Bought My First Car!

[cogs]

Hey guys.

I went up the coast on Friday morning with my dad to have a look at a non-turbo R33 I'd seen advertised on carpoint at Minnie St. Auto's in Southport (just off Ferry Road).

We pulled up out the front and couldn't see it anywhere. I was starting to think it must've been sold but then a lady came out and I told her I was after the Skyline and she had a quick look out the back for it and then asked one of the guys who told her it was up in their storage shed 2 doors up (they had too many cars for the size of their car yard). After making sure I knew it was a non-turbo, and the lady getting over the shock that I was a young person who didn't want a turbo car and her congratulating me on being sensible etc (lol), we walked up there and went inside to see the (dusty) car lol. I got in the drivers seat and noticed it had 4WD on the instrument panel and immediately realised it was a GTS-4 (from the ad I thought it was just a rwd GTS25). I then had a look at the exterior and then sussed the engine. At this point the car was looking pretty appealing (i.e. it didn't look dodgy or anything).

The guy explained to me that he was selling it for his mate, who was an older guy who had owned it for the last 3 years or so (I think he must've been the only Australian owner, since it was imported in 2002) and then he asked me if I wanted to take it for a test drive. Naturally, I took the keys and off we went. I was very impressed with the car and loved the smooth engine and good handling. We got back to the car yard and then we had a more detailed look over the car. My dad and I couldn't find anything wrong with the car and we were both very impressed with the overall condition of the car, especially considering the car had been for sale for the last 3 months (exactly 3 months in fact, the RWC ran out that day) and hadn't been detailed much in that time (if at all). But, neither me nor my father are mechanics so I wasn't buying sh1t till I'd had a mechanic check it out. So we took it around the corner to a place called Autogex on Nerang Rd. It took a little over an hour from the time we got there to the time we got the report, but I thought it was alright because we didn't have it booked in or anything, we just rocked up and said "check this out foo'", but less Mr-T like. And yada yada yada, from the tests they did they said they couldn't find anything wrong with the car, compression test was all very even and everything worked properly etc. So we drove back to the car yard, again. And then me and dad headed to the nearest Commonwealth bank to get some muchos out. Went back, signed some papers, handed over the money (the guy didn't count the 10g stack, just the other $2800, he was like 'i trust you', haha I aint trust no-one for ten thousand dollars lol!). Then the lady at the car yard (who was also an insurance broker) got me on the line to Just Cars (when I was at Commonwealth they were gonna give me a quote on car insurance, apparently they do that now, but I told her it was an import and she said they dont cover imports.. surprise, surprise..) so yeh spoke to this chick from Just Cars (she sounded hot) and she asked me a heap of questions (unfortunately all were car-related :lol:) and she told me a figure around $2400, knowing I was most likely going to be raped just as severely by any other company for comprehensive, I agreed and got them to start the cover that day so I was straight to drive it home.

So it cost me $12,000 for the car plus $500 for the dealer (comission for selling his mate's car) and another $300 for Stamp Duty, REVS check and a few other little things. So $12,800 I had the keys (well one, thats all the guy had.. or so he says) and was driving away. The tank was near on empty though (the guy was really tight cause he wasn't making much money out of the sale) so I had to go straight to the nearest servo to fill it up. It was an awesome drive home and it was a great feeling to have finally purchased my own car after saving up for over a year.

It's pretty stock at the moment but the interior looks immaculate, the paint work is excellent apart from a few small scratches here and there and the odometer was showing 87,359 kms when I bought it, which could possibly be genuine judging by the condition of the car.

I'm definitely pleased with my purchase. I plan to do some more mods to it, but I must say even as it is I'm still very happy with it.

Anyway, here's my cardomain site (I couldn't upload pics to my gallery on here, it wouldn't log me in), with some pics I took today after I washed it.

http://www.cardomain.com/ride/2099090

A few questions..

1) It's an M-spec kit isn't it? Is there any chance it may have been factory fitted somehow?

2) On the rims it says "RACING SPARCO"? Does anyone know what they are called or how much they would be worth?

3) The tyres are 225/50/R16 92V, I saw in the Owners Manual this exact size was there, what model is that for?

4) The suspension seems to be a bit lower than stock and quite hard. They'd be aftermarket springs on stock struts? IF so does anyone know what brand they might be? (they're yellow and you can see them in one of the pics)

5) The 4WD system only directs power to the front wheels if the rear wheels lose traction, yeh?

6) I read in the book the 'slip' light (next to the 4WD one on the dash) comes on when the car detects the surface you are driving over is slippery and the 4wd light only comes on when driving if there is a problem, is this correct?

