Problematic 240, time for something new.

Post by **Altiman94** » Fri Mar 05, 2004 4:21 am

Due to all the problems I've had with my car and it's rebuilt motor, I've decided to sell it and get something. I'm pretty positive that this rebuilt motor is toast. The headgasket is definitely with all white smoke and overheating that I'm experiencing. The old rebuilt is being pulled, and being replaced with a fresh one under warranty. Due to the unreliable and the cost of this car, It's going to be sold. What do you guys recommend I try next? NO Nissans please. This is my second one and both have been nothing but problems and headaches. I'm thinking it's time to get what I really want (5.0 fox body mustang).

Post by **SeVa-S13** » Fri Mar 05, 2004 4:21 am

Sorry about all the problems but I'm not sure an early 90's Ford is the way tog o for reliability, despite how cool those Mustangs are...

Post by **PROJECTRB240SX** » Fri Mar 05, 2004 4:21 am

YOU DO NOT WANT A FOX BODY IF YOUR LOOKING FOR RELIABILITY. IF YOU WANT RELIABLE TRY A 94+ HONDA BECAUSE NO MATTER WHAT YOU BUY USED YOU'LL FIND PROBLEMS.... EVEN WITH HONDAS. JUST REMEMBER 75% OF USED CARS ARE SOLD BECAUSE THE OWNER STARTS HAVING PROBLEMS WITH IT, AND ALSO KEEP IN MIND ABOUT 2% OF THOSE PEOPLE DISCLOSE THOSE PROBLEMS.

Post by **Altiman94** » Fri Mar 05, 2004 4:21 am

^that's a good point. My buddy recommended that I find a 3g GS-R.

Post by **BadMojo** » Fri Mar 05, 2004 4:21 am

SeVa-S13 wrote:Sorry about all the problems but I'm not sure an early 90's Ford is the way tog o for reliability, despite how cool those Mustangs are...

Well, you should get the car that *you* want.

Personally, I find the fox body Mustangs hideously ugly (they remind me an awful lot of my fiance's old Escort) and my personaly experience with late 80's/early 90's Fords has been terrible. Both my Tempo and the Escort have been complete turds as far as reliability goes. Again, this is just anecdotal evidence.

Without knowing your price range or how practical of a car you need...how about a Toyota MR2 or a Mazda Miata?

Considering reliability is an issue for you, I guess that kind of rules out a lot of DSM cars. I was considering a Plymouth Laser before I got my 240SX.

Hate to say this, but 240SX's may be underpowered, but they're generally reliable. The KA24DE is a tough little engine and the 240SX is a pretty easy car to work on. You may have had a lemon on your hands, but that's not to say your next car won't have issues too.

Post by **BadMojo** » Fri Mar 05, 2004 4:21 am

PROJECTRB240SX wrote:JUST REMEMBER 75% OF USED CARS ARE SOLD BECAUSE THE OWNER STARTS HAVING PROBLEMS WITH IT, AND ALSO KEEP IN MIND ABOUT 2% OF THOSE PEOPLE DISCLOSE THOSE PROBLEMS.

Sometimes this works to your advantage though since a lot of people don't work on their own cars and therefore won't pay for expensive labor on an older vehicle. Sometimes you can get a good deal on a car and do any work needed yourself and come out on top.

If you can, I'd recommend asking the seller to allow you to take the car to a mechanic of your choice before you buy (at your expense, of course). They may not want to do this, but it's worth a shot.

Post by **Altiman94** » Fri Mar 05, 2004 4:21 am

The next car will definitely be inspected by a mechanic. I'm not going to go through this kind of thing again with another car.

