How much...

[spoonie]

do you guys spend on maintenance?

the NSX has made my shortlist of 'fun' car and i'm wondering what kind of 'oddball' wear items crop up.

suspension bushings? tranny issues?

does the engine take well to supercharging w/o changing compression, etc?

does it matter if the car is a high KM older one in great shape, or a newer MY as far as wear is concerned?

thanks for any advice you can offer.

~spoonie

 

[swbatte]

For my 92...$2-3k per year.
Brakes,
Timing belt
tires
oil & fluids
tune up
general maintenance
window regulators

That kind of stuff.

A new one would be cheap, like any other Honda.

 

[Red]

For my 92...$2-3k per year.
Brakes,
Timing belt
tires
oil & fluids
tune up
general maintenance
window regulators

That kind of stuff.

A new one would be cheap, like any other Honda.

Yeah, my '03 will only cost me about $5,000 this year:
Oil change
Type R hood
Coilovers
Mono Ball Bushings
Chassis Bars
New rear tires

You know, maintenance...

Now ask Dave!

 

[BioBanker]

Here we go....this is going to get depressing.

3 oilchanges
Tires
charger
wing
sways
chassis bars - this is something you MUST check - if your car does not have them - drive directly to get that fixed
steering wheel - found a great deal
hub
belt and harness bar
brake stuff
seat cushion
sub belt bar
rings for guage cluster
sideskirts

totalling prob 20k! AACK!

and not to forget about last years wheels, tires, exhaust, ais.......

thank god my van isnt so damn demanding

 

[swbatte]

You guys are going to scare buyers away!

Seriously, keep up with the fluid changes, tires, brakes etc. It's not too bad.

The expensive stuff you only need to do once in a while. Even tires if you stay stock aren't too expensive. At the end of the day it's a Honda. Figure on double the cost of maintenance of an Accord

 

[spoonie]

are the 91-92 model years with the snap-bearing thingy in the tranny years to avoid?

 

[swbatte]

Not really. Only a small % of them have an issue. It had to do with tolerances on the machine that made them. Do a search and you'll learn more than you ever wanted about snap rings. I have a 92 and there's no problems here.:smile:

 

[Arshad]

I think the snap ring was only on 91's, and as Sean pointed out, only on a specific set of transmissions (which you can check prior to buying). Check the FAQ for all the gory details.

In general, maintenance consists of oil changes and tires. The other stuff is every few years. Let's say you drive 10-12k a year (no winters), then assume one set of rears per season, and one set of fronts every 2 seasons. Of course that depends on the tire. If you don't use high treadwear rubber, double that. 3 oil changes, and add about $1000/year for miscellaneous things. Some years you won't have anything, other years your window regulator might fail or your clutch might go etc.

I figure if you budget about $2500/year for maintenace, you're good, with the average year falling below that. Tires are going to be your biggest expense. Remember, that a 91/92 is an old car so random things will start failing, eg. fuel pump, oxygen sensor, window regulator, etc. For the most part though, it can be a very reliable daily driver. I use it day in, day out, regardless of weather and only park it in the winter.

When looking for a car, you'll want to find someone who was meticulous with their maintenance and has ideally already done the timing belt/water pump even if it's less than 100k km's.

 

[NSX7]

I completely agree with the $2500 per year budget.

One year I spent about $5,000 in stuff - $2,600 for the clutch alone plus the starter went, then the ignition switch, etc.. and then the following year was simply oil changes

as said before, if planning on getting an older NSX, certain things will fail due to age and others due to kms - you just have to budget for these expensive parts.

but the bottom line is that this car is worth every single dollar you spend on it as it rewards you with the joy of driving it.

 

[kaz1116]

maintenence on this car is nothing compared to past exotics i have owned
$2500-$5000 a year is peanuts if ur going to buy a car like this expect to spend more than on an average car but this is one of the cheapest cars that wont stay in the shop for months

 

[95EagleAWD]

I've spent 400 bucks on maintenance since April. One coil pack and an oil change.

Next year my rear tires will need to be replaced though... so who knows?

 

[bjmills]

chassis bars - this is something you MUST check - if your car does not have them - drive directly to get that fixed

Any point in doing this on a 1991 that rarely sees a track?

 

[sjones]

Here's my list. Some of the items on my list is not *required* maintenance but I'm pretty anal about keeping my nsx running as good as new. The only other thing not on this list for '06 is a new oil pan, gasket and I recently upgraded from yokohama es100's to goodyear GSD3's.

http://www.nsxprime.com/forums/showpost.php?p=659092&postcount=22

 

[lithiumus]

Well, my maintenance costs are dropping off nicely now that I am doing as much as I can myself...

I'll split my costs up...

