Fred's 1998 C34 Nissan Stagea 25X Four Wagon

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Fred
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Re: Fred's 1998 C34 Nissan Stagea 25X Four Wagon

Post by Fred »

Cheers, Jeff! And then there was this... https://twitter.com/FredCookeNZ/status/ ... 4291129346 :-o good times :-)

Today's ~352km route:

Image
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Re: Fred's 1998 C34 Nissan Stagea 25X Four Wagon

Post by Fred »

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Re: Fred's 1998 C34 Nissan Stagea 25X Four Wagon

Post by Fred »

And so it ends! The final leg of the journey:

Image



Despite a dicey start, the Stagea performed flawlessly throughout the 1662.6km north from Christchurch to Auckland via Motueka, Picton, Wellington, New Plymouth, and Manawaru.

I picked up:
  • The mighty RB powered Stagea
  • A left wing mirror for the Starlet
  • A set of old Volvo wheels for the caravan/drag racing the 740
  • A J160 Altezza 6 speed for the Starlet blacktop conversion
  • A set of 15x6" DC2 Honda Integra wheels without tyres for the Starlet
And the Stagea still drove like it had nothing in it. Epic car.
ToxicGumbo wrote:Will this become another vehicle retrieval adventure in social media?
I hope this post, and all prior, have lived up to your expectations of road trip by Fred :-)

Final tweets/pics:

Pretty view: https://twitter.com/FredCookeNZ/status/ ... 6276537346
Blurry view: https://twitter.com/FredCookeNZ/status/ ... 2945756160
Mileage te kuiti: https://twitter.com/FredCookeNZ/status/ ... 5106426880
Consumption te kuiti: https://twitter.com/FredCookeNZ/status/ ... 8542435329
Getting closer: https://twitter.com/FredCookeNZ/status/ ... 8369206272
Full boot, home: https://twitter.com/FredCookeNZ/status/ ... 9801276420
Cleaned up: https://twitter.com/FredCookeNZ/status/ ... 9000314880
Mileage to home: https://twitter.com/FredCookeNZ/status/ ... 5536057344
Mileage total journey minus 1000: https://twitter.com/FredCookeNZ/status/ ... 6289980418
Consumption at final fill: https://twitter.com/FredCookeNZ/status/ ... 0904331264
Mileage at final fill: https://twitter.com/FredCookeNZ/status/ ... 2828510208
Dash lights: https://twitter.com/FredCookeNZ/status/ ... 4873014274
Contrast: https://twitter.com/FredCookeNZ/status/ ... 6438734848
On my way to retrieve from airport drop: https://twitter.com/FredCookeNZ/status/ ... 7018750977
Made it through alive on 2 wheels: https://twitter.com/FredCookeNZ/status/ ... 5503051776
Two wheels fit easily in the Stagea: https://twitter.com/FredCookeNZ/status/ ... 1792847872

So now she's parked, full of gas, waiting for some lovin'. As soon as finances allow. Or possibly sooner. I suspect I'll miss driving it, despite the slush box.

Unlikely to see many mods anytime soon. Perhaps 2wd switch mod, and some other little tweaks. Speaking of which, stuff that's wrong with it:
  • Front strut nuts painted white, yuck.
  • Tar spots all over it, easy to remove.
  • Bonnet stoppers are worn out and do not stay up, find some on another nissan
  • Exhaust heat shield loose, rattles intermittently
  • Rear muffler somewhat rusty/worn out, hopefully sneaks through WOF
  • A bit grubby inside, partly due to me, partly already like that
  • Rear headliner is looks and hanging slightly
  • Missing some clips along the bumper below the tail gate
  • Some plastic bits in channel between windscreen and bonnet (called?) are loose/missing
  • Some clips on the seal strip along the back of the bonnet are damaged
  • Oil has done its day, and should be changed, but I want to put some lifter cleaner in, possibly in with fresh new oil, HPR10, this time, 10 tenths next
  • Interior light switch is dodgy, and lense cracked, get replacement, replace.
  • Left rear seat rear handle does not work, so you have to open it through the left rear door, instead of from the back, 1st world problems
  • A few minor dents on the sides here and there
  • A nasty but small dent below the tail gate window that may be tricky to fix, seal not in original condition in the same area
  • Weird surging in the 2800-3000 RPM / 110kph region with just the right throttle, less or more and it goes away, VVT switch point? Broken rubber mounts? No idea.
And finally, the trip would not have been what it was without the involvement of various people! So thank you to all of the below, in rough chronological order:
  • John 10/10
  • James
  • Bearded friend of James
  • The crew at Surfab
  • The old man that was too slow, but told me to buy a lotto ticket
  • The random guy on a bike that called my phone and helped me find it in the grass
  • Chris the wheeler dealer in Motueka, and his mum
  • Alex and his mrs
  • Sarah 10/10
  • Jenks
  • Charles and his weasel and very loud dog
  • Drunken man, his mrs, his sister, and his young daughter
  • Nige and his mrs and kids - 10/10
  • Jess, wheel girl
  • And later, my wife! :-D
Great trip, great car, great people, great fun! Thanks to everyone :-)

