Thanks so much for having my car on the channel, glad you enjoyed it and its little quirks! Personally owned quite a lot of cars myself and this is up there as one of my all time favourites, despite only having it a month so far! I will say it's VERY juicy on fuel though, but thanks to being an import the tax is "only" £280 a year as they still apply the "over 1600cc" rule for all imports without SVAs. If it was taxed on its actual emissions I think it would be in the highest bracket! It's also somehow exempt from ULEZ in London! 🤷♂️
Hi. Regarding the performance, this should do about 155-160 mph flat out, considering the horsepower it has got, unless it got very atypical aerodynamic drag or transmission losses. 0-60 is harder to say, as that depends very much how aggressive the automatic is set up. But a mid 6 second, maybe even a low one, could be possible. If you ever want to get it performance tested for free, I would be happy to provide that service. Downside is, you have to get to Sweden.... Cheers.
They’re not dying out with me. I just replaced my elderly V70 with a nearly new C-Class estate. People will soon realise once again they are a better drive and more comfortable and cheaper to run than their ridiculous cross overs.
Really unusual car. I love that it has a mini-disc player, it telegraphs the era of the car so clearly. I love all the Japanese text and the talky lady too, it's the best part of driving an import imo.
What a glorious beast of a car! And a proper car at that. None of this “SUViness” anywhere! Sounds great. Looks good. Great review. Good audio too. PS: Well done to the owner for bringing a large slice of JDM-only supercar into the UK! Enjoy the ownership experience, Sir!
" And a proper car at that. None of this “SUViness” anywhere! " Funny you mention that, the Stagea was replaced with the Skyline Crossover / Infiniti EX35 SUV in the Nissan/Infiniti line-up! There was also a Subaru Outback-ised version of this shape called the AR-X FOUR with a lift kit and plastic cladding too.
Great review and brought back a lot of memories. I had a 2006 Stagea RX350 in New Zealand. I purchased it blind whilst in the UK, flew across, picked it up, and toured the South Island in it. I loved seeing all the cars quirks again! The steering is strangely light, the engine sounds fantastic and it really does go very well. I didn't have the sports suspension so it really was a bit of an armchair although I did have the keyless start. I also remember the bonnet was aluminum so was very light...a third of the weight of the tailgate! Sold it to a chap in Auckland LAD798. Highly recommend if anyone is thinking about one. Thanks again for the review, new subscriber :)
Autech used to build the Nismo version of the 350Z and then the 370z Nismo before it was eventually brought in-house. The dash is the same as the 350GT/Infiniti G35.
The rare factor is what makes it a gem. I've had mine for 13 yrs and never felt the need for and upgrade. And with very lil mods it pushes 400+ HP. No need to spend a fortune to feel that kind of power that for most people is impossible to afford. This is the best car I've ever Own. And I believe it can go for another 10 yrs without any issues .
Kia ora John, great video & good explanation of layout. You missed the x2 cup holders for back seat passengers. They are located in middle backseat just above the driveshaft. Pullout and bingo - cup holders. Brilliant. I've had a 2001, RX250 auto for 10 years. Done 350,000 km, got it at 161,000 km. Bought from a great mate for NZD $3K - a few bob in UK. Engine not missed a beat. Transmission service at 250K. Has auto 4 speed-shift & I drive it like a manual - just brilliant. A dream drive in hilly New Zealand country sides. Go the Nissan Stagea
Always nice to see a 350RX review (not many available on YT) I have a B21 Fountain Blue 2005 350RX here in Christchurch New Zealand. Only 33 in this series. I have seen only 2 in real life on the street so quite a rare sight #M35S2Stagealyfe
What a special and unique family-muscle-car. Just goes to show that, in the JDM-category, many hidden treasures can be found. Nice also that you point out the difference between 2006-big and today-big, indeed there is a notable difference.
Brilliant Review and what a noise it makes. We have one in our local car scene up here in Scotland, currently sporting a Ecto 1 look from Ghostbusters. This looks like a beauty of a car!
