Mechanics please. opinion requested

Thanks, you are all being so helpful and it is much appreciated.I went around Whangarei today to look at cars and I think I can get one a lot cheaper in Auckland with a lower mileage, so might plan a trip down there with my husband. There's no immediate rush as our finance is tied up till mid September so we appreciate having the time to look around first and to seek all your expert advice.I have been looking on yong10's trademe listings.quite a selection of small cars there with low mileage and better prices.What does anyone think about those please!.

Both companies have reverse engineered entire vehicles from their competitors and made exact duplicates which they have sold en masse. They are guilty of steeling hundreds of millions of dollars in research and development.

Such thieves should be thrown in jail, not allowed to trade here.

have you had a look at Sells its self in kamo. He sells on behalf and is well priced.

We have been but not this week.will look again though.Thanks for the reminder.

We test drove four vehicles that we liked today.The one we are considering now is a 20045 door automatic Nissan Micra with 60K on the clock.It has a camchain so now worries there. We think we will still have a look in Auckland as the cars seem cheaper by about $2 - 3,000 but I have 3 questins now please to ask.
1. What's anyone's opinion regarding this Nissan Micra car please!
2. Please can you explain what V V T I is!
3.How much might we expect to reasonably bargain down a price with a car dealer.I know it can depend on a trade-in but the telstar is not worth much anyway so might sell it at an auction instead.

In general, buying older cars with a camchain in the hope of saving money on maintenance is just folly.

Camchains can cause trouble at higher km's and generally cost more to replace, plus all the other things that you should replace when you do a cambelt like the waterpump etc don't tend to get done.

Unfortunately people have been mislead into thinking cam chains are the bees knees by car dealers who of course love them because they don't have to pay to replace a cambelt before selling a vehicle or explain why it hasn't been done.

So if your ideal car happens to have a chain, well that's fine but buy it knowing what you are buying. Cars of that age chain or not are usually due for a decent comprehensive service anyway, so I would suggest you allow money in your budget for getting that done. Once done you usually get away with just basic servicing for a few years.

As someone said above, you can't do away with maintenance. Its a small part of your motoring costs anyway so I don't know why you would try.

Yes, thank you for that.I am learnign heaps!Even my husband was impressed with my knowledge today!Any car we do get will be well looked after as we always do all the required checks and serivcing.we have an excellent mechanic.

2. Variable valve timing injected (or intelligence in some cases). Basically any decent car of that age will have this technology, nothing to get excited about.

3. Depends on the car and how much margin they have in it, best thing to do is to compare it with the going rate for private sales of the same thing to gauge whether its a good deal.

I would suggest you don't go out of your way to get one from a dealer, the money you save could be spent on a pre-purchase check and getting the servicing up to date.

Good work, and well done on taking the time to learn. Most people don't and waste a lot of money in the process.

BTW, how much roughly is the Micra!

The other thing is don't get too hung up on price, If you like the car and its reasonable, then buy it. If your keeping the car for a while then those few xtra dollars that you spend are nothing. The other thing is if you look for too long you can get very dispondant and won't know what to believe or not, then jump into something that was not as good as some of the previous options. All the best.

1) the micra is the kiwi new name The jap import version is called the March. I think they are a really nice car -peppy and economical.
2) VVTI is variable valve timing.-It means that when you want to go fast the car adjusts part of the engine to give power and when just cruising it does the oposite to give fuel economy.
3) Sorry I go over this a lot. Don't go into a dealer with preconceived ideas thjat you'll get XX% discount or $XXX knocked off.
Do your research what that model is selling for so you already know where the dealers price is sitting.You can then make an offer knowing you are offering a fair deal for you.
4)I disagree with Jazzpianoma in that buying from a (reputable) dealer has value. First is knowing the car isn't stolen or has money owing.
The second is that on the occasions that you have mechanical failures (big or small) you have comeback.
No matter how good a make/model is things sometimes go wrong with a particular vehicle.should it be a gearbox failure for example it can be costly to you.
Please understand I am a dealer so a bit biased BUT I put money where mouth is when it comes to the very occasional mechanical issues my customers experience

I am so appreciative of the advice I've been gven from this forum.it is absolutely fantastic!We are in the wonderful position of having to wait to free up money which is able to be used form 11 September.We will not purcchase anything except for cash as we do not want ANY debt!And as a reault,I am so enjoying having no time pressure t and being able to learn stuff in he meantime.
The dealerwants $12,999 and we see similar ones in Auckland for $8-9,000 so it is well worth the saving, we feel.I see there are warehouses in Glenfield which have a big selection, so we wil go down once we have hte money.
One thing more to ask.some have advised the cars have a radiation free certificate and someone said we shouldn't get a car without it.Wuldn't it be one of the standards NZ dealers would check out as a requirement for imports!Or should we seriously ask for proof!

Thanks, we'll look out for one to test drvie up here.Will give us a better idea.

I appreciate that, thank you.

