Looking for some honest opinions on a daily driver

[zacmil]

Hi everyone, I'm considering picking up a new daily driver and, as you may have surmised from the title, I could use some input.

Currently, I drive a 3G Eclipse, and it's a great car. The only major complaint I have about it is that it's an automatic, and I really prefer driving a manual. Anyway, my brother is heading off to college in the fall and my family is in need of another vehicle. I happened to find a '93 S13 on Craigslist that is in great condition and is reasonably priced.

After talking it over with my brother, I've been kicking around the idea of buying the S13 for myself and giving the Eclipse to him. I just figured that before I made any big decisions I should get some feedback. So my question is this: if it were you, which would you daily?

I could use the most brutally honest advice you can give, the last thing I want to do is make a $3000 mistake. Thanks in advance!

-Zac

[Razi]

As long as the 240 has been taken care of, it should be kind to you.

I have a '93 240sx, owned it for almost 3 years now, and even turbocharged it, and it is my daily driver.
It's headgasket blew once because it overheated when I thought it'd be a good idea to swap out my perfectly find stock fan with a small electric fan.

Of course, it's an old car, so a lot of the rubber seals and hoses could leak.
I've gradually replaced almost all of them, and has been leak free.

I've done many 200 mile round trips in it, and it's been perfectly fine at the end of the trip.

Just make sure the 240 is in good condition, and it should last you a while.

[asoomal]

Eh, I wouldn't trust an S13 as a daily car. They're getting way too old now and get terrible mileage.

Don't do it.

[Bubba1]

[quote="asoomal"]Eh, I wouldn't trust an S13 as a daily car. They're getting way too old now and get terrible mileage.

I assume since you were considering a 240sx, you want small, nimble, reliable, and at least peppy.

A few off the top of my head.

miata: commute cheaply and reliably with a smile on your face

RSX: FWD but reliable and pleasant to drive

TSX: comfortable, small, peppy, economical, I recently got one for my wife's DD.

Sentra SE-R

[BusyBadger]

Eh, I wouldn't trust an S13 as a daily car. They're getting way too old now and get terrible mileage.

Don't do it.

Sounds like someone doesn't take care of their vehicle. My '92 S13 that's currently on extended loan to my nephew has over 300K on it and gets 25-28mpg. Parts are cheap, so is insurance, how-to write-ups are all over the web and it's easy to work on - sounds like a nightmare. Extra Bouns - all that elbow room under the hood!

The hardest thing about any 240SX is actually finding one that: is in decent condition, hasn't been ragged out, modded to Ringling Brothers levels or priced without the added "drift tax".

I assume since you were considering a 240sx, you want small, nimble, reliable, and at least peppy.

A few off the top of my head.

miata: commute cheaply and reliably with a smile on your face

RSX: FWD but reliable and pleasant to drive

TSX: comfortable, small, peppy, economical, I recently got one for my wife's DD.

Sentra SE-R

That's a great list. I'd add the seventh gen Celica (GTS only) to that list, I'd also only buy the RSX-S and depending on needs maybe scratch the Miata off the list since it's only two seats.

[frapjap]

Sounds like someone doesn't take care of their vehicle. My '92 S13 that's currently on extended loan to my nephew has over 300K on it and gets 25-28mpg. Parts are cheap, so is insurance, how-to write-ups are all over the web and it's easy to work on - sounds like a nightmare. Extra Bouns - all that elbow room under the hood!

The hardest thing about any 240SX is actually finding one that: is in decent condition, hasn't been ragged out, modded to Ringling Brothers levels or priced without the added "drift tax".

Agreed. I have a '92 with 280k that my brother drives for college. It gets roughly 28mpg and he can fix it himself when I give him the noted direction above. Regarding reliability- the car has plenty of miles on it and burns oil, but it starts and runs every day to get him where hes going. It'd still hold R134 if he would bother to charge the a/c system.

[zacmil]

Thanks for the input guys. The S13 that I've found is super clean; it's been the only one I've looked at (and I've looked at several lately) that didn't have any weird clunks, ticks, rattles, or creaks. The only trouble spots I could find were some spots where the clear coat needs attention on the rear quarters and the obnoxious ebay exhaust the guy put on it.

I'm not terribly concerned about the reliability of the car, I know these things run forever if you don't beat on them. My biggest concern is its practicality as a daily driver, I don't want to take a big step down from my Eclipse.

