CHAPTER ONE – LOWKEY ATTITUDE
Humility in the modified car scene is seldom seen these days but Western Australian resident, David Maier, has his ego kept in check two ways – a group of great mates who all own savage cars of their own and quite simply, he is a down-to-earth bloke. Like most Aussies, he can take the piss out of himself and can have a laugh if you have a crack at him too. Nothing is taken too seriously.
On the other hand, his R32 is one serious machine. With sharp looks, great attention to detail and a heap of finesse, the car stands out on the street. With strict licensing regulations in our state, an ultra-slammed stance and wild exhaust note just isn’t achievable without getting the attention of the local constabulary. For what he is allowed to work with, Dave has done a solid job.
When I explained how much I loved the car at the shoot, he thanked me for the compliments and just replied “yeah, I guess it’s alright” Talk about an understatement – but that is Dave. It is a refreshing attitude.
CHAPTER TWO – WHERE IT ALL STARTED
Dave came from a family that has no interest in cars, so where the passion came from, only Dave knows. “When I was young, I loved playing arcade-style computer games like Need for Speed, and I loved to watch any kind of auto racing. My dad recognised my passion and would take me to the rally stages and V8 Super Cars. I was fortunate to have a father who would support my interest at such a young age,” explained Dave.
As time went on, he started going to car shows like Motorvation and Autosalon, and that is when the Japanese styling and performance bug really hit. “It was around that time that mate’s brother in high school owned a 33GTR and took us out for a spin. Later on, I had the pleasure of driving it, and I was pretty set on buying myself a GTR after that.”
It was ten years ago that Dave finally scored a project to start on. “After no luck in Perth, I found this one in over in Melbourne. I flew over the next day and brought it back with me. It had a straight body and had no rust, so it was a winner.”
CHAPTER THREE – PATIENCE IS A VIRTUE
The build of the car took almost seven years, with Dave in no real rush to complete the project. “Plenty of people could have smashed it out in no time, but I really enjoyed those late nights, old school hip hop playing in the background and swinging spanners. I loved the car building process. It was therapeutic.”
In 2016 that the ‘go easy’ approach got a bit of a shake-up though – “My wife-to-be, Shantelle, told me that it the GTR had to be our wedding car and that I should knuckle down and get it done. A week out from the ceremony it was back on the road and complete for the big day. In my eyes, that was quite an achievement, and I was glad that she was the one organising the wedding stuff,” laughed Dave.
CHAPTER FOUR – FOLLOW YOUR OWN PATH
“For me, it’s important for the car to have soul – when you drive it, you should be one with the car. I know that sounds like some crazy shit, but for me, it sits true. I’ve never been one to chase big power like my mates. I just like a well-rounded car that is built for the street. I really enjoy attention to detail. On this car, almost every nut and bolt has been cleaned, polished and zinc plated. The underside of the car is clean enough to eat off and is all freshly painted. Just knowing that parts no one ever sees are as clean as the rest of the car, makes me feel good.”
One look under the trunk lid and you can tell just how fastidious Dave really is. The fuel system he has created is a thing of beauty. “The surge tanks are mounted on an aluminium plate which has two Bosch 044s supplying fuel to the injectors. The boot has 3/8th hardline which goes into a removable panel. Underneath the car, I have 4 runs of -6 Teflon braid and a run of -4 Teflon braid for the nitrous. Once I was happy with the hard lines, I removed them, etched and painted them to match everything else.” he explained. The surge tanks, hard lines, subframe and suspension arms are all finished in Mazda Graphite Mica.
At the other end of the Daytona Blue 32 is a super-tidy engine bay – graced with carbon fibre and purple anodising. The RB26 is equipped with Eagle rods, CP pistons and a pair of Greddy Poncams. A Jun plenum wears a Plazmaman throttle body. Boost comes from an HKS T51R turbo backed with a 60mm wastegate. Running 13psi, the very ‘basic’ tune has yielded 430rwhp which more than enough for the street. When the time is right, Dave will put a ‘proper’ tune in the car to see if he can better his 11.6 @ 118mph he ran way back in 2009.
CHAPTER FIVE – BUILT FOR THE STREETS
As mentioned before, the WA regulations are pretty damn strict, so Dave has had to make some sacrifices to stay ‘legal’. The car rolls on Rays Engineering CE28 18×10.5 +18 wheels shod with Bridgestone Potenza RE55s 285/35 tyres. Zeal Function x Coilovers and adjustable arms front and rear get the 32 closer to planet earth.
“Now the car is finished, and the wedding has passed, I’m going to enjoy it as is, eventually turn up the boost, probably scare myself then just cruise it. It’ll be the car that will always stay with me until one of my boys is old enough, and if they’re interested in it, they can have it.”
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