gts4diehard

sorry havent checked pms in a while. I dont know what condition shocks are really in , they look ok without leaks and springs look ok. They are very low springs just to warn you. check your pm Stephen

thanks for comments guys. The one I saw was $23000 up here in Brisbane and if it needed $4k spent on mods I would be inclined to buy an awd magna for the money. If I were able to get something all up for less than $20k with mods then that would sway the equation a little more in favour of Stagea again. Stephen

just wanting to get some feedback on your first impressions of your stageas. I have been thinking about getting one for a while and finally took one for a testdrive, and it wasnt quite what I expected. It was a 1997 RSFour with about 48000kms on the clock and in very good condition. The first thing that put me off was the airy-fairy steering, something reminescent of my old u12 SSS bluebird, and the booming sounds coming from the rear from road noise. I know it is a station wagon/ family wagon but I expected a bit more 'feeling' from the steering and a little less noise as it is a bit more upmarket and sportier than the average station wagon, it didnt feel as solid as one would expect from a 1600/1700 kg car. I also realise that the car is heavy but expected some sort of 'turbo' performance when it reached about 3000-4000 rpms when the turbo reaches boost. Is the normal acceleration very linear without any noticeable increase in the rate of acceleration (seat of pants feeling) - when it is making boost? My expectations is based on the experience of my R32 gts4 which I've had for about 5 years which is pretty much still stock and whilst it is not quick by todays standards it does have that 'turbo' rush. The steering is very positive and it feels solid when you are driving. I like my cars to be very close to what I want from a car without having to redesign suspension systems etc, I dont mind doing bushes/shocks etc To me it seems like it would take a lot of changes just to get the car feeling right. Maybe I am expecting 260RS performance from a RSfour I dont know. To any 260 RS owners, is the steering and suspension sporty feeling or at least ahead of other station wagons you've driven and somewhere on the road to sedan performance? Good points - car has lots of features over other cars. car looks good, has skyline bits which I assume would translate to Skyline reliability. is this a average stagea or did I just testdrive a 'bad' one? Stephen

hi, I was told by Gavin that you can use dexron III for the attessa resovoir, I tried getting hold of this 'nissan special power steering fluid' from two nissan dealers in Brisbane and one of them used to sell the R32 GTRS and they didnt have a clue about the fluid. Were you able to actually get some? I have used the dexron III in my attessa and if anything the 4wd is coming on much quicker (also have new tyres which are a week old - which may be contributing, just getting grippy now). P.S. Make sure the rear diff has Limited slip dif oil in it, from memory the castrol oil recomendation card in the shop is wrong. It should be LSX 90, i actually emailed them to find out, if you want to be sure email them to find specs. above is in regard to an R32 GTS4 Stephen

should also change the attessa fluid, in the resovoir in the rear drivers side quarter panel. It needs to be drained and bled at two points but it is really quite easy, just follow the instructions in the GTR workshop manual, I was told Dexron III is ok to use. I bought a 4 litre pack and those lines are definitely clean now, I had to get a lot of air out of my lines. P.S. just check those subframe bushes (4 in total) on the rear just behind the drivers and passengers doors for the telltale silicon leaks. you can go several ways if they need replacing including new bushes from noltec in sydney. I just did mine in my R32 GTS4 and a friend had his done in a GTR, so they are something to watch out for, not cheap if you have to pay for it to be done. Stephen

The attessa works the same as the GTR, so you need the SAME rolling circumference on all 4 tyres otherwise if the computer will think the rear tyres are spinning (revolving faster than fronts) and put power to the front wheels. basic calc without the wheel size, easily shows that the Radius is definately different if you are running the same wheel size front/rear . 235 x 45 % = 105.75 mm tyre wall - front 225 x 45 % = 101.25 mm tyre wall - rear Get some rears that are the same as the fronts as quick as possible as the front diff is not designed to be running continuosly, it can get extra hot, check the diff breather on the oil filter side of the engine and see if it has been spraying any oil out of it. If it has you should check the front diff oil level and top up... If you cant get the same tyres straight away atleast put the bigger tyres on the rear, this is not a permanent solution but should help protect your front diff/transfer by reducing the number of times the cars goes into 4wd- the rears tyre revolving less than the fronts showing the computer the rears are not spinning although hard acceleration sensed by the g-force sensors will more than likely still put the car in 4wd mode. Stephen

