Rezz

What happens when Japanese logic is thrown out the window, an American stylist is called in, and a German tuning company is asked to 'make things right again'? ... answer... <span style='font-size:14pt;line-height:100%'>Mitsubishi Debonair V 3000 Royal AMG </span> - FF NEW CLASSIC - <span style='font-size:8pt;line-height:100%'>(Mitsubishi advertising slogan)</span> The Mitsubishi Debonair AMG debuted in 1986 amongst huge Japanese 'bubble economy' hype and equally huge expectations as far as the 'FF NEW CLASSIC' advertising slogan was concerned. The Debonair originally appeared way back in 1964 designed by none other than American H.S. Bretzner - complete with muscle car looks - and was such a success as Mitsubishi's flagship model (yes thats right... forget about the Galant) was produced *basically unchanged* for 22 years!!! The 1964 Debonair was of course RWD, but New for 1986(!) the Debonair went front wheel drive... To add to the Debonair's prowess, AMG (Germany) was called in to give the flagship Mitsubishi 'a touch of Mercedes Benz' and gave the Debonair the once over... well... actually AMG just supplied a rudimentary body kit and alloy wheels... but hey! at least Mr Takada can show off the AMG badge to low-ranking V3000 owners! The 3.0 twincam V6 went untouched... maybe for the better because a 1620kg FWD with 200+ hp might not have been a good idea. <span style='font-size:8pt;line-height:100%'>The Japanese caption to the picture reads: "It is a Debonair AMG doing a gay stunt in a specially prepared vehicle that appears in the TV show 'Gorilla'". </span> In comments by AMG on the design: "The horizontal line of the body was emphasized, and we achieved a form that looked simple and dynamic..." ... well that was unexpected... I think what AMG were doing was more or less letting Mitsubishi capitalize on 'brand mystique' by agreeing to remodel some of their cars, as AMG were (and still are) mainly affiliated with Mercedes Benz. How much money changed hands in this little endevour? Who knows, but it gives us a little more insight into the workings of the 'bubble economy' mind-set that gripped Japan during the 1980's. - The market reaction - Dispite joining with AMG, needless to say the Debonair AMG was a flop. In fact, after 1989 the Mitsubishi/AMG partnership faded... and successive Debonair's never wore the AMG badge again. The curious large sedan/FF/V6 combination was moderately well recieved with class leading rear leg and headroom, and in the lesser models at least, the ever so soft ride and fluffy pillow like handling made sure that the only hard driving the Debonair saw was on crazy 1980's Police dramas. The 4,516,000 yen (A$54,223) asking price was... not... so... tempting, either. The 6G72 3.0L DOHC engine put out 200hp and 27.0kg/m at 6000rpm, which had a bit of trouble propelling the 1620kg body around, but nevertheless, the engine was good enough to make it into the next generation Debonair in 1992... albeit with less power! Being the flagship model for Mitsubishi, the interior boasted all manner of gadgets with 'electric everything' being the order of the day. The leather seats also deserve mention (not exclusive to the AMG version) as they were possibly the most thickly padded 'seats' that have ever made it into a 'car'. The Debonair AMG is yet another Japanese automotive rarity, and the likelyhood of seeing one in th metal is very slim indeed. Oldschool (1964 - 1986) Debonair owners will tell you that the Debonair died with the S12AG (1986 onwards) as all the spirit of the American 'to hell with aerodynamics' styling was carried on, but the FF drivetrain was something that was associated with small hatchbacks... not top-of-the-line flagship models. Oh well, if you see one, buy one! ... maybe not. Name: Mitsubishi Debonair V 3000 Royal AMG Chassis: S12AG Engine: 6G72 Capacity: 2972cc Power: 149kw Torque: 27.0kg/m Weight: 1620kg Transmission: 4AT Drive: Front wheels Brakes: Ventilated disks Suspension: Front MacPherson struts, rear 3 link torsion axel

You betcha! ... are you implying Perth is boring??? Well we'll have to make it more exciting then won't we Yeah come along! Maybe when our cars land it might be better for a cruise? Trent and myself will want to 'christen' our cars in style with a big convoy of Skylines down on the South Perth foreshore... eeerr... for sure...

Hahaha... like this?

Hey? 7am is ok? ... I think my Pa volunteered to come out anyways... but that welcome back banner sounds cool hahaha :lol:

Hahaha... I've still got the photos from that outing mate. @ tigeryas: I'm sure I can help you out with some Japanese cussing etc... @ Gts_evilution: I tried to drift *myself* only once, and that was in a friends R32 here in Kobe... as for teaching drifting, maybe you could teach me! @ miss_petepie: How does 7am on the 22nd Sept at Perth International sound? :lol:

I'm *finally* leaving Japan after 5 long years and will come back to Perth... don't say it! I know Japan is really cool etc, etc, etc, but when you gotta go, you gotta go (no I'm not running from the J-cops! :lol: ) I remember meeting Nizmo and others at Little creatures about 1.5 years ago, so I'd really like to meet up with the SAUWA guys again. I've actually sold the wine red R32 to Trent at TKO (he just happens to be my little bruvvah ) so the R32 will become a demo car for TKO! I on the other hand had to make do with an S13 Silvia... I know, I know, talk about 'down-grading'! But anyway, I've got some plans for the S13. Here are some pics of the R32, it's almost ready to get shipped out of Japan: And the Silvia My wife is coming too (in December) so I hope some of the SAUWA chicks can teach her how to drive a manual! hahaha :lol:

Hello guys, just wanted to answer the Japan question from the first post. No, they don't need to have 2 mufflers in Japan, but in order to get sufficient muffling capabilities from a 'cannon' style exhaust system, the 2nd muffler is needed obviously. Some of the 'cannon' style exhausts can be baught with just the single tail muffler, but they top 100db easy, whereas a legal exhaust system in Japan has to be <92db. It affects power loss so slightly that you won't notice/not worth the hassle.

