1987 Nissan 200sx, opinion?

Any one has experience with this car? How is Nissan in general? I know they make strong engine, most powerful car (Skyline GT-R) but what about their other "not so powerful" cars?

Is it cheap to repairs a typical Nissan car? I asked my friends who owned Nissan Maxima and Altima, all of them are very happy in terms of performance and reliable.

Btw, this car is classic RWD. Its a beauty in my book. I want to have one for this winter lol

you shouldn't buy an old car like that for the winter. its unreilable because its soo old. and ***** in the winter is hardest to repair because its soo cold..

PLUS. you don't want a rwd car in the winter.
especially if you don't know how to handle it in the snow.

skyline isnt the most powerful car. lol
nissan does make quality cars.
nissan pretty good to fix.

It's a really fun car to drive, especially in winter.

Oh yeah about reliability in the winter thats the problem i think

I dont mean Skyline is the MOST powerful car in general but it is most powerful car from Japan. No deny about it, the car makes its legend

Reason i want RWD in snow is to "play" around. I wont be driving much this winter but weekly 100KM highway driving.

Obviously the most concern is engine and such. If things broke but car is still fully safety and functional i will just prepare or work on it in spring.

The one i'm looking at has good body no rust. Frame is still intact. Engine is questionable cause i need a mechanic to check on that. Its drivetrain is supposed to be good as well. But cant conclude unless a fully inspection was done.

I'm concerning what are bad things about Nissan cars in general, and this car in particular. What does a repair usually go? What kind of things that may break down with a car this age?

If i remember,
they come in a few forms..
a V6(VG) out from the old school 300zx, and a 4cyl(CA) NA.

it was short lived, but it showed up again during the mid 90's with an SR engine.

unless you're getting a killer deal on it, i would advise against getting a car almost 20 years old, even though it is RWD. at that age, anything and everything on it has the potential to rust or break... plus the fact its a rare car to come by so sourcing parts would be difficult if you needed repairds

i would suggest you take a look at something newer, possibly a 1989-1994 gen Nissan 240sx, much more commonplace, and you can still get a good deal on one

it would make a good project/fun car, if you have the time and money in it. I wouldnt buy it if its use as a commuter car.

RWD cars are better in the winter than FWD. Obviously 4WD cars are superior. Just make sure you have winter tires with adequate treads. With FWD, if you break late, and try steering, and are understeering, you are screwed. You lose both drive and steering. Where as RWD, you still have steering and drive. Hope I don't have to teach folks how to drive RWD in the winter.

If you don't, practice in an empty parking lot. Its fun, get to know your car. If your car has ABS, do not pump it. If pwr brakes, pump it if you are skidding. Just make sure you do not put the brakes when you are cornering.

Originally Posted by EG8_Civic

RWD cars are better in the winter than FWD. Obviously 4WD cars are superior. Just make sure you have winter tires with adequate treads. With FWD, if you break late, and try steering, and are understeering, you are screwed. You lose both drive and steering. Where as RWD, you still have steering and drive. Hope I don't have to teach folks how to drive RWD in the winter.

If you don't, practice in an empty parking lot. Its fun, get to know your car. If your car has ABS, do not pump it. If pwr brakes, pump it if you are skidding. Just make sure you do not put the brakes when you are cornering.

that's not true, and I am not trying to start an argument with you. Understeer is much much more easier to control than oversteer. With understeer you can still manage to control where you're steering, as it is your tail that is losing traction. but with oversteer you have a hard time figuring out where the car is heading, because it is the head of your car that loses traction. In winter, you definitely want understeer. The reason why alot of MB or BMWs are stuck in winter is also due to this reason, and the fact because the rear is light the car has a hard time putting all the power to traction on the ground

JUNK......stay away!

Originally Posted by MameXP

Any one has experience with this car? How is Nissan in general? I know they make strong engine, most powerful car (Skyline GT-R) but what about their other "not so powerful" cars?

Is it cheap to repairs a typical Nissan car? I asked my friends who owned Nissan Maxima and Altima, all of them are very happy in terms of performance and reliable.

Btw, this car is classic RWD. Its a beauty in my book. I want to have one for this winter lol

Originally Posted by fast_typeR

that's not true, and I am not trying to start an argument with you. Understeer is much much more easier to control than oversteer. With understeer you can still manage to control where you're steering, as it is your tail that is losing traction. but with oversteer you have a hard time figuring out where the car is heading, because it is the head of your car that loses traction. In winter, you definitely want understeer. The reason why alot of MB or BMWs are stuck in winter is also due to this reason, and the fact because the rear is light the car has a hard time putting all the power to traction on the ground

Huh? I agree with you that understeering is better/easier to control. But i believe you messed up the technical explaination:

Understeering means your front end loose traction

As opposed to,

Oversteering means your back end loose traction

Thus, when you're understeering you break to transfer weight of the car to front giving directional force on the front wheels that will let it grabs traction.

When you're oversteering, you ease up or let go of gas let the wheel to grab traction then you countersteering to correct. Lots of ppl prefer oversteering because its actaully let them know what wheel to to put directional force. You can break, gas at the same time.

it's an ugly car but it'll serve well for a regular driver
there was indeed a V6 VG but they were pretty rare
i wouldn't buy it however if it was given to me, i would take it

in terms of nissans, i've owned 2 of them now and have not had any major problems

Originally Posted by MameXP

Huh? I agree with you that understeering is better/easier to control. But i believe you messed up the technical explaination:

Understeering means your front end loose traction

As opposed to,

Oversteering means your back end loose traction

Thus, when you're understeering you break to transfer weight of the car to front giving directional force on the front wheels that will let it grabs traction.

When you're oversteering, you ease up or let go of gas let the wheel to grab traction then you countersteering to correct. Lots of ppl prefer oversteering because its actaully let them know what wheel to to put directional force. You can break, gas at the same time.

you're right,
that is my bad as i mixed up the two

When you're oversteering, you ease up or let go of gas let the wheel to grab traction

well not really, there is such thing as lift-throttle over-steer with RWD cars.

I'd pony up for something better that's RWD.