Seriously considering Purchasing a Skyline.

TorqueHappenS08

TorqueHappenS08

2,980
United States
Greensboro/NC/U
jarod336/GTP_torque
Paperorplastic/ manherollen
It's 2015, the 25 year import ban is up, i can finally get my hands on some skylines and other jdm goodies that are readily available at good prices nearby(SCORE!!!), it's that simple right? no.... now comes the time for pacing back and fourth.

I've gone back and fourth for a few months now on this purchase, i know it is going to happen, i'm just kind of "stuck"

The Great part, Heaven on this very earth part!

Luckily for me The highly trustworthy and reliable Japanese Classics dealer is not too far from me in Richmond VA, I have been there multiple times, So this takes care of the massive headache of importing a car. They do all of the dirty work for you, By the time the car arrives at the dealer, it has all of the legal documents for Customs, clean title aswell as an inspection certificate. So it's all ready to go, You test it, inspect it, do the claims/nitty gritty paperwork and purchase or finance it as you would with any other preowned dealer.

Bonus+
They have warehouse full of thousands of parts and jdm engines that would make a kobe scrap yard jealous.


(If you follow Doug Demuro on Youtube, you'll know that he recently Purchased a silver R32 GTR V-spec from Japanese Classics)

The Reality Part.

No my issue is i just don't really know anything about skylines, the do's and don'ts, I am completely at a loss, I already know what model i'm looking to get, a GTS-M or a GTR, GTS's go for around 12k and GTR's can be in the 18's to high 30's (For a modified one)

The June shipment is soon to arrive and the car i want is on the list..(two of them)

-
- 1990 Nissan Skyline R32 GTS-T - Silver - 4 Door - M/T - Lightly Modified - 78k Miles
- 1990 Toyota Crown Royal Saloon - White - A/T - VIP Modified - 60k Miles -Arrived-- 1990 Suzuki Every Kei Van High Roof/Turbo/Safari Windows - White - A/T - 57k Miles -Arrived-
- 1990 Nissan Skyline R32 GTS-T Type M - Black - 2 Door - Original - 106k Miles
- 1990 Toyota Sera - Yellow - Original - 98k Miles
- 1990 Nissan Silvia Q's - Black - Original - 61k Miles
- 1990 Nissan Silvia K's - Red - Lightly Modified - 60k Miles
- 1990 Nissan Skyline R32 GTS-T - Silver - 4 Door - M/T - Original - 66k Miles
- 1990 Nissan Skyline R32 GX-i - Silver - 4 Door - A/T - Original - 43k Miles
- 1990 Nissan Skyline R32 GTS-T - White - 2 Door - M/T - Original - 84k Miles
- 1989 Nissan Laurel C33 Club S - Black - RB20DET 5 M/T - Lightly Modified - 60k Miles -Arrived-

I'm targeting stock ones.

The Back and Fourth part..

Damn i really want a GTR... Can you really go wrong at 17k for an unmolested one?

But the GTS-M is cheaper, much cheaper...

And it comes back full circle to..

I really don't know which one i really want right now... The GTS-M's are coming now,this i know, and will be sold out almost immediately like usual, but i really do want a GTR, i emailed them asking if they had a GTR coming in and they responded with
"We have a good shipment of GTS models coming in, But as far as the GTR goes, We'll have to get back to you on that one" -

Shipments are monthly, so i'm screwed(for now) if i don't act now.

But anyway, I'd like some answers from current or past Skyline Owners, Regarding maintenance and overall issues to look out for, in either the GTS or GTR.


For the record i am 25 years old. Latest car was a 1989 Galant VR4(rip), Previous 2005 dodge neon SXT(rip) and before that Honda accord CB7 slightly modified engine(first car)(still here)

Thank you for reading my dilemma.
 
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Have you looked around on Skyline and GTR forums? They'll have all the maintenance and common issues you'll need.

Also if you really want a GTR might as well wait a bit right? Feels like you're almost settling for a GTS, but any Skyline does sell quickly from there.
 
