# Buying a r33 or r32 v-spec



## swarren102 (Oct 5, 2012)

Hi i'm looking to buy a GT-R v-spec r32 or r33 in the next few months and am looking to know all the ins and outs with things to look out for.

like how reliable is the rbdett26 engine and what faults can they have/what to look out for.

gearbox reliability

and clutch/flywheel issues.

any advice would be greatly appreciated


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## MIKEGTR (Jul 8, 2005)

They're as reliable as any 20 year old engine.

Look for the obvious, smoke on idle, on and off of boost, sludge in the oil filler and on the dipstick, also check the water.

Not many standard cars anymore but standard turbos can only run .8bar on a 32 and 1bar on a 33 without running the risk of breaking an exhaust turbine wheel.

Gearboxes are reliable to 350bhp, thats not to say they can't take more, but I guess it depends how you drive it and how vicous the clutch is.

Service history is obviously good, but to me a pile of receipts for work carried out is just as important as it demonstrates that the owner is concious of maintainance.

Check tyres for even wear, four tyres of the same brand is a good indication that the owner doesn't skimp when buying items and the car gets what it needs - tyres make a hell of a difference to the handling on a GTR, more so than any car I've ever had, so a good brand is the ideal.

Many cars have had odometre changes KM to MPH, bear this in mind and check that the trim matches the mileage shown.

For reliability and overall experience, I'd be looking at a car circa 450bhp (with the correct mods - use the search function on here for details) and you definately won't be disapointed. You'll also be hard pushed to have any standard car come past you this side of £75k!

Also, wheels maketh the car IMO and I'd be looking for something where someone has already spent in that area, TE37's, CE28's, are both popular choices and for good reason, they suit the car down to a tee.

Hope that helps


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## MIKEGTR (Jul 8, 2005)

BTW, there are buying guides in one of the sections, not sure which, have a looksie though


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## davew (Apr 28, 2003)

we have current stock of R32's. You wont be dissapointed with our cars. Give us a call for any advice or help.


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## swarren102 (Oct 5, 2012)

thanks mike thats all i wanted to hear as people try putting me off over here for some reason but i'm dead set on one. it seems i'll be bringing one in from england as here in ireland there arent much decent ones.

what are they like to work on yourself? like are they awkwardly tightly packed (i'm not a mechanical novice i do have a fair bit of exp)

thanks for the reply dave i'll be going heavy on buying mode in march i'd say so i'll have one for the summer i'll be in contact closer to the time for a viewing frenzy


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## MIKEGTR (Jul 8, 2005)

I don' think they're mega hard to work on, clutch is about £200-250 labour from a specialist, all the ancilleries seem pretty easy to get to, not that I do anything myself lol.

Turbos are probably the hardest to work on as they are low mount as standard, if you go big single it frees up some space.

There doesn't seem to be many out there at the mo, so I'd start the search now and try and strike a deal with someone if the right one comes up - with market conditions as they are some people may well be happy to hold the car for a couple of months with a decent deposit


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## V1H (Aug 30, 2001)

Fairly simple cars to work on, easy bolt on/bolt off stuff, though space can be tight in engine area ie oil filter is a pain if you don’t have relocation kit. Suspension is similar to 200sx/300zx, so not scary there. There are a few differences specific to each model you’ll need to check, r32s more likely to rust on rear arches and 33s on the front suspension towers (search, loads on topic), but both aren’t factory undersealed and are old cars, so rust can be a problem. At this stage some importers will bang on about a fresh import car, which is fine as long as they are reasonably priced but they are still old cars and parts on them will still need changing (most parts and mods will be circa 15-20yrs old, so coilovers, boost controllers will need updating). In addition, if the turbos were to fail soon after you pick up the car, I doubt the importer will cover it, obviously nor will a private seller but hopefully you’ll won’t be paying as much.

So in summary , read up on both, short nose crank on 32, porous block/head?on 33 for starters, and I would start search by looking at enthusiast owned ones that they had for a few years with work done over here.


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## swarren102 (Oct 5, 2012)

ah ok well i'd be putting a clutch in myself if needed be...real cheapskate me lol

i'd prob keep twin turbo's but upgarde them i'd say....i like the thought of 450hp or so...that would keep me happy. 

still stuck on whether to go for a r32 or r33....dont fancy spending what r34's go for lol

yeah i might do that its just awkward living in a diff country with plane and that....vrt is cheap enough though


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## swarren102 (Oct 5, 2012)

V1H said:


> So in summary , read up on both, short nose crank on 32, porous block/head?on 33 for starters, and I would start search by looking at enthusiast owned ones that they had for a few years with work done over here.


cheers for the reply V1H. cool i love doing my own work on a car especially one that will be minded like a baby. yeah i seen a few 33's with suspension tower rust

yeah i'll start searching topics as want to be well informed

yeah i was thinking more on the lines of an enthusiast owned one that i can see the project build. seem more trusting to do it that way


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## V1H (Aug 30, 2001)

when i first got mine, aside from putting petrol in, all work was done by specialist, now all the minor stuff i can do myself (though i don't really cos my mates are much better than me).

As for 32 or 33, asides from looks, 32 if you like old school rwd but with traction and a smaller feeling down country lanes, or 33 vspec if you prefer a more modern and unique feel.


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## swarren102 (Oct 5, 2012)

at least if work done by a specialist causes bother they can be blamed instead of feeling like a tool for messing it up (been there and learned quick lol)

i think i'm more drawn to the r33 but who knows what will happen. are the porous blocks very common?


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## simplysideways (Apr 17, 2007)

Paddy, you'd be better of spending your money on a proper rebuilt 32 ,going from experience having seen his builds I'd give Rk tuning a call n see what Ron recommend s , than pissing about on any 33 unless you wanna blow £15 G on a proper 33 
Ron earns his living from working on our cars n not selling them so isn't gonna reccomend a lemon !!!!!


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## swarren102 (Oct 5, 2012)

yeah thats a good point i'll def look into that cheers for the reply. i'm going to be very picky aswell so it'd make sense to only look at ones done properly


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