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Skylines are not ugly!

March 1, 2009 / banpei / 2 Comments

Remember what I wrote almost half a year ago? I wrote something about that Skylines are ugly.

About two weeks ago apparently someone from the R31 Skylineclub in Australia read my rambling and posted it on the forum. You can read in the comments what people think of me now. ;)

Round taillights on this beautifully lowered Nissan Skyline R31

Anyway, I got an email from James pointing out that not all R31s got round taillights and that the Australian built R31s got the RB30E engine. Now we’re talking potential here! As he writes that the RB20, RB25 and RB26 heads fit on it a lot of people must put the RB25DET or RB26DETT head on the RB30 block.

Round taillights on Nissan Skyline R31 GTS Silhouette

I found an article on Wikipedia about this RB30+other RB head and read there are basically the same problems as with the 7AGE: the block is not capable of revving above 7500 rpm and is less strong as the other RB blocks. It may not deliver as much power as the RB25DET but it sure promises to deliver a lot more torque than this engine! Tommy Kaira’s M30 did make use of such engine, but mated it to a RB20DE head. This engine produced 294Nm torque opposed to the 255Nm of the RB25DE, so imagine what the potential torque would be of a RB30DET. ;)

Compare the two noses of the Nissan Skyline R31
In this picture you can compare the two noses of the Skyline R31. On the left you see a series 1 or 2 R31 and on the right you see a series 3 R31 (looks the same as in Japan). If you’re interested in all the differences:look here at r32skylineclub.com.

Well, it’s not that I’m all of a sudden going to write that what I thought was ugly half a year ago is now all of a sudden beautiful. In contrary: I still have the same opinion about the R31 and R33 4 door sedans in that posting… I do have a bit different feelings towards the R31 van: it a car with a lot of potential if you put a series 3 front on it, a bit like the famous Stagea with R34 nose swap.

I do love the R31, honestly I do! But what I don’t like is the series 1 and 2 headlights… But that is, of course, my personal opinion and you may or may not share that with me. Sorry if you feel offended by that… ;)

Hilarious: Go Go Daijiro Inada!!!

February 27, 2009 / banpei / 0 Comments

I found this very funny clip of Daijiro Inada (founder of Video Option and D1GP) racing around Fuji Speedway in a D1GP prepped Toyota Chaser JZX100 the Speedracer way with his head sticking out of the sunroof:

Very funny to watch. Especially when Daijiro tries talking to the camera at 113MPh: his mouth stays open due to the wind!

At first he enjoys the experience, but after the first two rounds a while he really begins to hate it… Then he has to do the shooting again because the camera was not setup correctly and the picture is too dark!

It can be yours: Toyota Comfort GT-Z

February 26, 2009 / banpei / 1 Comment

Some time ago I wrote about the Toyota Comfort GT-Z being an ideal family car. Also Mike Garrett wrote about the Toyota Comfort GT-Z on Speedhunters last week. Well, it can be yours because there are two for sale on Goo-Net!

Toyota Comfort GT-Z on Goo-net
For only 12500 euros this baby is yours! May sound like much, but this GT-Z only drove customers (if it has seen customers at all!) 43000 kilometers, so that’s practically nothing! And it is one of 59! Absolutely unique! :)

However… Unique? What about this then?

Toyota Comfort GT-Z on Goo-net
Another GT-Z for sale??
And it is cheaper than the other one: only 11800 euros for a car that only drove 46000 kilometers! Sounds like a bargain! :)

Both cars have the same color (navy), still have the stock bodykit and RS Wantanabes and imagine: both can be obtained for the same amount of money as you would normally spend on a Toyota Corolla AE86 in the same state with the same mileage! Think about it: this car has serious potential (3SGTE anybody?) and there is nothing like it anywhere in the world! Except Japan of course…

You can find the cars here:
Toyota Comfort GT-Z #1
Toyota Comfort GT-Z #2

Carina Sightings: Carina AA63 20v Sedan on Goo-Net

February 25, 2009 / banpei / 3 Comments

I found this Carina AA63 on Goo-net:

Carina AA63 20v Sedan
I know what you probably thought first: that must be a scale model!

Well, it is not! Have a look at this:

Carina AA63 20v Sedan
That looks a lot better, doesn’t it? ;)
I have no clue what the photographer did wrong in that first picture, but is surely looks weird. Maybe it is the combination of the garage floor and the rollcage creating an illusion of a reflection in the windscreen…

4AGE 20v blacktop with a set of ITBs
This Carina GT-R got its heart swapped for a nice revving 4A-GE 20 valve Blacktop. As you can see the radiator has been upgraded as well. Also the owner did not bother to swap the cooling fan in the process.

