07 Nissan Skyline 350GT - old car Nazi buys MODERN motor
Discussion
"The train came out of the tunnel and into the Snow Country."
(Yasunari Kawabata )
More of the Snow Country in a minute. I have moved to live and work on a tiny island in a hot place where it never snows. The steep and twisty hill roads here would be fantastic ski runs if snow ever happened. Most people here drive left hand drive SUVs, despite the fact that the island is a fragment of the British Empire, and so drives on the left. This is because the island is very close to the American Empire.
I hate driving steep and very bendy roads with ditches on the nearside in a car with the steering wheel on the wrong side, and the lights aimed the wrong way (no one switches the LHD lights across) . Also, I do not like SUVs. I am shipping out a 1983 Series III Land Rover (SWB with Safari Roof and tropicalised cooling system) in August, but need a car until then.
The solution? OMG RHD JDM Fast N Furious AWD DRFT WPN YO!
2007 Nissan Skyline 350 GT saloon - imported from Japan after Hurricanes Irma and Maria (which trashed most of the cars on island). 3.5 litre V6, five speed switchable auto, AWD system that is mainly RWD but feeds power to the front wheels as needed.
High mileage, but I suspect mainly Japanese (smoooooooth) motorway miles as the salaryman or salarywoman drove back and forth between Tokyo and the family place up country.
Snow Country? I think so. The tyres are Yokohama Ice Guards.
Build quality is like old school German (before German cars became naff). The engineering seems pretty strong. Note 180 mph speedo on an island where the top limit is 40 mph and the longest bit of straight road is under a kilometre. But this car FLIES up the steep and twisty hills.
I bought it from a copper! From another copper I bought a hilarious Kawasaki Ninja-ette (bikes are limited here). From yet another copper I am renting my house on top of the highest mountain on the island. My old dad always said that buying a car from a copper is either the best thing to do or the worst thing to do. There is no middle ground. My dad went one better and in the 70s would buy ex police cars from the local force. We had several pale blue Fords that had holes in the headlining. They seemed OK, although I was never too sure about the leopard skin print nylon seat cover in the back of the (Hogwarts edition avant la lettre) Ford Anglia. Cop shocks, cop tyres, cop motor - is it the new Bluesmobile, or what?
I HATE all modern cars, but I have to admit I like this one. Hellz yeh, it even has a reversing camera.
PS:When you press the starter button, a very cool Japanese robo-lady says something in Japanese. She may be saying "**** you, Westerner idiot!", but she sounds awesome.
(Yasunari Kawabata )
More of the Snow Country in a minute. I have moved to live and work on a tiny island in a hot place where it never snows. The steep and twisty hill roads here would be fantastic ski runs if snow ever happened. Most people here drive left hand drive SUVs, despite the fact that the island is a fragment of the British Empire, and so drives on the left. This is because the island is very close to the American Empire.
I hate driving steep and very bendy roads with ditches on the nearside in a car with the steering wheel on the wrong side, and the lights aimed the wrong way (no one switches the LHD lights across) . Also, I do not like SUVs. I am shipping out a 1983 Series III Land Rover (SWB with Safari Roof and tropicalised cooling system) in August, but need a car until then.
The solution? OMG RHD JDM Fast N Furious AWD DRFT WPN YO!
2007 Nissan Skyline 350 GT saloon - imported from Japan after Hurricanes Irma and Maria (which trashed most of the cars on island). 3.5 litre V6, five speed switchable auto, AWD system that is mainly RWD but feeds power to the front wheels as needed.
High mileage, but I suspect mainly Japanese (smoooooooth) motorway miles as the salaryman or salarywoman drove back and forth between Tokyo and the family place up country.
Snow Country? I think so. The tyres are Yokohama Ice Guards.
Build quality is like old school German (before German cars became naff). The engineering seems pretty strong. Note 180 mph speedo on an island where the top limit is 40 mph and the longest bit of straight road is under a kilometre. But this car FLIES up the steep and twisty hills.
I bought it from a copper! From another copper I bought a hilarious Kawasaki Ninja-ette (bikes are limited here). From yet another copper I am renting my house on top of the highest mountain on the island. My old dad always said that buying a car from a copper is either the best thing to do or the worst thing to do. There is no middle ground. My dad went one better and in the 70s would buy ex police cars from the local force. We had several pale blue Fords that had holes in the headlining. They seemed OK, although I was never too sure about the leopard skin print nylon seat cover in the back of the (Hogwarts edition avant la lettre) Ford Anglia. Cop shocks, cop tyres, cop motor - is it the new Bluesmobile, or what?
I HATE all modern cars, but I have to admit I like this one. Hellz yeh, it even has a reversing camera.
PS:When you press the starter button, a very cool Japanese robo-lady says something in Japanese. She may be saying "**** you, Westerner idiot!", but she sounds awesome.
rossub said:
DonaldTrump said:
Sorry to have to say this as I really enjoy your other cars, but sorry I can't find any love for this one.
