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My 1989 Nissan Skyline GT-R
- Thread starter usafdarkhorse
- Start date
I like them better than the R35s also, even though their performance is phenomenal. I like all R32, R33, and R34 GT-Rs, but I'm partial to the BNR32 for its blocky muscular lines, dominant racing heritage, new tech, and the lightest of all GT-Rs. The prices have skyrocketed for this car in Japan with the legality timeline drawing near, and many US buyers have purchased and stored cars in Japan waiting to put them on a ship.
If you decide to hunt one of these down, inspect it very carefully.
I have! There's another thread of mine floating around here in Off Topic that I add pictures to every now and then if you go to my profile and look at my latest created threads. I haven't updated it in months and I've seen a myriad of cars since then, so maybe I should add to it. I've seen a few of the all-glass roof CRXs here too.
Me too! It was hard to go wrong with the Skyline GT-R in those games as you could enter the 4WD, turbo, in some cases the 80s races, and make-specific Nissan races with one dominant car.
I preordered GT6 a month ago and I'm guessing that formula is going to work for this one too haha.
Thanks!
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I just randomly found this thread while I was on Google and thought I'd chime in a bit as well. I recently moved to Japan in the Yokosuka area and bought a 1991 Nissan Skyline GT-R. USAFDarkHorse was pretty spot on with his experience in Japan with the GT-R...especially the part where GTRs aren't common on the streets, except near military bases.
The prices have been climbing up and the quality isn't what you would expect for a 'supercar'. Common problems include: rust, worn interior pieces (interior rear quarter panel, door cards, shift boot leather), bubbles in the dashboard, random leaks under the car, etc. I've also noticed that second hand parts are becoming harder to find. The good news is that many stock parts are still available at the dealership. The bad news is that they are in Japan.
The prices have been climbing up and the quality isn't what you would expect for a 'supercar'. Common problems include: rust, worn interior pieces (interior rear quarter panel, door cards, shift boot leather), bubbles in the dashboard, random leaks under the car, etc. I've also noticed that second hand parts are becoming harder to find. The good news is that many stock parts are still available at the dealership. The bad news is that they are in Japan.
My buddy has a GTR (not sure if it's R33 or R32) but I've seen that thing up on the lift for repairs MUCH MORE OFTEN than driving around. It's a cool car when it's running but his car just seems to be one headache after another!
Is the hassle really worth it?
I would love to get my hands on a R34 as that has always been one of my dream cars but it sounds like that car won't be legal in the USA for quite some time....
Glad to see you are having fun over there!
Is the hassle really worth it?
I would love to get my hands on a R34 as that has always been one of my dream cars but it sounds like that car won't be legal in the USA for quite some time....
Glad to see you are having fun over there!
I'd say my car is on the lift just about as often as your friend's Skyline. These cars were meant to be driven hard, and they they were. It's often more fun for owners to modify the car to be faster than to invest in maintenance and repair items. It seems that as soon as you fix one problem, another one shows up, and you always have a leak somewhere.
This was my first turbo car, and I've been having fun going into boost and letting off the gas. The technology was quite advanced for it's day. HICAS 4 wheel steering, ATESSA 4 wheel drive, twin turbochargers, and climate control.
This was my first turbo car, and I've been having fun going into boost and letting off the gas. The technology was quite advanced for it's day. HICAS 4 wheel steering, ATESSA 4 wheel drive, twin turbochargers, and climate control.
WOW! I haven't updated this thread in SO long, my picture hosting has gone to nowhere and I can't edit the OP to fix it, so here's the original post with fixed pic links:
OP---
Hey Prime,
I haven't fallen off the face of the Earth, but I have been away from Prime and NSXs here for a bit while I take a detour.
I moved to Japan about 6 months ago and have had alot of good car experiences since getting here, from the anxiety of driving on the left side of the road for the first time to my first trip to Daikoku Futo in my S15 Silvia Spec R.
I bought and drove around a Suzuki Alto for about 3 months while I got situated and it was one of the most hilarious (and lowest mileage) cars I've ever driven/owned. Sold the car and bought a black '99 Silvia Spec R to experience. That was a good car, and very solid, but I could see how I would enjoy an S2000 more however.
I helped a friend purchase an '89 Skyline GT-R a couple months ago and started to look for my own, so I listed the Silvia for sale. For those who are unaware, the NHTSA and DOT 25 year exemption is rapidly approaching for the earliest R32 GT-Rs, the first of which will most likely land on US shores next August in 2014.
I found a buyer for the Silvia at almost the same time as I found a car I wanted to buy from auction out of Nagoya. This is #2317 , a Gunmetal Grey Metallic Nissan Skyline GT-R manufactured the second week of October 1989. My buddy's car, #2555 , is in the background. Here is the way I found the car.
