Friday, April 10, 2020

Forgotten Skyline 2000 GT-R: KPGC 110 overview

Still looking for an "easy" build ... the Fujimi kit of the forgotten Skyline GT-R, the 1973 model, turns out to be just such a build.

So everyone remembers the Hakasuka, known as KPGC 10 to the cognoscenti; and the R32 and successors turn up on Vancouver streets as imports with RHD. But few people remember the Prince Skyline 2000 GT-R, and fewer remember the successor to KPGC 10, also known as KPGC 110 or Kenmeri (because the ads featured two people named Ken and Mary...).

So the Prince Skyline had a four of about 1.5 litres in it, and for some reason the company decided to go to the expense of stretching the chassis to fit a lovely twin-cam six of 2.0 litres displacement. They didn't do anything about the dowdy exterior, however. It was available in two versions (S54A and S54B) which only the true fanatics can distinguish today. Prince was then purchased by Nissan who updated the Skyline series, in four and six cylinder versions. 



The 2000 GT-R (KPGC 10) of course is the famous one, having won loads of races in Japan. The fully independent suspension, reminiscent of the TR6 in the rear, with four wheel discs and that lovely engine made it a winning combo. However fuel costs and taxes on large-displacement motors means few were made.



Even fewer were made of its successor, KPGC 110, in 1973 before oil prices killed it. It's ugly, looking like a pumped up Datsun 610, and the big rubber flares with the black steel wheels implied sizzle rather than steak. And it was heavier than KPGC 10. But it is still a key part of the GT-R story.



The Fujimi kit has a complete engine, but the hood is molded in to the body, and the underhood area is not modeled.





So out came a new #11 blade.



The engine went together well. The engine bay was closed off with four pieces of sheet styrene but won't be detailed any further. I left the stock air filter on and will save the optional air horns for use elsewhere.





Body was painted white, taped, and the rubber trim painted semi-gloss black. Some minor problems of leakage will need fixing.



Stay tuned!

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