two white plastic rivets. This plate should never be removed except perhaps if the car has had engine bay re-spray so the fixings ought to be original.
• The BLUE Nissan Build Plate should have the details PRINTED on it i.e. If you run your fingers over the details printed on it, it should be smooth. It should not be engraved.
• RB20 engine number is on the exhaust side the engine number is located down near the bottom of the engine. There are two plates one says RB20 and the one beside it says the engine number.
• RB20 engine number is stamped on the block under the driver side engine mount, and also stamped down the side of the block at the back near where the gearbox bell housing is on the passenger/exhaust side. Both are difficult to read due to the exhaust/turbo hiding one and the engine mount hiding the other.

Engine and engine bay

• Check that cam belts has been changed every 80,000
• Check metallic sticker on top of the cam belt cover for when the cam belt was changed
• Check for new gasket sealant and evidence of timing cover removal (timing belt)
• Check for signs of engine removal
• Get the engine compression tested and if it fails that, do a leak-down test (by mechanic)
• Listen for odd noises that might point to internal wear
• Check that the engine appears cared for and ‘looks factory’ with neat wiring and no bodged jobs
• Check for fluid leaks in the Power Steering, Clutch Reservoir, Brake Fluid Reservoir, ABS Unit.
• Check under the engine for oil leaks paying attention to area around sump plug
• Check fluids are clean. Pull out dipstick and remove oil filler cap to check for healthy, clean oil. Black oil suggests poor maintenance. Does the oil smell burnt? Similarly check for clean coolant. Be wary of any greyish, gluggy or gooey matter in these areas.
• Check that radiator coolant is clean, usually greenish (but sometimes blue or yellow) colour
• Check hoses and belts for wear, cracks and splits
• Look for crayon or chalk marks on components this may indicate they have been replaced with second-hand parts
• Check that turbo is of conventional steel type
• Check for black paint flaking off the exhaust manifold, hammered engine
• Check for hunting/miss on cold start (ECU)
• Check automatic transmission fluid, should be clear and reddish.
• Check the spark plugs to check for over fuelling, detonation, sulphur deposits from octane booster
• Get the car on a dyno

Chassis, Undercarriage, Suspension, Steering

• Check dampers for any obvious leaks. Also look out for grease leaking from ball-joints. Suspect knocking when driven may be result of dry joints.
• With the front wheels off the ground, check the play in the top end max. 5 mm
• Check front camber rod bushes
• Check bushes in the front suspension's upper A-arms, listen to squeaks from the front
• Carefully push down on the front bumper and rear bumper and see how the shocks are
• Get the car up on a hoist
• Look for weld marks, or thick black under body tar. Welding marks are usually hidden by panel beaters with lots of under body tar.
• Check under the engine for leaking oil. Alternatively, if it has been wiped clean (the bottom of the engine, i.e. the sump and cross member
• Be very wary of clean under bodies
• Check for leaking transmission fluid, power steering fluid, etc.
• Check each and every shock absorber for leaks
• Look for overspray on the bottom of the car, like the tow hook or suspension parts
• Check for wet bushes e.g. front castor bushes
• Check rear sub frame bushes in front of the rear axle

Suspension

• Does car pull or vibrate when driving on a flat, smooth road
• Drive quickly over a rough road and listen for any loud squeaks or rattles
• Does the car bounce or bang over small bumps?

Brakes

• Check for any vibration through steering when driving and that the car doesn’t pull to one side under breaking
• Do the brakes grab evenly and does the car slow down in a straight line? Make sure it doesn't pull to one side under brakes
• Does the ABS system work? Test on gravel

Brakes, wheels and tyres

• Check for disc wear and cracking
• Do a visual check on discs for warping, scoring and check the thickness of brake pads
• Check tyres for wear on the inside edge and make sure front and rears haven’t been swapped
• Check if the rear tyres are worn a lot more than the fronts
• Check for even wear marks, uneven wear indicates bad wheel alignment
• Check for rusted brake discs

History and Age/kms & Servicing

• Is the Japanese auction sheet available
• Check that the numbers on the odometer are aligned properly
• Does it have a full service record of its life in Japan?
• Does it have a full service record of its life in Australia?
• Do the odometer readings appear consistent with any service stickers found on car? Stickers are generally located in door jams or engine bay.
• Is the interior wear (seats/steering wheel/gators etc) what you would expect in relation to the mileage?
• Ensure that the current owner has been running on super-unleaded fuel and allowing turbo to warm up/idle down
• The year of manufacture can be found by looking at the front seatbelts, near the floor mounting point. There is a fabric tag with the seatbelt specifications and the year of manufacture sewn onto the webbing.

