Bit of JDM Marmite!

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Discussion

Jonny1984

Original Poster:

294 posts

169 months

Sunday 14th April
quotequote all
Some seem to love these, some seem to hate them. I've always loved the way they looked and found myself looking for a practical car to replace the MX5 that's sadly up for sale.

Looked at a few things for around £5000 and nothing really stood out until I drove past a dealer who had two of these in stock!

My 2012 Nissan Cube Rider Autech!

The colour reminds me of Nighthawk Black from Honda, it has a metallic dark blue tint to it in sunshine. It really needs a good polish and wash though!







Plans going forward are to get some coilovers and some nice wheels, a good polish and generally keep it tidy. It's going to have some roofbars and bike carriers soon though.

Jobs I want to do are as follows.

  • Item 1 Replace Japanese Panasonic HU with an Android Auto/Carplay unit
  • Item 2 Change clocks for MPH specific versions (Lockwood seem to sell these)
  • Item 3 Clean/polish headlights to get rid of slight yellowing
  • Item 4 Fit coilovers
  • Item 5 Purchase some nice JDM style wheels, possibly 15x7
It only has about 36000 miles on it and the garage I bought it from replaced the minor items on the MOT advisory list too before I collected it.

It drives very nice, like an automatic sofa smile

Oh and the PH smiley is already lurking behind the rear tinted window..


Ianbe46m3

11 posts

9 months

Sunday 14th April
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I saw one of these yesterday (possibly purple or black), it looked great.

Super Sonic

7,330 posts

61 months

Sunday 14th April
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Hako!

White-Noise

4,555 posts

255 months

Sunday 14th April
quotequote all
I really like these. Is it an actual Kei car?

Jonny1984

Original Poster:

294 posts

169 months

Sunday 14th April
quotequote all
I ended up tackling one of the minor jobs today after I gave the interior a quick spruce up with some rather nice smelling mango cleaner!

The headlights were slightly hazy, not to bad but I wanted to sort it before they got any worse.

I used the Meguiars medium kit that consists of 2 x rough scouring pads, a cutting compound and a UV spray.

Before.




After.




They seem to have come up quite well, they'll certainly do for now at least smile

I do want to give it a good detail but I don't have any kit to speak of so that will change soon too.

Jonny1984

Original Poster:

294 posts

169 months

Sunday 14th April
quotequote all
It's not really classed as a Kei car (it's a 1.5 petrol). I think Kei cars have to be 660cc or less and certain dimensions?

It is a reverse tardis though! I'm 6'2" and can't remember the last car I sat in with about a foot of headroom, and the seat isn't all the way down yet hehe.

White-Noise

4,555 posts

255 months

Sunday 14th April
quotequote all
Ah OK yeah Kei car is limited as you say. Nonetheless I like this sort of thing. We hired some like this or the N box etc over the years and was always fun, practical, did everything with minimal fuss and fun keeping the momentum up in the countryside. Fair play! With that internal screen you can brush up on your katakana!

Jonny1984

Original Poster:

294 posts

169 months

Sunday 14th April
quotequote all
I spent about an hour taking photos of every screen and translating on my phone using lens haha.

Another cheap thing I might sort is a tinted sunstrip as the screen is quite vast!

ajprice

29,275 posts

203 months

Sunday 14th April
quotequote all
I do like these a lot, that looks like a nice one smile .

White-Noise

4,555 posts

255 months

Sunday 14th April
quotequote all
Jonny1984 said:
I spent about an hour taking photos of every screen and translating on my phone using lens haha.

Another cheap thing I might sort is a tinted sunstrip as the screen is quite vast!
https://images.app.goo.gl/tMeohd2mCbCtHare6

The simple stuff you can read phonetically. I'm no expert but always amused me

Jonny1984

Original Poster:

294 posts

169 months

Sunday 14th April
quotequote all
Cool thanks for the link, that looks interesting! smile

DanielSan

19,172 posts

174 months

Sunday 14th April
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Who hates a Nissan Cube? They're awesome! And great with the right mods

CharlesdeGaulle

26,882 posts

187 months

Sunday 14th April
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That looks great. Fun little car and different from the bland normal stuff.

Mad Maximus

473 posts

10 months

Sunday 14th April
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Jap only cars are getting more appealing. Yours looks very good nic.

Jonny1984

Original Poster:

294 posts

169 months

Sunday 14th April
quotequote all
Oh I reckon there's a few who aren't a fan smile

Some of my mates think I'm mad, but they're always buying the "safe" options when it comes to cars.

This also the first CVT auto I've ever driven and to be honest, it's not as bad as some make out. I'll be getting the gearbox oil and filter changed for peace of mind sometime this year.

manmaths

461 posts

147 months

Sunday 14th April
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Looks nice! I had a good look round a Honda Stepwgn which was also a bit of a tardis. There’s something appealing about Jap cars of that age. Looks well in black and like the alloys too.

Jonny1984

Original Poster:

294 posts

169 months

Sunday 14th April
quotequote all
In years to come, I'll probably move on to something like a Stepwagn, Alphard/Vellfire or Elgrand. Couldn't quite stretch the budget at the moment.

To be honest, the wheels are what lets it down, the pics don't show how bad they're flaking. Wheels are probably the first big thing I'll change.

Jonny1984

Original Poster:

294 posts

169 months

Saturday 27th April
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So I've actually made a modification for a change! Hopefully this means I'm going to actually keep this car for a bit smile

New wheels and tyres fitted today!









Crying out to be hit with the lowering stick though now....

I did get a quote for a new stereo which I thought was a bit expensive. It was £699 for a Pioneer sph 77DAB fitted.

I feel like I could probably fit the stereo myself. It's just getting the right cables to make sure everything works (ariel, reverse camera etc).

Going to do a few cheaper bits in the meantime because the house may need some roof work doing frown

Looking at getting a sunstrip due to the massive windscreen and I've also got a stich on steering wheel cover on order.

TheDoggingFather

17,217 posts

213 months

Saturday 27th April
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These are great little cars, there's a few around here that are slammed with nice rims and they really look the part.

manmaths

461 posts

147 months

Saturday 27th April
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Like the wheels! What are they?