Unpeeling the Orange

[sunsetR33]

Hi all.

I already posted some newbie-ish questions here and there but this will be my first "big" post.
Last summer I went and fulfilled a kind of childhood wish, because I just thought I needed this experience in my life no matter what.
The car I bought is a mildly modded 1995 BCNR33 Vspec.
It was repainted to a metallic orange color all around and it had all windows reseated. Not so well done black respray in the trunk and a metallic black in the engine bay. From outside it looks very nice except for a minor paint error on the roof and the rear spats needing new adhesive tape. The inside is pretty clean and no broken plastics, missing or faded buttons. Even the adjustable mirrors and trunk antenna work like a charm.

Despite a moderately long list of issues I don't (yet) regret buying this car. Most mechanical problems are just due to age, like worn rubbers here and there. The underside sadly has lots of corrosion, especially to the back. It looks like it either has been driven in the winter for a while or it lived near the saltwater in Japan, the rust is nothing terrible but it'll require to be looked after. Mostly panel gaps and all the mounted components underneath are a bit crusty, but I don't think anywhere has progressed so badly that there's going to be holes. Front right jacking rail is crushed and needs some care so it doesn't develop into a rust crater at some point.
Worst part is definitely the strut towers. I thought they looked fine but after taking off the strut bar I noticed that it actually started bulging up on the passenger side. Probably would have passed on the car or negotiated down by some thousand Euros more if I had noticed this before buying, but here we are. Trunk area also has signs that there was a water leak to the interior once but nothing too crazy, I guess lots of Skylines had this at some point.

As for the list of (known) issues, I'll try to make this compact. I hope the coloring is self explanatory.

Mechanical:
-Various busted or soon-to-be busted rubber bushings and ball joints. Will replace ball joints with OEM or better and bushings with polyurethane where possible.
-Shaking steering wheel at above 80kph
-downshift from 5th to 4th is a bit crunchy unless I rev-match, might just try to renew the shifter assembly, but it's not a priority issue
-tailshaft centre bearing could use a replacement, is it worth going 1-piece tailshaft as it doesn't look too fresh all around?

Chassis:
-underbody corrosion on many spots and in hollow spaces, needs to be treated
-corrosion on many bolts, hoses, lines, suspension components, subframes, will be treated when replacing of the bushings is needed as time goes on
-strut tower top panels and some of the surrounding panels are rusty, so needs fixing. Will look into doing this with a buddy in the winter, otherwise bite the bullet and pay a professional
-driver side door is misaligned to the body and needs to go a slight bit more inwards
-both door windows are misaligned and have an airgap where the window meets the door at the B pillar
-The Aerocatch latches for the bonnet have locks but no keys, need new keys.
-driver side door window is kind of gritty and could use a polish
-damaged jacking rails and front frame rails, from people lifting the car the wrong way, might have this fixed by a bodyshop

Electrical:
-Nismo tachometer is just bouncing and displaying nonsense, supposedly worked fine when the stock ECU was still in the car
-An old Greddy boost controller sits on the dash which will be removed as it servers no purpose anymore.
-a led segment rpm gauge is on the steering column, will probably also be (re-)moved once the Nismo tacho is working correctly
-there was an attempt to make the sound system better by the previous owner but it was just inducing noise all the time, ripped out the amp and filters in the back, no music for now
-trunk antenna goes up as long as the radio is on regardless of the mode, I want it to only rise if I choose Radio specifically or per switch
-3rd brake light is a bit dimmer than the taillights but everything was converted to LEDs so mabye now it just seems dimmer?
-reverse light flickers, have to test if that behavior changes when I fiddle with the gear stick. Hope I can get around changing the switch.
-Left side taillight, blinker section has minor water intake and is humid after washing. Other side has a hole in it, probably for that exact reason. I'll probably reseal them entirely and plug the holes.