Seconded I’m afraid.Have you tried driving without your seatbelt on? You may find the Japanese woman goes all dominatrix and demands you clunk click.
Only if I get a super hot French assistant. The Landy won't be here for ages yet. Because reasons. The Skyline is a stop gap. It looks prettier in the metal than it does in photos, and is a very good drive. I like the fact that it is totally not my sort of car. Much better than the horrible SUVs, most of which have rubbish 3 speed autoboxes without proper lockdowns for the steep bits. NB the hills here are REALLY steep.
I have another plan, that involves something (1) mad, (2) British, (3) 70s, and (4) associated with Royalty.
I have another plan, that involves something (1) mad, (2) British, (3) 70s, and (4) associated with Royalty.
To see the stickers that the Nissan had all over it had until yesterday, and to see the Land Rover, consult this thread -
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
JDM Yay! Later I will take a photo of the screen when it is scrolling Japanese WORDS. The radio still has a Fuji FM station dialled in. Reception is a bit fuzzy. NB Modern Cars are CRAP: this is because the enormoscreen lights up the sky at night, and renders the good headlamps useless. But at least I can watch the World Cup on it, maybe.
I have found where Hot Japanese Robo Lady lives. There is a weird gadget next to the driver's seat. If you press its buttons, Hot Japanese Robo Lady says Japanese stuff at you. She may be saying "Stop pressing those ****ing buttons, Jackass".
S100HP said:
Carwings?
Cwumbs, Chief!Re Flying cars in general, the reason why we late Baby Boomers born in the early to mid sixties are ALWAYS pissed off and grumpy as Hell is that as children we were PROMISED that by approx 1995 - 2001 latest - we would all have a flying car, there would be a Moonbase staffed by tinfoil clad Space Babes, and there would be Killer Robo Police.
Hey, one put of three ain't bad, maybe? Officer! I am complying, don't sh...
Cambs_Stuart said:
The stern Japanese lady is probably the ETC box telling you put a valid card in. It's the system used for Japanese toll roads.
She is not so much stern as a bit giggly, although in a sort of authoritative way. I think she may be some sort of Manga or other Anime Space Battle-Princess with a pair of technologically enhanced, er ..., pulse-emitting energy weapons. V8FGO said:
My guess. 
. BTW how expensive is petrol ?.
I confess that I never know or notice how much petrol, milk, or electricity bills are anywhere. Because fortunate. I have never once in my life looked at the petrol prices at a single garage, and I really could never tell you how much a litre of milk costs anywhere. My political hopes are for a world where this applies to everyone. . BTW how expensive is petrol ?.Keep up at the back!
In fact, it is a device that controls the secondary battery of electromagnetic effectors and the tertiary battery of railguns on the Manga battlecruiser that is permanently in orbit above the car. The battlecruiser is called Zhanti-Nakika High Lightning IV, and is crewed by leather clad space-hotties who are all called Miyako or Yukiko. They are in charge of the gigantic plasma beam primary weapon, so I had better not piss them off. This is apparently standard on these cars.
In fact, it is a device that controls the secondary battery of electromagnetic effectors and the tertiary battery of railguns on the Manga battlecruiser that is permanently in orbit above the car. The battlecruiser is called Zhanti-Nakika High Lightning IV, and is crewed by leather clad space-hotties who are all called Miyako or Yukiko. They are in charge of the gigantic plasma beam primary weapon, so I had better not piss them off. This is apparently standard on these cars.
To add to the Jason Statham and Vin Diesel vibe, this morning my car was given a right going over by four big coppers, one of whom was packing heat. They had been sent by the friendly Laydee Police who sold me the car, to swap the plates over and retrieve her plates. She is going to help out tomorrow with the DMV inspection of the car (the local MOT equivalent does not transfer with the car).
The aircon has started working more obediently. Japanese Robo Lady has gone a bit quiet.
The car HOONZ. Allegedly, officers.
Snaggette: for some reason the landlord of my house has built a rather big speed bump at the threshold of the driveway (maybe to stop The Stath or Vin storming in and doing a handbrake* turn under the porch) . The Nissan is not super low, but it is lower than the SUVs which are standard here, and it will not go over the bump without graunching, no matter the speed or angle of approach. I may have to bung the landlord to hire some big Rastamen to come along and lower the bump a bit.
In other news, I am meeting the friendly Laydee Police for cocktails tomorrow evening. As we do not yet know one another well, I suggest that she might bring her handcuffs, but not her truncheon.
* It's a left footed footbrake.
The aircon has started working more obediently. Japanese Robo Lady has gone a bit quiet.
The car HOONZ. Allegedly, officers.
Snaggette: for some reason the landlord of my house has built a rather big speed bump at the threshold of the driveway (maybe to stop The Stath or Vin storming in and doing a handbrake* turn under the porch) . The Nissan is not super low, but it is lower than the SUVs which are standard here, and it will not go over the bump without graunching, no matter the speed or angle of approach. I may have to bung the landlord to hire some big Rastamen to come along and lower the bump a bit.