It certainly looks a little like my 2006 V70 and the Volvo handled well and could lift up her skirts whenever some power was required. However, this Stagea is is in another league. A league that contains starships and similar projectiles. It is also quite a bit cooler than Subzero. Probably Arctic White out cool.
Nice review Matt. I see a few of these around the streets here in Sydney. Grey imports also. There's a guy down the road with a couple of them. Nice compromise when you can't squeeze the kids into a Skyline....
Awesome! If you follow Mighty Car Mods, there's Benny's "mildly modified" 1st gen Stagea... look for 'stagea double unicorn build'. That was where I first saw a Stagea. We only got the V6 Mitsubishi Galant station wagon here in Europe, but no one bought them. Not as cool as this JDM boy.
Great in depth review, I love all the fine details put into it! Would have liked to have seen what the kick down would have been like!, just flooring the throttle..I had a 2.0 turbo S60 Volvo auto, (about 100 bhp less than this Stagea) and that put a grin on my face! I wonder with today's technology you could sort the sat nav and some of the other electronics? Brilliant video 👍
Ah, how I wish North America had gotten this. My dad had a 2003 Infiniti G35, RWD with Premium, NAV and Aero packages. The interior was basically identical. Would have been way more practical to have the wagon, but such is life.
Love the interior on this car! 😎It's funky but tastefully done. Only thing I don't understand is the firm ride. You'd think they would've gone for more of a luxury, soft ride on a car like this.
They can be abit odd JDM spec cars on that front. My Crown VX only works with a Japan Map disk. To even change the head unit I have to buy a £350 beatsonic kit then purchase a radio of my choosing. A job for next year I think
Yokohama should bring out Stance specific tyres...i can only imagine how they must wear. Plus as you say the scrapes, they carry a few planks in the back for low gutters.
Hello and Season's Greeting's, I wonder if that French chap was working with Nissan when this car was made???...the reason I ask is because the interior layout remind's me so much of my 01 RenaultLaguna 2 ST...That car also had load's of gadget's and gizmos and a Panoramic Sunroof.
Yes. I have brochures and all from the 70s still had top speed and acceleration on them. Since the 80s (I think 1980?) all of them have no top speed on em. And also the websites only give you horsepower, torque and of course measurement like size and weight and so on. And fuel consumption of course.
Fist the crown Victoria now this...... Fantastic but I've heard and thought it was pronounced stay-ga.... I've seen a mk1 model aswell going around the town I live in
The Japanese pronunciation of Stagea would be Sta-ge-ah (g like get), however having just now watched a Stagea commercial, it is pronounced Stayjia :) It's complicated because the only gee sound in Japanese is ji (g sounds are always pronounced like gate, gear, get etc.), whereas in English g can make both gear and gym. So it looks like they went for gee with the g in Stagea :)
I’d love one of these, there are a few in my city but mostly the gen ones, but I have to say harsh suspension and light steering isn’t a great combination
I think the JDM fever is spreading as I have become absolutely intrigued by the Japanese car market recently. I am constantly learning about vehicles I have heard about, or in this case, never heard the name or saw the vehicle.
mine 4wd tip tronic auto has snow mud drive option satilite tracking gps back battery alarm few extra with nz satilite navagation system a one off special . my baby same colour a rocket drag off near anything on road . nice a.
God I really want a wagon. But we dont have any. My dream car would be a Honda or Toyota wagon with AWD and lifted up for practicality. Until then is SUVs and crossovers. I find cars to be too impractical cause they are so low its ridiculous. I would take a lifted hatchback I guess like the Subaru Crosstrek but I would prefer a Toyota or Honda.
Which country are you? There is the Toyota Caldina GT4 Japanese import AWD station wagon (right hand drive only) or Subaru Impreza RV, otherwise why not a Renault Megane GT220 station wagon if you are in Europe? Modern passenger cars are low because it improves aerodynamics at highway speeds, which is very important these days.
Sweet car, you say this car has everything but does it have a spare wheel? Is it underneath? Surely it's too old to have one of those stupid inflation kits?
