In need of prospective buyer advice

[MaattMatt]

Hello NSXPrime,


I've recently been scouring the internet for high mileage (130k+) auto NSX' for sale, and I recently found one locally (within 15 miles away) that's available.


The owner has a listed asking price of $40,000 @ 131k miles, stated as a "Very clean great running car."


My budget at the moment is $20,000-$35,000.



I'm looking to end up with as close to stock of an exterior and interior appearance as possible.


My question is, is it worth it to try to talk down the price and then go through the work to convert the paint, interior, and wheels to stock for local convenience, or just hope to get lucky in the next month or two on a stock example, presumably paying for cross-country shipping and the pre-purchase inspection, etc?


Any general advice about the market / buying process / conversions is greatly appreciated, this will be my first used car purchase out-of-state if this falls through.




Here is the car currently,

 

[7tcatvert]

That is a tough question. Automatics while not as desirable are rarer an come up for sale less often. I would work backwards. 40k plus the cost to get it where you want (paint work, interior work, wheels, taillights). Figure if you have someone do all that on this car guess around another 7k. So is it worth 47K at that point? My opinion, no. I also don’t believe this is a 40k car as it sits. If you could get it for 32-34 and then put 7k into it then it is probably a 40k car. Assuming all the maintenance is up to date and nothing else major is wrong.

 

[natcc99]

One thing to consider is who did the work. Did they take any short cuts or over tightened any of the fasteners. This could result in broken tabs or pieces that you may not necessary see until disassembly. By all means, it is not the end of the world, but makes the job more complex since it adds work to the restoration. In summary, it could be a can of worms once you start removing panels. Parts are harder to come by these days so expect to hunt or pay a little more if you need to get new factory replacement. One example is the center console. In the picture, it looks like it is peeling. Something could be hiding underneath that might not be repairable. Thankfully, there are resources like nsxshop.com that can lend a hand in getting parts.

Technically, all of the above is cosmetics. Do not forget to check the mechanics. Be sure to check out nsxprime wiki page for tips.
A pre-purchase inspection is a smart idea. Try to find a shop that specializes in NSX. They will be able to give you a more accurate diagnosis of the car. Feel free to ask the owner if it is okay if you get a compression check. It will cost you more for the inspection, but gives you a better peace of mind.

As for shipping, you usually work with a broker who becomes the middle person between you and the trucker. The broker sends out the job and the truckers bids or accepts it. Generally, they will find cars that need to a similar location or direction. You can pay more for options such as closed trailer and GPS tracking.

 

[drew]

Your budget may be too low. $20k is an illusion.

Changing out an interior is expensive and time consuming. I did an ivory to black conversion over a decade ago when parts were cheap and people were taking pristine nsxs to make track cars.

It cost me $4k and ~20 hours. I did the evap as it was going out too.

I just did a AT to MT conversion and it was >$10k and 30 hours. This actually made financial sense because MTs are very rare where I live now and 2x the price of an AT.

It is almost always better to front load your costs on a used car. You will get 3x the value for your money

 

[nis350]

I think $35k+ budget is more realistic, below $30k is possible, but you're probably looking at ones with accidents and body work and/or very high mileage.

Personally, I would wait until you find one that you like as modifications/repairs/parts are expensive. However, original ones with good condition will likely be closer to $40k than $35k as they are quite rare these days.

Good luck.

My budget at the moment is $20,000-$35,000.



I'm looking to end up with as close to stock of an exterior and interior appearance as possible.

 

[mwagner10702]

My budget at the moment is $20,000-$35,000.

First, I wouldn't touch that car with a ten foot pole. Way to much wrong with it just from the pictures. If it looks like that I can only imagine what the mechanicals are like.

Second, your budget is unrealistic and even if you could find one in your budget it would likely need a ton of work which is expensive (particularly parts).

Do you have a competent shop in your area that has NSX experience? High mileage car? Add even more dollars to replace worn out parts unless the current owner has taken care of that kind of stuff (and on a $20k NSX I doubt that will have happened). A timing belt / water pump replacement alone will run you $2500 - $3500 parts and labor. $$$$$. Do you know there are 24 coolant hoses required for an automatic NSX? Figure 6 to 8 shop hours to replace all of them plus bleed time. Wait until your CCU, radio or speaker amps go bad and they will. 25 year old leaky capacitors can be replaced (and there are some competent resources available via this site) but the whole replacement process costs $$$$. I can list example after example of areas that will need attention regardless of mileage.

That car you reference will eat you alive. My advice would be to keep looking and actually look for some other marque unless you can double your budget. Converting an automatic doesn't make any financial sense, plus the automatics came with less HP than their manual counterparts.

You are definitely not ready for NSX ownership yet and it seems to me you need to do a lot more research on these cars as you clearly don't understand the market nor do you understand the costs involved in keeping these running much less taking a bad car and making it a good (or great) car. Start by using the example you cited and build a spreadsheet of costs. Web sites like www.acurapartsforless.com have detailed exploded diagrams of every area of the car along with part numbers and prices. Make note of the parts that are NLA. Do you have a plan for how you are going to source those? Figure shop labor at $100 - $130 per hour.

