Late last year I bought my first car... a 94 TS Magna sedan for just $1000!!! (down from 1300 as advertised). As time has gone on I really haven't found any major issues with the car. I love it to be honest. It needed a road worthy, rego, new windscreen and a couple of tires. I also got the timing chain replaced because it was making quite a racket. Still, I don't understand why I got it so cheap!!! I realize Magnas have terrible resale value but $1000! I was thinking it might be a repairable write-off because the front passenger door isn't quite inline with the rest of the car but other than that it's solid and makes no rattles or wind noises... very smooth and quiet on the road. It had a little over 200 on the clock. Can anyone make a guess as to why I got it so cheap? Perhaps you guys could give me a few tips to see if it's been in a rather nasty accident at some stage? Another little sign that I thought might indicate repairs are the smaller back back windows next to the C pillars. I'm pretty sure they've had work done because during summer, the silicon or whatever sealer was used melted a little and became visible around the trim.

Maybe I should just go with it and count my self lucky because it's a nice, comfortable car to drive :happy:

I think you got a pretty good buy; you're right though, Magnas have terrible resale value. Put it this way - I'd be lucky to get $8000 for my 5 year old TL.

If you're concerned about repaired accident damage, look along the sides of the car from either side/end - if the panels have ripples or a wavy line, then they've been repaired at some point.

if your really worried about your car then maybe you should go and pay a visit to madmagna
he'll sort you out ;)

That gooey stuff is normal factory stuff mate....but yeah they have horrible resale which makes it great for buyers but horrible for sellers!

Price is nothing unusual. I paid 1200 for a TS 3.0 auto wagon in december 2007. Perfect interior, everything works, 200,000 km, just needed new paint, CD Sony included.

i got a $500 ts 4cyl, 6 months rego and balance shafts were just taken out which means the timing chain was replaced. $2000 later its a verada and i wont even get that back. just about to go spend another 800 on a v6 5 spd. my exp is . cheap yea for some people. time consuming thats just about every magna owner who works on their car

I probably paid too much for my '93 TR, but it only had 158,000 on the clock and everything on it was perfect, $2,500

{That's NOT it in the picture :lol:}

i payed $300 each for a 93 tr 4cyl and then a v6 3l 94 ts, been seeing alot of magna's from the second gen go for a low price on ebay, but car dealer ships think they can get 4+ grand for a 93 tr sedan

I paid $500 for a top nic KS Verada ei off ebay

I suppose I got a pretty good deal then. Most Magnas are a bargain these days. High quality cars for a low quality price.

So that silicon melting is a known problem? On really hot days it used to become so soft that some of it dropped down on to the seat.

i paid $300 for a 95 v6 ts with rego 200,000 k. perfect condition. But in saying that back in 2002 i brought a mint cond 93 4cyl TR for $3,800. even then it was cheap.

They are a cheap car due to the reputation, but even still they are very underrated. Compared to everything else on the market even $1000 is cheap for what your getting. they will probably out last alot of competitors too

. . . . but car dealer ships think they can get 4+ grand for a 93 tr sedan

Tell them they're dreaming!

I suppose I got a pretty good deal then. Most Magnas are a bargain these days. High quality cars for a low quality price.

So that silicon melting is a known problem? On really hot days it used to become so soft that some of it dropped down on to the seat.

Its not silicon, its some horrible stuff that melts and droops in the heat. Take the interior plastic off those windows and scrape it away before it stains the seats! Cleans up with turps - I know, I had to remove it all when I repainted my TS sedan. Messy job! Whoever applied it in the plant applied about 100X more than he needed to!

They are a cheap car due to the reputation, but even still they are very underrated. Compared to everything else on the market even $1000 is cheap for what your getting. they will probably out last alot of competitors too

Reputation? I was aware that the 1st generation Magna had reliability problems but I thought the 2nd gen models addressed moat issues. Did the Magna name just never regain confidence with buyers?

Its not silicon, its some horrible stuff that melts and droops in the heat. Take the interior plastic off those windows and scrape it away before it stains the seats! Cleans up with turps - I know, I had to remove it all when I repainted my TS sedan. Messy job! Whoever applied it in the plant applied about 100X more than he needed to!

Thanks for that advice. I'll give it a go before next summer comes around other wise the back seat and seat belts will get all greased up.

Reputation? I was aware that the 1st generation Magna had reliability problems but I thought the 2nd gen models addressed moat issues. Did the Magna name just never regain confidence with buyers?

yeah your right. the name itself has a bad reputation because of the first gens (not so much 2nd and 3rd gens). From what i heard its why they changed the name to 380.

Depending where in Vic you are feel free to make a time to drop over and I can have a look at the car and tell you if it has been in an accident and also what is likely to need doing in the near future

Cheers