So you've had a Cube and now a Stagea, any more JDM wonders for our delectation? At the risk of making it a total Nissan-fest you really have to get your mitts on an Elgrand.
I remember the original madness of these..and this version, which does look like a v70 and a legacy mated! Never know the boot lid did that.... I'd love the 4wd but it's probably burning fuel faster than an Eastern bloc economy!
Thanks so much for having my car on the channel, glad you enjoyed it and its little quirks! Personally owned quite a lot of cars myself and this is up there as one of my all time favourites, despite only having it a month so far!
I will say it's VERY juicy on fuel though, but thanks to being an import the tax is "only" £280 a year as they still apply the "over 1600cc" rule for all imports without SVAs. If it was taxed on its actual emissions I think it would be in the highest bracket!
It's also somehow exempt from ULEZ in London! 🤷♂️
Much much nicer than the saloon version. It’s such a clean car today. Congrats!!
Hi. Regarding the performance, this should do about 155-160 mph flat out, considering the horsepower it has got, unless it got very atypical aerodynamic drag or transmission losses. 0-60 is harder to say, as that depends very much how aggressive the automatic is set up. But a mid 6 second, maybe even a low one, could be possible. If you ever want to get it performance tested for free, I would be happy to provide that service. Downside is, you have to get to Sweden.... Cheers.
@Fredrik Larsson And mine my friend.
@Fredrik Larsson So true sir, so true.😁
All JDM cars are bliss, except for those darned suspensions!!!
I really like the unassuming, simple, clean, effective design of Japanese cars' interiors.
For one, I am the biggest fan of JDM cars, except for their lumpy crashy suspensions!!!
The build quality is even better than the Germans!
First time I’ve seen this car. Difficult to believe the design is 20 years old! Looks great.
I like this, so sad that the estate is dying out. Nice clean design, still looks fresh. Nice review Matt, keep it up.
They’re not dying out with me. I just replaced my elderly V70 with a nearly new C-Class estate. People will soon realise once again they are a better drive and more comfortable and cheaper to run than their ridiculous cross overs.
Estates are great, always my choice!
Really unusual car. I love that it has a mini-disc player, it telegraphs the era of the car so clearly. I love all the Japanese text and the talky lady too, it's the best part of driving an import imo.
I had a mini-disc player in a Mk1 Mazda6 !
My Crown vx has a factory minidisc player. Mini discs were ace, it's a shame they didn't take off here
What a glorious beast of a car!
And a proper car at that. None of this “SUViness” anywhere!
Sounds great. Looks good.
Great review. Good audio too.
PS: Well done to the owner for bringing a large slice of JDM-only supercar into the UK! Enjoy the ownership experience, Sir!
"
And a proper car at that. None of this “SUViness” anywhere! " Funny you mention that, the Stagea was replaced with the Skyline Crossover / Infiniti EX35 SUV in the Nissan/Infiniti line-up! There was also a Subaru Outback-ised version of this shape called the AR-X FOUR with a lift kit and plastic cladding too.
Great review and brought back a lot of memories. I had a 2006 Stagea RX350 in New Zealand. I purchased it blind whilst in the UK, flew across, picked it up, and toured the South Island in it. I loved seeing all the cars quirks again! The steering is strangely light, the engine sounds fantastic and it really does go very well. I didn't have the sports suspension so it really was a bit of an armchair although I did have the keyless start. I also remember the bonnet was aluminum so was very light...a third of the weight of the tailgate! Sold it to a chap in Auckland LAD798. Highly recommend if anyone is thinking about one. Thanks again for the review, new subscriber :)
Autech used to build the Nismo version of the 350Z and then the 370z Nismo before it was eventually brought in-house.
The dash is the same as the 350GT/Infiniti G35.
It is a shame that this kind of big estates are a dying breed. Your review was again a treat to watch. Cheers ! Robert
The rare factor is what makes it a gem. I've had mine for 13 yrs and never felt the need for and upgrade. And with very lil mods it pushes 400+ HP. No need to spend a fortune to feel that kind of power that for most people is impossible to afford. This is the best car I've ever Own. And I believe it can go for another 10 yrs without any issues .
