Anyone Not Rebuilt Their Rb26?

[TTT]

It seems that there are HEAPS of RB26's being rebuilt.

Is there anyone on here that has bought a GTR and NOT rebuilt it and drives it like it should be regularly?

I mean, yes the RB26 is the top of the line for nissans but it seems that the ones on this forum are all falling apart and needing rebuilds.

what's the deal?

do the japs really run them THAT far in to the ground before they come here?

I'd love to own a GTR but it seems that there are HEAPS of lemon engines around and it's giving the GTR a MONEY PIT title.

so I guess I'd like to hear from those who have bought gtr's (any model) that hasn't had to rebuild an engine due to bearings, head gasket, turbo failure, number 6 piston, oil starvation, rod out side of block etc....

also, those who have rebuilt their rb26's... how many km's have gone past since rebuild with no problems for you?

as much as I hate saying it, it seems that the 26's have the worst reliabilty of the range from threads on this forum.

[djr81]

I have owned three GT-R's and never laid a spanner on any of the motors. They are a very strong motor, but like all motors do get tired with age.

The reason you see threads about blown RB26's rather than threads about motors not having blown up is that people only seek advice after their engine has gone bang. No one needs to submit a thread starting "My engine has not blown up..."

If you want a GT-R don't let the strength of the RB26 be an issue. Before you purchase the car get the engine checked, ie a compression test & a leak down test. Ask the owner for a dyno sheet (If modified) & have a look at the AFR's on the plot. Check out the engine bay for signs of heat stress. Talk to him/her - if he or she is a tool don't buy the car - go somewhere else.

IN SHORT BUY A GOOD ONE, NOT A CHEAP ONE.

Edited February 6, 2006 by djr81

[Sydneykid]

Skewed sample.

It is very intersting to read about upgrades, big turbos, rebuilds, mods, huge power etc etc. So people post this sort of stuff on a forum.

It is not vey interesting to read about untouched engines that have had no mods. So people don't post this sort of stuff on a forum.

For example, I have a 180,000 k's old engine, never beeen touched. Had a cambelt and tappet adjustment at 100,000 k's. Gets new set of plugs every 20,00k's, oil change at 10,000k's has zero mods except boost up and good turbo back exhaust. It's pretty boring stuff, I'd be lucky to get a reply.

cheers

[TTT]

I guess I should have worded it a little better.

1.) I am not looking to buy a GTR or an RB26.

2.) there are MORE DEAD RB26 threads than dead RB20 or RB25 threads.

even though they are more common and cheaper to buy and modify as can be seen by the number of r32/r33 GTST's around.

[Beer Baron]

well i bought my GTR in japan in june or july 2004, been on the road since the start of 2005. done around 6000kms, done around 8 track days including supers sprints. done skid pan day, done 2 WSID meets. done plenty of other 'spirited driving'. love to check on the rev limiter. and it has not missed a beat. fairly light tune car putting out 256 kw atw. runs mid 12s, and is great fun on the track. i change the oil about 4 times per year (every second track meet) with motul chrono 300V, it has a BIG oil cooler mounted in an aluminium duct, running around 1 bar boost. that's about it really. and yes, it's a 32. yes it's 15+ years old now.

[Scooby]

put 38K km on my R32 in 2 years, stock except for exhaust. runs like a swiss watch. compression 4 psi max difference across all 6. mate down the road has R32 less km but also no problems.

lots of people have been buying lots of $20K GTRs, take off dealer mark up etc and you're talking a very cheap car in Japan. do they really trash them? who knows but for example I wouldn't buy a Porsche turbo here for $20K as I know what I'd be getting. IMHO to some extent it was inevitable that the cheaper GTRs would unfortunately start grenading sooner or later but there are those that have also had no problems. either way when a car depreciates - here or in Japan - it becomes attainable for many who can't actually afford to maintain it. it happened to the Jensen Interceptor in the 80's and the Porsche 928 after that. i'm not sure there's been a 'cheap GTSt' phenomenon lkike the 'cheap GTR' one.

Cheers

[TTT]

it's good to hear some better rb26 ownership stories for once.

Beer Baron - that sounds like a good deal you got there.

I guess in that state of tune, they are in good condition.

mid 12's and 256kw would be good enough for me.

[Tommyk]

Havent had any problems with mine either ?