Road testing

• Listen only to the car when road testing
• Engine, noise, smoke
• Start the engine and check the warning lights and gauges.
• Listen out for whistling noises whilst accelerating as this can indicate turbo problems or air leaks
• Listen out for detonation (or pinking) under load. Detonation can be indicative of poor ignition setting, low quality fuel, excessive boost pressure or a badly maintained engine.
• Watch out for hesitations or misfires. Accelerate through from 3k to 5k rpm in third or fourth gear to see if the car experiences any violent hesitation, misfiring or holding back at this range.
• Check for blue smoke under hard acceleration and during deceleration. Can be sign of engine wear or turbo problems.
• Listen for noises which could indicate engine problems
• Put the car in neutral and rev the engine, check for smoke from rear exhaust
• Punch the gas pedal. Does engine respond without hesitation then return to normal?
• Cut off the engine. Then restart the engine, does it restart easily?
• At normal engine temp leave the car idling and check for;
  • Blue smoke = can indicate a variety of turbo or breathing related problems,
  • Black smoke = can indicate fuelling issues,
  • White smoke = possible engine damage, head gasket or cylinder head problems.
• Oil pressure and temps
• Check for normal operating oil pressure
• Check that vehicle is showing a nice healthy oil pressure rising under load
• Watch the oil pressure when the car is hot, factory pressures on the RB20DET: 1kg/cm 2 @ 600 rpm, 3kg/cm 2 @ 2000 rpm, 4kg/cm 2 @ 6000 rpm
• Drive vehicle long enough that any temperature issues are revealed, check the temperature gauge to see if it shows a high reading

Clutch

• Check for any clutch slipping or shuddering when taking off
• Clutch should engage and disengage smoothly without grabbing
• Floor it at 3000rpm in 4th gear to make sure the clutch is not slipping
• Drive the car on hills, highways and in stop-and-go traffic

Gearbox and diff

• How does the gearbox feel? Smooth to shift? or notchy and graunchy to put into gear? Any gearbox whine? Any grinding on gear changes? Might mean worn out synchros.
• Check that shifting to all gear is easy and there are no noises
• Check for worn first and second gear synchromesh
• Check synchros on the upper gears any crunching on high rpm, quick changes
• Ensure that the gearbox is not whining and that there are no crunching synchros on gear changes, it is normal for the box to be stiff when cold
• Drive in reverse
• Check LSD, you should not be able to hear any strange or whining noises from the diff

Dynamics and driving at different speeds

• Make sure that the operation of clutch, gearbox and brakes is smooth
• Drive at 60km/h and listen for any unusual noises
• Accelerate to 80km/h, does the front end shake or vibrate?
• Check that the steering wheel doesn't shake above 100km/h, might mean severe accident damage or need of wheel alignment
• Accelerate hard on an empty road, does the car respond immediately? Try it again
• Accelerate on an uphill, does the car respond immediately?

[Ben C34]

Does it make chick's wet?

If not then turn 360 and walk away.

[Ben C34]

Do a jump.

Does the car bend and shit when landing?

Walk away.

[Ben C34]

Does it burn?

If yes then don't buy that one. It's burnt.

[GTR-N1]

<p>

This was the list I collected from various sources when I first started looking at Skylines. You gotta be committed to get and run one. Good luck.

General

• View car in daylight, preferably when sunny
• Check the car only when it's clean
• Stay in control and don't buy the vehicle the first time you see it. Think about it over a couple of days.

Body and rust

• Check car close up and from 3-5m away
• See if the car is level
• Open and close doors/boot/bonnet/windows
• Look for rust in areas water may sit
• Look for rust around the bottom of the doors and fenders, and around the boot area
• Inspect the welded seams for rust in the front door sills just below the plastic kick plate
• Inspect underneath the car for signs of corrosion
• Look along the bumper bars for scuff marks and broken exterior trim pieces
• Check all windows for cracks/chips
• Check for leaks around the windscreen and rear window
• Check for bubbles along moulding or chrome, indicates rust underneath
• Be on the lookout for exposed body kit holes e.g spoiler

Body repairs

• Check for slight to moderate panel damage
• Look at paintwork and panel alignment
• Check colour matching, paintwork ripples, signs of blending (standing at an angle)
• Look around the car and underneath for signs of over-spray
• Check for serious suspension or chassis damage
• Check wing nuts for signs of removal and the front support bar
• Check the nuts along the front quarter panels and the radiator support in the engine bay
• Look under sills at chassis legs that run from back to front of car on both sides. Make sure the small mid-way weld has not split (repaired shunt)
• Inspect behind the front and rear bumpers by crawling under car
• Check underneath for rust and damage
• Check panel gaps, kinked chassis rails and for mismatched lights
• Check front guards and bonnet for dents
• Run a magnet over the car to check for bog
• Look at the exhaust for a buckle in the muffler or the pipe
• Check headlight/tail-light alignment and water or condensation
• Look for paint runs along the bottom of window seals, the bottom corner of the rear quarter window, the bottom of the A-pillar, etc
• Look for blending marks, usually along the top or bottom of the C-Pillar
• Look for masking marks i.e. rough lines of paint
• Check for paint defects, dirt on car when resprayed

