25/04/2020
It’s such a wonderful thing when form and function blend so seamlessly together. Michael’s 94’ Nissan Skyline R32 GTR V-Spec II is another great example of this. Fair to say, the majority of built GTR’s in Australia are geared towards drag racing and straight-line performance. This is all well and good for most, but Michael likes corners, with everything on this car steering towards aggressive street driving and track-use. All this while remaining an incredibly usable and comfortable car.
The original engine saw a hard life, 15-plus track-days will do that to standard bottom-end. When it finally let go, he wanted to do it properly, but with a twist compared to most of the big power RB26’s others are building. Making good power isn’t hard nowadays. There’s an abundant of information and experience with this platform. Reliability was number one on the important list, so with that, a few things were done a little differently.
The starting point of the engine build was a 23U RB25 4WD block with a very special piece from Platinum Racing Products. If you’re into the scene you would be familiar with one of the fatal flaws with big power RB’s, block twist. PRP has pretty much solved this with their steel engine braces. The one in Michaels' car is a bit different though. It’s been the test bed for a billet alloy (7075) integrated main-cap brace. Being constructed from aluminium gives better shock absorption and dissipation, but more importantly, it is 16kg lighter than the steel unit of 22kg. That’s a big saving over the front end of the car.
Sitting inside the block is a full Spool Imports 2.8L stroker kit and spline driven oil pump built by Northmead Auto Centre. Again, things differ a little bit here. The entire rotating assembly was sent off to Japan to be metal surface treated by WPC Treatment. This treatment aids in durability and has a profound effect on reducing friction, worth looking it up if you haven’t heard of it before. Some of these key differences mean the car can withstand hot lap after hot lap on the racetrack.
Making the power on the engine is an old-school but epic-sounding HKS T51R KAI BB turbo sitting on an HKS manifold and flowing through a plazmaman.com 100mm intercooler. In a nowadays unconventional move, the HKS 60mm waste is plumbed back into the ARC 4” titanium exhaust giving the car a fairly unique noise. A Haltech Elite 2000 ECU controls the show with all usual bits needed for big power on an RB including, PRP trigger & R35 coil kit, Injector Dynamics 1700cc injectors, Frenchy's Performance Garage Twin Walbro 460 in-tank pump setup and more.
It spun up 520KW or 700HP @ the wheels on E85.
In the bay it's all business, Hi Octane Racing catch can, Midori Seibi Titanium strut brace, Turbosmart Fuel Pressure Reg and KoyoRad radiator. We had the car sitting on idle for 30 minutes at a time on a very hot day and it stayed cool and happy the whole time. An Accusump oil accumulator system is also used as a safety system for high g cornering.
With power well and truly taken care of, turning and stopping was next on the list. Aragosta Type-S Rubber mount coilovers were chosen for their excellent performance but insane ride quality. Rubber mount coilovers meant Michael could throw in most of Ikeya Formula’s catalogue into the car without sacrificing on comfort. A stunning set of 18” RAYS Wheels Australia TE37SL wheels wrapped around the massive set of OEM R35 GTR Brembo’s finish off the look. These feature huge 390mm (front) and 380mm (rear) rotors.
On the outside things are kept basic and mostly OEM with a few extra touches like a carbon front lip and N1 side skirts. The interior received similar treatment with a Nardi steering wheel and Recaro Profi SPA bucket seat. It even has the stock radio still. Without a doubt one of the cleanest interiors we’ve seen, thanks in part to the epic seat restoration done by 株式会社 Garage Yoshida.
Michael has done a phenomenon job building himself a fast, reliable & clean streetcar he can take to enjoy on the track time and time again.
Thanks as always to Luddenham Raceway for the use of their incredible facility.