So we got the Toyota 'Hachi-Rusto' and the Nissan 'Sabi-a'... (if you know Japanese, it makes sense)

LOL... the olde Melbournian 'Perth piss take' on cue... try a bit harder next time hey mang? ^^^ And don't say your not from Melbourne Shan, some Melbourne guys here told me about your AFL footy shorts fetish...

They're all stailess too so that makes them a REAL bargain for the twin muffler version...

BasketCase: Thanks DCD: You'd know better than anyone the probs long term Japan residents have... well chalk me up as another casualty. I wouldn't blame the lifestyle so much, I guess teaching English was in fact the real problem. Since I haven't been working (going on 5 weeks now), everything is really fine!!! I can go out without caring about staring anymore, I've been practicing more Japanese, I've been doing heaps of work on cars... things are good. But I'm not working <_< ... so I've gotta go home. Unless you can offer me a job Dino? Hahaha Funky: I went home in April, but it was only for a week. I also stay with my Dads family in Germany for 2 weeks in May... still not enough time away though... yeah I think it's time to go home. Just want to reiterate one more time: I'm not anti-Japan. 5 years is a decent chunk out of anyones life, and I need to move on now. I've gone back and read this thread and I can really see the stress of long term teaching (in the same school) and the pressures that go with that coming through. But thats over now, I'm having a good time and I'll be here for another 3 weeks.

Bring it on Funkeh!

Good on ya BRO Hehehe... /Rezz

I havent driven on the Advan 'Sport' tires, but I have driven on the 'DNA S.Drive' which are newly released along with the Advan Sport. I thouroghly recommend the S.Drives if they sell them in AU, but Yokohama say that the Advan Sport tires have even more high speed stability and wet weather performance than the S.Drives so really you can't go wrong with either.

It's a signal to the Yakuza... so they know who's fingers to cut of next Seriously, they're temporary number plates for de-registered cars. I need them because I'm still trying to fit as many cheap Yahoo auction parts as possible... I'm doing well! So far: 4x Yokohama AVS VS-6 wheels - 10,000 yen 2x Yokohama DNA GP tires (80% tread) - 2,000 yen 1x Silvia 'GT-R' grille - 2,000 yen 2x Tein Adj. Pillowball upper mounts - 4,000 yen 2x clear indicators - 4,000 yen 2x '92 Silvia black mirrors (as new) - 2,000 yen 1x CA18DE air flow meter - 1,000 yen Total: 25,000 yen (A$300) ^^^ Thats with 4 WHEELS and 2 TIRES. Needless to say I'm having a ball

Which ones?

Thats pretty much restricted to Expo though :lol:

Here are a couple of updated pics if anyones interested:

I've got 17x8J +35 on the front of the R32, and if anything the rim sits just inside the fender... actually I've thought about putting 5mm spacers (instead of the 3mm ones that are on there now) to make them stick out a bit more... On the rear I've got 17x9J +32, and the rim is FLUSH with the rear guards. I got a 245/40 tire on that and they curve in a bit (stretched look) so it looks ok.

But Zele International (very reputable company) are selling that M-Spec NUR with 38,000 genuine km's with one owner and no accident history... for 6,000,000 yen. So all up expenses to get it shipped to AU and complied and taxes paid is about $42,000? How much is the 'luxury tax'? How much is compliance for SEVs?

Well there 2 types, one 'workshop' or 'trade' plates for dealers to use (different conditions of use) like g0jira said, and theres the usual '5 -day drive it to x location and nowhere else thank you very much ' plates like I've got on my Silvia when you de-register it:

Theres a M-Spec being sold in QLD for $200,000???? You're kidding me. In the attachment theres an M-SPEC NUR going for A$72,000... add all your ADR fees and taxes etc and you've got an what... an $85,000 car? I know that QLD car has been modded by Mine's, but geezuz, at a $115,000 premium???? NO THANKS. I'll take 2 M-Spec Nurs for that price please and a decent down payment on my house. Maybe I misunderstood?

Is it possible to fit Tein HR coilovers with JIC or Cusco adjustable pillowball upper mounts (at the front)?

What do you mean by rim depth?

^^^ The voice of experience... I had the exact same thing happen with my old 'K's Garage' online shop. So many inquiries replied to and for what? For guys (some were kinder than others) to say "heeeey, you know what? I'm not really ready to buy right now, but I'll get back to ya asoon as I am". My stuff advertised wasn't the cheapest stuff out, and I went to great lengths to tell people that. If you want so cheap no-name item, well go someplace else I don't do that stuff. But people still insisted on getting quotes for stuff that they didn't even have money for! This situation x1000 and I eventually gave up...