Fred.
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Re: Fred's 1998 C34 Nissan Stagea 25X Four Wagon

Post by Fred »

Forgot to post a summary of fuel use and costs, but I'll get onto that in a few days or so, when I feel a little less pressured.

Just uploaded these pics of the damaged phone, though, for the record:

https://twitter.com/FredCookeNZ/status/ ... 7535956992
https://twitter.com/FredCookeNZ/status/ ... 5107831808
https://twitter.com/FredCookeNZ/status/ ... 6515486720

Re the first link, when it first happened, most of the glass was still in position, just kinda loose. So I peeled the loose stuff out leaving only the well-stuck stuff that you still see. I'll start making regular backups, somehow, and keep using it until it does completely or I can be bothered getting it fixed (may not be economical to do so?).

Fred.
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Costs

Post by Fred »

Car and contents: 2056.76

Code: Select all

 5 May 2016 	Stagea Itself 								$1,900.00
 6 May 2016 	Tent etc      								$50.00 	
 4 Jun 2016 	BP OIL NEW ZEALAND L CHRISTCHURCH 		$106.76 = initial fill up as base line
Getting there: 299

Code: Select all

15 May 2016 	STRAIT SHIPPING LTD WELLINGTON 			$173.00 	15 May 2016
15 May 2016 	JetStar Air Ticket Direct Transfer 			$110.00 	15 May 2016
 1 Jun 2016 	AIRBUS EXPRESS LIMITED AUK 				$16.00 	3 Jun 2016
Being there: 27.10 + 34.60 + 45.00 + 7.50 + 10.00 + 3.00 = 127.20

Code: Select all

 3 Jun 2016 	BURGERFUEL RICCARTON RICCARTON 		$27.10 	4 Jun 2016
 3 Jun 2016 	COUNTDOWN CHURCH CNR CHRISTCHURCH 	$34.60 	5 Jun 2016
 6 Jun 2016 	BAOBAB CAFE NEWTOWN 				$45.00 	7 Jun 2016
 6 Jun 2016 	MCDONALDS NEWTON WELLINGTON 		$7.50 	8 Jun 2016
 7 Jun 2016 	OSCARS PIZZA & TAKEA INGLEWOOD 		$10.00 	8 Jun 2016
 7 Jun 2016 	Z INGLEWOOD INGLEWOOD 				$3.00 	8 Jun 2016
Getting home: 117.45 + 100.95 + 120.01 + 70.36 = 408.77

Code: Select all

 5 Jun 2016 	CALTEX MOTUEKA MOTUEKA 				$117.45 	7 Jun 2016 - 57.94L - 3.00 discount
 7 Jun 2016 	CALTEX NORTH HIGHWAY PARAPARAUMU 	$100.95 	8 Jun 2016 - 50.49L - 3.00 discount
 8 Jun 2016 	TE KUITI SERVICE STN TE KUITI 			$120.01 	8 Jun 2016 - 57.45L - no discount
 8 Jun 2016 	CALTEX BALMORAL KINGSLAND 			$73.56 	9 Jun 2016 - 35.73L - 2.14 discount - final fill up, minus 3.20 milk
Total non-car dollars: 408.77 + 127.20 + 299 + 156.76 = 991.73
Total fuel dollars: 408.77
Total fuel litres: 57.94 + 50.49 + 57.45 + 35.73 = 201.61L
Total kms travel: 1663? = 1662.6
Average l/100km: ~12? = 12.1262
Average km/l: ~8.3? = 8.2466

Those figures with a boot load of gear!
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Re: Fred's 1998 C34 Nissan Stagea 25X Four Wagon

Post by Nige »

Oh oh, I know what that guard/suspension is! Pick me! Pick me!

