91 TT with 22,000 miles - Did I overpay?

[Peabody]

Hi,
I sold my 90 240sx last summer that I had for 22 years and finely got the Z of my dreams tonight off Ebay for $16300.

Do you think I got it for a reasonable price or overpaid? I live 300 miles away so I do not have to travel across the country to pick it up. It is in showroom condition.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/300zx-Tw ... v4exp=true

[Drewskates247]

The price seems to be on the higher end but it is super hard to find a TT Z32 in that immaculate condition. Seems fair.

[BlackWidowZ]

I could be wrong about this but thats an airbag on a 91? Thats an option on the 91 and didn't come standard till later. You got the car you wanted. It is what it is. Some peoples are going to say you payed too much but they comparing a z32 that is not as nice as that one to that one. Its not showroom quality or mint but it wouldn't take much effort for you to make it that way. But it is well kept and low millage.

[Peabody]

Once I really see the car I will know if it is really in Showroom condition. The guy sold it for his neighbor. He brought it to a local Nissan dealer and they flipped out. Still smells new and never put any products on dash to keep the smell of a new car. After the dealer wanted to put it on the showroom floor he added to the description about being show quality. The only flaw I saw was the ding on the quarter panal and he said they have tiny holes in the mufflers. The engine compartment can be cleaned up and a new hood insolution. It does have an air bag. I like the fact the car has never seen ethonal.

[DCaff300ZX]

All in all I think you paid a pretty fair price, mostly for the low mileage. A good deal would have been $14K-$15K range, but you did bid for it on ebay so getting a good deal isn't probably gonna happen there.
I was looking for several years before I bought mine, with many more miles and a far lower price, but had looked seriously at two cars both with less than 40K miles- both wanted more than you paid for your vehicle, although I would not have paid more than $16K for either.
In your case the one "knock" would be the early style injectors, and you'll need to be careful for awhile about seals and such since the car has sat so much, but with the airbag you get an upgrade and the overall condition looks excellent....so, enjoy!

[Rager]

16k doenst seem that high for condition and mileage. that z is nice than most car in the last 20 IMO, so to buy a used car for 16 with that low of miles that condition is win win . what do you know about maintence records? 60/120k?

post pics when you get it

gl with everything

[Afi]

You bought your car like this week because I was checking this car on ebay (out of curiosity) like last week. In my area, a TT with 22 000 miles for that price would be a pretty fair/good deal. I'd expect to pay anything between 17.5 to 20K for this in my area (Montreal, Canada). I mean this '96 TT (251/300) with 88 000 miles is at 23k right now on ebay:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Nissan-3 ... 070wt_1002
or this '96 NA with 144 miles for 22K also:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Nissan-3 ... 500wt_1182

[Ace2cool]

Yeah, not a bad deal man. Welcome to the dark side

[Peabody]

Thanks for the input.
The owner kept all maintenance records on the car. He drove it for the 1st 2 years about 9K a year and then drove it as a Sunday driver only for 20 years. The T tops have never been removed and also the windows down on rare occasions hence the new car smell & always in a climate controlled garage. I hope to take her home this week and will post better pics. I know he had the oil changed every 1,500 miles or every 3 months. The timing belt has never been changed and I will decide if I need to change it.
He did say 1 or 2 speakers do not work because of the bose amps. I am planing on keeping the car totally stock, maybe K&A air filters so I would like to get the factory radio working and I could just use a cass adapter for my Ipod. I have many mixed tapes from the 80's & 90's that would bring back memories.

[Afi]

Thanks for the input.
The owner kept all maintenance records on the car. He drove it for the 1st 2 years about 9K a year and then drove it as a Sunday driver only for 20 years. The T tops have never been removed and also the windows down on rare occasions hence the new car smell & always in a climate controlled garage. I hope to take her home this week and will post better pics. I know he had the oil changed every 1,500 miles or every 3 months. The timing belt has never been changed and I will decide if I need to change it.
He did say 1 or 2 speakers do not work because of the bose amps. I am planing on keeping the car totally stock, maybe K&A air filters so I would like to get the factory radio working and I could just use a cass adapter for my Ipod. I have many mixed tapes from the 80's & 90's that would bring back memories.

Every 1500 miles or 3 months, that is real passion and dedication!

[Peabody]

Very anal person and never spun the tires EVER but did get on it a few times from a rolling start he said. Still drives the same as day one. Also only used non ethanol gas. I am not sure if I can afford that but will try if it is worth it.

[Rager]

. The timing belt has never been changed and I will decide if I need to change it.
.

just do the timing belt all OEM and never have a worry! its recommended every 4 years or 60k. 22 year old timing belt? you went through the trouble to buy a very low mile clean Z, now protect your investment. -dropping 1500 to do the timing belt, water pump, tensioners ect. its just part of owning a Z . the VG is a zero tolerance motor, so if the timing belt breaks or skips to far its game over. welcome to the dark side. also check your power steering rack for leaks . very common problem.

post pics when you get home.

[300ZXttZMAN]

I think its a fair deal. WELCOME!

