foibles

Damaged my V36 coupe - had a heavy bag fall onto the boot - silver chrome trim (housing the camera) is broken, and it is debatable whether the bootlid itself can be repaired (largely depends upon parts). Am looking at options for importing either from USA (G37) or Japan, but would prefer local or - dare I say it - Nissan / Infiniti (although they give you the routine around 'what's the VIN? Is it an import?' - as if selling parts for a grey import could somehow be anything but good for business. Does anyone know any V36 (coupe) wreckers who may have such parts in stock?

I'm a bit surprised by the responses (and the data) I'm reading in this thread.....for no apparent reason I decided to check the fuel consumption on my v36 SP coupe yesterday...and can advise; A. So far I've clocked 621 kms of country highway driving, and fuel gauge still shows almost a quarter full B. car is a stock 2008 sp model coupe, 7spd auto, standard tyre size C. Car was driven out of Melbourne CBD, up to shepparton, echuca, etc and back into cbd D. Weather was mild to hot...car parked in 30 plus degrees.....no idea if evaporation plays any small part in economy figures E. driven at 110kmh the majority of the trip F. I'll have the standard size fuel tank, whatever that is....70litres or so? G. Fuel used was bp 98 Ron. Some observations; 1. I note a lot of previous posters suggesting not great economy from their v36. Of the 9 cars I own, none would get this mileage (I appreciate the difference between mileage and range, will return to this). Not even the bmw 120i or my reasonably economical navara turbo diesel. 2. The fuel gauge is very accurate across the journey. Most, nearly all cars I've driven, as you get closer to empty, the rate of decline in the fuel gauge accelerates. By way of example, on a recent trip in the bmw, it said 48klms to empty. Within 2 klms of driving, it was at 34klms. Within another 2klms it was at 11klms. I babied the car into a servo less than another klm down the road, with the gauge saying empty. So on this basis, my v36 made 201klms for the first quarter according to the gauge, 203klms for the second quarter, 200klms for the third quarter, and shortly after I arrived home. At the rate of decline, which seemed almost constant throughout, I would have anticipated at least 750klms on the one tank. Which seems to be strangely contradictory to the experiences of others. Now that I'm back in the city, I know the consumption rate will increase, but I'm still confident that I will get 700klms plus from this single tank. I'm surprised by those who think they get poor consumption......most people are disappointed by this no matter what car they drive. Reading the suggestion of a grange 300kw being comparable.....not at all. My hsv ve senator, was about 350kw at flywheel, not really much quicker than the v36, and smashed its way through a larger fuel tank. Much worse fuel economy. I'm actually pleasantly surprised by the v36 in terms of consumption.

bump - not giving in to nightcrawlers $25K offer, but am certainly negotiable. I can't even remember what I was asking for it...$28990? Now includes rego...and hardly ever gets driven. Havent seen a cheaper 370 GT SP model for sale anywhere in Aus......am I missing something here?

What the? I've had a 7spd 370GT SP model for sale for months...no sunroof....but has Rays 19's, Cusco suspension, etc - for $28900 for months.....and I can't even get a call? Well done man....must be a NSW thing?!?! Time to bump mine!

good price sean - surprised if this doesn't move quick. What you moving on to?

I think wogboy is bang on the money. I was going to say the same, and surprised nobody else has mentioned it. Each and every one of the 4 sp's my mates and I have brought out had 19" wheels. So either; 1. It's not an sp model.....sorry 2. It's an sp with de-specced wheels.....sorry 3. I'm misinformed....in which case, I'm sorry

Have a few turbo diesels...pajero, navara and my old man may part with his prado. Drop me a pm....

