Some advice on a 200sx (maybe)
Discussion
Hi all,
Not been in this forum before so hi!
I currently drive a TVR Chimaera 450 as my only car and am thinking about switching to having this as my second car and buying a runabout so I can save a bit on fuel, put less miles on the Chim (i've put 15k on it since Nov last year), and have something to drive when the Chim's off the road getting modified which seems to be quite often given my quest for more power etc!
So my criteria for a 'runabout' was something rear wheel drive and ideally with some poke (which sort of defeats the object of a runabout but I don't care), and as cheap as possible whilst not being a heap of junk. So naturally I turned first to the 200sx, and after looking through the classifieds i've seen a couple of s14's which look in good nick though with around 100K on the clock for around £2K.
My first question is, is an s14 with 100k likely to last long (obviously I will give it a good going over before I buy anything)? Secondly, are there any other cars which I should perhaps look at (must be quite reliable and happy on the motorway)? The only 200sx i've really seen is the Halfords S13 drift/demo car which I sort of helped build and that seems to have been very reliable despite a fair bit of abuse, though I have heard talk of big end problems and such. How likely is this to be an issue?
Anyway thanks in advance to anyone who might be able to help, I've looked at insurance and it actually works out around 400 quid less than I'm currently paying to insure the S14 as the main car and the TVR as a second car (both fully comp) which I thought was a bit crazy... - So the numbers do stack up, but does the car??
Cheers,
Nick
Not been in this forum before so hi!
I currently drive a TVR Chimaera 450 as my only car and am thinking about switching to having this as my second car and buying a runabout so I can save a bit on fuel, put less miles on the Chim (i've put 15k on it since Nov last year), and have something to drive when the Chim's off the road getting modified which seems to be quite often given my quest for more power etc!
So my criteria for a 'runabout' was something rear wheel drive and ideally with some poke (which sort of defeats the object of a runabout but I don't care), and as cheap as possible whilst not being a heap of junk. So naturally I turned first to the 200sx, and after looking through the classifieds i've seen a couple of s14's which look in good nick though with around 100K on the clock for around £2K.
My first question is, is an s14 with 100k likely to last long (obviously I will give it a good going over before I buy anything)? Secondly, are there any other cars which I should perhaps look at (must be quite reliable and happy on the motorway)? The only 200sx i've really seen is the Halfords S13 drift/demo car which I sort of helped build and that seems to have been very reliable despite a fair bit of abuse, though I have heard talk of big end problems and such. How likely is this to be an issue?
Anyway thanks in advance to anyone who might be able to help, I've looked at insurance and it actually works out around 400 quid less than I'm currently paying to insure the S14 as the main car and the TVR as a second car (both fully comp) which I thought was a bit crazy... - So the numbers do stack up, but does the car??
Cheers,
Nick
Edited by thenick on Tuesday 26th February 23:37
Yeah this is the problem I think I may run in to... I haven't looked at any yet so I may just go and look at one or two and then decide whether or not to look at a different car or up my budget a bit! If the turbo goes pop, how big a job is it to replace, and what do recon/used turbos go for roughly?
They're pretty solid cars, and can stand up to abuse well if looked after properly. At the same time get a bad one and it can be a bit of a nightmare, rust being the biggie, CA18 engines like to eat big ends if they're not looked after, SR's (S14) don't tend to suffer as much but there's a few valvetrain related things worth looking out for (blocked oil spray bars, worn VVT sprocket etc). Personally I wouldn't bother with 100k milers, they're cheap enough and pleantiful enough to make shopping around a bit more viable. Don't be scared about one's that have been lightly modded, there's a lot that have been very well looked after out there.
I've always preferred S13's, but they are getting long in the tooth.
The owners club www.sxoc.com/vbb is absolutely rammed with people who know them inside out, lots of useful info over there about them, personally I'd buy one from there before anywhere else. I'm sure if you had one in mind there'd be someone fairly local to you who wouldn't mind coming along and giving it a once over for you.
Another nissan of that era worth considering would be a skyline R32 or R33 GTST, which are also great fun.
I've always preferred S13's, but they are getting long in the tooth.
The owners club www.sxoc.com/vbb is absolutely rammed with people who know them inside out, lots of useful info over there about them, personally I'd buy one from there before anywhere else. I'm sure if you had one in mind there'd be someone fairly local to you who wouldn't mind coming along and giving it a once over for you.
Another nissan of that era worth considering would be a skyline R32 or R33 GTST, which are also great fun.
I know of lots of examples of 200's that have done over 100k whilst modded. I also know of ones with 180k miles on them.
S14's are generally reliable. Regular problems are
Fuel Pump,
Wing Mounted Intercooler cracks
Turbo on higher mileage
Rust is starting to appear on the older ones.