In other news, I am meeting the friendly Laydee Police for cocktails tomorrow evening. As we do not yet know one another well, I suggest that she might bring her handcuffs, but not her truncheon.
* It's a left footed footbrake.
Edited by anonymous-user on Monday 18th June 22:05
Update: Car HOOOOOOONZE.
I have changed my mind about Japanese cars, and about cars designed after the early 1990s.
BVI Roads mega steep, camber angles crazy, road surface often slippery, and sometimes on the way steep hairpins even the good AWD system scrabbles a bit and the wheels spin a bit. Solution? Press the button in the centre console marked "SNOW". I kid you not.
I have changed my mind about Japanese cars, and about cars designed after the early 1990s.
BVI Roads mega steep, camber angles crazy, road surface often slippery, and sometimes on the way steep hairpins even the good AWD system scrabbles a bit and the wheels spin a bit. Solution? Press the button in the centre console marked "SNOW". I kid you not.
If I could have got a coupe, I would have done, but I had to take what I could find after seeing some DOG Mitsubishis and Subarus that have been on island too long (I also viewed THE ABSOLUTE VERY WORST V6 MUSTANG IN THE WHOLE WORLD).
JDM is becoming a thing here, post Hurricane Irma. There are some MR2s knocking around that were not here a few weeks ago. There is also a Celica that never moves from its parking spot and may be busted, but it is kept clean. The only other sporty cars here are a scattering of BMWs, some Mustangs, and a couple of Dodge muscle cars. The latter are mega unsuited for the roads! There is AFAIK one Merc SLK (RHD) and one Audi (LHD). Very few convertibles. The few that are here never have their roofs down - it's mega hot!.
I was thinking of bringing in a Mk IV Triumph Spitfire next year, but will bring in a Scimitar SE5a instead, later this year. If I had a Spitfire, the hood would be down. The Scimitar has a full length sunroof. and that is going to be open. My Landy (when it gets here) has a safari roof ( a very clever thing that actually works).
JDM is becoming a thing here, post Hurricane Irma. There are some MR2s knocking around that were not here a few weeks ago. There is also a Celica that never moves from its parking spot and may be busted, but it is kept clean. The only other sporty cars here are a scattering of BMWs, some Mustangs, and a couple of Dodge muscle cars. The latter are mega unsuited for the roads! There is AFAIK one Merc SLK (RHD) and one Audi (LHD). Very few convertibles. The few that are here never have their roofs down - it's mega hot!.
I was thinking of bringing in a Mk IV Triumph Spitfire next year, but will bring in a Scimitar SE5a instead, later this year. If I had a Spitfire, the hood would be down. The Scimitar has a full length sunroof. and that is going to be open. My Landy (when it gets here) has a safari roof ( a very clever thing that actually works).
No, I am not in Bermuda. I am in the BVI. I am awaiting shipment of a 1983 Land Rover, but the Nissan is a stop gap until that arrives. The roads here are mostly appalling. They were not great before the 2017 Hurricanes, but the storms made them worse. Some Royal Marines stopped by on RFA Mounts Bay yesterday and did some clean up. I wish they had stayed longer, but the ship moved on this morning. There are some Mitsubishi and Subaru high performance 4WD estate cars here (JDM RHD), but I could not find one of those on sale and so bought the Nissan.
It is a good car but sometimes a bit too low for the roads, which have badly designed and randomly distributed speed bumps as well as pot holes, loose bits, cracks, and changes of surface. People drive on their brakes and strain their transmissions by not using low gears on the very steep hills, and so the roads are covered with brake and clutch dust and general dust and become slippery when it rains. The Nissan has good traction control and good tyres. These help. What you need here are hill climbing power and traction, and sometimes ground clearance.
Riding my motorbike here feels a bit sketchy sometimes, especially down the steeps. It is a small sports bike (big bikes are not allowed here). I should have bought an off road type, but I like sporty bikes. I would happily ski down these steeps way faster than I ride down them - it's all in the mind. But it would take some kind of climate apocalypse to get snow here!
It is a good car but sometimes a bit too low for the roads, which have badly designed and randomly distributed speed bumps as well as pot holes, loose bits, cracks, and changes of surface. People drive on their brakes and strain their transmissions by not using low gears on the very steep hills, and so the roads are covered with brake and clutch dust and general dust and become slippery when it rains. The Nissan has good traction control and good tyres. These help. What you need here are hill climbing power and traction, and sometimes ground clearance.
Riding my motorbike here feels a bit sketchy sometimes, especially down the steeps. It is a small sports bike (big bikes are not allowed here). I should have bought an off road type, but I like sporty bikes. I would happily ski down these steeps way faster than I ride down them - it's all in the mind. But it would take some kind of climate apocalypse to get snow here!
Edited by anonymous-user on Tuesday 3rd July 16:51
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