Buying and owning an older car

[Beef Boss]

What things should I know or look at before buying an older car? 

 

I'm looking at getting a 1992 Mazda rx-7 or a 1993 Toyota supra. 

I'm by no means a mechanic, but I've seen some really nice cars which swayed my mind. 

 

Obviously look for lower miles, less body damage rust and spacing of body panels... But other than that? 

[Jtalk4456]

maintenance records if available are a great indication of how well the car has been taken care of

 

[Drak3]

Look at the oil dip stick, check for leaks, test drive it.

[Arika]

Before buying it, take it to your mechanic for a pre-purchase assessment they will be able to tell you if there's anything wrong that will give you problems later on and if it's worth it to buy. 

[bimmerman]

31 minutes ago, Arika S said:

Before buying it, take it to your mechanic for a pre-purchase assessment they will be able to tell you if there's anything wrong that will give you problems later on and if it's worth it to buy. 

This, 100%. Unless you are very knowledgeable about the specific make and model, take the car to a mechanic you trust (AND who is familiar with the make/model of car!!).

If the seller won't let you do that, and you aren't able to inspect the car thoroughly on the spot, then walk away.

[Tristerin]

1 hour ago, aki adaki said:

What things should I know or look at before buying an older car? 

 

I'm looking at getting a 1992 Mazda rx-7 or a 1993 Toyota supra. 

I'm by no means a mechanic, but I've seen some really nice cars which swayed my mind. 

 

Obviously look for lower miles, less body damage rust and spacing of body panels... But other than that? 

Both cars are usually ruined by young kids hotrodding them

 

Check behind and inside the wheel wells (FWD Supra, RWD Rx7 iirc its a rotary car), look for chunks,flecks of rubber (hot tire chunks that get ripped off during burnouts) - they are hard to remove even when you hit them with a water jet, unless the person knows this and takes time to remove each one by hand.

On that same note, look how the tires are wearing.  If its even wear that is good, if its not even wear it could be indicative of problems going forward...or bad mishandling of the vehicle through hotrodding.

 

Check the oil, it should be a rich brown and semi clear when running down the dipstick.  If its black or flecks of metal/garbage on the stick means its floating around in the engine, no good.

 

NEVER trust a person selling you their used car.  Ever.  I used to flip cars, and let me tell you...there are plenty of ways to be scandalous.  People will, and do, change out dashpanels to lower miles, use masking tape over rust spots and hit it with rattle cans so its not clear its a rust hole (rocker panels anyone) etc.  ESPECIALLY with cars in the 90's - they are over 25 years old you don't have to track mileage etc etc - lots of rules change.

 

I stopped flipping cars because you have to be immoral.

[Drak3]

4 minutes ago, Tristerin said:

Both cars are usually ruined by young kids hotrodding them

Rat rodding*

 

And it's an ageless phenominom, I see as many old people it rats as I do young people.

[Tristerin]

2 minutes ago, Drak3 said:

Rat rodding*

 

And it's an ageless phenominom, I see as many old people it rats as I do young people.

Supra and RX of that year/model?  Not in my area those are the kids toys.  Older folks around here have better taste lol and I don't see them (cant convince them even!) to burnout in their super cars lol.

 

Now if the RX was in top shape, that's a nice collector item.

 

 

[Emanbaird]

To be honest, the rx7 and the supra are both very expensive cars, the rx7 being a huge pita to work on due to the fact it uses a rotary. the supra depends on the year you buy, the best supra imo. is the MK3 with the 7M-GTE. is a great tuner platform.

[Guest]

Assure the recharger works. It’s cheaper to buy a new battery than to replace a recharger. 

[Radium_Angel]

12 hours ago, aki adaki said:

I'm looking at getting a 1992 Mazda rx-7

Be very careful with this. The rotary apex seals (basically the standard engine equivalent of piston rings) are lubricated by oil, and also consumes oil, they aren't meant to last, and are very expensive, labour wise, to replace (several thousand, possibly more than the car is worth)

A compression check will help a bit, but when a seal goes, it goes with very little external signs it needs to be replaced.

If you have records on engine work, or the apex seals have been replaced, and there is proof of this, then you are golden, otherwise, I'd walk away from it, unless the rest of the car is in stellar shape, would generally indicates the owner cared about upkeep...

[Ross Siggers]

7 hours ago, fpo said:

Assure the recharger works. It’s cheaper to buy a new battery than to replace a recharger. 

I've never heard anyone call an alternator that, although...I can't deny the accuracy of the term...

