Buying a new pathy - I need your advice

[EricCR]

Hi folks!

 

First time posting here. Disclaimer: I'm a total newbie when it comes to R50's but I *think* I have done my homework and I'm 100% sure I'll buy one, so you will hear from me again.
 

I'm about to buy a pathy and I definitely want the VQ engine. I'm a bit biased towards a manual car but I won't discard a nice example just because it's an auto. I won't use it frequently and mostly on gravel and maybe dirt roads but nothing extreme (some places around here are a bit remote but most roads are properly paved). I have a few questions about what I've seen and what concerns me around them:

 

- Went to see a 2003 auto which grinds just a bit only when going *out* of low range (from 4L to 2H). The 4x4 cluster light also stayed on after switching back to 2H the very first time (it was fine in a couple more tries afterwards). The car has 130k miles. This is the 3rd auto R50 I test and the others didn't grind. It felt to me like the transmission was still spinning even in neutral and the owner says that the last time he used 4x4 was years ago. Is that something I should be worried about? Other than that, the car was imported from the US back in 2012 and there is a bit of rust, but mostly around clips, screws, nuts, etc. The body is healthy otherwise and it's a loaded SE, still rocking the original BOSE stereo.

 

- Saw another automatic, a 2004 sold by the dealer here, so it's pretty barebones. Manual AC controls, no cruise, no fog lights (but weirdly has leather seats). The good thing is that it has 80k miles, almost smells like new still, the car is basically flawless. It's a bit more expensive than the others currently for sale, around $1k more. It will probably go for a couple of years without any major issues.

 

I saw a couple more, one has too many miles and the other had a recent engine rebuild (it's manual so whatever killed it wasn't the power valves), so I discarded them. All 4 owners have told me their cars don't burn oil but 3 out of 4 had an almost dry dipstick. Nobody seems to know about the power valves, so maybe it wasn't as common as forums lead you to believe?

 

The thing is, would you go for the better optioned car even with all the above quirks? Should I just sit and wait for the perfect manual to show up? Are manuals considerably more reliable? Manual+VQ combos are not as rare as in the US but they usually very basic.

 

If some of these things have already been discussed to death, just point me in the right direction.

 

Cheers,

Eric

 

Edited June 29, 2020 by EricCR
Typos

[mjotrainbrain]

Moved to the regular R50 section for greater visibility/fits here better.

[01Pathmaker]

On 6/29/2020 at 4:37 PM, EricCR said:

Hi folks!

 

First time posting here. Disclaimer: I'm a total newbie when it comes to R50's but I *think* I have done my homework and I'm 100% sure I'll buy one, so you will hear from me again.
 

I'm about to buy a pathy and I definitely want the VQ engine. I'm a bit biased towards a manual car but I won't discard a nice example just because it's an auto. I won't use it frequently and mostly on gravel and maybe dirt roads but nothing extreme (some places around here are a bit remote but most roads are properly paved). I have a few questions about what I've seen and what concerns me around them:

 

- Went to see a 2003 auto which grinds just a bit only when going *out* of low range (from 4L to 2H). The 4x4 cluster light also stayed on after switching back to 2H the very first time (it was fine in a couple more tries afterwards). The car has 130k miles. This is the 3rd auto R50 I test and the others didn't grind. It felt to me like the transmission was still spinning even in neutral and the owner says that the last time he used 4x4 was years ago. Is that something I should be worried about? Other than that, the car was imported from the US back in 2012 and there is a bit of rust, but mostly around clips, screws, nuts, etc. The body is healthy otherwise and it's a loaded SE, still rocking the original BOSE stereo.

 

- Saw another automatic, a 2004 sold by the dealer here, so it's pretty barebones. Manual AC controls, no cruise, no fog lights (but weirdly has leather seats). The good thing is that it has 80k miles, almost smells like new still, the car is basically flawless. It's a bit more expensive than the others currently for sale, around $1k more. It will probably go for a couple of years without any major issues.

 

I saw a couple more, one has too many miles and the other had a recent engine rebuild (it's manual so whatever killed it wasn't the power valves), so I discarded them. All 4 owners have told me their cars don't burn oil but 3 out of 4 had an almost dry dipstick. Nobody seems to know about the power valves, so maybe it wasn't as common as forums lead you to believe?

 

The thing is, would you go for the better optioned car even with all the above quirks? Should I just sit and wait for the perfect manual to show up? Are manuals considerably more reliable? Manual+VQ combos are not as rare as in the US but they usually very basic.

 

If some of these things have already been discussed to death, just point me in the right direction.

 

Cheers,

Eric

 

Welcome!  Out of the vehicles you listed above, I'd either go for the '04 low mileage bare bones or wait to see what else comes along.  I wouldn't be against the '04 just because it's bare bones, unless there are specific options that you must have.  My theory has always been, the fewer "bells and whistles", the less to go wrong and cause problems later on.  For the record, I bought my well optioned SE new in '01, have kept up on all maintenance, just a few actual repairs have been required, and with the exception of rust starting to blow up all over the place and the Bose cd changer, she's still runs beautifully and drives good.  I'm slowly creeping up on the 200k mark, but this has by far been the most reliable and moderately capable vehicle I've ever owned.  For the past few years she's by a 3rd vehicle, primarily used for fishing the outer ocean beaches, hunting, dog hauling, home improvement store trips, towing and foul weather commuting.

[EricCR]

On 7/5/2020 at 8:31 PM, mjotrainbrain said:

Moved to the regular R50 section for greater visibility/fits here better.

 

Hey pal @mjotrainbrain, 

 

Can you merge this post with this other one?: 

 

 

Sorry, the first time I got here I went straight into the FAQ section and when I was ready to post I didn't go back to the main forum (Sorry for the headache. I'm that clumsy).

 

@01Pathmaker: Thanks man! I already pulled the trigger. Going to reply on the other thread I created.