S13 are the same although its now very hard to find a non rusty one. Big Ends can be an issue on ones that have had the power pushed.
non of the jobs are particularly big but can be expensive if you go to a dealer. Dealers are useless cos they don't have any knowledge of the cars - you are better off using the owners club www.sxoc.com - cars will also be on sale there and you can look thru the post history to see if the cars got problems.
Don't stay clear of modded cars just be careful who you buy from. Mines probably better looked after than any of the previous owners. I do track days etc but I drive with a lot of mechanical sympathy, I don't do drifting or burn outs or dump the clutch for drag starts, but once rolling I give it some stick.
If you can find one with high milage from a middleaged owner who's owned it pretty much from new - good service history etc then you won't go far wrong.
P.S. you aren't going to get huge mpg from it though - 30mph
S14's are generally reliable. Regular problems are
Fuel Pump,
Wing Mounted Intercooler cracks
Turbo on higher mileage
Rust is starting to appear on the older ones.
S13 are the same although its now very hard to find a non rusty one. Big Ends can be an issue on ones that have had the power pushed.
non of the jobs are particularly big but can be expensive if you go to a dealer. Dealers are useless cos they don't have any knowledge of the cars - you are better off using the owners club www.sxoc.com - cars will also be on sale there and you can look thru the post history to see if the cars got problems.
Don't stay clear of modded cars just be careful who you buy from. Mines probably better looked after than any of the previous owners. I do track days etc but I drive with a lot of mechanical sympathy, I don't do drifting or burn outs or dump the clutch for drag starts, but once rolling I give it some stick.
If you can find one with high milage from a middleaged owner who's owned it pretty much from new - good service history etc then you won't go far wrong.
P.S. you aren't going to get huge mpg from it though - 30mph
Thanks mate, its all useful stuff! I just went to have a look at a 1998 S14a touring which looked in very good nick with a very enthusiastic owner who has replaced turbo gaskets, oil regularly, new brakes and pads, new uprated clutch and frontmount intercooler to replace a cracked original. Its on the standard fuel pump at 92k miles but its seems to run very well indeed. He reckons it can get 25mpg around town and 30's on the motorway which is a damn sight better than the TVR so I think I may well take this off his hands! He wants £3300 for it with a second set of wheels and tyres thrown in with a years mot and tax... sound about right?
Nick
Nick
thenick said:
Thanks mate, its all useful stuff! I just went to have a look at a 1998 S14a touring which looked in very good nick with a very enthusiastic owner who has replaced turbo gaskets, oil regularly, new brakes and pads, new uprated clutch and frontmount intercooler to replace a cracked original. Its on the standard fuel pump at 92k miles but its seems to run very well indeed. He reckons it can get 25mpg around town and 30's on the motorway which is a damn sight better than the TVR so I think I may well take this off his hands! He wants £3300 for it with a second set of wheels and tyres thrown in with a years mot and tax... sound about right?
Nick
its highly unusual for a pump to last more than 60-70kNick
Just a few questions - why new brakes? not a known issue. Pads and disks?
Uprated clutch? why uprated? that would possibly imply running higher power. and if he's been doing that on std pump its 'dangerous'
which FMIC - the one that goes thru the battery undertray and requires a smaller race battery?
Where is the car? I could have a look over it if you want. If I can't look over it ask SXOC.com - someone will probably oblige for a pint.
Where is it advertised?
Edited by sparkyhx on Friday 29th February 21:56
Hi mate,
Thats interesting about the fuel pump, after talking to the guy he seemed to know a lot about the cars and their various weaknesses. As far as he knew it was the original unit and he had been keeping his eye on it but it hadn't shown any sign of faliure as yet. He did recommend looking at replacing the fuel pump with a Walboro unit before starting any boost upgrades, giving the reasons of running the engine lean etc.
He also said he had planned to upgrade it a bit and that his plans included adding a boost controller and couple of other bits but wanted to get the rest sorted first. As such, the clutch was on the way out so he had it replaced with an ACT unit, the brake pads needed doing so he replaced them with fast road versions and new standard disks all around, and the standard intercooler had cracked so an Apex unit was bought to replace it with a smaller battery with future upgrades in mind. It all looks neat and unbodged and he has considerable reciepts to show for the work done and together with his knowledge and enthusiasm I'm happy to go with what he's said about the car.
The car is in West Wickham just off junc 4 of the M40 so I was going to go and have another look at it in the coming week with a view to buying it if everything looks in order. I'd be happy for someone to come and have a look at it with me if possible but from looking at all the usual bits it looks like a pretty good example!
The ad is here:
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&am...
