kiwieurospec wrote:Those Soarers are too old now, electrical nightmare.
They are over built, there is so much that can go wrong and does
Back when they were more popular they were forever broken, but people had paid much more so had to repair them.
Dash fails - used to be $800 just to get it read again
Coils are still $1600.00, convert to Mitsi wasted spark
Seat motors, heater control motors, computer problems the list goes on and on. And parts are Lexus money.
I couldn't honestly recommend one to anyone, but they are fun to drive.
And remember these were imported mainly during the odometer fraud days.
(like it doesn't happen now lol)
If the Soarers are too old now I would hate to think what you think Starions are now - archaeic?? :P
The blinky dash fault is due to leaking caps - the same fault which has plagued 90s Mitsu ECUs for years.
I forgot Starions were totally maintenence free and don't cost a cent to run LOL
Last edited by dirtygalant on Fri Apr 17, 2009 11:53 am, edited 1 time in total.
kiwi_EX wrote:Go the Starion, after all that's why we are members of this forum.
100% agree! I'm sure all of our Starions have cost us a fair share of money over the years.. which is why I thought it was funny that some people are saying steer clear of the Toyota because it's costly to run??
nah, i wasn't saying stay away from it cos it's costly to run.. in fact, i'm not saying stay away from it at all - i have thought of owning one myself in the past.. i was saying don't assume it's cheaper to run than the starion. and definately don't say it's a "better" daily driver.. only perhaps more comfy :P
a starion in good condition will not break down frequently, and neither will a soarer. starion parts are expensive because they are rare. soarer parts are expensive period.
and thanks for doing the research. I suppose i should have said "almost" 1800kg :P
quest wrote:
WANTSOM wrote:Personally, I find sloppy boxes very unsatisfying. I like them tight and taught to the point that if you dont have to push to get it in then its probably too old and time to get a new one :P
don't try explaining that to her tho..... just leave. lol
a friend has one of the rare manual soarers. Surprised to see a oe 5spd (R154).
With a single SC61 turbo, ebay header, SAFC, injectors it ran several impressive 7.5sec 1/8 mile.
Its one decievingly quick big car. No reliability problems either.... yet
More than a few JZ front crank pulley failures tho.
Im Tamgesic, this is my first post on this forum . Thought i better finally get an account of my own now that im yae close to becoming a strion owner for the first time!
Crshbndct who pur rhis post up on my behalf is my partner .He was the proud owner of a starion when i first met him and my god did i end up loving that car!!..and the man
I have owned a 4wd turbo mazda gtx for the last year and unfortunately the big end bearings went even though i dont thrash it [ seems the guy that did the rebuild before me must'nt have ground the crank in properly or could have been the fact that a pipe on the vf10 we put on came unblocked so would have been leaking all this boost and just too hot for engine] whatever it was i didnt have the money to get it fixed for the last 3 months and then i saw the starion listed in another post by crshbndct and had to somehow find the funds to get it ...
$500 away from owning the starion and my man finds a soarer on trade me he thinks would be the ideal car for me . Has almost talked me into it in terms of reliability? POssibly ..has high kms but mega strong engine.
Here are my choices . Any help would be totally appreciated ...
Fix the mazda ...which means: go pick up the engine ive found which is off someone i know and know its a good one [ $500 plus travel to pick up $100] Unfortunately situation at moment would mean paying someone a garnd to put it in . Then spend another $600 on stuff needed doing for warrant [ brakes ]
OR
Keep struggling to find the extra $500 i need plus cost of picking it up and BUy a f#*kin mint looking starion that is going for waay less then they usually go for [ $3000 but which is in WEllington [ a $200 plane flight away then drive back on $200 gas ] which i have never seen or checked out in person
OR
Buy a tired but late model tidy one owner since nz new toyota soarer in line 6 twin turbo with lost of power already available and EVENTUALLY do a manual conversion and its local
Things im into in a car ...
RELIABILITY [ but not at cost of style nad handling , i owned a mazda after all ! You know what i mean ..REASONABLY reliable ok?]
HANDLING [ to me the soarer felt to heavy but is way up there when it comes to suspension etc and i think i could get used to the heavy feel and from what ive told they handle amazingly ..i test drove for short time in rain ] From long ago memory the old starion just SPOKE to me and gave me a buzz every time i drove it . Then the mazda is nice , quick and light when it comes to handling
STYLE My mazda is bright orange and funky
Soarer seems a tad 'normal' to look at but still a nice car
Starion has a mint paint job but no body kit and ive always found them a tad sleazy to look at [ dont kill me please! ]but for the driving pleaseure i would happily drive round in one and it definately does NOT lack style !!
