LS-EXUAL
Buying used car, what to look for?
Hey guys, i am going to look at a VN SS this weekend that i very well may put a deposit on if all is good with it. What things should i look for besides the obvious such as:
Tyre tread
All electrics working
Things like windscreen wipers, lights front and rear, power steering working
Windscreen chips
Leaks
Etc etc.
Any finer details i should be looking into? Any advice will be greatly appreciated. This VN SS has done 147,000 km's, immaclate inside and out, mild cam, exhaust and extractors, owned and loved by an older driver who apparently, has babyed it (in his late 30's, and by looking at the condition of this car, he has babyed it bigtime).
Originally Posted by wikky
Got Evo?
see if he has any reciepts for maintenance etc
Just check the usuals i guess like you would on your own car, exhaust, shocks, brakes, leaks in engine bay, driveline etc.
LS-EXUAL
No worries! Cheers!
Just shot across the road and asked my mechanic the same thing, he said the same as you, just also check the struts, turn the steering wheel so the tyres are dead straight then check the gap between the ass off the tyre and the guards, make sure they are the same on the left and right side, check around the diff at the rear, any leaks, get the auto warmed up and see how it shifts when warm etc.
He said just go over it with a fine toothed comb for an hour or so and check every single little thing even if it's trivial just to make sure. So that i shall be doing.
With the SS ,check inside the boot and both rear panels where the spoiler is bolted on for rust around the bolt holes. Had this prob with my VN .Also pull the spare wheel out and check for water , the rear quarter windows leak . Roof lining is a bit of an issue with sagging .The speakers in the dash perish but is an easy fix but i guess you found this out with your VP
there are three types of people in the world , those who can count and those who can't
Site Administrator
Spot on there!!! Also make sure things exculusive to the SS are there and working, foglights, all decals and stripes, etc.
Start the engine and touch the extractors at each exhaust port, look for one with a big temp difference to the rest, hot one can mean detonation and a cooler one something like a stuffed injector flooding a cylinder. The 5.0 is a pretty tuff engine so just check for the normal leaks, etc.
Selling FG G6E Turbo and buying a N/A Supra
The Kicking Horse
Bring a trolley jack and jack stands. If it's spotless under there, they've probably cleaned the undercarriage for the RWC or to hide leaks for you.
We found this problem with a car we were looking at. The owner admitted there was a slight leak and they detailed everything. Needless to say, the leak wasn't minor.
LS-EXUAL
Sweet as mate! Never thought of that, i'll definantly add that to my list on my bit of paper. The roof liner has been re trimmed in a lighter coloured vinyl about 3 months ago, so that's all sweet. Yeah i found that out with my VP about the speakers. LOL, ****ty paper cone crap, i replaced them with some 4 inch MTX thumpers. Thanks again buddy
Yup, the foggies are on there and in 100% working order, as well as the decal kit, i made him send me extra photos via email of the entire car, the decal kit is all goodBut i'll definantly write down that one about the extractors!
Yeah i'm gonna take it for a drive around the block a few times, take it back to the owners house (with him in the car obviously), jack it up, put it on stands, let it cool then go over the entire underneath and check for leaks, espcially around the engine sump, trans and diff areas. If i have to stay there for 2 hours, so be it. Thanks mate.
Site Administrator
Also don't be affraid to give it a bit and run it to the limiter (once warm of course). When they have ****ty leads, plugs, dizzy cap or rotor they can break down under load........signs of the service not up to date.
Selling FG G6E Turbo and buying a N/A Supra
LS-EXUAL
Sounds good to me! I am taking my mate Damo with me, for the last 9 years, he has worked for Caulfied Jaguar building E-Type race cars from scratch for use at Sepang in Malaysia for their company's customers (usually rich old white haired pricks), he built his VH SLE 308 from the ground up and it's a beautiful machine, he is gonna come along and we are going to go over the car from top to bottom and we are gonna take it for a spin.
If all is good, i shall purchase indeed. :thumbs: Then we may have to have a photo sesh at an upcoming cruise Dave. A Phoenix red and an Atlas grey VN SS, both on sigs and both in immaculate condition.
