4 Door car shopping... is a B15 Spec V too risky?

[DriftingisLame]

Hi guys, I am in the market for a new (used) car.

I'm a 6 year mechanic (3 years with Nissan), turned engineering student, and I've come from a variety of cars that all have one thing in common.

91 240sx, 250 whp RB, cage, buckets, harnesses, no AC PS CC (owned for 7 years)
90 300zx TT
79 280zx
b13 SE-R, DET, 250whp, too many mods
85 MR2
85 MR2 Map DLI supercharged

None of them were practical at all, most of them have only 2 seats. I started to realize while driving the MR2 that my wife and dog are not comfortable riding around in sports cars. Its time for a 4 door.

So I'm having some trouble now trying to find something that is practical, and still somewhat fun to drive. I'd like the car to have AC/CC/PS, and preferably ABS. I am going to be commuting this car to the university in fall, its gotta be reliable (though I am a mechanic afterall...) and capable of 30 mpg on the highway.

So the only thing I've come up with is a B15 Spec V. Its got plenty of performance components already on it, and it seems to meet all my other requirements.

The thing I'm worried about is the recalls and reliability issues that they seem to be plagued with. I've heard a lot of horror stories from owners, and lots of QR25 sentra's for sale have "rebuilt engines" (SKETCHY!). I gotta say, in my 3 years at nissan I replaced probably 10 QG18's for HG failure, or burning oil, etc, and not once a QR25. I replaced a lot of cam/crank sensors under warranty, but never an engine. This may be because there's far fewer SE-R's, but I just didnt notice the major problems with them that everyone talks about.

So is there anyone out there that has experience buying second hand B15 SE-R's? What are your thoughts?

If you think its a bad idea, do you have any other suggestions? I'm looking to spend about $4-8k.

Only other cars I can think of is the SE Limited B14 Sentra or B15 SE (both with SR20's), but even those I'm not very excited about (plus its impossible to find them!). No American or German cars.

Thanks guys

[Dittoz7]

Top my of head:

99-02 Infiniti G20/t
http://miami.craigslist.org/mdc/ctd/2751858722.html
http://miami.craigslist.org/pbc/cto/2807069189.html

Infiniti I35
http://miami.craigslist.org/brw/ctd/2842837952.html
http://miami.craigslist.org/mdc/cto/2818416274.html
http://miami.craigslist.org/brw/ctd/2832617125.html

GS300
http://miami.craigslist.org/brw/cto/2750403803.html
http://miami.craigslist.org/mdc/cto/2775753636.html
http://miami.craigslist.org/brw/ctd/2836254626.html

Mazda6
http://miami.craigslist.org/mdc/cto/2839079645.html

Protege5? Meh
http://miami.craigslist.org/brw/cto/2827356119.html

[Dittoz7]

No one else? But..but..we used to love these threads. :'(

[numbnuts240]

e30 m3. it'll be perfect for dd and autocross. or a miata.

[PapaSmurf2k3]

If you go sentra, go B13 or B14.

Anything after that, you're better off in a civic.
Altima SE-R would be nice, but they are rare, possibly out of your price range, and 30mpg would be a stretch.

Definitely look for Mazda 3s and 6s.
You could probably find a WRX in your price range, but good luck getting 30mpg.

[skydragoness]

e30 m3. it'll be perfect for dd and autocross. or a miata.

The reliability issues I've heard about the QR25 is why I've stayed away from them as well. It explains why they're so suspiciously cheap.
BTW, your screenname is awesome.

[nissangirl74]

Transmission type? How many miles is OK?

How about a 4th gen Maxima? It's available in manual or automatic, they get great mileage, very dependable. I checked on Autotrader. There are 133 for sale in the US with less than 100K and less than $8,000.

http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/searchres ... 8855156584

[06_blkout]

I spent time at Nissan, I did a few QR's, only replaced a few, but did a ton of head gaskets, all of them in Altimas, and one in an auto SE-R. They're an easy head gasket to do, and if you replace it with the 07 gasket you won't have an issue. The thing I've replaced the engines for is, lack of compression, due to bad rings.

My car is an 06 Spec, it came with a re manufactured engine in it with 4 miles on the odometer. Hopefully one of the performance parts on the Spec you're looking at is a header, and if it was put on early in the cars life, it should be fine. That's where the problem was, the precat would come apart and crap would make it's way back into the engine and eat up the rings.

