Just bought another car as a restoration project, a 1974 Alfa Romeo GTV 2000

With the 350Z technically sold and the arrival of the new car (more on that in another post), I decided to get a classic car as a restoration project.

So I went down to Jag Classic Cars in Damansara Perdana to have a look at a GTV that was up for sale. This was around 11 am (I took leave from work).

The car in question was put up on mudah.my:







The engine started up the first time without any issues. Didn't sound rough and revved nicely, although the spark plugs need replacing plus there might be some wiring issues. No oil leak. So general servicing is in order. Exhaust did not leak fumes either.

Indicators and electronics worked brilliantly - only the fuel gauge didn't work (indicators, brake lights, head lights, speedo etc all worked). Air conditioning worked really well - the car was well cooled.

Checked the car as best as I could for rust - wheel arches, boot / spare tyre section etc. Crawled under the car but I wasn't able to see anything to fret about (only way to find out is when I send it in for a respray and touch up).

All the fittings were there and in brilliant condition - Alfa symbols, even the fuel cap was original. The previous owner must have sourced or refurbished them. The seats need some reupholstering though but I love the biege / cream colour, so the original seats will be kept. Oh and I'm going to rechrome the bumpers and other fittings for that nice 'contrast' look.

The rubber seals looked fresh without cracks or signs of deteoration (looked new actually). The car was supposedly painted a few years back but some parts had scrapes and cracks. Red was the original color judging from the engine bay. The door locks need work - driver's side cant be opened from the outside - passenger's side door cant be opened from the inside! Windows winded up fine.

Did two test drives (morning and afternoon - deliberated for over a day before I decided) and the car handled really well (no off-center steering feel) and the suspension was excellent (no rattles either).

Needless to say, I sealed the deal with a handshake and now am a proud owner of a Alfa .

Car is currently going through the Puspakom inspection and transfer process. Can't wait to start work on the Red Baron!

The 350Z has been sold and my new car has arrived :)

What an amazing weekend.

The Hulu Selangor issue has been resolved, Chelsea puts 7 goals pass Stoke and the new car has arrived.

Time for a well deserved sleep!

For Sale: Nissan Fairlady 350Z 04 Manual Track Spec (Australian Import)

UPDATE 26/04/2010:

THE CAR IS SOLD! WOO HOO!

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In light of some recent developments, its time to upgrade ;)

Engine: 3.5-litre V6
Power/Torque: 206kW/363Nm
Transmission: Rear-drive, six-speed manual
Seats/Weight: Two/1463kgFuel tank/type: 76 litres/premium unleaded
Litres/100km: 7.8 average
0-100km/h: 5.8 seconds
Turning circle: 10.8m

Silver Nissan 350Z Track Spec ( 2003 Australian import – no speedlimiter – max speed 260 km/h). Completely stock, has never been modified.

Brought into Malaysia in 2004 on student AP. Manual transmission. Mileage 22,900 kms (genuine). Road tax paid till December 2010.

Condition, excellent. Fully serviced 4 months ago, engine oil, gearbox oil, brake oil, coolant etc all changed etc - all consumables replaced).

New tyres, Yokohama dB decibel (Japan import).

Detailed and taken care of by Autodetailer (refer to the actual pics of the car).

Australian 350Z Track Spec comes with:

• Leather electric seats (electrically-adjustable and heated front seats)


• Brembo brakes (this includes 4-piston calipers with 324x30mm ventilated front discs and 2-piston calipers with 322x22mm ventilated rear discs)


• Five-spoke 18-inch alloy wheels


• Xenon headlights


• Six-CD 240-watt BOSE sound system, single-zone climate control, front, side and curtain airbags


• Vehicle Dynamic Control (VDC - Nissan's ESP)


• Front spoiler, rear under diffuser, rear spoiler

Contact: 013-7488999

Price: RM140,000 (Negotiable)

Wait for the Volkswagen Golf R or get the MK6 Golf GTI / Scirocco 2.0TFSI?