Post by **krazy skwerel** » Fri Mar 05, 2004 4:21 am

Man I got to say if you want reliability the Toyota idea is the best. How much are you looing to spend? You can pick up a nice N/A mkII MR2 for 5000 or less. Hate to see you sell the 240. Also I have to give the 92-up miata major points on reliabiltiy. Not to mention they are a blast to drive. I like Hondas, but my past experiences with them leave me unimpressed really. I feel really disconected from their cars. Thats probly just me. The old fox body stang can't blame you for wanting one. They are quite fun, and the aftermarket is nearly unlimited. Though the Mustang and Camero are not the most reliable cars. In the end it is up to you though.

Post by **Mr1der** » Fri Mar 05, 2004 4:21 am

don't get the stang in auto, ugh! I believe they just used the Ford AOD, which stock was pretty crappy. Nothing wrong with a T-5 though, until the modding gets heavy, they like to break:D

why you'd want the LX is beside me personally, I dig the later GT with the neat ground effects and hatch!

No IRS kinda sucks too, makes it better suited for straightline, but hey, the 86 doesn't have IRS either so...

and as far as reliability, it's a Ford, that's all that needs saying, it's gonna be inheritently hard to work on but cheap atleast. My TBird hasn't been bad at all, biggest problem was a crazy DIS module acting like no other has apparently, even a GOOD 20 year Ford Master Tech said he'd never seen an SC do what it was doing (throwing an idiot light then running on 4 cylinders, then stopping and running fine, it eventually just ran like **** though)

and your interior is almost gauranteed to suck:D

Post by **Altiman94** » Fri Mar 05, 2004 4:21 am

it's not the interior on my 89 240 is anything to be desired. I've always wanted a 5.0. The car I'm looking for is a 87-93 LX hatchback. Must be a 5speed of course. Low miles if available. The 240sx goes into the shop today to see exactly what is wrong with it.

Post by **Bubba1** » Fri Mar 05, 2004 4:21 am

You're absolutely right to have a mechanic to check out your next car. Gotta remember when you're buying an old car, unless it's from the original owner, you're not really going to know how well it's been treated over its life. 240's are nice cars in general but they can just as expensive as any other car if they're not maintained well or are abused (drifting/drag racing, etc). Rebuilt motors should be a big warning sign for a 240's hard use. 240 engines are extremely durable if they're treated well. My guess is your 240's were beat on by their previous owner(s)

Japanese makes are generally made better than american makes, that's why they tend to hold their value longer. But if I were buying a cheap older used car, I'd choose a well maintained original owner mustank with a complete maintenance history before a kid-owned questionably maintained 240sx that was used for drifting.

Japanese makes tend to hold up better over the long run than American cars. So I wouldn't condemn Nissans, I'd blame the previous owner(s). And a mechanic should help you better determine if it had a hard or easy life.

I'd recommend staying away from Mustangs and other American cars when looking at used. Honda's, Toyota's, Sube's and yes even Nissans are far better choices so long as they've been maintained well. That's the trick.

Happy hunting

I lot of kids are desperate to own a 240 that they forget to see what it needs.

Post by **Altiman94** » Fri Mar 05, 2004 4:21 am

I installed the motor while I owned the car. The motor was just not a very good rebuild motor at all and that's why it's had problems. The stock motor ran fine, it was just time for a new one to go in. It had 130k on it.

Post by **krazy skwerel** » Fri Mar 05, 2004 4:21 am

Why go LX? I mean I would just so I could get a 5.0 coupe, mmm I love coupes. But other than that I see no real reason to get an LX. The GT's are cheap as hell, and the insurance should be about the same.

Post by **Altiman94** » Fri Mar 05, 2004 4:21 am

LX's are lighter and about a second faster in the 1/4 mile stock for stock than a gt of the same year. That's why.

Post by **krazy skwerel** » Fri Mar 05, 2004 4:21 am

I simply can't believe that. I can understand the lighter part. I will give you that, but to be a second faster it would have to be around 1000 lbs. lighter.

Post by **Altiman94** » Fri Mar 05, 2004 4:21 am

It is a second faster. They are rated at 14.8 while the stock gt is at 15.7.