Thats interesting about the fuel pump, after talking to the guy he seemed to know a lot about the cars and their various weaknesses. As far as he knew it was the original unit and he had been keeping his eye on it but it hadn't shown any sign of faliure as yet. He did recommend looking at replacing the fuel pump with a Walboro unit before starting any boost upgrades, giving the reasons of running the engine lean etc.
He also said he had planned to upgrade it a bit and that his plans included adding a boost controller and couple of other bits but wanted to get the rest sorted first. As such, the clutch was on the way out so he had it replaced with an ACT unit, the brake pads needed doing so he replaced them with fast road versions and new standard disks all around, and the standard intercooler had cracked so an Apex unit was bought to replace it with a smaller battery with future upgrades in mind. It all looks neat and unbodged and he has considerable reciepts to show for the work done and together with his knowledge and enthusiasm I'm happy to go with what he's said about the car.
The car is in West Wickham just off junc 4 of the M40 so I was going to go and have another look at it in the coming week with a view to buying it if everything looks in order. I'd be happy for someone to come and have a look at it with me if possible but from looking at all the usual bits it looks like a pretty good example!
The ad is here:
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&am...
Edited by thenick on Saturday 1st March 00:29
The owner is member of sxoc for two years and the history of posts backs up everything he has been saying - New tyres, new clutch, new brakes with DS2500 (excellent pads) Front mount to replace the dodgy WMIC - At that price its a bargain, and all the regular things have been sorted. snatch his hand off.
£40 for a "bren device", £80 for a new fuel pump and $40 for colder plugs, turn the boost up to 14psi and then you will have 270bhp cracker. £200 for a horsham ECU upgrade (helps fueling doesn't increase power) and you have a full stage one monster that will still return 30mpg
£40 for a "bren device", £80 for a new fuel pump and $40 for colder plugs, turn the boost up to 14psi and then you will have 270bhp cracker. £200 for a horsham ECU upgrade (helps fueling doesn't increase power) and you have a full stage one monster that will still return 30mpg
Excellent, well I've agreed to buy the car anyway so I shall probably be joining you on SXOC soon! What is a 'bren device' by the way? For mods, I was thinking along the lines of:
-boost controller
-fuel pump
-cold plugs
-stage 1 chip from Horsham
-Then perhaps some handling tweaks such as a new roll bar to sort the back end out?
Does this sound about right for a nice running stage 1 car? I obviously don't want to take it too far as I would like to keep the fuel economy and keep it comfortable for cruising in but the petrolhead in me will always find something to upgrade! I am astonished how cheap they are to mod though, it really puts TVR tuning into perspective!
-boost controller
-fuel pump
-cold plugs
-stage 1 chip from Horsham
-Then perhaps some handling tweaks such as a new roll bar to sort the back end out?
Does this sound about right for a nice running stage 1 car? I obviously don't want to take it too far as I would like to keep the fuel economy and keep it comfortable for cruising in but the petrolhead in me will always find something to upgrade! I am astonished how cheap they are to mod though, it really puts TVR tuning into perspective!
Welcome to the world of 200sx - enjoy
just realised that it has a std exhaust so really you need to add that into the mix before upping the boost much further than about 10psi. If you are upping boost you will also need a boost guage to make sure you don't over do it and blow your engine up.
If you get it to full stage 1 I warn you you will start to wonder (apart from the glorious noise) why you are keeping the TVR!!!! - they are an absolute hoot and the turbo is addictive.
Bren Device is named after Bren - its a manual boost controller (daws device) which is a much cheaper way of upping boost than going down the electronic boost control route. - Bren is the owner of Apex Performance. Europe's biggest supplier of parts for the 200.
Your credit card and his company will no doubt be getting acquainted.
Not only does Apex sell HKS, Greddy Apexi etc stuff but they also do "homebrand" stuff at considerable savings. Things such as full stainless exhausts, front mount intercoolers (FMIC), bigger radiators, coilovers and springs, etc etc. They also do occasional group buys on named stuff and get it cheaper. The car has HID kit & Apex FMIC - both of which were available on group buys at some stage.group buy.
enjoy
p.s.
Big warning DS2500 are s
te when cold - stop a couple of time and you should be fine after that - don't steam up behind someone and brake hard on your first stop in a morning. Stick them on track and they will not fade all day.
p.p.s. pay £15 for SXOC membership and it will repay itself in discounts and you get better advice.
p.p.p.s i'm sparkyhx on there as well.
Handling wise you can spend a fortune. Most of the roads I drive on are moorland type and to be honest I do perfectly well with std suspension. Coilovers are too hard and probably slow the car down.
there are other cheaper things like replacing bushes which will be a bit worn, pineapples or subframe locking collars, arb's strut braces. Alternative to coilovers is adjustable KYB AGX's and lowered springs or just keep with the stock springs and go sith the KYB shocks. Its a huge minefield and it can get expensive.