From what everyone's saying, it sounds like I should be good. I think I might go ahead and pull the trigger.

[carloslebaron]

A used car can't be judged but by its own -personal- condition. You can hire a mechanic -one of those who charge you around $150.00 and reach the car at its location place- who makes a general inspection, using a scan tool and visual on breaks, belts, etc..plus the road test. This mechanic will tell you what repairs are needed, and the average condition of the vehicle.

In the DC area there is a company that performs this kind of inspection and they do guarantee their review, plus, they won't fix the car, so they have no interest to find problems were there are none. They also give you an estimate of the possible cost of the repairs -if any needed- so you can have an idea of how much you will invest to make the vehicle running properly. A similar company is located in OH as an example

http://usedcaranalysis.com/

Best wishes.

[krazy skwerelette]

depending where you are getting it from don't forget about rust. I'm from South Dakota so looking for rust is a must!

[s0m3th1ngAZ]

Need a daily driver? Miata.
Need a racecar? Miata.
Need a supercar? Miata with an LS2.
Need a rockcrawler? TJ with the body of a Miata on top.
Need a hauler? Two miatas.
AS you can plainly see...the answer to everything in life is Miata.
Seriously though...3grand will get you a rock solid 1.8.

[skydragoness]

Need a daily driver? Miata.
Need a racecar? Miata.
Need a supercar? Miata with an LS2.
Need a rockcrawler? TJ with the body of a Miata on top.
Need a hauler? Two miatas.
AS you can plainly see...the answer to everything in life is Miata.
Seriously though...3grand will get you a rock solid 1.8.

JOIN US


Also, the RSX is a great car too, very fun in a manual trans.

Not mentioned: Mazda 3 hatch/sedan
B15-era Nissan Sentra SE (2.0, the last SR20de) or the Sentra SE-R 2005+


The 240sx is ancient and you WILL be fixing it a lot. They're just getting old, it's not that they're unreliable but unless you're buying it off an old person and it has under 100k and has been meticulously maintained--expect to replace nearly everything on it. Also you mentioned it has an Ebay fart can on it. RUN AWAY. Who knows what else the owner tried to fool around with.

[zacmil]

Also you mentioned it has an Ebay fart can on it. RUN AWAY. Who knows what else the owner tried to fool around with.

Haha! Yeah, the exhaust doesn't sound bad, but it's just a little too loud for my taste.

I've actually thought hard about picking up a Miata, but I'm afraid I might need a little more space than it can offer (yes, I realize the 240sx doesn't really have a lot of space either). Actually, in high school I was ready to buy a NA Miata but I had to pass when I realized my trombone would have to ride shotgun.

Mechanically it seems to be running pretty well, the only thing we could pick out was the timing chain guide thing. While the car has like 200,000 miles on it, the guy says the motor has somewhere between 80 and 100K. He gave me some big story about how the original owner lived down the street and had purchased it for his daughter to drive to school and when she was done they parked it for a while before this guy bought it.

My major concern really does revolve around the age of the car. I've heard the stereotype about these things never running right, and I don't exactly want to find myself in that position. Of course, my Eclipse isn't exactly the model example of reliability; it's never broken, but something is always starting to break.

[Razi]

If the previous owner messed with swapping engines and etc...
I'd be very wary.

Too many of these cars get cobbled together badly and end up having problems after purchase.

[skydragoness]

Mechanically it seems to be running pretty well, the only thing we could pick out was the timing chain guide thing. While the car has like 200,000 miles on it, the guy says the motor has somewhere between 80 and 100K. He gave me some big story about how the original owner lived down the street and had purchased it for his daughter to drive to school and when she was done they parked it for a while before this guy bought it.

Oh god. MORE? RUN AWAY.
He can say whatever the hell he wants. "Oh yeah, 200k on the odo, but it totally has a JDM engine with 40k on it" really means "I swapped the engine in my backyard using a tree as a cherry picker and now it doesn't run right. Got to unload!!"


RUN AWAY.


RUN AWAY.


RUN AWAY.



Also: the NB Miata (2nd gen) has more trunk space/room than the NA.
Seriously, check out the Mazda 3 hatch/sedan, the 2.3 with a manual will be very entertaining compared to a land yacht Eclipse.
Or the last generation Protege ES (has the 2.0 and four wheel disc brakes)
Or a Nissan Sentra SE-R
Toyota Celica GT-S
Acura RSX
etc

I could go on here.