Soon to be NSX owner [Archive]

View Full Version : Soon to be NSX owner

Paul

22-08-2004, 12:17 AM

I'm soon to be the proud owner of a recently imported 1996 model with just over 59,000km on the clock, approx 36,500m.

I have a few questions and hope that I can get some useful tips and advice on here, a site where I expect I'll spend a fair amount of my web browsing time :)

Being a tad over 6' when I'm seated in the car my head is the smallest fraction from touching the roof. I've been given the number of a company that modify vehicles for disabled people and should be able to make the kind of changes needed to get me a little more head room.

However, where better to find out if other NSX owners have had to have this carried out and hopefully get some sound advice on how much more head room I might be able to gain. I'd like to keep the standard seat if at all poosible.

The car currently does not carry a front number plate, or a mounting for it to be fitted to. How likely is it that I would get pulled over if I didn't fit a front number plate? It would be nice to keep the front of the car nice and clean. Has anyone else here tried not fitting a front plate when they've brought an NSX as the first owner in this country, if so did you get pulled over and told in no uncertain terms that you must get one fitted?

Roll on three weeks time when the car will be mine ... :D

I look forward to some helpful advice.

Welshman

23-08-2004, 07:34 AM

Congratulations on your purchase. I take it that you're importing it from Japan so it's RHD?

As for no front number plate you will certainly get pulled if the Police see you, and sooner or later they will. Do not expect them to be impressed about the need to keep the look of the front of the car "clean".

Can't help with the headroom issue.

Paul

23-08-2004, 11:42 AM

Yes, it's RHD, although it was a garage that imported it.

I thought the claim by the salesman about possibly getting away with no plate might have been a bit unlikely, although until recently I was driving around in my current car with no number plate on the front after taking out a pigeon at about 60-65 some while ago (though I did have a spare on the dash while I waited for the mounting to be fixed back on). Maybe I might try leaving a number plate behind the seats and produce it if I get pulled, saying I'm waiting for a mount to arrive and be fitted.

I guess I'll have to have a think and make my mind up on exactly where to mount a plate though ... shame though, a front plate does spoil the lines somewhat ... :(

Are there mountings that will allow you to easily remove the front plate and the mounting itself, i.e. if you wanted to show the car in the best way, or for photos etc.? If so, has anyone got the details of where I could pick up such a mounting?

Welshman

23-08-2004, 02:45 PM

I don't know if you can still get these but you used to be able to buy plates which were on adhesive i.e they were mounted on plastic with a removable covering so that you could fit them on a curved surface. I had one on the front spoiler of my MGB GT V8. This would give you a plate but without the need to fit the mounting bracket.

ctrlaltdelboy

23-08-2004, 03:42 PM

Paul

check the number plate discussion here (http://nsxcb.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?p=1003#1003) in the 6th post in the thread (the thread itself is completely unrelated to number plates!)

Paul

23-08-2004, 11:41 PM

Cheers Darren

Needless to say, I've sent them an e-mail regarding the possibility of a 3/4 plate ... although I may have it made up and just keep it handy and claim I'm waiting for the mounting bracket ... :-)

Anyone got any suggestions regarding gaining some headrom while retaining the original drivers seat and maintaining it's functionality, i.e. electronic adjustment ... ??

trackdemon

24-08-2004, 09:11 AM

DamianW

24-08-2004, 09:36 AM

Anyone got any suggestions regarding gaining some headrom while retaining the original drivers seat and maintaining it's functionality, i.e. electronic adjustment ... ??

Dali racing do a kit ... Mark emailed me when I was looking to buy an NSX about it (because I was worried I wouldn't be comfortable). Here's the link:

http://www.daliracing.com/v666-5/catalog/index_browse_part.cfm?focus=447

It turned out I don't need it, so I can't vouch for how good it is, and I've never bought anything from Dali so I'm afraid I can't vouch for them either.

Paul

24-08-2004, 11:06 AM

Surgery? :lol: I'm just over 6 "1 and I find my car fits me like a glove - its a bit of a squeeze with a helmet on admittedly, but perfect for normal use. I am fairly long in the leg though.

