DSM

[SpeedDemon]

I'm looking into this STOCK 92 Eagle Talon AWD. It has 160,000 miles. I'm new to dsm and need a dd with some speed.

How reliable are these cars? Do they break down after 200,000 miles???

give me your input, anxious to become dsm-er

[gsxvince]

they are not the most reliable cars..
they are very fun, and if you know what your doing they can last a while
you just have to do any normal maintance you can and keep them in tip top shape
otherwise they can be a nightmare.
i love mine though!!

[Goat Blower]

They're completely reliable if you treat them like a normal car. Nobody does that, they throw a bunch of cheap ass ebay parts on them, expect them to make double the stock horsepower, then wonder why they break. They only two issues I remember on 1G's when they were stock was the timing belt would occasionally snap before the 60k recommended change, and the xfer case seals would go bad prematurely which prompted a recall back in the late 90's. Other than that, they were actually really reliable.

[Clyne]

Well said!^ Maintenance before performance, etc etc.

[123abc]

I beat the crap out of my Talon when the drivetrain was in that, and now that it's in the Galant, I still beat the crap out of it. It's a daily driver, about 50 miles min. a day to and from work. 20 psi on a 16g, lots of fun.


However, with that said I did have to replace just about everything. If you drive it like a race car, it's going to break like a race car.

[Tachyon]

Originally Posted by 123abc

If you drive it like a race car, it's going to break like a race car.

QFT.

There is a sweet spot on these cars that will provide a reasonable amount of enjoyment to maintenance level.

However everyone always seems to cross that point and will spend the next few years flushing thousands of dollars down the toilet, en-route to an eventual rage-quit.

Personally, at this juncture, I would suggest other cars to accomplish your intended goals. The degradation of all the parts for a car of this vintage is immense. Couple that with the fact nearly 100% of them have had very hard lives with sub-par maintenance.

True, aftermarket parts (even good ones) are quite plentiful and inexpensive, but you will eventually will replace every part on that car if you intend to own it long term. On the plus side, they are incredibly easy to work on.

PS. 1991's are phenomenally better than 1992's because they have pop-up headlights that instantly make you a baller. You do want to be a baller, don't you?

[turbotalon1g]

[QUOTE=Tachyon;406334]QFT.

There is a sweet spot on these cars that will provide a reasonable amount of enjoyment to maintenance level.

However everyone always seems to cross that point and will spend the next few years flushing thousands of dollars down the toilet, en-route to an eventual rage-quit.

Personally, at this juncture, I would suggest other cars to accomplish your intended goals. The degradation of all the parts for a car of this vintage is immense. Couple that with the fact nearly 100% of them have had very hard lives with sub-par maintenance.

True, aftermarket parts (even good ones) are quite plentiful and inexpensive, but you will eventually will replace every part on that car if you intend to own it long term. On the plus side, they are incredibly easy to work on.

PS. 1991's are phenomenally better than 1992's because they have pop-up headlights that instantly make you a baller. You do want to be a baller, don't you?[/QUOTE]



Car is as good as the person working on it, plus what all these guys said.
Driveline breakage is in the driver for 90% of the DSMs out there.
I'd say have a backup car, then you can be at ease.

[SpeedDemon]

thanks for your input guys, i appreciate it.

i agree with you guys 100% that its up the driver and how they maintain the car.

it says alot. looking forward to become a dsm-er.

keep in touch

[Fran05]

Having owned 4 DSM's I stand by everything said in this thread. Shit is going to break, so just have a thousand dollars always put away for repairs. Otherwise, enjoy!

[awd laser]

Not reliable at all! We have 4, I've spent more time fixing my car than anything else! But I don't know why after 2 years of this bullshit I haven't sold it yet. It's quite addicting. But you sacrifice reliability for speed. These cars are at about 20 to 22 years old, expect shit to break!

[desolate]

If you buy one that hasn't been properly maintained, get ready to take over and do the maintenance on it. It may range from small little fixes, to doing everything over.

Once they're properly maintained, like said above they're actually pretty reliable.

However once you start making power, it depends on your driving style, supporting mods, and most importantly tuning. Those will reflect on what may need fixing. I had my last dsm make roughly over 500hp and it gave me no problems. I didn't beat on it and it was driven normally with the occasional wot here and there only after the tune was in check. Any minor problems that rose up right away was quickly fixed. Other than that, pretty reliable. No major engine or drivetrain break downs.

[Goat Blower]

If you want unreliable and expensive, buy a Lotus.