Hi all, my first post here. I'm seriously thinking of buying a Magna, it's a 2003 TL VR model and it has 215,000 on the clock, I can pick it up for $3500
The interior condition is very good and the bodywork shows just the normal marks one would expect with a car of this age.

I have to get the RWC done and it needs a service and the timing belt replaced, I've had a quote for this and will cost approximately $700 for the work.

I'm a little put of with the high mileage but the car drives really well and looks good. Do you feel this is a good buy? Or should I be concerned about buying a Magna of this age and mileage?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated, Thx

Needing Timing belt replaced, is a regular occurance on FWD vehicles in particular, but can be costly,
but as far as purchase price goes, sounds on the money, would prob offer $3,000-3,250 just to see if they will lower the price some more
But i think they are worth way more than this as an average price around Australia, but all depends if the engine is shagged or not, but worst case u can replace that.

I would guess that its the 3.5l V6 motor, which is pretty damn trustworthy!
Good thing with the 3.5L is ive been told you can use newer 380 cams to get some extra sumfin-sunfin from them ;)

Years ago when the V6 3L engines came out I helped put one in a Speedway Sprintcar, and that thing got hammered and always wanted more :D
So the 3.5L will have all that technology and some more going for it!

My wife and I just bought a TF (98) and it is a great car, and have not looked back !

So i say hell yeah, buy a magna (btw i own a VT commodore, and i am saying for that sort of cash, go MAGNA)

BTW
Power = 163kW @ 5200rpm
Private Price Guide = $5,500 - $7,100
(quoted redbook.com.au)

good car for the price.

like any car, they are at the stage where things start to wear out, and cost money. but look after it and you will get another 200,000 kms out if it.

Thanks all, yes it's the 3.5l V6 motor with auto/trippy gearbox, don't think the engine is shagged as it runs pretty smooth. If I decide to buy it and get the service and timing belt done would you also replace the water pump at the same time? The garage said it would be worth doing at the same time as it would save labour costs if it neededto be done later. What do you think? Thx

definitely do water pump

definitely do water pump

:yeahthat:

If you have the money to spend, replace the water pump too.. Also while your having work done,
perhaps change some more of the parts that are commonly replaced/replacable, makes your car more reliable at the get go.

Pull out the spark plug leads and see if there's any oil in there, may need (actually more probably will need) replacement tube stem seals; also check for leaking valve stem seals by letting it idle for a while then giving a blip of the accelerator, smoke-on-blip = seal replacement.
Tube stem seals (spark plugs) mean taking the intake and rocker covers off, so best to do any other work in that area at the time, as it's the labour of getting to it that's the big cost. Platinum spark plugs in the rear bank, to save having to change them every 20K. Valve stem seals if needed.

And definitely do the water pump with the timing belt, 200K is the usual replacement mark for the pump.

km's are high, but the price seems to reflect that, and if you are confident that the engine and trans are in good condition, it should be OK. Otherwise you can pick up a ~150K motor for say sub $700, obviously more stuffing around though.

Thanks guys, the problem is buying the car and getting the RWC, service, timing belt and water pump done blows most of my budget, so any other problems found during the service means I won't have the funds to get extra work done. I'm not mechanical so will always have to rely on a garage for repairs/servicing etc.
Really not sure what to do, like the car and it appears to be in pretty good nick but don't want to buy a lemon that could eat every dollar I make!!

im not sure what the RWC procedure is in QLD, but why cant you get an inspection done prior to purchase to determine other likely work that will be required instead of guessing? you mention it is in good nick and drives well - do you have any reason to suspect it hasnt been looked after? at 215k i think the timing belt should have been done 20-30k ago - are you sure it hasnt been done?
at that price, sounds a good deal for the VR if you can afford the major service and timing belt (if it in fact is required).

work will have to be done on any car of that age

work will have to be done on any car of that age

Agreed - only a new car with warranty will cost you nothing to put on the road, repairs wise. That's why new cars are expensive, and old Magnas cheap.