Engine:
-minor coolant drips on one or the other hose
-rear turbo leaks oil onto the exhaust making the car essentially undriveable due to fire hazard
-Oil filter relocation kit has an oil drip at the Dash lines, will probably make a new connection there and tighten real good and pray
-throttle body assembly is slightly stuck for the first throttle pedal input after sitting for a while

I'm always open to suggestions and advice from more experienced people, I'm sure half of this list is easily dealt with and just requires some time and effort to sort out properly.
Once I have some proper pictures of the car I will post some in this thread, I just have to remember to take some more once I get the chance to.

Will post updates when I have news on anything, I want to try to keep this thread as kind of a logbook as well.
Ultimately my goal for this car is to just enjoy it. An engine rebuild is probably going to happen sometime as well, because it is old after all. It will never be fully new again, I am just not that rich. But I want it to look good, work well and not rot away while I drive it. I'm probably gonna spend a lot of money on this journey, hopefully not an unreasonable amount.

[Kinkstaah]

6 hours ago, sunsetR33 said:

 because I just thought I needed this experience in my life no matter what.

Welp, you've got a long list of experiences right there. I'd say you're on the right path.

[joshuaho96]

6 hours ago, sunsetR33 said:

Hi all.

I already posted some newbie-ish questions here and there but this will be my first "big" post.
Last summer I went and fulfilled a kind of childhood wish, because I just thought I needed this experience in my life no matter what.
The car I bought is a mildly modded 1995 BCNR33 Vspec.
It was repainted to a metallic orange color all around and it had all windows reseated. Not so well done black respray in the trunk and a metallic black in the engine bay. From outside it looks very nice except for a minor paint error on the roof and the rear spats needing new adhesive tape. The inside is pretty clean and no broken plastics, missing or faded buttons. Even the adjustable mirrors and trunk antenna work like a charm.

Despite a moderately long list of issues I don't (yet) regret buying this car. Most mechanical problems are just due to age, like worn rubbers here and there. The underside sadly has lots of corrosion, especially to the back. It looks like it either has been driven in the winter for a while or it lived near the saltwater in Japan, the rust is nothing terrible but it'll require to be looked after. Mostly panel gaps and all the mounted components underneath are a bit crusty, but I don't think anywhere has progressed so badly that there's going to be holes. Front right jacking rail is crushed and needs some care so it doesn't develop into a rust crater at some point.
Worst part is definitely the strut towers. I thought they looked fine but after taking off the strut bar I noticed that it actually started bulging up on the passenger side. Probably would have passed on the car or negotiated down by some thousand Euros more if I had noticed this before buying, but here we are. Trunk area also has signs that there was a water leak to the interior once but nothing too crazy, I guess lots of Skylines had this at some point.

As for the list of (known) issues, I'll try to make this compact. I hope the coloring is self explanatory.

Mechanical:
-Various busted or soon-to-be busted rubber bushings and ball joints. Will replace ball joints with OEM or better and bushings with polyurethane where possible.
-Shaking steering wheel at above 80kph
-downshift from 5th to 4th is a bit crunchy unless I rev-match, might just try to renew the shifter assembly, but it's not a priority issue
-tailshaft centre bearing could use a replacement, is it worth going 1-piece tailshaft as it doesn't look too fresh all around?

Chassis:
-underbody corrosion on many spots and in hollow spaces, needs to be treated
-corrosion on many bolts, hoses, lines, suspension components, subframes, will be treated when replacing of the bushings is needed as time goes on
-strut tower top panels and some of the surrounding panels are rusty, so needs fixing. Will look into doing this with a buddy in the winter, otherwise bite the bullet and pay a professional
-driver side door is misaligned to the body and needs to go a slight bit more inwards
-both door windows are misaligned and have an airgap where the window meets the door at the B pillar
-The Aerocatch latches for the bonnet have locks but no keys, need new keys.
-driver side door window is kind of gritty and could use a polish
-damaged jacking rails and front frame rails, from people lifting the car the wrong way, might have this fixed by a bodyshop

