The not-so-classic AU!

by **ClassicAU** » April 26th, 2009, 7:05 pm

I bought it!!! :grin:

I couldn't help myself, it seemed like too much of a good deal to pass up, and I love it!! I thought I would put this in the showroom section, because there will be no 'building' going on with this thing if I can help it. It was a one owner, completely stock, in very well looked after condition, and I intend to keep it that way.

Anyway, its a late 2001 AU series two XR8 auto, with the 220kW version of the old 5 litre Windsor V8! It's my first V8, and its awesome!!
It's only done just over 98,000kms, and everything still feels pretty tight. No whine in the drive line that I can hear. Only a slight clunk sometimes when taking off slowly from stationary. If I take of a bit harder, it seems fine. Other than that, its in great nick mechanically. The body has a few scratches, and a dint on the bonnet, but it was a country car, so I expected that. The Narooma paint is still in great condition.
The guy hasn't changed plugs or leads, so they will be done soon, as well as a service, and a K&N panel filter in the stock air box. But that's it!! The previous owner just had the stock exhaust fixed, welded one section in order to pass road worthy, so that wont be changed. From what I could see by crawling under in, it looks like a full twin system too!
The only mods I may add in the near future is a stereo system, and maybe a new set of wheels. Although the tyres are new, so probably not. Other than that, I am just going to drive it and enjoy it! Even stock, it still goes like stink, and has a great note! :twisted:

I haven't had a chance to take any photos of it myself yet, as I only got it back last night, and the weather has been shite. Here are a few I nicked from the car sales ad, and a couple the previous owner sent me.

by **krisisdog** » April 26th, 2009, 7:13 pm

Needs lowering. Then some pacies..
I dont believe your going to leave it stock either, if you do , GTFO this site

by **EFFalcon** » April 26th, 2009, 7:17 pm

was this more or less then what u got for the old AU?

by **ClassicAU** » April 26th, 2009, 7:25 pm

I am too scared to lower it, because as it is the ride is soooooo smooth! It handles brilliantly! Being an XR8, it has the better IRS setup, and I don't want to mess with it!
As for the exhaust, its just been fixed. If and when the cats dies, then I will look at changing it. For now it stays.

John, lets just say, between what I got for my old car, the supercharger kit, and uncle kev's bonus, I didn't have to put in a cent! :cool:

by **BLC** » April 26th, 2009, 7:26 pm

krisisdog wrote:Needs lowering. Then some pacies..
I dont believe your going to leave it stock either, if you do , GTFO this site

Exhaust is a must, let that Wheezer sing!!!!

Nice pickup mate.

by **Commando** » April 26th, 2009, 7:33 pm

You need an exhaust!

Change your sig too :drinks2:

by **EBOOST** » April 26th, 2009, 7:42 pm

hey mate u made a typo u say up the top its a 200kw version when its the 220kw version.
very nice pickup tho mate theyre a great reliable car my brother has had his from 44,000 til now it has 143,000km and besides a few things like cats colapsed so het got the whole exhaust done and a tune an it has 190rwkw which with ur auto would be about 180ish.
but yeah the old windsors are a never say die motor i recon and they sound great and hove good low end torque.
very nice mate u will love it.
cheers josh.

by **EFFalcon** » April 26th, 2009, 7:49 pm

deffinately an interesting choice...
i thought u sold the AU etc to save money?

get something cheaper?

either way... looks like a sweet car.

by **ClassicAU** » April 26th, 2009, 8:46 pm

Cheers for the correction Josh! :drinks2:

It is most certainly the 220kW version. It has the Tickford wings stamped on the throttle body, and the extra engine oil cooler up front. Oh, and 220kW badge on the boot, but who would trust just that!

My original intention was to sell for a house deposit, but a few things are happening with my parents place at the moment, so its not 100% convenient for me to get another loan just yet. So I figured, why not just get a nicer car, and save money not having to spend it on the other one all the time!

I am loving the torque this thing has, even from idle! I tell you what, it could probably do with traction control in the wet though! That's something I am going to have to get used to. But god damn is it great to have a limited slip diff again!!

by **Dansedgli** » April 26th, 2009, 8:52 pm

Does the wheezer have more poke than your raptor supercharged 6?

by **nstg8a** » April 26th, 2009, 9:21 pm

i like it, nice score... low kms too...

but yeah, i give it about two weeks before its, 'oh, the exhaust needs replacing, so i better grab some pacies, and do a decent mandrel twin setup' lol.... once you get the bug you dont lose it that easy... its like the clap.

by **EFFalcon** » April 26th, 2009, 9:22 pm

Raptor 6 Manual Would KILL a 220kw V8 Auto

but... resale on the XR8 will be nicer

by **NUT347** » April 26th, 2009, 10:38 pm

nice!!

i have a mega soft spot for these, my brother has one too, very nice cars

good pickup mate!

by **ClassicAU** » April 27th, 2009, 7:31 am

Cheers for the comments guys, I am fair chuffed with the thing as you can imagine! Just need to add a few subtle touches to it to Evan-ise it. Don't get too excited, it will basically only be stuff like K&N filter, leads and plugs, clear side repeaters and bright white globes. Then a good detail inside and out, maybe a cut and polish if need be. Oh, an I'll get rid of that "dogs dick" bend on the intake, as the folk over at AFF affectionately call it.