I had a GTS-T years ago and they are a really nice road car. The only thing is if you want to get more power out of the engine with a bigger turbo, the GTR will be much easier to get parts for in that case. If they are stock I would have no preference. I drove a GTR and it didn't really blow me away compared to the GTS-T, it just felt heavier and a bit more power. Mechanically my car never gave any trouble and I used to drift it with no rev limiter, so it would hit 10,000 rpm fairly regularly.
 
TorqueHappenS08
1990 Toyota Crown Royal Saloon - White - A/T - VIP Modified - 60k Miles -Arrived
Click to expand...
Is that the one with the V12? That'd be cool as hell to have.

Re: skylines

If you "just" want a Skyline, the GTS-M would probably be enough fun. You couldn't go wrong with either choice, unless there's something about each that turns you away(ex. color, mileage, overall condition). I'd absolutely get a stock one personally.
Remember, as time goes on (say, next 5 years) they will get cheaper and more abundant as they've been imported for five years. The ones who already have one may be waiting for an R33 or R34.
 
Plenty of R32 GTRs in Australia, many are molested but you wouldn't have the language barriers to get one like japan.

Also Avoid going to New Zealand, they have the most JDM imports then any other country outside japan because of their lax import laws but nearly all would be considered unroadworthy in any other country.

Keep in mind most of our JDM imports have had a notorious reputation of having all their mileage winded back before importing its a very big problem from the japanese import industry, be careful.
 
I would go for a GTR.

It will hold it's value better than an GTS-T, has the RB26DETT, and the Attesta all wheel drive.

Depending what is legal at your state, I would considered buying a slighty modified one. You probably end up doing it anyways, and second hand it's cheaper then building and buying all parts yourself.

You probably want that 180km/h limiter out. The Hi-cas maybe(do some research on these,it weights a lot, plus they are be problematic,...google,read some forum posts...). The air restrictors limiting the power (com'on let the RB breath :lol:).
You want V-spec brakes (Brembo not Nissan ones).

Tuning can mean nice stuff, rare stuff, precious stuff. Some N1 parts, V-spec, Nismo are very welcome. Always... :)

Depending your climate, you need some work be done, like undercoating, wax,...
 
Also don't expect Parts to be cheap on the GTR, im sure the American Tuners will start to bring parts over but for the first few years expect to pay and arm and a leg for everything.
 
GTS-T or wait another year. The R32 GT-R's RB26 was flawed from factory with the oil pump and since you're looking for a stocker that's bound to be a problem. It eventually leads to self-destruction of the engine. It wasn't fixed until 1991.
 
GTSs are far more common and will be imported like mad in the next few years, driving the prices to the floor. That $14k car could very well drop to the $5-6k range that they fetch down here. The GTR will also lose some value, but if our market's anything to go by, it'll settle around $15k.

The fact that GTRs are worth more can also help keep them out of the hands of idiots, so it's pretty safe to assume a given GTR will be better treated than a GTS. Parts costs are heftier for the 'Zilla but if you get a good one that wont be too big of an issue. Servicing (at least here) is no more expensive than any other 25 year old Nissan.

I would like to point out that with your previous cars RIP status, insurance companies are likely to be pretty rough on you whichever R32 you buy. It's just something to keep in mind.

I own an R32 GTS4 and like to think I know a little bit about the breed. If they've been well treated, all Skylines are a reliable, solid and trouble free car to own. Trouble is, not many (manuals in particular) are well treated.

If its had any mods, a questionable service history or repaired damage you need to steer clear. As @mustafur mentioned you also need to watch out for odometers that've been wound back. A vast majority of imports in Australia have had that done. The old adage stands that if it looks to good to be true, it probably is.

Finally I just want to say that if you want a GTR, get a GTR. If you're like me and you settle, you'll never truly be happy and you'll end up buying one anyway. More power, 4WD, bigger brakes, nicer design and badge factor alone is worth waiting (and paying) for.