Post by **krazy skwerel** » Fri Mar 05, 2004 4:21 am

Alti where are you getting your information at? A 15.7 is on par with a stock 91-93 240. I am just curious as to where you got your 1/4 mile ratings. Links?

Post by **Altiman94** » Fri Mar 05, 2004 4:21 am

No, I get all my numbers from watching numerous cars run. I don't believe any paper numbers. 15.7 is not on par with a 240. 16.1 is though.

Post by **krazy skwerel** » Fri Mar 05, 2004 4:21 am

It's all driver skill at that point then man. I would have to see the same driver drive both cars. The LX and GT and even then It would take a lot of runs to convince me. Were the cars indeed stock? I know the LX coupes were wipping *** at the last races I was at. Though they were modded to no end.

Post by **Altiman94** » Fri Mar 05, 2004 4:21 am

Yeah they were stock. We have a very, very large mustang club around this area. They go to the track like once or twice a month and I go watch them run.

Post by **krazy skwerel** » Fri Mar 05, 2004 4:21 am

Well either way as long as you stay away from the wretched 4cyl. LX

Post by **Altiman94** » Fri Mar 05, 2004 4:21 am

I will only get a 5.0

Post by **Nathan** » Fri Mar 05, 2004 4:21 am

347 anyone? 351 swap? Oh so many options

Post by **Mr1der** » Fri Mar 05, 2004 4:21 am

429SCJ and a 8-71?:D

Post by **Nathan** » Fri Mar 05, 2004 4:21 am

Well then while we are getting crazy...what about a 460 bored and stroked to a 521 with standalone engine management and twin T-100's? It'd only be a 20 thousand dollar motor

Post by **Bubba1** » Fri Mar 05, 2004 4:21 am

Altiman94 wrote:I installed the motor while I owned the car. The motor was just not a very good rebuild motor at all and that's why it's had problems. The stock motor ran fine, it was just time for a new one to go in. It had 130k on it.

What did you do with the original motor? If all you're interested is drag racing and straight line acceleration, I suppose a V-8 mustang is a good choice. But if you're buying it to be your daily driver, that's a different story. I think a 5.0 Mustink is gonna give you more problems over the long haul than that 240. 'Stangs are cheaply built. And if you intend to drag race regularly, better expect premature engine problems on any car you buy.

Post by **Altiman94** » Fri Mar 05, 2004 4:21 am

A mustang isn't built any more poorly than a 240sx. The build quality on this is not magnificent or anything. I want a 5.0 cuz they can take abuse. I've always wanted one. I now have the chance to get one so I might go for what I want.

Post by **Bubba1** » Fri Mar 05, 2004 4:21 am

If you sincerely believe a mustang is built as well as a 240sx, well, then please go buy a mustang. I personally don't think V-8 mustangs are complete pieces of dung, they're actually fun fast cars. But I've driven enough of them to see that fit and finish is a FULL notch below japanese sporty cars in the same price range. And if you read unbiased publications, like Consumer reports, you'll notice they don't recommend used 'stangs, but they do recommend most of the stang's japanese competitors. You might ask yourself why that is.

There are plenty of satisfied mustang owners out there, (quite a few of them sport mullets). And mustang is a very popular selling car. But if you intend to abuse the next car you buy, then it probably doesn't matter what you buy, because it's gonna to have problems. And While 5.0 Stang is considerably faster than a 240 in a straight line , like the 240, it wasn't designed to be abused regularly...Good luck

Post by **Turb0wned** » Fri Mar 05, 2004 4:21 am

dont know why you had so many problems, i havent had any with both 240's ive had, maybe before u buy one u should check everything u know dont just look at the body and give them the money make sure u check everthing...

Post by **Mr1der** » Fri Mar 05, 2004 4:21 am

Come on now Bubba, don't be hatin' on the mullet:ylsuper

Problematic 240, time for something new.

Problematic 240, time for something new.

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