Buying a VY Commodore

[kjc]

Gday fellas, im looking at buying a Vy commodore 6 cyl im looking for advice on what km range to stay away from. Theres a tonne of them on the market average of 200***km.
At that range is there anything i should be weary of? Any tips on getting the most out of a 200***km Vy?

 

[tallman5353]

Yeah if your'e looking to keep it long term, try get something under 200k
There are a few gems that pop up with around or even under 100k
Just keep one eye on carsales and the other on gumtree/tradingpost

 

[NU13]

My advice is to get one with as lower ks as possible. That said, there is nothing wrong with a car with more ks on it if it has been well looked after. One lesson i learnt a few years ago was not to buy a car that hasn't had it's service book kept up to date.

 

[Rosco994]

Every car is different I purchased my 03 vy ute with 122k on it serviced every 5000km and the radiator shat itself within 3 months aswell as the clutch. Those are the only problems I have come across though and it now has 147k on the clock. As previously said it all depends how the previous owner looked after it.


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[kjc]

ive never owned a high km vehicle. my current car is a 2001 vx ss 5.7lt with 161*** on the clock. I just cant afford to run the beast. as mentioned above there are alot of vy's on the market with 160-180***kms for a bit more coin than the vy's with 200 on the clock. im unsure of issues with v6 engines but am looking at making the switch. at around 160*** my ss has had the alternator replaced, o2 sensor, current temp sensor and radiator sensor replaced. other than that no probs with it. at 160-180km vy possibley vz would it run trouble free if looked after? at that range will there be major issues etc. im on a budget atm of 5-6k depending on what i get for the ss.
cheers for advice fellas

 

[phillyG]

If i was 3 years older and off my P's id be happy to swap haha
I bought my vy in april with 125*** on it, so far up to 133*** and the only thing thats sh*t itself is the plug into the dfi module which was a quick fix.
In my opinion id go with a series 2 with low K's
although.. every car is different, looked after or not, you can have serviced the car every time on time, never misstreated it, ran it on premium every time and kept it clean but if a car wants to **** itself it will no matter what and it doesnt matter how nice you are to it

 

[1_johnboy]

I`m a fan of the VY, they are a good strong reliable car. I have a VY2 S, has about 190 on the clock, bought it at 100kms. Still as tight and strong as the day I got it. I always service it when required and use good parts.
Only thing I have had to replace its a radaitor.

As the guys above have pretty muched covered most of it, I believe the only weak point of them....and most commodores is the 4l60e auto. Check fluids are pink and smelly. Get the car up to temp and she how it changes under different conditions. Heavy stop start traffic, slowing down from 100kph to stop to see how it down shifts. Under acceleration.

Try not get anything that looks like a young bloke has owned pretty easy to tell!

 

[wortus]

If you get one with around 200,000k or more you may find your up for things like a water pump, drive belt pulley's, alternator bearings etc. The engine and transmission if serviced and maintained properly will last a lot longer.
With a VY if you have a selection to choose from you have to balance the k's, general condition, service history etc. When I bought my VY 25th Anniversary the dealer had a VZ Acclaim with more k's (160k v's 120k) and not in as good condition and it was the best VY I had looked at over all so I went with the VY. I got it in 2008 with 122,000km it has just clocked up 165,000km and I have not spent any money on it other than getting a rim repaired, new tyres, servicing it and a new battery. I reckon it's a great car and the limited edition models like mine come with a load of extras so if you can find one of those all the better. I mainly use it for trips and it is garaged and is as good as the day I got it.

Also there are a lot of running changes over the production run, I reckon your better off with a series 2 especially if your after an S.

 

[jackcurrie]

My honest advice would be to get a car with somewhere close to or under 200xxx. Less is generally best, but regardless of service history and kms, LOOK IT OVER. I bought a car about a year ago, a VZ commodore, 115xxxkm, all services up to date, etc. A few months later, it was pretty well scrapped. Despite no noises when driving, or anything obvious from the standard 'look over' when buying a car, it had a crack in the engine block, and was beyond a repair short of about $5000. Absolute perfect car on paper, and when looking.

You'll feel like a tool (I know I would), but seriously spend as much time as you can looking. Start it cold, look it over, drive it until warm (get it on a highway if possible too, some cars are fine below 80, and then the problems show at 100ish), and then look it over again. The leak left a stain that wasnt visible without tearing the engine apart, but the leak only started when up to a good operating temperature. Even though I took it for a ten minute drive, it still wasnt warm enough to see the leak. If I'd driven it for another ten, I might have dodged a bullet.

Probably a once-off bit of bad luck for me, but I tell the story to everyone looking at a car. I bought it with the intention of a low km, reliable, serviced car that wouldn't give me trouble - and it gave me more than my old VP with 350xxx+ that I never serviced once.

TL;DR - It doesn't matter whats in a service book, or on the odometer, don't see plenty of services and low kms, and get complacent when looking the car over.

 

[wortus]

I think the Alloytech motor in the VZ you need to be more careful than an Ecotech and they seem to be harder and more expensive to repair for example the thermostat and it's housing often leak and are apparently a bitch to remove and replace and if the oil is leftin for too long they sludge up and are effectively stuffed. My VY came from a dealer so it had a 3 month warranty. They had to replace the 4 brake rotors due to them being odd thicknesses with a few at or below minimum with brake shudder which I did not notice on the test drive. The car had been detailed but the motor was not steam cleaned and did not have any oil leaks so I took a punt. I traded in a VN with just over 300,000km on it which was still going fine which I had for 10 more or less trouble free years.
As a general rule though if it has been serviced with regular fluid changes and makes no strange noises then an Ecotech should be OK just check the inlet manifold gaskets for any leaks and signs of oil in the coolant or water in the sump. I'd be wary of buying one if I found the radiator for example filled with water and no coolant.