£2995 Too Much For...

[__Nick__]

1992 Toyota Mr2 T-bar J Reg

60k miles (40k engine recon - is that weird or jus me?)

It has the Jap spec, although is a uk car (air con etc)

17" alloys

Mint Paintwork

Is 2995 an alright price for a car like this? (i think it is, hoping you guys aren't gonna tell me otherwise! - but i know you guys are brutally honest lol)

planning on driving 400 miles if all checks out - i know its maybe slightly more expensive as i'm buying it from a dealer. but comes with 12 months mot, 6 tax and a months warranty on the engine...

What you guys think?

Stress

[Stu8]

seems an alright price to me.

[Fidgits]

i'd say on the high side for the age. but if its mint, then maybe worth it!

[__Nick__]

seems an alright price to me.

Cheers! nice to hear :) - any idea why an engine would be reconditioned after 40k? seems a little early on in its life. Just a nice loving owner? or has it has its nuts rallied off?!?!

[acstreet]

a good price but surely you can knock him off a little aswell.. and then get it even cheaper

[__Nick__]

a good price but surely you can knock him off a little aswell.. and then get it even cheaper

part of the plan, only thing is... No idea how much i can knock off these guys? - Never bought a car from a dealer. Realistic price drop?

[Stu8]

many reasons.

But hopefully not becuase it's had some internal damage like over heating etc etc......

But if the engine has warranty then I would take that as it's been done by a good mechanic

[Vlad_E]

Bit of a high price IMO , a 60k car with a recon engine on an NA toyota, the 3SGE engine is pretty bulletproof so maybe the last engine was neglected, leading me to think... well has the rest of the car been too?

humm I dunno, go and see, but It would really have to be mint to pay that price for a J reg

[__Nick__]

Bit of a high price IMO , a 60k car with a recon engine on an NA toyota, the 3SGE engine is pretty bulletproof so maybe the last engine was neglected, leading me to think... well has the rest of the car been too?

humm I dunno, go and see, but It would really have to be mint to pay that price for a J reg

Hmm, a little worrying. Interior is full leather - no rips/tears, no damage at all with the bodywork, alloys unmarked. - Which is what drew me to it. And 60k is the best mileage i've seen on the market at the moment.

but again, i'm not exactly experienced with buying cars. - i own a 1.2 vauxhall corsa that i bought from my parents

lol, all the input is fantstic - what would you guys expect to pay out for one of these?

p.s. its a 400 mile drive if i decide to buy it!

[acstreet]

dale does sound right but then again me and my sister paid 2000 for ours and mine is not really mint i hjad to work on it first and my sisters had a couple of dents in but now got them pulled out...

so if its really mint and you got the tax and mot which is good and 60k sounds good so IMO i think sounds not a bad price but i think you should try and get something off offer 2700-2800 if possible

[__Nick__]

dale does sound right but then again me and my sister paid 2000 for ours and mine is not really mint i hjad to work on it first and my sisters had a couple of dents in but now got them pulled out...

so if its really mint and you got the tax and mot which is good and 60k sounds good so IMO i think sounds not a bad price but i think you should try and get something off offer 2700-2800 if possible

shall have to work on my charm!

[__Nick__]

Anything else i should be carefull of? I'm thinkin the people i'm speaking to are pretty genuine. The amount of people i've spoken to on the phone who want nothing more than to hang up is unreal!

Its big downside is that it doesn't have a FSH. The previous owner "lost" a huge pile of receipts etc, it has MOT's back to 2002 and thats it.

Do i ask the dealer for their best price or try to push a price of my own?

Which works better?

[acstreet]

id say go as low as say 2600 and he probaly tell you to bugger off or say no i was looking for more so you offer say another hundred and so on just gotta try and bargain with them

dealers usually put there prices high anyway because they know people will push them down

basically just check it all over make sure its all mint and check the engine for any unusual noises and look for oil leaks or fuel leaks anything like that really

[Flat Pack]

Something sounds a bit odd to me and I wouldn't expect anything odd for a car at top money (which this is, especially for the time of year). Lack of history combined with a very premature engine recon is pretty suspicious, how do you know it hasn't been to the moon and back before 2002 hence the need for the rebuild?

By all means take a look at it, but be prepared to bargain hard and just remember there are plenty more cars out there :)

[__Nick__]

Something sounds a bit odd to me and I wouldn't expect anything odd for a car at top money (which this is, especially for the time of year). Lack of history combined with a very premature engine recon is pretty suspicious, how do you know it hasn't been to the moon and back before 2002 hence the need for the rebuild?

By all means take a look at it, but be prepared to bargain hard and just remember there are plenty more cars out there :)

Ok, slightly worried...i know the lack of FSH is a good bargaining aid, but i'm no mechanic - the only thing i've got as backup is a Hpi check in january that says the cars clear. I take it that doesn't include the mileage at any point in the check?

Also,

just remember there are plenty more cars out there :)

No, no there isn't (huff)

[Stu8]

you dont need to be mechanic just look for obvious things like rust etc

check the suspension, turn the engine over, rev it see if anything rattles. etc etc

when testing driving it; does it feel right? really simple things to look for............