Either its a placebo because I am all excited about it being a V8 or what, I dunno, but it feels just as potent as my 6 did even with the blower! Maybe cos its auto with 3:45 gears in the back, or the noise of the V8. I am not disappointed with it, that's for sure!
If you lined up my old car with the blower and this thing, the 6 would probably win, but you would have to work an arse load harder to get it there though! This thing just gets off the line so much smoother, the low down torque is wicked! Kick down is great, it dispatches 40km/h to 100km/h in no time at all! I'm loving it so far! :grin:

by **stevo** » April 27th, 2009, 9:00 am

Awesome ride, AU's are great to drive (once they have been lowered). Don't be a pansy , lower it right now.

by **t1MMy** » April 27th, 2009, 9:05 am

Supercharge it... :cool:

by **xtrt4r** » April 27th, 2009, 9:11 am

Nah turbo it........

by **ClassicAU** » April 27th, 2009, 1:07 pm

t1MMy wrote:Supercharge it...

lol very funny there Timmy, I like it!

Well, I am going to take the thing over to my mechanic this week, and get him to have a good look at it just to double check everything it OK. All I think it needs is plugs, leads and an oil change. I was also considering an auto trans cooler, one of those PWR ones, but not sure if its worth it.

by **krisisdog** » April 27th, 2009, 2:38 pm

Wouldnt be a bad idea, I'd get one, but then again I'd have no intentions of keeping it stock!

by **nstg8a** » April 27th, 2009, 3:05 pm

ClassicAU wrote:
Well, I am going to take the thing over to my mechanic this week, and get him to have a good look at it just to double check everything it OK. All I think it needs is plugs, leads and an oil change. I was also considering an auto trans cooler, one of those PWR ones, but not sure if its worth it.

isnt that something best done BEFORE you buy it lol

by **ClassicAU** » April 27th, 2009, 3:24 pm

nstg8a wrote:isnt that something best done BEFORE you buy it lol

hahaha, usually, but I couldn't help myself! Besides, it was located about 170kms away from me, so probably wouldn't have been to convenient! The car is fine, it just needs a service anyway so I'll get him to check it first.

by **blueoval** » April 27th, 2009, 4:55 pm

Great ride dude. Hard to beat the sound of a V8.

by **ClassicAU** » April 27th, 2009, 9:18 pm

Well I guess technically I have gone back on my word, and did my first modification to the car this afternoon!

Not that you could call it a mod. I picked up a K&N panel for the standard air box, and also removed that bendy pipe off the side of the intake and literally plugged it up! I found this out by accident on my mates EL XR8, but a standard 50mm white basin plug from Bunnings fits perfectly! The wanks over at AFF all use Tickford centre caps from a wheel, but whatever, I am after function not bling!

I need to get my own photos, but I have no camera and its been raining since I got it!

by **t1MMy** » April 28th, 2009, 8:51 am

*cough*supercharge*cough*

by **Dansedgli** » April 28th, 2009, 8:58 am

Yeah chuck a blower on it!

by **Commando** » April 28th, 2009, 12:21 pm

Save money, go Nitrous.

by **ClassicAU** » April 28th, 2009, 1:10 pm

Oh

to the lot of you!! I am enjoying the un-mollested-ness of it too much to ruin it. Its still in too good condition to ruin yet. We'll see how long it lasts though!

by **Bipolar** » April 28th, 2009, 1:35 pm

Ask your mrs for a whipple for your birthday/Christmas :grin:

by **t1MMy** » April 28th, 2009, 1:48 pm

You will cave into peer pressure soon enough Evan. You know how good a V8 with a S/C would be.

Save youself the stress about thinking about doing it and just do it!

by **ClassicAU** » April 29th, 2009, 8:09 am

Sure mate, you going to lend me the $10k I will need to do it properly this time!!!

I am hoping to make it over to Vic Roads this afternoon after work, I got the transfer papers ready to go and all. Anyway, I was thinking about asking to see how much it would cost to get just a general issue set of plates with a nominated combo. I was thinking either EJB-220, my initials and the fact its a 220kW, or just EJB-084, year I was born. Cant really decide if its worth it or not. I guess if they want the same as any other custom plate, then I wont bother. I couldn't bring myself to fork out $400 just for extra wank factor.

by **Wave_Man** » April 29th, 2009, 3:52 pm

ClassicAU wrote:Well I guess technically I have gone back on my word, and did my first modification to the car this afternoon! Not that you could call it a mod. I picked up a K&N panel for the standard air box, and also removed that bendy pipe off the side of the intake and literally plugged it up! I found this out by accident on my mates EL XR8, but a standard 50mm white basin plug from Bunnings fits perfectly! The wanks over at AFF all use Tickford centre caps from a wheel, but whatever, I am after function not bling!