hi, check your TPS sensor plug that connects to the throttle position sensor. My car idled at 2000 rpm one day when the plug 'was left unconnected' and wouldnt accelerate cleanly. I thought something had gone majorly wrong, but once I plugged the tps plug back in all was sweet. I think the computer uses some of the other info to make an estimate on the fuel should the sensor fail, and runs a safer tuning map for the engine as a precaution. It could also be the AFM, try cleaning the thin wire in the centre of the AFM with CRC contact cleaner, it is supposed to 'self clean' once the ignition is switched off by rapidly heating the wire to burn off any deposits, this probably isnt working so good after 10-12 yrs especially if you have an oily aftermarket air filter in there. It could also be the solder inside the square box attached to AFM, it could be dry when wires conect to the pins that the plug connects to. If you are sure that AFM is no good and are going to buy another, give it a go at repairing it, check the forums for some info. Just make sure when you are doing the soldering that you dont let too much heat get anywhere else( use heat sinks). I did mine years ago and it is still going strong. Stephen

Thanks guys, atleast it gives me a starting point for looking at places. Stephen

hi, if you're after some swaybar mount bushes, check out Fulcrums Super Pro catalog. They also do the adj. castor bushes. Just put them in my car so will be able to give some feedback in a few weeks. Stephen

hi, thinking about moving the family to the ACT, just wanting to find out what areas have good/bad reputations. any info appreciated. p.s. who has good insurance prices in canberra, just got a quote for my R32 GTS4 from suncorp metway and they say that in Chifley (PC 2606) that my car would cost $1500, at moment it costs $700. Is CHifley a good/bad area??? Stephen

hi, I think there should be power/weight restrictions on p platers myself. Not because small cars cant excede the speed limit and not get you into trouble but because more powerful cars get you into trouble FASTER. On numerous trips to the gold coast I've been been cruising along and been passed by all those excels zipping along at 130-140kms - wet or dry, accidents just waiting to happen. To survive an emergency situtation when things are happening Fast requires extra skill or years of experience. Sooner or later over your driving 'career' you will face most what can be thrown at you. Some Things I've had happen. Cattle running out through a hill cutaway across the road while I'm doing 100kms an hour on 100 k road, had to swerve on righthand side on road with drivers side wheels running in gravel in ditch. Hitting oil on a corner and sliding out at 30kms hr, correcting car without going onto other side of road, with oncoming traffic, oil/diesel from trucks stopping on corner and turnig into Tip/Top - near Autobahn, brisi boys will know this sequence of corners. Going onto motorway and large truck lost dual wheel off semi trailer, which then rolled across roundabout, those buggers are heavy and will kill you quick fast. Oncoming driver falling asleep and driving head on and aiming for ditch to my left then him suddenly waking and swerving back to his side of road - on a 100 km/hr road, good one for checking your decision powers , 1 cross to his side of road, or 2- hit brakes and knock off as much speed as possible and watch carefully and make a late swerve ... In all the above situtations I've managed to get through them without crashing my car or anyone elses by knowing the vehicle that I drive and having enough skills to do the right thing at the right time. I have been driving for many years, and I had no advanced training when I was learning to drive but what I did have was country roads that werent busy which afforded the luxury of little oncoming traffic should you make a mistake or have to take avoidance action. So what I'm trying to say is what most people know, experience will help get you out of situations or allow you to see them developing but this takes years, or undertake some driver training which will give your experience a kick start and give you the chance to survive. Its when things happen unexpectedly that you need those skills to kick in instinctively, some times you dont have time to think, just time to react. So YES to advanced driver training- skid pans, night training also ..., this will help more young people be prepared for what can happen and should reduce the number of people doing stupid things. Everyone things they can be michael 'shoemaker' when they start but it takes time to realise that that you dont have that level of skill, or to be shown on a controlled environment such as a skidpan that you still have a lot to learn. and YES to power restrictions, this will give young inexperienced drivers the extra few seconds that can make the difference between a life and death decision. Of course there are young people out there with natural ability and the skills and maturity to drive fast cars but for them they would have to satisfy there speed urges on the track - where we all should be doing it. P.S. Not just picking on younger drivers but there are alot of bad 'older' drivers also who also need driver training. Advanced driver training would also be beneficial to these people if they step into more powerful cars. so if you're YOUNG. 1- advanced driver training - No matter what car you drive. to give survival skills a head start. 2- power restrictions until experience gained - say 3 years, to give the person a chance to gain some maturity and realise they aren't a F1 contender. and OLDER DRIVERS. 1- advanced training - if you're stepping out of the excel and into a v8/turbo car, just so they are used to a car where things can happen much more quickly. and EVERYONE - A reminder of the rules every 5 years - I'm sure most people dont rememer how to merge, or how to go onto a roundabout for very long. My 2 cs worth. Stephen

