As I've mentioned, there's this 96 Nissan Hardbody pickup for sale that I'm seriously considering.

It's a regular cab, standard bed with a 2.4L 4cyl and 5spd manual. The is in mostly good condition with a few minor rust bubbles around the rear fenders and a ghetto fabulous front bumper. It appears to be solid to my eyes underneath, as well. It's recently inspected. It's advertised at $1999.

Tomorrow morning... well... later this morning considering the time... I'm going to look at it in detial, test drive it, and if all goes well on those fronts, I'm going to haggle with salesmen. I would like to get the price down to around $1500 as I see it now. Before I do all this, however, I would really appreciate some feedback. I took a good amount of pictures tonight, including many of the underbody and frame. Basically... does it look trustworthy and is it worth looking into? These trucks seem to be pretty dependable and with a 4cyl and 5spd, it should be efficient enough to get mid to high 20s on the highway.

What do you guys think?

God, sometimes I hate living in the northeast. Road salt be damned. The engine, it just dawned on me, should be similar to the one out of the 240SX. It's prolly not set up identically, though. So long as it was inspected by a reputable, non-blind person who values their inspection license, you should be ok, Vipes. Small, cheap pickups are immensely useful, and are in demand. Drive it and see how you like it. Good luck, and if you get it, we'll have to start calling you "Li'l Hustler". (Is anyone here old enough to remember what I'm talking about?)

Ouch, I need a tetanus shot!

Not bad....

The frame rust does not look like a serious problem, but it would still worry me. The front bumper is sort of painful.

Other than my two meager qualms, BV, it doesn't look like a bad truck.

Why does that area look wet?

Edited April 26, 200817 yr by Dodgefan

It looks ok, with enough bumps, bruises, and rust to bargain down to $1500. The engine is not overly powerful, but a quick downshift allows passing without too much drama.

My friend had one of these, Same engine, same Transmission, absolute tank, will go forever. Go For It!

Why does that area look wet?

My wild-assed guess would be that one of the front seals is blown.

Chris

This would be a good little truck. You might also consider a Wrangler, I thought of you the other day when I saw one on a car lot down the street.

It was a really nice 95 4 cyl auto Wrangler, clean enough that I thought about buying it for my 17 Y.O. Daughter, $4500 which might be more than you want to spend.

But good luck and keep us posted.

Chris

As for the rust, you might try P.O.R. 15, which is used in auto resto. You can paint over rust and it sticks really well, seals out moisture.

A few evenings on your back underneath the truck might save you some grief later.

Also, make sure you like it as you might not be able to kill it. My brother in law has a maroon one like it, he bought it new and now it has almost 400,000 miles on it and it just won't die, still runs perfectly.

Again, good luck!

Chris

That wet spot could be something as simple as being below the oil filter, when the filter is taken off, oil inevitably drips there. I could be wrong-o.

If you don't know what is causing that wet spot i would find out BV, last thing you wanna do is have to dump money in the car you just got...again.

It looks alright. A bit rustified underneath.

I don't know enough about these trucks to give much advice.

If its what you like and want, go for it.

leaky oil gasket?

Anyway BV, we know you wont listen to us so go what for what you want.

Anyway BV, we know you wont listen to us so go what for what you want.

Quoted for truth.

Honestly though...I think you could find one with less rust. There's just a bit too much for my liking, and I see what appear to be several hairline cracks on different parts. At the very least, get a very well-trusted mechanic to look at it--and actually take his advice.

Most vehicles of this vintage are going to have underbodies like this in and around Brookville, again, due to climate and road salt usage, and Viper can't afford to travel too far south or west to find something in better shape. If he can successfully haggle, and if it feels ok to drive, it may be ok. Still, the Cutlass runs, and he may be wise to continue to save more money toward something newer.

Just throwing some idears out, I'm not pretending to be privy to his thoughts. But yeah, he's a stubborn lad, he'll do what he wants at the end of the day. :AH-HA_wink:

Most vehicles of this vintage are going to have underbodies like this in and around Brookville, again, due to climate and road salt usage, and Viper can't afford to travel too far south or west to find something in better shape. If he can successfully haggle, and if it feels ok to drive, it may be ok. Still, the Cutlass runs, and he may be wise to continue to save more money toward something newer.

