1994 Nissan Sentra Super Saloon what to expect?

**alphaeous** · March 8th, 2008 11:17 PM

Kudos mga bossing!

Im planning to buy a 2ndhand '94 Sentra Super Saloon (all power, ABS, etc) for 120K... I have'nt seen the unit yet but the vendor (ofismate ko) said that it was newly overhauled, pinalitan na din po yung aircon, it has some new tires on it minus the "head unit" (walang stereo, waaaaaa)

Need inputs po mga bossing sa mga dapat tignan especially sa mechanical parts. Since newly overhauled po sya, dapat ko na ba i-disregard yung kondisyon ng makina? Also I've read some bad impressions with this vehicle like price of the parts, fuel consumption, reliability, etc.

I need your help mga gurus, PLEASE ENLIGHTEN ME!!!

tnx a lot!!!

**voltscastillo** · March 9th, 2008 07:27 AM

Originally Posted by alphaeous

Kudos mga bossing!

Im planning to buy a 2ndhand '94 Sentra Super Saloon (all power, ABS, etc) for 120K... I have'nt seen the unit yet but the vendor (ofismate ko) said that it was newly overhauled, pinalitan na din po yung aircon, it has some new tires on it minus the "head unit" (walang stereo, waaaaaa)

Need inputs po mga bossing sa mga dapat tignan especially sa mechanical parts. Since newly overhauled po sya, dapat ko na ba i-disregard yung kondisyon ng makina? Also I've read some bad impressions with this vehicle like price of the parts, fuel consumption, reliability, etc.

I need your help mga gurus, PLEASE ENLIGHTEN ME!!!

tnx a lot!!!

b13 yung shape ya di ba? meron kme dati 93 na ex saloon naman. carburetted 1.4 liter engine, power steering. yung super saloon 1.6 with ECCS (fuel and management system), but basically the same engine as ours with fuel injection, DOHC and 16 valves + 200cc more.

bihira i-overhaul yung mga nissan engines, unless catastrophic overheat yung nangyari or ex-taxi with starship mileage. but if your prospect car was fixed and broken in properly, the engine should be reliable. lots of torque and very quick. nissan was one of the first to bring in DOHC engines into the phil in small subcompacts like the sentra. why, even the ADresort has the sentra's DOHC engine hehe.

check the electricals at interiors... dapat hindi masyado laspag.

roadtest para makita yung kalampag.

parts are priced reasonably. originals cost about the same as toyota's or hondas, BUT matagal naman masira. plenty or replacement parts at madami na din nissan specialists sa banawe.

1994 would be the last year the b13 came out. up to now i still admire the stock, white, fresh sentra ECCS without tints na nakakasabay ko tuwing umaga sa traffic dito sa commonwealth. stock look nya maganda pa tayo until now.

**ghosthunter** · March 9th, 2008 09:51 AM

I might suggest to steer clear of that particular unit and maybe set your eyes on a more recent model like the B14 (series 3) Sentra (95-98).

Why? ... Well, assuming the previous owner did 10,000 kilometers per year, the odometer on that car should be reading around 140,000 km by now. Not only that, the engine has been overhauled and then soon sold. Overhauling is not cheap. You might end up buying someone else's problem or f#cked up overhaul job. And what caused the owner to find a need to overhaul a GA16DE engine? The engine is basically bulletproof in terms of reliability unless something really bad happened to it. My guess would be among the ff: flood, extended overheat or a mileage enough to reach the moon and back.

The B13 Sentra (92-94) is a very good car when it came out. The general problem is its pretty old by now and many of the cars of that age are simply tired. At least with the B13 Sentra, rust isn't a major problem. Chances are, you will need to replace most of the rubber suspension bushings if the previous owner didn't do them yet. The A/C fan speed switch only lasts around 60,000 to 80,000km before it starts to burn out & needs to be replaced (its a resistor type). The A/C compressor lasts about 100,000 to 120,000km before acting up. If you plan to lower this car, you will need to know that suspension travel at the front is very limited and any amount of lowering will result in the suspension bottoming out often even on the smaller bumps in the road.

If you still plan to buy the car, do a thorough road test with a qualified mechanic riding with you to listen to all the noising the car will make. Let him also check the engine and the car itself to look for hidden problems. Check if the car tracks straight and goes over hump/bumps with no creaks/groans. Do heavy acceleration & heavy braking tests to see if the engine, transmission and brakes are relatively healthy. Ask the owner if the car has had accidents and how severe. Compare notes with the mechanic's findings. If something doesn't add up, go and look for another car.

**alphaeous** · March 9th, 2008 12:22 PM

wow! thanks a lot mga bossing! Im already thinking twice on buying that car right now. Thanks for the help!

*voltscastillo; *ghosthunter:

**basti08** · March 9th, 2008 12:45 PM

Honestly, everytime i drive a previous gen Vios. I remember that car. The two both feels light on its feet, agile, responsive and plenty quick. Fuel consumption should be around 8-9km/l if the engine was properly maintained. all power features including antenna and all disc brakes with ABS is a good buy at 120K but i'd only get that Sentra at 120K if it's in top cond. sorry bro, but for me, B13 Sentras at mediocre conditions should just be at 80-90K if SS or SE variant. LECs are far cheaper, could now be bought at 50-60 range.

**RED XIII** · March 9th, 2008 01:29 PM

My only comment dude is that... the ECCS is simply the best local sentra we ever had, and it's only "natural" match in terms of quality is the rolla gli. The b13 has a cult following in the west especially the tuner favorite Se-R version, and is very popular in north America it became the best selling car of all-time.

Only flaws, would be age... and some parts are a li'l bit expensive than parts of the rolla, lancer etc. Reliability no question. See those LEC cabs (2gether w/ the rolla cabs na kasabay nya) around the metro? Ang tibay!! And oh... did I mention it's quickness? It has the fastest acceleration in it's class during it's time (it's engine is actually better and more powerful than the b14s!).