Post by
gemman69 »
https://forums.nicoclub.com/gemman69-u191636.html
Thu Jan 08, 2015 9:29 am
I bought my '02 with 92xxx miles, and am now at 173xxx miles in 39 months. What did I spend? Purchase $6300 from a college kid in dire straights, $500 paint touch up & pin stripe repair (not required at all) --> $6800 effective purchase price
AND required things
starter $400,
inner tie rod ends & 5 year alignment $583,
$175 ballast retrofit,
left tie rod end $200,
LF control arm & water pump $865,
serpentine belt & trans flush-fill & both outer tie rods $558 Nissan dealer,
tune up w/ new spark plugs +++ $611 at 3rd party shop,
$100 for used ABS speed sensor (didn't work),
$200 for code reads 2 different times.
$589 rear wheel bearing + misc
this totals $4281 over 80,000 miles and 39 months
but not including standard items like
tires new Michelin Primacy MXV4's $1175 (lasted 80,000mi),. Even at 3/32's tread little to no hydroplaning. Excellent. Need new ones now. Going for the same or the
oil 16 changes and consumed oil between changes at $40 each = $640
brake pad & rotors I had front rotors turned successfully, and rears needed replaced. Even with oil & brakes which I do myself. $300
subtotal for wear items $2115
I'm at less than $6396 in total maintenance which is $0.08/mile driven less fuel. Add in purchase price and you are at $0.159/mile. A good value.
The ballasts for headlights can be retrofitted with some skill. I bought the aftermarket ballasts and attached them to the original mounting point, but I had to bore a hole in the new ballast housing. The housing was hose clamped and siliconed to the headlight assembly. A full day of work. Came away from that for less than $150. Has worked great for 2-1/2+ years. No more flickers.
I burn about a quart per 700-1000. in warm weather (30F and above) I use Rotella T 15W40 and it cuts oil consumption considerably. Oil viscosity in my view does not affect mileage as much as variable gas quality. If the gas has 10% methanol you'll get worse mileage. My best mileage ever was when my wife drove 100% highway and we got over 22mpg. I also add Lucas Oil fuel additive religiously, and find it aids mileage about 1-1.5mpg. It makes it worthwhile if you buy the gallon size and refill a quart container every time you leave on a long trip.
I haven't done the cassette tape ipod conversion but need to. My daughter thought the cassette player was a jukebox and inserted a quarter that I can't easily remove. I get random noise at times, but if I smack the drivers side of the console which holds the cassette player it goes back to normal.
Enjoy the car.