What's Worth Checking At The Dealer Pre-Purchase?

[Troy Hunt]

Hi guys, just about to buy an R35 and have a few MY11s short-listed, a couple of them at Nissan dealers. Is there anything worth checking at the dealer before jumping in, particularly with regards to what they can pull from the ECU? I asked one about checking launches this week and had this response:

i asked the gtr guys about the launch control download they said its very hard to know how many launches because it dosent record them on the 2011 if you put the car into race mode thats all it will tell us and thats just data ,they said the most important is oil tems but they check those when we put the cars through the workshop anyway

All the cars I'm looking at are relatively low ks (~10,000km) and a year to run on warranty so there's always that, just interested in other thoughts on what can be checked pre-purchase. Thanks.

[Wardski]

Few things

1. Tyre condition - check the inside wearing as depending on camber setup (street or track) the tyres may be almost gone - especially if there has been track use...

2. Trans replacements - check the back of the service manual for any new trans serial nos

3. Servicing - Make sure all the services have been done. GTR's typically do well below the kms in the log book but the services are also date dependent. I remember when I was looking at 2010 GTRs 15 months ago, most of the personal sales had ~6000-10000kms, but never followed the servicing manual and warranties were void.

4. Check the stitching on the front seats, especially around the air bags - this is a weak point depending on the size of the previous driver.

5. If its a private sale, I'd have a Nissan GTR tech check it out prior to sale - the backyard boys doing RWC's for these cars have no idea.

6. Check the paint. Anything that looks out of the ordinary (bubbles, different shades, different colours at angles compared to adjacent panels, etc) as the GTR could have been crashed or in an incident.

7. Ask the owner if a Cobb has been used or any aftermarket mods... A Cobb AP with aftermarket tunes or LC upgrades will void any warranty left on the car - that is if you car about wty - Some private sellers will swear the car is stock and never modded, but that's where Nissan can help - they will tell you if it has been flashed previously.

8. Ask if any aftermarket oils have been used. Some GTR owners use their own gear, or stock replacements like Willall, etc. This can potentially void warranties (hit n miss) in the case where transmission failure occurs, and aftermarket oil is found.

If I can think of anything else - I'll let you know.

Hi guys, just about to buy an R35 and have a few MY11s short-listed, a couple of them at Nissan dealers. Is there anything worth checking at the dealer before jumping in, particularly with regards to what they can pull from the ECU? I asked one about checking launches this week and had this response:

All the cars I'm looking at are relatively low ks (~10,000km) and a year to run on warranty so there's always that, just interested in other thoughts on what can be checked pre-purchase. Thanks.

Edited May 26, 2013 by Wardski

[Troy Hunt]

Thanks mate, very useful info, everything checked out on one of them so I ended up buying this week.

[Docc]

Congrats on the purchase mate! What colour?

Edited June 1, 2013 by Docc

[Troy Hunt]

Jet black, just waiting on delivery then I'll post something up

[GTR-N1]

Few things

1. Tyre condition - check the inside wearing as depending on camber setup (street or track) the tyres may be almost gone - especially if there has been track use...

2. Trans replacements - check the back of the service manual for any new trans serial nos

3. Servicing - Make sure all the services have been done. GTR's typically do well below the kms in the log book but the services are also date dependent. I remember when I was looking at 2010 GTRs 15 months ago, most of the personal sales had ~6000-10000kms, but never followed the servicing manual and warranties were void.

4. Check the stitching on the front seats, especially around the air bags - this is a weak point depending on the size of the previous driver.

5. If its a private sale, I'd have a Nissan GTR tech check it out prior to sale - the backyard boys doing RWC's for these cars have no idea.

6. Check the paint. Anything that looks out of the ordinary (bubbles, different shades, different colours at angles compared to adjacent panels, etc) as the GTR could have been crashed or in an incident.

7. Ask the owner if a Cobb has been used or any aftermarket mods... A Cobb AP with aftermarket tunes or LC upgrades will void any warranty left on the car - that is if you car about wty - Some private sellers will swear the car is stock and never modded, but that's where Nissan can help - they will tell you if it has been flashed previously.

8. Ask if any aftermarket oils have been used. Some GTR owners use their own gear, or stock replacements like Willall, etc. This can potentially void warranties (hit n miss) in the case where transmission failure occurs, and aftermarket oil is found.

If I can think of anything else - I'll let you know.

Very kind of you to supply precise details > Very wise of you Troy to follow up.

Congratulations

[Docc]

Jet black, just waiting on delivery then I'll post something up

Very nice!