Post pics when you get a chance.

[Afi]

. The timing belt has never been changed and I will decide if I need to change it.
.

just do the timing belt all OEM and never have a worry! its recommended every 4 years or 60k. 22 year old timing belt? you went through the trouble to buy a very low mile clean Z, now protect your investment. -dropping 1500 to do the timing belt, water pump, tensioners ect. its just part of owning a Z . the VG is a zero tolerance motor, so if the timing belt breaks or skips to far its game over. welcome to the dark side. also check your power steering rack for leaks . very common problem.

post pics when you get home.

I'd listen to the man here. After one summer in my low mileage Z, I decided that the 1500 was a good insurance measure so the that's the first thing I did the following summer.

[Peabody]

I plan to do the timing belt within a few months. The only thing wrong is one or two Bose amps are not working. He said they are located by the rear speakers. I would like to keep the factory radio and hope those amps can be fixed. I will search the forums for info.

Getting the car next week so I will post some nice pics. What kind of real world gas mileage can I expect if you drove the car easy which might be hard to do when I first get it. I am use to a under power S13 that I did a few mods to increase the HP to 170.

Thanks

[Ace2cool]

my-first-z32-and-only-w-19k-miles-t5686 ... r#p6423042

That should help get you on the right track.

[DCaff300ZX]

What kind of real world gas mileage can I expect if you drove the car easy which might be hard to do when I first get it.

Thanks

You will probably be running in the 20mpg range if you are easy on it and drive freeway miles, less around town and depending on how hard you get on it- maybe down to 15-16 mpg.
I generally coax 20mpg from mine as my DD, mostly freeway miles.
Not a huge range on gas mileage, it's so-so at best compared to an economy car but better than a V8 and some older V6's.

[Peabody]

I have to wait till next Friday to get the car. I am so excited it is hard to sleep.

The original owner only used ethonal free gas. Is this really important to continue with this? Maybe I should start a new thread.

Thanks

[addicted4life]

That's a very good looking Z man, I would be proud to own it!

[Peabody]

Well I do not own it yet.

I did not buy the car yet do to the rough idle and lack of power. I drove 330 miles to get the car and had to return home because I did not feel good about the running condition. He found out #5 injector was bad and called me and said he wanted to replace the injectors with new style 370cc purple top from Z1. He wants me to buy the injectors and he said it will take him 10 hours to do the job. He is not charging me labor but I have to cover the parts.

He got a little pissed with me when I asked if I could get the car for a lower price if I paid the $783 for the parts it is going to raise the price to $17,083 for the car. If the job does take 10 hours labor was I wrong in asking to lower the price for his time?

The brakes also have a hard pedal and a master cylinder is probably the problem. I also asked him to have that checked out and he really got mad and said not to order the parts and now he does not want to sell.

Maybe I am wrong but when you pay out $16,300 for a car you would expect it to be running in tip top condition. Am I crazy or is the seller right?

[Rager]

id keep looking. personally. look at this Z , i know it not in your area but the price is right and its well taken care of

http://hartford.craigslist.org/cto/3741753642.html

[Peabody]

Nice car but I am looking for an original non modified car.
Thanks

[DCaff300ZX]

Well I do not own it yet.

I did not buy the car yet do to the rough idle and lack of power. I drove 330 miles to get the car and had to return home because I did not feel good about the running condition. He found out #5 injector was bad and called me and said he wanted to replace the injectors with new style 370cc purple top from Z1. He wants me to buy the injectors and he said it will take him 10 hours to do the job. He is not charging me labor but I have to cover the parts.

He got a little pissed with me when I asked if I could get the car for a lower price if I paid the $783 for the parts it is going to raise the price to $17,083 for the car. If the job does take 10 hours labor was I wrong in asking to lower the price for his time?

The brakes also have a hard pedal and a master cylinder is probably the problem. I also asked him to have that checked out and he really got mad and said not to order the parts and now he does not want to sell.

Maybe I am wrong but when you pay out $16,300 for a car you would expect it to be running in tip top condition. Am I crazy or is the seller right?

NO, you are right and were VERY smart to do as you did, and IMO lucky to have missed on this buy. NO WAY you should have to deal with any of what you mentioned unless it was stated ahead of time in the sales listing/pitch, the car should have worked perfectly for that kind of $ as even my $8K TTZ works nearly perfectly in all ways from the day I bought it.
I'd also suspect that from sitting a long time that the entire brake system needs flushing and the calipers need TLC at least if not rebuild/replace.
Keep looking, there are a lot of Z's out there right now and some nice low-mileage cars as well.

[johnshop]

wow that sucks! it's has such low millage to have all those problems, it may have been sitting for a long time, but, could just be that this is a lemon? I mean this car is basically brand new with that low of millage.

just look away, it might be in pristine condition in any other way, but is just not worth it. And keep looking, i mean, finding an untouched z is gonna be hard, but not impossible, just a game of waiting/patience. And maybe be open to buy a tastefully modified z, and with more miles yet well taken care of.

[Peabody]

I can live with a tastefully modified z