My Stagea Has Landed

[Stooge007]

hi all

following on from my earlier thread http://www.skylinesaustralia.com/forums/Pu...ag-t289922.html

i have just found out that my Stagea landed in Australia last Friday

however, they also told me:

1) the timing belt was on its way out, so they're doing a full service (including the belt, fluids, spark plugs etc.) for free

2) it has dual sun roofs

3) the xenons had to come out (but i think they can re-install them, for a fee i assume )

what else should i be asking/checking?

have been through this http://www.skylinesaustralia.com/forums/Bu...n-C-t92065.html , is there anything else?

item 1 is a bit of a worry, given the car apparently had 52,xxx km's on it, so i'm assuming that it's been wound back? or could it just be that since it's so so old (and apparently was hardly driven), it could have deteriorated of its own accord?

probably heading down on Friday afternoon to check it out

as noted in my earlier thread, my deposit is fully refundable if i choose not to buy the car. hoping this isn't the case

thanks all

[KiwiRS4T]

Timing belts are good for 120,000km so speedo has probably been wound back. Normally a low km can be backed up by service records so their absence would be an indication but not proof. However if the car still looks good and value for money no reason not to go ahead.

Ask for all the bits for the headlights and tell them not to cut any wires and you should be able to reinstate them yourself.

[DaveB]

How do they know the belt is "on its way out"?

re. the xenons... they can be butchered in so many ways... make sure they don't cut any wires. They're dead easy to put back if you don't cut anything (and as long as they don't keep any parts, ie. the globes or the ballasts, which are the boxes which drive them - one per headlight - and removable separately to the headlight unit).

[Stooge007]

i'm not sure why they decided the timing belt was suspect, but i guess it doesn't really matter, given they're doing a full service on it at their cost (i.e. belt, spark plugs, fluids etc.). the one thing i will be checking thoroughly is the conidition of the interior, to see if i can gauge exactly how many km's it actually has done (assuming somewhere around 100,000)

in any case, the new timing belt should be right for another 100,000 km's or so, right?

not sure what they've done to the xenons. they said they had to take them out, but when i asked about them, they mentioned something about "come in and we'll chat about them"

am heading in hopefully on Friday afternoon to check it all out

[pixel8r]

How do they know the belt is "on its way out"?

If the kms have been "wound back" (ie. had the dash swapped) - the importer will know for sure....but I doubt any of them would admit it.

The odometer is digital so as far as I know the only way to "wind back" the kms is to swap the dash with another car that has done less kms. Unfortunately it is very common practice in the industry and you are best to go by the overall condition of the car.

[Iron Chef]

If you know they've bought the car from auction, ask for the auction sheet. Simple. Watch their faces carefully when you ask - if they say no or hesitate, then check the condition of the car very thoroughly.

[iamhe77]

If the kms have been "wound back" (ie. had the dash swapped) - the importer will know for sure....but I doubt any of them would admit it.

The odometer is digital so as far as I know the only way to "wind back" the kms is to swap the dash with another car that has done less kms. Unfortunately it is very common practice in the industry and you are best to go by the overall condition of the car.

Actually there are plug-in devices in Japan that can wind back a digital odo... unfortunately.

[Stooge007]

If you know they've bought the car from auction, ask for the auction sheet. Simple. Watch their faces carefully when you ask - if they say no or hesitate, then check the condition of the car very thoroughly.

i'm not 100% sure they bought from auction. is there any way to tell?

according to this thread - http://www.skylinesaustralia.com/forums/Bu...n-C-t92065.html - i'll be looking for:

* Rust and/or paint bubbling and peeling under the door wing mirrors;

* Rust around the strut towers, where the strut tower brace is bolted down;

* Rust and/or paint bubbling and peeling in and around the sunroof runners (if fitted with a sunroof);

* Condition of door seals and rust where the seals attach to the body;

* Rust on the door and boot hinges;

* Rust in the spare wheel cavity...

they're doing a full service, so oil and fluids should be OK, can't hurt to check though

what else should i be looking for?

Actually there are plug-in devices in Japan that can wind back a digital odo... unfortunately.

who knows whether the 52,xxx are genuine, but anyway i'll have a fresh timing belt which will be ready to rock for the next 100,000 kms or so

[Stooge007]

wondering whether to get a pre-purchase inspection done?

i.e. compression test etc.

this will cost ~ $350 (i think), which i would normally say is worth it, but the car allegedly comes with 12 months roadside assist and 5 years warranty

so if anything major breaks, it should be covered

but i don't really want anything to break do i?

plus they're doing a full service, with timing belt, fluids, plugs etc.

decisions, decisions

[gebba54]

wondering whether to get a pre-purchase inspection done?

i.e. compression test etc.

this will cost ~ $350 (i think), which i would normally say is worth it, but the car allegedly comes with 12 months roadside assist and 5 years warranty

so if anything major breaks, it should be covered

but i don't really want anything to break do i?

plus they're doing a full service, with timing belt, fluids, plugs etc.

decisions, decisions

Your warranty will only cover specific things up to a certain value

check here

http://www.247roadservices.com.au/extended.htm

[Stooge007]

Your warranty will only cover specific things up to a certain value

check here

http://www.247roadservices.com.au/extended.htm

ah, cool

thanks for that

i assume they just get the cheap one? (i.e. Plan A)

might start making calls to State Roads/NRMA etc.

cheers

[Angus Smart]

Autosport @ kirrawee are not far from where your going, they could be good to use for a checkup.. they have a pretty good history with me and my nissans..

