Project R32 Skyline GTR
After having driven an R32 Skyline GTR on a Drivers Lounge driving tour in Japan, I just had to get my hands on this legend.
The R32 Skyline GT-R Restomod is our flagship project. It represents the pinnacle of JDM engineering, updated for the demands of 2026. Every nut and bolt is a tribute to the car that earned the nickname 'Godzilla'.
It took more than a month of checking USS Tokyo's auction site to find this R32 Skyline GTR (BNR32) through my agent in Japan. There were a few that we were looking at before this one, but those fell through. From the auction sheet, I knew it's not the cleanest example, but it did have the right price tag compared to many others. I'm the type that prefers buying a cheaper car and fix it properly to my specification, as opposed to paying more to buy a clean example only to find out that I "still" have to fix it. And to that end, yes, there are quite a bit of fixing to do.
Here are the pictures of the car on they day of auction.
R32 Skyline GTR - Front
R32 Skyline GTR - Rear
R32 Skyline GTR (BNR32) Auction Sheet
R32 Skyline GTR - Front
So with the bid won, my agent helped take my car to a tuning shop just outside of Tokyo to check what needs to be done. I visited the shop during my visit to Tokyo Auto Salon 2026 to take a look in person, and to discuss about the build plan. As parts are much more readily available (and cheaper) in Japan, I want to make sure it's all done right before it gets shipped out to me in Toronto.
Known Problems
So together with the tuning shop, they pointed out and shown me what the known problems are.
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Radiator fluid leak
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Transmission oil leak
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Some body parts have rust developing (wheel wells)
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Tires are down to the steel belt (on inner side from the negative camber)
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Probably need a new timing belt (and water pump)
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Axle ball joint assembly replacement
What concerned me the most was the engine health, so I asked for an engine compression test prior to any engine seals replacement or any work started. And here's the result.
With a max compression translated to 170psi and min compression at 126.5psi, it looks like I'm looking at low compression on cylinder #1,2,5.
And with this, and wanting to make sure I will not run into problems after it comes to Toronto, I'm looking at a full engine overhaul and rebuild coming up. Oh well, I did expect work to be done, and if I look at prices of R32 Skyline GTR on auction sites now, I'm probably actually still ahead after all the work that I plan to do to it. And with that, this project just turned into a full BNR32 restomod project!
As I am in the discussion and planning stage with my tuning shop now, there's not much to list out at this point. There are much planned for this R32 Skyline GTR than just an engine rebuild and seal fixes, so come back and check out the restomod progress and what else gets upgraded in the process!
Leave me a comment about your thoughts or suggestions. I'd love to hear from ya!