Funny thing: I just realized that relocating the waterpump and distriubutor are not necessary for the Carina AA63: it sits more in front of the firewall than in the AE86! So all you have to do is reroute all piping of the radiator to the back of the engine! I verified this by looking at Revolverdrift’s AA63 20v setup.

Unfortunately his Carina got stolen last week. So, if anyone has seen his car, in or outside Malaysia, please let him know! I hope it will return soon!

Talking about theft:

Anti fuel theft?
Looks weird… Only logical explanation I can come up with is that this car either has a fuelcell (not visible), a weird D1SL or MSC rule I’m not aware of or an anti fuel theft method. I suspect the most probable is the last explanation.

Rollcage, bucketseats and new tach
The rollcage is of the removable type so the cage itself is placed a bit annoying nearer to the center of the car. The rear bench has been stripped and a set of bucketseats have replaced the original front seats.

The car is sitting on a set of deep dished SSR Mk. IIs. The rims can’t be much wider than 7J because they don’t stick out of the fenders.

You would think: what’s so special about this car then?
Well, the car itself isn’t that special. It is more that the surprise picture caught my eye, then the anti fuel theft and then I also realized the 20v problem didn’t apply to the AA63 Carina. So that’s worth a Carina Sightings posting I guess. ;)

Popular Bosozoku cars: Toyota Mark II X3/X4

February 24, 2009 / banpei / 1 Comment

This weeks highlight is the Toyota Mark II X3/X4. The bodystyle is very distinct and can easily be recognized between all other bosozoku cars. A good example is this really nice Shakotan style Mark II X3:

Shakotan style Toyota Mark II X3
This Shakotan styled Mark II really shows how this almost stock car can be made very beautiful by simply adding two tone paint, a set of fat stretched tires and lowering the car till the ground.

The Mark II is a very popular model because it has very American styling, like the cokebottle lines and its grille and headlights are more British. This combination is ideal for the early 80s Granchan style.

Bosozoku style Toyota Mark II X4
This Bosozoku styled example has it all: extra wide fenders, big chin spoiler, oil cooler, changed (square) headlights and a very big wing on the trunk!

Bosozoku style Toyota Mark II X3
No headlights at all? Is that road-legal in Japan? Or are the headlights hidden somewhere? Then again: those big exhausts are not road-legal either…

This really shows how beautiful the Mark II rear can be with widened fenders, stretched tires and a big exhaust pointing high in the air.

The first Mark II was originally meant as a Corona model between the Crown and the normal Corona, hence the Mark II tag.

Factory stock Toyota Cressida MX41
The X3 and X4 are the third generation of the Mark II (shouldn’t it be called Mark IV then? ;) ) and was sold as the Toyota Cressida overseas.

The difference between the X3 and the facelifted X4 are minor: only the grille and foglights are a tiny bit restyled. I couldn’t find a clear factory stock X3 picture, so you have to compare it with one of the Bosozoku styled cars. ;)

Factory stock Toyota Cressida MX41
The Cressida’s and Mark II differ only in engines: the European version had the high performance 18R engine while the American version had the older 4M engine. In Japan they had a wide variety in engines: 1L, 1M, 4M, 16R, 18R, 21R, 3T, 13T.

Only the 4M and 18R are true worthy engines for this car: the 4M because it is a SOHC inline 6 and has a big displacement and gives a smooth ride. The 18R because it is a high performance DOCH inline 4 with fuel injection and creates a sporty ride.

The X3 and X4 had an A43DL 4-speed automatic optional. This automatic had an overdrive and an overdrive lockout. Nowadays this sounds not like a big deal with all those 7 and 8 speed automatics, but back then the overdrive lockout was a major improvement.

Personally I would love to own a 4 door X3/X4 myself as a daily driver and slam it to the ground shakotan style. ;)

[I posted this article earlier today on Bosozokustyle.com]

Toyota Corolla KE30 turns out to be a Nissan Sunny B122

February 21, 2009 / banpei / 0 Comments

Remember this one?

Toyota Corolla KE30 pickup in front of a European looking house

I posted it here shortly before Christmas:
http://www.banpei.net/blog/toyota-corolla-ke30-pickup-europe

Must have missed this JNC blogposting during the holidays:
http://japanesenostalgiccar.com/blog/2008/12/28/rs-yasus-nissan-sunny-b122-pickup-resto/
Because the Corolla KE30 pickup turns out to be a Nissan Sunny B122 pickup. Must have overlooked that it could possibly be a Sunny and not a Corolla. Well, they do look very much alike after all. ;)

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