I think you're the only channel that has done justice to this car as far as reviews go... Sub'ed just for that!
I always appreciate your detailed dashboard reviews!
Love your reviews ,brighten up my day . Down to earth and honest reviews thank you
Kia ora John, great video & good explanation of layout. You missed the x2 cup holders for back seat passengers. They are located in middle backseat just above the driveshaft. Pullout and bingo - cup holders. Brilliant. I've had a 2001, RX250 auto for 10 years. Done 350,000 km, got it at 161,000 km. Bought from a great mate for NZD $3K - a few bob in UK. Engine not missed a beat. Transmission service at 250K. Has auto 4 speed-shift & I drive it like a manual - just brilliant. A dream drive in hilly New Zealand country sides. Go the Nissan Stagea
These are so utterly cool 🥰 and as we know, boxy is the best! Who doesn’t love a fast wagon?? Brilliant review Matt
For when a Volvo is too Swedish!
Always nice to see a 350RX review (not many available on YT) I have a B21 Fountain Blue 2005 350RX here in Christchurch New Zealand. Only 33 in this series. I have seen only 2 in real life on the street so quite a rare sight #M35S2Stagealyfe
Nice one Matt. A rare car indeed. Love it. I think Nissan missed a trick not having this available in Europe.
What a special and unique family-muscle-car. Just goes to show that, in the JDM-category, many hidden treasures can be found. Nice also that you point out the difference between 2006-big and today-big, indeed there is a notable difference.
Brilliant Review and what a noise it makes. We have one in our local car scene up here in Scotland, currently sporting a Ecto 1 look from Ghostbusters. This looks like a beauty of a car!
This is not a car, it's a dream... JDM, V6, SW. Another car that's on my fav estate list
It certainly looks a little like my 2006 V70 and the Volvo handled well and could lift up her skirts whenever some power was required.
However, this Stagea is is in another league. A league that contains starships and similar projectiles.
It is also quite a bit cooler than Subzero. Probably Arctic White out cool.
Nice review Matt. I see a few of these around the streets here in Sydney. Grey imports also. There's a guy down the road with a couple of them. Nice compromise when you can't squeeze the kids into a Skyline....
I have a 2004 one of these in New Zealand but with the twin sunroofs. Terrific car.
Amazed this hasn’t had the Skyline front end conversion! Nice to see a genuine one. 😃
Very cool!
I recognise some interior switchgear from my previous car - Almera N16.
Matt's frustration with car import delays shows through on this one and this was before we all knew about the crown Vic.
Yup, I was over a month into the car stuck in New York when I filmed this!
Awesome! If you follow Mighty Car Mods, there's Benny's "mildly modified" 1st gen Stagea... look for 'stagea double unicorn build'. That was where I first saw a Stagea. We only got the V6 Mitsubishi Galant station wagon here in Europe, but no one bought them. Not as cool as this JDM boy.
Jdm build quality is special
Great looking and cool car Matty another rare one 👍👍👍👍👍👍
Great in depth review, I love all the fine details put into it!
Would have liked to have seen what the kick down would have been like!, just flooring the throttle..I had a 2.0 turbo S60 Volvo auto, (about 100 bhp less than this Stagea) and that put a grin on my face!
I wonder with today's technology you could sort the sat nav and some of the other electronics?
Brilliant video 👍
AHH split tailgate. Utter sophistication. So useful. Really miss it from my old E39 touring.
Really unusual car.
I really do like this car. It sounds amazing 😻 ! 👍👀
Ah, how I wish North America had gotten this. My dad had a 2003 Infiniti G35, RWD with Premium, NAV and Aero packages. The interior was basically identical. Would have been way more practical to have the wagon, but such is life.
Love the interior on this car! 😎It's funky but tastefully done. Only thing I don't understand is the firm ride. You'd think they would've gone for more of a luxury, soft ride on a car like this.
Should have.....
Looks like a combination of Nissan and Infiniti.
I love this!
I think a UK 🇬🇧 DVD nav CD would cure the satnav.
