I am looking at Magna wagons, I like all of the 3rd gen but want the 3.5 litre engine (hence my user name) what is the minimum I should expect to pay for an average one (automatic)? I know everyone raves about the manuals because they are quicker but I'm not racing it, I just want a nice car to drive;I think they were 1999. I am on a budget due to other financial comitments, kids, wife, mortgage etc. Since it will be a work horse I don't care if it is rough as long as it is reliable. :cool:

Oh, one last thing, sorry to deviate away from the thread question a bit, but does anybody know if the wagons are that much heavier than the sedans? Better yet does anyone know the actual kerb weights of the wagons (TE\TF\TH) and the sedans, the weight is usually quoted in the owners handbook under specifications. Thanks.
I live in Adelaide South Australia :P

are you trying to break records for starting new topics or something? :P

are you trying to break records for starting new topics or something? :P No, I just saw one today and liked it but it was too expensive for a TH in my opinion $12,500 in a yard, I also looked at a commodore wagon but preferred the Magna, this is a new topic because I had not seen one of these wagons up close before, if I'm getting into magnas there will be times when I want to find out this or that, if I knew all of my questions at once I would post a single topic titled 'some questions', but I may break a record yet, I'll work on it :cool:

the manuals are cheaper and faster, yes the wagons are a fair bit heavier (and more expensive) but can be more practicle in many situations. Personally (when did the 3.5 come in the magnas? TE?) i wouldn't pay more than 6-7k, should be a good one, low k's etc, personally i have connections with the sydney auctions... i dont know much about the price of magnas, but i have researched the veradas of this model.

edit, TH u say, 9K personally, connections can save u thousands.

the manuals are cheaper and faster, yes the wagons are a fair bit heavier (and more expensive) but can be more practicle in many situations. Personally (when did the 3.5 come in the magnas? TE?) i wouldn't pay more than 6-7k, should be a good one, low k's etc, personally i have connections with the sydney auctions... i dont know much about the price of magnas, but i have researched the veradas of this model.

edit, TH u say, 9K personally, connections can save u thousands.

I think the 3.5 came out later in the TH 1999, there may be some late TF 3.5's but I may have to settle for the 3.0 auto, I don't really want a manual, are the 3.0 autos that gutless? they are still a good engine and only have less torque than the 3.5, the power isn't too much different, I've even heard people say that the 3.0 is an even better engine.

If you want an auto you will greatly appreciate the extra torque of the 3.5L. IMHO they make for a much smoother effortless drive.

Hold out for a TH. Or get an earlier model Verada wagon (all 3rd Gen Verada's are 3.5L).

It's hard to comment on a price cause you are in Tassy and i assume you have less cars to choose from than many of us on the mainland. All you can do is compare all the prices you can find yourself.

If you want an auto you will greatly appreciate the extra torque of the 3.5L. IMHO they make for a much smoother effortless drive.

Hold out for a TH. Or get an earlier model Verada wagon (all 3rd Gen Verada's are 3.5L).

It's hard to comment on a price cause you are in Tassy and i assume you have less cars to choose from than many of us on the mainland. All you can do is compare all the prices you can find yourself.

Thanks for the advice Magnafied (cool user name) I am actually in Adelaide South Australia, I think some of the Auction groups may have these, I don't know how common a verada wagon would be, and they are all 3.5 from 96 onwards? Yes the 3.5 auto is a smooth operator, they are so quiet and smooth you don't realize how fast your'e going. I am assuming even the wagons are smooth and quiet, never driven one, wagons are often more noisy than sedans but quietness has always been Magna's hallmark so they may be similar.

are the 3.0 autos that gutless?

hell no, i drive one now and it goes well, the autos are better than most cars but not nearly as quick as our manuals. The wagon veradas are abit harder to find, from KE they have the 3.5 as said and as u are in tassie price might be a bit more, i'm looking (and have been for a while) for a ke-kf verada wagon for around 9k, easy to get for 11k, its all luck.

