The View from an R34 Daily Driver

[68GTCS]

G'day,

 

Have been enjoying my new daily driver an R34 GT-T with an auto, mild mods and 60k on the clock.  Love the view over the dash and how much it reminds me of my 240.  After a week commuting in the 34 I'm back in the zed this morning to my terror!  I had forgotten how intimidating modern traffic is in the zed... despite being disconnected and uninvolved in the R34 it makes me wonder if the modern nissans will be as well loved as our vintage classics.  What do you think it takes to make a classic?  Is it the emotional involvement that Leno bangs on about?

[C.A.R.]

Theyz get me teh Bitchez

[S30Mike]

I like this question.

 

I personally cant describe how a classic becomes a classic, but i can describe the difference in experience depending on the car you are driving.

 

I will start off by saying that the S30 is the most enjoyable car i have owned. I feel i have grown to learn its characteristics, and adapt my driving style to suit. I greatly enjoy the way i have to drive it, even if at times it can become abit tedious.

 

Everytime i look at my Zed i get a smile on my face, and find myself going over every detail. Sometimes i wonder what people are thinking when im standing in the middle of the street grining and staring .

 

I have owned a few different types of cars, the Zed being the oldest and the only one not fuel injected. The cars i previously owned were also great and beautiful cars, however at a certain point became boring and i didnt get that flare of excitment driving anymore nor did i feel like being involved with the car mechanically and what not.

 

Driving has always brought me an experience.. more the just driving

[Zedman240®]

I think what makes a car classic is one that everyone wanted to own when they were growing up; the car they used to see race or stare at when they spotted one on the road. A car that can't be mistaken for anything else. Like everyone else here, I've had several other Nissan's and other makes but I always seem to go back to a zed or owning a zed and something else.

[.]

I remember walking home from school past a car yard and spotted a 240z with the bonnet up. My friend and I looked in the bay and both went "Whoa straight six in that!!"

 

Shortly after my brother and I fully restored a Jensen Heally. They would have been a great car had they been as reliable as the Zeds. I read in his literature that Jensen considered using the L series zix from Nissan but opted for the Lotus (or should that be leaktus) motor. What a mistake!!

[(Locky)]

it i cars with that cult status/ look good/ go good/ rare that become classics

 

ive wanted a 240z since i got interestd in cars, something about the looks, and the fact that they go alright (yet to experience this myself so far)

 

i dont think non gtr skylines will become one, (look at the current market for old skylines) if you want one you do it right and get a GTR

 

i think cars like the ae86's are already becoming one, especially the panda turenos. people paying 15g for a stock 20 year old corolla has to be a sign that there getting there (takumi tax anyone)

 

i think the silvia series might be one, either the 13 or 15. light FR turbo, ease of modification, and big in the drifting scene. the 15 might be one even if drifting dies out, because it was the last of the basic turbo rwd cars pretty much

 

 

like all japanese cars, like the 240. there not overly rare, but over time they slowly get less and less. there is somthing abot those cars that were kinda pockets of the era wich you cant get the same experience from now with moden cars

[acf321]

What makes a classic

 

1) chrome bumpers and total weight under a tonne,

2) no emissions gear

3) Unassited brakes or steering

4) no computers!

5) unpredictable handling!

 

 

 

[68GTCS]

I thought it was all the rockin and a rollin and a right out o controllin that made you the man!

[RBZ 260]

got to agree with Locky.

 

anything with big cult status at the time.Also some cars that are low in numbers not necesseraly popular just forgotten.

 

ie holden/isuzu Piazza. crap car but fetching bit of money now as they are getting rare.

big 740i BMW coupe.

 

Than wrx series expecialy the 2 door Sti variant.

also evo lancers and typeR series Hondas.

 

s13 to s15 due to the drifiting scene as said above. also as Locky said above the old sprinter corrola are fetching big $$$ who would think before drifting scene started u had massive troubles getting rid of sprinter now can get enough of them. 

 

probably rx7 and supra NSX will be in their own with GTRs

 

OZ cars

the new monaros and most of the hsv FPV badged cars

Xr turbo falcons and prob XRs as well as holdens SV series.

i think VL Calais series will be very collectable expecialy the rare ones like the last series and turbo models.

 

sorry AC as for chrome bars and etc and simplicity.... well sorry to say but that has died in early 80s. and prob wont come back ever. thats what people said for 1960s cars compared to 1920. geez were they wrong.times change and meaning of classic as well.classic will eventaly become vintage so its just matter of time.

like it or not modern cars will become classic. just in their own right.

 

i think my s14 will be classic one day. I had it for long time. though i never plan to sell it its a brilliant car it goes it stops it handles and doesnt look shabby and most of all its RWD. its the modern version what Z should be light, powerfull and fun to drive. and yes u can still work on it easily just got to think past the carbies.

 

i think most of the top of the line "special" models will be collectable at some stage. ie

 

if u buying a bmw get an M3 cause evreything else devalues at alarming rate after 5years

same as mercs get AMG yes u pay for it more but at least it worth it if u want to keep it for longer.

ie 6cyl 328 bmw is around 10k same year m3 is at 30K+ if u can find one. new price it was like 15% more for the M.

 

another example XR falcons are around 15k. non xr is around 10K new price diff maybe 3k.

 

at the end there is no writen rule. some cars become classics cause they were cult cars. some becuase they rare and exotic some becuse they were a great car and some that were crap.

 

kinda covers all corners.

 

geez i must be bored at work didnt realise how much crap i wrote.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[68GTCS]

All true but fails to explain things like the 71 hemi 'cuda convertibles - couldn't give them away because they were the last hurrah for a passing era suffering from representing all that was cool last year and we all know there is nothing so un-cool as last year's coolest and yet they are now the ultimate of the era (debatable of course).  Any tips on the next white elephant?  Locky, you suggest GTRs but surely (especially here) R32 GTRs are the future classic with the 33 and 34s bing nothing more than a sideshow... Although I'm not sure that applies to 240s vs the later zeds.

[RBZ 260]

my bet is the new r35 gtr will be the hot on the classic when it gets old enough from nissan stable. its stiring a fair bit as it is claims quicker than 911. few wins at the track and it will be set for sure.

 

other than that the Monster 300C SRT  will be up there in the classic range. not a big fan of big yanks but the 300c does look tough.

 

the new mini seems to hold their price well even being for sale for few years now. could be a contender. expecaily the cooper s supercharged version.