Its chassis was made by Nissan, but this Skyline’s heart is all Toyota.

If you spend any amount of time around the import scene you’ll know that it’s a passionate place. Most people in it are incredibly enthusiastic about cars, and therefore tend to have very strong opinions about each and every little facet of the scene. Whether they think there is no replacement for displacement or that N/A is the only way, everyone has a view — and there will always be a hundred other guys out there to argue the exact opposite.

In the drift scene, however, there does seem to be one opinion that most people tend to agree with: Nissan makes the best chassis but Toyota makes the best motors. Time and time again NZPC hears that sentiment, and there’s a lot of truth in it. It is almost a pity these two companies can’t just get together, combine strengths and build the best of both worlds. That will probably never occur between the mega-manufacturers, but it has happened in New Plymouth.

“Before this, I drove quite a nice Toyota Soarer. It ran the 1JZ-GTE motor [2.5-litre turbo straight six], which was great. But after doing a few track days I came to the realisation that it was a bit too tidy and I needed something I could really beat on,” says Brad Kidney, explaining the origins of his 1989 Nissan Skyline slider. Not long after deciding to get rid of the Soarer, Brad caught a lucky break as a friend put her well-used R32 Skyline sedan up for sale. The car was snapped up and the Nissan was soon on its way to becoming skid-worthy.

During the build, one of the biggest obstacles facing Brad was power — he needed plenty of it. But after exploring some options from Nissan, he began to think outside the square. “I was looking at RB25s and they seemed okay, but not as good as the 1JZ I had in the Soarer,” Brad says. “After a bit of research I realised that a good Toyota motor could be had for the same price as an RB, so I picked up a 1JZ from a Toyota Chaser and got to work.”

That particular Chaser happened to be fairly late-model JZX100, which has an updated version of the 1JZ that instead of using two tiny turbos has one much larger single unit and also adds variable valve timing (VVT) into the mix. This setup was deemed more than acceptable by Brad, and the task of placing a foreign Toyota heart inside the iconic Nissan shell got under way.

The process was not without its difficulties. “Getting the motor in there wasn’t the hard part,” Brad notes. “What wasn’t so much fun, however, was the fact that Toyota runs everything on the opposite side to Nissan: exhaust, power steering, alternator — everything. So most of the time working on that conversion was spent getting all the ancillary gear to fit.”

When completed and enhanced with some basic induction, extraction and Link engine management system mods, the motor spun up a very nice 250kW at the rear SSR rims, thanks to an aggressive tune by Ross and Tony at Dobson’s Dyno Tune in New Plymouth.

Originally painted in an army camouflage scheme by Steven Sole Customs (which is how most people will probably remember it), the Skyline has been resprayed in a tidy metallic green and rolls with a very aggressive new BN Sports bodykit. “I decided I was probably getting too old for the camo scheme, plus it’s an absolute headache if I hit something and it needs to be resprayed,” says Brad. “So since we were messing with the guards and fitting a new kit anyway, I told Steve to go with the straight green.”

Although the car is more than capable of entering drift events with its full cage, good power and great handling, for the moment Brad has hung up that hat. “It’s just too expensive for me to compete at the top level at the moment,” he admits. “I’ll do a few track days and things when I can, but for the moment my priorities are my family and my business.”

So while there won’t be any top-tier drifting for this 1JZ-powered R32 in the near future, in true Taranaki style, its current home is on the streets. Believe it or not, Brad uses the car as his daily driver.
Hopefully the future will see a little more time and money up this abstract thinker’s sleeve, because a car this cool needs to be back out there on the circuits of New Zealand, rubbing paint with the best we have to offer. Here’s hoping.

1989 Nissan Skyline – Specifications

Engine: Toyota 1JZ-GTE 2.5-litre DOHC 24V VVT inline-6, factory single turbo, Blitz SUS air filter, custom stainless intake pipe, GReddy blow-off valve, 600x300mm front-mounted intercooler, 2.5-inch intercooler piping, stainless dump pipe, 3-inch custom exhaust, GT-R fuel pump, Sard fuel pressure regulator, Toyota radiator, power steering cooler, Link G2 engine management system, Link wiring loom, Link boost controller, Link MAP sensor
Driveline: Toyota W58 5-speed gearbox, 5-puck solid centre clutch, factory LSD, custom driveshaft, custom gearbox mounts
Suspension/Brakes: BC adjustable coil-over shocks/springs, custom front/rear strut braces, R32 GT-R front callipers/discs, R32 GTS-T Type M rear discs/callipers
Wheels/Tyres: Front – 18×9-inch SSR wheels, Rear – 18×10-inch SSR wheels, Bridgestone tyres
Exterior: BN Sports bodykit, custom bonnet, metal widened guards, shaved rear door handles, custom GT wing, custom paint
Interior: Full MSNZ-spec 6-point roll cage, Sparco Evo 2 seats, 5-point harnesses, OMP steering wheel, Razo gear knob, GReddy boost gauge, VDO water temp gauge, VDO oil pressure gauge, Blitz turbo timer
Performance: Dyno Power – 335hp (250kW) @ wheels

Brad Kidney – Owner Profile

Age: 28
Location: New Plymouth
Occupation: Self-employed
Length of ownership: 4 years
Build time: 4 years
Thanks: Ross and Tony @ Dobson’s Dyno Tune (DDT), Steve @ Steven Sole Customs, Jono, Josh @ Just Tyres New Plymouth, Trent @ Totally Toyota, all the WSR crew, Casey & Nick, and the missus, Mel

Words: Peter Kelly Photos: Adam Croy

This article is from Performance Car issue 152. Click here to check it out.

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