Anyone know this NSX? - JH4NA1158MT001600

[CorpusAddict]

Hi everyone,

This is my first post and am very excited in getting to know this tight community. I just came back from checking out this NSX. I ran a Carfax report on it and it is a Washington car that has a REBUILT status on it. The owner claims it is from a theft recovery. He took me for a ride in it and the motor pulls very strongly. The body is in good shape, there are no odd spaces in between the body panels. The car was also originally red and is now black. The car is now in Vancouver, BC and currently has 66,000 miles. The owner is asking $22,000 CND.

Any thoughts or input?

TIA.

 

[Dhalsim]

keep looking

 

[Big_D]

Welcome :smile:

Well it all depends on how long you plan to keep it. Resale on this car is going to be difficult 1. because of the title and 2. because of the repaint. If your are planning a widebody kit or lots of mods, then maybe its not as much of a concern. I would take it somewhere for a Pre Purchase Inspection (PPI) to have a look under the car and also a compression check with leakdown. Only then will you really know what kind of shape it is in. Did they paint over all the vin tags? Any documentation for maintenence? The big ticket items are timing belt/water pump (TB/WP) and clutch. Other known issues can be found in the wiki at the top of the page. Do some searching for the buyers checklist etc.

Good Luck on your search!

 

[PhiAlpha44]

Welcome :smile:

Well it all depends on how long you plan to keep it. Resale on this car is going to be difficult 1. because of the title and 2. because of the repaint. If your are planning a widebody kit or lots of mods, then maybe its not as much of a concern. I would take it somewhere for a Pre Purchase Inspection (PPI) to have a look under the car and also a compression check with leakdown. Only then will you really know what kind of shape it is in. Did they paint over all the vin tags? Any documentation for maintenence? The big ticket items are timing belt/water pump (TB/WP) and clutch. Other known issues can be found in the wiki at the top of the page. Do some searching for the buyers checklist etc.

Good Luck on your search!

Agreed. I don't buy a car like this to re-sell it. I plan on keeping mine forever. I get the best deal I can (bearing the quality of the car is good), and then make it exactly what I want. If you aren't planning to sell the car for a profit, who gives a $hit about the title? You going to pay thousands extra to have a different piece of paper sitting in a drawer in your house? Just understand that's why you're getting the car for 22 grand, and will have to sell it for that or less if you end up unloading it. But I have yet to pull up to any group with my car or my motorcycles and have anyone ask me about the cleanliness of my titles. Lol.

 

[CorpusAddict]

Thanks for the advice.

I plan to keep this car forever because it has always been my dream car. From what I recall, the car was painted properly. The door jams matched and the VIN sticker wasn't painted over. I can't remember if the engine bay was painted too but I don't recall seeing red in there.

Where is a good place to bring the car for a PPI in the Vancouver area?

Also, there are no maintenance records but the owner assures me that the timing belt and water pump were changed. He did tell me that the clutch will need to be changed.

 

[Sarge]

Listen to these guys if they tell you to keep looking.
The NSX was/Is also my dream car and I have had 2 already.
My second one is up for sale, and surly wont be my last.

Always think of the re-sale value. And do what I said first, listen to these guys

 

[kcarr2]

I just went through the exact situation that you are facing. I bought a 2002 that has a rebuilt title. I had an Acura mechanic go over the entire car and fix a few minor issues but he was able to tell me that there was no accident or flood damage. He said the car runs perfectly and it does. This is my dream car and I don't plan to sell it so the title did not matter that much to me. It also lets you modify it how you want. I saved between $15 and 20k because someone keyed it. The only issue that I came across was that loans were hard to find. If you have a home equity line this won't be a problem, I was able to find a couple of credit unions that would do the loan. Good luck.

 

[topgunsnsx]

If everything checks out, $22000 CDN seems reasonable. That's like $17000 US dollars. There are many people in the US who would buy a rebuilt NSX in great condition for $17000.

 

[Big_D]

Thanks for the advice.

I plan to keep this car forever because it has always been my dream car. From what I recall, the car was painted properly. The door jams matched and the VIN sticker wasn't painted over. I can't remember if the engine bay was painted too but I don't recall seeing red in there.

Where is a good place to bring the car for a PPI in the Vancouver area?

Also, there are no maintenance records but the owner assures me that the timing belt and water pump were changed. He did tell me that the clutch will need to be changed.

Post up a thread in the Canadian forum and guys like Trev can help you with the PPI recommendation.

Don't take any "word" for maintenence, if he really had it done, he would know enough to keep the receipt. Ask him where he got it done and see if you can get doumentation for it from there. Don't be in a hurry to pull the trigger untill you doo all the homework or you will pay dearly.

 

[kcarr2]

I agree with Big D, it takes a lot of homework before you should pull the trigger. It took 6-8 weeks from my first phone call until the car showed up in my driveway, and I was dealing with a dealership who specializes in rebuilt titled cars. Hire your own Acura mechanic to inspect the car, if the seller won't let them look at it than walk away. Even if you get receipts that will just tell you what was done not how the car is right now. The mechanic I found only charged $60 for a used car inspection and I asked him to find everything.

 

[Big_D]

As a reference I looked at several cars until I found the right one for me. It took almost a year of searching all the car websites and I ended up buying from a prime member. I paid $200 for my PPI at a Acura Dealer recommended by prime and they faxed me the inspection report. I flew to Denver and looked the car over and took a test drive before I bought it. Then the fun began and has not ended since.:smile:

Take your time and keep a clear head...if this one doesn't work out, there will be others.

 

[CorpusAddict]

I took a look at the car again yesterday. I checked out the serial number on the transmission and it is NOT in the snap ring range, which is good. Inside the engine bay, it is also repainted black and same as under the hood. I took the car for a test drive and it feels really nice. It does not pull to either side, steering is sharp. I did not hear any weird sounds at all, like creaks or squeals.

I started the car cold and it took about 1-2 seconds for the engine to fire up, is this normal? I shut the car down when I came back to his house and when he started it up again, it took about the same amount of time for the engine to crank over. I also found that the wipers do not work properly. Intermittent does not work and when I put it back into the off position, the wipers do not reset back to their original position, they just stay where I would shut it off (big or small problem?)

The car currently sits on aftermarket 19/18 wheels, HID headlights, and it has a titanium exhaust. With just the stock wheels, I got him down to $20,000 CND.

 

[CorpusAddict]

I decided not to buy the car. After careful consideration and thought, there are too many things that made me hesitant in purchasing the car. There were no records/receipts of maintenance, no history of the car can be found before 1995, and the lack of knowledge the seller had.

I'll keep looking and hopefully become an NSX owner soon. Thanks for the input Prime!:smile:

 

[Big_D]

You probably made the right decision. When in doubt, wait for another to come along.

 

[Dhalsim]

I decided not to buy the car. After careful consideration and thought, there are too many things that made me hesitant in purchasing the car. There were no records/receipts of maintenance, no history of the car can be found before 1995, and the lack of knowledge the seller had.

I'll keep looking and hopefully become an NSX owner soon. Thanks for the input Prime!:smile:

congrats on having the willpower to walk away and keep looking. There are plenty out there for sale. You will find the one for you soon enough.

 

[CorpusAddict]

It was so hard to walk away from it too. The sound of the engine behind you is amazing.