Jump to content
SAU Community

Recommended Posts

So i just bought a 2002 M35 Stagea and put it on my credit card.

I think i did pretty well on the price. Some will say way too cheap, there must be something wrong with it.

Truth is, it came from Plunket Rd car sales about a year ago and has been previously owned in Australia. I believe the former owner traded it in at a Holden Dealership and it ended up at Car City Ringwood.

I beat the guy down from $15K to $9.9K drive away and so im pretty happy that im not going to loose and money on it if i don't keep it too long.

Hopefully it will all work out. The car drove really nicely and the Turbo seems good.

A few points I'm looking for guidance on:

1. Transmittion has recently been serviced and the + and - are the wrong way around! push forward and it shifts down rather than up. is this simple to reverse the wires or something?

2. Aftermarket K&N air intake and filter. This is noisy as the cover plate on the filter box is removed. Can i get a cover for it?

Pictures here;

http://www.carsales.com.au/dealer/details/nissan-stagea-2002-11939566?vertical=Car&cr=1&eapi=2&__N=1216%201247%201252%201282%204294963846%204294960181%204294683075%20903&distance=25&silo=Stock&Range=Price:Min,Max~1|Mileage:Min,Max|Year:Min,Max|Seats:Min,Max|Power:Min,Max|TowingBrakes:Min,Max|EngineSize:Min,Max&sort=default

Thanks up front for any feedback.

Link to comment
https://www.sau.com.au/forums/topic/392928-5-spped-auto-and/
Share on other sites

  • Replies 93
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

A few points I'm looking for guidance on:

1. Transmittion has recently been serviced and the + and - are the wrong way around! push forward and it shifts down rather than up. is this simple to reverse the wires or something?

2. Aftermarket K&N air intake and filter. This is noisy as the cover plate on the filter box is removed. Can i get a cover for it?

Nice pick up. I reckon you're right about getting it for a good price - can't go wrong IMO.

re point 1. The previous owner did a very simple mod to CORRECT the way the gear box shifts in manual mode. Most on here will agree that it is more natural to push forward to shift down & pull back to change up (to do with G forces whilst braking/accelerating). This was the 1st mod I did on mine & I found it was so natural that I didn't have to look at the + / - markings, whereas before I was always looking because they are logically WRONG, lol.. If you really don't like it that way, it's easy to swap back. Just need to remove the centre console & you will see the switches with the wires.

re point 2. There maybe someone with one for sale. I have mine in a cupboard in case I want to put it back to stock. There is a small benefit in performance with it removed (especially if you put in the 'power duct' or homemade equivalent) but you will hear more induction noise. The thing is, if you intend to put a better exhaust on your car, you will find the induction noise will reduce heaps. On my car the induction noise (& over all noise) reduced to less than stock when I put an exhaust on.

Cheers, Leon.

I find the direction of the manual shift perfectly natural in standard form. Pulling the stick is like pulling down a gear and push forward for pushing up a gear. I wouldn't push forward to shift a gear down, doesn't seem right to move forward to go backwards a gear.

I find the direction of the manual shift perfectly natural in standard form. Pulling the stick is like pulling down a gear and push forward for pushing up a gear. I wouldn't push forward to shift a gear down, doesn't seem right to move forward to go backwards a gear.

Yeah, this subject is always polarised, but then I guess there's only 2 options, lol. There's plenty of manufacturers on either side of the camp.

Sequential g'boxes in rallying seem to be push forward to change down, & I feel much more comfortable doing the same. It's to do with the way braking forces act on your car/body (pushing you forward) as you slow down & change down thru the gears. Likewise, as you are forced back in your seat under acceleration, I find it more more natural to pull back to change up.

