A facelift / Series II version of the R33 GTS-25t, built in 1997 with all the Nissan Motorsport (Nismo) M-spec additions, this included the factory-fitted rear adjustable spoiler as fitted to the GTR as well as the side skirts and lower rear pods. A Nismo lower skirt / spoiler is also added to the front bumper for added aerodynamics. This particular vehicle was factory optioned with a sunroof, it was also one of a very few special 'light weight' edition that was released during 1997 which did not have the rear windscreen wiper to reduce the overall weight of the car. I have only ever seen one other R33 which did not have the rear wiper from the factory. I have added a front mount intercooler which has a special 'Delta Fin' core - this special fin arrangement helps to channel air flow through the intercooler core in a more efficient manner, behind the intercooler, a 10 inch thermo fan is added to aid cooling of the inlet charge when the vehicle is stationary. A 30 row oil cooler and stainless steel reinforced AN-10 braided lines are fitted to cool the engine oil along with a oil filter relocation kit - making servicing much easier compared to the factory location of the filter.
ABOVE: The fun part ! Guide coating stage of the body preparation process - a once-over takes place and all minor imperfections are noted using green masking tape. I then go over it all with spot putty. Black is a colour not all spray painters enjoy doing as all imperfections show up. Satin is easier to deal with as it 'hides' a lot of the flaws more so than gloss black. Some fussier spray painters would refuse to do a gloss black spray job unless the preparation is 'perfect'.
TAKE NOTE: I AM THE ONLY PERSON THAT'S TOUCHED THIS CAR SINCE IT LANDED IN AUSTRALIA IN 2004 - I SIMPLY DON'T TRUST ANYBODY ELSE TO WORK ON IT. A total of 900x hours went into the engine bay - this included all detailing, hand polishing of aluminium components and stitch-welding of suspension strut towers. A total of 1600x hours went into the exterior body work - this included hand file-finishing, guide-coating of high filler, boot lock and aerial holes plated off and deleted, modifications including the addition of the rear chrome 'Skyline' logo (the original molded Skyline logo was grinded off, the centre garnish was then filled and finished with plastic filler before the genuine Nissan factory logo from the newer R34 Skyline was added) that gave it a different look compared to all the other R33 Skylines out there. After all that, there is also the mechanical work to think of. I am very lucky in that aspect as this particular car has only 52,000km when I purchased it and I've only added about 10,000km the entire time I've owned it - it currently only shows a genuine 62,000km (September 2014). You will not find another R33 with any less kms ! trust me, I've looked. I think this could possibily be the lowest km R33 in existence....
It was November 2004 and time came for me to choose my next toy. The choice was short-listed down to three machines - a Honda CBR 250 RR Tigerblade which had the tiger skin graphics, a R32 GTR and a R33 GTS25t series II (the facelift model). The end decision eventually came down to one of the Skylines and because the R32 had the age factor against it along with the added weight of the AWD, the investment eventually went towards the then-freshly imported and low-km (52,000km) 1997 5-speed model in dark red with the factory sunroof option. The series II of the R33 GTS-25t had revised headlights and hood that had a more aggressive shape compared to the smoother lines of the earlier series one.
The plan was to search for one that was relatively stock in which I know that it wouldn't have been thrashed much - as the more it had been modified, then the harder it's been abused ! That's how things go in rev-head land..... The previous owner in Japan had installed a set of aftermarket 17 inch rims and a 3 inch stainless cat-back exhaust. Other than these minor modifications, the car was pretty much the way it left the factory. One thing I did notice however, was the fact that this particular R33 did not have a window wiper on the rear window ! Something that I found surprising considering I have not come across another Skyline that didn't have this from the factory. After a little research, I discovered that Nissan released a small number of these special orders in 1997 that was like a 'light weight' edition.
I drove the car for about twelve months with stock boost of 7 psi before things got boring. In this time, I started thinking about how I would want to set up this car to suit my driving style. This was one main reason behind choosing the RWD GTS25t over the AWD GTR - Every car I've owned since I began driving had been RWD and I didn't see the need for a change.
Over the next several years, I worked afternoon shift in a chemical / paint plant. I left for work at midday and got home at midnight, I would then sit up half the night to read or be on the internet to do research for this project. This site is basically a record of everything I'd learnt and encountered during this process.
The plan was to search for one that was relatively stock in which I know that it wouldn't have been thrashed much - as the more it had been modified, then the harder it's been abused ! That's how things go in rev-head land..... The previous owner in Japan had installed a set of aftermarket 17 inch rims and a 3 inch stainless cat-back exhaust. Other than these minor modifications, the car was pretty much the way it left the factory. One thing I did notice however, was the fact that this particular R33 did not have a window wiper on the rear window ! Something that I found surprising considering I have not come across another Skyline that didn't have this from the factory. After a little research, I discovered that Nissan released a small number of these special orders in 1997 that was like a 'light weight' edition.
I drove the car for about twelve months with stock boost of 7 psi before things got boring. In this time, I started thinking about how I would want to set up this car to suit my driving style. This was one main reason behind choosing the RWD GTS25t over the AWD GTR - Every car I've owned since I began driving had been RWD and I didn't see the need for a change.
Over the next several years, I worked afternoon shift in a chemical / paint plant. I left for work at midday and got home at midnight, I would then sit up half the night to read or be on the internet to do research for this project. This site is basically a record of everything I'd learnt and encountered during this process.