The Verada wagons are no noisier than sedans. I have 2 Verada sedans and a wagon. The wagons dont have IRS which gives a firmer ride than the sedans especially if you lower them.

There is not a huge difference between take off speeds between the two. I have a KE Sedan, a KH wagon and a KJ sedan and have had them all lined up. The KJ is the quickest because of the 5 speed auto, then the KE but only by a bonnet length upto 100k's over the KH wagon. Believe it or not, once they are all over 80 km/h, they all keep the same pace which is strange considering the KJ has the 5 speed.

All these tests were done with the auto's just left in D.

I'm with Familywagon here. I've owned a 2nd gen and a 3rd gen wagon and road noise are comparable with the sedan counterparts.

hell no, i drive one now and it goes well, the autos are better than most cars but not nearly as quick as our manuals. The wagon veradas are abit harder to find, from KE they have the 3.5 as said and as u are in tassie price might be a bit more, i'm looking (and have been for a while) for a ke-kf verada wagon for around 9k, easy to get for 11k, its all luck.

GTRICE aj, you said 'Hell no" when I asked are the 3.0 automatics gutless, how do they compare with a 3.5 Automatic? Forget the manuals because I'm not getting one, bad left knee...pity. Fueltronics here in Adelaide do a piggyback type chip\computer upgrade for the 3.0 magna TE\TF and say they get the power and torque figures almost up to the 3.5 (torque 285nm out of a 3.0 once chipped vs 300nm for the standard 3.5) costs about $800 and he said it is a cheaper alternative to putting a 3.5 engine in your TE\TF with the same results.....what do you think? P.S. Sorry to deviate from the original thread question, I may actually start a new thread for this one, Tim-E will stir me for doing that and I may end up with a record, but hey, I am a commodore owner who's loves 3rd gen magnas and wants to know everything about them, so that's got to be something good doesn't it? :D

Why not get a 3.5 and chip it?? Then you get even more power & torque again.

Besides i doubt the chip is truly equal to an extra half litre of capacity across the entire rev range - maybe at its peak it comes close - but when TH & TJ's are getting ridiculously cheap now anyway why try and save a grand or 2 that you will regret later?

A waste of time (unless your car is seriously modded in other areas) to put a 3.5 in a TE/TF anyway - just buy a TH for a bit more.

I'm not saying the 3L auto's are bad cars but they are meant to be revved to get their best(hence the manuals better suit that engine) while the 3.5's feel much stronger initially and work better with an auto at low revs.

My mate owns a 3L auto. He loves his car - but when he drove my mum's KH Verada 3.5 he kept saying how it felt a much more relaxed & powerful cruiser. He was genuinely impressed and didn't want to hand back the keys.

For an auto is say the 3.5 all the way - go hard or go home!

Why not get a 3.5 and chip it?? Then you get even more power & torque again.

Besides i doubt the chip is truly equal to an extra half litre of capacity across the entire rev range - maybe at its peak it comes close - but when TH & TJ's are getting ridiculously cheap now anyway why try and save a grand or 2 that you will regret later?

A waste of time (unless your car is seriously modded in other areas) to put a 3.5 in a TE/TF anyway - just buy a TH for a bit more.

I'm not saying the 3L auto's are bad cars but they are meant to be revved to get their best(hence the manuals better suit that engine) while the 3.5's feel much stronger initially and work better with an auto at low revs.

My mate owns a 3L auto. He loves his car - but when he drove my mum's KH Verada 3.5 he kept saying how it felt a much more relaxed & powerful cruiser. He was genuinely impressed and didn't want to hand back the keys.

For an auto is say the 3.5 all the way - go hard or go home!

Thanks mate, I'll look into it.

