Hey gang.

I'm looking at getting my "dream" car, I use that term loosely because who is ever 100% satisfied with their current car? I thought I was.

I currently drive a 2005 Dodge SRT4 with upgraded....well...a lot. 400whp on E85, smokes tires, blah blah blah. The car is just violent and unrefined, totally love it. I'm afraid that if I were to sell the SRT (I'm guessing low end 8k, upper end 10k) all I could get would be a GTST in good to very good condition, leaving me with the RB20DET. Body work isn't an issue, brother-in-law will do it for free if he can drive the car and we're both, when combined, a decent mechanic. We did all the work on both our SRT's.

Is this motor going to bore me to tears? The car will have to looks, but will it have the balls? I know the first response will be "Get a GTR", and I agree! But financially I can't fund an extra $10k just to get an "ok" GTR and then the upkeep. The GTST I can afford the car, upkeep, and mods! The GTST could, hopefully, hold me over through grad school and allow me to save for a R33/R34 GTR.

What say you community? Go with the GTST or just say screw it and wait 3-5 years to buy a GTR outright? My only issue is the longer I wait, the lower my current cars value drops.

Thanks! Any questions for me just ask away.



Oh...not to mention my wife is due in May! This might be the last "big one" I can slip by her!

The chassis will make you hate your old car's, but the engine will bore the hell out of you based on what you are stepping out of. 400 is about it for an RB20 and it is wrung to within an inch of its life and there's just no more breath left in the head. You could get the T now and plan on swapping in a 25 or 26 at a later date. The T is infinitely easier to maintain than the R, and I would argue, more fun because of it.

Yup. Totally see your points.

Now the problem is finding one. I have a truck and trailer so going to Canada is no big deal. Just....have....to...find...it.

You're going to hate hearing this but you could do what I did. I had a 2011 VW GTI 6-spd that I loved like the d!ck but in order to fund my purchase of the GTR, I sold it before the value of it could drop any more and bought a beater Ford Escape. I hate driving that Ford Escape more than fat kids hate eating veggies. I do appreciate that I'm able to haul stuff in it, though. So sell the SRT4 now, buy a cheap get-around beater and save your $$ for later when you can afford exactly what you want without compromise. Just remind yourself every day that you have a GTR coming while you get no respect, your new baby laughs at you, and you cry manly tears driving around in a POS.

Well I did buy a POS 2004 Chevy Cavalier for $600. She's rusty around the doors, NONE of the guages work (literally, none of them), and the CD player works when it wants.

But she starts every day and gets me to work in the winter. It's actually sort of a snow beast, believe it or not!

I've contacted a lot of people I found on the forum today (shops and such) to see what can be had for my price range. I only owe $1500 on the SRT. Betting I could keep that, buy a GTST, and buy the wife a brand new SUV and she'd forget about my toys....for a while....

I'm thinking the RB20 at 300-350whp would still be fun as s***. I'd just run the thing on E85, bigger turbo, and roll from there. The more s*** I break, the more "I have to fix it" excuse works for the wife (did that with the SRT a few times).

Don't sink the cash into the RB20. That's coming from someone who had and loved his. Keep the RB20 stock and get the body sorted for when you swap in a 26.

I'll look into a RB26 swap then. Haven't read much on it except snippets here and there, no big write ups. Totally into getting a GTST now and saving for a R33/R34 GTR. Maybe it'll be my MSN degree present to myself along with a nice big garage.

I've had lots of modded cars in the past, I sold my S13 and bought an R32 GTST for $8500 which needed a little paint. I had to wait 9 months for that car to arrive for the price (tax,tag and titled included in that price). So in that time I was w/o a toy car, I would definitely advise making sure that Cavy is reliable specially if she is preganant as if you have to wait you don't want to be stuck w/o a method of transportation.

Reading that you do body work, I would consider buying a R32 GTR, but here is the kicker get one that needs some Minor rust repair. Rivsu and GTR garage import cars that need work for a more "budget" car if you watch some of the stuff they post. If you can polish up the rust pretty cheaply it isn't hard to get into a GTR for as little as 13k with low miles and low rust. My GTST didn't have any, but it is one of the few things I suck at fixing so that was a more critical component to me.

I'm very happy with the power my GTST is putting out, It is basically stock, but probably could use a good tune right about now since I changed to a FMIC and bigger fuel pump. That said, a R33 GTT turbo, bigger injectors, and tune (Rom tune is fine for this) should get you into the 300s pretty reasonably for another 5-600 bucks from where I'm at right now.

It isn't car I would want to daily drive here, but it is fun to drive around on the weekends and after work when I have had a long day.

Either way you can't go wrong. if you do intend on doing a lot of daily driving with it, I would start with a clean GTST and get used to driving on the "wrong side" and learning the perspectives of driving form there. Then building as you go.

ca18detgabby wrote:Reading that you do body work, I would consider buying a R32 GTR, but here is the kicker get one that needs some Minor rust repair.