Congrats on your purchase - I've just completed a years ownership of my car and I still love the car as much today as the day I got it, maybe more. The way the car hunkers down through corners; the way the drivetrain is so perfectly balanced; heel 'n' toeing into a 2nd gear left hander; the way it looks. Is there a better all round supercar for the money? I think not. Maybe when I get my hands on it properly I'll be able to make suitable adjustments to find a nice seating position and not bump my head to often.
It's so difficult waiting for the day till I can go and pick the car up, just over two weeks, I just want to have it now and take her out for a spin. I must admit to having an aching face as I've been grinning so much at the thought of finally owning a car I wanted for a great many years!
I don't car if there is a better all round supercar for the money, or a better one for any money. The NSX is number 1 on my list of cars to own before it's too late and the day when that will transpire is not that far away ... :) :D :) :D

Paul

24-08-2004, 11:16 AM

Dali racing do a kit ... Mark emailed me when I was looking to buy an NSX about it (because I was worried I wouldn't be comfortable). Here's the link:

http://www.daliracing.com/v666-5/catalog/index_browse_part.cfm?focus=447

It turned out I don't need it, so I can't vouch for how good it is, and I've never bought anything from Dali so I'm afraid I can't vouch for them either. Cheers for the link Damian, will bear it in mind if I can't find an acceptable driving position. I'm sure there's a user on here who buys gear from Dali Racing, so maybe they can let me know how good they are.

ctrlaltdelboy

24-08-2004, 02:04 PM

I've spent over $25,000 at Dali Racing over the past 2 years - I swear by Mark Johnson. the last 2 packages I've had sent over have also contained small items for other folks here which I have forwarded on by Royal Mail to save on international postage.

verdict?

highly recommended - just mention my name when you contact Mark and I'm sure he'll look after you :wink:

jaytip

25-08-2004, 05:56 PM

and i have spent about £2000 pounds with dali and got ripped off spectacularly.take my word for it and give mark johnson(dali racing) a WIDE berth.
if you want more info on his regular rip offs then visit www.nsxprime.com and do a search under dali racing.
Darren i have to ask you how you feel comfortable with highly recommending someone who has such a bad track record.i know you have not had any problems with him but, i know you frequent prime and i know that you know of the many problems poeple have had with him.
to put it another way,if you knew of a person who was a violent bully who beats up a lot of people a lot of the time but he had never had a run in with you, would you tell people that he is an ok guy really regardless of his track record.
its not just the isolated case here and there with dali,he has done it loads of times.
had i heard the bad reviews before i sent him my money then i would never have sent him any and thus i would never have been ripped off.
but it was listening to people sing his praises because they had been successfull with their purchases that i ordered from him.
if dali was the only aftermarket supplier out there then i would rather sell my NSX or keep it bog standard,than send that man my money

orangerocket99

25-08-2004, 06:45 PM

who else would you recomend jaytip ? :?:

Russ
Beds

orangerocket99
T1 NSX

ctrlaltdelboy

25-08-2004, 08:34 PM

Darren i have to ask you how you feel comfortable with highly recommending someone who has such a bad track record.

Ivor

I prefer to speak only about what I have experienced first hand, rather than rely on what I read regarding other peoples experiences and repeat them in a hearsay fashion.

I hear what you are saying, that you have been ripped off - I'm not about to call you a liar, I don't know the details of what went on between you and Mark, and even if you spelled it out to me I could not then feel comfortable repeating it when asked 'what do you think about Dali?' as it is not my first hand experience.

I understand that if you have had a particularly bad experience with Mark you do not feel good when you read someone else recommending him to others, but we all have to speak from our own experiences and mine have been more than 100% perfect - I could not wish for a better supplier of parts. Even the apparant inconvenience of him being thousands of miles from me in San Diego seems to disappear so seamless and smooth are all my dealings with him. There have been times when items have taken 4 months to come into stock - recently I paid him nearly $2,000 for a set of wheels that took that long, but I did not fret about being ripped off and my wheels duly arrived and in the boxes with them were lots of parts for other NSXCB members that I had shipped across to save people on shipping costs. Conversely Mark has sent stuff over to me that I have needed despite my having not paid for them, again on occasions adding up to over a thousand dollars, but our relationship is such that Mark knows he will be paid and he has been.
When I blew my engine Mark sourced me a brand new crated 3.2 for $10,000 and was preparing all of the ancillary bits to install it in my original 3.0 car - he could not have been more helpful, as it turned out I did not need to take up this offer.
Mark is currently putting together a refurbed gearbox for me using JDM short gears and an OS Giken LSD and 4.44 R&P - he has been ordering all of the parts up and getting the core gearbox stripped and prepared for 3 weeks now - this is a $6,000 job, and do you think he has even asked me to send him a dime yet? no, he hasn't.

Mark is a rare diamond in my opinion, and I can only speak about my personal experiences and over the last 2 years and $25,000+ dollars he has proven himself to me time and time again to be above reproach and for these reasons among many others which I cannot be bothered to list here I am more than happy to recommend any NSXer to Dali Racing.

