i love/hate my car...

[wangless]

hey...

ive had my car for a a little over a year... i just feel like venting about my car... the good and the bad... itll be long... so sorry...

in the year of 2002 of august i totalled my pos toyota tercel... i finally got to get a car of my choice... which was of course a 240... i searched for days... i literally mean days... for the right price and the options that i wanted... when i finally saw one for $2000 i jumped right at it...

i drove about 15 miles to LA to see the car... it was actually the first time i saw a 240 in person... and at the time i didnt even know how to drive stick... ill explain more later... i asked the guy about everything he knew about the car... so i wouldnt get screwed over... which i did anyway... T_T... he told me the only problems where... the driver's side power window didnt work, which is why he lowered it down to $1700 with 160,189 miles... i thought it was a good price... he then popped the trunk... my mistake was i opened it for him while he pulled the level... my trunk didnt pop open... the hydraulic springs on it were messed up... so he had to pull the level and i lift the trunk... he screwed me on that... it also didnt come with a jack...

the hood... there was all this brown/orange stuff everywhere... he said it was due to his radiator blowing a few weeks ago... new radiator... remember this... rust everywhere... itll come back and bite me in the @$$ later... also said the alternator was recent... and so were the brakes all around... remember this too... so he followed me home and i had my 240 sitting in my garage... i totally trusted him... didnt know of all the problems of a 240... first car... come on... and i didnt even know how to drive stick... i actually learned myself T_T... damn friend... didnt really teach me much... "too much gas... too much clutch..." BUT WHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN ?!... "just do less of it"... WTF DOES THAT MEAN... anyway... i learned myself after that lesson of his... got my insurance... got my paperwork done... and im on the road... and i loved it... firs ttime i drove stick... my car.. i loved my car... it was so fun to drive... a lot better than that pos tercel with 3 cylinders... when i got the car... i didnt know anything about engine swapping and drifting... i just liked the way it looked...

first thing i got... a gift from a friend... pioneer headunit ... and then the rest of the sound system... then i fixed the powe window for $65... got a 5zigen fireball exhuast for like $125... replaced my rear left caliper/rotor... that guy said he recently replaced them... that a_hole... that cost me $178... own labor... then the CV boot that was damaged with it... that was a long day for $35 in parts... then my fuel pump died... had to tow it for $30... and parts/labor for a new one for $271 !!!... i shouldve gotten a walbro or something !... remember the rust problem from the radiator ?... well... stupid me... there was still rust in the engine block... it seemed to have eated through my intake manifold... and ate through and left a 'pinhole' leak in there... i had to remove p/s pump and patch it up with some epoxy... so much pain and anger for this car !... damn the previous owner for not treating it well... then i had to change the rear left caliper/pads... that was about $100... didnt the guy say he recently replaced all the brakes ?!... MY ***... i did to a flush... but it was not good enough... it ate through my radiator... in a panic i went to kragen and got one for $200... i think thats a bit too much... damn car !... finally to fix the leak problem i added in that 'stop leak'... its worked so far... hopefully itll stay that way... a few months later my power window cable broke... the CABLE... and the shop charged me the whole power window regulator with labor for $248... stupid power window...

finally... after a year of my car... i finally could do some maintenance... i got this car my sr. year of high school... money was tight... i got into debt with my friends... and i still am... got a job... and slowly... paid off my car probs... im in college now and and have gov money... can finally pay off my car probs T_T... thats if... i dont get anymore... well... about my maintenance... i changed the fuel filter... added seafoam... which does by the way... kick ***... but one complaint i have is... it made my idle lower... and when i warm up my car... it takes a bit longer bc of the lower idle... it was weird... anyway... did the seafoam stuff... got ngk plugs and o2 sensor... those needed to be changed for a while... aurora wires from pdm racing... felt a difference in my car right after i did the seafoam.... good stuff...

all of a sudden though... my starter died... good thing i met a guy in the forums who had a DE engine laying around... i took the starter from him... saved me like a hundred bucks... that took a day to install... oh yeah... for the longest time after i got my fuel pump installed... i had this funny gas smell... never knew where it came from... even asked my mechanic... he said he didnt find any leaks... well... 8 months down the line... the rubber fuel line connected to the bottom of my fuel filter busted... i lost 1/2 tank of my gas.. .and was stranded... had to go get a gas tank... fill it up... and fix the car on a HOT day... which gave me a serious headache bc of the gas fumes.... i know.. not good... ...

thats as much as i have done since i got my car back in aug 15 of '02... i spent $1700 on my car... and close to $2000 on repairs... such a headache when my car decides to take a $hit on me... i love my car though... its so much fun... of course i dream of an sr... one day... =*(... anyway... for now its just to maintain my car as much as i can...

