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  • Found on the Feed: 1993 Nissan Maxima GXE

    Yes, this is the best picture of the car in the ad

    The Maxima is Nissan’s mid-size car that started life as the Datsun 810, and while it might not invoke the feelings of driving passion or speed, it’s actually quite the nimble family carrier and can be equipped with a fairly potent V6. The sheer amount of Maximas produced ensures that parts will be plentiful for years to come, and making a sleeper out of one isn’t to tall an order.

    The 4DSC decal that proclaims that this, in fact, is a 4-Door Sports Car

    This 1993 Maxima GXE may not have the venerable VQ35DE that graces the engine bay of it’s better equipped younger siblings, but what it lacks in oomph, it makes up for in chutzpah. In 1989, Nissan redesigned the Maxima and set out to create sporty sedan, and they were so proud of the result that they emblazoned the rear windows of the 1989-1994 Maximas with the 4DSC moniker, which stood for 4-Door Sports Car. The SE models received a DOHC 3.0L (VG30DE) that was good for 190hp, while the lower trim like this GXE made due with a SOHC 3.0L (VG30E) making 160hp, still not bad for the early 90s.

    Minimal number of farts in driver’s seat, an often overlooked metric

    One thing to take away from this ad is that it’s almost a lesson on how NOT to sell a car. The pictures are terrible, and very little effort overall has been put into the description. “Still has the owners manual :)”, gee thanks Karen. However, this ad is also a great example of how to score a diamond in the rough, because this car is low miles and appears to be in great condition, inside and out. The paint still has gloss, and the close up of the roof shows superficial scratches that a weekend and a buffer will easily remedy. It’s very low miles for the age, and would make a unique daily driver for somebody looking for some ’90s nostalgia in their life.

    Shit’ll buff out

    The asking price of $5,000 is, admittedly, a little on the high side, but that’s what negotiations are for. People aren’t exactly breaking down doors for early Maximas; coupled with the effort put into the for sale ad, that’s a recipe for $1-1.5k off that asking price. I just wish I lived closer to Kentucky.

  • Found on the Feed: 1994 Toyota Celica GT-Four

    The Toyota Celica is unquestionably a rare car. During the height of the JDM influence in the American market, this often-overlooked model had quite a few desirable performance variants. North America saw a few trim levels of the Celica on our shores, most notably the All-Trac, (Fifth generation) GT (Sixth Generation) and GTS (Seventh Generation) but quite a few more were overseas only. While today’s example never arrived officially, It has been imported legally.

    uniquely JDM

    The listing for this example claims to be (and checks out to be) very rare. With original Tri-Spoke wheels, only 62k Miles, this was not only a rare find in Japan but a very solid import into America. The GT-Four featured the 3S-GTE engine, which is shared with the MR2 Turbo of its time, it’s a proven solid drivetrain that can be built into an in JDM legend or used as a reliable showpiece.

    Mostly Orginal, Untouched goodness.

    As with any build, it’s nice to start with a generally unmodified platform. The listing states this car has very minimal, yet tasteful (above pictured Strut Tower Bar) aftermarket parts. I’d make the exception here though, with the GT-Four being such a rare vehicle that its value should only increase as we see the wave of JDM imports hitting American shores. That being said, the importer is asking $17,995 for this Celica GT-Four. It’s a tall price to pay for a unique JDM legend, but this piece of history is sure to stand out at any Radwood you plan to visit.

  • Found on the Feed: 1999 Honda Prelude

    The Honda Prelude is an often overlooked JDM classic. Available worldwide in a variety of trims, the Prelude could be configured a plethora of ways with either an F22 or the more sought after H22. These motors were similar to the coveted K series but more affordable and easily built. The Prelude is often a unique foray into the JDM market, instead of the all too common Honda Civic.

    Looking relatively clean and stock.

    This 2001 Honda Prelude example appears to be perfect for your first foray into building a streetable JDM classic. Particularly clean as the below picture shows, this body has 176k miles with a replacement clutch. while initially, that seems to be a lot of miles, this car is rife with Ebay Build potential. The H22 Motor that comes with this example is a great first motor to work on, as things tend to be a bit more simple.

    Just as clean on the inside.

    Overall, this is still a Honda and it will be a very reliable car even without the motor work. However I believe any expert will agree, you should always start your build with a stock, clean example so you know what you’re getting into. With this vehicle being a California car, you can rest assured that rust won’t be the biggest issue you will run into during your build. With a price of $4000, you’d have to wheel and deal a bit to make this a great deal.

  • Importing a Toyota Celsior: My Adventures With “The Most Reliable Car Ever Built”, Part One

    TOP TEXT

    About a year and a half ago, I imported a 1991 Toyota Celsior Spec C from Japan.  I had been looking for a nice LS400 for a while, and given the prices that good low mileage examples were commanding, I decided my money would be better spent importing one, since Japanese imports are generally better maintained and taken care of when compared to their American equivalents.  I also wanted to try my hand at importing, and figured I would start with a less expensive car in case I just completely fucked up the import process and ended up getting the car crushed.  So began my adventure with “the most reliable car ever built”.

