What Should I Look For?

Tell me what i should check for when buying this type of car, I will be new into the miItsu game, But i love these cars, and this car will be fast, My freind will be buying an SRT-4 and I want to be right with him. So what Shold i check for IE motor, tranny , under the motor, and so on.

[Jakey]

IMHO opinion, you will get a lot more advice and help if you do the following:

Here are some ground rules for members to follow.
- All new members should post up in the new members area if you want to make it easier on us.

[adam_murphy]

Well with my personal experience having shit luck with DSM's, if its a friend or reputable person u can trust just ask simple questions about maintence, reciepts are a key factor. Try to learn as much about DSMs before you meet this guy/girl, play dumb and if he's feeding you a line of BS, turn and run or it will turn out to be a money pit.
my .02
-Adam

[Kracka]

First off make sure it has a turbo engine in it with the turbo (CVD knows what I am talking about...dumb ass kid from who knows where). Check the oil too...clean and full is deffinately a better sign than dirty and low. If they care about the car they will keep it clean, I have seen many DSM's for sale with BLACK oil in them. Ask for maintainence records, if they don't have them see if they can at least remember if they did anything. "Umm...I just drive the car" mean run away...I've heard that a few times too. Another decent bet would to just contact Steve Hill (he is on this board), he is pretty much a used DSM dealership and is generally honest with people.

[TalonFiero]

It may be difficult, but try and find a car that has been unmodded. But even unmodded cars can be heavily abused. Try and find out who drove the car who they bought it from. :3gears:

Look for the owners manual or maintenance log to check up on oil changes. This could be next to impossible for an older DSM. I was lucky enough to find a 95 with full maintenance records and no mods.

There are good deals out there, this is where it really helps to read up on all of the DSM forums before you start looking for a car. It also helps to know someone who can help you out by looking over any potential cars.


Good luck.

Jim

get ready to replace the yiming belt and water pump, and if ur ganna onw a mitsu don't be afraid to get ur hands dirty.. lol every time sumone in the USA they r getting us back for Heroshima and Nagasaki

[npaulseth]

:shakeshead: (post above...laughing )

Check to see how tight the timing belt is. Ask them when it was last replaced.

[At-Least-It's-An-Evo]

Originally posted by GotBoost@Feb 6 2004, 09:40 AM
get ready to replace the yiming belt and water pump, and if ur ganna onw a mitsu don't be afraid to get ur hands dirty.. lol every time sumone in the USA they r getting us back for Heroshima and Nagasaki

You speak'a ingles? :stick:

if your getting a 1st gen make sure you get the flip up head lights. that model is the 6 bolt, less problems. you can also tell by year, 89-92.5. if the car manufacturing date is past july its a 7-bolt (crankwalk). also you can see the cam angle sensor (i think, im not sure)

[CVD]

I wouldnt worry about any of that. 1G 7 bolts almost never crankwalk,

90-91's also have the 3 bolt rear, and you will most likely destroy your rear end before you make enough power to snap a 7 bolt rod.

The 4 bolt 6 bolt combo is the best but I wouldnt get hung up on it. Most people will never make enough power to have trouble with either rods or rear end.

[john]

Make sure the tranny is perfect. No grinds at all or any sticking before it goes in gear. Do a compression test to see how good the bottom end is.
What are your goals for the car? If it is just to hang with a neon you could even buy a 2g. You would not have to worry about a 6 bolt block or a four bolt rear.
Why did you limit the search from 90-93? Why not 90-94? Best year is a 92 with 6/4 but dont have it be your deciding factor weather to buy one or not.

[Shane@DBPerformance]

I have seen a lot more broken 3-bolt axles on local cars running from 12s to 15s than I have seen crankwalked 1G 7-bolts or broken 7-bolt rods. Cher's car was damn close to stock when he broke his first 3-bolt axel.

[At-Least-It's-An-Evo]

Originally posted by ecoli@Feb 7 2004, 07:58 PM
Cher's car was damn close to stock when he broke his first 3-bolt axel.

Yes, it was pretty much stock and it snapped the first axle on dry gravel. The second time, it snapped on a sticky ass track in Iowa.. :rant: The car was pretty stock.. oh wait, it still is. :razz2: