Yea go on bag them, but i like them, any particular things to check on on them when looking for one! common problems! cheers
granada,
Jul 22, 5:35am
I agree , would love old 70s model GTO but hard to find a good one
dasfi,
Jul 22, 5:40am
Opps im after a 90's one
carkitter,
Jul 22, 7:24am
All the usual things for sports cars - accident damage, worn turbos, gearbox, suspension, brake wear. There's a reason why Honda NSX and Toyota Supra are sought after while GTO and Nissan 300ZX are selling under $10K
esprit,
Jul 22, 8:10am
Man the harpoons!
richardmayes,
Jul 22, 2:41pm
Were they ever sold new here!
I remember in the 1990s when they were nearly new, we were behind one in traffic (must have been on holiday in Auckland) and my Mum wondered out loud if the red "GTO" in front of us was a Ferrari.
Cue eye rolls and "Geez, Mum, don't you know ANYTHING.!"
yogibearz,
Jul 22, 5:24pm
Yes they were sold new here. Not many at from memory some where over $100k. They went like hell and were expensive to fix. There are not many good ones around now. They have all been thrashed around well and truely
bwg11,
Jul 22, 5:42pm
Sorry, but I've driven sportier trucks. As someone else said, try a JZA80 Supra.
jason18,
Jul 22, 6:03pm
Common problems. Usually the sexuality of the owners ;) Hahha Just joking
bevharris1938,
Jul 22, 6:18pm
Make sure you get a MANUAL , TURBO model , good resale value. The worst one to get is a AUTO , NON TURBO.
phillip.weston,
Jul 22, 6:29pm
Yes they were sold NZ-new and were imported in built up to order much like the top spec Diamantes of the time (super rare to find one though). The NZDM GTO was just a clone of the UKDM model, so had full black leather interior, 160mph/260km/h instrument cluster and some other nice bits the Jap spec ones didn't have. Rumour is the the UK models didn't have the 280PS restriction in place so ran slightly higher boost and were pushing over 300hp factory.
tgray,
Jul 22, 6:32pm
A guy at the AK car fair had a manual 1991 with 140k's and wanted $3500 for it. He stood there for 4 hours and didn't sell it. I told him to put it on trademe for $4500. He did and sold it the next day for asking price. He phoned me the next day to thank me, having made $1000 more than he originally wanted, lol.
phillip.weston,
Jul 22, 6:32pm
Things to check for would be leaking 4WS system, make sure the active aero still works, make sure the active suspension still works (usually it's the suspension ECU which fails first).
Make sure the engine sump isn't dented, often when they get their cambelt changed for the first time mechanics jack the engine up by the sump when removing the cambelt side engine mount and therefore dents the sump partially blocking the oil pick up, and then you run into oil starvation issues.
The pre 1993 models had a 2-bolt mains crankshaft with a not so good oiling system, while the 1993 onwards models switched to a 4-bolt mains crankshaft with much improved oiling. From about the 1992/1993 facelift onwards they got the 4-piston/2-piston brake combo, earlier models tend to not have them.
tigra,
Jul 22, 6:35pm
Well it was RED! Must be fast.
phillip.weston,
Jul 22, 6:37pm
I think the important thing to keep in mind is these cars are now a 20+ year old performance car with most of them pushing 150,000-250,000kms by now - therefore they are going to be a bit maintenance prone with oil consumption issues, notchy transmissions, worn suspension, turbo issues etc. Hopefully rust wouldn't be a problem for another 10+ years.
timmo1,
Jul 22, 8:11pm
They often get dismissed for reasons other than performance- but they were certainly a quick car in their time.
I have an old Jeremy Clarkson DVD with one of the segments being to find the best handling car. The GTO didn't win but it did set the fastest lap time against some pretty capable rivals (Nissan R33 GTR, Ferrari456 etc)
phillip.weston,
Jul 22, 9:37pm
yeah the GTO wasn't a fantastic handler - that would happen when you base the vehicle around a shortened four door Diamante platform (which in itself was just a stretched and widened version of a Galant platform).
unbeatabull,
Jul 23, 1:29am
Can't group the 300 with the atrocity that is the GTO!
When I was a kid I had a small crush on the GTO thanks to Gran Turismo. Luckily, I found out how much of a steaming pile they are!
IF you do get one, get one that has full service history, Turbo and Manual.
In reality though, they have a ridiculous amount of electrics in them . which DO fail a lot. Good Sparky's aren't cheap these days.
Not to mention the engines, oil leaks, failures, gearbox & suspension issues, and the fact they handle like an overweight pig . and they do weigh a LOT for a sports car.
But hey, if you want one, knock yourself out lol
bwg11,
Jul 23, 2:24am
Yes, almost 250 kg heavier than a comparable Supra.
unbeatabull,
Jul 23, 2:27am
Which is a lot really for a sports car, considering they are of similar size etc as well
phillip.weston,
Jul 23, 3:50am
don't forget the Supra is RWD so doesn't have the additional weight of the 4WD components - it's only marginally heavier than the Skyline GTR and the Skyline uses many alloy components to kept weight down while the GTO does not.
Let's not forget that the GTR's still cost anywhere from $20k for a reasonable R32 to $70k+ for a tidy R34 V-Spec II. Stock for stock, the GTO offers nearly the same performance for only a small fraction of the cost.
motorboy2011,
Jul 23, 4:24am
I'd have to disagree, the 4wd skyline does not use huge amounts of alloy to save weight over the rwd version. Weight difference between the rwd/4wd skyline is around 150kg in the non gtr versions, this 4wd system is the same as the gtr's
unbeatabull,
Jul 23, 4:35am
Hey I can argue the same for my TT 300ZX, that stock to stock, it would probably be on par if not out perform the likes of a GTR or Supra. End of the day though, they aren't desirable cars, and they do have more then there fair share of niggly issues that can potentially cost just as much in the long run as a tidy Supra or Skyline.
carkitter,
Jul 23, 5:11am
The NSX and Supra were true supercars while the 300ZX and GTO were more like Japanese versions of 'Pony-cars', ie: Mustang and Camaro. In fact, the GTO was sold in the US as the Dodge Stealth.
I would say the GTO offers a small fraction of the experience provided by the Nurburgring-bashing GTR.
cdjtrading,
Jul 23, 6:19am
I looked at a few gtos a while back ended up getting a 5speed 300zx much more happy with it. if you really love the gto then get one but make sure you want to spend $$$$ on it look after it and it will treat you fair. 300zx its alot like the gto both got no room in the back. but both good performance cars for a good price .
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