soviet_merlin

Hah, no it still differs. For example plate styles that have the NSW on top instead of on the side are less wide but taller. I think it also makes a difference whether it is hyphenated AA-BB-CC or AAB-BCC, which again may just come back to the plate style. I suggest to have a look through the options as they all mention dimensions. Whether any of it will make enough of a difference to fit, no idea.

Nope, different styles come with different dimensions. For some it also depends on how many characters are on them.

Do any of the custom plates fit? They mention dimensions on the different styles. See https://www.myplates.com.au/#/ If I understand it right it is a one-off payment to get the given plate in a different style. Custom lettering comes with yearly fees though.

Possibly it is not that bad and worse at the same time. This is Enthusiast insurance, I presume Shannon's has similar clauses. From the PDS: "We will not pay a claim connected with... Your vehicle being regularly parked on the street overnight at your place of residence on more than 2 nights in any one period of a week being 7 consecutive nights." I thought it was any street parking but looks like it is only for at home. Regardless, insurance companies are not friends. They are not there to help us. And I guess it is good advice to read your PDS to have your soul crushed a little bit so it doesn't hurt as much if something happens and it falls into one of the many exclusions and exceptions on the insurer's side. I'm not jaded at all.

Seriously, f**k that! I like to think there is a special place in hell for people who steal things that people care about. FWIW you can't even get decent insurance here if you don't have secure parking because of theft. Mine has a clause that voids it if you park the car on the street for more than two days in a row. For some peace of mind I have a standalone GPS tracker somewhat hidden in the car. It has a 6,000mAh battery and I keep it charged enough that it's always good for at least two weeks. I presume people look for these when stealing cars so not sure how much it would help. I have considered getting a second one and hiding it slightly less so that it can act as a decoy but meh.

Hey @sonic99, just as an aside, if you find a way of making the plastic look good again I'd love to hear about it. Thanks! I have tried the Meguiar's trim detailer at some point and it was pretty useless. It's more like tyre shine than for example headlight restorer that actually improves things. It makes it look better but then washes off again. At the same time it does say detailer and not restorer, so maybe it's the wrong product to go for.

Thanks guys! That was clearly some kind of brainfart on my end. Deduction skills 0.

Is that some auto-correct typo or is it actually Barnaby? All I come up with in a search is Midsomer Murders or Barnaby Joyce in politics. (Thanks for the link in your second post Duncan! Not OP but I might get in touch with them as well for the papers for my car. I'm still wondering about Barnaby though :))

Hey there, if it's not too odd or personal a question: I'm curious, how did you inherit a Skyline? Otherwise I had to smile. A questionable fuel economy and exhaust fumes of death sound familiar. FWIW the issue with the racing clock came up just the other day actually: See @Deathkitteh in the below thread. No solution but you are not alone. Possibly for managing expectations:

Would you care about it if you bought your car? Of all things to look for in a Skyline? I presume you mean a trim restorer. I have tried it and found it is not really doing anything. As in it looks good for a moment and then it wears off again. Waste of effort. Would not recommend. Also, that lip looks fine to me. It's not cracked or broken. If someone really cared surely they'd go for something aftermarket. PS: I seem to have fat-fingered a rating onto this thread and there is no way to undo it. So there you go, 5 stars, thread of the week

Agreed. I'm still on the fence about doing it at all. I'll get the plates and some holders and see how I feel. FWIW, it looks like legally it is okay to drive with L/P plates on a full license in NSW. I had a look through the official list of general driving offences, of which there are many. According to the internet it's an offense in QLD.

That's good to know, thanks! I'll have a look at the various clip-on or screw-on solutions next time. One could argue that it'll help with the dad wagon look as well. It's already rocking the learner-driver-or-distracted-parent bumper scrapes so why not go all in.

You are a legend, thank you!

Woot, we finally got this done. We went to Mobility Engineering on Monday to get the extensions fitted. Took the day off for it. Dropped off the car in the morning and picked it up again around 2.30pm. Altogether it cost $1600 for parts and labour. A bit more than I was expecting, but meh. As a one-off to make the car driveable it's fine. We did two hours of practicing yesterday in the pouring rain on an empty parking lot. Initial feedback from my partner: it's great and it just feels normal to drive. She has been taking lessons beforehand to practice in a manual transmission car. Apparently the Stagea is a lot nicer to drive than the instructor's Yaris. I'm not entirely surprised but kind of glad to hear that. It will still take a bit of practice but we'll get to that bit by bit. I'm considering getting a set of magnetic L's to stick on the car for practice in actual traffic. Just to avoid pissing people off with the inevitable going slow or stalling. Not sure though what the legal situation is considering that she has a full license and that it's a car with a turbo. Has anyone done that? See attached photos of the extensions. We got them for all three pedals. There are holders screwed onto the pedals. The holders stay on and I don't notice them at all even with my gargantuan feet. The pedals drop in and get fixed in place with a pin. It looks a bit odd but it works really well. I was a bit worried they'd be shitty plastic but they are actually proper metal pedals and no worse than the original ones. Mobility Engineering sells pedals that fold away as well but those weren't great. Even folded up they were still in the way. This is much better. Altogether good stuff. Would recommend.

