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ahoi hoi, first post here. yet to be a skyline owner but hopefully will be by year's end. i was hoping to just get some opinions from those experienced before i throw my money at a any old skyline. i'm pretty much thinking to buy a relatively stock r32gtst and i want to spend around $12k. however there are a couple things i wanna know first. mainly just how much difference there is between a gtr and the good ol' gtst. obviously engine and capacity is one, but will a worked rb20det be able to match a worked rb26? or are they just completely different and am i better off forking out the extra few grand for a gtr in the first place? or how would an rb26 fair in a gtst and what costs am i looking at for that?

i have a lot more questions but i think that may be enough for one post. any help would be appreciated, cheers guys.

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Welcome dude.

The difference between an R32 GTST and a GTR is pretty big. Everything costs more on a GTR, just getting a workshop to pull the turbos off is NOT cheap. People are spending $$$$ fixing/maintaining 32 GTR's now as they are all over 10yrs old. A GTST is a much cheaper simpler easier car to live with. And slower. But slower doesnt mean less fun.

1. You would have to spend a little coin to get a 20 up to the standard of a 26, but then a 26 with boost/exhaust/fmic/ecu is going to destroy that 20.

2. The 26 will bolt into the GTST.

3. A GTST is lighter, easier to drive (you don't have to get your head around the 4wd system) and would by far be the best option for someone new to the cars with a budget. A 12K R32 GTST will be fun, but it wont be the most sorted package around if you know what I mean....

4. You should buy my R31. It has lots of power (RB25DET) R32 GTSt brakes that can handle trackwork, and a full aftermarket suspension setup. $10k. No more mods needed, fully developed.

not only is ther a huge power diff between the GTSt and the GTR, ther is a big price diff...u can pik up a nice gtst for 12k or even cheaper, but a gtr....over 20, easily. a worked rb20 aint gonna get anywhere near a worked rb26. i have lightly modded gtst (exhaust+dump pipe, remapped ECU, boosted to 12psi) and that is still way way off matchin a stock rb26. u can make a 32gtst move, but u cant expect to keep up with a worked GTR (unless u chuck an rb26 in ther).

ok so it looks like forkin out for an rb26 to cuck in the gtst will most likely be the go for me. any clue how much a recon'd one might cost? i'm guessing probably about a 5k mark hopefully? assuming it's had nothing major done to it? or maybe i should just buy any old one and have it rebuilt? assuming budget is not an issue what might be the better option?

i only wanna spend 12k on the car to start with because i want something fairly stock, that way i can build it up myself - not personally do everything myself obviously, but u know what i mean right? i want it to be as much my work as possible rather than buy something someone else has already done. that's fair isn't it? i don't need a 10 second car or anything though so i can't really justify buying a gtr.

but by the time you've spent $12k+ $10k+ doing up the 32 to get it reasonable, you could have bought a half decent 32GTR? Stock R32 gts-t are pretty unexciting.

Or you're looking at a $10k engine rb26 swap into the gts-t, with only moderate chance that the engine is good.

You're best bet is a gts-t already modified at around $15k.. and maybe just do a few minor things to get it the way you want. You can always sell the parts you don't want.

Slightly off topic, i'm considering buying a decent R31. However i have little to no experience in specs or models relatinf to the R31.

If anyone has ideas as what ot buy ect, looking to spend around 10k (on road)

jesus christ... read the 3rd post

4. You should buy my R31. It has lots of power (RB25DET) R32 GTSt brakes that can handle trackwork, and a full aftermarket suspension setup. $10k. No more mods needed, fully developed.

How old are you? What state do you live in? Realistically, how much can you afford to spend on a car upfront and how much per month to run it?

Questions that need to be answered before anyone can give you any real help in choosing a car.

I bought a r32 gtst, and im happy with it. Its no where near the fastest thing on the road, but its pretty quick and has done 80000km with me at the wheel and hasnt missed a beat.

And with a $12k budget, you cant afford anything else

Car $12000

Rego $500

Insurance $1500

Clutch when it lets go $700

etc etc etc.....

you should be able to find an R32 with a decent RB25DET conversion for 20K or less. they go pretty hard. if you start messing with 26's you start messing with $$$$$$$$$$$$. 25 is an easier/cheaper answer, ive just dropped a 25 in my 31 and its wild.

Or just get a modded 33 GTST for under 20k. Newer car, bit better put together inside, and they have a 25DET standard.

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