They can be abit odd JDM spec cars on that front. My Crown VX only works with a Japan Map disk. To even change the head unit I have to buy a £350 beatsonic kit then purchase a radio of my choosing. A job for next year I think
Looks like a lovely, muscly car, and one that I actually didn't know....
Would love a Stagea. These ones are very underrated
I filmed a ropey old Skyline v35 back in March. The estate version is so much nicer than the saloon.
I like it. Just about my perfect car. Looks ordinary, goes pretty fast, does a bit of luxury. Very nice.
I think you should do a review on one of those quirky Peugeot 1007's with the slidy, slidy doors!
Weird Deja Vu when you explored the boot, almost identical layout of underfloor cubbies to the Lexus RX400h and tiedowns
Very nice. Sporty, yet discreet, practical and fast. What’s not to like?
The perfect Q car
A car the Japanese car boys LOVE to stance ...I can hear the scrapes now ...lol.
Yokohama should bring out Stance specific tyres...i can only imagine how they must wear. Plus as you say the scrapes, they carry a few planks in the back for low gutters.
Road test starting from Odeon car park Tunbridge Wells?
well spotted!
Looks like super wagon 🤩🤩 mind blowing 👌🏻👌🏻🤘🏻🤘🏻👍🏻
Thats a very elegant and facinating car 👍
Love it, love it, LOVE IT ❤
Didn’t Noddy’s car horn PARP 😆I’m surprised that I like this car but I really do…
Quite a handsome car!
Love it!!!
They also came as a 2.5 turbo version.
Hello and Season's Greeting's,
I wonder if that French chap was working with Nissan when this car was made???...the reason I ask is because the interior layout remind's me so much of my 01 RenaultLaguna 2 ST...That car also had load's of gadget's and gizmos and a Panoramic Sunroof.
Amazing car, always something a bit special about JDM cars.
That no small boot...it's the millennium falcon
True. Have had an enormous sideboard in mine, lots of width between the arches.
What a fantastic car 😎👌
Interesting car, Matt would you consider a manual as a replacement for your S204?
If I could find one, they only made a handful!
Now that’s cool
These are imported into Australia by companies who bulk import all sorts of JDM cars they are grey imports including these earlier models also
I need that car 🤩
Are Japanese cars still limited to 112kph
112mph, 180kmh
This one would be.
Yes.
I have brochures and all from the 70s still had top speed and acceleration on them. Since the 80s (I think 1980?) all of them have no top speed on em. And also the websites only give you horsepower, torque and of course measurement like size and weight and so on. And fuel consumption of course.
Wish I'd known about these before buying a 3 litre Outback.
Japan had some weird wonderful stuff but they just wouldn't have sold in the UK. Super imports though :)
Fist the crown Victoria now this...... Fantastic but I've heard and thought it was pronounced stay-ga.... I've seen a mk1 model aswell going around the town I live in
The Japanese pronunciation of Stagea would be Sta-ge-ah (g like get), however having just now watched a Stagea commercial, it is pronounced Stayjia :) It's complicated because the only gee sound in Japanese is ji (g sounds are always pronounced like gate, gear, get etc.), whereas in English g can make both gear and gym. So it looks like they went for gee with the g in Stagea :)
@@NeoNeko99 I think I'll stick to skyline estate now 😄
thats the best explanation Ive heard!
@@furiousdriving Having just now watched a Stagea commercial, it is pronounced Stayjia so I've edited my comment to explain that!
I just say it like the old Sega intro
I’d love one of these, there are a few in my city but mostly the gen ones, but I have to say harsh suspension and light steering isn’t a great combination
11:42 beep!
kool
Rear end looks a bit like the old Honda Accord estate 🤔
Now that’s my kind of car.
IVE JUST BEEN OFFERD ONE IN WHITE £1500 ,are they crap ,i have a 1999 E38740i but im thinking of one of these .or should i buy a volvo 850R ESTATE .
🤣
I think the JDM fever is spreading as I have become absolutely intrigued by the Japanese car market recently. I am constantly learning about vehicles I have heard about, or in this case, never heard the name or saw the vehicle.