Whatever choice you make, put a thread up in the members ride section once you've got it 👍 :gtplanet: 👍
 
TorqueHappenS08
If you follow Doug Demuro on Youtube...
Click to expand...

:lol:

In all seriousness, figure out why you want a Skyline. The performance per dollar is pretty poor, so I wouldn't suggest getting one if you want a sports car. If you love Japanese car culture and this is some sort of halo car for you, then that's good, but you should still take a good hard look at what you want to do with this car.

I have a friend with an RB-series engine who seriously hates maintenance. He's gone so far as to start replacing parts like coils and injectors so that he can get replacements in timely/cost effective manner. Daily driving this will probably lead to a lot of down time and shipping parts from Japan.

Whenever I see people considering this car the whole "never meet your heroes" shtick comes to mind. There are plenty of cars which avoid this by being about style, or image, or comfort, or build quality (the Citroën DS comes to mind), but the Skyline made a name for itself for performance and its fans and followers have steady inflated the perception of this aspect of the car for about 20 years.

In the end we're talking about a 25 year old performance car.
 
I made up my mind, i'm going to go with a GTR, i'm going to wait for the july shipment of vehicles, Don't get me wrong, i like the GTS but i'm definitely going with the GTR.

As for spare parts, JC has a sepperate Warehouse full of spare parts, from trannies, to engines.

This car just sold the other day though, GTS-M 4 door, in excellent condition for around 10.995$ with 91.000 miles.

11217658_1230045960354991_1574749694368223937_n.jpg

Was seriously thinking about caving and buying it, but i let it go

As i said, no importing needed here, the place already imports the cars and takes care of the dirty work as i said in the OP, you just go in and buy them like any other dealer. The issue with this is, you can not make special orders for certain types of cars, you get what they have.

Here is detailed information on the particular vehicle.
http://www.japaneseclassicsllc.com/...2-gts-t-type-m-excellent-condition-10995.html

There has been a flood of skylines around this area recently. GTS's and GTR's and other Neo Japanese models like ciferos and laurels They are certainly losing their rarity now, but i don't care i want a GTR and have for 13 years now.

Here is the last inventory, don't try to drool too much.
http://www.japaneseclassicsllc.com/

i live around 80-90 miles from this place.
 
I'd be scared off anything except a full hog GT-R just because I'm not sure I know anyone who would be able to work on a 25 year old Japanese car filled with parts that never came close to being offered in America. I can turn a wrench decently myself, but my car is enough of a maintenance nightmare and it's barely over a decade old.

Zenith
Daily driving this will probably lead to a lot of down time and shipping parts from Japan.
Click to expand...
Not if you overnight them.
 
Tornado
I can turn a wrench decently myself, but my car is enough of a maintenance nightmare and it's barely over a decade old
Click to expand...

Maintenance is easier on older cars, it's just more frequent.
 
On a plain jane, like, 2.5L Aries or something compared to a 2015 Dart, sure. But performance cars using hydraulic and various other purely mechanical performance systems to try and accomplish the same thing that nowadays can be done almost entirely electrically? And being controlled by late 1980s computers? Eh...
 
The87Dodge
What a shame that Skyline GTRs are not street legal in the USA.
Click to expand...
They're completely legal, the 1989-1991 R32 GTR is finally legal in the us, hence why the dealer is selling them.

I'm sure a RB engine will be more reliable than a DSM engine, aka the 4G63T that powered my old VR4 galant, my god talk about a 101 lesson in car mechanics DIY. that engine/car is not for the faint of heart.

As for me, i'm targeting stock cars only. And i appreciate all the responses, but i will be going with a GTR R32, whenever they get one in, I will make the 80 mile journey down to Richmond Virgina. As for The GTS, it's completely out of the question.

I will keep you guys posted, also i signed up on:

http://www.skylineowners.com/forum/186-usa-members-forum.html
 
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Downhill Dino
Have you looked around on Skyline and GTR forums? They'll have all the maintenance and common issues you'll need.

