Buying a Skyline

AliK

AliK

Vehicle Dating Officer
Staff member
Club Member
A friend of mine was about to buy a gorgeous sounding 7L twin turbo V8 800BHP monster from the US! I have yet to find what it is beyond the top trumps numbers.

Thankfully he's now decided he really wants a skyline.

As many of you guys are into such things I wondered if there was any advice for him on how / where to source a good 'un? Or which years were the best ones to target - he's defo not a classic car man.

Thanks in advance!



Ali K
 
Firstly he needs to decide whether he wants a R32, R33, R34.

Well, actually budget should be first.

£10k will get you a R32 GTR, or a R33 GTR, or a R34 GTT. £25k will get you an R34GTR.

I would recommend importing a fresh example that hasn't seen UK roads. JM-Imports or Torque-GT would be a good place to start.

or.......is he meaning the "Skyline" which is the G35. Basically a 4 seat 350z?
 
I've had a couple of skylines and been in the owners club for quite a while now. I started with a R32 GTS and luved it as a nice comfortable runaround. It was a non turbo auto but was perfect for what I wanted. Paid around £2.5k for it and sold it 4 years later for about the same money. I then bought a uk R34GTR for £26k and kept that for a couple of years. Again, loved the car but was forever putting fuel in it. It was fairly quick but I was forever waiting for something to go wrong and cost me money. Sold that in 2008 for what I paid for it and its still worth that money now. My choice now would be a 32GTR but they are going up in value all the time. You may have missed the boat to get one at a good price. They are even sending them back to Japan as they are sort after there. They are a money pit if you want to increase the power and you never get back what you spend on them. They are getting a bit old now so have a good look for rust. I'd look for a car thats never been painted and imaculate underneath and but with the mods you want already done to save some money. Make sure the mods are done by a well known skyline specialist. Buy the best you can afford and it should retain its money for years to come without costing you much to keep it on the road. R33's are the cheapest and least desirable but it depends what you want the car for.
 
Thank you Lexx! I agree completely re budget first but I suspect if he finds the "right one" the budget will be flexible.

He's definitely not a 350z skyline man. His current toy is a fire breathing Celica GT4 and he's not bothered about child seats/passengers in the back.



Ali K
 
Not keen on the first one. Prefer grey or midnight purple. Don't like the turbo swap and not keen on the wheels.

The second one is perfect for a 33 apart from the interior but I guess its down to personal preference.
 
Keep an eye out on Skylineowners.com Skyline-owners-club.com and gtr.co.uk/forum
Second for JM Imports if you want to bring something specific in and like above if you can afford it R32 GTR, as unmolested as possible is your best bet.
Main thing is to try and get some seat time in each of them. 13k gets you an RB30 R34 GTT these days.
 
Johny, I'm 100% in agreement on all those points!! Apparently the guy will change the wheels for the originals. The second one minus garish interior is very tasty!

Balloo2u - thank you, very good advice. I suspect when my friend K gets his butt into one, he will just pull out the credit card!!!! ;) but you're totally right, they will drive very differently. I suspect the big turbo one will be so so followed by a big punch in the chest for 2-3k RPM.



Ali K
 
RB30 engined car for £13k. Could be a cheap option for someone looking for an engine for their Z.
 
grahamjc said:
How about a 700+bhp R33 for £15k? Personally I would aim for the midnight purple
http://www.gtr.co.uk/forum/229017-pupsis-uk-spec-gtr-rb30.html

Owner has quite a few posts on the GTR owners forum.....
Click to expand...

It's been sold already and was put up for breaking according to the thread - looks like a lot of the bits have gone including the engine. Was a Cat-D car as well unfortunately, probably why it was so cheap :/

EDIT: If I didn't have my Z, I would be seriously considering that R33 I posted up, seems a bit too good to be true tbh..! :O
 
zNathan said:
It's been sold already and was put up for breaking according to the thread - looks like a lot of the bits have gone including the engine. Was a Cat-D car as well unfortunately, probably why it was so cheap :/

EDIT: If I didn't have my Z, I would be seriously considering that R33 I posted up, seems a bit too good to be true tbh..! :O
Click to expand...

Read it quickly... there are loads of others there as well. Good source, especially if the car has a history on the forum.
 
Bonjour!
Thank you for your input chap's!
....This impending midlife crisis seems to have no boundaries!!!....I'll be dating an 18yr old Czech girl next.....Mmmmm?
 
You joined!!! Welcome to the forum!

Post up your potentials and take the advice, these chaps REALLY know what they're talking about when it comes to cars!!!! :thumbs:

Not sure if they can advise you as well on dating 18 year olds though ;)

Ali K
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Komster said:
Bonjour!
Thank you for your input chap's!
....This impending midlife crisis seems to have no boundaries!!!....I'll be dating an 18yr old Czech girl next.....Mmmmm?
Click to expand...

With the greatest respect and I don't know your background so you may have already done this I'd suggest spending your 15k on a track-day car and having fun with that. Running a wild Skyline on the road is going to be so frustrating and every time you do something that excites you it'll be illegal, dangerous and anti-social. The guys with quick cars on here mainly get their kicks from track-time or Santa Pod.

I know it sounds like I'm a kill-joy but to me it makes so much more sense and you'll get huge respect from your mates.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top