Boot

• Check for an inflated spare tire. Has it been used?
• There should be a jack and a lug wrench and wheel chock
• Check around the water galleries for rust
• Pull out the spare wheel and check the boot floor for rust and accident damage/repair
• Check under carpet in boot
• Check under rubber around the boot rim for rust
• Look in the side panels and make sure they are not full of water
• Feel inside the panels in the boot where the jack is for debris
• Watch for glass, maybe broken rear window or taillights
• Check the spare wheel well for water after hosing (worn out sealing)

Interior

• Check dash for discolouration
• Check wear of steering wheel and seat bolsters, compare to odometer
• Check the condition of the seats, belts and carpeting
• Compare mileage on service stickers (door jam/under hood) to the odometer reading
• Check the windows to see if they open and close easily
• Check that mirrors work properly
• Check the brake, accelerator and clutch, all should work smoothly with no strange noises
• Check all exterior lights e.g. head/tail/brake/fog lights and flashers on the car
• Test that the air conditioning blows very cold air
• Check the glove box for the service manual and owner's manual
• Check condition of air vents
• Watch out for aftermarket steering wheels vs. HICAS

Electronics

• Make sure that the engine check light comes on at start up but does NOT stay on when driving, same with the HICAS light
• Check for removed HICAS bulb when system is dodgy
• Check all electronics function correctly
• Check radio reception
• Check for a Cat 1 alarm/immobiliser

VIN, engine number and plates

• Check BLUE Build Plate (with Japanese chassis number), GREEN Compliance Plate (with import chassis number), and VIN stamped on strut and firewall
• Check the Blue Nissan Build Plate at the back of engine bay. The plate shows the chassis number and fixed by two white plastic rivets. This plate should never be removed except perhaps if the car has had engine bay re-spray so the fixings ought to be original.
• The BLUE Nissan Build Plate should have the details PRINTED on it i.e. If you run your fingers over the details printed on it, it should be smooth. It should not be engraved.
• RB20 engine number is on the exhaust side the engine number is located down near the bottom of the engine. There are two plates one says RB20 and the one beside it says the engine number.
• RB20 engine number is stamped on the block under the driver side engine mount, and also stamped down the side of the block at the back near where the gearbox bell housing is on the passenger/exhaust side. Both are difficult to read due to the exhaust/turbo hiding one and the engine mount hiding the other.

Engine and engine bay

• Check that cam belts has been changed every 80,000
• Check metallic sticker on top of the cam belt cover for when the cam belt was changed
• Check for new gasket sealant and evidence of timing cover removal (timing belt)
• Check for signs of engine removal
• Get the engine compression tested and if it fails that, do a leak-down test (by mechanic)
• Listen for odd noises that might point to internal wear
• Check that the engine appears cared for and looks factory with neat wiring and no bodged jobs
• Check for fluid leaks in the Power Steering, Clutch Reservoir, Brake Fluid Reservoir, ABS Unit.
• Check under the engine for oil leaks paying attention to area around sump plug
• Check fluids are clean. Pull out dipstick and remove oil filler cap to check for healthy, clean oil. Black oil suggests poor maintenance. Does the oil smell burnt? Similarly check for clean coolant. Be wary of any greyish, gluggy or gooey matter in these areas.
• Check that radiator coolant is clean, usually greenish (but sometimes blue or yellow) colour
• Check hoses and belts for wear, cracks and splits
• Look for crayon or chalk marks on components this may indicate they have been replaced with second-hand parts
• Check that turbo is of conventional steel type
• Check for black paint flaking off the exhaust manifold, hammered engine
• Check for hunting/miss on cold start (ECU)
• Check automatic transmission fluid, should be clear and reddish.
• Check the spark plugs to check for over fuelling, detonation, sulphur deposits from octane booster
• Get the car on a dyno

Chassis, Undercarriage, Suspension, Steering

• Check dampers for any obvious leaks. Also look out for grease leaking from ball-joints. Suspect knocking when driven may be result of dry joints.
• With the front wheels off the ground, check the play in the top end max. 5 mm
• Check front camber rod bushes
• Check bushes in the front suspension's upper A-arms, listen to squeaks from the front
• Carefully push down on the front bumper and rear bumper and see how the shocks are
• Get the car up on a hoist
• Look for weld marks, or thick black under body tar. Welding marks are usually hidden by panel beaters with lots of under body tar.
• Check under the engine for leaking oil. Alternatively, if it has been wiped clean (the bottom of the engine, i.e. the sump and cross member
• Be very wary of clean under bodies
• Check for leaking transmission fluid, power steering fluid, etc.
• Check each and every shock absorber for leaks
• Look for overspray on the bottom of the car, like the tow hook or suspension parts
• Check for wet bushes e.g. front castor bushes
• Check rear sub frame bushes in front of the rear axle

Suspension

• Does car pull or vibrate when driving on a flat, smooth road
• Drive quickly over a rough road and listen for any loud squeaks or rattles
• Does the car bounce or bang over small bumps?

