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wilko

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Obtained today... Nissan Laurel 2.4 SGL The Good:MOT'd 'til November and a month's ticket left.Manual - praise be!New tyres all round & recent new clutchElectrics all work(ish)Big bore exhaust that sounds the biz£350 (seemed good value to me)The Bad:Tear in drivers seatFew dents and dodgy touch upsStarting to bubble slightly on one archBig lump & low gearing (3000rpm at 70 seems high for 6 pot) = heavy fuel bills to look forward to!I probably look like a bit of a retro J-tin drift twit...

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Rubbish, who'd want one of them then?!

 

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I presume you mean it's a C32 like this one sat on my driveway? If so I might well be able to help you out with bits, PM me if necessary.

 

Interesting it being a manual. Surprised about the low gearing though, 5th on them is something interstellar like 0.75 ratio so unless the diff is very low geared it shouldn't be revving much at all. Mine was auto, so I can't really compare (my JDM one is doing 2000 revs at 60mph in overdrive).

 

They aren't quick however, somehow despite the L24E engine in C32 having lightened internals and revving reasonably well they don't seem to have much grunt. Some handy things they also have are electronic ignition (dizzy worth a bit to Z owners/Beauford builders), geared starter motor (sounds lovely) and steering rack, not box.

 

If you've got the earlier C31 model then ignore what I said about the engine, starter and rack, but late ones did get electronic ignition. Only carb on C31 though, not injection. Gearing still the same though IIRC.

 

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With both C31 and UK-spec C32 I felt the same driving round in them, which was like a slightly smelly older bloke who frequented dog tracks and the bookies.

 

Laurels - newer ones especially - exist in a slightly odd world where they're too big to be of much interest to the drifters but don't have the kudos of a Cedric. For that reason they're a bit of a bargain.

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I guess the subsequent Maximas and QX's fall into the dog track car parks category. They have this reputation of being completely forgettable but to be honest, like the Hyundai XG30 or recent model Camrys & Legends I tend to notice them with some interest. Does anyone else remember 'Car' magazines quest to get the QX noticed, by placing the car on top of the 'Vanguard' storage building off the A40 in London about 10 years ago?

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I guess the subsequent Maximas and QX's fall into the dog track car parks category. They have this reputation of being completely forgettable but to be honest, like the Hyundai XG30 or recent model Camrys & Legends.......

Double whammy at being dog track man for me then! And I’ve a bit of a thing about Legends too. Having said that, I like to pretend I’m a Home Counties solicitor in the Camry like its long-time previous owner was.I don’t remember the ‘Car’ QX thing, but I’d probably given up on it as being an interesting read by then.I think old C31/C32 Laurels definitely would be hard to find as having been owned by a non-smoker - mine always had stale tobacco as a background smell, and the documents stunk of it.
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That's the Laurel I have most appreciation for (which still isn't that much) because I have memories of my uncle having a gold A reg one that had sat on their driveway rotting away for most of the 90s. He eventually found a buyer for it but ended up having to let it go for much less than he could have done. :(
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Does anyone else remember 'Car' magazines quest to get the QX noticed, by placing the car on top of the 'Vanguard' storage building off the A40 in London about 10 years ago?

Top Gear mag I think. They also memorably had the thing "wrapped" (for a single day, apparently) in yellow vinyl with coloured spots to make it more prominent. Shame they didn't keep it that way :lol:
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Rubbish, who'd want one of them then?!I presume you mean it's a C32 like this one sat on my driveway? If so I might well be able to help you out with bits, PM me if necessary.Interesting it being a manual. Surprised about the low gearing though, 5th on them is something interstellar like 0.75 ratio so unless the diff is very low geared it shouldn't be revving much at all. Mine was auto, so I can't really compare (my JDM one is doing 2000 revs at 60mph in overdrive).They aren't quick however, somehow despite the L24E engine in C32 having lightened internals and revving reasonably well they don't seem to have much grunt. Some handy things they also have are electronic ignition (dizzy worth a bit to Z owners/Beauford builders), geared starter motor (sounds lovely) and steering rack, not box.

