AKWIKZ

The last of the parts arrived today and I wanted to share. These are the parts for the RB30 build. Custom Wiseco 9:1 forged pistons, forged rods, and ACL race bearings. That's not rust on the rods, they are packed in bags and covered in grease for shipping. Brian

Your car would not be affected then. Only cars newer than '74 are required to be inspected. Anything older is exempt from these. Several other states have there own type of inspection which could be more of a pain than California, believe it or not. I now live in Az., and here all cars newer than '65 have to have a tailpipe test every two years. No visual, and the standards are not as high, but still, my cars would be required to pass if I chose to register them here. As for the smog problem, yes cars have made an impact. But it has also been proven that a large amount of this is due to factory emmisions over the last 50 years. In fact, many of you may not know the story behind the California B.A.R. and smog inspections. When they first started the progrem it actually had a set life span. It was decided that by 2000, all new cars would already be running clean enough and that the strict tests would weed out the high polluting cars. This was combined with a Government buyback plan that gave people between $500 and $700 for their old cars. Of couse, the smog check process became a huge money maker for the state and as such they burried the original plan and instead upped the stakes in 2000 with actual dyno type inspections. They also raised the standards to the point that fewer old cars were able to pass. It was a huge fight on behalf of the collector car community to keep them from recinding the exemption of older cars. It used to be a 25 year roller. A compromise was reached to set the cut off at '74 and keep the exemption. In reality most cars now on Ca. roads are pretty good. But there is little chance of the smog checks ever leaving. Far too much money comes out of it. In fact, I believe this is closer to the real motive behind a Federal standard. Millions of dollars waiting to be sucked out of the pockets of hardworking Joe Average. Brian

Here is what JD Power had to say about them. Pathifinder; http://www.carfax.com/car_safety/ratings/SRR.cfm/year/2000/make/NISSAN/model/PATHFINDER/trim_id/2000NISS4W%20PATHFINDER_LE-SE-XE#SARreliability Jeep; http://www.carfax.com/car_safety/ratings/SRR.cfm/year/2000/make/JEEP/model/GRAND%20CHEROKEE/trim_id/2000JEEP4W%20GRAND_CHEROKEE_LAREDO Brian

Easy there, I was merely giving my experiences. My mother had a Jeep Wrangler and had nothing but trouble with it. From the day she bought it she spent more time at the dealership than driving it. As for the VG, I probably have more personal experience with them than most. The VG30 in my Hardbody went over 300k miles before I sold it. My 2000 Crew Cab Frontier had 200k on the VG33 and the only problem I had was with the A/C. As for my friends Pathfinder, it is pushing 200k and has had zero problems. And as for a leaking headgasket, how would you like to pay me? We actaully just took it in for an oil change last weekend, and yes at the dealership. At $20 for an oil change, it makes no sense to do it yourself. No water leaks. Then we have my '90 Pathfinder that also had over 200k on it and again, no drivetrain problems. A leaky master cylinder, that's it. In fact, the only problem I have seen was on my friends 2000 Frontier Desert Runner. It cracked a manifold at 40k miles. Had it replaced under warranty and all was good. Again, I'm just responding to the original post with my personal impressions. Brian

You should have gotten the Pathfinder. The Jeep will give you nothing but trouble down the road. Call a dealer to see what the service will run you. They are twice that of Nissan. While the manifolds can crack, it is usually before the 60k mile factory warranty, so they get fixed for free anyhow. Other than that, the VG will run for 500k miles easy. With my friends '99 we have towed well over 5k pounds. Not to rain on your parade, it's just what I have found. Brian

It's a Greddy knock off. Probably comes from the same plant they get theirs from. I don't really see a problem with it. I think the angle will be fine as well. It will point towards the air ducting holes in the core support. For that price I'd buy it. It's about 1/4 the cost of the real one. Brian

