lol well i dont think anyone would lend me their r32 just like that hahaha. but it was just a thought.

AZhitman wrote:Vandrel, if we can be of any assistance in the effort, let me know.

Ditto. Can't wait for some info to be posted on the http://www.legalizeimports.com/ site.

As far as the 'SEMA Political Action Committee' to support, which I'd like to, I can't find anyone there, other a really nice secretary, that answers any phones or gets back to me. I have left Jason Tolleson a couple very nicely worded emails as well as phone messages, explaining how I am an enthusiast, owner, etc.. of vehicles and how I appriciate their work as well as the choice the aftermarket world in general offers. And as such would like to donate a little to show my support towards those efforts.

Talked with other people there that all say he is 'The Guy' to talk to about that. Left a couple messages with his secretary with my intent and interest in a donation towards those efforts, even without the expectation of recieving newsletters or literature, etc...

No reponse ever from anyone, except for the really nice secretary, who in so many words and with all the undertones said, 'unless your a registered buisness dealing in aftermarket parts in one form or another Jason 'The Guy' doesn't really have anything to do with you.' This was all a couple months ago, soon after AZhitman suggested support of the SEMA PAC. I suppose I could try again, but it all felt kinda silly I guess.

AZhitman, what did you do to support them and did you do it as just an 'individual'? Thanks,

Russell

Well, NICO (as business entity) is a member of SEMA, and we are on the PAC.

hey guys, i have the seized r32 thread on here and i was just wondering if all this Kaizo business is the reason why they are holding my car for so long.

I know eventually the cost to store the car by the government is going to just be compiling and compiling, i would think they just want to get it out of there since its not related with Kaizo.

I see the gov. having a couple options with my car:1) release it to me for export (what i requested to do)2) sell it at an auction for export3) destroy it (they wouldnt make any money on it)

Just seeing if anyone has more info since i try to avoid talking about it because it pisses me off to the core and brings up bad memories.

So best move if we have deep pockets... purchase a skyline in Japan, de- register it, store it in japan, pay a s***load for storage,wait till 2025, then import into US, then be happy!?

djkeem wrote:So best move if we have deep pockets... purchase a skyline in Japan, de- register it, store it in japan, pay a s***load for storage,wait till 2025, then import into US, then be happy!?

or wait til 2025 and you might actually find them cheaper than dirt.

Why would they be much cheaper then they are now?Age? I would surely assume the rarity factor in 15 years time will come into play. Plus it's hard enough to find one really clean and with relatively low miles today for $10,000 or less. Add another 15 years to it and all you'll find will be ones that have been stored and highly valued and ones that are parts cars/rebuild project cars

Add that to a new demand surge once they are "legal", compounded by the inevitable reduction in availability, then add the loss of purchasing power of the dollar (ie. inflation).

The price just can not go lower in reality and I would be absolutely amazed if the price were to stay stagnant, and would bet, if I bet, that the price will be forced to go higher. If in another 15 years we aren't using a new currency like the "Amero" or something... which is also mostly inevitable.

I hope a miracle happens and you're right about the price, but I doubt it. The dollar is beyond even the assistance of miracles.

Tofubadguy wrote:Why would they be much cheaper then they are now?Age? I would surely assume the rarity factor in 15 years time will come into play. Plus it's hard enough to find one really clean and with relatively low miles today for $10,000 or less. Add another 15 years to it and all you'll find will be ones that have been stored and highly valued and ones that are parts cars/rebuild project cars

Add that to a new demand surge once they are "legal", compounded by the inevitable reduction in availability, then add the loss of purchasing power of the dollar (ie. inflation)

i guess awd converted 240s arent dumb after all lol

Ok, so what about bringing them in from Canada? I know the GTS-t's are really cheap up there and I'm thinking of going up to get one and bring it in. What's the best way to do that?

Think about your question just a little bit.

Why would bringing in a car from Canada be any more legal? U.S. laws differ from Canadian laws.