other problems... the guy before me mustve had his car stolen or something... the locks on the door are all stupid... the key doesnt even really look like a key... it has no real cuts or grooves... its a pos.. i can take the key out when im driving... the key code doesnt work... and itll cost me like $200 new locks all around (2 doors, trunk, glove, ignition)... theres also that annoying tick... im gonna get a valve cover gasket to see if that helps.. if not.. its the timing prob everyone has T_T... my front bumper is misaligned... oh... forgot to mention... found a crack pipe in my car when i was cleaning it out... good thing i found it before a cop got it... then trash like marshmallows (wtf... i know)... cigs... bunch of trash... my bushings are all messed up... i wanna get whiteline from pdm... im not really into dropped and looks... forgot to mention... my car isnt really a white... its more of a dirty white... im rusting here and there... no spoiler... suspension sucks butt... id like to change it... steering wheel is loose... i dont know wtf the guy before me did to the car... balding tires as well... i think thatls all i have to say...

thanks for reading... ill vent here and there when i can... ill post pics when i understand how to... or find a place to host my pics

p.s. if i decide to sell my car in may-ish (when my insurance is up)... im still gonna get a 240 afterwards... just more careful when i pick it out... =)

[wangless]

if i didnt mention... when it has no problems... i could drive it all day... i love it so much... its all worth it for the problems... even though the problems piss me off so much... its like... WHY AGAIN ?!... just when it seems to be good... oh yeah... i have never gotten a speeding ticket... or fixit ticket for my car... until monday... i was going 51 in a 25 zone... haha... need advice... fight or whatever... how does it all work...

[Kaioshin1982]

sorry to hear about ur bad stories, i was in a similar situation with u, but anyways the first thing u should get when u buy a used car is replace the worn or old parts and maintenance b4 u do any upgrades. (at least ur car is drivable now.... I cant even drive it cuz some retarded cab decided to hit my car with his back bumper... long story)

[Onizuka]

all of your sentences end in "..."

do you have an abridged version of the story? :pface

[wangless]

i didnt really do any upgrades. i just fixed what broke as it happened. how are my sentences now j-spec ?

[Altiman94]

u have nothing in repairs compared to me. The minute i got my new 240 home, the clutch went out, speakers were blown and hte HU was dead. Needed a new motor a month later. The bill for the engine and labor came out to about 50 bux short of 3k and hte new clutch was 300 along with about 500 for the new sound system. Not to mention fixing the exhaust leak, blown left rear strut, new powersteering pump, highpressure line and fixing some gasket on a sensor. I have about 6k invested in my 89 including the price, and the only upgrade I have is a k and n air filter. GO figure.

[Altiman94]

and the new motor still doesn't idle quite right so I bought a new ecu from a nico member and am hoping that'll fix the problem since I was told that's what is causing it.

[evotech240sx]

i feel your pain bro, but when its all fixed u will love it even more man.

[wangless]

altiman...

reminded me of what else i forgot. when i bought the car it had some crappy headunit. he switched them before he sold it, when he put the crappy one he messsed up the center trim. i also looked at my door speakers the other day. both speakers are blown, BUT tightened with new shiny bolts. seems like the guy was nice enough to give me sh!tty speakers as well. all generic brand, damn i hate the previous owner. when i added seafoam in my car, i smoking EVERYWHERE. smoke was coming out of my spark plugs, and the good thing though, i now know i have many holes in my exhuast. i thought it was just supposed to come out of the end of my car. the smoke decided to come out all along the exhuast.

j-spec... there is no abridged version of my story =(

[evil_240]

Cars do occasionaly mess up it comes to be expected, from the probs you mentioned you never had anything major like swapping a Camaro's 700r4 transmission now that is PITA!!!! Oh and change a ford tauras's water pump in the middle of nowhere with a limited selection of tools. To each his own but from me to you thank god that those are your only probs so far. Oh and cool how you learned to drive stick alone and mentioned alot of popular phrases bad toturs do give lol I remeber my first time.

[bahamut]

I'm in the same boat.

Gas fumes is leaking into the cabin after a full refill. I have a hunch that the fuel tank is busted. Also, chasing and fixing the rusty hatch area has been my bane! BTW: most of my locks don't work . . . ebay specials are coming up.

[pstickne]

I remember when I first got my S13 (not that long ago). I was like: "Ohh! I'll do this and this and this...."

Then I got smart (less-stupid?) and realized that it's a 13 year old car and needs some good TLC--not "performance" parts thrown at it (of course, if something needs to be replaced anyway... :icesangel).

Right now I'm stripping my interior, cleaning my engine bay/everything underneath, replacing "consumed" parts/fluids and praying nothing major (engine/drive train) breaks soon. I've just recently learned how to love 3M scouring pads. (PB spray and a FSM are also a godsends!)

[wangless]

since the gas thing i try not to fill up all the way... i know how much i can fill... and ill fill like a gallon less... just to be careful

[nissanrcer240]

you guys make me feel lucky, i drove my 240 for almost 2 years w/ almost no problem at all, until the damm timing chain broke:(

[D1SR240]

it does kinda get me mad sometimes too, but i try to make it more of a learning experience, and try to get something out of it, but i can't even imagine your pain with all those repairs, well good luck in the futre.

