Rezz

What do you guys think? I've seen this conversion at some shows here, and I think just from weight distribution alone it would be a good idea. Right now I've just just got a stock shitter R32 4-door Type M... 100,000k's, couple of dings here and there, but this ones gonna be my long-term ride... hello engine swap. Would anybody contemplate removing an RB from a Skyline?

Are you suuuuure? ...they kick aaaaaa-aaaaass!

I just put that Border GT-R in my sig...

Oh, and one more thing... It makes no difference if your GTS/GTS-X does, or doesn`t have a front/rear spoiler. Those front/rear spoilers were an option on BOTH cars, and as I said before, it`s also likely that the spoilers weren`t factory fitted, but done later by the owner(s). Kaneko-san mentioned that he remembered when these cars were on the new car market (!) that the dealers often threw the spoilers on as a "free-bee"...

Ok, bear with me. The important thing to remember here is: R31's ARE OLD CARS. My conversation with the local R31 expert here in Kobe was 30 minutes of explaining WHY I needed such indepth info, then 10-15 minutes of fact finding. Well, the obvious electric front seat in the GTS-X you all know. Here's the stuff you might not know about the '86 R31... *The GTS came with an AM/FM radio ONLY. *The GTS-X came with an AM/FM radio AND Casette. *The GTS-X had a CD Player as an option. CD player = GTS-X. *The GTS-X had a Sunroof option. Sunroof = GTS-X. *The GTS-X had Cruise Control as an option. Cruise Control = GTS-X. Here`s the big one: ***The GTS-X has a Spit-Fold Rear Seat as standard! The GTS doesn`t!!! The GTS has just a plain bench seat with no options. *The GTS-X came standard with 15inch alloy wheels. *The GTS weighs 1320kg 5MT, and 1340kg AT. *The GTS-X weighs 1350kg 5MT, and 1370kg AT. Now, the only sure-bet that you`ve got a GTS-X is probably the split-fold rear seat (unless you want to weigh your car). As I said at the beginning, (and what dear Kaneko-san repeated 3 times) is that these cars are old, theres a very good chance that someone along the line has swapped parts to make a GTS a GTS-X to sell for a higher price, or the only replacement parts available were of the different model but close enough etc, etc... So from me, good luck R31 crew, I hope you can identify GTS/GTS-X from 500m now!!! /Rezz.

Check it out... All the most popular makes/tuners represented.

That race car is Attkd's R34... oddly not as fast as their R32. Back on topic though, does this mean that what goes on in Japan (styling wise) is not considered cool by the majority of people anymore?

Alright lads, just hear me out ok? I'm from Perth. I was born there. But, I've been (and will continue to) living in Japan for the last 3 1/2 years. My wife is Japanese, and outside my apartment I see Skyline, after Supra, after Integra, after RX-8, after R35 2-door ALL with GT-wings, stickers, loud "can" exhausts, and flashing blue and red lights inside. Now, how does that compare with "Rice"? No kidding, before I came to Japan, I'm sure that phrase hadn't even been invented. The first I'd heard of it was in this forum! So, does that mean everybody back home hates modifying the exterior of their cars now? Like in order not to look like "Rice"?

Thanks Leon, but my prob is getting the recorded bit from the camera (or PS2) to the PC...

Sweet... thanks GFX. I'll sort some hosting a get the file up and let you know!

I not even at that stage. What about actually getting the video off the camera, and onto the computer? Or can I just plug the Video out from the TV straight in to the computer for a "live" feed and cancell out the camera altogether?

...aaah, any hints on how to get movies up? I think a 30 sec clip is about 2-3 meg, so the full length 1 lap movie would be at least 9 meg. I got 12Meg/sec ADSL so it`s no prob to dowload big files (well, any size really!). Thanks in advance for any advice.

I watched it a few times, but I cant keep up with the language. But thanks for the background info... I play the arcade game from time to time, though.

