200sx few questions

Rich1988

Rich1988

Rich1988

Soldato
Joined
8 Jan 2005
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Location
wiltshire
Hiya so Im going to go and look a 95 200sx, never owned one before so just looking for some advice on any points I should watch out for, any costly failure points. am I correct in thinking all of the 200sx's are turboed 2 litre? is there any differnce between the touring/standard and import 200sx? it comes with 12 months mot from a dealer but as I well know MOT doesnt mean its a sound car!,
Cheers :)


also this one is a standard 95 coupe no body damage good interior (but cloth) and a tiny bit of rust round the wheel arch up for £1995 does that sound about right?
 
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1995 will be an S14 I think, so yes all of those will be 2.0 turbo. I think touring adds a CD changer, skirts, and leather. There shouldn't really be many imports around as UK cars were plentiful and cheap. The back arches always go. I'd say in the region of £1500 - £2500 for an S14 is about right.
 
Obvious difference for imports is the import will say "Silvia" or "180SX" on the back rather than "200SX"

It sounds like you're looking at the S14, which was sold in Japan as the Silvia, that'll have the SR20DET engine which is generally considered to be strong and reliable, however it's weak spot is that the camshaft spray bars can clog up if oil changes are neglected, this then causes the cams to run dry, grind down and clog up your oil filter with swarf which then starves the bottom end leading to big end failure.

Also standard warnings to be careful if this if your first rear wheel drive car apply here. I don't know you or your driving history so apologies if I'm telling you to suck eggs.

Edit, since 3 people got in while I was writing this reply. Another difference on the touring is the addition of headlight washers, which probably wont work by now.

300ZX is generally considered to be big and unreliable, unless you get an NA one, then they're not so bad (but not so quick either)
 
Lum said:
Also standard warnings to be careful if this if your first rear wheel drive car apply here. I don't know you or your driving history so apologies if I'm telling you to suck eggs.
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He needs the help. ;) :p

Rich, I'd say try them, also try anything else you're interested in and see which takes your fancy the most. :)
 
Lopéz said:
I'd recommend you drive both, they are not even vaguely similar.
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really? having driven neither I cant really say, how are they different ?

and to above, its not the first time I have driven rwd and i have had more powerful previous cars so its not going to be too much I havent experienced before.
 
Lum said:
Also standard warnings to be careful if this if your first rear wheel drive car apply here. I don't know you or your driving history so apologies if I'm telling you to suck eggs.
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Agreed - they are seriously twitchy, being totally truthful.
In the dry it really isn't much of an issue, but in the wet they are a right handful.
 
Rich1988 said:
really? having driven neither I cant really say, how are they different ?

and to above, its not the first time I have driven rwd and i have had more powerful previous cars so its not going to be too much I havent experienced before.
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LIES. The Vitesse is not powerful. :p

Lopéz said:
Agreed - they are seriously twitchy, being totally truthful.
In the dry it really isn't much of an issue, but in the wet they are a right handful.
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Read that Rich, especially if you're near a 'Please drive carefully' sign. :p
 
As with all 90's Nissans Rust is the biggest killer on these, check Sills, Arches, Subframe mounting points, suspension turrets, just really look under the car for rust.

The SR20 is generally a reliable lump as long as it's had regular oil services, at it's 6000 interval. They are pretty twitchy, this is often due to worn subframe bushes and can be rectified with locking collars which are quite cheap. They can be easily tuned for more power with exhaust, induction, plugs, fuel pump, and boost controller.

Touring adds leather, CD Changer, side skirts, and washers for the headlights. Not a massive deal really, all the other equipment is standard.

For best advice pop over the sxoc (www.sxoc.com/vbb) and look at the buying guides on there.
 
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Rich1988 said:
the vitesse had 3 more hp and was .4 seconds quicker to 60 not much but still quicker than your beamer :D ;)
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It was also FWD and a boat and not as twitchy as the SX. ;)

I know my BMW isn't powerful compared to lots of cars, but I'm ok with that. It's comfy and a lot more power than a 1.4 205. :p
 
Budget to get the car properly undersealed, import's generally don't have much protection against the salt. I'd check what sort of history it comes with (helps if you have a friend who can read Japanese). Although reading the advert doesn't sound like it's just been imported so I'd want to check very thoroughly for rust!
 
Yep it's a chain engine

S14 non touring, looks to be ok apart from the slightly tatty body work.

As others have said, look for rust and there will probably be some on it by now, ho ever apart from he peeling paint it doesn't look to bad. Mileage is high, but it's been properly serviced by the looks of the history so engine should be solid, as it's not modified either it shouldn't have been thrashed around as much as modified one.

Bits to look out for:
Subframe bushes - Rear end will knock
Rust - Check usual places for it
Fuel pump - Gives up the ghost around 70-80k on most, check it's been replaced

Apart from that, just don't drive like a tool, they are VERY twitchy and mines caught me out on a few occasions, especially in the wet.
 
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cheers for that dude :) yea thats why I chose that one since it seems important that its properly serviced, does the fuel pump always go around 70/80k and how expensive is it to do if he hasnt replaced it?
 
The wing mount intercooler is prone to cracking as well which can cause poor running not an issue just an excuse to invest in a FMIC. Coilpacks on high milers tend to let go more noticable under load can be found from breakers fairly cheap.

I can't stress this next point enough OIL SPRAY BARS, run the engine get it up to temperature. Take the oil filler cap of and have a look through you should see a healthy stream of oil hitting the cam lobe.

Mine had a bad service history and had this problem it was fixed by the previous owner by fitting new cams and spray bars that lasted 30K now the big end is knocking slightly on mine. As a result i am driving a mondeo until after university when my engine rebuild will start.

A walbro Fuel pump can be had for about 40 - 50 if you find one in the for sale section of SXOC.
 
we did actually get g meter runs of 7.5 on the slightly knackered rover, I never said it was anything like the same I just said that I had a car of similar power.
 
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