Kinkstaah

Well tbf he's asking someone who has had it done so he has a rough idea of what it's cost others to establish a ballpark. Sure, it cost $XYZ 3 years ago isn't perfect data, but it's something to know before he talks to a paint/body shop and they hurt him in the wallet

If Lewis had've taken the corner properly, Max would have slammed into the back of his car. You can't make the argument that Max was attempting to take the line in the fastest possible way at all, Lewis saw it coming and he was forced off the track by a driver deliberately taking that corner 'wrong' and potentially inciting a collision, yet again. They have been both outstanding all season. This is why the robbery at the end was so blatant. Jeddah was much the same, with HAM having to avoid the "I don't really mind if I crash into you, and I'll do stupid shit to do so anyway" of VER. Be honest - Can you see VER "defending" like Perez was? Or Alonso? Hell no, it'll last 4 tenths of one second and then someone is in the wall. Especially in a scenario where Max comes out on top if someone ends in the wall. I say take them away - The fastest car should be winning. I don't really care for that, it's about the integrity of the competition. The VSC where the gaps must be preserved is the only fair way to do it. It is a stupid meta and in this case it rewarded the wrong driver, who was slower on the day and anyone with eyes can see wasn't going to win that race. There shouldn't be rules (in the name of safety, nonetheless) that influence the result. It's just a stupid meta, at a pinnaccle of the sport? Just shit. I strongly advocate for races where drivers can drive at Quali pace, or as near as possible - All race.

It was a great season, but Lewis absolutely deserved the win. It shows how silly the rules are - Why not line the cars up on the grid and let them launch with the time intervals they had from one another once it is safe to do so, preserving the gaps, and positions they had on track once the track is again safe? There's no reason a safety car has to actually influence the race result at all. Lewis missed Lap 1 because obvious Max stupid Divebomb is obvious. They let that one go because they could see between the lines in the spirit of the race. They should have let it end properly under the safety car because lets be honest, even after the 'should be illegal' blocking of Perez on HAM, he still opened up the gap again and absolutely would/should have taken then W there. There's no way that they weren't artificially influencing the result, and it was influenced many times in favour of Max, which is where the Robbed comments come from, and as mentioned before, the concept of racing safety influencing the result of said race is just a stupid concept.

I did notice this, with the front unlinked it was actually very informative as to when weight was on say, the front left and you really could feel that side loading up, and then under acceleration you could feel the movement of the weight switch over to the rear. Part of me did think "This is actually considerably more informative than having a sway bar there, you get more info as to what is going on" Then the part of me took over is that I am perhaps sensing the actual car twisting and that wouldn't be good if multiplied by a lot on a track, if I could feel it at a mediumly spirited roundabout. Given noone ever does this, I figured it would be wise to at least have *a* sway bar on the car, and avoid some Gregism by tearing the strut towers apart from one another or some wacky stuff. It still suprises me how little the FSB effect actually is, and the RSB does 95% of the heavy lifting in regards to chassis balance, at least in my car! Night and day on the rear, and can barely notice (Noone would notice unless they were specifically looking or testing this) if the FSB is stock, completely absent, or thoroughly upgraded.

