High K's VY, worth looking into?

[CrunchGreenGuy]

Hi all, currently shopping for a commo, and ive come across a VY on marketplace with a 3.8 and i beleive the getrag 5 speed manual, which is pretty much what im after, however the car has about 281 thousand kms on the motor. i know generally the ecotecs hold up to high K's generally well (my fsther drives one running mint at 350 thousand ish), however im sort of skeptical as to wether its worth looking into at all. the list price is 8000 and i certainly wouldnt pay that much for it.
my questions are basically,
worth taking a look? i generally dont see majual VYs
how long roughly should i be able to keep it alive given the current Ks
and how much roughly would you guys say its worth?

the car itself looks relativly clean but any help is much much appreciated

 

[vc commodore]

For $8K, leave it there....They're dreaming.

280,000K isn't much...

Price is under $3K for the car if it is in good nick

 

[Crunchy Granola]

He's asking way to much. Find a nice vz SV6 I've seen some nice ones going for less then 6 grand.

 

[J_D 2.0]

He's asking way to much. Find a nice vz SV6 I've seen some nice ones going for less then 6 grand.

Just make sure you don’t get an automatic. The 5 speed auto is rare as hens teeth (only fitted to VZ and VE SV6’s) and impossible to reliably repair/overhaul.

 

[malmensa]

Hi all, currently shopping for a commo, and ive come across a VY on marketplace with a 3.8 and i beleive the getrag 5 speed manual, which is pretty much what im after, however the car has about 281 thousand kms on the motor. i know generally the ecotecs hold up to high K's generally well (my fsther drives one running mint at 350 thousand ish), however im sort of skeptical as to wether its worth looking into at all. the list price is 8000 and i certainly wouldnt pay that much for it.
my questions are basically,
worth taking a look? i generally dont see majual VYs
how long roughly should i be able to keep it alive given the current Ks
and how much roughly would you guys say its worth?

the car itself looks relativly clean but any help is much much appreciated

The 3800 Ecotec is indeed an engine that can be reliable for a long time, and the VY is a pretty well designed vehicle all around, with nothing much that is known to cause early or expensive failure.

At the same time, you are looking at a vehicle that is 2 decades old, with considerable mileage. It is unlikely to be reliable; numerous parts will be at the point of simply wearing out. You may have a radiator tank split one week, the alternator brushes wear out the next, then the clutch go, and the ABS module fail the next week. If you are a competent backyard mechanic, and you can afford for the vehicle being off the road every so often, then its probably worth considering. If you need to pay a mechanic even for simple stuff like a radiator or alternator replacement, or cannot cope with the vehicle having significant downtime, then its probably best to look elsewhere.

Probably OK as a "starter" car for a young guy who likes working on cars and wants to learn more. Parts are generally cheap and easy to obtain, they are generally easy to work on, and of course you have this forum to help.

8K does indeed sound overpriced, but you could try lowballing and hope for the best.

 

[vc commodore]

The 3800 Ecotec is indeed an engine that can be reliable for a long time, and the VY is a pretty well designed vehicle all around, with nothing much that is known to cause early or expensive failure.

At the same time, you are looking at a vehicle that is 2 decades old, with considerable mileage. It is unlikely to be reliable; numerous parts will be at the point of simply wearing out. You may have a radiator tank split one week, the alternator brushes wear out the next, then the clutch go, and the ABS module fail the next week. If you are a competent backyard mechanic, and you can afford for the vehicle being off the road every so often, then its probably worth considering. If you need to pay a mechanic even for simple stuff like a radiator or alternator replacement, or cannot cope with the vehicle having significant downtime, then its probably best to look elsewhere.

Probably OK as a "starter" car for a young guy who likes working on cars and wants to learn more. Parts are generally cheap and easy to obtain, they are generally easy to work on, and of course you have this forum to help.

8K does indeed sound overpriced, but you could try lowballing and hope for the best.

3 years, bought at 275,000 K with stuffed LIM gasket, had to replace an instrument cluster, replaced steering column due to an ignition switch stuffing up, new belt and 4 new tyres out of my VY.

Call that unreliable?

 

[malmensa]

3 years, bought at 275,000 K with stuffed LIM gasket, had to replace an instrument cluster, replaced steering column due to an ignition switch stuffing up, new belt and 4 new tyres out of my VY.

Call that unreliable?

What would it have cost for that work if you could not do the repairs yourself and had to pay a mechanic?

 

[vc commodore]

It cost me $50 for someone to fit the steering column and instrument cluster, with the programming required. Cluster cost me $20....

LIM gasket....That is about 4 hours to do, I believe....So mechanics charge between $120 and $150 P/H....Do the math there...

Belt....Possibly cost someone $120 max, mechanic dependant....

Tyres....$500 ish....(I didn't pay that much)...But after 3 years, 75% of people need to buy them, so that's part and parcel of car ownership, no matter the age....

 

[J_D 2.0]

3 years, bought at 275,000 K with stuffed LIM gasket, had to replace an instrument cluster, replaced steering column due to an ignition switch stuffing up, new belt and 4 new tyres out of my VY.

Call that unreliable?

I think a lot of people don’t put enough emphasis on simplicity. Yes stuff goes wrong with older cars but when it does it’s normally not something that breaks the bank because there’s not that much complex and expensive to go wrong.

If you don’t know the first thing about cars then a newer car is probably better for servicing as the mechanic is only going to be changing oil and filters. Mechanics these days hate fixing problems and want the easy money from basic servicing.

This being the case then the best way to own an older car is either
A) Get with the program and learn how to fix it yourself (being simpler in design means simpler to fix yourself) or
B) Have a heap of money in your pocket to pay the whinging mechanic to fix it who doesn’t want to do those jobs and can get a couple of hundred bucks an hour just doing simple oil changes.

 

[vc commodore]

I think a lot of people don’t put enough emphasis on simplicity. Yes stuff goes wrong with older cars but when it does it’s normally not something that breaks the bank because there’s not that much complex and expensive to go wrong.

If you don’t know the first thing about cars then a newer car is probably better for servicing as the mechanic is only going to be changing oil and filters. Mechanics these days hate fixing problems and want the easy money from basic servicing.

This being the case then the best way to own an older car is either
A) Get with the program and learn how to fix it yourself (being simpler in design means simpler to fix yourself) or
B) Have a heap of money in your pocket to pay the whinging mechanic to fix it who doesn’t want to do those jobs and can get a couple of hundred bucks an hour just doing simple oil changes.

I was lost when it came to doing the LIM gasket....However I am fortunate enough to know people in the field, so I was able to have a set of younger eyes helping me along the way.

My knowledge only goes as far as carbies and electronic ignition with carbed cars....Computers, I'm stuffed...

Yes, getting to know how to fix it yourself definately helps with your back pocket