Oppoinions?

"WesBarton89 - The Way to Santa Fe" (wesbarton89) 01/29/2015 at 12:51 • Filed to: None

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I'm going to look at the 2000 Infiniti I30 on Saturday. I got ahold of the seller. He said it has every available option, and only needs a minimal amount of work. Mainly a new muffler, battery, and shocks, as well as needing to fix the one side track for the rear power shade. He has tires to put on it. He said it's been meticulously maintained with records showing services. He wants $800 for it. Here's the kicker though - it has somewhere in the neighborhood of 243k miles. It's got the VQ30DE 3.0L V6 engine. From what I understand, those are pretty reliable engines, and mileage doesn't overly concern me, but at that high of an amount, I'm thinking of offering $700 for it, if everything else checks out. Like I said, I will be looking at it on Saturday afternoon, so I'll let you know what happens, but should I go for it? The seller said it has every option available for that year, so it's fully loaded.

GhostZ > WesBarton89 - The Way to Santa Fe 01/29/2015 at 12:58

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The VQ engines are timing chain interference engines. So they are reliable to a point . If the timing chain weakens or deforms at all, your engine blows, but it's a lot less likely to happen than a belt stretching from not being maintenenced right.

Electrical quirks and gremlins are super common on these cars, quite a few things can be fixed by just going through the fuse box and cleaning stuff out.

Keep in mind that the 2000 i30 is basically a 2001 Anniversary Edition Maxima SE. They were very well equipped standard, so having "all the options" might not mean much. I wouldn't consider it a greater value to have the options at this point, given the mileage.

Party-vi > WesBarton89 - The Way to Santa Fe 01/29/2015 at 13:03

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If it needs a muffler, battery, and shocks it has NOT been meticulously maintained.

I know the I30 uses struts (spring and shocks) up front and I think it also uses struts out back, so you're looking to spend at least $500 just for replacement suspension, assuming you can find the MacPherson struts for $125 a piece.

Textured Soy Protein > Party-vi 01/29/2015 at 13:09

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Looking on RockAuto, front struts are $75-85 each depending on brand, rears are $55 each.

WesBarton89 - The Way to Santa Fe > Party-vi 01/29/2015 at 13:09

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Ugh, I meant struts. Well, mechanically, with regularly scheduled oil changes and so on. The original owner was the guy's father in law who owned a Nissan/Infiniti dealer, and kept all the maintenance paperwork. Yeah, I'm expecting at least $500 in repairs. I knew that going into it, that it wouldn't be road ready.

Party-vi > Textured Soy Protein 01/29/2015 at 13:12

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For shit-quality Unity struts.

WesBarton89 - The Way to Santa Fe > GhostZ 01/29/2015 at 13:13

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Yeah, I know they were very well equipped, but I think heated seats were one option, which this one has. I'll check through all the fuses and everything, that shouldn't be an issue. And I was aware of the timing chain in place of a belt. My stepdad is a mechanic by hobby, and has rebuilt countless cars of all types, so he's going to give it a once over, and then do it again and again, so I will trust his opinion as far as that goes.

I've owned and driven vehicles north of 200k miles before, and properly maintained, they run perfectly fine. I've also owned an Infiniti before, so I think I have a decent idea of what to expect.

Textured Soy Protein > Party-vi 01/29/2015 at 13:27

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Those numbers were for Monroe, KYB & Gabriel. Nothing fancy, but decent enough.

Party-vi > Textured Soy Protein 01/29/2015 at 13:29

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You need the strut/spring assembly. Monroe Quick Struts are $80 each for rear and $120 each for front. Not bad pricing but still not a simple shock job.

WesBarton89 - The Way to Santa Fe > GhostZ 01/29/2015 at 16:25

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From my research, I found it's the VQ30DE-K, and the VQ30 is a seriously well-made engine, with good low-end torque. This one has the variable intake, which apparently fixed some problems with the 95-99 Maximas/I30s. This I30 isn't a touring model, which is fine with me. I'll definitely be reviewing the service records and looking everything over, as well as taking lots of pictures. If the engine were to go bad, I could get one with 66k miles for $700. Not bad at all.

GhostZ > WesBarton89 - The Way to Santa Fe 01/30/2015 at 02:27

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They are solid engines, and stupidly fast (given how light the cars are) for their size. I've driven several 1999-2001 maximas of different trim level, but even I am wary of the engine grenading itself.

WesBarton89 - The Way to Santa Fe > GhostZ 01/30/2015 at 07:02

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Hopefully it doesn't. From the times I've driven past the vehicle, the interior and exterior really belie the mileage. I will get some pics tomorrow for the crowd here.