Electrical:
-Nismo tachometer is just bouncing and displaying nonsense, supposedly worked fine when the stock ECU was still in the car
-An old Greddy boost controller sits on the dash which will be removed as it servers no purpose anymore.
-a led segment rpm gauge is on the steering column, will probably also be (re-)moved once the Nismo tacho is working correctly
-there was an attempt to make the sound system better by the previous owner but it was just inducing noise all the time, ripped out the amp and filters in the back, no music for now
-trunk antenna goes up as long as the radio is on regardless of the mode, I want it to only rise if I choose Radio specifically or per switch
-3rd brake light is a bit dimmer than the taillights but everything was converted to LEDs so mabye now it just seems dimmer?
-reverse light flickers, have to test if that behavior changes when I fiddle with the gear stick. Hope I can get around changing the switch.
-Left side taillight, blinker section has minor water intake and is humid after washing. Other side has a hole in it, probably for that exact reason. I'll probably reseal them entirely and plug the holes.

Engine:
-minor coolant drips on one or the other hose
-rear turbo leaks oil onto the exhaust making the car essentially undriveable due to fire hazard
-Oil filter relocation kit has an oil drip at the Dash lines, will probably make a new connection there and tighten real good and pray
-throttle body assembly is slightly stuck for the first throttle pedal input after sitting for a while

I'm always open to suggestions and advice from more experienced people, I'm sure half of this list is easily dealt with and just requires some time and effort to sort out properly.
Once I have some proper pictures of the car I will post some in this thread, I just have to remember to take some more once I get the chance to.

Will post updates when I have news on anything, I want to try to keep this thread as kind of a logbook as well.
Ultimately my goal for this car is to just enjoy it. An engine rebuild is probably going to happen sometime as well, because it is old after all. It will never be fully new again, I am just not that rich. But I want it to look good, work well and not rot away while I drive it. I'm probably gonna spend a lot of money on this journey, hopefully not an unreasonable amount.

One piece driveshaft I would recommend a dual CV setup otherwise stick to OEM. I have heard most one piece driveshafts cause excess vibration otherwise. The transmission grind I'm quite familiar with. You can try shockproof gear oil, otherwise you need a new transmission. The shifter is extremely simple on these cars. If you want pull apart the assembly and replace the plastic bushing but I doubt that fixes anything. The tail light issue is very common, unfortunately new tail lights are long discontinued. The trunk antenna going up always is because your radio doesn't have a true power antenna control, just remote amp power signal. There is a blank switch plate that you can pop out and install a switch for this or alternatively source a head unit that has proper antenna control. Throttle body sticking you have to disambiguate by disconnecting the cable and seeing if the linkages are the problem or something else. There is a procedure to adjust them, refreshing them is also somewhat involved if that's the issue.

I have dealt with many of these issues. Old cars really are fractals of problems. The more you fix the more you discover there is to fix.

[sunsetR33]

3 hours ago, Kinkstaah said:

Welp, you've got a long list of experiences right there. I'd say you're on the right path.

Hell, I know that much. So far I just put it off as "part of the deal".

[sunsetR33]

3 hours ago, joshuaho96 said:

I have dealt with many of these issues. Old cars really are fractals of problems. The more you fix the more you discover there is to fix.

You're probably right about that one.

Thanks for your suggestions, I hope I don't need a new 3rd brake light. Although wiring issues might arguably be worse.

Right now I'm in the midst of a turbo removal because of my oil leak, other problems are going to have to wait for now.

[sunsetR33]

Update 1:

I did some work on the car already before finalizing this post and my "issues" list.

I dropped the Tomei exhaust in favor of the HKS Hi Power Silent. Sounds nice and I can actually hear myself think now. Also gives me a realistic chance to legally drive without silencer inserts. A bit of cheating was necessary to still be able to mount the Top Secret style diffuser. Some malusage of washers and a bit of "convincing" toward the brackets and exhaust hanger seemed to do the trick.

The shaky steering wheel has been resolved as various suspension components were worn, like sway bar bushings and link bars. Most notably the two steering tie rod ends.

Had some trouble finding bushings because my sway bars are not OEM thickness, 23.x up front and 27 rear. But non adjustable, so no aftermarket I suppose. Maybe they are nismo units?