Just throwing some idears out, I'm not pretending to be privy to his thoughts. But yeah, he's a stubborn lad, he'll do what he wants at the end of the day. :AH-HA_wink:

An update....

So yesterday morning, I went to test drive it, as I mentioned. First, the good. It runs and drives quite well. It's very solid. The engine is really clean and after half an hour of driving and idling, no issues popped up. The interior is in good condition as well. The body is... to certain points. This is where the bad comes it. Giving it a thorough look over in, out, under and over, it has more rust than I originally noticed. The tailgate is completely rotted out at the bottom and the hinges are shot. The right rear fender has a bit of rust bubbles popping up like my Millenia does, but not quite as bad. The left rocker panel is pretty far gone, as well, with a good 3 inch long hole. The front bumper, as mentioned, is rough, with rust and cracks hiding under shiny duct tape that is actually more noticeable. Underneath, there has been some frame repair done at the cause of rust. The frame, fasteners, and suspension parts looks solid, however. Up front, where there appears to be a leak, the lower seal for the oil pan looks to be where it came from... Despite not seeing it leak anytime while running it. As well, the ABS light was on and the parking brake didn't seem to work.

I'll add more later, I've got to run.

Keep Looking IMO...

It's not worth $1500 like that I can tell you that much.

An update....

So yesterday morning, I went to test drive it, as I mentioned. First, the good. It runs and drives quite well. It's very solid. The engine is really clean and after half an hour of driving and idling, no issues popped up. The interior is in good condition as well. The body is... to certain points. This is where the bad comes it. Giving it a thorough look over in, out, under and over, it has more rust than I originally noticed. The tailgate is completely rotted out at the bottom and the hinges are shot. The right rear fender has a bit of rust bubbles popping up like my Millenia does, but not quite as bad. The left rocker panel is pretty far gone, as well, with a good 3 inch long hole. The front bumper, as mentioned, is rough, with rust and cracks hiding under shiny duct tape that is actually more noticeable. Underneath, there has been some frame repair done at the cause of rust. The frame, fasteners, and suspension parts looks solid, however. Up front, where there appears to be a leak, the lower seal for the oil pan looks to be where it came from... Despite not seeing it leak anytime while running it. As well, the ABS light was on and the parking brake didn't seem to work.

I'll add more later, I've got to run.

You can do better than this vehicle.

Agreed. NEXT!

+1

Run, Don't Walk

Nissan and Co. of that era Aren't good for corrosion, it will only get worse.

That's what I'm thinking...

Anyways, I went through the entire process up to getting a price and trade offer. They're not very willing to come down in price because it books for $2845. They appraised the Cutlass for $449. After trade in, tax, and tags, it would still be $1734. Quite ridiculous. I'm surprised they gave me that much on trade in for the Cutlass, however, despite it still being $350 less than the absolute lowest I'll accept for it. They were very friendly, at least.

More pictures:

Yeesh.

Yeesh.

Can you just put the money into the Cutlass?

I'd rather have THAT car......

Can you just put the money into the Cutlass?

I'd rather have THAT car......

And I'd still have a gas guzzler. Smart logic.

$1500 should be plenty to fix the Mazda.

That truck's only nice feature is the surprisingly clean interior. It's worth maybe $500. No higher. Find another or fix the Millenia.

Hey BV...what kind of mileage are you aiming to get?

Agreed. NEXT!

Yep.

The engine? Not bad, but the body....

BV, check your PMs and see what you think of my suggestions. :AH-HA_wink:

$1500 should be plenty to fix the Mazda.

Only to supersede it's worth. More smart logic.

Hey BV...what kind of mileage are you aiming to get?

High 20's, at the absolute least.

I'm thinking...Ford Escort....

Look at a Mazda3...if you can fit that into your price range, those are great cars that get great mileage.

Look at a Mazda3...if you can fit that into your price range, those are great cars that get great mileage.

I don't think BV has a price range that wide...

Only to supersede it's worth. More smart logic.

High 20's, at the absolute least.

You were seriously considering a rust-ridden truck with a fluid leak and duct tape on the bumper. How's that for smart logic?

You were seriously considering a rust-ridden truck with a fluid leak and duct tape on the bumper. How's that for smart logic?

I stopped considering it the moment I realized it's true colors. So, here's a gift to you... a big, gay BITCH PLEASE!!!!!

Move along, nothing to see here.