[__Nick__]

you dont need to be mechanic just look for obvious things like rust etc

check the suspension, turn the engine over rev it see if anything rattles. etc etc

i was kinda meanin more along the lines of making sure it hasn't done 300,000,000 miles from moon n back :P

done enough research reading about your lots cars/problems, so i'll be able to have a half decent wonder around - without lookin too much like a tire kicker!

Thanks again for all the comments tho, seriously helps keep my feet on the ground!

No-one happens to live in Wiltshire do they? :S

[Stu8]

if the engine runs sweet, I wouldnt care if it had done 300,000,000 miles. ;)

[__Nick__]

cheers. I'll get on the phone tomorrow sometime i think! It sounds genuine, the garage have now told me they have the phone numbers of 2 garages who have serviced the car before 2002 and the previous owners number. Might be worth a jinlgle later on...

[acstreet]

good luck with it all and hope it all turns out well for you and when you do get one enjoy and i asure you

you will

[JustJJ]

Right.... well I have a UK NA.. K reg paintwork pretty sound (few stone chips... but thats normal she is 12 years old!) When I picked her up she had done 95k and had Full service history...Engine is fantastic... sound as a pound! (*touches wood now lol)

And I bought her for £2850... In the middle of summer! (Sellers Market for T-bars)... and she is a rarer colour! Zircon blue lol... and she hasnt had an engine rebuild... has been well looked after... had a load of new bits (radiator, alternator, fog light) before I bought her... so I knew they werent going to go on me...

I would say that if that J reg is mint... the price is ok... and by ok I mean reasonable.... you -will- want to bring him down...

I would be worried about the engine rebuild... as people have said.. the yamaha engines tend to be bulletproof.... it could be that one of the previous owners didnt look after it... possibly let her run low on oil.. bottom end went.. or something... you just dont know...

The other thing... the lack of service history.. is another biggie... mine came with full service history.. like I said...yeah I was lucky... but the fact that its been 'lost' as you say... does sound a bit odd...

Needless to say... at the end of the day, you cant judge a car without going to see it... having a look around etc... I know 400miles is a long way... but I personally would never buy a car without seeing it... inspecting it.. and giving her a run...

A great set of information to go armed with (if you go) is the buyers guide from IMOC HERE - Buyers Guide ... it gives you things to look out for... mechanically... bodyworkwise etc etc...

just remember there are plenty more cars out there :)

No, no there isn't (huff)

Yes there are... dont set your heart on one singular car... you -will- get your heart broken.... When I started looking in earnest for my baby... I had the same problem... I wanted a Zircon Blue... reasonably rare... I wanted a T-bar.. .and I wanted a good example...

Was gonna look at one in huddersfield and two days before.. she sold... beautiful thing with stainless exhaust and nice alloys...

Then... was gonna go see one in middlesbrough....and the morning we were gonna go.. we rang up... guess what?... Sold!!! that morning!!! and she was even better!!!!!! Air con....

I was so downhearted... on both occasions... but they do crop up... and I found Skye on eBay... went to see her.. gave her a good going over.. and that was it... fell in love, she was sound.. and have never looked back!

Good Luck hon I knwo what its like when you think you have found 'the one' ... but if there is even something that worries you once you get down there... something you arent sure of... walk away...

[Fizz]

Way too expensive mate... Get on the www.imoc.co.uk and check out the for sale section.

You can pick up a J plate Turbo for that kinda monies and they hold more value than the NA.

Esp with such a long trip... just warning ya bud.

Check out some close to home first to give you an idea of what to compare to.

If you want some help.. add me to your MSN and i will try and give what limited info i can fella.

[__Nick__]

Thank you all again for your replies!

Jayden - some grear advice in there, sounds like you've been on the same road i have. Done the exact same! Want one in black preferably, was about to go have a look at one in essex with similar mileage - but none of the frills a couple of weeks ago - sold whilst organising a date to go have a look :(

Have read that imoc buyers guide over n over as i must admit i'm a novice when it comes to mechanics (have learned a few things from the car i'm driving now, but the toyota engine is VERY different. Hopefully i've got reasonable knowledge to spot the flags if they are there...

Fizz - have taken you up on that offer! only thing is, theres no way i can get insured on a turbo yet, that'd be a few years down the line if these cars are as fun as they look!

Just literally started looking elsewhere from private sales this week, already signed up for updates from eBay, ad trader and autotrader. Skimmed the imoc website for the past few months also, only one that i thought was worth a look was a grey one that'd done 140k (mileage in the end put me off)

I'll continue questioning, if i manage to get the price lowered i'll definitly do the drive (and bring a level headed friend with a coupla days spare to keep me grounded!)

If anyone knows of a quality uk 2 for sale, do let me know!

Thanks for taking the time to read my babbling! :P

[JustJJ]

No probs hon :) Yeah I know what its like... but those beauties do crop up... if I can be of assistance let me know :) I cant say I am of extremely mechanical mind.. but I know my way reasonably around a '2 now... having been trying to work on mine myself for a lot of the smaller jobs (with help from friends mind! ;) )... eg new brake pads fitting... top up coolant with antifreeze etc.. :)