You will find that a lot of these cars are very much substandard. A lot of these sold in japan for 30-40 ten thousand yen. Cheapies

[SteveL]

Is there anyone on here that has bought a GTR and NOT rebuilt it and drives it like it should be regularly?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Yes....and it's an '89 (shock, horror).

Define: 'like it should be'

[TTT]

well occasional drag or circuit.

taken over 4000rpm instead of tooting around from home to shops or to P6 carpark for a few hours before cruising around at 3000rpm in 2nd gear before accelarating to 4000rpm then off again when you've got the "bro's" attention.

[SteveL]

well occasional drag or circuit.

Well I don't necessarily agree that this is part of the 'normal' life of a GTR and I certainly didn't have that in mind when I bought mine. I'm not particularly interested in drags anyway, and I have another car for circuit work. I'll probably take the GTR to the track (circuit) at some point, but not without the appropriate mods.

taken over 4000rpm instead of tooting around from home to shops or to P6 carpark for a few hours before cruising around at 3000rpm in 2nd gear before accelarating to 4000rpm then off again when you've got the "bro's" attention.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

LOL - those that know me know that I don't give cars or motorcycles an easy time......

[fatz]

you thrash em to 9k with big power and you will brake anything

ive only ever rebuilt one and it didnt even need a rebuild

pete

[TTT]

it's good there are reliable ones..

but just open a few threads on here..

bearings, gaskets...

just a new thread in here about what times a gtr will run and starts with "just bought a gtr with fresh rebuild"

[Blitz]

well i bought my GTR in japan in june or july 2004, been on the road since the start of 2005. done around 6000kms, done around 8 track days including supers sprints. done skid pan day, done 2 WSID meets. done plenty of other 'spirited driving'. love to check on the rev limiter. and it has not missed a beat. fairly light tune car putting out 256 kw atw. runs mid 12s, and is great fun on the track. i change the oil about 4 times per year (every second track meet) with motul chrono 300V, it has a BIG oil cooler mounted in an aluminium duct, running around 1 bar boost. that's about it really. and yes, it's a 32. yes it's 15+ years old now.

Considering the purpose of this discussion it would be fair to add that your engine was also rebuilt in Japan before you bought it

[SteveL]

it's good there are reliable ones..

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Yes, and I think I'd caution against judging GTR reliability just based on what's written on a forum like this. As SK said your more likely to hear about the broken one's than the 'happy people'. Also from my reading, the 'broken ones' are more often than not highly modified and I'm afraid breakages are just a fact of life if your pushing the boundaries. It seems that the 'GTR' badge gives some people somewhat unrealistic expectations in terms of mods and longevity.

[PHATR32]

not forgetting some are 15+ years old.

any engine will fail after getting thrashed for that long.

[maximumrpm]

i think like others mentioned its the people buying the r32 gtrs with changes speedos show 30k (pfft yeah right) and buying them for 19k and thinking they got a bargin when they got a dud...its like anything in life you pay for what you get

[R31Nismoid]

2.) there are MORE DEAD RB26 threads than dead RB20 or RB25 threads.

even though they are more common and cheaper to buy and modify as can be seen by the number of r32/r33 GTST's around.

Its because people think when they get a R32 GTR that the motor is gonna be A1 and never fair

Then when it does fall apart because or any number of reasons.

Tuning

Ages

Unknown condition

etc etc

People post up asking why it happened because they cant believe they forked out 25k for the ultimate dream...

And now its turned into a 8k adventure that they didnt expect because they didnt do thier research about the car.

SteveL is spot on in relation to my post

[Swiper the Fox]

You dont see many stock cars fail....when i say stock i mean boost levels as well. Two main causes for failure...people fu(king with them who dont know what their doing. Poor inconsistent fuel quality in this country.

This is only my opinion

[Tangles]

Id rather buy a 20k R32 GTR and have 12k put aside for mods such as suspn, exhaust, computer & boost, and turbo / engine rebuild. Thats in lieu of buying a 32k GTR and not modifying it.

Rebuilding is fun (expensive tho if you dont have contacts), and makes the modified journey that much more of an experience.

just my opinion, not that Id ever get a GTR tho, maybe a Stagea 260rs LOL - Brendan

Edited February 6, 2006 by bwilkeson