Hi there, wondering if somebody could help me.Today I took a car I was interested in buying to VTNZ for a pre purchase inspection and they identified rust on the firewall.It's a Nissan Tino 1999 1.8 litre non CVT model.Everything else with the car was perfect, other than the rust - the inspector said that the rust would mean the car would fail its next WOF and it shouldn't have passed the current one!I've got pics from the inspection:
I already told the seller no thanks, but out of curiosity can anybody tell me how much this would cost to fix approximately!Or is it one of those 'how long is a piece of string' situations!From what the inspector said, the whole engine would need to be taken out to access it.Any advice would be awesome, thanks.
mm12345,
Mar 25, 3:41am
x1
Those photos look like trouble.You should buy a carton of beer and give it to the VTNZ inspector who spotted it.
rob_man,
Mar 25, 3:50am
I can't see the pics without changing browsers but take it from me as a panelbeater for nearly thirty years, firewall rust is the death knell for most cars. You can make it go away for a little while but unless you do some major surgery it's going to come back.
intrade,
Mar 25, 4:15am
looks like the car belongs in the crusher. rust like this usually means the thing is rotten to the core and unfixable without risk of burning it to the ground .
duke250,
Mar 25, 6:34am
How much was he asking! Usually if it was a "too good to be true price" the owner would of known about the rust. But wonder if he will now change the listing description to "some rust holes on firewall".
redhead96,
Mar 25, 3:25pm
x1
When my car needed the firewall done it was around $1000. I didn't look at the photos so not sure if similar thou.
lizshady,
Mar 25, 3:53pm
Thanks so much everyone, nice to know we didn't buy a lemon! He was asking just over $4k for it, and funnily enough still is and hasn't changed auction details detailing rust. Can anyone tell me what might cause it! Just so I know whether this is a common problem with the tinos or not, and whether to avoid them altogether.
rob_man,
Mar 25, 3:59pm
It's quite common for the small Nissans to have rust between the seams of the firewall after they reach about five years old. We see a lot of them getting picked up during compliance as they come into the country.
bjmh,
Mar 25, 7:30pm
i wonder if these small nissans are not rust proofed as well as some,isaw a 05 micra and it was rusting around front x member joins,nothing appears to be painted underneath vehicle,might have just been this car.Remember early honda civics ! Neil Young was right.
mm12345,
Mar 25, 9:55pm
So what went wrong!I've had older (pre 2000) small Nissans, and never a hint of rust issues with any of them. A mate of mine has an ex Spain Navarra - and that's not looking too flash for a 5YO vehicle (surface rust on ladder chassis - especially around welds, and some spots taken out of body panels).
fordcrzy,
Mar 25, 10:30pm
its pretty simple really. in 1999 nissan nearly went bankrupt after 7 years of annual losses. and so they had to do something to get back in the black. they merged with renault and were forced to take on renaults cheaper manufacturing processes. they started building thier cars cheaper and cheaper. thats why they got heavily into CVT transmissions, because they are cheaper to build and more expensive to repair and service. (win win for the dealer). thats why good cars like the pulsar etc got replaced by much cheaper (to build) cars that are of suspect quality.
austingtir,
Mar 25, 11:18pm
I agree that nissan certainly cut costs and changed alot of stuff over to to simplify production.Their main issues was making to many different product lines with little between them and not enough overhead.This is why they ended up using motors like the vq35 and qr25 in the majority of their vehicles during that period.The vq is a good motor but the qr25's and the other lesser motors are certainly a bit cheap and basic (yet generally reliable) and are just an exercise in making a standardised engine that they could flog off for good money.
Do you realise how much money nissan has invested in CVT tech!They spent over 25 years working on the toroid cvt in the skyline alone.CVT has nothing to do with being cheap skate as they started down that path way way before any of their financial difficulties.
They are now releasing the pulsars (made in china i think) again so does this mean that they are back to making decent cars. who knows!I think you have to pick and choose.I would likely never buy a micra/tiida so it doesnt bother me to much most of the rest of nissans product line is pretty decent.The Navaras being made in thailand and now merging with the mitsi plant there is certainly not the best for that model though. I think i'll find a circa 2007 navara with low k's and keep that for sometime.
fordcrzy,
Mar 26, 1:47am
i wouldnt touch any nissan built between 1998 and 2007-2008ish.ESPECIALLY a small hatch. they are nowhere near as good as the venerable N14 and N15 pulsars in terms of reliability and even the first gen primeras were solid and well built. cars like the Tiida just make me shudder. Nissans only criteria when building suspension through that period was a wheel at each corner that goes up and down.handling/load carrying and driving dynamics didn't even factor.
grangies,
Mar 26, 2:55am
Where on the ''firewall'' are those pics taken!
lizshady,
Mar 26, 3:25am
Hi grangies, pretty much in the middle - in the first pic you can see the NEO on the engine, its behind that
llortmt,
Mar 26, 2:01pm
Probably a CVT trans fault!
NZTools,
Mar 26, 2:16pm
I had the missfortune of hiring a tiida over in oz at xmas time. What a truely aweful car. Nissan, you should be ashamed.
mm12345,
Mar 26, 2:55pm
So does it look like if the sound-deadening stuff gets wet, then it holds moisture against the firewall in that area for extended periods! Even bare steel shouldn't rust out to that extent over such a short time, unless something else is going on.
eagles9999,
Mar 27, 2:52pm
my '93 Avenir pass its last WoF but tester made comment that the bonnet hinges are showing signs of surface rust!.
bjmh,
Mar 27, 3:01pm
Its called making the customer realise how observant you are,some little old lady would be right impressed with his diligence
lizshady,
Mar 27, 6:16pm
Possibly, I only had a quick look at VTNZ while the guy pointed it out, then took it back and said thanks but no thanks.Glad I didn't go ahead, looks like it would've been a real lemon!
austingtir,
Mar 27, 11:34pm
I would expect it to be something like that causing it.A bit like the situation the mitsubishi lancers in the 90's had with roof rust because of the type of sealant they were using in the roof rails.
It is quite bad and in a place where if the car is painted and sealed properly shouldnt happen.
lookoutas,
Mar 27, 11:57pm
Notice how most Panelbeaters aren't coming forward with advise!!
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