Turbo oil drain hoses were definitely still the originals and are new now. Wasn't the cause of the turbo oil leak sadly. Currently removing the rear turbo because of it, I suspect the braided oil feed line is the culprit. This issue needs to be dealt with so I can work towards actually getting the turbo setup legal and inspected.

Two new issues to add to the list as well.

Rear Main seal is probably leaking. Time will show how bad it is, I don't really want to drop the gearbox right now just for the stupid seal. Could fix a few other things in one go once I do that.

Front right driveshaft grease is going past the cv boot, so at some point I'll fix that too.

[r32-25t]

If you’re in Australia and need a one piece tail shaft give propeller shaft repairs in concord a call. They do all the big Sydney cars and they don’t vibrate at all

don’t get one either cv joints, they bind and cause the vibrations 

[sunsetR33]

1 hour ago, r32-25t said:

If you’re in Australia and need a one piece tail shaft give propeller shaft repairs in concord a call.

Unfortunately I am quite literally halfway across the globe. So all sources for parts like that are far away for me.

1 hour ago, r32-25t said:

don’t get one either cv joints, they bind and cause the vibrations 

What do you mean by that exactly?

[r32-25t]

The once piece tail shafts with cv type joints on either end are the ones that end up vibrating and the vibration is caused by the cv joint binding as it turns, I’ve also seen them explode from the binding 

[sunsetR33]

23 hours ago, r32-25t said:

The once piece tail shafts with cv type joints on either end are the ones that end up vibrating and the vibration is caused by the cv joint binding as it turns, I’ve also seen them explode from the binding 

Alright I understand. The most likely case is probably gonna be that I just keep the OEM unit in the car as long as it works.

[joshuaho96]

On 27/04/2025 at 2:35 PM, r32-25t said:

If you’re in Australia and need a one piece tail shaft give propeller shaft repairs in concord a call. They do all the big Sydney cars and they don’t vibrate at all

don’t get one either cv joints, they bind and cause the vibrations 

Are you referring to the common front u-joint + rear CV setup I see sold everywhere? I have a front + rear CV driveshaft on order but if this thing is going to bind I'm just going to leave it as shelf art.

[sunsetR33]

Update 2:

Today I'm f**king pissed.
Some of you probably saw my thread that I opened shortly after joining this forum, "urgently need expert/experienced opinion", in which I discussed the possibility of a porous RB26 engine block which I also found hard to believe.

Currently both turbos are out since the shitty braided line that was installed by whoever fitted the GT28 turbos leaked oil onto the exhaust. Today while working on the cam covers to put new gaskets and half moons in, I cleaned the side of the engine block with brake cleaner.
Some time later I saw that it was still glistening with oil or coolant so I dried that off. But it was wet again shortly after.
Verdict: I'm royally screwed.

What you can see here (hopefully, despite shit resolution), circled in red, is a crack above the turbo oil feed. Extent is a few cm long and basically goes from #3 cylinder wall to #4 cylinder wall. It slowly lets coolant through, even without any pressure behind it. I am absolutely dumbfounded as to how this crack even formed, especially since it isn't along the cylinder as it usually is but rather a horizontal crack. Probably a few cm in length. Not sure on how to deal with this issue right now. Most likely, the only true fix is a new engine block, and even a relatively well done temporary fix requires at least a full engine teardown. Neither of those really fit my timetable right now, the car has been in my buddy's garage long enough as it is.

I'm open to suggestions, but I'll be looking into ordering a new 05U block soon so I have one ready for the coming year, or whenever the current block inevitably fails fully. (Most likely once the crack reaches one of the frost plugs)
I think it'd be a waste of money and time to rebuild the engine with this block.

Oh and I found a rust hole on the side pocket of the trunk, which someone covered up with sealant goop, a piece of number plate and bodywork filler. Fun times.
So far for every issue we fix we just find a new one that is arguably worse.

[GTSBoy]

That could be drilled, ground and welded. Would stop it progressing and leaking. But that block shouldn't be pushed very hard, as what you see there is a massive warning sign.

But that fix also isn't going to happen properly with the engine in the car, and assembled. So you're looking at anew block if you're doing all that work anyway.