Bottom line, if it's not 25 years old, it won't be legal no matter how you go about it. The OBD II system is what seems to be the sticking point on the Skyline. Once that hurdle is covered, from there on out, it's just a matter of getting the proper safety modifications done to make the car road legal.

But until then, it's a no-fly zone.

djkeem wrote:So best move if we have deep pockets... purchase a skyline in Japan, de- register it, store it in japan, pay a s***load for storage,wait till 2025, then import into US, then be happy!?

In my opinion, buy a 240sx, build it right, and outperform a GTR for half the price... with less legal hassles.

Ok, so does that mean I just have to modify the OBD II system to US specs? Canadian laws AREN'T that much different from the US, so I didn't see the big deal in just bringing one in from there.

NismoDom97128 wrote:Ok, so does that mean I just have to modify the OBD II system to US specs? Canadian laws AREN'T that much different from the US, so I didn't see the big deal in just bringing one in from there.

read the thread..and lock this thread PLEASE

NismoDom97128 wrote:Ok, so does that mean I just have to modify the OBD II system to US specs? Canadian laws AREN'T that much different from the US, so I didn't see the big deal in just bringing one in from there.

That's the thing. Japan doesn't use OBD II systems, so you would basically have to make one from scratch, which includes being able to make a reader that can read the data put out from the RB series engines in the R series Skylines. And since the RB was never offered in the U.S., you have readers that won't recognize it.

There is also the matter of the EGR system.

You aren't the first person that has tried to figure this out. If it were so easy, it would have been done ages ago.

It's pretty much a lost cause here and this horse keeps getting beat down more and more each year.

Because of the MotorEx fiasco, the U.S. government is really making it a pain in the arse to get the cars in.

And as I said, the money it would cost for the modifications, the OBD II and the emissions systems make it not too practical money wise. You would probably spend more than what the car is actually worth (save for a mint condition R34 GT-R, which still run about $30-$50K stock).

Well I checked into it, and the only places in Oregon that have emissions laws is the Portland area, and thankfully I live just south of that area, so I've been told that down here in the Salem area it would be pretty easy to register a Skyline, even if it is from another country. I guess all I have to do is just register it down here and get US vins or something.

AZhitman wrote:
In my opinion, buy a 240sx, build it right, and outperform a GTR for half the price... with less legal hassles.

You're right & I am working towards that... but there is hardly anything sexier than a R32 GTR though. It's just that whole (comes equipped with magic from the factory) thing.

It is an amazing machine rarely rivaled if ever by anything OEM factory in the used market for $10,000. That's the hard part to get over. Throw a couple grand at it for a Power FC, some injectors, a tune... & wallah a nice clean manageable 360hp AWD. It hurts to think about it just sitting & guarding the house.

This whole legal issue is just so frustrating & now that I have one, doubly so!

Plus the magic part too! I don't understand it... but it's there...

The R13 should be done in a few months though. I can hardly wait!


Modified by Tofubadguy at 11:27 PM 2/16/2010

NismoDom97128 wrote:I guess all I have to do is just register it down here and get US vins or something.

Have fun with that.

They don't hand out VIN plates for nothing, and insuring something that won't have a valid VIN in the US (and isn't compliant with NHTSA and FVMSS) should be a challenge as well...

All this info has been covered in the thread.

AZhitman wrote:Go drive an R32 first.

For the money you'll spend, you can build two cars that will slap it around, AND won't be a pain in the arse to source parts for.

I love the Skyline as much as anyone, but we've elevated them to such ridiculously outrageous status, you'd think they were actually WORTH the $60K people are shelling out for legal ones.

This is quite true and I totally agree.....but...

Man, I so love having one anyway!I freely admit that for the same price, I could have gotten a 400hp, brand new GTO, or spent less than half as much building my WRX to be just as good and fast (if not moreso).

But damn it's nice having the only R32 GT-R in the area.

lots of good info and answered everyone of my questions thanks! going to look at a r33 next weekend for cheap. although i currently live in germany if i decide to get it, its gonna be sold b4 i move back. way to much hassle and risk for me.

