New Member: JDM Supra and R33 GTR VSpec Skyline

Hey guys,

My name is Jan, and I am new to the forum. I have been lurking for some time now, but have yet to post until now.

Some of you may have seen me around Billings in my Supra. I used to own a 1993 TT 6spd Supra that was a hardtop alpine silver model. It had a few BPU parts on it, but in general it was mostly stock. I got a few good runs on Nik, but that's about all the action that it saw here in Billings before I ended up getting rid of it.

Here's a few pictures of it:




However, as much fun as the Supra was, I decided to move onto something different. I was pretty apprehensive about getting rid of it at first, but it was a decision that ended up paying off in the end.

To make things short, I ended up trading it off for a 1995 Skyline GTR V-Spec. The GTR has a full Mine's Package, including a Mine's fujitsubo titanium exhaust, Mine's cluster and sub gauges, Mine's ECU, and Mine's intakes. It also has full Bilstein coilovers with adjustable Tein upper mounts. It also has an HKS boost controller and turbo timer. Also, the GTR is sitting on Volk 18 x 10 wheels with +25 offset, allowing for 275's to be wrapped around all four corners.

The skyline pulls like a freightrain, hooks like a champ, corners with precision, and purrs like a kitten. I couldn't be happier with the running condition of the vehicle. Without a doubt, I would say that the Skyline would out perform the Supra in any situation besides full out, highway top speed. I have a feeling that the supra has quicker acceleration with anything above 100, but the skyline would outpull the Supra to 100 with enough car lengths to compensate for this. The AWD ATTESA and HICAS feels effortless as well. It makes for a driving experience that feels surreal, almost like cheater-drive instead of AWD lol. In the Supra I had to be very aware of the happy rear end, whereas the skyline will slide out and pull itself right back straight without issue. The engagement of the systems feels very natural as well, there is no heightened feeling of mechanisms either, it just feels smooth and right. Watching the front torque gauge peg from 0% to 50% depending on the angle of slip and amount of throttle is pretty fun as well. Overall, the skyline is going to be a sheer animal on the track. The RB platform is surely a very worthy competitor to the 2JZ. The feeling of a car actually reminds me a lot of a mixture between a Supra and STi, if you can imagine.

Look forward to me being at SCCA events, shows, and Lewistown meets.

Here are a few pictures of the Skyline:





-- Excuse these pictures being sort of blurry and taken in California - hence the palm trees lol. I haven't gotten a good chance to take any of my own, so these will have to work.

But there is one catch about the Skyline - it has no USA documentation. So no title or registration. The car has complete owner records with proper, notarized bill of sales, as well as importation paperwork that highlights the proper shipping, purchasing, and delivery processes. But my reasoning behind being okay with owning a car without any title work is that we are in Montana, and the state's strictness on these processes are pretty lax. With this in mind, i need to figure out how to get this beast titled so that I can drive it on the streets - legally .

Can anyone here give me any advice? I was hoping that someone on here has some ties to a DMV that can help me slip through the loops and get it titled. My supra was titled in a black manner, I just wasn't the one who did it - It was titled when i bought it. So I know it can be done, I just need to find the right person for the job. Like I stated earlier, I do have all the proper ownership papers to prove the car's legitimate ownership history, I'm just not sure that I have everything that is required to create a title. Also, I am unsure how lenient a local DMV would be to title an imported grey market vehicle. There has to be a way, and I am extremely focused on getting the car titled, I would just appreciate any help along the way.

Hope you guys enjoy my first thread. I know it seems like selling a JDM Supra is some type of twisted sin, but it really has paid off in the long run. I will own another Supra someday, I just wanted some change for a while.

I look forward to what you guys have to offer advise or comment wise!

Regards,
Jan

Looks like a nice Nissan Maxima to me... wink wink...

Maybe you could do a vin swap? and get a salvage title. just tell them its a clone. Nice car though! ive been on my buddy about getting a r34 actaully haha.

Boner!!!

Nice to see you on here Jan. Nice pics

jeeze never in my life would i think to see one you got to come out so time ill bring some rags so i dont get drool all over your brand new car lol but wow!

i had my cougar tht had no paper work wht so ever registered we called the dmv and a guy came down and wrote everything down and got a title and not street legal and it was simple so you should be ok in getting it registered but being a imported car idk but you should be fine

Can't wait to take a spin in this!

Thanks for the replies guys.

As for titling it as a Maxima or using another VIN, I'd rather keep it legit. Having a clean, clear title that reads Skyline will be beneficial for me down the line if I decide to sell it for something else. I doubt that will happen, but I'd like to keep my options open. I would title it as a Nissan coupe, but I don't want to bend the truth too much lol.

Thanks Nik, I am trying to be more active in Montana's scene this time around. I wish I could have gotten the Supra out more, but I will definitely have this one out a lot and make the best of it. I know you'll always be down to grab a wrench and help me out if I ever need it - since you're so close down the road lol.

Also, thanks for the compliments about the car. In no way is it perfect, but it will be improved over time. The Supra made a decent transformation from the day that I got it, so I assume the Skyline will be no different. No rush, but things will begin to take shape and it will look and perform better no doubt.

I have faith that I can get it titled, just might take a bit of sweet talking and time. As long as I'm organized and things are presented well I think that I will be able to get somewhere around here to slap a title on it.

And for sure Billy, you'll get a rip as soon as I can prowl the streets legally lol. Same goes for your Talon that I have been meaning to check out!

Sounds good to me, haha!

You, sir, are my new hero. I caught a glance of that Supra ONCE, and it was a fleeting glance that left me astounded. Good luck getting this titled... Hopefully it doesn't throw up too many red flags.