Actually, it's not a hatchback. This particular car was modeled after a '70's Japanese police car. I don't know why, but that is the look the previous owner was after. Here is a better look at what it can be. This car belongs to my friend Lachlan in Australia. Aside from being a '73, it is started life a the same car I have. He has given it the appopriate GT-R parts and Wats. This is a lot closer to what I am looking to achieve. So, as you can see, I do have some work ahead of me. Brian

The stock body lines are definately not the most elegant to come from Japan. While the Z and 510 can both be nice while stock or modified, the KGC110 needs to be made into a GT-R clone to be visually appealing. And the two tone paint job does not really help things. This car can not be "sexy". It can only pull off aggressive. Unlike my '71, this one will not appear at all modern from the outside. I hope to find 9" front and 10" rears with a deep dish. And I find myself really excited about the sound of a high revving N/A RB under the hood. As for the question about the Hakosuka, soon. I have almost all the parts now for the new engine. I'm just waiting on the RB30's to get here. Forged pistons, forged rods, RB26 head, Wolf 3D EMS, ARP studs for everything, Tomei head gasket, HKS 2530 turbos, HKS down pipes, Tomei cams, Tomei cam gears, HKS oil pump, etc. I fully intend to do everything I can to have it running for this years JCCS. My plans had not really involved getting the new car this soon. I really wanted to focus my attention and money on the Hakosuka. But this car was too good a deal to let pass. Almost no rust, complete, and I knew the seller. He was willing to hold it for me for a while and then set up the shipping. It really does make it that much easier when you have less to worry about. Brian

So, I bought another Skyline. This one is a '74 2 door. It is an Australian version. Minor details differentiate it from the Japanese one. A couple of trim pieces and taillights. Of course this one will be turned into a GT-R clone too. She may not look like much at the moment. But just imagine her with flares, front and rear spoilers, and a set of 16" Watanabes. She will also be repainted in red with a flat black hood. This one will get a high compression N/A RB30 with an RB26 head. It will be a month or so before she gets shipped up. I am waiting on a few more parts and actually need the time until we get into the new house next month. I am still babysitting my friends R32 but luckily the new house has a three car garage. I have a ton of other pics and will try to post more shortly. Brian

One pallet

Allright guys. I am offering a one time price break chance to anyone interested in buying an RB30 block right now. I have just purchased a '74 Skyline and want to come up with some cash quickly for some extra parts and shipping of the car. The blocks will be here by mid July at the latest. They are currently in transit and I can provide a few pics to anyone interested. I had offered them at $1200 before but will cut that to $1000 for anyone willing to pay for one now. This price will still include the brand new timing belt required for the swap. As stated before, Wiseco forged pistons and ACL bearings are available at cost ($800 for the pistons, $210 for the bearings delivered). After this, any remaining blocks will go on E-bay as soon as they arrive. Thanks Brian

Why don't you buy one of my RB30 blocks for that RB26 head? It's a definate step up and you can sell the RB25 intact. Just a thought. Brian

No, I did not make it to that paragraph. My point still stands though, you cheat and get caught, you lose. And while in the end he may have had enough, there is no telling how it affected the rest of the race. I am not sure of how many pit stops are needed in a race like that, so it still may have helped him with less stops. But no matter, he cheated. And there is no way to know what would have happened otherwise. It's all speculation. All we know is what actually did happened. Brian

I don't see anywhere that the Alfa did not use the extra fuel. Aside from the part where they talk about Kwechts argument, it was clear that the Alfa would not have been able to finish with a legal tank. The Alfa died less than 200 feet after the finish line. And as for technicallities, cheating is cheating. That is why top cars are torn apart after big races these days. To verify everyone is playing by the rules. The fact is that the Alfa had an illegal tank. History will never know for sure if the Alfa could have won fairly. Getting caught cheating is very different than any technicallity. If anything it hurt them more later as the Datsun team went on to annihilate them and BMW the following year. Both teams then pulled out of racing claiming the oil crisis as the reason. Maybe, maybe not. I think they just could not deal with being beaten by an "inferior" car. And from Japan no less. Moral of the story; you can't throw out accusations against others when you yourself are cheating. Brian

