Toyota Celica GT-Four ST205
VW Scirocco, Nissan 350Z, Nissan Skyline (R33), Vauxhall VX220
Well it only covered 900 miles from 2009-2015...
"I bought it completely on a whim! I was back in the market for a Nissan Z car and looking at a number of shoddy 300ZXs when I saw this pop up for sale here on PH. It had an exhaustive list of work done on it and the owner seemed knowledgeable, so I dropped him a call and went to look at it. It was utterly immaculate; turns out he imported it in 2009 and kept it in a lock up with all the other cars in his 'collection' and had only done 900 miles since then. I made a cheeky offer on the way home, then a bit of negotiating back and forth and I was back there the following weekend to pick it up."
What I wish I'd known:
"How hard it is to get wheels in the offset and stud pattern on these cars: 35 offset and 5x100. The only things I didn't really like were the wheels which I planned to change straight away but the stud pattern is pretty uncommon for many styles it seems when you scan the wheel websites. I ended up getting some refurbed Rota GTRs at a bargain auction price off eBay but it took a few months of hanging around for the right ones to come along."
Things I love:
"I love the all round capability of the car. I put it on the dyno and it pulled 280hp running standard with no boost modifications, so there's plenty of usable power on tap. The handling is fantastic, all four wheels laying down power via a chassis made for staying on the road and but which is still fun as well. Then you have four seats and a usable boot for when we want to use the car for the family day out. I also find the engine bay just such a pretty thing to look at, real mechanical engineering on display for your viewing pleasure. I also replaced the front bumper this year with a C-One effort, gives the car a nicely low slung aggressive look and for me that really nailed the overall styling for me."
A proper old fashioned turbo engine bay!
"The interior is classic 90s Japanese plastic; it's not a particularly nice place to be in standard form. I have done some work inside to try and make it a more comfortable place to be but retaining that 90s rally car feeling. Otherwise nothing, I don't really hate anything on it, which is why I have had it over two years now - and I am known for changing cars annually, if not more often!"
Costs:
"Economy wise it does pretty well; I would estimate around 30mpg if driving sedately, obviously spin the turbo up and all that goes out the window! I have been lucky otherwise with the car itself. As mentioned the previous owner threw a lot of money at it replacing all the perishables so there hasn't been much so far; he particularly helped by taking care of the expensive to replace superstrut suspension. There are many traders out there with scrap cars so used parts are plentiful and there is a great trader - TCBParts - who seem able to get anything you need new as well, parts prices are no different to what you might pay for a run of the mill Ford or Vauxhall either."
Go on Colin, you know you want to...
"I still keep in touch with the 350Z-UK.com forum guys from my 350Z days and they offered me a chance to join them on a tour of the North Coast 500 last year. A fantastic five days driving hundreds of miles a day through stunning scenery and stunning driving roads - it was an amazing drive. I don't plan to track the car (it's far too clean for risking out on a track!) but am potentially planning a road trip to Belgium or the like this year."
What next?
"I have some new discs and pads waiting to go on in the next couple of weeks. I also will continue working away in small measures at the interior, as I'm hoping the marginal gains will eventually end with a big positive change. Fellow owners keep egging me on to add some extra boost but I have resisted, so far..."