Is it time to move on???

[jennys240]

90 240 fastback, 200k Alighty, so I go to the nissan dealer for some basic maintenance, wheel alignment and balancing. Guy comes back out shortly later and says they can't do the alignment until I have some other work done. He says I need radius rod bushings, front struts and mounts, the right front is tearing through the wheel well (almost). Besides that I've been looking into getting a new engine. This is the first time I've ever taken her to a real mechanic, been doing all the maintenance for the past 5 years on my own. No problemo. The body and interior are in pretty good shape, a little rusting, but it's still pretty minimul. Oh, I forget to mention that the nissan guy said it's not really to safe to drive with the rod bushing and mount problem. I'm distraught over what to do!!! Is it time to move on or would it be worth investing a few grand into??? I really need some quality advice from the experts. I don't want to let her go. Please help!!! thanks

[Bronze MFP]

Yeah, the radius rod, or tension rod bushings fail pretty commonly. most people just get adjustable performance ones for ~200 bucks, or replace the stock bushing with nismo bushings. i had a front suspension mount that almost busted through like the one you are describing, again, nismo makes an upgraded part for a decent price, or you can upgrade to a pillow ball mount that can adjust for camber for ~200 bucks depending on brand. it's nothing i'd get rid of the car over, but it does need to be fixed soon. courtesy parts has what you are looking for: http://www.courtesyparts.com/M...NSMBH

[Ubernoober]

bushings can be had in urethane for next to nothing (a few tens of dollars). THe struts/shocks can be cheap (stock replacement) to expensive (coilovers). A rebuilt engine will definitely be expensive. It all depends on your love for the car. To me it is easily worth putting money into because I love the cars ergonomics, handling, technology and size. Others may disagree.One last thing though. I would never own an 89-90. The SOHC is simply not worth it to me, nor is spending time and money trying to swap it to a DOHC. I would rather spend an extra hundred dollars to get the car I want the first time. As I in fact did.

[BadMojo]

You can also get KYB GR2 shocks (OE replacements, slightly stiffer than stock), new dust boots for the shocks and new upper mounts (also made by KYB) from Tirerack.com for cheap too.

[cybin]

*

[Easy Pickle]

One last thing though. I would never own an 89-90. The SOHC is simply not worth it to me, nor is spending time and money trying to swap it to a DOHC.

He's completely right, that few horsepower less really ruins the car, I mean what's the point of having a car 8 fewer lb/ft of torque? A whole EIGHT! That's almost incomprehensible! And we all know that 10-15 hp less in the exact same car ruins it.

/retard

In all seriousness, whether you should keep the car or not depends on how much you like it. The maintenace you listed is easily and relatively cheaply done if you look around and do it yourself especially. You calso take this opportunity to upgrade certain components for the same price, if not cheaper, than what the dealer would charge you.

[jennys240]

Thanks for all the responses! I'm still not sure what I'm going to do yet. I've been looking into maybe getting a 300zx, always wanted one. We shall see. But I appreciate all the advice. It really helps. I'm going to look into all my options before I make a decision. I'm gonna check out the websites you guys listed. Thanks !

[ricebike]

front struts and mounts, the right front is tearing through the wheel well (almost). Oh, I forget to mention that the nissan guy said it's not really to safe to drive with the rod bushing and mount problem.

it's not safe w/ that strut mount problem (so get that replaced ASAP), but it's ok to be driving around w/ the blown TC rod/ radius rod bushings shot... i have been for ~1year b4 finding a better set from a fellow NIConaut in the parts/equipment for sale forums; i just didn't turn as agressively around corners.

PS: those things can be done out of the dealer for less $$$ shop for aftermarket shocks/springs/mounts & good luck!

PPS: i'm almost @ the 200K mark & is ponderin' on moving on to a minivan (2 kids)

[Ubernoober]

"He's completely right, that few horsepower less really ruins the car, I mean what's the point of having a car 8 fewer lb/ft of torque? A whole EIGHT! That's almost incomprehensible! And we all know that 10-15 hp less in the exact same car ruins it."

