greeneyes

If you have a lot of time to while away, check- http://www.automotive-links.com/mak/toy/lex.htm If you want to have it translated first use- http://babelfish.altavista.com/translate.dyn the pages look like this- http://babelfish.altavista.com/babelfish/t...zza%2F&lp=ja_en and you can move around the website in English. In particular I found these interesting http://relax.on.arena.ne.jp/altezza/ The problems of the clutch/flywheels and the throttle body were most interesting. Toyota would replace them w/o question, but were not going to make it a model recall. There is also a lot on modifications done and how well they worked. Ë™

Further on that choice, it depends really on what you want to drive. The Lexus 6cyls are far more civilised than the Altezza 4cyl, but hopelessly short of power. I bought the 4cyl for the lower weight in the nose and the really crisp turnin when cornering. Naturally the Altezza is not so nice around town, but a real joy out in the countryside. The clutch is sharp until it warms up, and the gears in all 6speeds a bit short so the revs are high. However, the handling and ride quality is just brilliant, and although the option was a 4door R34 turbo Skyline that had been lowered and was $5000 cheaper, it was no contest when it came to a fast comfortable ride!

I think the five I drove before I bought mine all had it. The variable seemed to be the Sat Nav system with the streetmap of Tokyo!

Well, its 7.30pm and 26degrees outside... I find it strange that we have Christmas with a bearded guy in a fur coat, and cook big puddings in the middle of summer. Nobody bought me a sunroof for Greeneyes... :(

I get quite paranoid about parking in public, especially at Supermarkets. Eventually it happened, a small sharp dent right on the waistline edge where someone whacked their door into it. What astounded me was the note left by the lady, explaining that her young son had done it and she would pay for it if I phoned her! I had it worked out by one of the 'paintless dent removal' companies. A man with a selection of long thin rods inserted one into the wiring loom hole and caerfully squeezed the dent out completely. Half an hour and $NZ90 later it was as good as new. I went halves with the lady on the cost, and thankfully no further dents. It was much better than a bogjob and a poorly matched respray... ps, how do I put a photo beside my posts?

For those Poms & Yanks still waiting for midnight, I can tell you that January 1st is warm, brilliantly sunny with only two small cumulus clouds in the sky at 11.30am!! Time for teh beach or out in the boat fishing... Couldn't be better. All the best for '03

Change tyres front and rear and try! My Lotus Europa became a twitchy dog when I put Firestones on the rear 30years ago, and an understeering pig when I moved them to the front! Then get a 4wheel alignment done. (which you should have done straight after hitting the kerb!) Wear on the outside of the rear tyres suggests a lot of toe-in, enough to overcome the natural wear on the inside due to acceleration. In the end, throw the Khumos away. Mine has the Goodyear Ducaro's on that I bought it with, quieter than the Yokohamas that were on the other five I test drove and they work brilliantly. I'll try my favourite Bridgstones when I need to replace them.

There are stacks of second-hand Jap import Altezzas in New Zealand, as well as the Lexus 6cyl IS200's. I've got the 4cyl 6spd RS200 and have never heard that our 96octane is detrimental to them, even with the compression ratio over 10 to 1. I try to use the only 98octane available (BP, at 'selected' service stations) when I can. The anti-knock sensor should take care of any problems with lower octane fuel. I used to use 10% Toluol as an octane booster in my rally car...

I would also like more mid-range power in my Altezza. The power at 7500 rpm is fine, but they are very flat at 3500-4500. Can they be turbo'd, or is the compression ratio too high already? Just a mid-range boost with no increase at the top end would be ideal, enough to reduce the need for 3rd gear at 90kph to overtake...

Like you, I've just discovered this site. I've had an Altezza RS200z for a year, the 4cyl 6spd manual gearbox. They're nice, especially the handling, but the engines are all revs and no go. A Nissan 200sx turbo engine would make a great transplant! My clutch is shuddery when cold only, something that is on the forums, although the gearbox is fine. There are a lot more in New Zealand now than a year ago, I see four or five every day driving around Auckland. Get a yellow one!!