So I also got my custom swaybar from Hakon in the end! I say "in the end" but they were actually great and delivered it entirely on time with the timeframe they initially quoted. And not to mention, it is exactly what I ordered and actually fits fine. It was a joy to actually bolt up and find out that it clears everything and fits fine and I enjoyed taking extra time to nut it all up correctly and all that wholesome jazz. Also was playing jazz at the time. Plenty of clearance now! As to how it drives, it is marginally better, a little less roll and a sensation of the left and right suspension being linked, you know, like with some bar or something. But it's actually remarkably minor. I'm sure it attests to something, but what I'm not entirely sure. Given the stock swaybars felt fine on the road but were woeful when the car was really pushed I'm sure it will be more evident at some future track day. I'm at least happier that if I hit a kerb at the track at speed that the suspension is actually connected to the other side of the car. The car went back to Von Brothers to replace the temporary Optima battery they left me with (which also had munted/cracked posts) and to get my flexible dipstick re-attached, given it was just flopping around in the engine bay and it was fixed up when the car was there I was wise not to just take the bracket home because it took quite a few painful, fireglassy hours to actually fit. Also a Bursons man appeared and delivered a battery because the one that had arrived could not be found. I also found that the optima battery left my battery tray looking like this.... After some ... liberal.. cleaning and a ton of rust converter it wasn't so bad. The next step was to address this overheating-while-idle scenario. As mentioned in threads not mine, I was a bit dismayed to realise that the AC condenser of a Commodore is actually larger than mine is. So the concept that I had that the condenser was too big in general, was thrown out... Ceremonial all plastics off (and thinking to actually refit them, and oh boy that long term power steering leak is evidenced on the undertray) Coolant and thermostat (and a bung for my IAT sensor that kept falling out as teh hole was just slightly too big). Pic on the right is the coolant that came _out_ which wasn't quite as new looking as the coolant that went in, a bit watery and yellow, really. This is the photo I did at the end, but you can't really see that the condenser is actually angled forward as the black brackets that hold it on are very spaced out now, giving a good 100mm+ between the condenser and radiator at the top. You can easily fit a hand back there and move it around between the condenser and rad (or sit it easily in the middle and touch neither). I made little 'triangles' out of the guard liner to just block up those gaps beside the radiator. I'm not exactly hoping for miracles here as I've seen that without a vented bonnet, ducting to the radiator doesn't seem to have any real benefits going by the many many threads on the subject. Air flow isn't dependent on air being funnelled in, it has to be able to get out as well. Because I am also a noob I raised the rear of my bonnet up with some spacers too. Yes I know that on track I will be creating a high pressure zone at the base of the windshield to push air back in, but my issue is at 0kmh, at idle only, with fans on. So I'm giving up 'moving' airflow for 'idle' airflow to release trapped heat. Like the ghettoest version of a vented bonnet. It also turns out my current thermostat was opening fine, did the whole boil it in a pot of water to see it open trick, and it looks to open more than the high flow replacement I bought but didn't use. Also has a clear 82C marking on it, so now I know when it opens. This was the result of driving around for about 30 minutes/1hr running errands yesterday in 33c heat, going to bunnings, getting petrol, going to chemist warehouse, driving home etc. The three gauges at the top are Engine oil temp, AFR, Engine coolant, and the head unit is displaying IAT, Coolant Temp (as reported by ECU/ECU's sensor in the head). The shifter surround is out because I was buying a battery for something under there 😛 I did notice when it would overheat that coolant was following oil temp (well into the 110's for both) and this SEEMED to be an improvement given coolant as reported by the engine was only 84, given the Thermo opens at 82 I think this is definitely better. You can see from the IAT being 68C, and getting up to 75C from my non falling out IAT just how hot the engine bay is. I later did check it and my pod filter feels about as hot as the god damned top radiator tank after said drive. It is also worth noting that the Commodore fans operate from the factory at like 105 and 113C. I've set mine to come on much earlier than that, so I don't think I've done any damage by getting to 105C as a hard max limit in the past. In short, it appears that everything is actually working. The gearbox is run in and I changed the oil too, and all went perfectly. I ADVISE EVERYONE READING THIS TO BUY A $10 SCA BATTERY OPERATED FLUID TRANSFER PUMP As this was so beautiful to fill gearbox oil with I got upset I hadn't bought one earlier, and I'm sure there's many other powered alternatives. Put one end in your fluid of choice, and the other end in where you want to go. Can be used for coolant, oils etc. Never use a hand pump again for Gearbox or diff oil, never have to lift a jerry can ever again, just put one end in and the other end in the filler, etc. Does 5.5L/min. Get something if you haven't already. I even actually semi spiritedly drove the car, with its run in gearbox, some (semi) revs and some (semi) street speed in curvy mountains. It is really bliss with the soundtrack, swaybars, light steering, nothing scrubbing, nothing overheating and my god the gearbox and clutch are awesome. It is seriously the most enjoyable thing to actually drive, and I re-iterate I have no car envy for anything else I've ever driven, GTR's aint got nothing on this lol. My next "to do" item is now down to "fit that bodykit" which given as this is a $10K adventure probably won't be happening any time int he next year, and I'm sure something will break in that time 😛

It isn't lost on me that a nice 280kw, fits like factory setup with all accessories working well (which I am really trying to aim for) is easily achievable with .... the original engine and a sensible modern responsive turbo... .... shit

It only overheats when it gets very heat soaked with the AC on. That said, a Coolant temp of 105C is... 'normal' for a LS. Fans seem effective, I have a massive Koyorad radiator thats your typical 52ishmm with a triple core. Some high flow thermostat (removed and tested), running a new OEM water pump. It only happens when stopped so I assumed it was the Aircon condenser itself heating up and adding to heat which can't escape. The various changes I made _seemed_ to help but as it's 33C today and I have errands to do, I'll find out for sure later today lol. Originally I thought the condensor was too big, as its about twice the size of a Skyline condensor which has the fan only on one side, but then I realised the OEM commodore condensor is much larger and would block even more, so the condensor size itself can't really be blamed.

