what is the life expectancy of a q45

[harv3317]

hi guys, i've been seeing a lot of high mileage q's for sale. as i said earlier, i'm looking for a 1997-2001 q45. what type of mileage can you put on these cars with out much in mechanical, or suspension problems? usually i look for a car with under 50,000miles. it seems that things usually start going wrong at about 90,000 miles. are the q45's any different? thanks for you input.

[Jesda]

97-01 are the most reliable "Q" cars and can usually hit 200k on the original engine and transmission with no problem. I know a guy who has in excess of 300,000 miles, all original.

Along the way, you'll probably end up replacing coil packs, suspension components, and other miscellaneous wear and tear. Maybe the alternator and AC compressor.

Keep the ATF, diff fluid, and motor oil fresh and enjoy the ride.

[elwesso]

97-01 had less power and were a little lighter therefore less wear and tear on parts.

KEEP FLUIDS FRESH AND THE CAR WILL LAST FOREVER! Its so simple, yet so hard for most people to grasp. The only thing you have to do to make a NISSAN last a long time is keep the fluids fresh and keep everything cool.

I echo jesda's comments... By 97 they ironed out most of the annoying pestering issues the early Qs had but they forgot to give the car any soul, acceleration or handling.. tried ot be a lexus but even sucked at that...

take that last paragraph with a grain of salt, I just love my old Q

[maxnix]

Well, don't be misled. An owner has to maintain a car unless he just wants to drive it into the ground like most do.

That being said, the fresh fluids is the best approach as parts can be expensive when they involve precision major systems.

In the old days, 10¢/mile, so say 12¢ - 15¢/mile, depending on your standards for maintenance after you have caught up with the deferred maintenance performed when you buy it.

[BadQ45t]

I have a 97' and have replaced fluids reguarly, but make no mistake, your only a set of springs, shocks and struts and a bigger set of rims away from making a 97-01 handle as well or better than a first gen, they are IMHO way better looking and more comfortable. This may start a debate here, but overall the reliability is excellent on this car. I have replaced struts and springs (the springs were fine but lowered it by 2"), the front tension rod bushings, and done fluids and one spark plug replacement. That is it, no other major repairs. The knock sensors on a few peoples have gone out too, but overall they are very good cars...and the engine is smooth as silk and while it may not be the fastest car on the road it is NOT the slowest and were only a slightly slower version than any Q regardless of what the 1st gen boys on the board say about it. I had a 92' and it was faster, but it wasn't like night and day, on any given day a Y33 driver could out-do a 1st gen if they were the better driver on a course.

Overall when you look for one see the service records, if they cannot produce them move on to the next one. You want to see fluids flushed regularly or at least at 60k, prefer at 30k intervals.