For sale is my newly imported Porsche 928 S4. this car has more history than rome....I have annual service records dating back over 15 years....all from UK based Porsche specialists GT One. Totalling something like $40K AUD. This car has a done a gentle 105K miles (average of 6000 klms a year) - verified by the comprehensive service history. Owners manual and service manual are included. It's a navy blue colour, with matching red and black leather seats. I bought this car before I had really done much research, I was simply impressed by its pedigree; * Intended by Porsche to replace the aging 911 (but it simply never took off) * Significantly more expensive to buy at the time than the Ferrari 328GTS (and now one quarter of the price - but almost as rare) * A 0-100kmh time that was world-leading...it even broke some sort of land speed record (probably for production cars) on Utah Salt Lake Flats The performance is not back-breaking by today's standards, but with continually evidenced 0-100 time of mid 5's, it's every bit as quick as the HSV VE R8. These cars pretty much came standard with things such as elec sunroof, cruise, electric seats, etc - the only mods to this being the rear spoiler, the GT Cup wheels and Bluetooth CD player. Tyres are near new. I am willing to sell with compliance included in whichever state the buyer lives, but transport and RWC costs must be borne by the buyer. I can provide RWC if buyer is in Vic or Tas, but not elsewhere. If you do your research you will see that these are a fairly rare car, and are now starting to hold their value. I'd argue that they may quite likely head north - because there is too much history behind the 928 for it to become junk yard trash, especially the S4. You will also see that this car is screaming bargain - only one other in Aus under $24K, and that has done a quarter of a million klms, and needs some work. Why am I selling mine? OK, to be up front about it....I wanted a car that was absolutely completely 100%. On inspection, this car is not it. It certainly is not in bad nick, and for it age it is great, but things like imperfect seat bolsters, slight paint fade etc annoy me. I just don't have time for projects (not ones based on cars). So once I sell, I will be back to the UK to spend much bigger dollars to find one that is completely sorted. I know this sounds like a cop out, but doing up cars is not my bit....I would rather buy them that way. This is an ideal car for someone who covets driving such a wonderful car, and the Porsche marque in general. Who has the time and the patience to spend doing up a car that - in all likelihood - will reward them in 3 years with a price around what they have invested - rather than something that will wildly depreciate. This is not a 'needs TLC car' - far from it. But - like any car its age (think nice R32 GTR) there is always something to be found. I may consider swaps....would need to be for a car valued around the $16K mark, prefer small auto. But outright sale is preferred. Video file also available . cheers, foibles Oh - car located in Vic near CbD

If only you weren't so far away.....

I see your one dollar.....and lower you 30 cents. My dream price in this reverse auction is 70 cents. I also dream it has 10 keys of nose candy in the rear wheel arches....make that happen too?

What is grade ra? Is that accident repaired?

500 for freight seems a bit rich......!

price drop to 23999

I am guessing that that would be VIN 6U9000BNR32000680 And forgive me for saying....but in storage since 2006? You are clearly the second most lunatic person in Australia. Second to me...who imports the Abflug twin turbo widebody aerotop Supra in 2002....forgets to get it complied under the old scheme....cant get it complied under the new scheme.....so leaves it sitting in a paddock. I presume it is still there.... Back to your car....looks awesome, very neat straight and clean. Gotta love the gamechanger that was the R32 zilla. Best of luck with sale - should move fast.

you have two options; 1. personal import...you are ineligible as you must have owned for 12 months 2. RAWS / SEVS...which means you must contact a compliance agent here in Aus and have them apply to import and 'comply' the car for you (comply means to bring 'up' to Australian Standards) Option 2 will cost you....aside from the freight and handling which you refer to....an additional $2500 or so in engineering costs. R33 GTR normally fetch around 10K GBP for the year (95 judging by steering wheel?), spec and mileage of yours. That's about $17K AUD. To bring it over will set you back another $7K AUD or so by the time it is on our roads - you'd be better off selling that one there, and buying another here. Little issues like the odometer and calibration in MPH and not KMH can be nuisances...trust me! My advice - sell her up - get on a plane, and go shopping for one when you get here. Most of ours DONT have rust...lol! Cheers, foibles

cheers chris - out of interest - does the same apply for the convertible (OK, I appreciate you can take the roof off.....sometimes)?

yes, it may sound silly (it probably does) - but; 1. presumably as a seller it is my prerogative 2. as mentioned in the ad, I did have a guy interested in the wheels. he was offering to swap his stock wheels with me, but when i saw them, they had awful gutter rash (I suspect one of them may have been damaged), and were completely unusable from my perspective 3. as mentioned in the ad, the car has since been registered. the on roads cost me around $2K. 4. In trying to sell, I am aware I dont just have to make sure mine is competitive against other cars locally, but also those who might want to import themselves. As it is now far more expensive (Yen at 86, I bought mine at 104), I figure I would rather sit back, enjoy my car, and wait till I get the price I want. Appreciate it is a little unconventional, but hope my reasons seem sensible enough. Let me know if I am breaching policy, and I will amend accordingly. Will get photos with rego (and better photos!) this week. I still think these are cracking cars for the money!

Hi Guys - I was going to be a complete smart ar*e and write 'look out for a naked hot blonde chick in the passenger seat....probably wont be there....but look out for it nonetheless'...... ....and then realised that someone was adding value with their commentary. So..... For the terminally imbecilic amongst us (that would be me) - can someone explain how the sunroof model would be worse than the non-sunroof model? Having no appreciation of this....does this mean that the roof lining is actually lower, due to the bulk of the sunroof mechanism? Is it much of a difference between the two? You'd think the japanese would orient themselves (no pun) towards export markets a little more - between the US (a major Infiniti importer), the UK, Aus, NZ and everywhere else where these may be sold, you'd think that they may appreciate that the rest of the world is not 5'4"!