About to go through inspection. The wheels are Volk GTP 17x9JJ +23 I found on a local ad site (now sold).
How it looks currently. I purchased R32 GT-R specific nismo LMGT4s from a guy in Iwakuni a month ago. Extremely difficult to find.
A few bonuses I found after poking around at the car include a rather large intercooler, BNR34 injectors (they don't flow any more I don't think), Blitz SBC electronic boost control, Apexi intakes, MOMO wheel, HKS cat-back exhaust (not sure if Hi Power or something else), what look like tein springs on stock strut/damper assemblies, 320km/h nismo speedo/odo cluster, nismo hood lip and front fascia (w/ brake ducting) and an aftermarket clutch. Some of these pieces will have to be removed or hidden in order to export the car to the US.
A few things I found that weren't so great was the glovebox door lock was broken (replaced the whole box), the front seats have considerable wear, and there's a gaping hole where the audio used to be.
I'm going to go through the car and change all fluids, inspect for wear and get a good baseline before any real mods occur. A few things needed to be fixed before the rigorous Japanese inspections.
Just thought I would share how I have been coping sans-NSX. I am completely dedicated to coming back to the NSX world. Once I return to the US with this car in tow, another NSX will be priority #1 , because while this car is a lot of fun, it pales in comparison to an NSX.
If anyone is considering purchasing a federally legal R32 GT-R here in the near future, be very wary. These cars are very complex and are prone to rusting. I have seen quite a number of these cars and finding one without rust is very very difficult.
/OP---
There's a number of things I've done since that I'll talk about it the next post.
- - - Updated - - -
Hey miso, check out these sites if you haven't seen them yet:
http://nissan.epc-data.com/
http://www.jp-carparts.com/nissan/figlist.php?maker=nissan&type=79&cartype=50
Nicer than FAST and if it's available here, US dealers may be able to order them.
Thanks! After purchasing the car, I did my fair share of maintenance, but it's still an old old car. New fluids in everything, new timing belt/water pump, a few pulleys in the process, cleaned MAFs and IACV along with Tomei metal intake mani gaskets, new filters everywhere, new plugs. Since then, I blew a coolant hose (like I did in the NSX) and replaced them all including a fairly corroded piece of piping under the manifold.
The car's no NSX, and not turn-key reliable, but I've had fun tinkering with it and making an old Nissan quicker.
UPDATES:
Since the first post, I've fixed the above mentioned items and had a good long run of reliability through multiple seasons with the car, so the mod bug hit pretty hard and I bought a few things.
Winter
Spring
Summer
Fall
I lucked out and won the auction on a very rare ARC titanium exhaust and front pipe, so I'm titanium alloy from the turbo dump elbows to the tailpipe. Wicked sound. Will sound better catless back in the US.
This really went WAY better than I had expected:
- - - Updated - - -
Then, this weekend I got to do a bucket list item and attend a trackday at Tsukuba.
There were a number of other cool entries I raced with, like this Renault 5 with which I went toe to toe.
NSX! I talked to this guy for a short time after the last session
I did two 20 minute sessions in a heat of 26 cars. My best time was 1'13" on the 5th lap of the second session after I got comfortable and away from traffic, but that's about when my ignition woes started unfortunately, for both sessions. It felt like a misfire or ignition cut upon throttle application exiting the curve and cleared itself up after a second or so, but it killed my momentum I had going toward the end of the session in both sessions. I think it's heat related and I suspect a coilpack, the igniter, or even a MAF (feels like a MAF problem). I'll pull plugs tomorrow and see if any look weird.
Other than that, I had a blast and the event was awesome with a very "kid gloves off" approach. I wasn't fast by any means, but I enjoyed figuring out how to brake later, improving heel toe technique, and just getting seat time. The car felt stable at the limit and the ZIIs made me feel braver with every lap.
OP---
Hey Prime,
I haven't fallen off the face of the Earth, but I have been away from Prime and NSXs here for a bit while I take a detour.
I moved to Japan about 6 months ago and have had alot of good car experiences since getting here, from the anxiety of driving on the left side of the road for the first time to my first trip to Daikoku Futo in my S15 Silvia Spec R.
I bought and drove around a Suzuki Alto for about 3 months while I got situated and it was one of the most hilarious (and lowest mileage) cars I've ever driven/owned. Sold the car and bought a black '99 Silvia Spec R to experience. That was a good car, and very solid, but I could see how I would enjoy an S2000 more however.