Hah, it sounds good from your description! I wasn't questioning anything. My imagination is pretty bad, so I was just hoping you'd have a recording.

Somehow your link the recording of said nice intake sound doesn't work. Could you have a look? Also, great work!

Hah, I have to applaud your perseverence. Do you notice any difference? I was going to ask what it does as it's the first time I hear about it. Found an article on it though. In case anyone else wonders: https://www.carthrottle.com/post/nd5gv3l/

It looks like you can order it from amayama? https://www.amayama.com/en/part/nissan/6255008u30

Could you explain this to me? I'm not sure how to picture driving a clothes dryer. A washing machine maybe, but not a clothes dryer. Poly mounts are stiffer, so more vibration from a rumbly V8 on idle?

Possibly obvious, but if you are not used to it please try left foot braking at slow speeds first. As in something like walking speed. I still remember teenage me driving my grandpa's Merc ~15 years ago. Only fancy old people cars had automatic transmissions. Tried braking with the left foot because the right was itchy or some stupid reason like that. It felt like I would have launched myself through the windshield if it wasn't for the seatbelt.

/edit: I'm an egg. Not every skyline is running 700+hp with questionable longevity. Please disregard my thoughts below in that case. You are thinking of getting a Skyline as a second car, right? Because replacing the Carnival with a Skyline sounds like a bad idea to me. If I was a non-car-enthusiastic wife I very much wouldn't want to end up stranded in the school drop-off zone because the engine of my husband's 20+ year old car flooded and now I'm blocking all the other parents and the school bus. Depending on how many kids you have, people have run their 2-doors with child seats in the back and apparently it did bring much joy to the little ones. Arguments for the wife: 1) It brings you joy. 2) The wife is not going to get stranded in it because the Carnival is the reliable daily 3) It is not going to take away money from the family because when it breaks it will sit on the side until money is saved up for it. Kids and family come first. 4) When it breaks it is something practical and hands-on for the kids to be involved in. 5) Factor in a bunch of spa/manicure/pedicure vouchers to balance out the days you spend working on it. Disclaimer: I don't own a Carnival and I don't have kids. Good luck!

Man, I feel your pain. The fact that it is such a small thing just makes it worse. If you are still after it on 21/02 I'd be able to go past there and ask on the day.

Maybe to keep it from vibrating. One of my mirror glasses seems to loosen over time and it wobbles around at anything over 30km/h. It's somewhat annoying. It can be pushed back in and it's fine for a while but with the state of the roads here it doesn't help for long. I can imagine someone sticking on some blue tack to stop it from doing that. For what it's worth it's on the left side as well. I'm not an adhesives expert but I would be somewhat surprised if that blob of blue tack is responsible for keeping the glass from falling out.

If I may ask, with what and how are you taking your photos? They look great! Super crisp and the lighting and details are on point.

Bumping this because it is national you-might-be-running-aircon-through-disgusting-filters awareness day. Did this the other day in my Series 2 Stagea. I was sufficiently disgusted. I presume the filters were changed some time in Japan going by the stickers in the glovebox, but I don't think they have seen any attention since. It's super easy to swap so really no excuse there. The Ryco RCA318P filters that James mentioned seem fine. My lesson learned: try out the fan before screwing everything back in. I had old leaves and shit in the compartment when I took out the old filters. Brushed it it out but didn't vacuum. Put it back together with the new filters, turned on the fan and was blessed with a generous sprinkling of dusty debris. I presume vacuuming may have avoided it. Maybe. This guide has great photos and steps to follow: https://www.driveanotherday.com/stagea-cabin-filter/ Archive link for future generations: https://web.archive.org/web/20220105205535/https://www.driveanotherday.com/stagea-cabin-filter/ Attached is a comparison of the old and new filters. Though photos don't quite do it justice. There is this human instinct to get closer and smell things that look wrong. These looked bad enough that I didn't.