Im in a conundrum so thanks for reading this essay from a brand new member who hasnt been on many forums so please be 'nice' ? Plus im half ozzie! so thats gotta count towards something
Last but definatly not least ..If anyone lives in or close to wellington n.z and knows his/her cars and would be happy to take half an hour out of their time and go check out the starion before i buy it , you know for rust, give the engine a geez over , brakes, clutch gearbox , you know things you would check if you were buying car ? Then that would be amazing because i just cant afford an aa check but before spending $400 on picking it up , i need to know its everything it says it is in the auction
a standard starion isn't going to be unreliable really - other than general maintenance items with age, but I find the motor pretty asthmatic and not so smooth compared to newer engines (especially the soarer which is very smooth and has power right off the bat).
early model imports do look rude - if I were in the market for a Starion I would get a late model 5-stud NZ-new model with leather interior, LSD etc or a widebody (hey.. dreams are free).
the soarer will be reliable but do have a couple faults - like blinky dashboard and the climate control display leaks its LCD fluid and you can't read it. door hinges sometimes go due to their complex nature (they have to be, the doors literally weigh a ton). a manual conversion for the soarer wont be cheap, toyota gearboxes are expensive even if you go for the cheaper W series box, then there's the bellhousing, flywheel, pedal box, clutch master cylinder and lines etc you'll need, and then you have to fool the factory ECU the auto trans is still attached otherwise you'll get random beeping noises and the auto trans light in the dash flashing.
the soarer looks like a giant whales penis, typical 90s toyota to look like - just blah blah and more blah, but the engine and drive more than makes up for it. I'ld happily own a soarer, but only if it were manual or already converted to manual.
Plan is if buy the soarer to budget $1500 , save up over a years time and in a year go for it , have done some research . Most manual conversions usually pretty straight forward?
I myself am pretty keen on the starion . He thinks in the long run and when it comes to less break down hassles etc ill be happier with the soarer. I hate autos so is a hard one
Lol yes dreams are free , a nice wide body would be sensational .
Then again could not be a dream . Could buy the soarer for $2200 , spend $1500 on the conversion and say $500 on other bits and pieces and it would sell for a good $8000/9000 grand?! Although im not sure it would with that many kms . he thinks it would and they do go for a shitload on the auction sites even in an auto , this one is cheap cos its out of the way to go look , not near a big city and has done alot of kms and needs a touch up to paint job [ id do a whole respray if had funds ..hot pink all the way ! Lol]
you can't even get the manual conversion parts for $1500 - I would budget at least $2500 and then there's the labour cost (if there will be one) on top of that.
Also I don't think you'ld be able to get $8-9k once it comes time to sell, my friend is about to sell his one and he'ld take anything over $4500 really. It is a little rough around the edges though.
I posted up links of 5 Soarers going for sale for under $3500 although they were all autos.
There was a w series box with all the bits my partner was showing me for $1250?
Yeah your right . Thought would be pushing it to get that much . So basically if spend $2200 to buy it and then say $2000 on conversion would be reasonable to expect could sell for $5000 so basically no profit.
What i really want to know then is wil the starion at the beginning of this page give me what i want which is a car i can drive away in and will pass warrants or possibly need a few minor things for one .
And if and when i find the spare money i can do a few things like mpi etc
Its warrant will be due end of JUne . Has cut springs so will need new ones which im fine with and thats it . Then i have a warranted car that i hope will be reasonable on gas and wont blow up an engine [ like the mazda ] or gearbox or anything else big come the next warrant or the next one or the next one ??
buying a second hand car is a can of worms. buying a new car can be a can of worms too! whatever car you buy, you can be sure it will cost you unexpected money, you just have to buy something for less than what you have, and budget to spend money fixing stuff.....
Fibreglass airdams $370, fibreglass front bumpers $260, reco drag links $165, alloy radiators $925 (unpolished), h/l switch rebuilds $125, all plus freight.
Coxs Automotive (07)54433507 3/5 Service st Maroochydore Q
yeah I would definitely get the Starion checked out, the guy who is selling it sounds like a bit of a tool judging how he worded the auction, and the gay rims he put on the car.
W series gearbox with JZ bellhousing would be about $1000-1500, or a R154 will be $1500-2500. Trouble is finding the flywheel, manual pedal box and other bits needed - they don't exactly pop up often, and they they do they aren't cheap.
Yes he does seem a bit of a tool but at least he kept it all standard and if you look at pics its in really good nick, 10 bucks per hour!!!! That one made me sh#t my pants!!!
So wellingtonians? Can anyone have a look at all ?
Dirtygalant said you dont consider fuel economy when buying a turbo car . Thats why i loved/ love the mazda. 1800cc with bigger turbo and my average is definately only 9litres per 100 kms and thats not worrying about how much boost you use but not being excessive either.
Initially it was an easy choice. Saw the starion , looked mint and laways wanted one and the gtx was just going to be a pain to fix and then once it had its new engine no doubt the gearbox would go so thought yup id get the starion
Now my bf has seen a really cheap soarer and he always sees potential so even though its an auto he wants me to think about what it would be like as a manual and cant you find most the parts for the conversion from a supra or pretty much any other toyota ?