I need to get my own photos, but I have no camera and its been raining since I got it!

I heard yesterday that the weird looking thing off the side of the intake was to reduce flux through the MAF, so it didn't get confussed. My cuz and i had always thought it was just to make induction noise quieter, but apparently not... I think chris from blue power said it.

Car looks good, take some more pics!

by **EdFairmontGhia** » April 29th, 2009, 8:57 pm

Sweet ride, whers the burnout pics

by **ClassicAU** » April 30th, 2009, 7:22 am

So I was right, it is a flux capacitor!! Awesome, I'll chuck it back on and ball up to 88mph and see what happens!!

Managed to make it over to Vic Roads yesterday, and the new plates idea is out the window. They want $295 for the privilege of nominating your own combination! Full custom plates have gone up to $495 as well! What a rort! So I guess that will never be happening.
Anyway, shes going in to see my mechanic today for a service and a good going over. Hopefully there is nothing wrong that I missed. Its going to cost me a bomb, cos I will get the trans serviced as well. I took my brother out for a fang last night, and it doesn't quite feel as 100% as it could when changing up at WOT, hopefully some fresh fluid fixes it. Bloody thing hits the limiter on the 1st to 2nd up change, so I won't be doing that again anytime soon!

There will be no burnout pics, but I will try and get a few glam shots this weekend if I get a chance to give it a good clean.

by **ClassicAU** » April 30th, 2009, 10:48 am

Just spoke to my mechanic after he had a good look over the car, and wouldn't you know it, the exhaust is stuffed. Looks like I will need a new one, damn, what a shame! :grin:

He recons it should be OK for a while, but the tail pipe is rusted out, and the "weld repair" that was done for road worthy, was just a bog job!
Other than that, he was impressed with the condition. The only oil leak he could see was a slight bit around the dip stick. Besides that its bone dry! The diff is nice and tight too, and everything else looks the goods!! :cool:

So he is going to do a service, semi-synth oil and filter, fuel filter and a trans service. He is also changing the plugs with new NGK Iridium items, but recons the leads should be OK for a while longer. I might change them myself later on.

by **t1MMy** » April 30th, 2009, 10:57 am

How much is he charging you to install the blower?

by **ClassicAU** » May 1st, 2009, 7:37 am

Same as your mum charges me to blow her!

The car is back with that just service feel! Turned out the trans had only been serviced recently, as the fluid is still nice and red. He chucked some 10w40 semi-synth oil in it, but said I'll need to bring it back right on 5000kms cos the stupid engine oil cooler cant be drained and holds some old oil! Plugs are done. The thing is still a little hard to start sometimes though, so I will get new leads in a few weeks and see how that goes.

Anyway, so much for not spending any money on this thing! Now I need to see how much I am going to be hit for a new cats back system. I can't decide if I want to go dual or single. I am thinking dual 2.25 all the way through with only front and centre mufflers. I am just scared its going to drone on the freeway because its auto. That's the last thing I want.

by **nstg8a** » May 1st, 2009, 3:18 pm

ClassicAU wrote:Just spoke to my mechanic after he had a good look over the car, and wouldn't you know it, the exhaust is stuffed. Looks like I will need a new one, damn, what a shame! .

lol, i must be psychic... whats next? :cool:

cam? oh no, its hard to start, better chuck a msd in there... :drinks2:

or the nice blue bottle... :thumbsup:

by **EBOOST** » May 1st, 2009, 6:12 pm

go twin 2.5inch all the way from cats back i can give u a number the guy is very good but he only does press bent but i am very happy with my system and if u research it press bent looses pretty much no flow only 3% on a 90degree bend which i dont need on the car.
pm me if u want it.
cheers josh.

by **ClassicAU** » May 2nd, 2009, 5:17 pm

nstg8a wrote:lol, i must be psychic... whats next? cam? oh no, its hard to start, better chuck a msd in there... or the nice blue bottle...

LOL, maybe. I did already mention that it is hard to start though!

Some how I don't think the happy gas will fix anything though, there will be none of that thank you!

by **ClassicAU** » May 4th, 2009, 12:10 pm

I gave the car it first "spirited drive" yesterday afternoon. I was running late to get home from my parents, which is only like 7 minutes away. By the time I got home though, the whole car stunk like burnt oil/fluid! I think it would have had to been the auto. I forgot how much they don't like a thrashing. I mean, wasn't bouncing off the limiter or anything like that at all. Just a couple of kick downs to 2nd for over taking. I think I might need to invest in a trans cooler. That smell was not very inspiring at all!

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