Brakes

• Check for any vibration through steering when driving and that the car doesnt pull to one side under breaking
• Do the brakes grab evenly and does the car slow down in a straight line? Make sure it doesn't pull to one side under brakes
• Does the ABS system work? Test on gravel

Brakes, wheels and tyres

• Check for disc wear and cracking
• Do a visual check on discs for warping, scoring and check the thickness of brake pads
• Check tyres for wear on the inside edge and make sure front and rears havent been swapped
• Check if the rear tyres are worn a lot more than the fronts
• Check for even wear marks, uneven wear indicates bad wheel alignment
• Check for rusted brake discs

History and Age/kms & Servicing

• Is the Japanese auction sheet available
• Check that the numbers on the odometer are aligned properly
• Does it have a full service record of its life in Japan?
• Does it have a full service record of its life in Australia?
• Do the odometer readings appear consistent with any service stickers found on car? Stickers are generally located in door jams or engine bay.
• Is the interior wear (seats/steering wheel/gators etc) what you would expect in relation to the mileage?
• Ensure that the current owner has been running on super-unleaded fuel and allowing turbo to warm up/idle down
• The year of manufacture can be found by looking at the front seatbelts, near the floor mounting point. There is a fabric tag with the seatbelt specifications and the year of manufacture sewn onto the webbing.

Road testing

• Listen only to the car when road testing
• Engine, noise, smoke
• Start the engine and check the warning lights and gauges.
• Listen out for whistling noises whilst accelerating as this can indicate turbo problems or air leaks
• Listen out for detonation (or pinking) under load. Detonation can be indicative of poor ignition setting, low quality fuel, excessive boost pressure or a badly maintained engine.
• Watch out for hesitations or misfires. Accelerate through from 3k to 5k rpm in third or fourth gear to see if the car experiences any violent hesitation, misfiring or holding back at this range.
• Check for blue smoke under hard acceleration and during deceleration. Can be sign of engine wear or turbo problems.
• Listen for noises which could indicate engine problems
• Put the car in neutral and rev the engine, check for smoke from rear exhaust
• Punch the gas pedal. Does engine respond without hesitation then return to normal?
• Cut off the engine. Then restart the engine, does it restart easily?
• At normal engine temp leave the car idling and check for;
  • Blue smoke = can indicate a variety of turbo or breathing related problems,
  • Black smoke = can indicate fuelling issues,
  • White smoke = possible engine damage, head gasket or cylinder head problems.
• Oil pressure and temps
• Check for normal operating oil pressure
• Check that vehicle is showing a nice healthy oil pressure rising under load
• Watch the oil pressure when the car is hot, factory pressures on the RB20DET: 1kg/cm 2 @ 600 rpm, 3kg/cm 2 @ 2000 rpm, 4kg/cm 2 @ 6000 rpm
• Drive vehicle long enough that any temperature issues are revealed, check the temperature gauge to see if it shows a high reading

Clutch

• Check for any clutch slipping or shuddering when taking off
• Clutch should engage and disengage smoothly without grabbing
• Floor it at 3000rpm in 4th gear to make sure the clutch is not slipping
• Drive the car on hills, highways and in stop-and-go traffic

Gearbox and diff

• How does the gearbox feel? Smooth to shift? or notchy and graunchy to put into gear? Any gearbox whine? Any grinding on gear changes? Might mean worn out synchros.
• Check that shifting to all gear is easy and there are no noises
• Check for worn first and second gear synchromesh
• Check synchros on the upper gears any crunching on high rpm, quick changes
• Ensure that the gearbox is not whining and that there are no crunching synchros on gear changes, it is normal for the box to be stiff when cold
• Drive in reverse
• Check LSD, you should not be able to hear any strange or whining noises from the diff

Dynamics and driving at different speeds

• Make sure that the operation of clutch, gearbox and brakes is smooth
• Drive at 60km/h and listen for any unusual noises
• Accelerate to 80km/h, does the front end shake or vibrate?
• Check that the steering wheel doesn't shake above 100km/h, might mean severe accident damage or need of wheel alignment
• Accelerate hard on an empty road, does the car respond immediately? Try it again
• Accelerate on an uphill, does the car respond immediately?

Did you miss out?

[V28VX37]

Did you miss out?

Haha nope But I didn't buy the first or the second or the third car that I inspected..

[hardsteppa]

Do a jump.

Does the car bend and shit when landing?

Walk away.

now this, this is quality posting.