Need help buying a car

[chemicalz]

I`m new to the forums and this is my first post. Hello to everyone, I`m thinking of buying a second hand motor, and really could do with the advice of people that are in the know.

I`ve been looking for a while at different cars, talking to different people, been driven round in different cars, last one was a 600 bhp Twin Turbo Toyota Supra, 2 weeks later the guy wrote it off, ooops !

I keep coming back to the Nissan Skyline, and I`m feeling really, really drawn to the R32 / R33 / R34

From what I can tell the R34 is like rocking horse st, and seems fairly difficult to get parts for + expensive.

I think this is narrowing my selection down to either an R32 or an R33. I want the car for using on track days, but also for fairly infrequent use travelling to Coventry and back to Birmingham to see my friends, a journey of around 60 miles altogether. I think due to insurance costs I may have to only insure for weekend use, and another problem I have is I`m a company car driver and have been for the last 10 years, so I have 0 no claims bonus.

Does this mean that all insurance companies are going to try to screw me or will some take into consideration the fact i have 0 claims in 10 years ?

Any comments about whether an R32 / R33 would be a better choice would be welcomed, at the moment I`m not sure about the difference, I`m looking to spend around 5 - 8 k and would rather it be more at the 5k end to be honest, is this going to get me anything worth while or just a money pit shed that constantly breaks down ?

Anyone have any advice for a newb ?
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[TotalControl]

Hi There.

IIRC the parts in the R34 are more or less the same as the previous two gens. To be honest you wont find a decent r34 for the price you're after anyway. If you're thinking 33's, do you mean the GTR or GTS-T?

For that price you could get a good ST205 Celica GT4. Very solid car for the money.

Alternatively, what about an EP3 type R?

MX5?

How many seats do you want/need?

[driverrob]

If I was you I'd try getting some insurance quotes before going any further. A group 20 car with no NCD will hit your wallet.

[paulmoonraker]

If you can get some evidence that you have no claims against your corporate car policy then you may be able to get an 'introductory NCB'... They can do this, even if you can not get some proof... (Elepant did this for me years ago)...

[GTR Cook]

Hi and welcome,

Firstly forget the R34 for your price range, GTR or GTT.

So your left with either R32 or R33. Do you want a GTR (4 wheel drive) or a GTS-T (rear wheel drive), this impacts on price alot. The GTR being the more expensive car to purchase. Both variants are great cars- it just depends on what wheels you want to be the driven ones!

Some R32s will be more than twenty years old so it is worth spending the time and money looking for a good one- buying cheap will only be more exspensive in the long run- there is a resaon some are cheaper than others!

If your looking at getting a GTR then you will need most of your upper budget to get a R32 in good condition and be a clean tidy car.

GTS-Ts are alot cheaper to buy and therefore you will get a decent R33 GTS-T for 5k.

All varients are very capable on track and long journeys are always a pleasure.

Insurance wise, they may take into account your company car but i would expect to pay alot first year, especially with zero no claims.

[chemicalz]

Thanks for the replies guys, I think my choice is likely to be the R33 GTR, I`m not rich so its going to take me ages to get the cash together, what sort of money should i be paying for a decent R33 GTR, I don`t mind buying something stock with not much done to it to be honest then I could mod it up from there.

I have in my head 5 - 8k, and I think thats going to have to include my first years insurance as well if possible, that much money is a stinger and I will either have to a) save for it (will take ages) b) hit the bank for a loan : )

Just got some insurance quotes, ouch. Just incase your wondering I`m 35 years old

If i go with 0 no claims bonus (I`ve not owned my own car for nearly 10 years, I`m a company car driver and haven`t had an insurance claim in the last 5 years)

Its around £2,500 for the R33 GTR, if I add 5 years NCB it came down to £1,100, will an insurance company take into account the fact I haven`t claimed on my company insurance in the last 5 years ?

What is the sort of money I can expect to pay on insurance ? Anyone any idea

[Wadeski]

that quote sounds about right. Skylines are expensive beasts. Also, a good R33 will be the high end of your budget - and cheap one might need its value spent again to put right.

i would look at something cheaper to run, tbh:

Toyota Celica GT4
Toyota MR2 Turbo
Nissan 200SX
Fiat coupe 20V turbo

[GTR Cook]

Have a quick look through the classifieds to get an idea of what you can get for your money. You won't find a decent R33 GTR for less than 10K- most are around the 15K mark.

If 8K is your absolute limit and you really want a skyline, you cannot go wrong with a R32 GTR- will be cheaper in price due to there age but be just as good a drivers car.

If i was you i would hold off and save the extra money and get a decent car that you can enjoy as apposed to a cheaper money pit. Skylines are good cars and don't have to be expensive if you buy a good clean car.
I saved for four years to get mine and would do it again if i had to.

Edited by GTR Cook on Wednesday 12th January 10:06

[chemicalz]

Very sound advice, I understand exactly were your coming from.