A lot of people sell their Magnas at about the 200 - 220,000 km because they are faced with the cost of doing the timing belt, idlers, water pump, etc. I would happily buy a Magna of that age and Km, but I would keep a couple of grand in reserve for servicing, repairs etc. No service records would mean the job needs to be done. Who wouldn't keep receipts or get the logbook updated if they have spent serious $$$$ on the car recently?

Agreed - only a new car with warranty will cost you nothing to put on the road, repairs wise. That's why new cars are expensive, and old Magnas cheap.

A lot of people sell their Magnas at about the 200 - 220,000 km because they are faced with the cost of doing the timing belt, idlers, water pump, etc. I would happily buy a Magna of that age and Km, but I would keep a couple of grand in reserve for servicing, repairs etc. No service records would mean the job needs to be done. Who wouldn't keep receipts or get the logbook updated if they have spent serious $$$$ on the car recently?

Agreed. I bought mine with incomplete service history and I've spent about $2800 on maintenance alone this year (complete timing belt kit, water pump, radiator cap, all water hoses, coolant change, thermostat, RH engine mount, trans flush, oil changes, all filters & plugs, rocker cover gaskets, brake fluid change, and heater core, seals and pipes, among other things) - mostly preventative, the only thing that was urgent was the heater pipes as one snapped. Its at 199,600km, but at least I can be confident that it should be good for another 100k (or 2.5-3 years) at least - and know that the work is actually done.

I bought mine, however, knowing that the timing belt and engine mount both needed to be done, and was prepared to spend a little money throughout the year and fill in the gaps in the maintenance history - and keep a log of receipts.

By the time you have it on the road and registered, you'll have spent close to $5000 which may buy a lower mileage unit ready to go. At 215km I'd be getting worried about the transmission as well. The lower spec Magnas are loaded with everything you'll ever need. Cars that have no RWC or reg are almost impossible sell and most people will not touch one as it is too much of a gamble unless you can do all the mechanical work yourself.
The market right now is flooded with cheap cars and there are some real bargains to be had out there.
So my advice FWIW is to either offer much less (~$2500) or keep looking. Good Luck.

My policy is to drive cars until timing belt snaps, then drop another motor in. Costs the same (about $600-$800). Only thing is I've never had a belt snap, so I'm well up and can afford for a few to go. I drove my skyline 100,000km over and never snapped. U13 Bluebird 60,000km over.

My policy is to drive cars until timing belt snaps, then drop another motor in. Costs the same (about $600-$800). Only thing is I've never had a belt snap, so I'm well up and can afford for a few to go. I drove my skyline 100,000km over and never snapped. U13 Bluebird 60,000km over.

The recommended belt change interval is 90,000 km or 5 years, whichever comes first.
These are very conservative numbers and can be stretched a bit. (or a lot, if you are lucky.)
(But to ignore them altogether to the point of self destruction is a bit . . . . . . . . . . . . barbaric, to say the least.)

T0o answer the OP:
Should you buy a Magna? Yes you should!
Should you check it over carefully first? Yes you should!
Should you update it's service requirements? Yes you should!

The recommended belt change interval is 90,000 km or 5 years, whichever comes first.
These are very conservative numbers and can be stretched a bit. (or a lot, if you are lucky.)
(But to ignore them altogether to the point of self destruction is a bit . . . . . . . . . . . . barbaric, to say the least.)

T0o answer the OP:
Should you buy a Magna? Yes you should!
Should you check it over carefully first? Yes you should!
Should you update it's service requirements? Yes you should!


Barbaric! Ha ha ha I've never thought of myself in those terms. Just never really felt like spending that much money on a service and seems like a fiddly job to try myself.

Anyway, I tell anyone who'll listen to buy a magna, best value for money in OZ IMO. Power to burn, spacious and pretty damn reliable from what I've seen. Buy Buy Buy!

Edit: Find out if the K's are country or urban. 200,000 country k's can be better then 100,000 k's around a city. Cars like long trips and do very little damage once their at operating temperature on open roads. Check CV's and service history of engine. These engines are very reliable if serviced well and regularly.