7) It just has the stock tape player/radio but the radio only seems to go up to 90.0FM, is that the highest frequency they use in japan?

8) The gear knob isn't stock is it? (it doesn't have a H-pattern or anything)

9) I can't see any HICAS lights on my dash, does this mean my car doesn't have it?

10) What are the bulges under the carpet between the rear passenger footwells and to either side of the centre console (in front of the driver and passenger side seats)?

11) Did all R33s come with automatic climate control?

12) I need at least a 2-point immobilser installed for insurance? How do I tell if there is already one installed? What alarm/immobilser system would you guys recommend purchasing? How much do they cost to get installed?

Um.. thats all I can think of now but please let me know as much as possible especially about this model in particular.

If you have any suggestions on what I should do to make the car look better etc, including what colour NSW number plates would look best (have to renew rego in a month, which is a shame, because I like the maroon QLD plates that are on it now, they match the paint B))

P.S. For those who bothered to read all that.. NO, you may not have your 10 minutes back <_<

[CNR33]

Hey mate

Well done on the purchase, enjoy it!

Just a few answers for you.

Yes, that's an M-Spec Kit, probably came from the factory that way.

They look like lowered king springs to me. Ride height still seems fine/legal.

Gear knob, mine was the same, no H pattern. You can get dicked for it. Either buy a new one, or buy/print a little sticker with a H pattern on it and stick it near the gear surround.

The HICAS light will only come on when it fails, but you should be able to see it when you start the car. Not sure if the GTS4 has HICAS.

Hope that helps, I'm sure someone else will be able to help you with the other questions.

[Eug]

looks like a good buy mate, looks very clean - similar condition to when i bought my car a year ago.

got the rare blue gt badges too =)

[NathR32]

Nice buy..Looks very clean.

The wheels are 16" Sparco NSII Speeder Rims Black w/ red lip (dunno how much they are worth)

Also reinforcing it is an M-Spec kit and King Springs(distinctive yellow colour)

[Col-GTSX]

A few questions..

1) It's an M-spec kit isn't it? Is there any chance it may have been factory fitted somehow?

2) On the rims it says "RACING SPARCO"? Does anyone know what they are called or how much they would be worth?

3) The tyres are 225/50/R16 92V, I saw in the Owners Manual this exact size was there, what model is that for?

4) The suspension seems to be a bit lower than stock and quite hard. They'd be aftermarket springs on stock struts? IF so does anyone know what brand they might be? (they're yellow and you can see them in one of the pics)

5) The 4WD system only directs power to the front wheels if the rear wheels lose traction, yeh?

6) I read in the book the 'slip' light (next to the 4WD one on the dash) comes on when the car detects the surface you are driving over is slippery and the 4wd light only comes on when driving if there is a problem, is this correct?

7) It just has the stock tape player/radio but the radio only seems to go up to 90.0FM, is that the highest frequency they use in japan?

8) The gear knob isn't stock is it? (it doesn't have a H-pattern or anything)

9) I can't see any HICAS lights on my dash, does this mean my car doesn't have it?

10) What are the bulges under the carpet between the rear passenger footwells and to either side of the centre console (in front of the driver and passenger side seats)?

11) Did all R33s come with automatic climate control?

12) I need at least a 2-point immobilser installed for insurance? How do I tell if there is already one installed? What alarm/immobilser system would you guys recommend purchasing? How much do they cost to get installed?

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Ill take care of a few more questions for ya...

12. Alarm, go for the mongoose M60s (battery backup) its a 2 point with backup. Its cheap and easy to install or just get it installed. Id also suggest getting a drivers door solinoid for keyless entry. Its worth it....

10. Buldges... The same on all skylines. It is corosponding with gear box mounts and so forth. The big buldge in the centre of the rear floor is where your tail shaft goes to the rear diff.

11. All r33 have auto climate control

7. Buy an aftermarket cd tuner (ie. Pioneer) as it wont go past 90mhz unless you spend more money on buying a converter. Anyway those "tape" decks look gay.

5. 4wd... Its a constant type 4wd system... It will very its torque to front/rear as the conditions require. Ie. Dump the clutch at 6000rpm and you have 4wd... Cruise allong the highway at 100kph and you have 90% rwd.

6. Your 4wd light will only come on if some of the wheels are slipping whilst its inb 50/50 mode.... If the slip light comes on by it self then it means the rear skipped a beat.

I think thats everything no one else answered...