Spend time going through the Wiki. There is some excellent information there and will help you in learning about potential trouble areas and assembling cost-based solutions for them.

Good luck. This is definitely not a purchase you want to rush into. Take your time, understand what you will be up against and purchase accordingly. Buying some clapped out POS with the idea of fixing it up without first knowing what it will cost to fix it up is a recipe for disaster.

 

[drew]

I agree with mwagner that you are not ready for NSX ownership. You'll need to bump up your budget, presuming you can do ALL the service maintenance. If you cannot do the maintenance yourself, then you will need raise your budget a lot (estimate +$10K in reserve). These are inexpensive cars to run compared to a Ferrari, but not compared to an Accord.

I'm not so pessimistic on the quality of the car in question.

Ivory interior is *extremely* difficult to maintain. Black is the easiest by far and is desirable for that reason. The interior of this car appears to be good for ivory, but still looks like heck. You can bring it up to par by painting the dash, door panels and replacing the carpet+side bolsters in black. A lof hours and space will be required to do it right.

The exterior black shadow effect? Well, I suspect at some point there was a ground effects kit on this car and it has been returned to stock with black parts. Repainting those parts is at least $1K and it raises the spectre of missing fasteners and damage.

The lack of stock seatbelts might be a compliance issue as well.

Let's see some pics of the engine compartment and the VIN, please.

The bottom end price range of any in-demand car is not a good place to look for a cost-effective car. You are also trying to buy cheap at the height of the economy, save your money for the next crash.

This car is great for somebody who wants to customize it to suit. No point in paying for a stock NSX if you are going to make a Type R replica.

 

[guidon2222]

Just thought I’d chime in since I just bought my 1991 AUTO with 107,000 miles for $34,000 a few years ago. You’re budget is too low & unrealistic, however, the car you are looking at is not worth it’s asking price. Has the timing belt/water pump, coolant hoses been recently replaced, any major oil leaks? If it passes a general PPI, I wouldn’t pay anymore than $30,000 - $34,000. How long has he had the car, does it come with service history, has it been wrecked? No salvage title, right? My gut is telling me if there’s nothing catastrophic, offer in low $30’s & go from there. If he’s firm at $40,000 or negotiations stray past $35,000, I’d walk away! Don’t be afraid to buy out of state...driving mine from Florida back to Indiana was one of the most memorable experiences in my 40 years of life! I’m no expert but I’m happy to help any way I can. PM me or email me directly at [email protected]

 

[Hass]

First, I wouldn't touch that car with a ten foot pole. Way to much wrong with it just from the pictures. If it looks like that I can only imagine what the mechanicals are like.

Second, your budget is unrealistic and even if you could find one in your budget it would likely need a ton of work which is expensive (particularly parts).

Do you have a competent shop in your area that has NSX experience? High mileage car? Add even more dollars to replace worn out parts unless the current owner has taken care of that kind of stuff (and on a $20k NSX I doubt that will have happened). A timing belt / water pump replacement alone will run you $2500 - $3500 parts and labor. $$$$$. Do you know there are 24 coolant hoses required for an automatic NSX? Figure 6 to 8 shop hours to replace all of them plus bleed time. Wait until your CCU, radio or speaker amps go bad and they will. 25 year old leaky capacitors can be replaced (and there are some competent resources available via this site) but the whole replacement process costs $$$$. I can list example after example of areas that will need attention regardless of mileage.

You basically described my maintenance for 2018. I spent $3500 on TB/WP, all hoses and gaskets. Three weeks later my speakers amp went bad lol. I will be doing my clutch this year.

I’d walk away from this one for many reasons already mentioned plus the lower parts need to be painted black, and you hope it matches. I wouldn’t pay more than 25k for that car

 

[MaxGeek]

I would wait and save. Buy one in decent condition. It's better to spend a little bit more for for a good car than buy a cheaper one thinking it will be cheaper to fix up.

If there's an NSX that should be super cheap that one you list would be it. It looks like it needs a lot of work. It looks cobbled together and I imagine the mechanical are as mismatched as the exterior and interior.

 

[Lude_2_NSX]

Is your budget $35K for purchase only? Or does that include the repair costs? If it includes the repair costs, you are way off. This is likely a low $30s car, assuming no major mechanical issues. You will spend way over $10K just getting this close to stock.

I'd continue saving, and hold out for a stock NSX. You can probably find one with higher mileage in the high $30s this year, and that is a smarter buy.

 

[docjohn]

anyone else think the previous owner of that red/black nsx really wanted a 512 BB....OP you got some very sound advice....the nsx is now on the radar screens as collectible and a rising tide lifts all boats...

 

[DocL]

This is not the car for you. Just by seeing the racing belts in it the car has probably been driven very hard. I'd pass and wait.

 

[Jinks]

I will go ahead and quote the member Bram here and say, "the cheapest Nsx you buy will be the most expensive nsx you'll ever own".... Been there, this car looks like a diasaster.

 

[Speedmaster]

I'd show up with $30K in cash and say, "I am a ready buyer...I don't see anybody behind me with cash." If they balk, at least you have a great story to tell.

(If you do bring cash, bring spotters/friends to keep an eye on the situation.)