Recently i've been car shopping for either a mazda rx7, a nissan 240sx, or a old 300zx around 84-89. But i have a few questions that i would like to know answers about before i start looking.


What are some of the things i should look for? (ie. problems or techinical issues that dealer or seller might try to hide)

Should i look for a rebuild or a original?


How many seats are there?


Does it have power steering?

Is $2700 a reasonable price for a '87 300zx?



Please help me answer these questions cause i seriously want to have one of these babies!


Thanks a lot if u can help me out

 

Well mechanically speaking 300zx's r pretty rock solid. Power steering would be an asset cuz the steering is really stiff without it (more so on 300's i find). Any more info can be found here: www.z31.com
With that said, unless u know exactly wat to look for (or listen and smell for), stay away from rx7's. I'm an rx7 fan and have been for years. The list for things to look for on an old rx7 is like 5 pages long :P

 

I love and adore rx7s i drool when i see one. It's like one of my dream cars expecially the Anni editon. omfg so nice. My cousin recently bough a rebuild rx7 '88. It's pretty fast and nice for 2000 cdn. I want one but i want to be different and get a 300zx. I love all the Zs like the z32 and the brand new 350zs. I was wondering if u had any major problems with it or anything that has been annoying. Also if there is any tips for buying a use car, like should i bring a mechanic or something or just someone that knows more about cars than me.

 

Well for the record i love rx7's as well..and if anything i found my 300zx while i was checking out this 87 rx7 turbo II.

I bought my car as a project car, its an 86 n/a 2+2 seater. It cost me 800 cdn
Like i said...mechanically speaking it was solid, just a few minor problems that can be attributed to old age and being stored for a long time. I dont really know of any chronic problems the Z's have in terms of mechanical problems, but my biggest problem was rust. Make sure the car you're looking at has minimal rust. Also the engine is a pain to work on cuz its so tightly packed, so you might wanna consider that as well.
And its always a good idea to bring a mechanic you trust with you when checking out a car to buy.

 

http://z31.com/lookfor.shtml

Depends on what you want. I have no problems buying a car with 200k and original as long as the engine and drivetrain are still good.

Questions to ask yourself:
Why was it rebuilt?
Did they do a good job rebuilding it?

Available with 2 or 4 seats in the NA versions, and only 2 seats in the turbo versions (in the US anyway)

They all came from the factory with AC, PS, PW, PL, tilt, and stereo/cassette. Most came with cruise.

Depends on condition, but yes.

Realize that these cars are now 15 to 20 years old. They'll have all the problems associated with cars of their age. These cars can easily be made reliable, but that takes many hours of work and many dollars in parts.