Its a 1996 SE 5 speed with 119000 miles on it. Its got leather, ABS, Bose, sunroof, and dual power seats. The Blue Book value is 7500, and thats how much he wants for it. It seems to ride well, and as far as I can tell, the clutch is fine. Im worried about the miles on it. The guy has only had it for about a year, and hasnt done any real repairs to it. He bought it from a dealer, and doesnt have any of the old repair records. Should I buy it? He says theres a scheduled maintainance thingy at 120000, and thats why the engine light is on. Are there any things that should be going wrong with the car by now that I should have checked out ie. tranny, belts, starter..... any tips? How much do you think I can bargain him down?

 

The MIL should not go on for scheduled maintainance. I would have a mechanic look it over before buying it.

Erik

 

I have heard of several members lights coming on and the car runs fine. But it would still be a good idea to have it looked at. Good luck. By the way the price sounds good.

 

like was said, the light should not go on for maintenance, so that is definitely something that needs to be looked into...also, you will be able to bargain down from the book value, because there is no way that he should expect to obtain that exact value for the car...you might wanna try running a carfax report on the car or something, just to check out the history before you buy

 

I say bargain him down to 5700-6000 at first. 7500 is way too much for 120K mi Max w/some problems, just say this to him word-to-word.

If he agrees to lower the price (and the car is State Inspected!)ONLY then spend 50 dolla to show the car to mechanic and see what he says. I would not buy this car if the buyer rejected any of those conditions.

 

The miles I think are ok, but the fact that he had it a year is fishy. Doesn't have any repair records means fuggetiboudit. Scheduled maintenance I mean c'mon he's trying to sell a car with a check engine light and tell you why? If I were you I'd rather pay 2 grand more and get something much better. Offer him 5800 and see what he says. If he goes up to 6500 get him down to 6200 and tell him it's contingent on someone you know putting the car on a lift. Don't get emotional, be prepared to kiss this one goodbye. In the minimum, take the car for a 120k service and see what the dealer says. If it's a mess, then pay them for an hour's labor. Heck it might save you from a $6000 headache! Can you say Hey Alleve?

 

The miles I think are ok, but the fact that he had it a year is fishy. Doesn't have any repair records means fuggetiboudit. Scheduled maintenance I mean c'mon he's trying to sell a car with a check engine light and tell you why? If I were you I'd rather pay 2 grand more and get something much better. [/B][/QUOTE]

Agree, seems like the guy wants to "dump" the car and looking for a fool to do it.

 

The fact that he only had it for a year is fishy. BUT, perhaps he baught it and then suddenly the MIL light came on. Now this guys thinking f--k this I'm selling it. Maybe it needs an 02 sensor, knock sensor or it was just a misfire Dump the codes yourself and see whats wrong with it. Bargin the guy down with the FACTS. You can read the code from the ECU so call him on it. You may wind up with a good deal. This guy might not know what's wrong with the car, but you have the .org to help you fix this. You could use the power of the org to slam you a nice deal!

 

thanks for all the info guys, but to be honest, i have no idea how to pull a code, so does that mean i have to take it to a Nissan dealership, or just any mechanic. he says hes selling the car because he has 3 cars, and just had a baby, and need the money, and cant handle the stick with his baby. who knows......anyways, how much longer do the tranny and engine have left on them? i know then engine is good for another 50K or so, but when I was pressing the clutch down, it had to go ALL the way to the floor to shift into third. since this is the first stick maxima ive ever driven, i cant tell if this is normal. any ideas about this besides getting it checked out? i was already planning on that. btw, the black leather is sweet. goodbye tan....