As @Radium_Angel has said, Rotary engines require careful maintenance to keep in tip top shape. They consume oil where a regular engine wouldn't, and generally need servicing more often as well. 

I remember I was looking at RX-8's as they're soooo cheap here in the UK. And my friend said to look for one with more than 50k miles. I asked why, and he said 

"Because by that point, you'll know that it's either well maintained...or it's had a new engine" 

 

[Radium_Angel]

3 minutes ago, Ross Siggers said:

"Because by that point, you'll know that it's either well maintained...or it's had a new engine" 

That's pretty true. All the RX-8s around here are the same way, the super cheap ones all say "needs a tune up" which is BS, and doublespeak for "seals are gone" and the high priced ones are either riced out, or garage queens with prices to match.

The rotary is a brilliant idea but more work is needed on longevity of the seals.

[Ross Siggers]

I still toy with the idea of getting one. They pop up on autotrader for the same price as crappy small hatchbacks, which is crazy. Even the nice ones don't seem to be too unreasonable.

[Far_From_A_Pro]

:) I just signed up to tell you what I think. I myself would rather overpay for a MkIV supra with a 2JZ-GTE. I was doing some research sometime ago. If it is a 3.0L NATURALLY ASPIRATED 2JX-GE, stay away unless you want to change the engine for the better one. Do not get an imported RHD model unless you want to live the JDM life yo and you think passing a transport on the highway is not challenging enough <------ it helps to have a person sitting in the left seat to act as a spotter. This info right here can save you time and money. Also the 4 speed automatic is ok if you are keeping it stock and you are taking good care of the car. It is usually safe to add a small upgrade like a performance intake manifold while keeping a stock drivetrain and driveline. When you add +200hp, you are asking to break stuff.

 

Talk to the owners. Ask if they have had any accidents, performed any mods, where they change the oil and perform maintenance, how long they have had the car. That last one will tell you if it's a clunker or if it's getting him in trouble and his mom told him to get rid of it.

 

Now, if everything seems believable, ask him the owner drop it off at a shop you trust AFTER YOU SCHEDULED AN APPOINTMENT. Try to avoid waiting 2 or 3 weeks for an appointment. I always imagined it gives him more time to beat on it you know. Tell the service writer exactly what you want. You want to buy a car but you want an experienced tech to tell you if it's worth buying or not. If the tech gives you an ok it all boils down to money. Do you have enough money left over to eat properly? What if you start blowing parts like the engine and the rear diff within a month? Will you fix it or will you sell it for a loss?

 

Japanese cars used to have MAJOR rust issues. 2000 Tacomas, a lot of stuff driven on my roads from the 90's and earlier. The metal they used was not good but now, it's a whole different ballgame over there. Look at a 2004 Impala vs. a 2004 Corolla. Someone here mentioned rocker panels. You have to know it to observe it like a pro. Do not wear good clothes when looking at used cars. Go underneath and look everywhere with an incandescent flashlight. LED light can mask what is truly there. You may think you are seeing grey maybe factory rocker guard painted metal but it's rust that got covered by a rattle can you know.

 

You know if you want something like this that is reliable, experts and professionals will give you their opinion if you give them money and you are not rushing them. Think of it this way, Do you want 1 tech to spend 1 hour looking alone or do you want 4 techs looking at it at the end of the day?

 

If you just go with a friend and you have a gut feeling or a red flag popped up like the car has new plates and the plate sticker looks new but he will not let you drive it with him in the car, trust it, walk away and look elsewhere. Feel free to ask me any questions or if you want an opinion from some photos you took. 

 

[Beef Boss]

1 hour ago, Radium_Angel said:

That's pretty true. All the RX-8s around here are the same way, the super cheap ones all say "needs a tune up" which is BS, and doublespeak for "seals are gone" and the high priced ones are either riced out, or garage queens with prices to match.

The rotary is a brilliant idea but more work is needed on longevity of the seals.

Thank you for saying something about this. It's actually swayed my opinion, I'll probably not get a rotary then. They seem like a lot of work... 

[Radium_Angel]

7 minutes ago, aki adaki said:

Thank you for saying something about this. It's actually swayed my opinion, I'll probably not get a rotary then. They seem like a lot of work... 

Happy to help.

Also, when checking for rust and/or suspected bondo patching, bring a t-shirt and a powerful magnet. Put the t-shirt over the area you suspect and place magnet on top. If it sticks, it's metal underneath, if it's weak or falls off...bondo.