Not really a technicality. The Alfa tank was not merely "too large", it had a hidden trap door to allow it to hold enough fuel to skip one final pit stop. Because after all of the other races, both Alfa and BMW realized the only way they could beat the 510 was to cheat. Alfa and BMW both made spectacular cars, but for all their technological superiority, they were found wanting on the track. And let's not forget, the 510 missed the first 2 races of the season and still won the championship. It was almost pure luck that kept the Alfa in contention up to the last race of the season. It was like giving someone a 2 second head start on a 1/4 mile drag race and still running them down. Brian

Very good eye Mike. I was wondering if someone might notice. This car does in fact have a widebody kit. It is not too extreme and still folows the original lines. Each side is 20mm wider. The look is very subtle, but still apparent to anyone who has seen a stock one in person. Along with the Nismo chin spoiler, I think it is about as clean an overall appearance as I've seen. The only thing missing is a stock rear wing. I personally like the original GT-R wing more than any aftermarket ones. We'll see what my buddy decides to do. Brian

Thanks. We got it in the California high desert. If it were mine I'd tell you the price. Since it was my friend who laid out the cash, I really should not discuss numbers. Let's just say it was a smoking good deal. She is one of the last cars to get out of MotorEx in one piece. Again, we'll need to go over her as they really jacked up a few things on the car. My hope os that the two Skylines will be cruising around Phoenix in the next few months. Brian

Sorry for the poor picture quality. It's dark and I'm not a pro photographer. You will recognize my '71 Skyline. The '90 GT-R actually belongs to my friend. We just picked her up last weekend. I am babysitting her until he gets moved out here to Phoenix. I originally was going to buy it, but he convinced me to let him get it. I figured, why not? He spends the money and I still get to drive it. She is a bit rough, but runs perfectly. I am really looking forward to getting the pair of them out on the track this fall. Brian

N1 turbos have steel wheels. They are also a fair bit larger. The stick R32 and R33 have .42 A/R front side and I think a .46 hot side (I could be wrong on this part). The N1's have a .60 front side and a .64 hot side. Also, the R34 has a slightly different turbo. They are somewhere in between these, I'm not sure of exact specs. Lastly, the R34 N1 turbos have the same specs as the R32 N1's, but are ball bearing. Brian

Alan, Thanks for the clarification. Very cool to get some "inside info" as it were. Do you happen to know which, if any, of the factory cars are still around? I also have noticed that you seem to make frequent trips to Japan. I was wondering if you might be willing to help me find afew parts I still need for my Hakosuka on your next trip? Most are small trim parts, but I am in need of a few body panels too. I just thought I might ask. Thanks again for the info. Brian

Alan, Where did you find info on the car? Other than the new racing seat, the car looks exactly like the factory "red" car pictured in several books I have. Even the number corresponds. I realize you have a ton of info, so I am curious as to if this is just a factory race car clone? Brian

That is from a Best Motoring DVD. The car is one of the factory race GT-R's. The S20 in that car is probably producing over 200hp. I know that they had a few cars running mechanical fuel injection and putting down 250hp. Absolutely insane. I am always getting as many books and magazines on the classic Skyline and the one I just recently received has multiple pics of the race cars. What I find funny, and not really in a ha-ha kind of way, is the horrible pronunciation of Hakosuka. The voice over guy obviously knows little about the Japanese language. I've had the DVD for over a year now and each time I watch I cringe. Ha-ka-su-ka is just wrong. Badly wrong. And he does it over and over again. Whatever, the car sounds great. Brian

Here is the site I told you about. They have all the shims you might need. Not cheap, but they are the right part and good quality. I've ordered parts from these guys before and never had a problem. http://www.takakaira.com/asp/template.asp?cat=2&id=770&prodID=NOoKlLlgiHjfmIh Brian