R32 GTR, I wouldn`t have a problem with looking at that car at all, I know from reading the forums any R series Skyline is mint, I`ve fallen in love : ) . I really don`t want to but something like a Fiat or MR2. I know their quick, but I`m looking for road presence as well as track performance. The other worry I have is how do you guys get to track days ?

Do you drive to them in your skyline ? Surely that must cost a bomb in fuel before you even get your car on the track, do any of you tow your car to the track in a cheap 4 x 4, or would the weight of the car being towed use about as much fuel as driving to the track in your skyline anyway ?

One of my favorite cars (I have many) is the new Skyline, but I will likely never have the money for a "new" one, and I wouldn`t ever buy a "new" car anyway. As soon as you drive it off the forecourt you`ve lost thousands on the price

No, I have to be realistic, I`m in the position were I`m trying to move house, I have a 2 year old daughter and another daughter on the way in May : )

I certainly don`t have massive amounts of disposable income to be spending at this moment. I will have to save for it, it may take me a long time, but at least I know once I`m there I`ll have something I`ve been drolling over for a long long time, I really can feel the fun times coming on just thinking about it.

So my final questions in this post are the R32 GTR, what can I expect to pay for a good example, I would like to stick in the 5 - 10k range, if it was 10k it would have to include insurance so still the top price I could pay would be 8k for the car, what do people go for, is there a single turbo and twin turbo version ? I`d be better off sticking with single turbo wouldn`t I ? I`m really worried about fuel costs lolz

[christer]

chemicalz

There are several things to look at here:

1. Your current job does not seem to be supporting you very well - or at least not as well as could be hoped. Have you considered really investing time, balls and effort into achieving a higher income? If you drive up and down the country selling pharmaceuticals for example and you are good at your job then those skills could be valuable in many other industries. Where do you live? Could you look to relocate to gain a higer salary without going up in living costs to the same degree? (Don't wanser where you live on here ofc, just a thought)
2. If you are worried about fuel costs, what happens if you have a problem that needs £2-4K thrown at it? Tracking a car is not cheap either in terms of fuel, tyres, brakes and so on.
3. The fact that you are a company driver with good record (wth happened over 5 years ago?) should be taken into account with *some* insurance companies. I get the feeling it tends to depend on whether they want your business or not, you will just have to call round and at the beginning of the phone call ask them to save your time...... I got quoted between £6.8k and £1.3k for insuring my R35.....I guess some really didin't want my business

Good luck with everything, and with the growing family. If I was in your position I would probably hold off on buying now until you know what your new addition is going to do to your finances. Your budget is very small and the potential risks are fairly high imho - if you take insurance out of your lower end then you have £4K.....perhaps you can get hold of an older E36 BMW and strip it out for track work only?

[Carfiend]

All GTRs (unless someone has done a single turbo conversion) are twin turbo and GTST/GTTs are single turbo.

Here are a couple of R32 GTRs for sale from the skyline owners forum:

http://www.skylineowners.com/forum/showthread.php?...

http://www.skylineowners.com/forum/showthread.php?...

Both around £8.5k both enthusiast owned so in quite nice nick. Sales are slow atm so you could haggle a bit off if you had the money for a quick sale.

You could get an R34 GTT in your price range but it will be an auto.

[GTR Cook]

For the trackdays i have done in mine i have driven there and back.

Fuel economy on track isn't great i managed to kill a tank in 48 miles around snetterton and mine is only stage one on standard turbo's running 400hp. Tracking any car isn't cheap but turbo cars will be more thirsty.

You should find a good, clean, sensibly moddified example for 7-8k, maybe less if the seller is in a hurry. I would find a car that has what you want over worrying about single or twin turbo set ups, both have advantages and disadvantages. As standard the car comes with twins which if changed for R34 N1's will let you push to about 450hp relaibly.

Unless your a trackday warrior and can drive beyond the limits of the standard car than a stage one car will be fine. Power isn't everyhing, handling is more important in my opinion.

I would look for a stage one car running a reliable 400-450hp, put some sticky tires on and have fun. If an when you are able to out dirve that setup then look to change things about. Suspension and brakes would be first port of call not more power.

[Wadeski]

From what you have said about finances, i would look at a single turbo, not a GTR. They really, really aren't cheap to run.

not tempted at all by an S-body Nissan?



Much, much cheaper to run.

[paulmoonraker]

TBH, I really would not buy a turbo car if you are worried about fuel consumption... Very few return a real world average above 20MPG... A twin turbo will be even worse as it will boost lower down the rev range...

-P

[markCSC]

If you buy a nice car the last thing you want is for it to sit in the garage because you can't afford to run it. Fuel, servicing, tyres all cost lots and when you're talking skylines, they cost even more.

I lusted after an R32 for a while. I had the money to buy it but looked into the running costs and thought again

Have a look at this http://www.gtr.co.uk/forum/48802-skyline-running-c...