R32 Gtr Track Weapon

[dkvmatt]

Well im looking at getting a gtr to build into a fun weekender/ track day weapon. Im trying to decide between a r32 and r34... yes yes I know worlds apart but the way I see it, the simplicity and lighter weight of a 32 would make it more suited to modding?

would I be correct?

All opinions wanted.

Yes I want gtr for 2wd/4wd fun ness

[Hornet2572]

I bought a 32 GTR for this exact purpose about 12 months ago and have been having a blast in it. I have taken it to the drags, entered it in motorkhana events, and taken it around circuits on track days and it has been able to handle everything with ease. Then on the weekends or days I'm off work, the wife and I have toured the countryside in it, sometimes 5 and 6 hour stints driving at a time and it has been a pleasure the whole time. In my experience (others may disagree), if there is a part on the car you need fixed/replaced/repaired, it can be quite expensive to get the original bits, but if you're upgrading those bits with aftermarket toys, then it is no more expensive than any other car you modify. The 32's are getting quite old now, so bushes, steering/suspension etc are all starting to get well worn, so they are pretty much a definite expense if you're going to take it to the track etc, but like I said, you'd probably do the same for any other car you want to mod as well.

Good luck with it

[niZmO_Man]

What suspension do you run?

[djr81]

I bought a 32 GTR for this exact purpose about 10 years ago and have been having a miserable time of it. I have taken it around circuits on track days and it hasnt been able to handle everything with ease. Then on the weekends or days I'm off work it sits in the shed unloved and it has been a pita the whole time. In my experience (others may disagree), if there is a part on the car you need fixed/replaced/repaired (And there will be), it can be impossible to get the original bits which are rubbish anyway, but if you're upgrading those bits with aftermarket toys, then it gets much more expensive than any other car you modify. The 32's are getting quite old now, so bushes, steering/suspension and everything else etc are all starting to get well worn, so they are pretty much a definite expense if you're going to take it to the track etc, but like I said, you'd probably do the same for any other car you want to mod as well.

So, in summary if you want a fun weekend car dont get a GTR. They arent particularly fun to drive. They are expensive to campaign and not particularly robust in a few critical areas. They are now old and finding a good one is alot of work. There are alot of them about which means you will always be outdone by someone with a bazillion horsepower version of the same thing you have. If you modify them sufficiently to work on a track well then they arent any fun on the road.

I would go look for something a little different and cheaper.

[Sinista32]

IMHO Both the posts above are correct in regards to the R32 GTR

You can buy one all sorted ($$$$) or you can buy one cheaper and spend heaps sorting it out and being pissed-off a lot.

Maybe an Evo VIII would suit your wants better.

Although if your considering an R34 GTR ($40 to 50k) you could spend around $30k-$40k to get a well sorted R32GTR.

[djr81]

Show me one that is sorted and for sale.

[Sinista32]

Touche' from what's on the market ATM I cant

If you have one you wouldn't sell.

The cost of building is far more than the price you would be offered or the market will bare.

[gtr jet]

I should know. I've been tracking my 32 GTR for the last 2 years now and if I had my time a gain I would have chosen something a little cheaper and more maintenance friendly.

[RBN1]

Touche' from what's on the market ATM I cant

If you have one you wouldn't sell.

The cost of building is far more than the price you would be offered or the market will bare.

Too true.

Putting the cost for initial purchase aside. Costs for building a 32/33/34 GTR are pretty much the same seeing as they're all basically the same car.

20k for a not totally screwed 32GTR , 25k for 33 GTR and 40k ish for a not totally screwed 34 GTR base car. I thought about re-shelling into a 34R chassis when I started my build but decided against it. In the grand scheme of things it wasn't much extra $ but I was just being stubborn about fixing the car I had sitting in the garage for 7-8 years.

I've noticed a few built cars being parted out lately instead of being sold outright. Smart move as ppl recover more money that way. Be crazy to sell one all modded but they do show up (although rarely).

[djr81]

The only well sorted one I saw recently was a 33 for $40k or thereabouts. The for sale thread was full of people whinging about the price.

[dkvmatt]

I currently have a VZ commodore with a cam so im used to driving something with very little road manors.

1 though a 32 would be better as a base because it would leave more money to mod it to a good spec.

It wouldn't be my daily so if it spends some weeks broken I don't mind. Only issue is parts availability and cost, I see most of these aftermarket sites have a lot of good stuff ex japan. Is that where most people get their stuff?

I think biggest issue is finding an R32 with no rust.

Keep the opinions coming guys.

Just FYI...

Im not talking competitive racing, I mean just boring little track days just for some fun on a circuit

GTRs only I know the S chassis would be good but I want a 6 meaning RB none of that VG stuff

Edited May 13, 2014 by dkvmatt

[stig0000]

I have a gtr and a evo 8, the 8 is prity much better in allways bar relabilaty, the r32 driveline is so much stronger i think, the evo tho is 20yrs newer, so its very good as a daily, and much more moden suspenion and inside its a much nicer place, havent had a chance to take the evo to the track yet, tho all time atack cars are prity much evos so that tells a story? I love my gtr tho every one has told me once i take my evo on the track il be a changed man

[gtr jet]

Have you considered something with an RB25 in it? I know it's no GTR but much cheaper to race.

