Another BABE car question - B13 Sentra SE-R

I've got a line on a B13 SE-R for $500 (the Alfa I asked about a while back didn't pan out, in case you were wondering). The body and interior need a little cosmetic work, and the engine ticks (sounds like valvetrain), but it's not rusty. It has been sitting outdoors for several years. I know this is a pretty screaming deal for an SE-R, so it's probably going to go forward as soon as I confirm the choice with my co-driver. I hope to drive the thing for a couple months before the rally to work out the most egregious bugs - what should I be looking at, preparing for, expecting to break? Any serious trouble spots? Particular maintenance issues that crop up regularly? I know almost nothing about Nissans, so please be gentle.

Oh, and if for some reason this doesn't happen, the next possibility on the radar is a mid-80s M-B 560SEL that my co-driver found. We are eclectic, if nothing else.

Clutch, 5th gear popout, cv joints, im not sure on the 2.0, but the 1.6 version has issues with the front crank seal, other than that i cant think of anything major. If you buy it and decide to keep it/fix it up, I have a service manual I will sell.

Spend some decent money on an upgraded suspension, which I'm assuming you're going to do anyway. But, had to be said. Suspension travel with stock and even most of the coilovers out there is very minimal. Protect the oil pan, at all costs. The sr20de is pretty bullet proof... until you run low on oil.

Head over to sr20forum.com and/or sr20-forum.com... lots of info there.

Peas us Riced, Mark

Well you don't need to worry about the suspension or oil pan for the BABE unless they added an off road leg this year.

I've put about 7k miles on my $700 '91 SE-R since June without any significant troubles. Door hinges may be worn (like mine) which lets the doors sag and not seal completely.

My babe rally repair/prep checklist ... what kind of car isn't important.

Is the car interesting enough? Can it move under it's own power (or at least you actually belive it "ran when parked)? Can it be had for $500 (list price not important, you'll be suprised how much the "do you know what the babe rally is" conversation changes the price of some cars.

Once the car is in hand do the following...

Brag about your find

fix the brakes

make it run as best you can with little to no money ... italian tune up (drive it like you stole it for about a week)

instal required electronics (radio you can hear, CB, and airhorns)

make it interesting looking (stickers or paint depending on your re-sale plan)

Never do the following ... make it comfotable, make it relaiable, or make it pretty!

Jeff

Thanks for the info. The 5th gear issue I've heard of - no way to know if it's a problem until I drive it, but is it related to fluid change frequency, or is it just a weak component that fails eventually regardless of maintenance? Travis, I may very well be interested in that manual - I'll let you know.

My co-conspirator wants me to look at the 560SEL he found, and he wants to check out the SE-R before we make our decision. Both cars are pretty clean, no rust, over 100k miles. The Benz is fouling one cylinder with oil rather significantly when cold, according to his report; the smoke is pronounced when cold, but almost nil once warm. The SE-R has a lifter tick, but that's about it. We plan to do the minimum to get our car ready, so large-scale work is out. Given the choice of these two cars, which would you pick for the BABE?

If you are going to keep and use if after, id go with the sentra. The Mercedes would probably be more fun though, just becasue it is a car that cost $75k when it was new. lol

In reply to 02Pilot: I'd pick the Sentra, but I'm biased. I used to own a 91 SE-R (great car!), I hate automatics and I think MBZs are garbage. I said I was biased.

If the SE-R is truly rust-free, you're getting a great deal. If it loses 5th gear, just downshift to fourth. It will be fine, even for a long trip.

The SE-R would be the more fun BABE car. Just ask junkyard dog when he brought his 320i, that car was awesome.

Yea. thats true, the 5th gear problem doesnt really make it so you cant drive it, its just annoying.

cghstang wrote: Well you don't need to worry about the suspension or oil pan for the BABE unless they added an off road leg this year.

The offroad leg started in 07 and was run again in 08. Its called SR32 and its supposed to be a road....not much of one.

Stock ride height should be fine, lowered cars will suffer ;)

Get the nissan, good choice if you want a pain free rally.

Great responses, guys - thanks. We're going to check out both cars Saturday and we'll make our decision then. I'm increasingly leaning toward the SE-R for reasons of reliability and cost, not to mention the fun-to-drive quotient, but the Benz does have a certain cachet, which will of course remain a consideration, at least until the first time it breaks and/or I get tired of paying the price of 17MPG.

Please keep those thoughts/ideas/opinions coming.

02Pilot wrote: or I get tired of paying the price of 17MPG.

Dont feel bad, we're gonna be getting about 10mpg, on premium fuel only :(

The main thing is to bring a sense of fun and enjoy yourself. And if you havent registered yet dont forget to register soon, the early registration discount ends sometime in January. After than it goes up by $50 I think.

And pop over on the BABE rally boards and introduce yourself so we all know who you are when we get there.

and go to the teams page and check out the competition, you'll notice a familiar vehicle in my current avatar