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My expenditures are now at $25K. Ran into a few more mechanical issues (PS pump, heater control valve, a/c recharge. etc.) but I am still happy with the decision and fun factor is still there....
$7500 for a 92 w65k. Lack-of-use maintenance=$5000 roughly. Body kit, wheels, tires, interior dress up.another $5000 maybe. Joy of ownership....priceless. Insurance is pennies because of age and dont have to worry about emissions testing ever because its considered historic
I bought my car for $5k. Plenty of things have needed fixing along the way. I have records for all my expenditures but I have no interest in doing a full tally right now-- I think I'd get depressed. I've spent at least $16k on chassis, brakes, transmission and GTE parts outside of maintenance and fixes alone.
Not that you have to do all that to own an SC... unless your definition of "owning an SC" involves turning into a low-boost Supra TT.
It's a money pit to be sure and more for the reason above and not because it breaks down frequently. It has classic looks, it's fun, practical, reliable and has great handling. Fuel economy might be the only downside but given the kind of car it is it's just part of the package.
i recently purchased a clean 95 sc300 5-speed... just under 68k, garage kept, dealer maintained... price was $6800...
there's a lot of beaters, high mileage, or "just needs a few things" cars out there, but having bought used cars before, it's worth spending a few extra bucks (imo) to get something that you "know" doesn't need work to start with, especially if you expect to use it as a daily driver...
quoting myself from 8 years ago... wow, time passes fast...
to reinforce the original point of "start from a good spot"... just crossed 125k... other than "regular" maintenance (fluids, tires, timing belt/water pump, etc.) and a recently rebuilt clutch, i have only have had to have the following done:
- replace alternator
- replace cam seals (had timing belt/water pump done at same time)..,
- replace passenger door opening mechanism assembly (self inflicted damage)...
- a few other random little things...
i need to replace the hood struts, as those have recently failed...
it goes and visits the dealer every 5k for an oil change and a "look over", and i also have them perform other "interval" service... repair work (other than clutch, which they wanted a stupid amount of money for, aamco did that) all done at dealer...
back of the envelope (not counting regular maintenance), i'm into it for about $12-13k, including purchase price... not bad at all for 8 years of use, a little over $1500 a year...
imo, starting with a "good one" turned this car into one heckuva bargain over the years... especially since:
a) my wife LOVES her car (i'm rather fond of it too), and it isn't going anywhere soon...
b) to buy something that would make her equally happy would cost me SIGNIFICANTLY more money on a yearly basis...
c) i fully anticipate that it will last another 125k with continued proper maintenance... even with the occasional "big bill", it still beats $6k (or more) a year in car payments, not to mention the additional insurance cost of a "new car"...
I bought my '97 SC400 from an older gent in Dallas back in 2009 for $12K. Black over black, and in extraordinary shape, well kept, about 65K miles, and other than some beautiful BBS rims (which were stock 16" size), completely stock. I flew there and drove the car home, and since then, I'd estimate that I've spent about $6. K on maintenance and just a few mods - Lowered 1 inch with Tanabe springs and Tokico blues, had a custom, axle back exhaust w chrome tips (just for low key, throaty growl at low speeds - disappears at cruise), clear corner side markers). I've done the timing belt/water pump twice, replaced trunk lifts, replaced power steering pump, antenna mast, and most recently, the dreaded starter. Have been very fortunate in having a great, independent mechanic. I do a lot of hand washing, claying, polishing and waxing, swapped out the gold badges for factory chrome ones. Have 141K miles now (it's my daily driver), and the car honestly drives better than it did 6 years ago when I got it. If you buy right and take care of these cars, they will run well a very, very long time. Many would say I overpaid for mine back in '09, but I really think you get what you pay for and then it's up to you to maintain. Here are a few pics.
Sorry about the sideways pix . . . first time I've posted any here and have no idea what they loaded like that . . . they're straight up on my computer desktop (sigh). By the way, about cost . . . .unfortunately, until un-screwed-up, good condition SCs are a little rarer, even the really nice ones are not going to command a lot of money if you decide to sell. I'm in mine about $18K and I doubt that I could get more than $7K or $8K max if I wanted to sell. But if you think about it, if I'd bought a new car in 2009 for $25K to $30K, it would not have been as well built, it sure as hell wouldn't have a 32 valve v8 and the quality of overall driving experience, and 6 years later that new car would not be worth more than $15K. There is always depreciation and cost of ownership.