Also if you really want a GTR might as well wait a bit right? Feels like you're almost settling for a GTS, but any Skyline does sell quickly from there.
Click to expand...
This x100000.

Hint for the OP; prepare to get hands on with it.
http://www.zerotohundred.com/newfor...-maintenance-schedule-for-nissan-skyline.html

Zenith
:lol:

In all seriousness, figure out why you want a Skyline. The performance per dollar is pretty poor, so I wouldn't suggest getting one if you want a sports car. If you love Japanese car culture and this is some sort of halo car for you, then that's good, but you should still take a good hard look at what you want to do with this car.

I have a friend with an RB-series engine who seriously hates maintenance. He's gone so far as to start replacing parts like coils and injectors so that he can get replacements in timely/cost effective manner. Daily driving this will probably lead to a lot of down time and shipping parts from Japan.

Whenever I see people considering this car the whole "never meet your heroes" shtick comes to mind. There are plenty of cars which avoid this by being about style, or image, or comfort, or build quality (the Citroën DS comes to mind), but the Skyline made a name for itself for performance and its fans and followers have steady inflated the perception of this aspect of the car for about 20 years.

In the end we're talking about a 25 year old performance car.
Click to expand...
Not that I disagree with your post in any way, just curious on your thoughts regarding this should one want the car just for the occasional Sunday drive & rare track day excursion? Since after all, that would be like a sports car.

I've been in touch with Japanese Classics as well & have considered the GT-R as they definitely fall into budget at $20-25K. But, I also completely agree on the maintenance costs of the car & as a result, I know I won't be able to enjoy it quite as much to keep said costs down compared to the only other toy I'm looking at; the C6Z. The GT-R is also rather more difficult to find funding for & insuring. So, it's become a game of cheaper car + high maintenance costs vs. expensive car + low maintenance costs. :indiff: But, would still love to hear your opinion as mentioned. :)
 
Prepare at least 2.5 times the money for the car if you want to have a proper running imports ( depend on how good the car will be - as close to stock factory when new or just good enough run reliably ). Old cars needs a lot of things replaced. Check the auction car rating if available, try to find 4 to 5 rated car, though this doesn't always mean less hassle car, it's a good precaution.

Body work ( paint, dents, accident history, rust, )
Chassis and suspension ( lots of things can go wrong here, from past life as track day car, drifting, accidents ) - basic 1st step, check alignment, springs/damper, linkages and tire wear ( tire can get replaced when auctioned )
Interior ( look for misaligned dash, console and other parts like door panel, sometimes they used to be stripped or replaced in a hurry ) Take out the floor mats, and check the floor ( see if there's any sign of repair or anything out of ordinary ) The trunk, they should be in original state from factory if the car never had been heavily modified, al the panels there, carpets, spare tire. Take out the spare tire, check underneath.

Inspect the lights ( these are expensive for Skylines, check for cracks,and fogging ) Open the bonnet, check the radiator/intercooler area, look for signs of repair, most of the small accident have the front of the car bent getting some work/repainted and bumper or the whole section replaced. Check the tidiness of the engine bay, a good modified engine will look professionally setup ( no loose wire, badly crafted/set hoses, etc ). The front and rear lights should be perfectly fit/alignment within tolerance, at least the screws holding them are all there.

Never rely on the odometer, check for signs of wear and tear instead ( look above when sitting in the driver seats -roof, pillars, center console, dash area, steering wheel, seats if stock ), check the rubbers on the door, trunk. Also inspect the roof ( paint wear ) which are often neglected. They often touch up the other body parts paintjob, but sometimes missed the roof.