I can say that the car has been really good to me, and hasn't had any issues, it's not the fastest thing in the world, but it's fun and I can get my 6 year old around. Just like with any car it's all in how the previous owner took care of it.

If you do decide to go with it, make sure you do a compression test.

Like Dittoz said, those cars are really good options, I'd love to have a G20! Also you could look into the B15 2000-2001 2.0SE, which came with the SR20. I'm tired as hell right now sorry if none of that made sense.

Good luck with your car search

[Jesda]

Mazdaspeed Protege would be a hoot, but they're a bit hard to find.

Friends of mine bought an '02 Altima with a QR25. It was by far the worst car they'd ever owned. They eventually had to sell it for parts a couple years ago. I felt bad for them until I remembered that they acquired it without asking me first. :P

A 4-cylinder 98-00 Honda Accord with a manual would be an excellent low-cost commuter, though a Maxima would be a lot more fun.

[VQpwrdSE-R]

If you go sentra, go B13 or B14.

Anything after that, you're better off in a civic.
Altima SE-R would be nice, but they are rare, possibly out of your price range, and 30mpg would be a stretch.

It may be hard to find an Altima SE-R at that price. At th top of your budget 8 grand will land you one with 115-130k. I have achieved 28 mpg in mine on a long trip all highway. Everyday driving it's around 24mpg. You will defiantly have space for your wife and dog though

[DriftingisLame]

Hi guys, thanks for all of the input. I really appreciate all these responses.

So I've been in the same ballpark as a lot of your suggestions and this is what I've come up with:

GS/IS300 - Thought about it, the 2jz's really dont get good mileage at all. I would also prefer to find a manual car, which would be more difficult.

Mazda3/6/Protege - Really unfamiliar with these cars, I dont know what a good price is for one, or what years to look for. I gotta say I just dont like them that much for some reason. They dont seem very exciting to me, although I have driven a few 3's and 6's that have had some impressive interior build quality, perhaps they were the top models.

E30, Miata - I'd drive a miata, but not daily. I'm 6'2" and my legs are abnormally long, I dont fit comfortably in Miata's or s2's. I will not own a german car, ever.

Maxima's/Altima SE-R's - I really do like these options, and I was almost sold on a 95-98 or whatever Maxima. I love the VQ engine, and I am very familiar with these vehicles having worked on them many times. I couldnt get passed the mileage. I did some research on Fuelly and the Maxima's seem to get 30 mpg freeway on a very good day with a tail wind. I'm sure altima's wouldnt be any better. I think if I were to go with a VQ car it would be a G35 sedan, as they can be had for less than 10K as well.

G20 - I was sold on the p10 G20 for a while when I was planning on buying a 4 door car. Now that I'm ready to buy there's not a single clean one around for a decent price (mostly auto's too). For some reason I've never liked the p11 too much, its just the same car with a lot more weight and no extra performance. Its not very likely that I'll modify the car that I buy any more than just basic stuff.

GSR Sedan - Thought about this for performance and MPG, but I really dont know if I could do the honda thing. I had a civic for a DD once and it drew far too much kid attention.

It seems like I'm looking in a category that has very limited options. I want a sporty car with some performance, yet gets good mileage, and has 4 doors. I guess I am pretty bias also when it comes to brands...

I spent time at Nissan, I did a few QR's, only replaced a few, but did a ton of head gaskets, all of them in Altimas, and one in an auto SE-R. They're an easy head gasket to do, and if you replace it with the 07 gasket you won't have an issue. The thing I've replaced the engines for is, lack of compression, due to bad rings.

Were the compression numbers obvious when you tested them? I can bring my compression tester and some basic tools if I go to check one out. Its very quick and easy to run a test on this engine. I'm just trying to avoid being lied to when I ask if the engine burns oil. I will call my old dealership with the vin to check if the recalls have been done if I go to look at one.

I guess I've got it narrowed down to a clean p10 g20/b14 SE limited sedan/00-01 B15 SE (If I can ever find good ones in manuals), or the dreaded B15 Spec V gone over with a fine tooth comb.

[PapaSmurf2k3]

It seems like I'm looking in a category that has very limited options. I want a sporty car with some performance, yet gets good mileage, and has 4 doors. I guess I am pretty bias also when it comes to brands...