Cheers Col

[scottman]

looks a good buy have fun u will want a turbo soon lol

[siksII]

looks like a good buy mate, looks very clean - similar condition to when i bought my car a year ago.

got the rare blue gt badges too =)

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blue gt badges come with non turbo r33s, so not really rare, his should have come with them as it is non turbo

[Col-GTSX]

blue gt badges come with non turbo r33s, so not really rare, his should have come with them as it is non turbo

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True

[SRW-1]

True

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Mine came with red badges and its a non-turbo

[siksII]

Mine came with red badges and its a non-turbo

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people change them, but the are meant to be blue.

probably some ricer in japan, pretending to have a turbo

the first time i saw blue gt badges on a 33 was in chinatown maybe 2 years ago, as the owner was approaching the car i said hi and asked if it was a turbo (was not sure about the badge issue back then) he told me it was, i had a closer look and it wasnt

[Col-GTSX]

damn ricers.... u just cant stop em...

They are surposed to be blue....

Its like k's and q's silvia s13.... Ones turbo and the other is not...

[SRW-1]

people change them, but the are meant to be blue.

probably some ricer in japan, pretending to have a turbo

the first time i saw blue gt badges on a 33 was in chinatown maybe 2 years ago, as the owner was approaching the car i said hi and asked if it was a turbo (was not sure about the badge issue back then) he told me it was, i had a closer look and it wasnt

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Everyone tells me that and has a go at me thinking i went to that trouble!?? But i bought the car as stock as a rock with the exception of a factory fitted Type M front bar so of all the things that could be done to the car i don't know why my little ricer would go to the trouble of changing the badges of all things... while not even bothering to take off the GTS25 decal from the rear or update the calipers !!

[Pva_Glue]

Congrates good pick, seller got good price for that

ok I used to one 94 R33 GTS-4 so I know fair bit about the car.

so I'll answer some of your questions

few questions..

1) It's an M-spec kit isn't it? Is there any chance it may have been factory fitted somehow? yes it is M-spec kit series one

2) On the rims it says "RACING SPARCO"? Does anyone know what they are called or how much they would be worth?

They are common rims, Your rims wont be worht that much to re sell it, if you dont mind them keep it.

3) The tyres are 225/50/R16 92V, I saw in the Owners Manual this exact size was there, what model is that for? doenst matter waht model is for dont run any bigger than what you have maybe you can have 17" wheel but not bigger, it will add weight to the car and use more petrol = more money in long run

4) The suspension seems to be a bit lower than stock and quite hard. They'd be aftermarket springs on stock struts? IF so does anyone know what brand they might be? (they're yellow and you can see them in one of the pics)

Majority of car comes with after market, mine had new after market suspension which is bonus for it. ALL turbo or not have same factory suspension.

5) The 4WD system only directs power to the front wheels if the rear wheels lose traction, yeh?

YES. they are only light up slip

You have 2 light on the rev meter - '4WD' and 'Slip'

6) I read in the book the 'slip' light (next to the 4WD one on the dash) comes on when the car detects the surface you are driving over is slippery and the 4wd light only comes on when driving if there is a problem, is this correct?

yes you are on roll

7) It just has the stock tape player/radio but the radio only seems to go up to

90.0FM, is that the highest frequency they use in japan?

you can get a EXPANDER!!! only cost you little.

8) The gear knob isn't stock is it? (it doesn't have a H-pattern or anything)

It seems stock

9) I can't see any HICAS lights on my dash, does this mean my car doesn't have it?

sorry R33 dont get HICAAS - which is good thing you dont want it! trust me

10) What are the bulges under the carpet between the rear passenger footwells and to either side of the centre console (in front of the driver and passenger side seats)???? what bulge??? ECU is @ passager side kick panel

11) Did all R33s come with automatic climate control?

YES!!! all skyline came with auto

12) I need at least a 2-point immobilser installed for insurance? How do I tell if there is already one installed? What alarm/immobilser system would you guys recommend purchasing? How much do they cost to get installed?

cotact insurance company HAHAH

I hope that helps

CHEERS

GLUE

N/A MOD

[Eug]

blue gt badges come with non turbo r33s, so not really rare, his should have come with them as it is non turbo

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actually mine didnt, and neither did NA_R33's from memory..

i was led to believe that the type-s had red badges, and gts4 and regular gts had the blue.

[SRW-1]

actually mine didnt, and neither did NA_R33's from memory..

i was led to believe that the type-s had red badges, and gts4 and regular gts had the blue.