That' about 30% of them. 60% need major rust repair. The final 10% are parts cars that drive.

My GTST didn't have 1 drop of rust on it. Not in the spare tire well, not on the frame rails and not even under the battery. I have only owned 1 other nissan w/o rust under the battery tray, and that was a G35. The car was bought at Auction via Rivsu and it was 3.5 Grade due to the paint condition (Sun Faded and discolored) .

granted I have probably only seen 40 or so come through Rivsu (they are 8 mins from my door so I go over on a regular basis to see whats new) and other than maybe 1 or 2 cars that customers knew they were buying buckets, they have all been pretty damn nice. Nicer than any of the 240s I have owned.

Assuming they are bought from the right side of the island, the rust really isn't as bad as people seem to make it out to be. There was 1 that came in with obvious rust problems and the guy "had to have that one", I think he paid just a little more than me and the car obviously showed it.

PS I have really gotten into the 200ZR's. Idk why, but those are very neat cars.

You mean the Z31 with the RB20DET?

yep, they brought 1 in when my car came in for one of the other locals. Love the retro interior they have.

I worked on one of those and it's amaging to me how Nissan managed to make an I6 as impossible to work around as a V6! What a PITA it was!

Well I budgeted the car this way:

GTR - $13k with needing moderate rust repair or fiberglass repair. $15k if it just needs paint. Obviously good mechanical condition.
GTST - $7k with rust repair. $9k for paint. Same as above.

Probably asking for a lot there but I can wait. If it means I have to buy a 1990 for cheaper and wait until August-November, so be it. I want a GTR but you know....it's just going to be a BIGGER money pit than the GTST and my wife would go insane. I can get by with a GTST until I finish my grad degree, then blow my cash on a R34 GTR. Owning the GTST will just make me work harder toward my ultimate goal really. And I bet the part prices and such will go down too, with more cars being available.

My insurance company is checking on these as well. It was funny as I asked the lady:

Me: "Can you check a car quote for me? It's a car you've never heard of."
Her: "Sure. What kind is it?"
Me: "Well....it's a Nissan Skyline...1989....it's just now legal to own in the US"
Her: "Never heard of it!"
Other insurance lady at another desk: "Oh one of those! My brother owns two, he lives in Japan"
Me: "Lucky bastard!"

I ended up getting his email so he can keep an eye out for private sale ones. He plans to bring both of his back when he retires and moves home. He owns a R33 and R34, both GTR's.

http://rivsuimports.com/NS058434

If you are willing to wait.. you can get surprisingly good deals out there. Kind of wish I had waited for this car (or one like it).... not that I'm complaining.

Ps if you are old enough for classic car insurance, there is no better deal on the market. I pay 306/year for my car with a 15k stated value and comprehensive coverage.

How old do you have to be for that insurance? I'm 29. Actually just redid my insurance and saved $65/mo with BETTER coverage. Grange can suck it.

Totally overlooked that link. If a car similar to that came available, I'd buy it in a heartbeat. I emailed them about it.

burks wrote:Well I budgeted the car this way:

GTR - $13k with needing moderate rust repair or fiberglass repair. $15k if it just needs paint. Obviously good mechanical condition.
GTST - $7k with rust repair. $9k for paint. Same as above.

Those are very optimistic figures, my friend. Just the FOB price is higher on the majority of the ones for sale right now. Landed and cleared is another story. You want rust repair car, definitely find one in Canada.

burks wrote:How old do you have to be for that insurance? I'm 29. Actually just redid my insurance and saved $65/mo with BETTER coverage. Grange can suck it.

25+ so you are good. I'm 27 and they didn't blink. The rep at American collector insurance knows me by name now for all the other skyline owners I haven't forwarded to them.....

burks wrote:Totally overlooked that link. If a car similar to that came available, I'd buy it in a heartbeat. I emailed them about it.

Think they have a couple of nice ones that recently posted on fb. Talk to Dustin and he will know what they have laying around. That price is all inclusive btw, shipping, tax, tag, title, federal paperwork. My car even had 1/2 a tank of gas

Been talking with Dustin. Basically the car linked above was full of rust and as he put it "a budget/project car".

I have him looking for a car to fit my needs. No project/rust bucket. He's been very helpful so far. Makes me feel a little more at ease.

It's a 15 hour drive back to my house from there. Tickets are like $130 but man....1000 miles in a 25 year old used car is risky! About $800 to ship it.

They have a nice looking GTR for $14,850 right now. Looks very well maintained for a 156k km car. If I could sell this damn SRT man....to put it into perspective I've put barely 12k miles on my SRT in five years. I don't drive my toys very much. So maybe upkeep costs aren't THAT big of a deal to me. I'm very picky on my upkeep, so it shouldn't be an issue.

burks wrote:Been talking with Dustin. Basically the car linked above was full of rust and as he put it "a budget/project car".

I have him looking for a car to fit my needs. No project/rust bucket. He's been very helpful so far. Makes me feel a little more at ease.