People can get used to doing it the opposite way (the way Nissan made it for our cars), but I (& many, many others) reckon the more natural way is the modded way. Try it, you may agree...:rolleyes:

Sequential g'boxes in rallying seem to be push forward to change down, & I feel much more comfortable doing the same. It's to do with the way braking forces act on your car/body (pushing you forward) as you slow down & change down thru the gears. Likewise, as you are forced back in your seat under acceleration, I find it more more natural to pull back to change up.

i think youre looking for the word 'inertia' :)

which agrees with the way we mostly have our cars setup, and not the way nissan (and skoda) says. i have paddles so i dont touch the selector now :P

I changed mine cause I always shifted the wrong way, because I'm so use to driving the 997 GT3 Cup car....ph34r.gif

tell the truth....you changed yours because you wanted to be awesome! Same reason you got that exhaust!

Great looking car, especially love the grille. Does the Nismo sticker mean anything?

Gear shift direction is definitely a personal thing. My sister has a HSV which is set up opposite to the Stag and one of the first things she commented to me was she wished it was the other way around. For those that have swapped the direction, can the + and - marks be swapped neatly or can they be removed? Otherwise this would be confusing to anyone else who may have to drive the car. I spose you could just ban anyone else from driving it biggrin.gif.

On a side note, gotta love accurate advertising. Looks more like an AR-X than a 250RS V, 139,000ks not 136,000, if it is rear drive type why does it have a snow button (OK, in the description it does say AWD), there's no dual climate button, the cruise, if it exists, must be aftermarket, and 4 speed.................why even bother writing anything.......... or am I being too picky? unsure.gif

Great looking car, especially love the grille. Does the Nismo sticker mean anything?

Gear shift direction is definitely a personal thing. My sister has a HSV which is set up opposite to the Stag and one of the first things she commented to me was she wished it was the other way around. For those that have swapped the direction, can the + and - marks be swapped neatly or can they be removed? Otherwise this would be confusing to anyone else who may have to drive the car. I spose you could just ban anyone else from driving it biggrin.gif.

On a side note, gotta love accurate advertising. Looks more like an AR-X than a 250RS V, 139,000ks not 136,000, if it is rear drive type why does it have a snow button (OK, in the description it does say AWD), there's no dual climate button, the cruise, if it exists, must be aftermarket, and 4 speed.................why even bother writing anything.......... or am I being too picky? unsure.gif

You can't really remove the OEM Markings; as they're etched into the Stainless gate surround.

You could probably get a sticker maker to do some little round stickers, or maybe even get them to do something on vinyl and wrap the gate surround (C/F or Metal effect film?):whistling:

Edited by Daleo

Thanks for the comments and feedback guys.

QJQ, your spot on with the comments re the bad description.

I'm sure its an AR-X (for sure its all wheel drive) and the AX-R is the one that gets the plastic guards right?

Cruise control? I don't think so. Dual zone climate control? Certainly not!

Maybe I should threaten the dealer under the trade descriptions act :rolleyes: then he can fit aftermarket cruise control for me!!

As for the plus and minus on the shift, i might change it back to stock the way Nissan intended. My V36 Coupe is the standard way around and now I'm perfectly comfortable with that; best keep them both the same way.

Guys, i have another question.

The standard stereo is coming out and will be replaced with a unit that has bluetooth phone connection. I'm wondering if its possible to remove the boost pressure and battery gauge at the same time and put in a double din head unit instead. Why exactly would I need the boost gauge anyway, the needle never moves on the gauges anyway.

The middle gauge for the battery works fine but the other two do nothing, is this normal?

Cheers

Chris

:thanks:

The torque split gauge only moves when there's a loss of traction; in a stocker, you won't see much action. Give it a punt on some dirt or grass; it'll move.

The boost gauge has an issue with dry solder joint's and Scotty did a "how to fix" on that, it's quite easy.

Link; http://www.skylinesaustralia.com/forums/topic/297345-m35-factory-boost-gauge-repair/page__p__4951320__hl__boost+sensor+fix__fromsearch__1#entry4951320

There's no reason why you can't remove them though.:thumbsup:

You can get a holder for the boost gauge and put it somehwere else.

Also, in a M35 the 3 gauges are joined together by a printed circuit board - big effort required (impossible?) to separate. And as Dale said, the boost gauge is close to useless for discerning exactly what's happening.

