To Buy Or Not To Buy A Stagea? Opinions And Experiences Please!

[mitch92]

Hi all you Stagea owners!

I've owned an R33 for nearly a year now, and it's been perfect every time I turn the key. My mum has decided it is time for a new car, and I know she's a bit of a 'hoon' at heart (she loves her sports cars ) so I showed her an M35 Stagea and she's very interested, theres just one problem... She's worried about service costs and the availability of parts for a car that was imported and never sold in dealers from new, especially since Stageas aren't very common. The engine is a VQ25DET. Do you guys find parts are easy enough to come by, and is this engine fairly easy to work on? All your positive/negative experiences or opinions would be very helpful! Thanks in advance guys.

[bigkevracer]

Engine is as easy as anything else, just not much room in the engine bay.

A lot of parts commonality with other Nissans, so parts are on the shelf or not far away.

Service costs should be the same, or you could do it for her?

[ClassOne]

It's like every car, there is always the chance of getting a lemon.

BUT, they are a great car. Had mine for about 6 months. Had a few issues, not sure if they are all common.

Make sure you get a good warranty plan if going thru a dealer.

Under warranty I've had replaced.

Diff pump crapped itself.

Both front wheel bearings

Drivers lower control arm (ball joint shagged)

Apparently you can't buy the joint on its own.

So new genuine Nissan arm ( expensive I bet!)

The arm is all alloy.

My boot lock randomly doesn't latch/open

(Getting looked at now)

Turbo is wining and has blown seals.

All this stuff happened within the 3 month/5000km dealer statutory warranty period.

But is only getting sorted this week

Make sure you ask to see the car up on a hoist , rust in the belly can be a major issue and one not easily seen for obvious reasons, as you probably know, japs salt the roads in winter...

Drives very nicely, goes like the clappers for a stocka.

If your mum wants a wagon, it's way ahead if its time, even compared to some 2012 models you see today.

[ClassOne]

Also forgot the engine developed a what "sounds" like improper shimmed solid lifter... If you know what they sound like, in both banks.

Also getting looked at under warranty... As you can see , it would really hurt if you didn't have a warranty to cover you.

[mitch92]

Engine is as easy as anything else, just not much room in the engine bay.

A lot of parts commonality with other Nissans, so parts are on the shelf or not far away.

Service costs should be the same, or you could do it for her?

Good to know parts are common with other nissans, thanks. And I service my own car but I think she feels happier letting a professional do hers. We'll see though.

It's like every car, there is always the chance of getting a lemon.

BUT, they are a great car. Had mine for about 6 months. Had a few issues, not sure if they are all common.

Make sure you get a good warranty plan if going thru a dealer.

Under warranty I've had replaced.

Diff pump crapped itself.

Both front wheel bearings

Drivers lower control arm (ball joint shagged)

Apparently you can't buy the joint on its own.

So new genuine Nissan arm ( expensive I bet!)

The arm is all alloy.

My boot lock randomly doesn't latch/open

(Getting looked at now)

Turbo is wining and has blown seals.

All this stuff happened within the 3 month/5000km dealer statutory warranty period.

But is only getting sorted this week

Make sure you ask to see the car up on a hoist , rust in the belly can be a major issue and one not easily seen for obvious reasons, as you probably know, japs salt the roads in winter...

Drives very nicely, goes like the clappers for a stocka.

If your mum wants a wagon, it's way ahead if its time, even compared to some 2012 models you see today.

Luckily the one we're looking at is from a dealer with 3 years parts and labour warranty. It's got less than 60k km's on the clock, so hopefully the warranty won't be needed too much. I've been reading up on these a fair bit and the general consensus is they are very well built, well designed cars with plenty of poke if you have a lead foot. I'll be sure to check it on a hoist, thanks for the heads up. I actually wasn't aware of the salt on the roads in Japan.

[iamhe77]

Diff pump crapped itself.

The what?

Do you mean the ATTESSA pump?

[YEE-HAA]

MItch you say "She's worried about service costs and the availability of parts for a car that was imported and never sold in dealers from new, especially since Stageas aren't very common."

Well the same could be said about R33's. I've had my 33 for 12 years now, and the reliability of that is what made me consider my Stagea when looking for another car. (Well I didnt even consider anything else to be honest!).

Thinking back to the mid 90's when the 33's were slowly trickling into the country, and some of them $40k+ in yards, not a lot was know about them, and they proved themselves. Sure they had the odd problem, as with ALL cars, fuel pumps, turbos, body bits falling off, etc but they were sorted without too much drama. A lot of info was shared through forums like this, and people learnt what and where they could get bits from. Today the world is even smaller with online shopping commonplace and parts importers like Import Monster and the like making it even easier. (There werent many parts importers around back in the mid 90's I can tell you.)

So as with any car purchase, do your homework, get the car checked out, and have a backup plan (a good warranty).

Im sure Im not alone when I say Nissan is a brand that we all love & trust.

And Im sure she'll love the stagea no matter which one you eventually get. I know I do.

Edited September 29, 2012 by YEE-HAA