Buying A Gen5 Gt4

September 28, 2006

Been driving my Gen 5 GT for a year now, love the shape, interior, spec and quaity of the car, just fancy something with a little more umphhh. SO GT4 it is, any pointers on what to look for on my new car, so i dont get ripped off?, what mileage is exceptable on these, myn is currently just on 69,800, so dont want to go any more than that really.

Advice please, also are dump valves good for these engines, as they are not always the trick mod for turbo enignes are they.. thanks in advance

Rob

September 28, 2006

Probably the wisest choice you could make Rob. Gen 5 just looks the mutts nuts IMO. If you take your time, you`ll probably best hanging on till a nice low-ish mileage import comes along. Look out for the usual things as with all cars. Engine wise the Gen2 3S-GTE is pretty bomb proof provided it`s been serviced regularly. Listen out for any strange turbo related noises. Smoking from the engine is not acceptable turbo`d or not. and on a turbo it usually means lots of money. :rolleyes: Try a few out to get the feel of them. It`ll also give you a comparrison to go by. Mine has 125K on it. It`s still on its original turbo, It`s as fresh as the day it left the factory, although i have a receipt for big end & main bearing replacement at 42K :unsure: But mileage isn`t a problem engine wise. Obviously the more mileage thats on the car then the greater the likelihood of other things failing, clutch, shocks, bushes etc.

As for dump valves, this is quite a contentious issue with the Gen 5. Some are ok with them (Mine is) Some have stalling problems. It seems to be a bit of a lottery as to when, where & why they do it..

Weak spots of the Gen 5 include Transfer box & front wheel bearings, So again pay particular attention to these areas. The clutch is a major pain in the aris to replace (Engine & box out job) so if you can find one thats had it done recently, so much the better.

So to sum it up you`ll ideally be looking for an import with low miles, service history and a new clutch. :D Good luck and happy hunting. :thumbsup:

September 28, 2006

thanks for the pointers, will post pics when i get the car, been offered £1500 for myn, so should be well on my way to getting a half decent gen5 , i prefer this shap

September 29, 2006

Dak is your man for the gen5 info.

I was on the look out for one of these almost 3 years ago and back then they were fetching about £3.5k for a cheap one.

These days you can pick one up for under £2k for a decent one.

I do love the shape but for the life of me i couldn't find a decent one... :(

Ended up with a MR2 Turbo... but with a stop gap of a ****ter of a car im now on a faff.

I too owned a GT 182 and loved it to bits!.. like yourself.. wanted a bit more umphh! :)

Good luck

September 29, 2006

Good lad, stick with the best.!

As Dak said really, Go and look at afew and make sure you give them a good coat of looking at.

Looked round for ages and clocked up a lot off miles in the old corsa before i found the right one.

You'll know its the one for you when you see it.

Mine had 132K on the clock when i got it and it was very clean inside and out with not a mark on it, but there are some NAILS out there as you will find.

Good luck :thumbsup: