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Haha! There are MANY of them. Some are really cool, but the number of conversations on the R31 forum about defects and dodgy activities like cutting springs is a bit of a worry. The things about my car which are possibly questionable are the increased front track of about 5cm in total to get @ 2 degrees camber (about 1" each side from S13 control arms) and the front brakes (the steel adaptor plate for the calipers is 16mm thick, and I had the hubs professionally modified with an extended centre locator ring to take the car's weight). The Sparco wheels take some of that track back out, though - R31 wheels are @ +26 offset, whereas the Sparcos are +32. Everything else is above board, AFAIK. Let's face it, at 170kph it's my life I'm risking, so I want the engineering to be sound. Some of the R31 boys seem genuinely surprised that they get police attention when they have no ground clearance and rims extending inches beyond the wheel arches. Some of the cars are very cool, but some others are very dodgy. I was chatting to a nice bloke at Sandown whose old Corolla was WAY more modded than mine and on club plates, but I can guarantee my R31 would get more police attention because of the drift factor. Not that I'm really complaining - lots of those drift boys really know their stuff and find ingenious ways to mix-and-match parts from other Nissans. It's a really vibrant forum. The RB30 is the same in the VL Commodore, except the oil pump and camshaft are different (more torque, less power in Commy). The ECU is also slightly different, because the R31 ECU runs the fuel pump, whereas the VL runs two pumps via a relay. There might be other tiny differences, but they're pretty much the same.

Thanks Peter I like my R31 - I wouldn't say I love it in and of itself - but, like all things Nissan (and Datsun) it's so well screwed together and is such a good blank canvas I have loved every minute of working on it, developing skills and taking my mind of various daily trials. It's such a superior car to my previous project, an HT Premier, and I have achieved my goal of building a quality, safe and (reasonably) fast club car with it. It only cost me $700 initially, and there are few cars you can buy which are in good condition, needing only really minor reco work and a few subtle mods to get to the track for those kinds of dollars. Of course, I have gone much further with it over time, but the 31s are a great starting point for a track car. I fancy building up a really nice Z31, not for any financial reason, and certainly not because anyone thinks they're cool. My mum's car when I was a kid was a 180B, so my Datsun/Nissan links go way back, and my rich friend's parents had a Z31, which of course I lusted after as an 8 year old. The digital dash was particularly exciting. Of course, the dash would be the first thing I would junk now. When I asked my wife what she thought of them, she said, "Very '80s." "In a good way?" I ask. "When is '80s ever good?" she asks. Fair point perhaps, but no-one loves these, and soon there will be none left. I think a well built Z31 will have some appeal, and under the skin they are very similar to HR31s (and near enough to identical to the earlier Zds, for all the purists who might turn up their noses at them, particularly the 200ZR, which is the last of the straight 6 Zds), so it will be an easy transition for me. A midnight blue version with an RB motor, polished turbo rims, a touch lower, should make a nice cruiser. Knowing me I will probably get carried away, but that's fine. I could just buy an R32, as they are fantastic cars, but I'm not a drift kind of guy, and that link is probably too strong for me. The Z31 is different enough, but at the same time similar. It doesn't really bother me that my wife will think I'm crazy. She never travels in my project cars anyway!

Thank you for this welcome folks. I was about to delete my id, but these replies have made me feel much more welcome. To those who are rude, just consider if you would say to someone's face what is so glibly typed. I doubt it. Forums need new people and different perspectives, otherwise they go around in circles and the only thing that grows are egos. Rev, I too am a member of CSA (as well as HSCCV). I have found CSA to be fantastic and Caz (pres) goes out of her way to make everyone feel welcome. Agno is also a member. Dat2kman, these Skylines have the RB motors - direct descendants of the marvellous L, but with alloy cross flow heads.

Hi guys My name's Peter, and I'm in Melbourne North saiiiiid. I currently have an R31 Skyline. It's road reg, and I use it primarily for club sprints. Mods include: Bonds roll cage stripped interior Front suspension: new bushes, King springs (not sure how much longer), Koni yellow adjustable shocks, Whiteline sway bar, s13 LCAs Rear end: new bushes, Kings, Koni reds, Eaton/Harrop TrueTrac centre, 4.11 gears Brakes: Falcon AUII calipers and Infiniti 280mm floating disks, rebuilt stock rears Wheels: 3 sets, but the ones pictured are 17x8 +32 Sparcos with good road spec tyres (soon to be semi slicks) Engine mods: full length TIGd 2 1/4" stainless with 2x Magnaflow straight through mufflers, U12 Pintara TB & ported plenum, soon to be fitted SC14 supercharger with Microtech ECU A million other bits and pieces - Momo wheel, custom adjusted pedals for heel toe, ARP wheel studs, that sort of thing. I am starting to look around for other options once the R31 reaches a level of development I am happy with (quite soon, I expect, once I have settled on springs and installed the blower, and played around with removing the brake booster and power steering), and the Z31s are looking interesting to me, particularly the 200ZR. Looks like I'll struggle to find one though, but I'm not in a rush, as the Skyline is still evolving.

Sweet action.

Ah I see I am bored at work, hence quick replies!

Which sump works for this installation? There are 3 obvious choices - R31, Patrol and Commodore (if that one is different).

SU carburettors should work fine, if they are: [*]in good condition - no shaft play, which nowadays would most likely mean they have been rebuild with stainless sleeves for the throttle shaft, seeing as they are decades old now [*]jetted correctly - this would require a dyno tune and rejetting from somewhere like these guys http://www.bandmfuelsystems.com.au/, unless you have an accurate wideband A/F meter fitted, whereby you could try a few needles and monitor stoich while someone else drove the car through the full range of load [*]lubricated - they have particular oil which needs to be regularly checked and refilled, because the piston needs to glide up and down without any interruptions To the best of my knowledge you can put big SUs (or any other constant velocity carbies, be they Strombergs or Hitachis or whatever - there are new very slimline versions designed for bikes which obviously don't need reconditioning) on any engine, because they only flow as much as the engine needs i.e. too big and you have spare capacity for better breathing. So a 2"Jag SU would be ok if the three tuning issues above were addressed. Additionally, the 2"s look great - they're huge. I was going to fit one to a supercharged Holden 186 engine, but sold the car. I had it fully recoed here: http://www.thornburycarburettors.com.au/. Looked like a good job.

A brake mod which might interest you is fitting Falcon calipers and floating disks. Here's what I did on my Skyline. I would expect the Bluebird strut would be similar. http://forum.r31skylineclub.com/index.php?topic=148434.105

Yeah, that's true. That said, all of the plastic parts like pillar covers etc would still need to be reused, and I don't really want brown or blue ones. I could always vinyl paint them I suppose. Good tip about the sump. It's most likely I will have to just mod an Aus delivered 300ZX. I'll presume that's sarcasm. I'm not a pro, but I have been messing around with the R31 for a while (my Skyline is pretty comprehensively modified), so I'm pretty familiar with them, and the 200ZR is effectively an HR31 with a different body. Modifying things like engine mounts, transmission tunnels and gearbox mounts is not hard, it's just fiddly, and why do it if you can search a bit longer and find a car which doesn't need it? Like I wrote, I'm not in a rush.

These cars are never finished are they?

Wow that's a lot of work. Well done.

Fair point but I'm not interested for the RB20 specifically, rather the RB family. Initially I'd probably fit an RB30 if I could only find a car missing a motor. AFAIK the RBs have the same basic block, but the 30 is taller. I would need a 200ZR sump as I presume they are unique - but they might not be. I agree - ultimate the red top wouldn't be the motor to go with. A 25 would be the best for a reasonable outlay. 26 is best of course, but big $s. The fitting side of things is the biggest PITA. I have done manual conversions in R31 and other cars, and I would rather save myself the hassle. Otherwise I'd just buy an Aussie 300 and do the conversion (although the dodgy seat and interior colours would remain).

Meh, that's how things go. I know there are very few around. If I could find a wreck with just the interior, and even just the engine and gearbox crossmembers I'd be happy. That way I could just buy a buggered 300 and start from there. I'd actually be happier with that, seeing as the red-tops are not meant to be the best anyway. I'm not really that fussed - I have an R31 road reg track car which I'm about to fit a supercharger to, so I have plenty to think about. Also, the ones on Carsales are both Auto. There is a manual for sale on eBay in QLD, but $2K for a car with a blown motor and chintzy wheels is a bit much for me. Besides, I can't really see how I can get it back here. Thanks though!

Hi guys I am interested in a 2+2 200ZR (Japanese Domestic Model, same body as the 300ZX Z31, but RB20DET). Not interested in the 2+0. Ideally, it will be in Vic. I'm not really too fussed about condition - actually, I would be happy for it to be in poor condition, so I can use it as a blank canvas, or fit the goodies to an Aus-delivered 300 shell. Not too fussed if it has major mechanical problems, as I will be modding it. Must be a manual. Ideally it will have an original and good condition interior. Also, ideally it will have 5 bolt hubs and the Z31 Turbo-style wheels (came from factory with these). They came with the earlier boxy front and rear, and also with the "Californian" styling. I'd prefer the earlier, but don't mind if it's the later, but if it is the later, I am only interested in a car in poor condition, as I will retro-fit the good bits to an Aus 300ZX shell. A lot to ask, sure, but I'm in no rush. This will be a long term project. Please PM me or call/text on 0410 184 397. Thanks Peter.

Hi. I'm after the front hubs. Got them?