I'm thinking of purchasing a '90 240sx. I got it checked out by a mechanic, and discovered it has the following problems, i was just wondering if anyone could give me a little insight into these problems, and which things i could do myself (the labor) and also the costs on parts... also if anyone has these parts for sale used and cheap, i would be interested.

Lifters tick: Would this most likely mean replacing all of them? and how much do these generally cost each? Also, how critical is it to replace them quickly? (safe to drive for a day? week? month?)

Vibrating universal joint: Mechanic said it might just be that another mechanic put it in upside down, or one of the U-joints are worn (apparently individual u-joints arn't repairable so it means either a whole driveshaft replacement, or the mechanic drills out the old u-joint (i wouldnt want to do that myself, would cost a few hundred for mechanic to do).

Cracked radiator: I can get one off ebay for under $200CND shipped (i live in canada), how much of a hassle is it to install on a 240? i like DIY projects, but i dont have anything other than a little jack, and your run of the mill tools... i don't want to be dropping engines or anything like that.

Around here, 240's generally go for $2500-5000 from what i've seen. The woman selling it was unaware of the problems and was asking 2900 (she drove it mildly and problems didnt really surface for her), i talked her down to 2700 pre-inspection... Should i offer maybe $3000 and she does the work, or 27-2800 - the work, or just look for a different 240 (they are pretty hard to find a good price on out here (vancouver island).

 

Lifter tick...any high mileage engine is bound to get these eventually. Not a big problem as long as it stays the same sound, doesn't get louder or a rattle or cause other sounds.

U-joint...again not a BIG problem...but don't beat on the car until you fix it. Try reversing the driveshaft (turn it 180 and rebolt) to see if it's backasswards.

Radiator...it's a DIY. Not hard at all.

$2700 is still sort of good for an s13, try to get it lower if you can. Shoot us some pics and we can tell you if it's worth that much.

 

i dont have any pics, but its in almost perfect body condition. Interior is also very clean... it was a middle aged woman's car. There is a little fading on the top of the shifter and storage compartment, thats about it.

My mechanic said its the best 240sx body of its year he's seen in a long time. No undercarriage rust or wheelwell rust. One tiny spot of rust right on the back just under the spoiler.

There are a couple very minor dings on the side panels, but thats about it.

My mechanic says as far as the lifter tick goes, if it is left unchecked it could cause serious damage to the head.

Mechanic mentioned the 180 thing... if i get the car i'll most likely try that first... is this DIY-able?

Glad to hear about that as far as the radiator goes.

 

Depends on what sound. I have clicky lifters that I know are fine. Been clicking for 5 months now.

Buy the car man...sounds great...good body 240s are hard to find these days. Mechanically it's cheap to fix...worst case buy a new motor you can get one as cheap as 200 sometimes.

Yes it's DIY...just unbolt the driveshaft from the diff (4 bolts), turn it 180 degrees, bolt it back up.

 

Thanks very much for the advice. I think most likely i will go for this car, and just try and talk down the people a little more.

If the 180 thing doesnt fix the driveshaft... how critical is it to replace quickly? My mechanic says the vibration would likely cause damage to the tranny, but what sort of timeframe do i have before that happens?

 

Well I've been running with a very bad vibration (like you can hear it in the shifter between 10 and 30mph) at launch I can feel it shaking around violently (my center bearing is f-ed so it moves...that's the piece holding the two parts of the ds together....bad when it moves cause both parts move separtely then). I've been running that for about a month, I've autocrossed like that, I know it's stupid but I can't afford to replace it right now. You should be fine. If you trust it enough and realize that any vibration or noise is because of that...you'll be fine.