I'm not an owner, yet. So, just a looker for now. I've been looking for 2-3 months, not much is within driving distance, Louisville KY.
So, there is a 92 SC400, photos and story match up, 1 owner, 110K, timing belt/water pump change at 75k ~15 years ago. Looks to have been garage keep it's whole life.
BUT, it's a 310 mile drive one way, so if I go, I'm going to buy. Asking price is $6700 After reading every post I can find, my gut says it's worth ~$5200, give or take. Am I wrong?
Ok so in 2007 when this thread was made there was not quite as much an issue as today about the next thing I need to point out in 2019. People finding these 25 year old SC’s with under 100k on them....... sometimes you want a little mileage. There’s a fine balance on cars that have had gentle use and cars that have sat for years. If you drive a car for 2 years and put only 15k on it, and the same car sits for 2 years unused, the one that sat will be in much worse shape. You have to keep mechanical items moving. You don’t see the piston rings fusing into the cylinder walls, the crank pitting itself into the journals, the rubber hardening from the inside out - so it still looks fine. The examples never end. Cars that sit, die. Find a car that’s in good shape, and gets used. The best question you can ask someone when buying “how many miles were put on it this year”?
TLDR; It depends on your plans for the car. Do you like to tinker and want a project? Building a drift missile? Going for a looker?
I bought my 95 SC400 for $1500, 3 years ago. It's high mileage, but in great shape. It was cheap because the front main seal was leaking bad and the previous owner wasn't a DIY'er. The quote he got for the repair was outrageous. It came with Megan coilovers, straight through exhaust, tint...things I'd want to do to it anyway, and it's red and I love SCs in red.
I spent about $500 and a weekend to fix the leak, along with some "while I'm in theres"...
Front main seal
Front cam seals
Timing belt kit
Water pump
Serpentine belt kit
Distributor caps and rotors
Ignition coils, plugs, wires...
All OEM parts, except for the ignition wires. I bought this car as a 2nd/3rd and as a toy to play around with, not as my daily that I rely on to get me around, I also like to do my own work. The car ran great, shifted great and looked great and I just enjoyed it for the next year or so, $2k all in.
Roughly 1.5 years ago I bought another car and the SC took a back seat and it's mostly sat, until now, which brings me back to the forum. I'm planning on some suspension upgrades, wheels and want to swap to black interior, hate the beige. I'm also considering a manual swap.
Thanks for the info, I did make the trip and I brought it home. I'll do the intro post later this week. I'm looking to keep it original, just want a fun unique car that I can drive for the next ~10 years. I had a hard time finding anything wrong with it....so we agreed on $6,300, you could tell the seller did not need the money and I did drive 320-330 miles one way. I'll have to read over some of the posts on replacing the amp, radio/cassette sound pretty bad, and you can barely hear the rear speakers. (so I'm hoping a replacement amp will fix the problems) Sometime this week, I hope to start ordering: everything needed for a timing belt change.
Thanks for the info, I did make the trip and I brought it home. I'll do the intro post later this week. I'm looking to keep it original, just want a fun unique car that I can drive for the next ~10 years. I has a hard time finding anything wrong with it....so we agreed on $6,300, you could tell the seller did not need the money and I did drive 320-330 miles one way. I'll have to read over some of the posts on replacing the amp, radio/cassette sound pretty bad, and you can barely hear the rear speakers. (so I'm hoping a replacement amp will fix the problems) Sometime this week, I hope to start ordering: everything needed for a timing belt change.
congrats on the purchase. I am looking for one myself. It is not easy to find a well maintained, well kept one. Either they are way too expensive or they are just junk. I don’t want a fixer upper. I do enjoy turning a wrench but I can’t quit my job to do it all the time. Ha ha. Maybe I should look for a Camry instead.
06-05-14, 10:05 PM
What should I offer? 92 SC400