hi, guys just thought i'd add some comment to the tyre debate. I am getting F1 gsd3 for my Gts4, they are only 205/55/16 and are a bargain at moment with buy 3 get 4 at goodyear on now. I noticed that falkens cheaper tyres are getting quite a bagging, but I think some of the people here have got the wrong size tyres on their cars. I've got ze 502's (205/55/16) on at the moment and they have been a pretty good street tyre, even taken them out to qld raceway where they performed quite well, although they were a bit twitchy - something that never happened on the street with them( not the heat that a racetrack causes). They did let go but were progressive so the car was still controllable with the throttle. If you see the reviews on this tyre it comes out some where near the bottom of most lists, it cost me around $130 each when i got them. In the wet they have been pretty good, can drop the clutch at 4k and get only mild wheel spin. This i think is partly due to the near stock tune of the car but is also due to the Weight going onto each wheel . If you look at the original tyre size on a GTS25T I think you will find that it is no where near 255. Wide tyres work great on most cars in the dry, but they are more likely to kick your ass in the wet without the right weight on them. They only ways to get around with 'wider' tyres in the wet is to buy tyres with a more grippy compound or better tread design which you dont get with low/middle range tyres OR to increase the weight on them e.g. a bag of sand in boot ...! or put on an aerodynamic body kit that puts a tonne or two of downforce on the car e.g. Formula one. If you are having problems with 'cheap' tyres in the wet, try a smaller width in the wet months, you will probably find that even most cheap tyres these days are better than those that were middle of the range or better when our skylines first came out so they will perform better than you expect. Ive decided to see how a 'top' of the range tyre goes on my car with the F1 GSD 3, as the price differential to the tyres like my ze 502's is eliminated with the the deal they are running. The reviews on the net seem to be very positive so it will be interesting to see how they stack up on my GTS4. $640 for a set of mid range tyres versus $745 (usually $1000) for a set of 'higher' end tyres makes the gsd's to good to pass up. Ive always used lower end tyres and found them ok, but i never tried large tyre sizes because a good large tyre has always been to expensive to justify. I've had the following on my car: GT Radial champiros 55 (205/55/16) - they were very good in dry and wet although they got a bit slippery in the wet before they got to the wear indicators. used at lakeside, pumped upto 40 psi, went very well at track, got a 1 min 7 on 2nd outing. BF Goodrich radial TA's (205/55/16) - good in the dry .good on the rears in wet but front understeered in wet ( fronts slid a bit). pressures were good too. Falken ze 502's (205/55/16) - good in dry and wet. good steering in wet, not as good as goodriches on the back in wet. Twitchy on track(qld raceway) once heat built up, but still let go progressively. all of the above prob dont have good reviews any where but are quite good when they are matched to the weight of the car, power of car and not forgetting skill of driver.

saw a cool program on 'Eleanor' cars on foxtel digital (I think) on Tuesday night, showing them rebuilding old Mustangs?? and making them like the movie car, didnt see a mention of price but apparently they are making 475 of them. Some of the cars were coming out with 700hp (supercharged), the car was a mass of braces just to keep it straight. pretty interesting stuff, showed the whole rebuild from a wreck on the farm to the final beauty. Catch it if you can, i suppose the program will go round more than once on that channel. this link has an article on car http://popularmechanics.com/automotive/sub...0e/index2.phtml Stephen

Hi, checked out a car mag to see the details of that merc, SL55 AMG, 700nm, 368kw and only $372 000. Hmm, nice toy for playing at the track. Stephen

hi I like that hotrod form Cobra with Stallone, sure looks mean! Stephen p.s. the gtr in fnf could have been a 'star'!!.