GTRICE aj, you said 'Hell no" when I asked are the 3.0 automatics gutless, how do they compare with a 3.5 Automatic? Forget the manuals because I'm not getting one, bad left knee...pity. Fueltronics here in Adelaide do a piggyback type chip\computer upgrade for the 3.0 magna TE\TF and say they get the power and torque figures almost up to the 3.5 (torque 285nm out of a 3.0 once chipped vs 300nm for the standard 3.5) costs about $800 and he said it is a cheaper alternative to putting a 3.5 engine in your TE\TF with the same results.....what do you think? P.S. Sorry to deviate from the original thread question, I may actually start a new thread for this one, Tim-E will stir me for doing that and I may end up with a record, but hey, I am a commodore owner who's loves 3rd gen magnas and wants to know everything about them, so that's got to be something good doesn't it? :D

just get the 3.5L way cheaper considering everything, yes they are a fair bit faster, i have been owned to 100 by one, held to 60 then scootered away, to speed limit, highway.

just get the 3.5L way cheaper considering everything, yes they are a fair bit faster, i have been owned to 100 by one, held to 60 then scootered away, to speed limit, highway.

Can anyone still tell me what I should expect to pay for an Auto 3.5 TH wagon? In any condition.

I paid $19000 for my TH 3.5l wagon manual but that was nearly 3 yrs ago.
I'd say research it on car point, car sales, and the trading post to get a idea what they are going for on the private market. (we aren't gonna do the hard yards for ya lol )

Can anyone still tell me what I should expect to pay for an Auto 3.5 TH wagon? In any condition.


You would probably looking at around the 10k mark for one, saw few 01 model auto wagon for 11k in trading post.

http://www.gregwattsmotors.com.au/EasyWeb/GREGVehicle2557.htm



although it says 3.0 i think all TJ's come with 3.5

The Verada wagons are no noisier than sedans. I have 2 Verada sedans and a wagon. The wagons dont have IRS which gives a firmer ride than the sedans especially if you lower them.

There is not a huge difference between take off speeds between the two. I have a KE Sedan, a KH wagon and a KJ sedan and have had them all lined up. The KJ is the quickest because of the 5 speed auto, then the KE but only by a bonnet length upto 100k's over the KH wagon. Believe it or not, once they are all over 80 km/h, they all keep the same pace which is strange considering the KJ has the 5 speed.

All these tests were done with the auto's just left in D.
Can anyone tell me the actual weight of the wagons compared to the sedans, eg Advance wagon and advance sedan?

http://www.gregwattsmotors.com.au/EasyWeb/GREGVehicle2557.htm



although it says 3.0 i think all TJ's come with 3.5

Yes they only come in the 3.5 litre, I think some TH's were 3.0 but most TH's were 3.5 as well.

You would probably looking at around the 10k mark for one, saw few 01 model auto wagon for 11k in trading post.

I much prefer the TJ 01 model over the TH, if there is not that much difference in price between them I'd take the TJ advance wagon auto. :D

Yes they only come in the 3.5 litre, I think some TH's were 3.0 but most TH's were 3.5 as well.

This is true, however the TH was the last wagon model to come in a manual :D (not that it matters to you mate.

Thanks for all of your inputs guys, I know I ask a lot of questions but you have all been a great help at getting me closer to getting one of these terrific cars. :D

ILike35: For finding specs like kerb weights and such, redbook.com.au is your friend. :)

Z

yeah and prices are dropping all the times, so what you looking for will become cheaper now than when you started your search(your tj probably falling into your price range soon). :D

When the VX commodore is sold and their is a nice TJ Advance parked in my driveway I'll be happy and prices are falling quickly to, so these Magnas are an even better buy now, since their really is little difference in price between a TH and an early TJ I'll wait for the TJ.
Thanks for all of your input guys :)

TJ Sports - $14900 - 16000

TJ exec - $14000 - 15500

average prices on these cars = good value for money

usually have low km's or are over 100K and have had major service.

Bodys still in good condition(depends where they park it!)

Usually have new tyres


Nice cars!!!!!!
engineered to excite