If you are looking at doing this then you really will question why the hell keep the TVR? the 200 will be probably as fast at stage 1 with handling mods. They will give M3's Boxters, 90's 911's etc a run for their money.
just realised that it has a std exhaust so really you need to add that into the mix before upping the boost much further than about 10psi. If you are upping boost you will also need a boost guage to make sure you don't over do it and blow your engine up.
If you get it to full stage 1 I warn you you will start to wonder (apart from the glorious noise) why you are keeping the TVR!!!! - they are an absolute hoot and the turbo is addictive.
Bren Device is named after Bren - its a manual boost controller (daws device) which is a much cheaper way of upping boost than going down the electronic boost control route. - Bren is the owner of Apex Performance. Europe's biggest supplier of parts for the 200.
Your credit card and his company will no doubt be getting acquainted.
Not only does Apex sell HKS, Greddy Apexi etc stuff but they also do "homebrand" stuff at considerable savings. Things such as full stainless exhausts, front mount intercoolers (FMIC), bigger radiators, coilovers and springs, etc etc. They also do occasional group buys on named stuff and get it cheaper. The car has HID kit & Apex FMIC - both of which were available on group buys at some stage.group buy.
enjoy
p.s.
Big warning DS2500 are s
te when cold - stop a couple of time and you should be fine after that - don't steam up behind someone and brake hard on your first stop in a morning. Stick them on track and they will not fade all day.p.p.s. pay £15 for SXOC membership and it will repay itself in discounts and you get better advice.
p.p.p.s i'm sparkyhx on there as well.
Handling wise you can spend a fortune. Most of the roads I drive on are moorland type and to be honest I do perfectly well with std suspension. Coilovers are too hard and probably slow the car down.
there are other cheaper things like replacing bushes which will be a bit worn, pineapples or subframe locking collars, arb's strut braces. Alternative to coilovers is adjustable KYB AGX's and lowered springs or just keep with the stock springs and go sith the KYB shocks. Its a huge minefield and it can get expensive.
If you are looking at doing this then you really will question why the hell keep the TVR? the 200 will be probably as fast at stage 1 with handling mods. They will give M3's Boxters, 90's 911's etc a run for their money.
Edited by sparkyhx on Sunday 2nd March 23:20
most stuff can be got cheaper from the US (and sometimes Australia) - if you want to risk customs, it not turning up at all or damaged when it does turn up then go for it - many people do and many people prefer to trust a UK based dealer and have somewhere to return things, and pay a little more. I've done both, but I also live close to Apex so never incur carriage charges which bumps prices up more
You pays your money and takes your choice.
You pays your money and takes your choice.
Edited by sparkyhx on Sunday 2nd March 23:34
sparkyhx said:
most stuff can be got cheaper from the US (and sometimes Australia) - if you want to risk customs, it not turning up at all or damaged when it does turn up then go for it - many people do and many people prefer to trust a UK based dealer and have somewhere to return things, and pay a little more. I've done both, but I also live close to Apex so never incur carriage charges which bumps prices up more
Don't need to justify using bren to me mate, I've used him since I first joined the SXOC lots of years,6x200sx's, 3 skylines and a serious amount of money ago LoL.I just begrudge to paying twice the price and then some for a piece of brass I can make in an hour tops, when I can have it sent fed-ex track and trace for no more than 25 dollars.
bren's pretty good, or was, not used him for a while, at doing very good deals if you're a regular. VERY good on some stuff.
RHDjapan however, are consistantly excellent I've found.
sparkyhx said:
If you are looking at doing this then you really will question why the hell keep the TVR? the 200 will be probably as fast at stage 1 with handling mods. They will give M3's Boxters, 90's 911's etc a run for their money.
They are quick, but I don't think I could ever sell the Tiv, i've spent far too many hours under it and its just far too much fun to even think about selling! I'm slowly turning it into my perfect car which will take a fair bit of money and time yet and the 200 will let me take it off the road for longer in order to re-trim/re-spray and supercharge among other things! You just can't beat an open-top, V8-powered hoon! 
Edited by thenick on Monday 3rd March 16:22
He he. I hope you enjoy your new car, thenick.
If you ever think of selling it, I might be interested :wink:
And sparky, many thanks for your input on this thread, it's really restored my faith in the SXOC, and thenick, I have never met sparky and didn't solicit any of his input, I was only aware of this thread after the car was sold!
If you ever think of selling it, I might be interested :wink:
And sparky, many thanks for your input on this thread, it's really restored my faith in the SXOC, and thenick, I have never met sparky and didn't solicit any of his input, I was only aware of this thread after the car was sold!
Gassing Station | Japanese Chat | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff