Hey guys,

Bought my car about 6 months ago and its going well. (1997 TE 3.0L Altera Wagon)
Its an auto which im not quite sure about but apart from that its a great car. Im contemplating putting a small amount of money into the car and making it look nice, wheels, fixing my front bumper which is scratched and replacing it with a nice shaped (vrx maybe) one and lowering it a bit as well as some other stuff along the way (maybe exhaust muffler etc.)

I already have an awesome Pioneer head unit, Pioneer 6x9s in the rear, Pioneer 6's in the front, a SoundStorm 1200 watt amp and a 12 inch Kenwood 1200watt sub and will be slightly improving with another sub another amp for the speakers.

Now i know you all fans of magna's (obviously) and so am i, but is it worth putting the money into it some more? An honest answer.. do the cars last and run well? (this model). I love the car, and its practical and i couldn't really have anything else (apart from a commodore v6 wagon) as i need the space and power and i'm on Red P plates and i cant get anything larger.

Anyway, i was wondering what you guys think about whacking a set of these wheels on it:

http://www.tempetyres.com.au/products_closeup.asp?part=&part_no=297

And touching it up, or is it worth looking at rebuying? Which will probably be another magna and yes i will make it look nice too. Again im 17 so im not made of money cant really afford too much. I'm just trying to decide weather these models are good cars because if i spend any money i will keep it for another 1-2 years but if not i will have to sell it save and get something else more expensive. Any opinions welcome :)

Thanks to anyone who read through my crap :P

Sorry forgot to mention the specs... its a nice looking light blue (alot of alteras) with 130,000s kms. Well looked after, got the service logs and everything and it runs well. As i said its a 1997 model and i've recently replace all the CV joints. No problems other than that.

I love the car, and its practical and i couldn't really have anything else (apart from a commodore v6 wagon) as i need the space and power and i'm on Red P plates and i cant get anything larger.

you dare mention this on a Magna forum???...:badgrin:

haha, anyway, on topic, determining whether or not the car is worth spending money on, well thats up to you really, if its worth it to you, then go for it - the wagons do tidy up quite nicely with some tints, lowered with some decent size rims...id do it - have done some work on my wagon from stock, very little though, and it looks quite smart on the road..

hey mate, welcome!

if u treat the car fine it'll drive perfectly, just remember to give it a regular service.. uve chosen a very nice set of rims for the wagon, i reckon it'll look good! btw the vrx rear kit wont fit on the wagons, and the TJ has a different front bar than the TE's so there might be some money on a new TH-TJ bar there to fit the vrx kit on the front

if u enjoy the car, just keep it and have small mods, dont go over the top, in the end it wont really be worth it unless ur intending on keeping it for life :P

having sed that, rims, springs, zorst and looks like u already got the sound system worked out, and that'll give u a nice daily cruiser, g'luck :)

Sorry forgot to mention the specs... its a nice looking light blue (alot of alteras) with 130,000s kms. Well looked after, got the service logs and everything and it runs well. As i said its a 1997 model and i've recently replace all the CV joints. No problems other than that.
has the timing belt been replaced?

you dare mention this on a Magna forum???

hahaha thats why i said the only other option is a commodore.. WHICH ISNT AN OPTION HAHA..

Yeah thanks guys thats what i was thinking. Just small things like what hojo said, springs, rims etc.

And hojo no i haven't done the timing belt but it has been on my mind ill tell you. I did the oil change when i got the car and im going to do it again soon and timing belt myself (if its not too hard). I got a wheel alignment and new front tyres the other day (which dad payed for, and after i told him im looking at those rims he just shook his head about paying for new tyres haha.)

But yes timing belt is definatly next on the agenda..

Also a quick tech question, my car seems to kick a few more times before firing when im starting it cold. Like instead of say 3 ticks when holding the key its now more like 5 before the thing fires over. Any suggestions?

Apart from that thanks for the advice.

lol u'd probly go to a mechanic for ur timing belt unless uve got urself a torque wrench and a pretty good knowledge on mechanics/engines, my brother gave up on his 3rd gen and sent it to a mechanic and he wouldnt even dare touch my TX5's timing belt coz "its too crammed up in that engine bay"

Yeah true.. we have a torque wrench and tools but i suppose for the money its worth i should probably send it down to them.

somethings to wet yor whistle. props to baggin and hedgie

Whoa.. thanks for those photos, that makes me wanna buy rims now hahaha.. that orange car is a similar look im going for, with the shadow black/silver style rims. Is that yours or someone you knows car? If so i was wondering how he cut the back and removed the door handles.

Heres some photos of my car :)
As you can see in the first image there is a bit of a bump on the front left bumper which probably will be fixed down the track, but apart from that she runs well. I got it off an older couple going for a quick sale. I paid $4500, 140,000 kms what do you guys think? ( 97 TE Altera Wagon )

http://img460.imageshack.us/img460/9343/image031ar1.th.jpg (http://img460.imageshack.us/my.php?image=image031ar1.jpg)
http://img403.imageshack.us/img403/5205/image0361eo4.th.jpg (http://img403.imageshack.us/my.php?image=image0361eo4.jpg)
http://img206.imageshack.us/img206/4365/image037ie4.th.jpg (http://img206.imageshack.us/my.php?image=image037ie4.jpg)
http://img530.imageshack.us/img530/9256/image034bi5.th.jpg (http://img530.imageshack.us/my.php?image=image034bi5.jpg)

Looks pretty good for $4.5k, is it manual or auto? Altera's are normally closer to $6k aren't they?

