Whenever someone mentions the 1990s Japanese Domestic Market for performance sports cars we as car enthusiasts can't but start talking out loud about the Toyota Supra Twin Turbo, the Nissan GTR, the FD Mazda Rx-7, the 300ZX Twin Turbo or about the underrated 3000GT. We would always steer the conversation in favor of our brand allegiance. We love the 90s 2 door Japanese cars because they are our realistic dreams, one can actually buy a car of this price range.
The early 90s played a vital role in every car lover's life. Some of the greatest cars were produced during the decade. If you love muscle cars, think of the 60`s. During the 90's Japan was experiencing a vibrant economic bubble which busted a few years before the cars were released. But you can find traces of the enormous resources that companies have invested in developing the technology for these cars, in fact we wouldn’t have had features like twin turbocharge, four-wheel steering, electronically adjustable suspension, active aerodynamics, whatever you throw at them, they had it.
Sadly because of their wide reputation and millions of fans, the prices for a old Japanese sport cars from 90's remain relatively high, take a look at the stock Nissan GTR or a stock Toyota Supra. Fortunately for us there are a few cars that went under the radar that a budget oriented enthusiast like us can obtain. The guys at Jalopnik made that very experiment, they went out and bought a 300zx in a marginally good working condition, then spend some time and money to restore it in full working condition while calculating the actual cost of buying and restoring some of the best jdm cars .
Purchasing Costs
The car that we are inspecting in this article was originally listed for $3800. As it turns out the $4k is just a down payment for owning the great looking 300zx. But who can resist it, a wide slung down body and eyes that even Lamborghini couldn’t say no to ! In short, the car was in very good visual condition, but it could barely move. For starters it didn’t make any boost at all, so the seller settled down for $3100.
The Maintenance
This particular vehicle had a lot of work done
Engine related Repairs include – new turbos - $1700, new oil system - $730, new timing belts - $565, fuel system repair - $1200, idle control system - $670, engine electrical - $395, bushing, coolant hoses etc - $305 + a lot of free time !
This brings the total, to make the car start (mind you I’m still not using the word ”move”) at : $5565
photo: Jalopnik
Lets move on to Drivetrain Related Repairs – Transmission was busted – $380, Diff - $70, which totals at : $450
Adding a bit of steering related repairs - $1218, Brake and HVAC repairs - $140 + $230 and of course a few cosmetic repairs - $430. Mind you, be sure to look at auto insurance quotes online before making a move, because some of the cars have an expensive auto insurance.
Engine related Repairs include – new turbos - $1700, new oil system - $730, new timing belts - $565, fuel system repair - $1200, idle control system - $670, engine electrical - $395, bushing, coolant hoses etc - $305 + a lot of free time !
This brings the total, to make the car start (mind you I’m still not using the word ”move”) at : $5565
Lets move on to Drivetrain Related Repairs – Transmission was busted – $380, Diff - $70, which totals at : $450
Adding a bit of steering related repairs - $1218, Brake and HVAC repairs - $140 + $230 and of course a few cosmetic repairs - $430. Mind you, be sure to look at auto insurance quotes online before making a move, because some of the cars have an expensive auto insurance.
Would you invest in a oldschool JDM Car ? Comment in the comment section bellow
source : Jalopnik