Resurrecting this thread... Guys, I`ve been drifting in GT3 since 2nd(? can`t remember exactly) April 2001. Thats when the game was released here in Japan. Anyways, after meticulously testing EVERY RWD car (even the Merc 600SL!) I`ve found that: The Nissan 180SX is the best drift car. The SR20 powered Silvia`s are also good, but the S15 is a little too top endy in it`s power delivery, so to keep it sliding at the limit is more difficult than the others. Why the 180? Well, the SR in that model (in the game) has the bulk of it`s torque around 3-4000rpm, you need this to be able to tap the accel and get instant wheelspin at lower speeds, and to be able to "steer" the car with the throttle. Also, on it`s lowest ride height at the front, the 180 has excellent stance making the front end really stable... this is apparent in the low to mid-speed corners. The settings: SUSPENSION Spring Rate: (F) 5.2 ®16.2 Ride Height: (F) 89mm ® 89mm Damper Bump: (F) 2 ® 8 Damper Rebound: (F) 2 ® 8 Camber: (F) 10.0 ® 2.0 Toe: (F) 2.0 ® -2.0 Stabilizer: (F) Level 1 ® Level 7 BRAKES Brake Balance: (F) 20 ® 15 GEARING L.S.D. Initial Torque: ® 30 LSD Accel: ® 40 LSD Brake: ® 30 GEARBOX 1st: 3.012 2nd: 2.302 3rd: 1.820 4th: 1.501 5th: 1.245 6th: 0.874 Final: 4.083 ASM and TCS: Obviously set to 0. *edit* IMPORTANT! Super Soft slicks on the front, with normal tyres on the Rear. Also, fully tune the engine, 500+ps is perfect power, no too much for the slow stuff, and not too little for the high-speed corners like at Apricot Hill. Explanation: Honestly, keep the Camber set to 10 degrees on the front. This "lowers" the car even more, and it increases the overall track width, giving more stable (and higher speed) drift ability. The gears ARE THE MOST IMPORTANT!!! That box is set. You won`t need 6th, and the other gears are set so close that it provides power wheelspin at any time (just select the right gear for the trackspeed). You`ll find that you "map out" the gear changes for each track after a while. That means, you`ll be setting up the car coming in to the corner with your finger hovering over the downshift button, waiting for just the right moment to shift/light the tires up. MY 10 SECOND BRAG: I have drifted Grand Valley in a 180 sliding absolutely EVERY corner (both hairpins aswell) and... USING THE HANDBRAKE TO START THE DRIFT INTO THE FIRST CORNER OFF THE MAIN STRAIGHT (clockwise) FROM 10 CAR LENGTHS BACK, FIRST, SLIDING TO THE LEFT (opposite angle) THEN FLICKING IT BACK TO THE RIGHT TO TAKE THE CORNER PERFECTLY. (sorry about the caps!) The handbrake is the key, if you want to start your drift waaaaay back from the corner. Get up enough speed, get the position right, then mash that handbrake and slide until you enter the corner (rear wheels locked of course) then hammer the accel to take the corner. I tried to teach my friend to do this, but he didn`t have the patience. As soon as I can figure out how to post up movie clips from a camcorder, I`ll post the Grand Valley clip, and some others too if people are interested. You probably think by now that I`m some kind of virtualdrift psycho, but all this came about when I was living in the countryside in Japan, with no decent people to hang with for about 6 months.

Shiroi = White Suisei = a) an aquatic plant, B) the force of water, c) Mercury, d) a comet, (sometimes used to descibe becoming famous overnight) Take your pick, but my guess is Hakujin doesn`t buy your asiatic namesake...

Sorry Mi4R32GTR, you got me on that last sentence. You said "but I allready got what I came from so it won't be to back going home." You mean you bought a GTR but you won't be taking it home? Massive props to ya though for getting a GTR after only 3 months!

Best of all worlds eh Demon Dave? I lived in Mie-ken a couple of years back, and not a day went by where I thought about re-locating there for good... because of the superior car situation. ...and proximity to Suzuka!!!

He didn't say *only* the GTS-X's have the auto spoiler... but at that stage I knew the guy hadn't turned his brain on to talk to me.

Badman: Hope you can make it after you graduate!

Hey Stang: Thats one thing I`ve been meaning to check out. How much do people pay for Option/Option2 in Oz? I can pick em up for 500yen (A$6.17) a piece, theyre heavy bastards, so freight is gonna be a factor, but I think I could get out of it for $15-20(??) a copy...

Hey Badman: Itsu Nihon ni ikitai? Nihon de sumu wa basho ga kimatta? Osaka to Kobe o sugoi osusumeru! Sore wa boku no ikken dake... demo zettai Nihon wa dokodemo ii yo! I think most experince from cars comes from the "hands on" approach, just get out there and do it... and cry about your financial position later!

Yeah, damn that tiny specs page! I just tried to buzz SuperAutobacs, and as you can imagine, just getting through to someone in the service dept (my Japanese is "adequate"...) was hard enough. The guy basically said *vaguely* "aaah, theres different materials used in the cabin... the GTS-X has a automatic front spoiler... why don`t you bring the car to us?" I left it at that. I`ll get my wife (shes Jap) to call Nissan. I`m actually going down to SuperAutobacs this weekend for their annual car show, I`ll definately be able to finalize this once and for all then.

Can I add to the car owning side of things, that having a parking space in Japan is rediculously expensive too. Demon Dave (obviously living in a "real" house, as opposed to an apartment) doesn't have to pay for parking, if I'm not mistaken. I have to pay 12,000yen/month JUST FOR A PARKING SPACE in my building! Ok, it's fully secure, and it's one of those underground-to-surface elevator jobs, but that money would go a looooong way for modifications if you have the car for a year...

I been here for 3 1/2 years. Got married to a lovely Japanese lass last year, and have been teaching English the whole time. But it's not all cool though (well 0.0001% not cool!) The English Teaching market is starting to make a swing in favour of South Korea. The earning potential in S.K. seems to be better than Japan nowadays mainly because of the lower cost of living. I would agree with Demon Dave though, setting up your own business is THE way to go for the more experienced, married, Japanese speaking foreigners, but for somebody just off the plane (landing in Kansai), get a local mini-zine called Kansai Fleemarket... instant jobs. GEOS only hire from overseas, but NOVA, ECC, AEON, Berlitz etc will take you on with any Uni degree. This place (Osaka, Kobe) blew me away when I first came here, seeing real-life street DRIFTING in Nanko, Osaka... finally driving on the Wangan Route... going to C-West in Nishinomiya... finally seeing a JGTC race at SUZKA CIRCUIT... car lovers dream come true really. Are there any JAPANESE (off chance) members on this board?

Heh, I almost went for a JZX90 MarkII, but Ikeya Formula ARE NOT going to make their sequencial shifter for them... so I went for the HCR32.