Great buy, now get some nice wheels on her!

Edit: Did the older couple have that subbie in the boot? :P

Heres some photos of my car :)
As you can see in the first image there is a bit of a bump on the front left bumper which probably will be fixed down the track, but apart from that she runs well. I got it off an older couple going for a quick sale. I paid $4500, 140,000 kms what do you guys think? ( 97 TE Altera Wagon )


well i must say that is a nice colour magna you have :)
you definately got a bargain there!
as ricbec said b4 tint,lowered and mags and you will have 1 pimpin ride :cool:

Yeah i thought it was good, when i look at (its auto btw mate) Altera wagons, which is what i needed, i see 6K +

Yeah im planning on probably dropping it a bit, ill measure how much when i put rims on it.
Im thining about these wheels.

http://www.tempetyres.com.au/products_closeup.asp?part=&part_no=297

I'm also looking at getting a K&N Panel Filter soon seeing there reasonably cheap and good for the car. (Yeah i have read all the other threads dont worry im not going to start a new one haha ).

And whoa nice ride Hamish, the 97 TF.. i was thinking about pulling the inner console panels out of mine and painting them like that. your job looks awesome!!! Nice stuff. And im also a massive fan of the silver grill trim (dunno what you call it haha?)

Yeah i thought it was good, when i look at (its auto btw mate) Altera wagons, which is what i needed, i see 6K +

Yeah im planning on probably dropping it a bit, ill measure how much when i put rims on it.
Im thining about these wheels.

http://www.tempetyres.com.au/products_closeup.asp?part=&part_no=297

I'm also looking at getting a K&N Panel Filter soon seeing there reasonably cheap and good for the car. (Yeah i have read all the other threads dont worry im not going to start a new one haha ).

And whoa nice ride Hamish, the 97 TF.. i was thinking about pulling the inner console panels out of mine and painting them like that. your job looks awesome!!! Nice stuff. And im also a massive fan of the silver grill trim (dunno what you call it haha?)

cheers :)
yeah do a search painting interior on magnas, very easy DIY job
as for the grill its just a stock TE/TF grill with mesh used in body kits placed over the top ,then spray painted with chrome/silver paint,i just call it a custom grill,theres heaps of grill modifications out there,doing searches will help ya out :)
edit:i also have a TH grill as well as seen in my profile pic

nice car mate, wagons have potential.

have fun with it

Cheers, wow your car looks nice, what model is it and is that a VRX kit? Or a custom kit on the front. Looks nice mate :)

[EDIT] Oops just read your sig hehe. I didn't realize they made VRX wagons? Or is it modded into a VRX?

oh, nah there was never a vrx wagon. i just like to think mine is

:fruitcake



I just put the kit on

thanks for the comments.

Did you get a manual conversion on that one Gerard? Or did it come that way?

came manual stock

ive only ever seen 2 manual wagons. mine and "Chantra's" ol wagon
oh and now slyTS6's converted wagon.

awesome cars.

sounds like uv got urself a nice bargain there.
thats an awesome color.

if your going to get the front fixed. get a TH model bumper. That way you have more options if you decide to get a it. and also they look neater.

the problem you mentioned about the car not cranking quickly, could be battery related. a low battery would cause this when cold or left alone for long time. try replacing it or testing it with a multi-meter.

those rims youv linked would look awesome on the wagon.
18/19s are perfect for 3rd gens. and thy are becoming more affordable.

=)

Pretty darn good, Just curious of how you find reversing in the wagon? Is it fairly difficult?

very easy, its the same length as the sedan. and u can see more from the rear with the side windows and rear panel.

yeah im planning on probably dropping it a bit, ill measure how much when i put rims on it.
if ur just looking at a quick and decent drop- nothing too low- my brother installed a set of lovells that were equivalent to vrx springs.. so pretty much just a 15mm drop, it got rid of that crazy gap at the front wheels that makes the 3rd gens look like 4wds

if ur looking for lower again and not too over the top (but people will consider goin lower lol) go for some lows from any brand, personally i'd say lovells just coz of personal preference- firm but not too harsh.. the lows should be about a 35mm drop (i think thats about 1.5 inches?)

with that said, u should replace the shocks if ur goin lower than 15mm, and a personal thought is to add a caster and camber kit and get larger front and rear swaybars

Pretty darn good, Just curious of how you find reversing in the wagon? Is it fairly difficult?
i find it easier reversing in the wagons than in dads commodore/statey.. coz i kno exactly where the bum is

gerard: urs and my brothers is the only TH advance magna wagons ive seen, very hard to find one, btw do u have any rear skirts on the rear bar or is it just the standard bar?

i find it easier reversing in the wagons than in dads commodore/statey.. coz i kno exactly where the bum is

gerard: urs and my brothers is the only TH advance magna wagons ive seen, very hard to find one, btw do u have any rear skirts on the rear bar or is it just the standard bar?

standard. lookin for some pods atm

Yeah the wagons are good, there is a hell of alot of visability. All i found that i need to be aware of is how far the back of the car extends past the rear wheels which comes into the equation when doing reverse parks. But there pretty good from what i have experienced.