Most of performance JDM like RX7, Skylines, Supra, have electronic gizmos installed, if you have no experience with these, get someone who knew and ask them to inspect the installation and function. Sometimes they have dodgy wiring or not set properly ( fuel/boost controller )

Inspect the engine and drivetrain, before buying, make sure to get decent time of test drive. Drive from low speed, on lower gear to higher gear, cruising then accelerate to high RPM, take a note of the engine noise, power delivery, boost ( when it starts build up and how it performs on higher RPM - go at least to 6k RPM on RB25/26 if you can ) Skylines rear diff are quite strong, but still pay attention on how the car drives, any noise or vibration, turn left/right at higher speed and load the suspension to see how the fare. Prefer to try roundabout ( small + big, both direction ), drive a bit aggressive, and see how the car handle the lateral load and exiting ( this is what I did back in Oz ) Check the clutch and brake pedal play, and how they perform, brake noise, any signs of pulling to one side or vibration when braking, shift should be smooth, check the clutch engagement, sometimes one of the gear might crunch or hard to get into or sticking, take a note of this, this could lead to expensive service of the transaxle.

Get an appointment at a trusted garage that can give good inspection on JDM cars, ask the dealer for inspection on a car that you are almost certain is in good condition from the steps above. You will need to do several test drives, it's a sign of good buying practice, sometimes you will find 2 cars having similar condition and you have to do a hard decision.


If all goes well, lift car on a hoist, inspect the underbody, look for rust, damage from road usage ( bent arms, holes, cracks ) Do a thorough fluid check ( engine, diff, brake, steering ), check their condition, this is a good indicator if the previous owner really took care the car.
Get a dyno run and analysis, it's good to get 2nd opinion from the mechanic. If possible run a pressure check on the engine for added assurance.

Be sure to get the service/workshop manual for the car, very useful in the long run and can save you a lot of time and money by doing routine checks and maintenance.

R32-34 Skylines are not hard to do maintenance on if you have the manual and decent automotive knowledge.
 
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Tornado
Not if you overnight them.
Click to expand...

As someone who has recently been one day shipping parts from halfway across the US, the idea of that makes my wallet cry.

Edit: Apparently I missed an F&F joke.

McLaren
Not that I disagree with your post in any way, just curious on your thoughts regarding this should one want the car just for the occasional Sunday drive & rare track day excursion? Since after all, that would be like a sports car.

I've been in touch with Japanese Classics as well & have considered the GT-R as they definitely fall into budget at $20-25K. But, I also completely agree on the maintenance costs of the car & as a result, I know I won't be able to enjoy it quite as much to keep said costs down compared to the only other toy I'm looking at; the C6Z. The GT-R is also rather more difficult to find funding for & insuring. So, it's become a game of cheaper car + high maintenance costs vs. expensive car + low maintenance costs. :indiff: But, would still love to hear your opinion as mentioned. :)
Click to expand...

I think we're talking two different levels of performance here. The Corvette has double the horsepower, slightly less weight, more tire, and sits lower. Consider how serious you want to drive. I think you'll be more competitive and learn more driving the Corvette.

I see the R32 kinda like a classic car, like an old Alfa or something. It might have been fast when it was new, but not really anymore unless you want to change everything and ruin it. Sure it's a bit expensive to run, but that's not really the point. You've got to be into it because the car is important to you.

This would be a good time to say that I never really grew up with the Skyline. I'd love an R32 because I think it's cool, but it was never a car that I rooted for or followed.

All that said... I think keeping an R32 in the garage for shows, weekend drives, and occasional HPDE's is the perfect way of owning it.
 
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TorqueHappenS08
They're completely legal, the 1989-1991 R32 GTR is finally legal in the us, hence why the dealer is selling them.

I'm sure a RB engine will be more reliable than a DSM engine, aka the 4G63T that powered my old VR4 galant, my god talk about a 101 lesson in car mechanics DIY. that engine/car is not for the faint of heart.

As for me, i'm targeting stock cars only. And i appreciate all the responses, but i will be going with a GTR R32, whenever they get one in, I will make the 80 mile journey down to Richmond Virgina. As for The GTS, it's completely out of the question.

I will keep you guys posted, also i signed up on:

http://www.skylineowners.com/forum/186-usa-members-forum.html
Click to expand...
The R33 and the R34 are not legalized in the USA yet. Only the R32.
 

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