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I Might Buy This 2004 Sentra, Is the Engine Too Rusted?.. Forums > > I Might Buy This 2004 Sentra, Is the Engine Too Rusted?.. I Might Buy This 2004 Sentra, Is the Engine Too Rusted?..
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  #1  
Old 07-29-2013, 03:55 PM
VeganThug VeganThug is offline
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Question I Might Buy This 2004 Sentra, Is the Engine Too Rusted?..

i'm thinking about buying a 2004 sentra 1.8s that i will test drive, but not until the day i fly out there. the engine looked more rusted down inside the engine compartment than comparable cars. i posted some scaled down pics that the owner sent me on my profile. are there any experts who can comment on the look of the engine. i know it's just pictures, but anything obvious?

also, the car has some dents and major hood damage (from falling object, not accident), but the interior looks cherry (island slang for really nice). i'm estimating the edmund's value at 'average'. does anyone agree or disagree with my evaluation?

here's the original craigslist posting:

2004 Nissan Sentra 1.8S 4D

thanks.
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Old 07-29-2013, 09:58 PM
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smj999smj smj999smj is offline
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I didn't see any pics of the engine on the link you posted. It's hard to tell by pics (it may just be the lighting), but it looks like the paint is flat on the front fenders. Combine that with the missing front grille (they mounted the license plate there) and the fender dents, I would be very suspicious of front collision repair. You may want to check the car on CARFAX and I would highly recommend you have a mechanic of your choosing thoroughly inspect the car. Also, keep in mind the 1.8L engines of this era have had issues with head gasket failures.
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Old 07-29-2013, 10:53 PM
VeganThug VeganThug is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by smj999smj View Post
I didn't see any pics of the engine on the link you posted. It's hard to tell by pics (it may just be the lighting), but it looks like the paint is flat on the front fenders. Combine that with the missing front grille (they mounted the license plate there) and the fender dents, I would be very suspicious of front collision repair. You may want to check the car on CARFAX and I would highly recommend you have a mechanic of your choosing thoroughly inspect the car. Also, keep in mind the 1.8L engines of this era have had issues with head gasket failures.
to get the engine pic and others, you have to click my profile, then click on the link on the right in the 'albums' section.

i ran the vin on autocheck. there were no reported accidents. the mileage checked out. it did say there was an extra owner, but autocheck can't verify ownership, it only knows when a new title was issued.

the owner said the front damage was due to an awning that fell on the car during a wind storm. if you look at the damage on the pics in my profile, it does look like the owner is speaking the truth. after talking with the owner a couple times, i'm confident that he's not the common shady swindler-type that sells cars on craigslist.

we decided on $3600 (edmunds' avg for honolulu is $3414). i just have to fly out and confirm that the car is not misrepresented. thanks for the head gasket warning. when i test drive it, i'll try to meet the owner at the place the car was sitting over-night and have him start it cold while i look at the tail pipe. i also read about the fuel pump/regulator issues, but the owner says he took it to the dealership and got it fixed (i'll confirm the receipts when i see the car).

thanks for responding.
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Old 07-31-2013, 10:48 AM
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smj999smj smj999smj is offline
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You probably won't see anything coming out of the tailpipe even if the head gasket was leaking. They usually start by throwing cylinder misfire codes, misfiring or hard starts.
Looks like there's about $2000-2500 worth of body work, minimum, to get it right. If Edmunds say the avg. is $3414, I'd be more inclined to offer him around $2200-2500 tops, if the rest of the car is in good condition.

Last edited by smj999smj; 07-31-2013 at 10:55 AM.
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Old 08-01-2013, 01:27 AM
VeganThug VeganThug is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by smj999smj View Post
You probably won't see anything coming out of the tailpipe even if the head gasket was leaking. They usually start by throwing cylinder misfire codes, misfiring or hard starts.
Looks like there's about $2000-2500 worth of body work, minimum, to get it right. If Edmunds say the avg. is $3414, I'd be more inclined to offer him around $2200-2500 tops, if the rest of the car is in good condition.
i'm not too worried about the head gasket. there's no mention of head gasket issues on the msn reliability ratings. owner's who take their cars to the dealership to have the timing belt replaced are not usually the ones who neglect their cars. $2500 for a 2004 sentra with 80k? unlikely, maybe if it were a salvage title. we're in the middle of the pacific. it's not the same market as on the mainland.

we already agreed on $3600, anyway. total cost for me will likely be just under $4200 shipped to the big island. i'll take it, especially because i've spent almost a thousand on my 96 accord with 255k within the past month, and the hard start problem wasn't even solved.
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