WL Statesman - what to look for

[GTR27]

Well in my quest for a commodore sized car, I have come across a mint condition WL statesman (which from my google-fu appears to be VZ based?)

Anything I need to look out for? Car has 130K, and leather and is priced sensibly.

Any car I buy I will take to get the tranny serviced (flush, filters, pan etc) immediately, and do engine oil flush, oil, filter myself. Will also fit cat back exhaust and get a mafless tune done all at once so I can be happy knowing the car is in good serviceable condition.

Any other things to do/look out for? (will check all the electrics obviously) Have rebuilt bike engines (DOHC) and a holden red motor before so am reasonably handy with the spanners. I will do pretty much any service myself (with the exception of the tranny as they can vacuum the oil out of the TC)

Down the track i'd look at diff gears also, but it will be the wifes car, not mine so trying to avoid too many mods.

 

[MayhemOfHell]

The WL is a VZ based vehicle and this in general is a useful rule when trying to google-fu your faults and problems.

I have never had any issues with mine apart from the oil switch,,, which is common on the LS1 anyway..
What engine, For the weight of the car, My personal thoughts are that the v8 pulls the weight better and will be more or less just as fuel eco....

When it comes to the stereo upgrade, this can be fun due to the amount of speakers that require replacing.
Oh also the tyre pressure sensors in the wheels do have a habit of messing up.. THIS maybe due to tyre rotation but never used the feature anyway...
BUT it was handy for knowing how warm your tyres are after a little fun....

If you get the v8 version, you will want a trans cooler and also upgrade the trans servo for better life..
The rear self levelling suspension i would suggest replacing with standard shocks as on mine there was an air leak which lead to the old ones collapsing one time on a heavy corner...

Over all, i love my car what can i say

 

[1_johnboy]

I just found myself in the exact same boat, I was looking for a VY2 Calais V8. Couldnt find what I wanted. In the end I found a 04 WL statesman v8 with 123kms. I`ve found it a fantastic car. Heaps of power, great features, super comfy and suprisingly good on fuel average 10/l on the highway and 13ish/l around town. Foot down and things will change ALOT.
I would look for service history, look for signs of covering faults up (overly cleen engine bay/underbody) try sus the seller out and see if they seem like a genuine seller or hoon. Statesmans tend not to be so popular with hoons.
There is alot of electrics, test them all! Pay attension with noises/vibrations when cold and hot.

 

[GTR27]

Thanks for the feedback guys. Its a V8 one (of course!). A tranny cooler will be on the short list of first mods done. If you dont mind me asking johnboy, how much did you pay? the car i'm looking at is a 05 WL with ~133k. You can PM me the price if you want (does this forum have PM's?). Seller is an old bloke and it has holden logbook history servicing.

We dont do a huge amount of k's (~5-600 every 3 weeks or so) so fuel not a massive concern. My past experience in owning a VE Calais V (with 6L v8) was it was decent on fuel (I avg's 12L/100 in ~19000k's i owned it).

 

[1_johnboy]

Pm sent.....