    Auction photo in native Japan

    The day the truck delivered the Celsior to my house, I was ecstatic.  Months of looking for the right car, bidding, and patiently waiting for a cargo ship from the land of the rising sun was now over. For under $6,000 American, I had an auction grade 4, Black Jade Metallic, 130,000 km Celsior sitting in my driveway. 
    Like nearly every imported vehicle, the Celsior arrived with a dead battery.  I left it trickle charging overnight, and was rewarded with a battery that held charge and did not need replacement.  After a few cranks, the Celsior sprang to life and I took it for its first drive around the block.  I fell in love with the smooth, quiet ride, and overall comfort I felt driving it, as well as the relatively unobstructed greenhouse that you simply can’t find in modern vehicles.  The justification to my wife (“Oh, I’ll just import this one to see if I can do it and sell it for a slight profit”) quickly left my memory (but not hers) as I happily envisioned my new, cool daily driver shuttling me to and from work.

    Isn’t it beautiful?

    I made note of the things I wanted to get done, namely a tune up and oil change, and also noted that although the tires looked great and had plenty of tread, their DOT date showed they had been manufactured in 2006. 
    After a relatively simple registration process, I now had a title and a license plate for my RHD beauty, and a newly arrived package from RockAuto containing a few oil filters, air filter, spark plugs, wires, distributor caps (yes, caps), and rotors (yes, rotors).  I enjoy working on cars, and will usually tackle most jobs myself, so doing the tune-up myself was a no-brainer.  It saves money and would allow me to “get to know” the car; she needed to be shown that I care. 

    The most reliable powerplant in history: the 1UZ-FE v8

    The tune-up, honestly, turned into kind of a bitch.  I had to remove quite a few panels and covers to get access to everything, but it eventually got done, and I had a clear conscience knowing I had been a good boy and had done the preventative maintenance the car needed.
    I went to take it for a test drive; the car was struggling to stay on, and was just running like garbage.  Feeling defeated, I opened the hood and noticed a huge vacuum hose that I had forgotten to plug back into the intake.  I was elated when the car returned to normal the moment I put the hose back on, and was again happy with my hard work. 
    The car ran great for about a day, then started misfiring horribly shortly after I again left my house. I turned around and limped it home, defeated once again, thinking there was no way this fix was going to be as easy as me forgetting a vacuum hose.  After about 15 minutes of diagnosis, I discovered that the left side coil pack wire was damaged and arcing straight to the block.  The depression quickly left my body, and after digging an old coil wire out of the trash can, the car was humming once again.  I got a warranty replacement wire from Denso and all was right again in the world…  until I put the spark plug cover on the car a couple of weeks later and discovered the issue was, once again, caused by me.  There is a spot on the spark plug cover that has a notch for the coil wire, and I didn’t notice that, causing the wire to become pinched and damaged by the cover, thereby causing the arc.  I wasn’t going to bother Denso again and ended up running the extra, longer coil wire that was included in the kit, which was meant for the later model LS400.

    Hole in coil wire

    Now, as you are reading this, I know what you’re thinking: “this shit isn’t the car’s fault, this dude is just dumb and he’s blaming the car for his fuck-ups.”  And yes, I agree.  None of this stuff was the car’s fault, but I have to preface the story with this because in my wife’s mind, all of this is me fixing a broken car, and that made what comes later annoy her even more.  While my wife is a hater, I really do like the Celsior, I promise. More on the import process and total expenses next week.

    Don’t mind the reflection, we’ll talk about that another time.

    BOTTOM TEXT

  • Look at this: 2003 Ford SVT F150 Lightning

    The second generation of the Ford F150 Lightning was arguably one of the best. With the (new for) 1997 body, Ford reintroduced the Ford Lightning variant. Like the original Lightning, the second generation featured an Eaton supercharger on top of the 5.4l V8 that was shared with the regular F150 lineup. Additionally, Lightning’s featured a unique front and rear bumper, as well as suspension components to lower the truck.

    Like a true performance vehicle, the interior was very basic.

    Today’s example, a 2003 SVT F150 Lightning was nearly one of the last model years for the truck. This one specifically features a Kenne Bell kit in replacement of the original Eaton. The wheels are the standard OEM while the bumper is aftermarket. The seller states within the listing that he will provide the original parts with the truck.

    The aforementioned Kenne Bell.

    Overall, This is a little pricey at $16,900 for this low(er) mileage example. With 87000 miles on the truck, it seems to be in pretty good condition from the included pictures. As the overall truck market expands and inevitably we see a return to more performance-based trucks as enthusiast cars disappear, this could be a great future buy.