BOY O BOY are you gonna open a can o worms with that question. :-)
Ok I very recently returned from Japan.
Ever since the Fukashuma disaster it has been a requirement that ANY car intended for export be "scanned" for radiation.This is part of what dealers are now paying for when we pay what are called "agents fees"
The official "scan" is a simple pass/fail test. Fail and the car does not leave Japan.-its that simple.
There isn't a piece of paper as such but once scanned and passedwe have noticed a little sticker saying its passed.-this is fairly recent-the past 7 or so months the sticker has apeared
Agents though are not stupid and before the official test is done they scan the cars themselves with a geiger counter.If it looks like a fail its sent back. I'd like to say its because they love us so much--its notits a simple economic decision.They know full well that a radiation fail in NZ will result in a lost customer. Im pretty small potatoes but I'm still buying 15-30 a month from them. Its in their best interest to make sure the car is in good condition

For what the dealer want's IMO you really would be much better off with the Golf.

The March as good as it may be is a cheap little shopping basket when new whereas the Golf was not only a lot more expensive it was by far and away best in its class at that time.

The difference in terms of build quality, features, safety, handling, comfort etc is huge yet you are paying the same money.

So yes even more reason to try a Golf, just remember though you want the new shape MK5 which starts part way into 2004. Look for the bigger front lights like the one in the picture.

Even $8K - $9K for the March would be plenty for how much car you are getting and you would want a really top low km example of that year for the money if you want good value IMO.

With regard to radiation, the messageboard views are quite divided on that one. There has been heated debate over several threads about it. Personally I am not too worried about the radiation coming directly from the vehicles. They test for that and do a reasonably good job IMO.

What bothers me is the dirt/dust right throughout Japan is known to contain "hot particles" these are basically specs of dust that are radioactive. If you run a Geiger counter over them it likely won't go off because emissions are weak, and to hold a few in a gloved hand would likely do you no harm.

However, there is concern among some scientists that these particles once inhaled lodge in your esophagus and/or lungs for life. While the radiation from them is not enough to harm your gloved hand. The particles can cause real harm once in direct contact with your flesh.

The problem is when driving around the engine and cabin filters work as the perfect net concentrating and catching these particles. Once in the filters a jolt in the road or changing the filter can potentially dislodge them for you to breath in.

If you do a search you will see my threads on the matter and the links to the science and the pictures of some filters with the particles in them. Pretty much its a given that the filters from cars throughout Japan will almost certainly have a number of hot particles in them. What is up for debate is whether the particles actually do as much harm when ingested as some scientists think

Personally, I won't buy a post Fukushima Japanese import. I just don't see why I should take the risk when I can easily buy a pre-Fukushima disaster car or a NZ new one for the same money.

The choice though is up to you. However, at a bare minimum I would suggest you change both the cabin and engine filters of affected imports immediately. Wipe down the filter housings and dispose of the old filters carefully in a zip lock bag, while wearing disposable gloves. Some cheap car's don't have cabin filters so you need to decide whether you are happy with the idea that there will be hot particles lodged in the fabric of the interior, crevices etc.

BTW,

If you decide you want a Golf, I suggest you come back and I can fill you in on the different maintenance requirements of the 1.6 and 2.0 versions (both are incredibly economical) and what it will likely cost to bring servicing up to date and then ongoing. Plus what to look for in a good one.

Thank you indeed.Everyone is being so kind to me here. Youare all taking a lot of time to inform me and I am so appreciative.

stick to the nissan over the golf, there are reasons why i say this not because i dont like golfs i just wouldn't own one, doesnt take long! bait the fish then hook it lols, nothing changes

Its nice to be appreciated. Also, your thread (and others like it) do me a favour as well. Unfortunately my health means I have to put the tools down and rest up a lot of the time, sharing my passion for cars beats waiting it out watching T.V anyday.

Just be aware there are a few trolls lurking, but mostly your thread has been left well alone by them which is fortunate.

Sorry to hear you are not well. I must sayI rave all the time about the forums on trademe to my friends and how valuable they have been to me in the past and it is because of people like you!Sit down and polish your halo!

OK!We have decided to go for a Nissan Micro or March so will be coming to Auckland next week to purchase.We test drove a selection of cars and liked the Nissan the best.quiet, economical, comfortable and roomy!I just want to say a huge thank you to all of you who answered every question I asked about cars and who helped me decide when I am a person who (typical lady, I understand) goes by car colour!Thank you!Any further comments on the Nissan please!What should we look for when we are purchasing and comparing!

Any of the Japanese small cars will serve you well and will give you good value for money, notable cars such as Honda Jazz, Mitsubishi Colt & Colt Plus, Toyota Yaris, Nissan Micra, Suzuki Swift should all see you right. Some of these cars will have a CVT transmission which I believe to be superior in a small car.

What is a CVT transmission please!What should I look for when I am purchasing the Nissan!

When you get to Auckland, look these guys up for a deal. http://www.millcars.co.nz/vehicle-list.aspx
I hear the owner is a straight shooting type of dealer, not your normal bloke. Rumour has it he is so straight up he sleeps in the vertical position. lol.
Seriously, Tony will see you right!