<--- owner of many many many older cars in my life, most Italian sports cars. Feel free to post pics and or ask questions, I have a *lot* of experience

[klh2000]

The Supra will be cheaper to maintain, and be more reliable, but will cost a lot more than the rx7 to buy. The 6 speed twin turbo supra will be the most expensive, but will also hold it's value, they are appreciating right now. The Supra has more potential to make power if you don't want to spend lots of money. 

[Monkey Dust]

Don't worry about mileage on an older car, always buy on condition.

 

The RX-7, yes the rotary engine can be troublesome. But rebuilding a rotary is a lot less work than rebuilding a piston engine, so is a lot cheaper. You need a rotary specialist though. 

[DimasRMDO]

On 10/5/2018 at 9:13 PM, aki adaki said:

Thank you for saying something about this. It's actually swayed my opinion, I'll probably not get a rotary then. They seem like a lot of work... 

They need a lot of work, they're fun to drive but...

• Poor fuel economy
• Reliability issue
• Hard to pass emission
• Lots of research and tinkering need to be done

If you say no to one of these then the rotary is not for you, get the Supra (or Skyline if you like), if you like cute little cars then you might want to see Honda S2000 (they're reliable and fast too). In the end though.... Since you're looking for high performance car, you should test drive the car and be more cautious.... Most of them might be abused.

 

Like any other cars, you should try to inspect and test drive the car directly. But for a rotary, you must test drive the car, if possible ask the owner to do a compression test. Like @Jtalk4456 looking at the maintenance record helps hugely. If you go for a rotary don't go for the cheapest options or one that says "repair needed", something like that, find one that's in good condition. Like @Radium_Angel said, they just want to hide the big problems.

 

19 hours ago, Monkey Dust said:

Rebuilding a rotary is a lot less work than rebuilding a piston engine, so is a lot cheaper. You need a rotary specialist though. 

Depends on where you live, because it's got less parts, it "can" be cheaper to rebuilt a rotary. But since not all mechanics can rebuild a rotary, they "can" potentially charge you more for it for a specialist.

[Beef Boss]

18 minutes ago, DimasRMDO said:

They need a lot of work, they're fun to drive but...

• Poor fuel economy
• Reliability issue
• Hard to pass emission
• Lots of research and tinkering need to be done

If you say no to one of these then the rotary is not for you, get the Supra (or Skyline if you like), if you like cute little cars then you might want to see Honda S2000 (they're reliable and fast too). In the end though.... Since you're looking for high performance car, you should test drive the car and be more cautious.... Most of them might be abused.

 

Like any other cars, you should try to inspect and test drive the car directly. But for a rotary, you must test drive the car, if possible ask the owner to do a compression test. Like @Jtalk4456 looking at the maintenance record helps hugely. If you go for a rotary don't go for the cheapest options or one that says "repair needed", something like that, find one that's in good condition. Like @Radium_Angel said, they just want to hide the big problems.

 

Depends on where you live, because it's got less parts, it "can" be cheaper to rebuilt a rotary. But since not all mechanics can rebuild a rotary, they "can" potentially charge you more for it for a specialist.

Yeah, reliability is an issue for me. Also, trunk space too. Thank you for the responses all of you 

[BlueChinchillaEatingDorito]

Whichever used car you buy, whether it's a Toyota Corolla, a Mazda RX-7, or even a BMW 3 series, get the thing inspected by a third party. So if the car is being sold by Car Dealer A, have them take it to Car Dealer B, or a well known Specialist for that brand to have an inspection done. You will pay for the inspection and only you will be able to look at the results. This is pretty much the best way to protect yourself when buying used cars. Oh, and make sure the two dealers aren't owned by the same group. Mercedes Benz dealers here in Canada are mostly all operated by Mercedes Benz Canada. So in that case, a specialist might be the better option. 

On ‎10‎/‎4‎/‎2018 at 1:54 PM, aki adaki said:

What things should I know or look at before buying an older car? 

 

I'm looking at getting a 1992 Mazda rx-7 or a 1993 Toyota supra. 

I'm by no means a mechanic, but I've seen some really nice cars which swayed my mind. 

 

Obviously look for lower miles, less body damage rust and spacing of body panels... But other than that? 

At this point I wouldn't even touch those cars unless I know the full ownership history, and it passes a third party inspection. These cars are mostly bought up by "ricers" before you and could have some pretty badly done modifications done to them that are hard and expensive to reverse. It's sort of the same reason why it's hard to find a nice 6th Generation Civic Si. They've mostly been riced or crashed.