Dont get into weird K-cars, they are like drugs.
mine 4wd tip tronic auto has snow mud drive option satilite tracking gps back battery alarm few extra with nz satilite navagation system a one off special . my baby same colour a rocket drag off near anything on road . nice a.
Why am I getting this with only 360 as the resolution option?
because that's all you deserve, until you purchase a Stagea
don't know why but sometimes it takes a few hours after upload for the HD options to be there
lolol
As 888john says, sometimes it takes a while for HD to reach all servers so although its processed its still low res in some areas
Did notice in a few shots some marks in the picture. I had to check another video to make sure it wasn't my screen.
It seems odd that the speedo only goes up to 180 kph, which is about 112 mph. One would expect a performance car to beat that for top speed.
All cars in Japan are limited to 180kph 🙂
@@NeoNeko99 thanks. I did not know that.
Not the most beautiful vehicle I have ever seen but that wouldn't stop me from daily driving one!
Quite a few on eBay
I like mk1 Stageas with a skyline front end swap.
Nice! I work in the Jewish area of Manchester and they ride JDM people carriers.
My next ride is gonna be a JDM. If the importer does small?
I've never heard of this thing, it looks like a cross between a Dodge Magnum wagon, and a CTS-V wagon.
God I really want a wagon. But we dont have any.
My dream car would be a Honda or Toyota wagon with AWD and lifted up for practicality.
Until then is SUVs and crossovers. I find cars to be too impractical cause they are so low its ridiculous.
I would take a lifted hatchback I guess like the Subaru Crosstrek but I would prefer a Toyota or Honda.
Which country are you? There is the Toyota Caldina GT4 Japanese import AWD station wagon (right hand drive only) or Subaru Impreza RV, otherwise why not a Renault Megane GT220 station wagon if you are in Europe? Modern passenger cars are low because it improves aerodynamics at highway speeds, which is very important these days.
ooh nice .. i always love a powerful estate , but ones that don't look like a powerful estate ( BMW audi & merc i mean you )
Sweet car, you say this car has everything but does it have a spare wheel? Is it underneath? Surely it's too old to have one of those stupid inflation kits?
Space saver under the rear strutted floor hatch.
Can you upload it in a better quality? I can only get 360p :(
Its in 4k, maybe theres a glitch in high res processing - try refreshing it
It is Raspberry Pi farm at UA-cam servers still processing the video...
@@furiousdriving Still at 1080p for me now but it is a big improvement, thanks, i do like your uploads, keep up the good work :)
God dammit I want it 😍
...still prefer you luvly new Police Interceptor!!!!
So you've had a Cube and now a Stagea, any more JDM wonders for our delectation? At the risk of making it a total Nissan-fest you really have to get your mitts on an Elgrand.
If seen these with an R35 GT-R front end swap, they look much better than the standard front end, I always find the headlights look a little small.
I’d have this over a dodge magnum any day.
I remember the original madness of these..and this version, which does look like a v70 and a legacy mated!
Never know the boot lid did that....
I'd love the 4wd but it's probably burning fuel faster than an Eastern bloc economy!
Heaps available in new zealand
Our family Toyota Avensis has just died and this review is making me want to make an irresponsible purchase... Think of the fuel bills..
Don’t think of the fuel bills and go for it!
If it jdm should be good 👍 I keep saying jpn 🤓😖 the Japanese do cars well 👍
In fact better than anyone else; even Germans!
The speedo only goes to 180?! The speedo on my 30 year old base model Peugeot with a 1.4 engine goes to that, not a huge V6 barge like that.
It's JDM they all have a 112mph limiter on
@@l228spn Yeah and soon everyone switches to that. They talk about limit all cars to 180 in the EU. Japan may be again ahead of its time. 😁
You never drive furiously
have you seen how many speed cameras and unmarked police cars are in the UK? Driving furiously on camera is a quick way to get a ban
@@furiousdriving I'm just busting ur balls coz of the name haha
it's for when he breaks down then he's furious
You'd want to find one of these in poor shape an make it a sleeper just to P.O a lot of idiots.
First