Report: Nissan Skyline importer Motorex shuttered, owner jailed on felony charges with $1M bond
The only Skyline that Nanahoshi Hiroaki appears likely to see for a while is the one through the window of his Los Angeles County jail cell. The owner of Motorex, America's only importer of the Nissan Skyline GT-R, is reportedly being held on $1 million dollars bail on a litany of charges ranging from financial malfeasance issues to assault with a deadly weapon and attempted kidnapping.
The future of R32-R34 Skylines in the U.S. beyond those already imported remains to be seen, but according to the Nissan/Infiniti Car Owners Club (NICO), Motorex's facilities have been forcibly closed due to their failure to pay rent.
[Sources: DriveWire and Auto-NSK.RU]
(Thanks for the tip, Damon!)
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Corey W. 11:18AM (3/20/2006)
Ouch...
I'm a Corvette guy, but I've always loved the Skyline. Never really research this but anyone know exactly why no US version. Conflicts with new Z, market two small...etc.
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Joe 12:08PM (3/20/2006)
I think it was somewhere along the lines of getting the car to pass crash-test requirements. IIRC they didn't want to deal with the testing, tweaking, and re-testing for such a small market, thus forcing them to have too costly a vehicle...
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Corey W. 1:00PM (3/20/2006)
Thx Joe,
It's a shame, configured correctly, that car could make a killing in the states....
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Justin 1:14PM (3/20/2006)
I visited MotoRex in CA in August of 2004. We met up with two of the guys who ran the place and my roommate and I got a tour throughout the facility, checking out some of the Skylines that were used even in "The Fast and The Furious" movies. It was an interesting place, they told us that most of their work was actually in EXPORTING US cars (such as Escalades, Hummers, etc) over to Japan, and that only a small amount of their actual income was related to importing of J-spec Skylines to the US. We did get to see some really nice Skylines while we were there, unfortunately it appears that their business practices are/were less than ethical.
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Uncle Chachi 1:59PM (3/20/2006)
Augh, I've been saving forever for a motorex imported skyline. :(
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David Thompson 5:41PM (3/20/2006)
Nissan did eventually decide there would be enough US and European interest in the Skyline to engineer a LHD-compatible platform, and we got it in 2003 as the Infiniti G35. However, there is no GT-R for the current generation since Nissan was at death's door in the late 90s when the engineering and design work would have been done on it. The next-gen Skyline will have a GT-R version and we get it as the 2008 Infiniti GT-R.
If you want one of the older Skylines, you can either:
A. Find someone who is selling a Motorex-converted Skyline and has all the legal documentation to prove it.
B. Move to Canada, where anything more than 15 years old (including the R32 Skylines built before April 1991) is legal to import as-is.
C. Wait until late 2014, when the first R32s will be legal in the US, under the 25-year DOT exemption. (The earliest R30 Skylines will be legal in August.)
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Car-la 5:44PM (3/20/2006)
Actually, the Skyline was never sold on a large scale internationally, because the position of the engine prohibited to switch the steering wheel's position from the right to the left side.
For all of those waiting for the new Skyline:
http://www.jbskyline.net/V35/GTR/
This car is most likely going to be sold worldwide. *crossing fingers*
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Chris 6:17PM (3/20/2006)
Or just do what I did...
Find someone to illegally get it over here by boat from japan...buy a wrecked nissan maxima frame and get the car registered using that vin and info. i live in SC, so there are no registration checks or emmisions testing...if a cop were to pull me over (hasn't happened yet) then I would just tell him it is a maxima with a full body kit and right hand drive conversion, if he even knew to ask about that stuff which he probably wouldn't.
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Jose 6:27PM (4/02/2006)
ok when is skyline going to be legal here? because ive been waiting forever and looking for sites thaty ship skyline over here but none did. and now that i herd that motorex or whatever that company is was doing that ligally then i was pissed cuz i would have bought one. ive herd that the skyline was going to be out in 2009 but im not about that rumor. and i just want to know how to get a 2004 GT-R.
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Jerome 10:27PM (4/02/2006)
Does anyone know where i can get a Nissan Skyline R32 GTS/GTR?
i was gunna get it from motorex but now I cant
email me at myspace.com if you do pls
thanx
http://www.myspace.com/29974146
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Lee 4:07PM (4/07/2006)
Argh, that sucks. I own an R34 GTT here in the UK, and am moving to the US this summer. I was really hoping to get the car over... doesn't look like there's much chance of that :-(
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Jorge 9:23AM (4/09/2006)
I give motorex $13,000 for the convertion I also lost one car, this gay hero take what is right for him. dont be sorry for this mother fuck......
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Chris 12:53AM (4/17/2006)
Also the skyline's emissions would not pass EPA specs due to the turbo and the exhaust and what not. So that would mean you would have to use catalytic converters which would clamp the horsepower.
Then there is the issue of crash safety, which would need to be addressed. Its a pretty long list, but I imagine if you keep bothering the right people, you might be able to pull it off.
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Chou 10:45AM (4/17/2006)
I am deeply wounded by the ended service of the Skyline. I bet its much more difficult to obtain a R34 Skyline now adays, my nieghbor owns a R32 Skyline and kinda shows it off. He was lucky to get it long before the R34 stopped production. Is there any OTHER way that i could get my hands on a R34 anymore???
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LT 3:07AM (4/24/2006)
Hey, I'm currently a WyoTech student and getting ready to graduate (hit me up if you have any questions about the school) but I want just like many other people, an R34. Now, If I were a person that new how to get their hands on one, i wouldnt tell anybody sh*t. But, if your nicer than my PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE let me know! I'd rather not have to buy a maxima or whatever, do a vin change and all that. that would just be homosexual. :) Anyways, hit me up if you guys know of anything. Too bad about Motorex (maybe a good business proposal).
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GTRfan 1:31PM (4/24/2006)
FYI.. 2008 Skyline GT-R is not going to be badged Infiniti but Nissan is keeping the Nissan Badge after a meeting with the different market VP's.. The name will stay NISSAN SKYLINE GTR. have a look for yourself.
http://www.autoweek.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060418/FREE/60417005/1024/LATESTNEWS
And i say F*(K Lennon, he's the type of people that keeps us from getting all the good stuff from Japan.
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nate 12:46AM (5/09/2006)
any body that wants a skyline stateside go check out
http://www.skyline-imports.com/
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Greg 4:51PM (5/11/2006)
HEY CHRIS!!!
I live further up the east coast than you and would LOVE to get your input on how to get me a Skyline over here without dealing with all the red tape. Drop me an email sometime bro!! bizrker@yahoo.com
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Munna 1:11AM (5/18/2006)
I feel sorry for all you Americans Skylines are easy to come over here in Aus
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USNCorpsman 11:00AM (5/26/2006)
ouch..yeah ive been hearing some shady stories about motorex, most the time I just brushed it off but looks like its true. Nanahoshi will likely be found guilty and do time in the slammer. As far as the skylines that can be imported goes ONLY the R33 can be imported. Its the only Skyline thats registered in the NTHSA's list of importable cars. I think the R32 and R34 crashed diff than the 33 did and DOT said you cant import 'em here. Only way I can think of is if youre in the military..but even that will give you a few headaches and you need to have the cash right then n there to bring the car over.
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