Maintenance
------------
Inspection
Oil
Clutch Master Cylinder
Left Rear Wheel Bearing
CV boots
Spool Valve Seals
Coolant Main hoses
Coolant flush
RPS Clutch / Flywheel
Tranny Fluid
Valve Adj
Air Filter
Alignment
O2 Sensors
Fuel Injector Service (RC Engineering)
Fuel Filter
Spark Plugs
Vacuum hoses
Passenger door seal
Subwoofer Amp service
Clutch Slave Cylinder
Clutch save hose
Clutch fluid flush
Oil Cooler Coolant hoses
~$5k

Mods
-----
Front Windshield
Dali Springs
Bilstein Shocks
New leather interior (minus seats)
Billet Door handles
JDM tails
JDM fogs
OEM TL Nav
Autodim Mirror / Homelink
Momo wheel
Type R horn
02+ rear valence
Color matched roof
Shaved rear antenna
Test Pipes
Exhuast on the way...
other misc little things that no one really notices but me...
$15k +

Didn't realize how much things cost until I added it up... I hear Violent Femmes in the backgound... "add it up, add it up"
I actually recovered money by selling things off as well so I'd say $15k is more like $12

 

[spoonie]

thanks for the wealth of replies, everyone.

you're making my choice more difficult since it appears the servicing on this car is much, much less than a 993 or even a 996. i'm not buying just yet, but getting all the info is great. thanks a bunch!

 

[Red]

thanks for the wealth of replies, everyone.

you're making my choice more difficult since it appears the servicing on this car is much, much less than a 993 or even a 996. i'm not buying just yet, but getting all the info is great. thanks a bunch!

I'm playing with the idea of selling my '03, not 100%, but a C4S is calling to me so if someone offered my $92ish I'd be under pressure...

 

[MiamieNeSeX]

Yeah, my '03 will only cost me about $5,000 this year:
Oil change
Type R hood
Coilovers
Mono Ball Bushings
Chassis Bars
New rear tires

You know, maintenance...

Now ask Dave!

How does a Type "R" hood qualify as a maintenance item?


Armando

 

[Wheelman]

How does a Type "R" hood qualify as a maintenance item?

You have to clean leaves and debris out of the scoop:biggrin:

 

[Red]

You have to clean leaves and debris out of the scoop:biggrin:

Also, there's a yearly requirement to Mod the car, right?:wink:

(BTW, for you Americans, thats CDN$$s I'm thinking of, so don't start a flame thing on how my car is worth $92K USD!):wink: :redface: :biggrin:

 

[magictooth]

Wow, looking at these posts, I'm seriously wondering if they are accurate? If you go with a '91 and you have to do 10-15-20k of regular maintenance to keep it up to date, wouldn't you be better off with a '97+ car? Granted, I've only driven my '01 about 2000 miles this year, but since I had my car reinspected in May, I only had $300 in maintenance, and $200 of that was to get a new mast assembly and motor installed.

 

[blackna1]

Canadian here.. WOW! did you get your '03 Y/Y x for just $92,000Cdn?? If so that is a crazy deal!

I remember couple years ago when the '02 first came, there was an orange/orange in BC..wasn't sold for more than a year. Finally the dealer found a buyer and turns out it was sold for just under $90k!!! with less than 1500km!!! what a deal!! in BC, not many people will buy a brand new '02+ because it's $140k+, price of a 911 C4S, and vancouver is all about the badge...too bad for those missing out on the x :frown:

if only I'd knew it was such a great deal I would've picked it up! love the orange!

Also, there's a yearly requirement to Mod the car, right?:wink:

(BTW, for you Americans, thats CDN$$s I'm thinking of, so don't start a flame thing on how my car is worth $92K USD!):wink: :redface: :biggrin:

 

[blackna1]

...I've only driven my '01 about 2000 miles this year, but since I had my car reinspected in May, I only had $300 in maintenance, and $200 of that was to get a new mast assembly and motor installed.

with my '91, being 10 years older than your x, with under 15,000miles, I drive around 3000 miles a year and there isnt much maintenance to do other than the oil changes and small stuff like the speaker repairs, AC low/med fan power transistor, which adds up to less than $300.

When comparing the 911s with the x, even if you use them as weekend cars, and drive them pretty hard, for the x nothing really break down before 60k miles (not that they will above that, but just more likely..the daily wear and tear), whereas it can be a totally different story for the 911s, a regular service at the dealer in BC will quickly add up to $1000Cdn, excluding parts.

 

[lithiumus]

Wow, looking at these posts, I'm seriously wondering if they are accurate? If you go with a '91 and you have to do 10-15-20k of regular maintenance to keep it up to date, wouldn't you be better off with a '97+ car? Granted, I've only driven my '01 about 2000 miles this year, but since I had my car reinspected in May, I only had $300 in maintenance, and $200 of that was to get a new mast assembly and motor installed.

I spent a max of $5k over 2 years and some of those items were voluntary and preventative such as:
- CV boots
- Coolant Main hoses
- O2 sensors
- Vacuum hoses
- Passenger Door seal
- upgraded clutch / flywheel

I could have reduce the costs down further, but with an older car, why take any chances. With a slightly newer car like a 97, you are still in the range of the majority of maintenance items either way.

I'm going to do a full list of services (conservative) and try to derrive a number that can be used as a budgetary number (for my own uses, but I'll share it) for ongoing maintenance that is preventative. Though not absolutely necessary, but good best practice.

The rest of my purchases were all mods and considered toys and nice to have's...

 

[swbatte]

When I bought my 92 four years ago, I planned on maintenance and restoration type work. When compared to cars with similar performance and price, the NSX is a bargain!

 

[nsxsimon]

ask these guys, they'll know..

I'm rather glad the maintenance is high, as it KEEPS THE YOUNG PUNK KIDS AWAY.. and that is my sole reason for it being on my short list as well.

if maintenance ever drops so low to say the s2000 price range, gawd help the NSX community ..