Site Administrator
Sounds good to me mateSounds good to me! I am taking my mate Damo with me, for the last 9 years, he has worked for Caulfied Jaguar building E-Type race cars from scratch for use at Sepang in Malaysia for their company's customers (usually rich old white haired pricks), he built his VH SLE 308 from the ground up and it's a beautiful machine, he is gonna come along and we are going to go over the car from top to bottom and we are gonna take it for a spin.
If all is good, i shall purchase indeed. :thumbs: Then we may have to have a photo sesh at an upcoming cruise Dave. A Phoenix red and an Atlas grey VN SS, both on sigs and both in immaculate condition.
Selling FG G6E Turbo and buying a N/A Supra
LS-EXUAL
Hahahaha true, if i was worried about the fuel though, i wouldn't be buying it. Means i'll enjoy it more, as i won't drive it AS much. I rarely go out anyways. Just to cruises and at work and occasionally to a mates house.
2-3 tanks a week of 98ron is what i can afford easily, so shouldn't be too much trouble
Site Administrator
Hahahaha true, if i was worried about the fuel though, i wouldn't be buying it. Means i'll enjoy it more, as i won't drive it AS much. I rarely go out anyways. Just to cruises and at work and occasionally to a mates house.
2-3 tanks a week of 98ron is what i can afford easily, so shouldn't be too much troubleMoney bags, thats around $350+
Selling FG G6E Turbo and buying a N/A Supra
LS-EXUAL
I still live at home remember. I give mum $100 at my own accord for bills etc, i pay my mobile bill each month, insurance each month, chuck $100 into the savings each week and petrol plus expenses here and there. I am on just on $1000 a week now. I doubt i will use more than 2 tanks a week if that, unless there is cruisage on.
Rick =]
there will be
i know if i had a vn ss and i could afford to go random driving and show it off, i would.... well atleast for the 1st week
There's one vital thing to check that you're all forgetting when buying privately:
Jot down the rego and VIN (if you can find it) and contact your roads authority for a REVS check.
You'd hate to end up buying a car with finance still owing on it, or even worst, a stolen one. You could end up paying up big for the car only to have it taken right off you again and nothing you can do about it.
LS-EXUAL
True! ^^^^ Will do thanks mate!!
LS-EXUAL
Not gonna bother, rang the guy to question him about the RWC, he flat out refused to get one, gave no reason, then lost it when and thanked me for nothing when i said i'm not going to bother if he won't even attempt a RWC for it.
Oh wells, back to the drawing board *keeps looking*
Just hand me the pliers.
Site Administrator
Lot's of people do that mate, guy selling mine didn't want the hassle's. He simply didn't have the time, all mine needed to pass RWC was a set of brake pads.
Selling FG G6E Turbo and buying a N/A Supra
LS-EXUAL
I'd rather stay on the safe side and buy a car with RWC, it's just one less thing i have to worry about doing.
Site Administrator
Do it yourself and you know it's all good........not hard to get a dodgy RWC.
Selling FG G6E Turbo and buying a N/A Supra
Carbon Positive - DO IT!!
Cam, exhaust and extractors on an SS and he is claiming he has babied itwith 147,000 on the clock it wont matter if he has babied it or not it will be fine. Just make sure you give it a decent thrash before you buy it
no longer a hoon by association - the commodore is gone
The Kicking Horse
Why not leave your licence and/or cash with him and drive to a mechanic. For $50 they will usually do a full examination and credit it towards the $66 RWC fee.
Forget about him being a rude prick if it means you get a good buy.
LS-EXUAL
It's all good, i'm gonna sit on my cash for a month, dump an extra $3k and a bit on it and go start looking at VR / VS clubbys. Found a really nice, dark metallic green VR Clubby with 170,000 on the clock, immac inside and out for $10,990 i would love to look at. Might try and stay away from the VN's after all, gonna try and get me some sort of 5 litre VR / VS.
There is a Manta going for $8500 down near my house, but i don't take much of a liking to the kits. 185i engine though. Basically a clubby engine in an SS shell with HSV badging and interior.
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