Thinking of buying a 92 Nissan Sentra SE-R From a neighbor. The car has
206k on it but it was female driven. I want something reliable to drive back
and forth to work I thought this would be perfect. Wanted to ask if this car
with this many miles will become a cash cow. I am not above getting the
engine rebuilt one day but if their is history out there that says with
those many miles I am looking for trouble, please advise. Thanks.

--
Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.
Martin Luther King Jr.

Education is good, but a wise man uses common sense.
Sandford D. Clark

William Michael Greene wrote:
owned" I consider it a negative rather than a positive due to poor
maintenance. I know, it's a stereotype either way.

On Jan 30, 7:59 pm, JimV <jv9... (AT) yahoo (DOT) com> wrote:
It all depends on what maintenance has been done. Are there
maintenance records available? I've got a 1987 Sentra with 328,000
miles that is driven daily and runs great. I bought it with 101,000
miles. But the oil has been changed religiously every 2000 miles.
The cooling and power steering system has been flushed routinely etc.
etc. If it's automatic transmission has it been flushed - and I mean
flushed, not just drain and refill - every few years. If it's a
manual, when was the clutch replaced? When were things like the axle
shafts replaced? Ditto for the alternator, water pump and struts. If
all these parts are relatively new AND if the fluid maintenance has
been excellent, then it may be a winner. Otherwise, expect a lot of
weekends spent in the garage. Good luck. Al

Al, she did mention she kept up the regular maintenance. The clutch has been
replaced twice and she said she got regular oil changes. I plan a test drive
today where I will be able to check the condition of the oil, clutch, CV
joints, etc. She is asking $1500 which is reasonable, especially here in
Florida where cars with working A/C command a pretty good price.

Thanks for replying, your response was the type I was hoping for.

Mike G.
"al" <abuonag (AT) msn (DOT) com> wrote

Let's see, a 15 year old Nissan with over 200K miles and you want to know if
it could be trouble?

For sure it has pretty much returned it's original value to the owners. I
wouldn't pay anymore than $1,000.00 if it looks and drives well and there is
some evidence that it has been maintained properly and that it has never
been crash repaired.

IMO, the fact that it has been female driven is not a plus.

Butch
"William Michael Greene" <wmg63 (AT) bellsouth (DOT) net> wrote

Butch, first it is an SE-R, not just the run of the mill Sentra. I too feel
most females will not service a car as well as men do but the point I am
making about it being female driven is that most SE-R's are modified. This
on is still original. 200K is a lot of miles but I am willing to rebuild the
engine if necessary. Kelly Blue Book and Intellichoice both access the value
of the car between $1400 - $1800 and that is with the 200K mileage
deduction. I am mechanically able and can change out a starter, a/c
compressor, alternator, brakes, fuel filter, oil, filter, rack and pinion
assemblies, shocks, struts, etc. I was more worried if there were problem
areas with the car that others have had and were willing to share. I realize
that at 200K there will be maintenance items to take care of and I am
willing to accept that. I was more worried about something like for say,
rust prone areas, electrical gremlins, that sort of thing.

Thanks for the response tough.


"Butch Davis" <butch1277 (AT) earthlink (DOT) net> wrote

I have a '92 Nissan NX2000...basically the same car, same engine, with a
fastback body. I now have 240,000km's and have owned it from new. I have
had great service out of it, and suddenly one day 2 years ago it had no
power and developed a rattle upon more than 1/2 way acceleration. I was
told the "bottom end" had gone, and it wasn't through abuse or lack of
maintenance. My mechanic said it'd be worth it to get a near-new engine as
all components would be fairly worn anyway and my plan was to keep the
vehicle.

So, I had my mechanic put in an engine imported from Japan...only 60,000km
on it and very healthy...even better than new.

Here's the complete history: I bought it new in '93 (on the lot for a year
because it had an Auto trans. no T tops, no air conditioning) and just
before the warranty expired, I had the transmission rebuilt free from
Nissan. Then, fast forward to many years later (4 years ago) and the
transmission went again ($2k Canadian). Then 2 years ago the bottom end
problem and a new-used engine.(a bit over $2K) I had a coolant hose burst
last year, but that was kind of expected. Also, the back shocks needed
replacing...again because they were originals I wasn't surprised.

I love the willing nature of the engine to rev to redline and the
"non-Japanese" nature of it to have low end torque. But, at this mileage,
expect to invest some cash if the owner hasn't already.

"William Michael Greene" <wmg63 (AT) bellsouth (DOT) net> wrote

Thanks for the post. It sounds like I can only expect another 50k or so
before I can expect to have engine problems. Even if it was taken care of.
This is the kind of information I needed to make a decision.

Thanks again.

Mike G.


"EJD" <WRONGnoilly_pratt (AT) hotmail (DOT) comWRONG> wrote

William,

Sounds like your mind was made up before you asked the question on usenet.
Good luck and enjoy the car. Pardon my ignorance, but just what is so
special about an SE-R as compared to a "run of the mill" Sentra?

That car is still an old high mileage car.

Butch
"William Michael Greene" <wmg63 (AT) bellsouth (DOT) net> wrote

"Butch Davis" <butch1277 (AT) earthlink (DOT) net> wrote

SE-R is "Racing" per the "R" I think.... Or as someone else once said, "The
difference is zoom, zoom, zoom."

SE-R probably has more HP/Torque and a better suspension and/or wheel/tire
set-up stock.

Joe in Northern, NJ - V#8013-R

Currently Riding The "Mother Ship"
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