It’s been a while since I’ve checked in with Dandy Tanaka and the whole Bonneville GT-R project. With the car being prepared for the 2012 event there is admittedly no rush in the whole build. Yoshi’s BNR34, an ex-press car that was hand built by Nissan engineers before the actual production of the san-yon began back in 1999, has been sitting in its hoisted up position on one of Dandy’s lifts for the better part of the last year, it’s guts dropped down and currently undergoing necessary upgrades to make it reliable for the speed trial.
It even survived the March 11th earthquake unscathed, managing not to fall off the lift!
Dandy has dedicated most of his spare time to the project, slowly putting together the bottom end…
…since the last time I went over to check how things are doing. He was kind enough to hold off fitting the head on the now 2.7L RB26…
…so I could grab a few shots of the JUN stroker kit. So along with the special JUN-designed, Cosworth-made pistons (no longer on sale by the way, this was a very special order)…
…the H-section JUN connecting rods have been bolded down in place…
…on the slightly longer stroke, forged and fully counterbalanced JUN crankshaft. This kit was chosen as it keeps capacity low, the conrods nice and short to allow the engine to rev reliably to and over the 9,000 rpm limit.
Like we already saw in the previous part, the ported, polished and upgraded head is already ready to go and will be sealed onto…
…the block along with an HKS metal head gasket. Dandy and Yoshi have also decided which turbocharger to go with, picking the rather large GT-X blower from the GCG Turbos range, giving more than enough scope to achieve the 800 to 1000 HP the GT-R will require to smash that 400 km/h (248.5 mph) barrier.
The savage boost of the GT-X will be channeled into the combustion chambers by this Trust intake manifold…
…while the stock 6-throttle set-up will most likely be retained to allow for drivability, as if you remember Yoshi plans to drive the R34 on the street again after the Bonneville event.
As soon as the engine is dropped into the engine bay along with the GCG turbo I’ll make sure to stop off at Dandy’s again to grab some more shots. Would be cool to be there for the first time the motor is cranked into life!!
-Dino Dalle Carbonare
OFFICIAL SPEEDHUNTERS SUPPLIERS
I'm not sure which i'd rather have... The '34 or the Katana!
Nice build, hope he reaches his goal, or it'll be an awful waste of such a special car.
Sweet looking Suzuki Katana at the back i think that one has a flip up light
i still cant belive hes doing this to a prototype
still dont completely agree with this build
Such a wasted car. This car was hand built, wasn't it? A very disrespectful decision to strip it apart and race it at Bonneville.
Bonneville: a race on the salt-lake desert, it will literally corrode the chassis in no time (thanks to the salt). This Skyline will not have a long life (another reason why it's a waste).
The Skyline R34 is a boxy-looking car, while many JDM fanboy love the exoticness of it, it will require TONS of power to fight against the wind at high speed.
In other words: not the best platform to go full speed.
I'm all about JDM and its scene, but sometime I ask myself why certain individual take certain decisions, not very smart if you asked me.
Cars are meant to be driven. It is awesome to see this one being used for that purpose. While
it is special it still needs to be driven...and driven very fast.
@JDMized since you know all about jdm following your name, am sure you know this is not the first time a nissan sktyline is being used for a top speed run. anyway thats your opinion, but i dont think many cars at bonneville have lesser drag coefficients. give respect where its due. am sure he will pick up another special edition skyline, he is putting all that engineering to good use not trophy keeping. cheers!!!
Aww, too bad it won't be there in 2011. Maybe I'll go next year also.
Can we get a feature on the Katana in the background?
nice build but i still cant understand why he chose to use this car!
GSX1100!!!!!!
@JDMized , The R34 is not the brick you think it is , Back in 2000 the Veilside r34 did a flying kilo of 346kph (216mph)on a public road down here in New Zealand ,
http://youtu.be/Lcz5TRA__Vc
On the big track at bonnievile it should go close to getting what they want to do .
Dandy has been to the salt before and i think that all nessacery steps to see the car does not have a short a life as you think , Remember he is going to use as road car once done a bonnieville .
"I'm all about JDM and its scene, but sometime I ask myself why certain individual take certain decisions, not very smart if you asked me."
They make these decisions because they can . What have you done , Not everyone is in to see car wrapped in cotton wool and only pulled out for special events .
DREAM IT , BUILD IT , DRIVE IT HARD !!
Cars are meant to be driven. It is awesome to see this one being used for that purpose. While
it is special it still needs to be driven...and driven very fast.
Bonneville salt is holy ground for petrol heads. This guy knows how special the place is, and will be proud to have a bit of patina from the church of speed put on this car. When describing this car in the future, its participation on the flats will be a big part of what makes it special.
Worried about rust? "wasting" the car by going to Bonneville? You hard-parkers are a bunch of clowns.
lost in translation maybe, something huge is missing here
isn't that an rb30 bottom end..
look at the crank case/ oil drains through the block not rb26's drains?.... but it doesn't have the rb30 deck height... wtf is going on here.. (very confused)
Do we really need someone saying what JDMized stated in everyone of this cars post??? We get it already shut up.
Pity using a one of two car, i would have thought a nsx or rx7 shapped car would have been tons better to use
"Yoshi plans to drive the R34 on the street again after the Bonneville event." - um, yeah, I don't see that happening. Most likely, sadly, he'll probably do 3 pulls on the salt flats, the engine will seize, and the car will sit under a blue tarp for a decade before it's scrapped.
Whatever you say, i don't see a reason why not to use any other 34 out there to strip it apart and build from zero, cause it won't do him any difference at all. I wish it will at least show the results worth the car it was, otherwise handwork of Nissan engineers were a waste in this case.
Limited things like the one it was, can not be restored once they are lost.
Quite pity.
Is there a part 4?