This is the only situation I have a problem 😛 I spent a lot of time on the weekend moving stuff about (was able to get about 100mm by tilting the condensor forward) and taping up shrouds/various holes to force more air through it, slimming down chunky brackets etc. Seems to have helped, but a true test will be on some long commute on a 30+ day. I also did the ricer bonnet spacer up at the back, yes I'm aware this could cause air to be pushed INTO the engine bay at speed, but I have no issues at speed - only at idle.. so I'm assuming it's an issue of fan efficiency and/or trapped heat being unable to get out effectively. As an aside, I found that the LS stock condensor (i.e the one in your car) is 130mm wider, 40mm taller and 2mm thicker, and probably about as close to the LS radiator, so the size of the condensor in my case can't really be used as an excuse.

At least you aren't debating a last ditch bogan bonnet mod as the only way to get your AC working without the thing overheating... 😛

Right, so wheeeere were we. We were commuting around without a swaybar at the front for awhile. Until I heard... a...noise. A bad noise, a loud.. ticking...in-time-with RPM noise. I also noticed my power steering leak just wasn't going away. Wisely, I went to consult with an actual mechanic this time for a second opinion/further guidance. Upon hearing the sound, he immediately diagnosed it as Lifters (which is what it sounded like) but given I heard it from the bellhousing I thought it could be something in the bellhousing. Turns out the lifters are in the block, and that all immediately made sense. Phew, no need to worry about clutch/gearbox things, I have to worry about lifter things instead which as just mentioned, are in the block. Also: 1) “Did you know your belts are misaligned and are starting to get chewed through?” Uh no, no I didn’t know that. Turns out my new underdriven alternator pulley that was a direct bolt on, was not a direct bolt on, and needed to be machined down as below it is compared to the one on my stock alternator. 2) “Your aircon dye is leaking out the bottom and generally everywhere” Turns out the seals on my new AC system were 20 years old, and an old gasket had blown, all very surprising to me. These were replaced and system holding pressure now and no longer leaking.. 3) Power steering leak was traced to the solenoid that was no longer being used and half disassembled from nearly fouling on headers. An O-ring was sourced, only to find that the housing of the solenoid body itself had a crack, and when removed found that the other side of it was flat. So a plate was machined up to just blank off the solenoid anyway, as the O-rings were in the rack itself. So no new rack needed. Hooray! 4) I then learned my Power Steering had been broken since the conversion. What I thought was “Heavy but clearly working power steering” all this time was actually completely and utterly f**ked. The car now drives with slightly lighter than-OEM Nissan steering which was massive, massive, massive MASSIVE improvement which I didn’t expect! Still, the lifters thing. Then I had an idea, as my dipstick was still not connected to the car since the gearbox in (I had to get the bracket back from the other people). It was one of those last gasp ideas you have when you desperately want the problem to be something else. I had always historically overfilled my oil, and wondered if I was getting oil leaks (turns out I do not actually have ANY oil leaks.. but didn’t know it at the time) because something was just overfilled and it seemed to track. So I turned on my Accusump, filled up, then closed the valve. Left the car on overnight, checked the oil. ¾ of the way to H. Perfect. The way I always checked the oil. Still, mysteriously low oil pressure. I’m talking like 0.5 bar on the OEM gauge (which works in a R34). I then realized my accusump and oil cooler (a 25 row big boi) and lines are above the sump. I also remembered how I always check the oil overnight, after the car has sat. So as soon as I was starting the car, that oil cooler and lines would get re-filled again with oil from the sump, not exactly leaving enough in the f**king car. I went back to pick up car from mechanic and dumped a few liters into it and mysterious sound is now gone… and my oil pressure is a much healthier 3.5 bar at idle and moves according to RPM. That was a relief, to say the least. Still haven’t given it a lot of RPM, as need to do my 1000km to get that gearbox all run in.