I appreciate that your opinions and those of many others on Prime may differ.

jaytip

25-08-2004, 11:22 PM

Russ,to answer your question science of speed.i have only dealt with them on the one occassion but it was a good smooth transaction.i have never heard one bad comment about Chris and Seth.
Darren i can understand you feeling that way about dealing with him in light of the way he has treated you, but you have to admit that he has ripped a lot of people off.there have been too many complaints about him on prime,and strangely enough most of the people(but not all) who do have trouble are from outside the states and it makes getting your parts/money off him just that little bit more difficult.its all well and good saying that you had to wait 4 months for your wheels but in that time i do not doubt you had plenty of corrospondence with mark.i didnt even get that courtesy.i sent him plenty of polite emails asking if my goods were in stock or if they were on back order and everyone of my emails was ignored. how would you feel if a member of this board ordered from dali on your recommendations(but forgot to mention your name when ordering)and then got ripped off.
you have only had good dealings with dali and therefor you want to recommend him,but i personally would either point out to peole that not everyone has had good dealings with him or i would not comment at all.i know i would feel terrible if i had an email off a board member telling me that a vendor who i recommended had ripped them off,ESPECIALLY if i knew that he had done it to countless others before.
its all well and good saying that it is heresay but it is also the truth.when asked to defend himself and his actions on prime people are met with silence.
at the end of the day if you take someones money and then fail to send them their goods YOU ARE A THIEF.this is not heresay he did to me.

ctrlaltdelboy

26-08-2004, 08:18 AM

Ivor

I don't wish this particular topic to run and run, but I just want to point out once again that it is only right for us all to state the opinions that we have based on our own experiences rather than other peoples that we have read. It would be wrong for me to start saying things about someone (particularly bad things) when my only basis for it is that I had read something negative that someone else had posted about them on a forum. My natural refusal to do this is compounded by the level of service I have received in this case which could not be more different from some of the things that I have read.

I have absolutely no issue with each person who has had a first hand experience whether positive or negative to post the (full) facts about it for others to form an opinion from, but no-one should spread rumours based upon what they have read others post that they have taken for gospel.

I am not calling anyone who has posted about bad experiences a liar, it's just that no matter how much I may or may not believe what they have said, I would not be speaking from first hand concrete experience in repeating it and so I won't.

People often say that there is no smoke without fire and I generally believe that, for this reason I have looked long and hard for 'the fire' in relation to Mark - I have quizzed him by email on specific complaints that I have read about from time to time and have always come back to a position of total comfort in dealing with him.

I can see from your posts Ivor that you are not pro-Dali and it is your place, not mine to post as much information about your dealings with Mark as you feel necessary in response to the question asked by Paul which was 'I'm sure there's a user on here who buys gear from Dali Racing, so maybe they can let me know how good they are' (which is the only thing that keeps this part of the conversation on topic) and if we all stick to writing about what have personally experienced only then Paul (and any others) can feel much more comfortable about what they are reading as being credible and worth taking notice of.

In all of this there is one thing that is indisputable - if you search the vendor forums on nsxprime you will find an equal number of people who either think is is wonderful or think he is a crook - this is usually more than enough to make a would-be Dali customer go elsewhere, which is great for me, as he is too busy anyway and with fewer new customers he can therefore deal with my stuff quicker. As you point out, there are next to no complaints on nsxprime about SOS and the only ones I have read are minor in comparison to the posts I have read regarding Dali.

I hope that we will be able to leave this subject now, otherwise this forum will begin to resemble the worst parts of nsxprime which I find pretty dull in the last year or so with sections filled with threads full of people whining and bitching at each other - we don't want that here - just the facts please!

thanks for listening

Rob_Fenn

27-08-2004, 11:02 AM

In answer the the Author of this topic, imports are allowed to have smaller plates than UK cars, i'm not aware of the dimensions but it might be worth researching. If i had the car, i would just keep the plate inside the car and come up with an excuse for the police!

-Rob

Paul

27-08-2004, 11:06 AM

I like your thinking Rob Fenn ... :D

ctrlaltdelboy

27-08-2004, 12:41 PM

useful link (http://www.ukspeedtraps.co.uk/plates.htm) re: the number plate sizes discussion

ctrlaltdelboy

27-08-2004, 05:25 PM

Kevin

28-08-2004, 12:47 PM

Hi everyone, I'm back. Although I was keeping up to date with the NSXCB, I wasn't really replying.

As a 6'4" driver, and part time track junkie, I can definately say headroom is a problem in the NSX. This is what I found;

With standard seats and helmet on. I could sit in the car, but needed to recline the seat further back than I would normally. This means bringing the seat forward a bit to make more room. This means though that I could barely reach the steering wheel. On the track the steering was too heavy to be comfortable and it ruined my day.

Second attempt, I removed the seat cushion. This shows that the seat frame actually sits on the carpet. There would be no racing seat or otherwise which would get you lower. It was comfortable, even without a replacement cushion. If you don't mind cutting into a £1500 seat, and only want a temporary solution then this is OK.

Finally I made seat mounts and fitted racing seats. I now get the side support I want, and reduced wieght. The mounts allow the seats to sit on the floor of the car, but they are no lower than the standard seat with base cushion removed.