T heart of downplaying a situation is critical for denying its actual severity. This could be as simple as the ‘little’ bit of kerbing which has transformed your wheel into something from The Flintstones, or it could be the crippling hangover after telling your loved one you’d only had a few drinks.
There’s an entire chapter dedicated to this in the Skyline GT-R handbook, starting with fuel consumption before rapidly increasing to full engine issues. Chapter 3.2 reads “In the event of oil starvation, instruct other enthusiasts that it is likely just a sticky valve and shouldn’t cost much to fix”. Chapter 3.3 continues “For engine rebuild number two, suggest simply that the noise is because the timing needs sorting”.
Annoyingly this handbook doesn’t include what to say during engine rebuilds number three and four. But, after five years of GT-R ownership, it’s a skill I’ve managed to perfect in order to keep relatively sane. There is one area that no amount of downplaying can cover up though... its ‘quick’ winter refresh.