I helped a friend purchase an '89 Skyline GT-R a couple months ago and started to look for my own, so I listed the Silvia for sale. For those who are unaware, the NHTSA and DOT 25 year exemption is rapidly approaching for the earliest R32 GT-Rs, the first of which will most likely land on US shores next August in 2014.
I found a buyer for the Silvia at almost the same time as I found a car I wanted to buy from auction out of Nagoya. This is #2317 , a Gunmetal Grey Metallic Nissan Skyline GT-R manufactured the second week of October 1989. My buddy's car, #2555 , is in the background. Here is the way I found the car.
About to go through inspection. The wheels are Volk GTP 17x9JJ +23 I found on a local ad site (now sold).
How it looks currently. I purchased R32 GT-R specific nismo LMGT4s from a guy in Iwakuni a month ago. Extremely difficult to find.
A few bonuses I found after poking around at the car include a rather large intercooler, BNR34 injectors (they don't flow any more I don't think), Blitz SBC electronic boost control, Apexi intakes, MOMO wheel, HKS cat-back exhaust (not sure if Hi Power or something else), what look like tein springs on stock strut/damper assemblies, 320km/h nismo speedo/odo cluster, nismo hood lip and front fascia (w/ brake ducting) and an aftermarket clutch. Some of these pieces will have to be removed or hidden in order to export the car to the US.
A few things I found that weren't so great was the glovebox door lock was broken (replaced the whole box), the front seats have considerable wear, and there's a gaping hole where the audio used to be.
I'm going to go through the car and change all fluids, inspect for wear and get a good baseline before any real mods occur. A few things needed to be fixed before the rigorous Japanese inspections.
Just thought I would share how I have been coping sans-NSX. I am completely dedicated to coming back to the NSX world. Once I return to the US with this car in tow, another NSX will be priority #1 , because while this car is a lot of fun, it pales in comparison to an NSX.
If anyone is considering purchasing a federally legal R32 GT-R here in the near future, be very wary. These cars are very complex and are prone to rusting. I have seen quite a number of these cars and finding one without rust is very very difficult.
/OP---
There's a number of things I've done since that I'll talk about it the next post.
- - - Updated - - -
Hey miso, check out these sites if you haven't seen them yet:
http://nissan.epc-data.com/
http://www.jp-carparts.com/nissan/figlist.php?maker=nissan&type=79&cartype=50
Nicer than FAST and if it's available here, US dealers may be able to order them.
My buddy has a GTR (not sure if it's R33 or R32) but I've seen that thing up on the lift for repairs MUCH MORE OFTEN than driving around. It's a cool car when it's running but his car just seems to be one headache after another!
Is the hassle really worth it?
I would love to get my hands on a R34 as that has always been one of my dream cars but it sounds like that car won't be legal in the USA for quite some time....
Glad to see you are having fun over there!
Thanks! After purchasing the car, I did my fair share of maintenance, but it's still an old old car. New fluids in everything, new timing belt/water pump, a few pulleys in the process, cleaned MAFs and IACV along with Tomei metal intake mani gaskets, new filters everywhere, new plugs. Since then, I blew a coolant hose (like I did in the NSX) and replaced them all including a fairly corroded piece of piping under the manifold.
The car's no NSX, and not turn-key reliable, but I've had fun tinkering with it and making an old Nissan quicker.
UPDATES:
Since the first post, I've fixed the above mentioned items and had a good long run of reliability through multiple seasons with the car, so the mod bug hit pretty hard and I bought a few things.
Winter
Spring
Summer
Fall
I lucked out and won the auction on a very rare ARC titanium exhaust and front pipe, so I'm titanium alloy from the turbo dump elbows to the tailpipe. Wicked sound. Will sound better catless back in the US.
This really went WAY better than I had expected:
- - - Updated - - -
Then, this weekend I got to do a bucket list item and attend a trackday at Tsukuba.
There were a number of other cool entries I raced with, like this Renault 5 with which I went toe to toe.
NSX! I talked to this guy for a short time after the last session
I did two 20 minute sessions in a heat of 26 cars. My best time was 1'13" on the 5th lap of the second session after I got comfortable and away from traffic, but that's about when my ignition woes started unfortunately, for both sessions. It felt like a misfire or ignition cut upon throttle application exiting the curve and cleared itself up after a second or so, but it killed my momentum I had going toward the end of the session in both sessions. I think it's heat related and I suspect a coilpack, the igniter, or even a MAF (feels like a MAF problem). I'll pull plugs tomorrow and see if any look weird.
Other than that, I had a blast and the event was awesome with a very "kid gloves off" approach. I wasn't fast by any means, but I enjoyed figuring out how to brake later, improving heel toe technique, and just getting seat time. The car felt stable at the limit and the ZIIs made me feel braver with every lap.
Last edited:
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