Is it worth it to put money into a car with 109,000+ miles on it. I was either going to put money into it, or save up.
Here are my options:
A) Save and purchase / install a DET
B)Put money into it now and have a high mile all motor car
C)Save and buy a new car (240sx, Jetta, Audi, VR4.....but no mods on them for a while)

Just curious what the majority of the responses will be.

Hmm well I think you should go ahead and get a new car. And if you can find a manual 240sx w/ low miles, go for it! Although you will be in the same boat w/ a 240 because they have high miles as well, and you will be swapping the engine. Basically do whatever you want to do. Sorry I know this helps you none...

Ju§tin

well, I'd say it depends on what condition your car is in. If it's still in good condition and the motor is strong, go ahead and slap a turbo on it.

Khiem

It does run nice and strong. Some minor problems that can be fixed with a couple of bucks. The thing is I was planning on buying one mod a month. Just curious if it would be worth it in the end. I also look at it as if every piece I mod and replace, that is one newer piece on the car that will not break, basically rebuilding the engine.
Just not sure if I want to dump money into a high milage car.
thanks for the replies.

Originally posted by nismoman20
It does run nice and strong. Some minor problems that can be fixed with a couple of bucks. The thing is I was planning on buying one mod a month. Just curious if it would be worth it in the end. I also look at it as if every piece I mod and replace, that is one newer piece on the car that will not break, basically rebuilding the engine.
Just not sure if I want to dump money into a high milage car.
thanks for the replies.

I just dumped 5K + into my high milage (112K) car and it got a big :D outta me! Boost is wonderful! Anyway, it depends on what you don't like about your car. No matter how you look at it, if you like speed you'll end up modding the next car anyway, more $. Just put the $ into the car you have now and be done with it. SR20T are plenty fast ;)

New car = Car payment, Full coverage insurance. Then what little cash left over for mods.

Old car = Liability insurance ( if FC is to expensive for you ) and a nice wade of cash for mods. Plus your not totally pissed when some jackass in a beat-up escort plows into you:D

Keep your car as a daily driver, buy a good used car. I've devoted the last 17 months to my SE-R. Full restoration. Yes, it's fun, but it lacks a few things. AWD and forced induction. Yes, you can turbo your SE-R, but still lack the traction. You render 1st and 2nd gear worthless w/ a turbo. I've driven many stock AWD cars that will outhandle my fully modified SE-R suspension.

Turbo owns NA

AWD owns RWD and FWD

Get a galant VR-4, turbo Legacy or some turbo AWD car. You spend a $1000 on your NA se-r, gain 15HP. Spend $1000 on a turbo car, gain at least 40HP. I've learned my lesson. Go test drive some AWD cars, you'll see.

Scmser, i beleive it is a matter of preference. Maybe some of use would like to take the challenge of making a N/A FWD(which according to your listing is the slowest of the bunch) go fast. If turbo automatically owns N/A, try racing jeremy lookofsky's CRX or the skunk 2 integra with your turbo legacy and post your results.

if you are worried about spending a lot of money on a old 100k+ mile car, in the future, you may swap most engine parts(i.e.- turbo, cams) into a newer B14.

Well RWD owns both FWD and AWD...In speed, also if there are RWD cars that can out handle AWD cars it is just they cost money. One thing I like about the Se-r is that it is a sleeper and putting the det in the car will save my money/cheaper then buying a new car and I have the turbo so I can see better gains..yes it is still fwd but people will see the car and laugh then I will beat them, even the allmighty AWD turbo cars, i.e. DSM, WRX and the V8 monsters.

You have to follow the cycle:

-soop up your N/A high mileage engine
-enjoy it while it lasts
-end up spinning a bearing
-sell performance parts on the engine to Forum Members in order to buy DET
( this way the cycle keeps going)
- buy DET
-install DET
-have a blast with DET.


:D :cool:

109k miles isn't jack.. Your first mod should be a good tune-up. Replace consumable stuff like struts, bushings, brakes, tires next. Then when you start the real mods you'll appreciate them more instead of wishing you invested in a newer car. With some TLC your car will go another 100-150k miles easy.