I would try to negotiate down to $240K AUD, that would be a massive saving. With the $30K you'd save, you could even buy a second one - lol. I notice you did not have a R34 GT base spec....so why go base spec V36? Buy mine, I will take about $235K off what you are expecting to pay....

bump - price now $34990 including 12 months rego, and the Rays wheels (offer fell through as swap set were crap). You probably couldn't get a 4.5A 370SP with mods like these at this price even if you imported from japan - which would take you about 10 weeks and involve a lot more risk. A lot of car for the money!

curious - if it had an auction grade interior, it presumably had an auction grade for the car itself (guessing it was a 3.5?) Does that mean that the auction house and its rating system failed to pick up and declare the fact that it had had the frontal damage? If so, this is a handy pointer to anyone thinking that even buying from the auction houses is a universal assurance of no accident damage, and that a car will pass compliance. However, this is speculation on my part for the minute.....

Hi All, I've read a lot of conjecture on this whilst thread digging, but cannot see anything definitive. Does anyone know (with certainty) of any RAWS who have plates for G37 convertible? Better yet, any idea on what they charge?

Hi Colin, Interesting feedback. I really know nothing of ICE (etc) - can you advise which models have the BOSE - is it only SP? Also, would you recommend fitting an aftermarket unit instead? If so - what sort and cost are we talking about?

HI Greg, Interesting....I hadn't realised that the base model (GT) was that cheap at auction. However, drawing on my own experience with the V35, the anniversary model (full leather) preserves better resale value than the premium model (half leather) which does again over the base model (all other things being equal). If I were wanting such a car, I'd probably be wanting the one with both the leather (for a car of this price) and the bigger brakes (as most Skyline owners don't own them for church-bound sunday driving) - which unfortunately means the SP model. As for exchange rate...this is a big risk for punters...who are likely to get stung. Whilst the rate we see on TV (interchange / cross rate) is just over 86, the actual rate you get when you go and pay via TT over the counter (or over internet banking) is closer to 81/82 - as just verified on CBA and Westpac websites. Throw in fees as well. And for anyone who has had the joy of having to source replacement tyres for the 19" wheels for the SP or the S models (is it S with the bigger wheels?) - they could probably write a whole thread just about that experience alone! So when I put 1.35M Yen FOB into a calculation as at today's interest rates, I get $30,040 - or $27250 before rego / RWC / insurance. Given that you could haggle a local seller well below that price now - and see the car in the flesh - and pick it up straight away - not wait 8 weeks and hope something does not go wrong, I'm definitely of the view that the local option is a much better one...at least for now.

Greg, I'd seriously doubt anyone is going to get remotely close to getting a V36 370 coupe on the road plus incidentals like insurance for under $30K....? Maybe a base model grade 3.5 where the last 5 owners staged pit bull fights in the cabin.....otherwise..... I appreciate not everyone is into the top of the line SP model, but here is what I advised a mate the other day, who wanted to contact an importer; Assumption 1 - Grade 4.5 370GT SP coupe, max 60K klms Assumption 2 - FOB price of 1.7M Yen FOB Assumption 3 - Buy rate over the counter with CBA or NAB of 81.5 Yen, plus fees (taken from website right now) Purchase price AUD conversion $ 20,928.90 Duty At 5% of purchase cost $ 1,046.44 Freight port charges, quarantine, steam clean, cartage $ 3,000.00 GST 10% of purchase, GST & freight cost $ 2,497.53 Compliance including new tyres & GST $ 2,900.00 Broker fee market rate $ 1,100.00 RWC costs Incidentals, temp rego, towing costs, etc $ 800.00 rego and RWC $ 1,900.00 insurance 30+ rating 1 RACV $ 900.00 TOTAL $ 35,072.87 now - I might get flamed for this - but I felt these were reasonable costs - and if nothing else, assumptions that should be tested. so - assuming someone wants a Grade 4.5 370GT SP - I reckon to import would cost around the $35K on road - and frankly there are quite a few here already for that price. I dont see many people rushing to Japan to source one now that the AUD has fallen almost 20% against the yen in 3 months. I reckon what is here now is pretty much all we'll see for a while - so whilst the market for 350GT is FLOODED, I think the market for 370GT may remain a bit more robust?