It looks like state legal R33 GTR's are going for around $30,000. I cant say how much trouble one would run into if they drove around a state legal car. I hear progressive will insure these cars because they only require a VIN number (just dont get into a crash). Its possible one could drive around with a federally illegal car locally and nothing would ever happen to them (which is what alot of people do). Im not sure i would want to live always looking over my shoulder..

If you want a federally legal car, R33 GTR's are going for $45,000 - $65,000.

MotoRex charged $17,000 to convert a 1995 R33 and $25,000 for a 1996-1998. So Some of the R33's will cost less if sold by a owner who went through MotoRex.

State legal R32's go for ~$20,000. I dont know what federaly legal R32's go for, but people say over $30,000 for them. Motorex charged $16,000 to covert the R32s

The question for me is whether i would want to spend $45,000 for a Skyline, ive never in my life seen one. $45k is alot, but alot of cars cost that much. BMW's audis, crappy Porsche's. In that respect, the R33 being far far better car its not a bad price to pay

I found an r33 GTR for sale in wa state. He has the Jap title and Bill of sale. But the paper work that i need to make it fed legal is the import paper work right? I read this thread many times already. I am thinking this cant be seized by customs cause its not an r32 or r34 with no dot bond release, but i still dont know if it was illegally imported or not so can it still be seized even tho its not an r32 or r34? So if he doesn't have the import paper work what are my options? or should i just stay away from it and not even bother

It's a scam...

Thought I'd just stop in and say thanks for this thread. It pretty much has everything covered.

After reading the whole thread and as much of the links as I could I have only one question that I didn't see covered.

Once 2014 hits, and the '89's are allowed to me imported, does that only remove the FMVSS standards requirement? I'm not sure how the 25 year limit applies to the EPA issues (No real standard of OBD was around in 1989)?

In short, what will the process entail once 2014 hits? Buy the car, ship it here, and just get it through the state registration process? What about the insurance issue?

Thanks for any help and sorry if I missed these answers in the thread.

john450r wrote:Once 2014 hits, and the '89's are allowed to me imported, does that only remove the FMVSS standards requirement? I'm not sure how the 25 year limit applies to the EPA issues (No real standard of OBD was around in 1989)?

In short, what will the process entail once 2014 hits? Buy the car, ship it here, and just get it through the state registration process? What about the insurance issue?

Basically, it'll be a free-for-all on 89's.

Insurance won't be much of an issue, although I'm guessing the smart buyer will go with a specialty or classic policy from Hagerty or something similar.

I just spent the last few days reading this thread and wow lots of info and mis info.

Looks like I need to pick up a coupe shell and build an R13 with skyline body work if I want anything close to an "easy" r32. Which would really only leave me with a firewall and green house (glass/roof) as an s13 heh. I wonder if that would be lighter then a regular R32 GTR?

Makes perfect sense I can take a s13 and put every possible skyline part on it and still be legal to drive. Mostly because the firewall (no usdm vin tampering) wasn't modified. Then it is to import a R32 and pay the gov lots of money to allow me to do so.

Oh and as for the OBD2- I don't see why a stock RB2X cant run on a stock Z32 ecu. Rb25 guys run any Z32/J30 ecu to use nistune, and still be able to use their VTCs, as all of the ecus are exactly the same, they just have different tunes. So all you'd have to do is get a 95.5-96+ ecu and install nistune with the rb maps you need. For the actual OBD/emission requirements you could just get a used Z32 EGR valve and weld it into the appropriate places and copy the emissions canitser vacuume routing. For people that get their hands dirty wrenching it shouldn't be that hard, just some know how and diagrams.

But then you still have the crash standereds.

Of course thats all R33 specific stuff since the motorex pricks never crash/epa tested the R32/R34's. Id imagine the R32s would be easier then the R33s and R34's slightly harder for obvious reasons.

