GoldZilla

Oh yeah, see if you can get some more pics on a concreted area, it should give you (and us) a better idea of the ride height balance, although in my opinion (so far), it looks to be spot on! That's pretty much exactly how I'd lower my car - just so the guards perfectly outline the curcumference of the wheels and tyres, if you get what I mean.

Looks great Chris. I agree with everyone else, the Japan pics didn't do it justice at all... I even like the way the wheels look on it, even though I'm not a fan of Chromies on a Jap car (unless they're on a VIP-style car like a Lexus LS400/Toyota Celsior). At least they're still kinda a "racing" style wheel. I'll volunteer for that Alex. But only if I use your car, not mine... Bring on a wet track or skidpan!

Went to the BP/SMS site - why the hell do they need so many details to send you a simple SMS? In my opinion, I would rather they just ask for a first name, suburb, and your mobile number. All the rest is a bit pointless. I hope I don't get spammed by them...

SK, can you shine any light on this question, by any chance? Oh, and as far as the cluster goes, JustJap make a 3-gauge DIN fitting so you can install three 2" gauges of your choice. I'll most likely do this, with a boost gauge, and oil temp and pressure gauges. I'll also probably still get Defi units, as they make them in this size. Thanks in advance once again. Nick T.

Congrats Cy, hope you and your new wife had an enjoyable day. Nice shots, Emanuel

I rarely let my car fall below a quarter tank, I'd rather fill it up then than run the risk of either not having fuel available to me in an unfamiliar area, or picking up dirt off the bottom of the tank and clogging the fuel filters prematurely... It might be a bit pre-emptive and overcautious, but I've had the habit of doing that for so long, and it is a justifiable reason to keep it above a quarter. The most I've ever filled my car up with is about 55 litres. Nick T.

Asking a cop would probably prove to be the most unlikely, most unreliable way to figure out its legality. The problem with that is that it'll be their interpretation of the rules (assuming they know them properly, and not all of them will) - so it might even depend on the mood that the particular cop is in on the day! But regardless, here's hoping and best of luck getting a straight answer. Who knows, it might get us closer to an answer. Nick T.

Spotted: Terminal @ the National Museum in Canberra on Friday night, roughly 9.45pm. Was good to meet you and catch up!

Terminal, I've just PM'd you my mobile number. Leaving home @ 2pm to head down, so I'll probably be there at 5ish. Busy with family tonight, but keen to meet up tomorrow night. Cheers, Nick T.

So is anyone other than Terminal (assuming you're still in, of course) coming to the Museum on Friday night? I don't wanna be the only Stagea there.

I thought I'd replied too. I'm in Sydney.

I've updated the first post with some new and/or revised info. As you will see, it refers mostly to series 1 RS Four V.

I've just had a hard-drive fail too, and I've lost heaps of pics (including shots I'm sure I had of your car), a lot of music, and a whole bunch of other stuff too... 160Gb of files and info just gone, I know how you feel right now! Nick T.

Rang JustJap, and they don't have any Stagea clusters (and can't remember ever having one), and they don't know if the GT-R one would be the same because they've never been able to compare them...

Good to see there are a fair few of us here in NSW, but finding a location common to all of us is going to be a bit of a challenge because most of you live outside Sydney metro, and worse still is that some are North, some probably South, and some are further out West. We'll have to figure out something maybe early in the new year. As far as Canberra is concerned, I doubt I'll be there long enough for an organised cruise, but I will try to come and meet you guys at the National Museum. I'll be staying either in Kaleen or Wanniassa, as I have relo's in both of those suburbs. EDIT: I'll be staying in Kaleen...

Just wanted to get an idea of who lives in Sydney, or for that matter Newcastle, the Central Coast or Wollongong. If we can get an idea of numbers, then maybe we can organise a meet-up before Christmas or in the new year. Oh, and I'm coming to Canberra this Thursday night, and heading home mid-morning on Saturday. Any Canberrans wanna meet up, maybe Friday arvo or night? Cheers, Nick T.

I also think this is what you should do. My friend had a problem with his dog always barking when he left the house to go out or to work or whatever, the dog would constantly bark until he returned home. Someone wrote an anonymous letter to him and stated that "other residents" were also concerned about the noise. He wrote a letter back, made copies and did a letter drop to all the houses in his street and the one behind him.