The larger problem will be getting the auto to work afterwards. You will really need to study the differences in wiring between the NA and GTT to make the auto work properly. The information on both schematics is in the Workshop manual. Most people find it easier to go manual at this point (plus the cars are better in manual etc)

The above post is very good.

The big change honestly for me was all the new bushes. I didn't only do the subframe, I did every single bush in every location that whiteline or superpro offer. This was an expensive undertaking but man the car drives like it's new. It's not hyperbole, it drives like it is a new vehicle. Is it better performing? Lol not really probably, but does it provide enjoyment that your 20+ year old car drives like it is factory fresh? Yes it provides enjoyment thus I'll put the 'worth it' stamp on it.

I did the whole subframe and reinforcement and replace all bushes. It didn't help traction, if anything it was worse (stiffer everything). And I have half that power

I think it's the other way around. The Neo is a better motor, and the turbos that come on stock way way way way way way way too small. It's not as though the Neo has a 270kw turbo setup on there from the factory like the 26 does 😛

I've only driven the one, if you've driven both and there's a more modern design then I concede to the above and get this. As for beautiful, there is no real discussion here or in any GTR forum where someone has not upgraded their clutch at the point they need a new one, for any reason. Twin plates do not need much force to operate at all, they just have a narrower bite point than a single plate, generally speaking.

Buy a nismo twinplate. It'll hold up to everything you want to do, and if it ever isn't enough, you'll have bigger costs and problems by that point.

As if anyone would aggressively drive something like a M5 on the track. Even price inflated Skylines are nothing compared to the costs of running/maintaining/replacing something on those lol. I just built my own E39 M5 for the budget conscious gentleman!

So I'll be that guy - what was the offer? Given what you're replacing it with it gives a rough indication of course, but I'm sure many enquiring minds want to know what offers exist about now.

It'd need a lot of work. They just... aren't performance engines, not really. I didn't mean a S54, I meant the M52 variants out there generally put out better results. I'm sure you're painfully aware of E36's with 2.8/3L Hybrid motors making a solid 160-170kw (230whp) in a chassis that is ~1100kg/2400lb in track day specialty trim. But if you've got the creativity/means/desire to swap an engine I would rebuild the RB20DET to be completely honest, it's a much better option than RB25DE, hands down, absolutely no contest in any scenario. If Engine swaps come into it, the RB25DE of any variant is realistically like the 12th best option. A VQ as mentioned earlier would be great! But you know what is generally better than that, and fits much better? Lord knows how effective they are on fuel given you said earlier that you're doing 2h races on one tank. This effectively limits power a lot. I wouldn't have thought a RB20DET would even come close to that kind of thriftiness on the track.

I'm that guy. My tip would be not to use that engine, the main reason being you'd be happy to get 170whp out of it. Is that really enough for what you want to do? The BMW 3L motors or the 2.5 or the 2.8 would likely perform better and be more available. That said, there's a lot better motors than that in abundance over there in the USA. _especially_ if you don't need to make it road legal ever. Signed, A LS owner.

My gut feeling was "about 15 psi" before I opened the thread. You gotta keep in mind you're not talking between 1000hp monster or a 400hp lazy engine, a better term is a 1000hp melted engine, or a 400hp reliable motor. Turning up boost is burning the candle faster, always. There is no 'safe' amount because what you're really asking is personal, how bright do you want the candle to be, vs how long it will last. Only you really know that. This is a really big/serious setup but tbh I'm not sure it really matters much with regards to how many kms of aggression the motor will actually last.

I also have them! Though mine have since been re-valved to suit the molestations I've done on the car since. Driven a few other R34's, can't say any rode or handled better.

My cursory information when googling seemed that a lot of places make their swaybars in NSW, and could easily engage someone like Signature Swaybars to actually make them. No matter who it is, I got a very competitive quote ($350) through Hakon to make me one with 50mm clearance at the front, lead time 4-6 weeks, from this mysterious NSW business. They have a custom swaybar builder form, but you can't get to it from their website - Only through google. And I can sell my Whiteline on. Again. If it all fits up, I reckon thats about as good a deal as I'm possibly ever going to get, so I signed on the dotted line!

They're on the list! I contacted someone local who offered this service, and their builder had a "Can you supply a template" to which I said yeah, I can give you the bar and mark it out for you, or bring the car! But they get theirs done by someone in NSW, and unsure as to whether they are operating. May have to call a few people, and unfortunately tyre kick all of them, except the people that convince me the best that they can do it.