Lol, too true. But as I said, for me it doesn't work. I don't like some of the basic engineering of the SOHC and for my KA-T project, it simply does not fit the bill. Don't forget that some people spend upwards of $1000 in intakes, exaust and other bolt-ons to simply reclaim that 15 HP.

In reality my point was that people are saying that a swap to a DOHC is an option, and I wanted to point out that the time and cost involved is not worth it when you can simply go out and buy a used DOHC car at an equivalent cost and save yourself a ton of time. And don't give the whole "people are giving away DOHC's for free cuz of swaps" because that isn't totally true either.

[jennys240]

So what exactly can happen if I keep driving my car the way it is? Cause I wouldn't have even known that I had this problem if I wouln't have gone in to get that alignment. The dealer quoted me about $1100 for the whole job, and that's with a discount. Is that average?? I've had this car for 5 years and never taken it to a real mechanic before, always done the work myself, so a little leary of her being in the hands of a stranger.

[ricebike]

So what exactly can happen if I keep driving my car the way it is? Cause I wouldn't have even known that I had this problem if I wouln't have gone in to get that alignment. The dealer quoted me about $1100 for the whole job, and that's with a discount. Is that average?? I've had this car for 5 years and never taken it to a real mechanic before, always done the work myself, so a little leary of her being in the hands of a stranger.

well, u can ask nissan online mechanic if that's an average price for that stuff, but keep in mind that u are paying for Nissan parts & dealer labor. i think that's too much... the KYB gr-2 or agx are a good/better than oem replacement anyways (from tirerack)

"fiznat" had some good writeups on installing new struts/springs on his car; if u & a buddy can handle it, go search for the article & have @ it. install them yourselves & then goto any competent alignment shop to get your car tracking straight again. (was your car veering off to the right?)

There are also some good online links to replacing TC rod bushings as well; i did this on my driveway w/ no alignment issues u are having. bought the slightly used set of tc rods & simply swapped them out (final tightening while the car is lowered) Personally, i'd go w/ nismo hard rubber bushings over polyurethane ones <daily driver?>

so keep on shopping & check out the wirteups floating around.

[jennys240]

True, it would be costly and time consuming to swap out to a DOHC. But I think I'd rather do that then get a whole new car. The interior is almost perfect, the body itself is in pretty good shape too, very minimul rust, it's been repainted once, hot red, i get compliments on it all the time. I get some surprised reactions when people find out how old it really is. It's hard to find a 90 around this area that's in good shape on the outside. Unfortunatly most of my problems lie under the hood The average quote that I've gotten for a new engine has been $3000, that seems to be the norm.

[Ubernoober]

$3000 doesn't seem overly excessive if that includes removal and re-installation with some sort of decent warantee.

What does the $1000 include?Bushings, shocks/struts (front and rear), alignment, and all the labor included?

[sanioll]

if you're getting it done at Nissan dealership, youre paying almost twice as much.

Ex:

$650 for an axle, i got it for $100$8 rubber boot for transmission, can be obtained as little as $2Labor?? of course Nissan certified mechanics get paid way more than a regular generic mechanic!!

I wanted to get a clutch replacement at the dealership. Cost: $600, ALSO i had to buy the clutch myself. Also no warranty due to custom clutch.

Heh!

do it yourself if you can.

[jennys240]

$1000 was for the bushings, struts front only ( I did the rear myself about 2 years ago), the labor and the alignment

[420_240sx]

geez $3000 for a new SOHC???? you got to be kidding me, you could probably buy a long block for $500 AT MOST, its easy to swap a new engine if its the one it was meant for. Hell if you took the motor too a shop I doubt they would charge more than $400 - $500 to swap.

[nismofly]

Ubernoober how many miles does your car have? my car has less miles on it than 98% of 240s, and its an 89. now i know this is an exception, but ill probably be aquiring a dohc engine on the side to work on and turbo, then when all is said and done i can swap that in...and still have a car thats now 16 years old and will have probably around 80k miles by the time i get the engine swap done.