I got my NX with 180k miles and spent the first year sorting out the typical issues that old cars have. Then I started building it into a competitive autocross car. I wouldn't say I've wasted a single penny on the car and every day I like it more.

Good info!!

I do like having a sleeper, but a stock 3000gt vr4 or 300zx could still whamp most other cars.
I guess what my main concern was, will my car last long enough to appreciate the time and money I put into it?

What is the average milege of your cars (91-94)?

You people seem to miss the point. The NA cars that are faster than turbo cars are that way because of the money dumped into them. FOR THE MONEY SPENT, a turbo car is a better buy. RWD is better than AWD? Sure, that's why all rally cars are AWD. Long ago RWD ruled rally, then Audi introduced AWD, kicked ass and everyone jumped on board. RWD is fine on dry pavement.

Seensense and Slipper,

I give two shits about drag racing. A galant vr-4, 323 GTX, and many other AWD turbo cars will hand you your ass. You can brag about the NA Junk2 integra all day, I don't care. The guy (nismoman20) wants opinions, I'm giving him mine. No, a turbo Legacy will not beat a drag car. A drag car will not outhandle, rally, or get you home in the snow.

Keep this in mind:

1) How often do you drive in the snow?
2) How many people actually rally their cars?
3) An AWD Turbo is a hard car to come by, I tried for 6 months before I found my SE-R.

Now, nismoman, you ask is it worth it to mod a car with 109K miles? Do a search. There have been threads in the past asking how many miles cars have. Since B13's are pretty much at least 10 years old, you'll be hard pressed to find too many with less than 100K miles. I, for one, have 139K miles but that hasn't stopped me.

You have to remember also, routine maintenance on most Japanese motors means that 100,000 miles on it is just broken in. Really. ;)

I say that 109k isnt much on an sr20de. So, do some mods to it, like header, intake, exaust and maybe cams, ecu and pullies. A header, cold air intake and even some exaust systems have resale value. So, when the time comes, get a bb det or a gti-r, depending on how much you want to spend, complete motor. You can generally hook up a bb det for around 1700 or so and a gti-r for 2500 or so. So, i say keep the car, mod for now, sell mods, put towards det.

John

People are making some really good points. I was in your shoes not too long ago nismoman (sorry don't know your real name) and I weighed all my options and decided to buy a classic. There's people with 20K miles more than you and then decided to go turbo, which is unheard of in most cases. Fact is if your ok with 109K miles on the chassis, but are worried about the engine, drop a new one in. They're cheap and will likely have around 30K miles on them. A JDM is around $450, you can't get that mileage back off your engine for that much money. A DET is $1400-$1700, and that's still really cheap. People pay that much for a tranny in their automatic grocery getters. The thing I'd be concerned about on a car with 109K would be the body and interior condition, because the mechanicals can be dealt with fairly inexpensively. If you've got bad rust, then either spend the money to have it fixed right or get a less rusty car. I don't like a car that I'm leary about working on, like a new car, so I didn't buy one. Plus I saved myself a shitload of money. I have FC on my SE-R because I want money if I wreck it, and I'm carefull about it like it were brand new, because I don't want some asshole in a beat up escort to plow into it. If he did, I'd be thrown in jail, facing assult and battery charges for kicking the shit out of him. In a Ross Geller voice, "You... hit... my... classic?!.... You... hit... my... classic?!" And a VR4 3000GT will cost you more than a new car. I've been a big 3000GT and WRX fan for a long time now, but I'll probably newver own either of them.

Thanks guys
By the way, I live around Tampa FL so flooding is more of a concern than snow!
The body is fine, with a few dings that can easily be fixed, it needs paint, and the only interior problem is the cracks in the dash due to the intense sun. It is nice and quick and handles nice.
I guess I will keep the car and go ahead with mods.
For future reference, is a det hard to maintain?

NismoSE-R,

AWD turbo cars are not hard to come by. Autotrader, cars.com, bensrallypage, etc. I know most people on this page have no idea what would posess someone to drive their car in the dirt. They'd rather drag race, yo. If you like bodykits, neon, 17" racing harts and touring wings, please, please don't buy an AWD car. Some things need to remain sacred.

lol too late there is one in my area w/ decals and wing.

Ju§tin