Yeah, that's sort of BMW's trademark zone, minus the fuel economy part (although they ARE pretty good there). May I ask why you hate German cars so much? Are you Jewish? I know a lot of people that refuse to buy German.

Friends of mine bought an '02 Altima with a QR25. It was by far the worst car they'd ever owned. They eventually had to sell it for parts a couple years ago. I felt bad for them until I remembered that they acquired it without asking me first. :P

Funny, the exact same thing happened to me.
The girl NEVER took care of it though, so I wasn't too surprised when it kicked the bucket at slightly over 100k.
Seriously, they are like the modern day K-car.

[PapaSmurf2k3]

It may be hard to find an Altima SE-R at that price.

Hey I tracked down the SE-R at work today. I didn't see any of the clear coat rot we talked about, but it WAS raining out so it was hard to tell.

[VQpwrdSE-R]

Thanks for remembering . The ugliest parts have gone away. Some little cirlce flecks have replaced them but its infinitely less noticeable. If you are interested I will post a current trunk pic and resurrect my old thread.

[06_blkout]

Were the compression numbers obvious when you tested them? I can bring my compression tester and some basic tools if I go to check one out. Its very quick and easy to run a test on this engine. I'm just trying to avoid being lied to when I ask if the engine burns oil. I will call my old dealership with the vin to check if the recalls have been done if I go to look at one.

I guess I've got it narrowed down to a clean p10 g20/b14 SE limited sedan/00-01 B15 SE (If I can ever find good ones in manuals), or the dreaded B15 Spec V gone over with a fine tooth comb.

Yeah when they're bad they are really obvious. I had one Altima that was like 150, 150, 65, 140 lol. But when they get that bad, they're really running like crap, if running at all.

I forget what spec is now, but if the lowest number is within a certain percent of the highest number it's good, provided that all of the numbers aren't outrageously low. My buddy picked up a fixer upper for $900 bucks, it was an 03 with 98k on the ticker. It barely ran, was missing parts, etc. With a lower intake manifold gasket and some new mounts and other minor fixes, it runs like new, 155psi across the board. I was even shocked when I ran the test lol. They're really hit or miss, and a lot depends on the previous owner and how they took care of it. There was a nice 2.0SE in DC for sale when I was looking for a DD, they wanted a little much for it so I went with the 1.8.

[Fenris]

I 2nd the WRX recommendation, or even 2.5RS. I traded my 20 year old jeep cherokee for a 15 year old 5 series for a WRX as a daily/useful car.

Same cargo space as the jeep, (i got a wrx wagon) but better fuel economy.

Much more fun and cheaper to maintain than my 528.

Still AWD so good in snow.

I get 24-27mpg on snow tires in the winter, 26-28mpg on summer tires in the summer, but i drive quicker.....

[Kompresshun]

Maxima's/Altima SE-R's - I really do like these options, and I was almost sold on a 95-98 or whatever Maxima. I love the VQ engine, and I am very familiar with these vehicles having worked on them many times. I couldnt get passed the mileage. I did some research on Fuelly and the Maxima's seem to get 30 mpg freeway on a very good day with a tail wind. I'm sure altima's wouldnt be any better. I think if I were to go with a VQ car it would be a G35 sedan, as they can be had for less than 10K as well.

Normally I think Fuelly is a good resource, but if the Maxima is well cared for you can achieve 30mpg highway easily. I always average 30mpg on the interstate in my I30 and if I keep my foot out of it, i've gotten 20-21mpg in the city. Pick up one with a manual transmission and i'm pretty confident you can achieve those numbers. The only thing I have done to mine is a modded airbox, but i'm still running a stock filter. Just some food for thought on the Maxima.

[Mr1der]

You know you want an EP3 Civic.

with the seats folded down, it'll swallow a full set of wheels and tires.

It's kinda the black sheep of Civic Si's so it doesn't draw much attention from kids....fun to drive, if you go easy you'll see 26-28mpg on average (I beat on mine a lot but also do a lot of highway driving so I usually average 26mpg at the worst, pure road trip mileage the best I've gotten was 32mpg.)

Fun cars, good aftermarket when you get bored and can be had at reasonable prices. The only glaring problem with them is that the AC compressors like to s*** themselves every few years.