I've been mulling over this throughout the weekend (pics courtesy of oneshift.com).

After having sat in a Stage III Volkswagen MK5 Golf GTI, I've come to the conclusion that unless Audi / Euromobil introduces the Audi S5 / RS5 or TTS / TT RS any time soon, I'm going to swap the 350Z out for either MK6 GTI or a Golf R (R20). And before someone asks why the Scirocco R was not included, the answer is simple, all wheel drive (AWD). Due to Malaysia's tropical rainstorms, front wheel driven cars are handicapped when the roads are wet (wish the Rocco R came with AWD damnit).

As far as I can tell, the R20 will not be arriving in Malaysia until the end of the year. Hence, the MK6 GTI is the I-can't-be-bothered-to-wait-for-the-R20 option. Basically any non-engine upgrade that was available for the MK5 will be applicable to the MK6. ECU upgrades are already out, and engine upgrades are starting to trickle in.

Now, if you were to think long and hard, the car to get is the R20 - beyond a doubt. Why? There is only a 125KG weight penalty this time for the Golf R over the GTI (as compared to the 200KG in the R32 vs MK5 GTI) and the R20 has the S3's engine. It can be pushed even further for less $ and that AWD system will simply destroy the GTI in acceleration.

A MK5 Golf GTI with Stage III upgrade is pretty expensive (Stage III w/ intercooler, fuel pump, air intake and full exhaust). This will give you 285KW and 450NM and allow the car to do 0 to 100 in around 5.6 seconds. It is also recommended that you upgrade the suspension and brakes, which will increase costs.

So for the price of a Stage III GTI (without the brake/suspension upgrades) you could technically get a Golf R. It only has 200KW/350NM but because of the AWD it will do 0-100 in 5.5 seconds. The car also already comes with better suspension and brakes. With a ECU update it will easily do 240KW/435NM and finish the 0 to 100 sprint in close to 5 seconds, maybe even under!

To wait or not to wait - that is the question. Bleh.


Disclaimer: The tropical spec "R" engine is rated at a lower 256hp & 330Nm which roughly translate to a 5% drop in hp & 6% drop in torque. As such all "R" exported to hot weather countries are tropicalised. Hence the 0 to hundred in 5.7 seconds rather than 5.5 seconds.

Volkswagen Golf Club Malaysia TT at Warung Belly

Went for the VGCM TT weekly TT (teh tarik / meet up) at Warung Belly last night, with the two modyourfast duo - k3v and R32.

Was a strong turnout (at least 10 plus cars) and supposedly, this is a normal occurrence (sometimes even more). There was even a stock blue VR6 2.9 Corrado, one of only two in the country. Talk about semangat'ness'. 350Z weekly get-togethers pale in comparison hehe. It reminded me of my Melbourne Golf GTI Club meet ups.

Needless to say, having owned a 2007 VW MK5 Golf GTI and a 2008 Golf R32, it was great meeting these guys. It was also good to finally put faces to names since I often frequent the VGCM forums. The conversation naturally was about cars, aftermarket parts (BBS RS-GT rims, OSIR carbon fiber rear valence), tuning (S3 engine components) etc - thoroughly enjoyable topics in my book!

Anyway, some of the guys have modded their cars to the extent of fitting in a bigger turbo i.e. Stage III K04 (roughly producing 245hp+ and 300lb-ft+ of torque : note that these are conservative figures). A stock GTI only puts out 197 bhp and 207lb-ft, so thats a big jump.

Was invited to have a ride in one K04 with a Unitronic remap (the car had stock intake haha!) and the power is pretty good (slams you back into your seat). 0-100 in under 6 seconds easy. The GTI's chassis is still stable and pliable (handling wise) but with all that power going through the front wheels, there was some chirping (the tyres couldn't find traction). In the wet, I imagine it would be a very scary affair.

Stayed till about 12 midnight before everyone decided to do a run on the highway but I opted out. Sounds like they had a good time though. 350Z for next week!