hi i have a couple of things to add to the R32 list. Engine Bay there should be a metallic sticker on top of the cambelt cover with a space to fill out when the cam belt was changed. If there is no sticker, not even a discoloured mark where it should be then treat the speedo reading with doubt. Of course theres nothing to stop people replacing the instrument cluster altogether. ABS units get tired and start leaking, 2nd hand $300-400 + fitting, rebuild about $600. Suspension squeaks from the front usually have some connection to 'those' upper arms, they dont last all that long especially on our roads. Nissans rrp is $440 pair + fitting. check for wet bushes - front castor bushes aftermarket $140 pr + fitting ( non adj.) rear end on 4wd Skylines, the subframe bushes in front of the rear axle are silicon filled. The subframe bushes behind the rear axle are solid rubber and last well. aftermarket cost $160 (set of 4) + about 10 hours to remove subframe, bushes and refit everything, could be around $800 - $1000. check those shocks for leaks, a decent set will be around $1100 + fitting. There are no $50 shocks for these cars. Interior those vents are pricy, left hand side around $100, centre around $140 watch out for aftermarket steering wheels - they can affect the HICAS if not fitted correctly, car will drive weird . also check the instrument cluster when you turn ignition on, there should be a hicas light come on with the oil pressure light etc. People remove the bulb when the HICAS is dodgy. 4wd systems check for lights on dash coming on, it canbe just the fluid level in boot resovoir, the level should be checked when the car is running. P.s. when you turn ignition on you should hear a whirring noise as the 4wd pump primes up the system. make sure the tyres front and rear are same overall circumference as this will prematurely wear out the clutches in the 4wd transfer case. p.s. make sure you have enough funds in bank to maintain the car, they are a great performance bargain 2nd hand but new part prices are expensive, remember those gts4's were around $80,000 and GTRs $110,000 new.

Pedders saying the upper arm bushes worn. Powerplay saying the left upper control arm buggered these two descriptions are of the same thing. the upper arm bushes ARE the bushes in the left upper control arm . You have two options if this is the correct diagnosis - replace the bushes in the arm or replace the whole arm. I just bought 2 upper control arms and they cost me $380 from Nissan + fitting. replacement bushes with camber adjustment cost around $360 plus fitting into the arm plus fitting arm to car. You say the car didnt make this noise before on lowered susp but does now on std susp, this could be because the upper arm will now be moving quicker through its range of movements now that is has a softer springs and shocks as opposed to the rock hard after market susp. The arms will usually squeak as they are getting worn, then they can develop a clunk. try this test . with car on ground , grab the offending wheel and push and pull hard on top of wheel and listen for clunk (play in top arm bush). This is what I noticed on my first R32 GTS4. Stephen

hi, slacks creek brake and clutch, underwood have the Bendix Ultimates fronts for around $90 (axle set) and rears for about $85 (axle set). Quite good braking, but a bit noisy and dusty. Squeals a little when you first apply the brakes - like when you are coming up to the traffic lights (hopefully theres a falcon or commodore around so everyone will think its them with the squealy brakes). When you press them harder the squealing stops. Stephen

thanks guys, will be there. Stephen

hi, guys. Are people able to come out and watch ? I've got a few hours spare on wednesdays so wouldnt mind coming out to see the cars. Stephen

How about trying the nissan ones also, they are cheap at about $8, usually cheaper than all the other brands. Stephen

have a look at the injectors, see if they are damp around the plugs. the smell will drift into the car through the air vents , and will probably be a bit stronger when car is stationary than moving. could be o-rings or cracked injector body Stephen

check the erro codes on the ecu, it sounds like it has gone into 'limp home' mode, maybe some of your wiring has come adrift. Stephen

hi, check the following. press clutch pedal in about 10mm, if sound goes away it is the thrust bearing that presses against the clutch fingers. press clutch all the way in, if noise goes away it is likely to be the layshaft bearing( at front of the gearbox) other bearing noises are as you listed and also the cambelt tensioner bearings. can listen to cambelt cover with a screwdriver handle to your ear - assuming of course you dont have long hair etc that will get caught in fan... I replaced mine about 140-150000kms on my RB20det, one was fine, the other sounded raspy and feels rough when you spin by hand - i replaced both. If you can do it yourself you should be able to get the bearings for under $200 pair. Stephen

I got a quote to get the bushes fitted by Gavin on the gold coast and they estimated about $600 labour to remove subframe , take out old bushes and fit new bushes, bleed 4wd,hicas + cost of new bushes. It takes a while to get the old ones out, I myself are just going to buy a 2nd hand younger subframe - they are worth about $250 or less. Still a bit to refit all the rest of the stuff to it tho. If you need to replace the diff cradle bushes (about 8 bushes) it will cost about $380 for nismo bushes + fitting, subframe also needs to be out to fit these as well. Stephen