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same

[Greg]

3) The tyres are 225/50/R16 92V, I saw in the Owners Manual this exact size was there, what model is that for? doenst matter waht model is for dont run any bigger than what you have maybe you can have 17" wheel but not bigger, it will add weight to the car and use more petrol = more money in long run

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What matters in terms of tyre/wheel size is the overall rolling diameter, for example:

Stock n/a tyres

205/60/15

Rolling diamter = (205 * 60% * 2) + (15 * 2.55 * 10) = 628.5 mm

225/50/16

Rolling diameter = (225 * 50% * 2) + (16 * 2.55 * 10) = 633 mm

205/55/16

Rolling diameter = (205 * 55% * 2) + (16 * 2.55 * 10) = 633.5 mm

215/45/17

Rolling diameter = (215 * 45% * 2) + (17 * 2.55 * 10) = 627 mm

235/45/17

Rolling diameter = (235 * 45% * 2) + (17 * 2.55 * 10) = 645 mm

235/40/17

Rolling diameter = (235 * 40% * 2) + (17 * 2.55 * 10) = 621.5 mm

255/40/17

Rolling diameter = (255 * 40% * 2) + (17 * 2.55 * 10) = 637.5 mm

If the rolling diameter varies from stock, the speedometer will be out.

If the rolling diameter is smaller than stock, the gearing ratios are effectively shortened/closer, meaning the speedometer is overstating speed. Ie revving higher at any given actual speed (not indicated). This will mean fuel economy will deteriorate, assuming you drive the same actual speed.

If the rolling diameter is larger than stock, the gearing ratios are effectively lengthened/taller, meaning the speedometer is understating speed. Ie revving lower at any given actual speed (not indicated). This will mean fuel economy will improve, assuming you drive the same actual speed.

If you just drive at the speed indicated by the speedo, fuel economy will not be affected as a direct result of the gearing change.

However the extra unsprung weight associated with bigger wheels in general, independent of the rolling diameter, could deteriorate fuel economy.

Nice car btw the body looks to be in mint condition

re hicas if you have it the light should show when you initially turn the car on, and flash when it is active (ie the rear wheels lose traction at speed).

My car came with red badges and the car was completely stock when imported. i have heard various theories including that the colour of the badge depends upon which factory in Japan they were manufactured.

Edited August 31, 2005 by Greg

[Pva_Glue]

I was more referring to the Width of the tires. like I wont go bigger than 215... NO 255 and stuff hahah

Wide they are more traction on them = use more power to turn them = more fuel you will consume in long run.

tour de france bicycle VS Trackter tires

come on we are talking about 84 Kw at the wheel GTS-4, you dont have enough power... hahahahah

Edited August 31, 2005 by Pva_Glue

[cogs]

Thanks for the replies everyone. Greatly appreciated.

1) I noticed this button in my centre console today (see attachment), is this in all skylines? what does it do?

2) What does this knob on the drivers side of the dash (under steering wheel) control?

I'm sad to say the mint body may not be mint for very long I've already noticed a few stone chips (I think they are stone chips) on the rear bar which weren't there before.. and as soon as I get an alarm I will be driving it to work where it is likely to get keyed, doors opened on etc etc..

Does anyone know of any links to pages that give heaps of info about R33's, like labelled diagrams of undercar/engine components and stuff like that so I can try to get to know my car better (I don't know much about cars)?

Thanks again.

Edited August 31, 2005 by cogs

[Eug]

-the one under the driver side dash could probably be a dimmer.

-and the one in the center console looks suss... (neons?)

flick em on and find out!

If u want to find out more abt ur car - just read through the forums, ie. D.I.Y, General Maintenance, if you can find a copy of "The Sky's The Limit" (I think thats what its called) that pdf will cover a bit of the history and components as well as statistics and stuff - can try searching for that, there'd be a few floating around.

[187r33]

Hey guys.

I went up the coast on Friday morning with my dad to have a look at a non-turbo R33 I'd seen advertised on carpoint at Minnie St. Auto's in Southport (just off Ferry Road).

We pulled up out the front and couldn't see it anywhere. I was starting to think it must've been sold but then a lady came out and I told her I was after the Skyline and she had a quick look out the back for it and then asked one of the guys who told her it was up in their storage shed 2 doors up (they had too many cars for the size of their car yard). After making sure I knew it was a non-turbo, and the lady getting over the shock that I was a young person who didn't want a turbo car and her congratulating me on being sensible etc (lol), we walked up there and went inside to see the (dusty) car lol. I got in the drivers seat and noticed it had 4WD on the instrument panel and immediately realised it was a GTS-4 (from the ad I thought it was just a rwd GTS25). I then had a look at the exterior and then sussed the engine. At this point the car was looking pretty appealing (i.e. it didn't look dodgy or anything).