[Stooge007]

Autosport @ kirrawee are not far from where your going, they could be good to use for a checkup.. they have a pretty good history with me and my nissans..

thanks mate

car is from a dealer, so not sure they'd let me take it to Kirrawee

will keep them in mind for future servicing etc. though

have been thinking of AutoSport or CV Performance at Taren Point

[SHIZNT]

Just a warning be very careful with 24/7 Road Services and state everything that is going to be done when it comes to repairs of they screw you over...

When my Transmission blew up i took it to a Transmission guy who took to for a drive and he confirmed it was the transmission. Rang 24/7 and told the young lady the situatation and asked if it was ok to remove the transmission myself and send it off to the transmission place to be quoted and when 24/7 give the go ahead to be repaired. I was told this would be fine and wouldnt void the warranty so i removed the transmission and sent it off to be inspected... A few days later a Supervisor rings me and tell's me the information i was provided was incorrect, the transmission wont be covered as the car has to be present at the transmission place and wasn't removed by them...

So i had to pay over $2000 out of my own pocket to pay for the transmission due to their own stuff up!

Edited October 14, 2009 by SHIZNT

[Stooge007]

also, a question

the State Roads inspection says they do a balance test of the cylinders, but not a compression test

so this means that if all cylinders are running at say 80%, it will pass the balance test but would not pass a compression test?

thoughts?

[Stooge007]

Just a warning be very careful with 24/7 Road Services and state everything that is going to done when it comes to repairs of they screw you over...

When my Transmission blew up i took it to a Transmission guy who took to for a drive and he confirmed it was the transmission. Rang 24/7 and told the young lady the situatation and asked if it was ok to remove the transmission myself and send it off to the transmission place to be quoted and when 24/7 give the go ahead to be repaired. I was told this would be fine wouldnt void the warranty so i removed the transmission and sent it off to be inspected... A few days later a Supervisor rings me and tell's me the information i was provided was incorrect, the transmission wont be covered as the car has to be present at the transmission place and wasn't removed by them...

So i had to pay over $2000 out of my own pocket to pay for the transmission due to their own stuff up!

man that sucks!

i guess with those sorts of things, you need to get it in an email/writing so they can't screw you over!

[SCHSLYF]

i'm not 100% sure they bought from auction. is there any way to tell?

according to this thread - http://www.skylinesaustralia.com/forums/Bu...n-C-t92065.html - i'll be looking for:

* Rust and/or paint bubbling and peeling under the door wing mirrors;

* Rust around the strut towers, where the strut tower brace is bolted down;

* Rust and/or paint bubbling and peeling in and around the sunroof runners (if fitted with a sunroof);

* Condition of door seals and rust where the seals attach to the body;

* Rust on the door and boot hinges;

* Rust in the spare wheel cavity...

they're doing a full service, so oil and fluids should be OK, can't hurt to check though

what else should i be looking for?

who knows whether the 52,xxx are genuine, but anyway i'll have a fresh timing belt which will be ready to rock for the next 100,000 kms or so

for this dont just look in the cavity. look under the car between the fuel take and the rear of the car, that is where mine is starting to rust, and its only noticeable from the underside of the car.

[Stooge007]

for this dont just look in the cavity. look under the car between the fuel take and the rear of the car, that is where mine is starting to rust, and its only noticeable from the underside of the car.

sweet, thanks mate

i've organised a State Roads inspection anyway, for my peace of mind

http://www.stateroads.com.au/

getting pretty excited

cheers

[Stooge007]

re. the xenons... they can be butchered in so many ways... make sure they don't cut any wires. They're dead easy to put back if you don't cut anything (and as long as they don't keep any parts, ie. the globes or the ballasts, which are the boxes which drive them - one per headlight - and removable separately to the headlight unit).

they've cut wires

apparently i'll be getting all the bits and pieces that they took out

how hard will it be to re-install?

cheers

[pixel8r]

If you know they've bought the car from auction, ask for the auction sheet. Simple. Watch their faces carefully when you ask - if they say no or hesitate, then check the condition of the car very thoroughly.

Is it true they are required to keep the auction sheets by law?

and also are you as the buyer permitted to view them?

I bought an s2 a few years ago from a dealer, and when I asked about the auction papers they said they dont keep them. Months later I was told they are required to keep them. I have good reason to believe the kms wouldn't have matched what the auction papers said...which would explain the secrecy.