I don't think I could get rid of my GTR now as I love it but it's not a cheap car to mod.

[Hornet2572]

I bought a 32 GTR for this exact purpose about 10 years ago and have been having a miserable time of it. I have taken it around circuits on track days and it hasnt been able to handle everything with ease. Then on the weekends or days I'm off work it sits in the shed unloved and it has been a pita the whole time. In my experience (others may disagree), if there is a part on the car you need fixed/replaced/repaired (And there will be), it can be impossible to get the original bits which are rubbish anyway, but if you're upgrading those bits with aftermarket toys, then it gets much more expensive than any other car you modify. The 32's are getting quite old now, so bushes, steering/suspension and everything else etc are all starting to get well worn, so they are pretty much a definite expense if you're going to take it to the track etc, but like I said, you'd probably do the same for any other car you want to mod as well.

So, in summary if you want a fun weekend car dont get a GTR. They arent particularly fun to drive. They are expensive to campaign and not particularly robust in a few critical areas. They are now old and finding a good one is alot of work. There are alot of them about which means you will always be outdone by someone with a bazillion horsepower version of the same thing you have. If you modify them sufficiently to work on a track well then they arent any fun on the road.

I would go look for something a little different and cheaper.

Lol, nice... We have obviously had very different experiences.

[Leroy Peterson]

do you know anyone who go to track days? ask for a few passenger laps and speak to them about it.

some people fall in love with 32GTR and its worth the money and time off the road to them. While others just want to get out there regularly, reliably and/or with small, agile cars that are cheaper to run, sometimes more fun and arguably help people with less track experience get a grip on things

[djr81]

Lol, nice... We have obviously had very different experiences.

Yeah well I was probably overstating it a bit but it depends on what the original poster means by "fun". Because you can have fun in just about anything. Conversely if your idea of fun is to generate some good lap times a GTR is not light, nor is it cheap, nor is it simple. But then again neither are most things. The faster you want to go the more expensive, the more complex and the more difficult it gets.

Hell I've been to track days and had a miserable time of it only to bump into someone loving life who is in much the same car, just 5 seconds a lap slower.

At the end of the day car selection isnt a particularly rational. You buy what you love and try and make it work. If it were me and I had the coin I would go the 34. But I would also look at an FD, a Westfield, a hachi roku (New or old, dont care), a GTST and a gutted AU six. All of which can be fun, depending on your outlook.

[djr81]

I currently have a VZ commodore with a cam so im used to driving something with very little road manors.

1 though a 32 would be better as a base because it would leave more money to mod it to a good spec.

It wouldn't be my daily so if it spends some weeks broken I don't mind. Only issue is parts availability and cost, I see most of these aftermarket sites have a lot of good stuff ex japan. Is that where most people get their stuff?

I think biggest issue is finding an R32 with no rust.

Keep the opinions coming guys.

Just FYI...

Im not talking competitive racing, I mean just boring little track days just for some fun on a circuit

GTRs only I know the S chassis would be good but I want a 6 meaning RB none of that VG stuff

There are plenty of parts available - you wont be stuck for choice. But the number of thing needing modiying and extensive modifications at that if you want to go properly fast is long.

By the way R32s GTR's dont really rust - you shouldnt have a problem with that. Dont know what your looking at, however.

[mad082]

Have you considered something with an RB25 in it? I know it's no GTR but much cheaper to race.

I don't think I could get rid of my GTR now as I love it but it's not a cheap car to mod.

This. For the cost of just buying a gtr you could have a built gtst that will blow the doors off a stock or mild gtr.

[Hornet2572]

Yeah well I was probably overstating it a bit but it depends on what the original poster means by "fun". ..........

Hell I've been to track days and had a miserable time of it only to bump into someone loving life who is in much the same car, just 5 seconds a lap slower.

This is exactly me... I could come dead last on the time sheet, and be outdone by just about anyone in anything, and still have a stupid grin from ear to ear.

In some of the events I have entered, I have been competitive, and in others, woeful, but I enjoy it all the same. The work I have had done on the GTR is on par price-wise with the work I have had done on previously owned cars. As you said, it just comes down to what you want to do I guess.

[LotusGTR]

I've owned 2 R32 GTRs. One was a peach and gave me no trouble at all. It was the second car I owned so I kinda knew the journey ahead and made good decisions re mods and maintenance. It was the best car I ever owned, and I sold it, to my lasting regret and only to see it come up for sale again with a haircut and dodgy fake stickers on it. It was only ever a fast road car and never saw the track. I still have my other 32R, which is heavily modified and that ownership experience has been a very expensive love hate thing. They are are very resource hungry car, and on the track they are heavy and powerful and everything gets stressed and will break unless you've sorted it. Oil management and brakes are your immediate drama on the track. Right now it sits in storage as I'm a little over it, but I love it too much to let it go and certainly I'd never sell it for the pittance I'd get today.

Go buy a 996 GT3 for $100k. You'll do everything you want with just tyres, pads and oil forever and then sell it for $90k when you're done. With the GTR you'll but it for $20k, spend $30k fixing it, and sell it for $20k and spend a lot of time being let down by it. Just got the find the $100k in the first place

If I had my time again I'd not buy a GTR. But perversely, I'm happy that I did...Work that out.