s14 reliability...

[TomM]

Seriously, how reliable is the s14? I've never had a turbo car before, and it worries me! Especially as to afford one, I'll have to get a long milage knack'd 1995 one! Reliability is paramount for my next car... if the s14 scares me too much, I'll have to go for a naturally aspirated hog...

And how many MPG do you all get?

[JackaL]

I get 310 miles from a tank costing £40, u can work out MPG from there (I can't!)

My dad had over 109k from his s14, no smoke, no engine failure, It was still going strong when he sold it!

Get one with tidy bodywork, you can always replace a worn engine.

[Nick_Walczak]

I average 30mpg. Mostly country lane work with some in-town driving. I think that's not bad for 200bhp. http://300zx.co.uk/200sx/ubb/smile.gif

Fleets buy 'em and they wouldn't buy anything that isn't capable of doing high mileages (probably).

[This message has been edited by Nick_Walczak (edited 16-10-2001).]

[Rossy]

I dont get a very good MPG on my S14 but thats because I dont often travel long distances on the motorway...I get more like 270 Miles on a £40 tank.

Reliability though has been great. I replaced the Turbo @ 70,000 but I could have got away with just a gasket change (I wanted to get a T28 Super Hybrid though). Other than that the car has been 100% reliable and never let me down. The only issues I have had were the CD Autoloader getting stuck (thats a Sony problem not a Nissan one!) and the Aircon Fan motor which is not working.

They are not the cheapest cars to fix when they go wrong but....they hardly ever go wrong if maintained correctly....just get one with good Warranty.

[TomM]

Originally posted by JackaL:
I get 310 miles from a tank costing £40, u can work out MPG from there (I can't!)


I think this works:

miles from full tank
-----------------------------------
(£ of tank / (£ for a litre * 4.546) )


So in your case...

= 310 / (40 / (.75 * 4.546) )

= 310 / (40 / 3.4095 )

= 310 / 11.732

= about 26 MPG


[This message has been edited by Tombs (edited 16-10-2001).]

[JackaL]

26 MPG? That seems about ok. Almost all my driving is country lane - 70 miles a day split in 2 journeys. If I cane it a bit then I can drop to 290-300 miles a tank, but have had over 330 a tank on the motorway... and I'm not that light footed...

Word of advice though - watch the back end in the wet, and if it snows - STAY AT HOME!

[geoff_s14]

Don't be tempted to go for one without full Nissan sevice history. As long as its been serviced properly - and unmodified - it will be more reliable than most cars. Nissan's service costs themselves are really cheap if you compare them to other cars with similar performance. Same price as a Primera.

------------------
Geoff
Emerald S14a, with God's Own Transmission.

http://www.animfactory.com/animations/transportation/cars/mirror_md_clr.gif

[Johnny]

Originally posted by JackaL:

Word of advice though - watch the back end in the wet, and if it snows - STAY AT HOME!


HA ha ha .... yeah I made that mistake, the hardest journey I have ever made, the car was sideways ALL the way home, I got home absolutely knackered

[Tom_S14]

Mine's done a nice healthy 120k miles now, still going strong. Only thing that's packed in so far was a fuel pump. There's a lot of high mileage ones around (like mine) that have spent their lives trucking up and down the motorway. But two service stamps a year was reassuring when I got it.

Take the snow advice very seriously. I've come across situations where I've had to dump the car and walk home because it's just impossible to drive. Perhaps they don't have snow in japan ? http://300zx.co.uk/200sx/ubb/wink.gif


Tom

------------------
1996 Blue/Green S14 (manual)
K&N cone filter
2.5" Tube-torque Cat Back Exhaust.
TechTom MDM-100
Race-Technology AP-22 http://tom.marshall.tripod.com

[This message has been edited by Tom_S14 (edited 17-10-2001).]

[Nick_Walczak]

What's the problem with the snow? I've driven a Caterham 7 type car in the snow without a problem (that is until I started messing about on a back road http://300zx.co.uk/200sx/ubb/smile.gif )

Is it the turbo that causes the problem?

[JackaL]

The problem with the snow is the huge ammount of torque developed by the turbo (and the large surface area of the tyres)...

Last winter when it snowed I tried to get to work (a short journey of 33 miles across country). Having carefully got down to the main road using 1st and 2nd I tried to slot it into 3rd at below 2000 rpm - all seemed well untill i gently touched the throttle, and the back tried it's darndest to overtake me! I couldn't get over 25mph all the way there - Sliding this way and that I was being overtaken by vans, cyclists and old women. Every time I touched the throttle out came the back! I literally had to idle it all the way!

To make matters worse, having got half way up a hill the rear wheels decided that spinning would be more fun than gripping, and I sat there - unable to go forwards - until a friendly cyclist helped to push me up the hill! (at this point I was almost hit by a volvo driver who decided to overtake coming down the hill, and lost control when he saw me stuck!)

I can safely say it was the most terrifying journey of my life. I got to work after 2 and 3/4 hours of travelling (average speed of approx 10mph!), having almost crashed 4 times, and almost being crashed into twice. I was knackered, terrified, and swore I would never venture out in the snow again!

[JackaL]

I still wouldn't change my 2***** for anything http://300zx.co.uk/200sx/ubb/smile.gif I love the thing!

[Tom_S14]

Yeah, that snow story sounds very familiar http://300zx.co.uk/200sx/ubb/biggrin.gif
Once, I stopped the car in a carpark, in the snow, and that was it. Wouldn't go forwards in any gear with any amount of clutch slipping. Nothing. I think if a bit of snow wedges under the front wheels the back end just can't get enough grip to budge the car.
I had to reverse my way to a salted road.

I had a similar experience on a hill, got half way up and that was it. I had to "waggle" the car across the road to the kerb and just leave it there.

All I can think is a Cat7 is a much lighter car might have thinner tyres too ?

Tom

------------------
1996 Blue/Green S14 (manual)
K&N cone filter
2.5" Tube-torque Cat Back Exhaust.
TechTom MDM-100
Race-Technology AP-22
http://tom.marshall.tripod.com

[JackaL]

I have a Westfield (Lotus 7 replica) as well as my 2*****, and the Westie has much less torque at lower revs because it doesn't have a turbo, it also has skinnier tyres (which are more likely to grip the road in the snow).

[Nick_Walczak]

Yeah, that's prolly it. It has 175 section tyres and a peaky engine.

Do what the icelandic boys do and let your tyres down to give a better footprint in teh snow http://300zx.co.uk/200sx/ubb/smile.gif

[Tom_S14]

I do that in the wet already !

Tom