[joshuaho96]

5 hours ago, sunsetR33 said:

Update 2:

Today I'm f**king pissed.
Some of you probably saw my thread that I opened shortly after joining this forum, "urgently need expert/experienced opinion", in which I discussed the possibility of a porous RB26 engine block which I also found hard to believe.

Currently both turbos are out since the shitty braided line that was installed by whoever fitted the GT28 turbos leaked oil onto the exhaust. Today while working on the cam covers to put new gaskets and half moons in, I cleaned the side of the engine block with brake cleaner.
Some time later I saw that it was still glistening with oil or coolant so I dried that off. But it was wet again shortly after.
Verdict: I'm royally screwed.

What you can see here (hopefully, despite shit resolution), circled in red, is a crack above the turbo oil feed. Extent is a few cm long and basically goes from #3 cylinder wall to #4 cylinder wall. It slowly lets coolant through, even without any pressure behind it. I am absolutely dumbfounded as to how this crack even formed, especially since it isn't along the cylinder as it usually is but rather a horizontal crack. Probably a few cm in length. Not sure on how to deal with this issue right now. Most likely, the only true fix is a new engine block, and even a relatively well done temporary fix requires at least a full engine teardown. Neither of those really fit my timetable right now, the car has been in my buddy's garage long enough as it is.

I'm open to suggestions, but I'll be looking into ordering a new 05U block soon so I have one ready for the coming year, or whenever the current block inevitably fails fully. (Most likely once the crack reaches one of the frost plugs)
I think it'd be a waste of money and time to rebuild the engine with this block.

Oh and I found a rust hole on the side pocket of the trunk, which someone covered up with sealant goop, a piece of number plate and bodywork filler. Fun times.
So far for every issue we fix we just find a new one that is arguably worse.

New engine block time. Up to you whether you want to keep going down this road with this project. Unfortunately a lot of these cars are like this. The road to getting these cars into decent shape is long and not fun for reasons that you're discovering. 

[r32-25t]

Lucky the prp block is supposed to be released next weekend 

[GTSBoy]

52 minutes ago, r32-25t said:

Lucky the prp block is supposed to be released next weekend 

I'll go talk to my bank manager. Either that or my nearest western Sydney drug baron.

[r32-25t]

The prices I’ve heard aren’t that bad 

[sunsetR33]

12 hours ago, GTSBoy said:

That could be drilled, ground and welded. Would stop it progressing and leaking. But that block shouldn't be pushed very hard, as what you see there is a massive warning sign.

But that fix also isn't going to happen properly with the engine in the car, and assembled. So you're looking at anew block if you're doing all that work anyway.

Yeah but even that repair will take time and I wouldn't trust that block enough to put a full rebuild into it just for it to fail sometime again. So I think I will just mend it from the outside and drive it until I can get a new engine in the car. We'll see

[sunsetR33]

10 hours ago, joshuaho96 said:

New engine block time. Up to you whether you want to keep going down this road with this project. Unfortunately a lot of these cars are like this. The road to getting these cars into decent shape is long and not fun for reasons that you're discovering. 

Sad part is many issues only became apparent once I had the car and started looking real close. And if the turbo hadn't oiled on my exhaust I might not even have noticed the crack.

If I were to (honestly) sell this car, with the current issues it has I'd lose a ton of money. Might as well invest into the car instead.

[sunsetR33]

2 hours ago, r32-25t said:

Lucky the prp block is supposed to be released next weekend 

1 hour ago, GTSBoy said:

I'll go talk to my bank manager. Either that or my nearest western Sydney drug baron.

1 hour ago, r32-25t said:

The prices I’ve heard aren’t that bad 

Yeah but even then I'd have to wait until my "chance" comes around as they go through their signup list. And even the street "normal" version of their block will cost twice the amount for a new heritage 05U block. Once I get these blocks a PRP one would net me 7500€ probably and a 05U likely around 3500€.

Both of these are questionable as to when I'd get one as well. Currently I think buying an engine locally, of which there are some available with various mods and prices, would be cheaper. Can also sell my engine as a partout then afterwards.