Any way just some ideas, I'm going back to work on my rb20 and rb25, maybe one will go back into my s13 this week....

~Alex

yeah, this thread has such win in it. i cant wait till 2014 now ..

Just wanted to say thanks for the 21 pages of reading certainly was enlightening.

RustspecS13 wrote: Looks like I need to pick up a coupe shell and build an R13 with skyline body work if I want anything close to an "easy" r32. Which would really only leave me with a firewall and green house (glass/roof) as an s13 heh. I wonder if that would be lighter then a regular R32 GTR?

Its not technically legal as you altered the engine, and it wouldn't meet federal emissions standards unless you tested it to meet emissions standards. This is a tough law to enforce, you won't see many people getting busted ONLY because of this.

RustspecS13 wrote:Makes perfect sense I can take a s13 and put every possible skyline part on it and still be legal to drive. Mostly because the firewall (no usdm vin tampering) wasn't modified. Then it is to import a R32 and pay the gov lots of money to allow me to do so.

Its a strange spot, the whole self assembled/ kit car thing. However Kaizo had a lot of problems doing some similar things. http://vehicleimport.blogspot.com/2009/ ... s-far.html

RustspecS13 wrote:- I don't see why a stock RB2X cant run on a stock Z32 ecu. Rb25 guys run any Z32/J30 ecu to use nistune, and still be able to use their VTCs, as all of the ecus are exactly the same, they just have different tunes. So all you'd have to do is get a 95.5-96+ ecu and install nistune with the rb maps you need. For the actual OBD/emission requirements you could just get a used Z32 EGR valve and weld it into the appropriate places and copy the emissions canitser vacuume routing. For people that get their hands dirty wrenching it shouldn't be that hard, just some know how and diagrams.

It can, its been done. However, the system is a little more complicated. How about misfire detection? Tank pressurization/leak detection? Just making it work is the EASY part of the OBD II system, it would still need to be certified, in Ann Arbor, in front of the EPA. A 1996 Z32 ECU is a very, very basic OBD II ECU. Back in 1996, even the OEM's had problems with the standards.

If you have run a GT-R on a FTP dyno as many times as I have, you will start to understand some of the issues associated with the RB26. Its an engine from an earlier time.

RustspecS13 wrote:Of course thats all R33 specific stuff since the motorex pricks never crash/epa tested the R32/R34's. Id imagine the R32s would be easier then the R33s and R34's slightly harder for obvious reasons.
~Alex

I was one of those "Motorex pricks". Here's your answer. The NHTSA, DOT , OVSC, saw all the models of cars, and asked Motorex what we wanted to test. 1995 Dual Airbag R33 GTS. If it were your money, what would you pick to crash test? Single bag self contained R32 , nearly new R34? The NHTSA DOT, reviewed the Motorex/JK conformance package, and crash testing results for months prior to allowing the first bond release, incidentally on an R32 GT-R. I have been to Washington DC three times to visit the OVSC, to show them what we were doing at Motorex, and offering them the opportunity to come out and check up on what we were doing in 1999-2002 when I left.

If you ever get to see and work on R32, R33, R34 GT-R up close, you will realize they share much more in common than differences. The OVSC changed their mind on what they approved, because of Hiro's inability to actually get the cars done, and getting lazy on the actual certifications. The OVSC allows cars, car models to be certified under "substantially similar" to an earlier or later model. Fenders, lights, hoods, and bumpers are generally not regarded as "crash items"

Right about now, Nissan Skyline is a dirty word at the OVSC.

after reading thru this stickie a few times,im going to risk it i have found me a 94 gts type m.rb-25t automatic tranny,rwd. i am in the act closing the deal now im going to hide it in my garage untell i get a front main seal for it. ive seen it, touched it. a real milestone in my life has been reached, my first skyline! wish me luck guys. pics will be posted and a ton of write-ups. future plans invole something in the vh family but not 100 % sure

3 years to go....... woooooohooooooo