Hey guys, i’ve been looking at getting a jap car for the longest time and now i’m financially able to get one. I’ve wanted a R32 for as long as i can remember and i know a buncha you guys have em already.
My question is, does anyone have any NEGATIVE feedback on any of these imported cars? I know theres gotta be some nightmare stories about all these imported cars, cause hey its the used car market so nothing is perfect. And i know i’ve read a buncha good revewis from you guys as well, but i want some negative ones… just to be sure!
Has anyone had any trouble with the (from what i’ve heard) bulletproof nissan 6cyl. turbo motors? Also, if i were to get the AWD Skylines (either the GT-R, or GTS-4’s) Are there any NA cars that use the same atessa system in the early 90’s??
I don’t think anyone really has any negative feedback, since it usually takes people (myself included), quite a while to find exactly what they are looking for. Most often you just find some weird things in the trunk or under the hood, and wonder what they are doing there. I have never heard of anyone’s engine blowing or the car being in much worse condition than they already knew about.
They key thing is your importer, if you’d like some reviews feel free to pm me. They go and look at your potential car and you have to have a lot of trust in them, as usually you don’t get to see much pictures of auction cars until you have won the bid. But most importers do have very good buyers to go and check out the car in detail and report back to your importer, who in turn lets you know. The reputation of the importer is very much based on the quality of the cars they import and the satisfaction of their customers. Looking at the auction sheet, combined with the buyer looking over the car in every detail, there is not much that can be missed.
The RB-series motors are in my opinion the best inline 6 motors, and one of the best engines Nissan produced. Very similar to the CA (hence better than the SR and KA), but 6 cylinders with in most cases even stronger internals. The km’s on the cars for sale can vary very much. From 21k (supposedly) to 150k+, personally I would say that 70-90k would be the optimum km range. Since even if the 21k kms is true, much more engine damage could be done by leaving the car sitting for years, esp with typical Japanese maintenance. So it is better to have a ‘higher’ km engine, if anything for piece of mind. Finally, the more modified the car, chances are the more it has been beat on. Unless you are/have a good mechanic to make sure the frame is still straight and replace the bushings and possibly more suspension parts, usually it is not a good idea to go with an overly modified car.
The only two cars at the time that had the altessa 4wd system were the R32 gts-4 (identical to the gts-t type m + 300lbs), and the R32 GTR (just a bit heavier than the gts-4). The RNN14/Nissan Pulsar GTi-R had some sort of basic 4wd system but it was not altessa, as it ran/runs a full time 50/50 split. Whereas altessa has completely variable front wheel torque distribution, depending on g-forces (essentially measuring rear wheel slip). The 4wd systems are almost identical in the GTS-4 and the GTR, with the exception of the differentials. The GTS-4 has a vlsd, whereas the GTR needed the stronger helical (mechanical) type lsd. A common swap is the gear ratios between the GTS-4 and the GTR. GTR owners that want more low end swap on the 4.32 final drive from the GTS-4, and usually the GTS-4 owners swap on the 4.11 final drive from the GTR for more top end/fuel efficiency.
Hope this has helped a little, best of luck with your importing, hope to see you at Skymeet '06. Cheers.
Guys thanks SO much for the fast/helpful responses.
I’ve been looking for the longest time, and i do trust the guys, i just find it REALLY tough to purchase a car that i haven’t seen/driven!
The km’s don’t really matter TOO much to me, since i have no idea how legit they actually are, but i’m comfortable with high km engines, my car has finally given up on me at 335km’s and i drive hard.
As far as the dealerships go, i’m basically looking at your sponsor J spec, i’ve delt with Gabe a few times before wayyyyy back, and i know hes a stand up guy. So more than likely i’ll be purchasing from them!
Yep…Gabe made my dream come true! (www.japaneseimports.ca )
I’ve had no problems with my car and can’t for see anything major either. It’s possible for some little things to creep up but it all depends on the amount of money you want to spend.
You can have a $5000.00 GTS if you wanted, but don’t think it’ll last to long. Now you up that to say around 13G ish and you will have something in a lot better condition, low km’s, well maintained and most likely no issues what so ever. The same goes for the GTR’s so just do some research and figure your budget, call Gabe up and he’ll talk with you on how realistic it is.
Skyline’s are super great cars but like every other car out there, it needs to be taken care of.
(www.japaneseimports.ca )
Now you up that to say around 13G ish and you will have something in a lot better condition, low km’s, well maintained and most likely no issues what so ever. The same goes for the GTR’s so just do some research and figure your budget, call Gabe up and he’ll talk with you on how realistic it is.