Hope ya weren't too bored getting dragged to a job, at least it had cool things to look at :D
IRC nick: ignitionigel or Nige
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Re: Fred's 1998 C34 Nissan Stagea 25X Four Wagon

Post by Fred »

Nige wrote:Oh oh, I know what that guard/suspension is! Pick me! Pick me!
You'd better tell us, then, for the record, because I've forgotten! :-D
Nige wrote:Hope ya weren't too bored getting dragged to a job, at least it had cool things to look at :D
Not at all, my pleasure! Thanks for your hospitality in general, very much appreciated! <3
DIYEFI.org - where Open Source means Open Source, and Free means Freedom
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FreeEMS dev diary and its comments thread and my turbo truck!
n00bs, do NOT PM or email tech questions! Use the forum!
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Re: Fred's 1998 C34 Nissan Stagea 25X Four Wagon

Post by Fred »

Slush box info:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jatco_4R01_transmission
http://240edge.com/manuals/89-90_240sx/auto_tra.pdf
http://www.nissanpathfinders.net/forum/ ... n-rebuild/
According to comments in there, there are various versions of the RE model with different clutch pack setups (more/less disks).
DIYEFI.org - where Open Source means Open Source, and Free means Freedom
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FreeEMS dev diary and its comments thread and my turbo truck!
n00bs, do NOT PM or email tech questions! Use the forum!
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Nige
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Re: Fred's 1998 C34 Nissan Stagea 25X Four Wagon

Post by Nige »

Fred wrote:
Nige wrote:Oh oh, I know what that guard/suspension is! Pick me! Pick me!
You'd better tell us, then, for the record, because I've forgotten! :-D
56 Chev Belair (your pic is through the headlight hole I assume). 383 crate motor, new chassis etc fabricated under it.
Fred wrote:
Nige wrote:Hope ya weren't too bored getting dragged to a job, at least it had cool things to look at :D
Not at all, my pleasure! Thanks for your hospitality in general, very much appreciated! <3
There's a video of the Polo on my instafood (work hashtag at link to find easier): https://www.instagram.com/explore/tags/ ... autosport/

[/derail]
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Re: Fred's 1998 C34 Nissan Stagea 25X Four Wagon

Post by Fred »

Gave this thing two semi decent windy road thrashes yesterday. Thoughts:

1) Brakes have run out, and need to be much larger, even with the current engine - easy fix with some funding, lots of compatible Nissans, I expect. R33 GTR, probably.
2) It's hard to figure out where you stand grip wise when pushing it - I can't really tell if it wants to oversteer or understeer, but I also can't bring myself to throw it in super hard without having a gut feel for the 101% behaviour. Felt kinda neutral. I pushed it hard through a natural understeering corner exit and it tracked fine.
3) Springs/shocks/swaybars/etc are only found to be lacking when you push past 90% up toward 100%. Fine most of the time, winding through twisties, but when you try to stand it up on 2 wheels close to 1G, they're a bit soft and squiggly.

Nevertheless, I threw it in fairly hard repeatedly and it was fun and the tyres screamed for mercy around most bends. I took one brow faster than I have in years, since my last RWD Nissan, actually. But I couldn't stay on the throttle out the other side due to brake issues into the tight right at the end with a bumpy entrance and cliff exit if you screw up. In my Skyline in that stretch I'd reach 130kph before getting hard on the picks, dropping a gear, and turning in to the right. I've not plucked up courage to dive hard into that corner in any other vehicle, actually. Requires absolutely predictable and performant braking.

For a big boring heavy car, it's quite fast through twisties :-)

OK, time to be productive.
DIYEFI.org - where Open Source means Open Source, and Free means Freedom
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FreeEMS dev diary and its comments thread and my turbo truck!
n00bs, do NOT PM or email tech questions! Use the forum!
The ever growing list of FreeEMS success stories!
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