Spotted Ruk while he was spotting me (in his rear view mirrors) in and around the Tongabbie/Girraween area. Are you a local to this area, or just passing through? Nice car, dude! Cheers, Nick T.

When are you picking it up, illusiVe? Seen that car a few times when I've driven past JAC, but never bothered to stop and have a look because of the colour. I like to stand out, but not that much! Cheers and congrats, might see you around some time. Nick T.

All the majors have 98RON brews now... Shell Optimax BP Ultimate Gold Caltex Vortex 98 (the Vortex 95 is still around too) Mobil Synergy 8000 (I think the 95Ron one is Synergy 5000, not too sure). BP Ultimate has been unavailable for about 3 weeks now, as Links said. I've heardand read a few different reasons: there were problems at the refinery; there was a minor accident at the refinery; they are creating a new mixture and have in the mean time run out of the old stuff we all use now; they're not willing to sell it because petrol prices have dropped about 10-15cents - due to lower oil prices - in the past few weeks and they want to keep their profits high (they're absolute bastards if this is the real reason)... Who knows? My Stagea is being run on anything at the moment, as long as it is a 98RON fuel. Currently has a tank of the 98 Caltex Vortex, which so far is nothing special. Nick T.

Sorry for the delay Noske, the guy's name is Todd, and his business is "The Dent Magician." He's based in Sydney, but you can still give him a call and see if he may be able to recommend someone - unless of course you do end up coming to Sydney as you mentioned... So the details are: Todd - "The Dent Magician" Mobile: 0432-323-204 Cheers, Nick T.

I'm with him! I suck at "teh model making" so I won't even bother putting my hand up, as much as I want one! I'd just ruin it and then be p!ssed off at myself for rushing it. However, if anyone should happen to find a 1:18 scale die-cast Stagea, I'll DEFINITELY be in!

Thanks SK, I'll do that. I didn't take real notice while we were working on the car, but there's no obvious evidence of cut hoses, etc. I might have to take another look and see what I find. I'll have a look at the DFA/IEBC thread too and make sure everything is as it should be, and maybe do some testing by bypassing the solenoid as you suggested, then change it back and compare. Did anyone notice the differing numbers on the compressor housings? My old one has "45V4" on it, and the replacement has "45V3" cast into it. Also, when I found the bits of compressor wheel, they didn't look anything like steel to me! Maybe it's an R34/Series II Neo turbo, who knows? Looked kinda like plastic bits, and the parts were very light for their size, broken or not. Did they have ceramic turbines too? Can't be bothered doing a search at this hour. I will get the turbo rebuilt and hi-flowed (and actuator checked), as soon as the budget allows. I might try start saving to get it done ASAP, just in case I start to have more problems with the replacement, as it's a high-kilometre unit. Then of course all of the support systems (fuel pump, injectors, FMIC, computer, etc.) will need upgrading too. which may take a while. I was gonna start putting money away towards the stereo first (essential!), and then after that suspension upgrade and some nice wheels, we'll see how it all goes. Might need to find myself another (more enjoyable) job with better pay, or start a small biz of my own, or something - I dunno... In the mean time, does anyone know where I can source the 3-gauge DIN-sized cluster like in the series II Stageas (and similar to GT-Rs)? I might ring Just Jap anyway, but if anyone spots one, please let me know. I would have liked the Defi DIN cluster, but it doesn't include a boost gauge (despite the fact it's big dollars). Instead it has one pressure and two temp gauges in it. These are the Defi clusters:

Re: the cops - I took a wrong turn one night when leaving a friend's house one night (apart from getting to his house, I don't know the area very well as I rarely travel through there), and cops were doing RBT near his house. They were set up under a bridge due to light rain, and as anyone knows, going under bridges/overpasses/through tunnels makes your car sound a whole lot louder... Anyway, I'd only had the car about a week, and I had to go past these cops due to the wrong turn I'd taken, and then I realised which way I was heading, and had to do a u-turn to go back the way I'd come. My car is LOUD, and I panicked as I drove past them the first time, slowing right down (just in case they decided to call me in to RBT me), and feathered the throttle so it would make less noise. Huh, they didn't even take a second glance. I went and did my u-turn to go back towards familiar roads, drove past them again, and... NOTHING! Gotta love a street-sleeper!

Excellent, thanks heaps for that VRFOUR, I'll use this to update the front page in the next few days! Nick T.