Yeah she is a C32 - as regards being not very quick, I'm actually reasonably impressed... I've driven an 2.4 auto C32 before, and from memory, the difference between the manual & auto is significant - it's definitely as quick as any V6 auto granada I've driven. However, something I have noticed is that I believe it's got the wrong profile tyres on it - 185/60/14s, the bloke I got it from is a banger racing mate of mine & prefered the way it went (sideways in 3rd) on the lower profiles... I think this "modification" will mean the speedo is over-reading though... am I right in thinking it should be rolling on 185/70/14's as per some of the Bluebirds of the era that I've had?Thanks v. much for the offer of parts help - there are a few bits I could definitely make use of - I think that bonnet is a colour match for my (dented!) one for a start... Am I right in thinking you are over east coast way somewhere?
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Yup, I’m south of Norwich just off the A140. Moving a few miles further south soon, but intend keeping the dead C32 with me as it’s too useful so there’s no desperate hurry if you want to come and get bits.The tyres should definitely be 185/70’s. That might take the edge of its acceleration a bit but will at least bring the gearing back to where it should be for cruising.P.S. While we’re talking about big cars from non-prestige makers, anyone fancy a 24v Scorpio 4dr (non-bug eye model)? One for sale just near work, try and get some pic’s at lunchtime. Got a towbar on it too.

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P.S. While we’re talking about big cars from non-prestige makers, anyone fancy a 24v Scorpio 4dr (non-bug eye model)? One for sale just near work, try and get some pic’s at lunchtime. Got a towbar on it too.

Could well be interested in that, or know someone who is. Any idea on a price?
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P.S. While we’re talking about big cars from non-prestige makers, anyone fancy a 24v Scorpio 4dr (non-bug eye model)? One for sale just near work, try and get some pic’s at lunchtime. Got a towbar on it too.

Could well be interested in that, or know someone who is. Any idea on a price?
Sadly it just says For Sale in the window, I’ll knock on their door tonight/tomorrow. Took pic’s, the arches are starting to go, it’s done 128k it would appear. Having been driving past it for several years now it’s always struck me as quite a straight thing, saw the guy driving it about just the other day.
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Yup, I’m south of Norwich just off the A140. Moving a few miles further south soon, but intend keeping the dead C32 with me as it’s too useful so there’s no desperate hurry if you want to come and get bits..

Excellent, I'll take you up on that some point soon... I used to live in "naarch" myself near the cathedral, never saw much shite round there though, although I did know a bloke with a mint DB5 - posh shite!

The tyres should definitely be 185/70’s. That might take the edge of its acceleration a bit but will at least bring the gearing back to where it should be for cruising.

Looking at the amount of juice it's guzzling, this will be happening soon, and I will be driving in socks to lighten my right foot!
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  • 1 month later...

Quick update on fuel guzzling situation...Now, firstly I'll admitt that I a) know very little about laurelsb) can strip & rebuild a carb in 10 minutes, but know next to nothing about injectionFuel consumption seemed to be on the ridiculous side, which never bothered the previous owner as he was a scrap collector and ran her on the motion lotion drained from everything he was weighing in... but my switch card was starting to get distinctly warm!Yesterday I disconnected the 2 pin plug from what appears to be a 7th injector lodged in the manifold (which I assume is a cold-start device) and then took it out for a run, fuel consumption seems to be much better, but she stalled on me this morning whilst cold - so I'm guessing I have a voltmeter to buy & some fault finding to do - oh the joys of daily driven shite...With the Laurel having generally behaved itself, I'm putting my old boring Rover 216 in t'paper this week & will be seeking out a 2nd piece of MOT'd shite to join the collection (damn you autoshite website!) so hopefully I can then sort out the Laurels drinking & smoking habits. Obviously the aquisition of another old car will disgust the missus / upset the neighbours accordingly, which could be seen as a bonus... Living as I do in the midst of NIMBYville Northampton, I have already received my first complaint on the decebel level of the Laurel's exhaust. :)Question for anybody who knows japs better than I - is the laurel OK to run on unleaded?I've been using additive just in case, but since the valve seals seem to need replacement, if it's supposed to drink poisoned petrol I could go for a quick head swap with a scrapper & then overhaul the current head with new valves & seats I suppose...

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