My advice is keep it off-road only. So many of these have been impounded and destroyed. Even the 100% legit Motorex'd ones have been taken. But if you still want to try and risk it find someone in Florida to register it for you. FL is the easiest state to get one registered. More than a few have been attempted in MT with no luck. Others have used "Dealer" plates as a way of driving occasionally. These cars won't ever be 100% legit until they hit 25 years old and even then without all the paperwork its gonna be tough. I wish you luck, its a sweet looking car. I researched for years how to get one legalized, and watched all the Motorex and RB motoring guys end up in Jail. And way too many of these get impounded and destroyed. Arizona is another state that people have had luck getting these registered. Bad thing is when they are registered the DOT, EPA and other Government agencies know about it and like all the others its up to them if they wanna come take it. I'd really hate to see that with such a sweet car. Very similar to the R33 GTS-25T that was in ND for a while. I think he finally gave up and traded it for an Evo to not have to always look over his shoulder.

As I said sweet car, I loved riding in these in Hong Kong. Someday my R33 will show up ha ha, as soon as Customs releases it! I lost a decent deposit trying to buy one from Canada back in 2000. Oh well live and learn. Love to see you track it at Lewistown and the SCCA's.

Glad to see you finally made it on here Jan!! Still haven't met you yet but I'm sure we will

Love your rides!

Smase... we'll find Gino... and then we'll sick Bentley on him!

u have 2 options. 1 u do a $38 vin inspection, and the cars title will show as salvage..... or you do whats called a re builders title. my dad has had to do these both. you will need hagerty or some special kind of insurance as the car will show no loan value. the vin inspection is quicker but shows way worse if you ever go to sell

Novaflash2002 wrote:

u have 2 options. 1 u do a $38 vin inspection, and the cars title will show as salvage..... or you do whats called a re builders title. my dad has had to do these both. you will need hagerty or some special kind of insurance as the car will show no loan value. the vin inspection is quicker but shows way worse if you ever go to sell

If it was only that easy. these cars don't meet some of the US dot standards. thats one reason its so hard to get the cars titled. jap cars are built to different specs and they don't meet US standards.

Thanks for the compliments and insights into my situation.

I am plenty aware of the consequences, legalities, and issues with titling an imported vehicle.

As I wrote in my thread, I owned an improperly imported Supra before this Skyline, and have confidence that the Skyline should be safe here in Montana if I do decide to go the titled route. The Supra was, in a sense, more federally illegal than the Skyline will be. I understand that the Supra was a production vehicle that was sold here in the States, but if you look deeper into things, the Supra is not actually on the legal import list. However, 1996+ Skylines are on the list. This allows for the Skyline to be legally imported, however driving it and meeting the required DOT, NHTSA, and ETA standards are another thing.

Like I said before though, the Supra was illegal as it gets in a federal sense. Sure, in Montana everything checked out fine and was perfectly kosher and legal in a state sense, but the Supra was prone to be federally confiscated at any time. I am fully aware of the state vs federal bogus that poses a threat to the Skyline.

But then again guys, we're in Montana. Arizona has had recent confiscation reports, and as far as I know Florida is a safe state as well, but Montana is lax from my experience and I would be comfortable with getting it in the system here.

I am well on my way to getting it titled with the help from a few members on this forum, not going to expose anything yet - but the titling process is well in the works thanks to a few select guys on here that have lent a helping hand.

I have debated keeping it off road only, but it's such a joy to drive that I really would like to get it on the streets more. This is still an option, though. Either way, it will be at plenty of shows, meets, and track days.


Thanks Todd, I'm sure I'll see you around this season! Being new to Billings, college, and other things made it tough for me to get the Supra out and really meet new people. This time around I will be out and involved a lot more.

Holy balls, can't wait to see this in person!

As far as titling goes, I'm with ya on trying to do it the fully legit way so as to not bite you in the ass down the road. However, all those Motorex folks thought they were doing everything legitimately, only to get royally fucked over. With this being Montana, you might actually be safer to swap VINs with a 300zx or something and just say it's got a Skyline bodykit and drivetrain. They never do any smog checks here, so nobody would really follow up on it. You'd be off the federal books, so if down the road they change their minds like they did with Motorex, they won't already have you on file. Worse case scenario, someone in Montana eventually starts to give a shit, and they send you a letter wanting you to clarify a few things. That would at least give you some time to figure another method out or to hide it or sell it.

Actually, legally speaking, what supposedly defines a car as a specific make and model is something to do with the original frame matching the VIN. That's why you could legally swap every body panel and bit of drivetrain to a chassis with a legal VIN and be totally safe. When I was in California, I was looking for ways to bypass smog laws by registering my car as a custom built vehicle, aka a kit car. In that situation, all I had to do was some modifications to my frame and I could call it a completely new car. I was planning on just welding up some sub-frame braces to satisfy that, but then I moved out here where nobody gives a shit. Maybe if you stripped off all the references to the factory VIN and welded up a cage and some subframe reinforcements, you could register it as a kit car. That's how the Ariel Atom's do it stateside. As I recall, the ship you the car in a handful of pieces, and you just bolt on the wheels and seats and fenders are good to go.

oh my gawd

I don't know anything about importing jdm cars, but my first and foremost concern would be:

What kind of liability am I personally taking on by titling this vehicle and driving it on public roads? I know Montanans are generally non-litigious, but something like this deserves consideration, at least. There are some attorneys in the local SCCA group. I would get in touch with one of them and see what they think.

SWEET RIDE though. Very unique. These jdm cars are cheap north of the border, though not for one like yours. There are a lot of the older RWD turbo skylines available. I read somewhere recently that Canada was going to make it tougher to register RHD vehicles as well.

How did you get the RHD rides? I just wondering how the importing market goes?? Im very curious cause...