The guy explained to me that he was selling it for his mate, who was an older guy who had owned it for the last 3 years or so (I think he must've been the only Australian owner, since it was imported in 2002) and then he asked me if I wanted to take it for a test drive. Naturally, I took the keys and off we went. I was very impressed with the car and loved the smooth engine and good handling. We got back to the car yard and then we had a more detailed look over the car. My dad and I couldn't find anything wrong with the car and we were both very impressed with the overall condition of the car, especially considering the car had been for sale for the last 3 months (exactly 3 months in fact, the RWC ran out that day) and hadn't been detailed much in that time (if at all). But, neither me nor my father are mechanics so I wasn't buying sh1t till I'd had a mechanic check it out. So we took it around the corner to a place called Autogex on Nerang Rd. It took a little over an hour from the time we got there to the time we got the report, but I thought it was alright because we didn't have it booked in or anything, we just rocked up and said "check this out foo'", but less Mr-T like. And yada yada yada, from the tests they did they said they couldn't find anything wrong with the car, compression test was all very even and everything worked properly etc. So we drove back to the car yard, again. And then me and dad headed to the nearest Commonwealth bank to get some muchos out. Went back, signed some papers, handed over the money (the guy didn't count the 10g stack, just the other $2800, he was like 'i trust you', haha I aint trust no-one for ten thousand dollars lol!). Then the lady at the car yard (who was also an insurance broker) got me on the line to Just Cars (when I was at Commonwealth they were gonna give me a quote on car insurance, apparently they do that now, but I told her it was an import and she said they dont cover imports.. surprise, surprise..) so yeh spoke to this chick from Just Cars (she sounded hot) and she asked me a heap of questions (unfortunately all were car-related  :lol:) and she told me a figure around $2400, knowing I was most likely going to be raped just as severely by any other company for comprehensive, I agreed and got them to start the cover that day so I was straight to drive it home.

So it cost me $12,000 for the car plus $500 for the dealer (comission for selling his mate's car) and another $300 for Stamp Duty, REVS check and a few other little things. So $12,800 I had the keys (well one, thats all the guy had.. or so he says) and was driving away. The tank was near on empty though (the guy was really tight cause he wasn't making much money out of the sale) so I had to go straight to the nearest servo to fill it up. It was an awesome drive home and it was a great feeling to have finally purchased my own car after saving up for over a year.

It's pretty stock at the moment but the interior looks immaculate, the paint work is excellent apart from a few small scratches here and there and the odometer was showing 87,359 kms when I bought it, which could possibly be genuine judging by the condition of the car.

I'm definitely pleased with my purchase. I plan to do some more mods to it, but I must say even as it is I'm still very happy with it.

Anyway, here's my cardomain site (I couldn't upload pics to my gallery on here, it wouldn't log me in), with some pics I took today after I washed it.

http://www.cardomain.com/ride/2099090

A few questions..

1) It's an M-spec kit isn't it? Is there any chance it may have been factory fitted somehow?

2) On the rims it says "RACING SPARCO"? Does anyone know what they are called or how much they would be worth?

3) The tyres are 225/50/R16 92V, I saw in the Owners Manual this exact size was there, what model is that for?

4) The suspension seems to be a bit lower than stock and quite hard. They'd be aftermarket springs on stock struts? IF so does anyone know what brand they might be? (they're yellow and you can see them in one of the pics)

5) The 4WD system only directs power to the front wheels if the rear wheels lose traction, yeh?

6) I read in the book the 'slip' light (next to the 4WD one on the dash) comes on when the car detects the surface you are driving over is slippery and the 4wd light only comes on when driving if there is a problem, is this correct?

7) It just has the stock tape player/radio but the radio only seems to go up to 90.0FM, is that the highest frequency they use in japan?

8) The gear knob isn't stock is it? (it doesn't have a H-pattern or anything)

9) I can't see any HICAS lights on my dash, does this mean my car doesn't have it?

10) What are the bulges under the carpet between the rear passenger footwells and to either side of the centre console (in front of the driver and passenger side seats)?

11) Did all R33s come with automatic climate control?

12) I need at least a 2-point immobilser installed for insurance? How do I tell if there is already one installed? What alarm/immobilser system would you guys recommend purchasing? How much do they cost to get installed?

Um.. thats all I can think of now but please let me know as much as possible especially about this model in particular.

If you have any suggestions on what I should do to make the car look better etc, including what colour NSW number plates would look best (have to renew rego in a month, which is a shame, because I like the maroon QLD plates that are on it now, they match the paint B))

P.S. For those who bothered to read all that.. NO, you may not have your 10 minutes back  <_<

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