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now



  • Similar Content

  • Latest Posts

    • My dream is also to have a proper hoist, but I don't think it will ever happen. My quickjack is probably as close as I'll ever get, it really is very good though. 
    • Yeah we keep on in the dailies, it is pretty poor how many animals get hit and the driver leaves without checking....have saved a couple of little ones over the years. Bit of a gruesome job though, pouches generally need to be cut open because they are so tight and often the joey doesn't realise mum is gone so they are still locked onto the teat. I checked the modules in front of the DS wheel where an oil cooler should go.... There is the radar unit - that can go for race use) One of the 2 HX water pumps, the silver cylinder. That needs to be kept but might be able to be relocated But the bad news, the big computer mounted vertically in front of the wheel (blocking any potential air exit) is the electric steering computer. That is required until/unless i do a hydraulic steering conversion, and in CAD based modern car design it is not like I can just pop a big unit like that somewhere else (plus the loom would be too short anywhere else too). So, the passenger side is OK to clear out (just use a smaller washer reservoir, potentially elsewhere), but the DS no beuno
    • Well, all the best with the new camry It was interesting to hear about the UK process, it is generally a lot more streamlined here with a shipping agent looking after all the import side (noting the exact final price can still be a surprise.....) and I've used a few different brokers on the japan (or US) side, and never had any trouble with any of them....luck of the draw I guess. You mentioned you didn't get the auction sheet (understandable since you bought it from a dealer, not auction), but I always try and get hold of that because they are pretty thorough. I've imported 2x R grade vehicles over the years and both were fine, repairs in Japan are pretty thorough compared to here in Oz.
    • BTW I measured the jack I have, it is 70mm at the saddle but you only have about 700 until it returns to 150mm high at the cylinder so it is good but no magic bullet.
    • My experience with Rising Sun Exports Before agreeing to the sale I tried to do as much research as I could (obviously), his Facebook reviews are 98% and he goes Live at least once or twice a week. I contacted 2 people in the UK who had used him for their imports, both had positive feedback. His explanation and talk through of the import process was thorough, answering any query no matter how stupid it was. It felt as soon as the money was sent, communication dropped off. I asked for shipping updates every 2 weeks or so, not wanting to pester him, he never had any updates. I wasn't informed the car had been dropped off at the port, I only found out by his Facebook story. I asked for the photos taken at the port, knowing he would need some for insurance purposes. I received a few 5 second clips and that's it. When asked again, he said his staff had them. Weeks later I asked again, he tells me he doesn't have any, but does have 50 photos from the original advert. I never received them. I eventually got the documents sent via WhatsApp after I mentioned the port was requesting them. I purchased a CarVX report, to find out the vehicle is a Grade R with recorded accident damage, first recorded in 2017 when it was first auctioned. He never told me the grade, then again I didn't ask. His response was "Grade R means nothing, it wasn't chassis damage". Still, I would have liked to have been informed about it. Jon prides himself on being open and honest when it comes to inspecting cars, it's his main job doing so at the auctions for customers. When the vehicle arrived in the UK I noticed a few little cosmetic issues. It's a 21 year old car so it wasn't going to be mint condition. The side skirts are cracked on each corner and the sealant is failing. The front grill on the bonnet/hood isn't secured very well, mounting studs are missing. Both minor things, but again, it would have been nice to be told. During a Facebook Live walk around video of the vehicle, he mentioned it has a front Whiteline anti roll bar/sway bar. While on the inspection ramp, I noticed the stock item has been installed. When first questioned, his response was "the ARB? Switched? Since when, it never had them". Since sending video and photo evidence I've not received a response. I'm probably being over critical of the overall condition of an old car, but all I wanted was honesty (which he claims to have). I'm aware I wasn't his only customer, he's busy doing XYZ but other reviews praise him for great communication with regular updates and photos, I felt I didn't receive the same treatment. 
×
×
  • Create New...