It's a 15 hour drive back to my house from there. Tickets are like $130 but man....1000 miles in a 25 year old used car is risky! About $800 to ship it.

They have a nice looking GTR for $14,850 right now. Looks very well maintained for a 156k km car. If I could sell this damn SRT man....to put it into perspective I've put barely 12k miles on my SRT in five years. I don't drive my toys very much. So maybe upkeep costs aren't THAT big of a deal to me. I'm very picky on my upkeep, so it shouldn't be an issue.

3 owners have already driven their cars back all across the nation.

the guy from Washington state is straight nuts to me, but the guy from AZ, and another from NJ all made it back fine. Fresh fluids, plugs, tires, and maybe belts depending on condition and you should be able to make it home fine. Only guy I know of that had an issue was a guy who bought a car from someone who bought their car in CA and drove it to Tampa. 1/2 back to TN the alt died on him, but 2 batteries and a little patients on his part and he made it home just fine. They are surprisingly hard to kill.

ca18detgabby I see you're really close to Sanford, FL, that true? If Rivsu has a car in their stock that is in the US would you go check it out? I'd gladly toss you gas money or something via PayPal.

I trust Rivsu but at the same time, I don't trust anyone fully. If it checks out through someone, I'll fly down to look. <$100 one way.

burks wrote:ca18detgabby I see you're really close to Sanford, FL, that true? If Rivsu has a car in their stock that is in the US would you go check it out? I'd gladly toss you gas money or something via PayPal.

I trust Rivsu but at the same time, I don't trust anyone fully. If it checks out through someone, I'll fly down to look. <$100 one way.

I can no problem, which car are you looking at? That is where I got my R32

Seen just about every car Rivsu have brought in. there might be 1 or 2 I haven't seen. I go up there on a regular basis, as well it is so fun to just look.... expensive, but fun. They are literally 8 mins door to door from my house.

my R32 from Rivsu.


yeah, anything you got a question on just lmk. I'm happy to go take a couple of photos or w/e you would like.

Nothing in particular at this moment. Just nice to know someone can be my eyes.

Very interesting about how Rivsu sells. Makes me feel better about spending my money.

ca18detgabby wrote:I can no problem, which car are you looking at? That is where I got my R32

Seen just about every car Rivsu have brought in. there might be 1 or 2 I haven't seen. I go up there on a regular basis, as well it is so fun to just look.... expensive, but fun. They are literally 8 mins door to door from my house.

yeah, anything you got a question on just lmk. I'm happy to go take a couple of photos or w/e you would like.

Sorry to hijack burks' post.
Can you do that for me as well? I may have a car of interest coming up shortly.

M35Squirrel wrote:

ca18detgabby wrote:I can no problem, which car are you looking at? That is where I got my R32

Seen just about every car Rivsu have brought in. there might be 1 or 2 I haven't seen. I go up there on a regular basis, as well it is so fun to just look.... expensive, but fun. They are literally 8 mins door to door from my house.

yeah, anything you got a question on just lmk. I'm happy to go take a couple of photos or w/e you would like.

Sorry to hijack burks' post.
Can you do that for me as well? I may have a car of interest coming up shortly.

no never.

burks wrote:ca18detgabby I see you're really close to Sanford, FL, that true? If Rivsu has a car in their stock that is in the US would you go check it out? I'd gladly toss you gas money or something via PayPal.

I trust Rivsu but at the same time, I don't trust anyone fully. If it checks out through someone, I'll fly down to look. <$100 one way.

burks wrote:Nothing in particular at this moment. Just nice to know someone can be my eyes.

Very interesting about how Rivsu sells. Makes me feel better about spending my money.

Best thing is we have a lift and we're more then happy to toss a car up on there to show off any particular part of a car someone may want to inspect. Pictures, video, you name it and we'll show it off. Last thing we want is someone coming back saying their car wasn't as described. Of course keeping in mind some areas are not visible unless things are removed or disassembled which in most cases we don't do unless we feel there's reason for concern over those areas.

On that note, if there is rust we can fix it. Once it's fixed we can also paint it. We don't really have any limitation on what we can offer in terms of services aside from we're not a machine shop.

Thanks for the info Vandrel. I'm close to selling my SRT so I'm hoping I can get a GTR by spring next year. A few of the GTR's listed for $14-$16k look right in my ball park. Rust repair is my only concern, best friend paints for a living and me trying to pick a color is like a woman trying to find a wedding dress.

No problem, we're actually doing some rest repair right now on a customer's GT-R. https://www.facebook.com/rivsuimports/p ... 40/?type=1

Will be off to our paint booth later

Been doing a lot of research on the oil pump failures. At first I was wondering why someone hasn't made billet gears but it seems that's just a bandaid (I know billet gears for my car are only like $150-$200). Seems it's the crank collar?

I searched for about two hours and ran across: http://www.endevourengineering.co.nz/rb ... 29841.html

Could this combined with a N1 pump (and not banging the rev limiter like a supermodel) solve the failures?