[w1ngzer0]

power windows, rear oil leak, and little bit of rust other then that the engine runs fine except i got a piece of stupid plastic in the steer column its so damn annoying Ill be getting a rebuilt motor for 300 bux within a year so im fine with this one for now

[wangless]

guess what ?... monday i got a speeding ticket for going 51 in a school zone of 25... and today... when i went to pick up my friend in UCSB i was caught speeding again... he said i was going 82 in a 65 zone... damn... what good luck i have huh ?... 2 tickets like like 4 days... the ticket i got today is in freakin Ventura Country... damn if i have to go to court T_T... its like 70 miles out there from where i cgot caught !

any suggestions on what to do about these tickets ?

p.s. my 240 gets GREAT mileage when its on the highway... too bad i commute local T_T

[w1ngzer0]

for one thing... what the hell were you thinking when you were going 51 in 25 ?

[pstickne]

20 points a kid--10x bonus for pairs!

[240SX=fun4me!]

I remeber buying My S-13 93. Car was beat to hell! bought it from my best friends brother. TOTALLED! accidents include...: Hit in the rear by someone doing 60 because he ran a red light. 2 accidents consist from a college parking lot. 1 accident from racing his brother home in the rain and throwing it sideways at 30 MPH into a tree! Well, ontop of this, he didnt get his oil changed for 10,000 miles, he never used the transmission to help slow down, so he ate 4 rotors, and he ate a good chunk out of the transmission from his way of driving.

YET!>>>>> When i first got the car, al it needed was a battery to run, and some gas. 0$ cuz I had an extra battery and I stole my dad's gas. The, I got the rotors cut and brake pads for the front all for 40$ only! Now, my 250$(310 with gas and repairs) Nissan drives better than my mint condition 1996 Pontiac Grand AM! and cost 4250$ less. Now thats what i call a deal. All I need is a right side door, a new stereo(which was stolen at my friends college) and my salvage title to be restored to regular, then i have a nice drivable car again. I'll post pics soon...

Thats my story for me Nissan Love!

[pearlwhite240]

to: nismod_rps13about your lock thing if it's power operated. do what i did and buy a keyless entry module with remote off of ebay. save yourself from replacing the locks. i got mine for $32 shipped. get the wiring diagram off the faq page on 240sx.org and install it yourself. best $32 i've spent on the car. i've had the keyless thing for about 6 months and works flawlessly. i deliver pizza, so the keyless entry get plenty of use.

[wangless]

umm.... i believe i have power locks... but im unsure now that i have taken my door panels apart... when i turn the key outside it unlocks both sides... when im inside the car and lock the doors and it locks both and unlocks both... BUT... when the door panels came off it looked mechanical... when i push the lever to lock/unlock i see two poles move... and it locks/unlocks the door... i don tknow if thats powr locks though... it seems to be bc he locks/unlocks the other door from driver's side... anybody know about this ?... i have power windows, sunroof if that helps with the model

[wangless]

oh yeah... to w1ngzer0

its in a stupid area where... theres two schools... but 2 blocks away... before the school is a 45... then 25... 2 blocks of 45 (which i was in) then all of a sudden 25 again ... got caught there... SPEED TRAP I TELL YOU !!!... its like they want you to speed up... and slam on your brakes... i was trying to pass someone... so i got caught... GOOD s***

[w1ngzer0]

your telling me a street goes 45 then 25 then 45 then 25 agian? And the school isn't in a residential area? If its not a res. area and it does crap like that you need to report that to the local government to get that crap fixed.

If there was somewhere like that out here i would very much complain and print out 356 letters for every day they didn't fix it.

[wangless]

yeah... it does... ill take some pics when i can... maybe this week when i head back out to school... what do i report to the gov ?... got me interested

[w1ngzer0]

report to your local government see how you can get the laws to change in that area to make that whole streach 25. If it says slow down ahead then says 25 thats your own fault. But go to your local government and see how you can make a complaint agianst the city for ... whats that word lol... i guess improper speed sign placement.

[wangless]

hmm.... k... ill get back to you on that... ill either go by that area tonight... or if i remember when i go back to school on monday

[Chingon]

hehe, here in el paso, things are worse with speed limits,....45-15-45-15, it's just wrong.

[pearlwhite240]

to nismod_rps13there's no actual mechanical linkage to the keyless entry. the keyless entry module is basically a box with wires. one is the hot, one is the ground, one goes to unlock, and one goes to lock. the unlock and lock basically hooks up to the wires of your lock switch on the door. on my 95se i connected the wires underneath the dash on the driver's side right before the wires enter the door. there are a few options on the keyless entry module too, such as horn and flashing lights. i connected mine so that the parking lights flash when my doors lock or unlock. to do this, you splice to the parking light wire in the steering column. i got the wiring location and color off the 240sx.org faq page. oh yeah, DO NOT FORGET TO FUSE THE HOT WIRE.

[wangless]

hmm... k... thanks pearlwhite 240

checked out the signs at school today... they were kinda bad... but it was worse on the way home... im gonna take some pics hopefully later... theres like a 40mph sign... then like 20 feet later.... a school zone... WTF...