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2G 1998 Eclipse RS - Should I buy?

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granta335

Probationary Member
4
0
Oct 6, 2021
Grand Forks, North_Dakota
Hey there DSM community, I am currently trying to save up for and buy my first tuner-type car, and I have been developing a love for DSM's. I've stumbled upon this listing in my area for a 1998 Eclipse RS with 142,00 miles. The seller says the car's got a new tranny with 30k miles on it, as well as approximately $4k worth of parts in it. He's asking $3,500 for it and I have no idea if that's a good price or if it's worth it. I thought maybe you guys could help me. He's also including a bunch of spare parts in his selling price. Here's the description in his words:

---3500$ OBO and maybe interested in trades. Many many parts have been put into this car I probably got over 4k into it. And extra parts will come with. I have an extra motor, tranny, suspension and an evo 8 turbo tht is ready to be slapped on, an extra hatch, wiring and much more extras. It has a brand new tranny with only 30k miles on it + a stage 3 clutch and a rear main seal with the paperwork proving so. It also has the eagle talon rear subframe swap,(rear disk break swap). Its strait piped from the header all the way down to a magnaflow muffler. And like I said much more. IT WILL NOT COME WITH THE RIMS ON IT.This car has never not turned on for me even on the harshest winter day. It is reliable and fun! So lmk if u have any questions.! •reason for selling is I have to many cars and I would like to put the money towards the other cars. It is all put together and ready to drive home.---

I've also attached a couple pictures from his listing.

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I truly do not want to offend our nt brothers in here but that is not a tuner car. What he "has in it" does not up the value.
Even as an N/T guy, I will 2nd this. I've spent more on mine than 99% of people who own them. And I'd never get more than $4k-$5k out of it.
 
Here is the real question. What do you want in a car? What does it need to do and what constraints do you have? Money always seems to be at the top of the list but reliability is there also. Are you paying for repairs? Or can you DIY. EX. Im a seasoned shadetree but I wouldn't own a used audi if you paid me.
 
The other thing you need to think about is how the car has been treated. Based on the fake tow strap and the body kit and straight pipe, the guy has probably acted like he was in a Fast and Furious movie. Having the trans replaced at 114k miles says it all.
 
I along with some others would never buy a non 4g63 dsm but if you must, I get it. I think $3,500 for his car is a bit high considering you can buy a turbo model for a little more ($5-6k). There’s this listing locally for $1,500 for non running unmolested RS which you could probably pick up for $1k with under 100k miles. Not sure what it needs though but the only difference is the lip, rims and side skirt. And yes, it’s not a tuner nor a jdm.

 
I suppose when I said "tuner car," I meant something I could work on a little bit and have fun with. And to answer the question of what I would need it to do: I'm just looking for my first car to have fun with and make it look nice. I'd need it to be fairly reliable, as I would likely drive it quite often, and maybe daily it (however, I know DSM's have a bad reputation of being not so reliable when bought used).
 
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The only reason they wouldn't be reliable is if they get abused. If they've been treated right and maintenance is done accordingly they'll last a long time. Being this would be your first car, I'll recommend you don't buy a DSM. N/T or not. There's a lot of troubleshooting and diagnosing that needs to be done sometimes and paying a mechanic to do it would be a joke. Most of us on this forum do our own work and could help you with anything you needed if you bought one. But if the Eclipse was my first car I would've f***ed it up pretty badly trying to learn on it.
 
Technically it wouldn't be my first car. I've had my license for like 3-4 years now, and I've been driving this really nice 2010 Honda that belongs to my parents. I'd like to get something that I can learn how to do my own work on, since that's something that seems really fun and interesting to me.
 
Thank you all for the input. I really appreciate it. Any other advice is always welcome!
 
I suppose when I said "tuner car," I meant something I could work on a little bit and have fun with. And to answer the question of what I would need it to do: I'm just looking for my first car to have fun with and make it look nice. I'd need it to be fairly reliable, as I would likely drive it quite often, and maybe daily it (however, I know DSM's have a bad reputation of being not so reliable when bought used).
Keep in mind the newest one is 22 years old. For a first car be prepared there are lots of cosmetic parts that don't exist anymore and every hose, gasket etc is old unless previous owners addressed. That's true if any car this old.
This is not meant to discourage you but keep in mind any 20 year old car you should plan for a fair bit of maintenance unless you like breaking down. If owner has documented maintenance you are money and time ahead.
 
$3500 and you gotta bring your own wheels..... HARD PASS...
You can find a turbo model DSM for the same price (but not for long) that may need a little work (to fulfill your definition of "tuner" car), and it will have probably been loved more than an RS. Save you cash and find a better one, that you too will likely love more. My 1st DSM was also a N/A 2g, and although it was an ok car, it was nothing special to me.
 
If the body is solid on the car the price really isn't that out of line. If it's rust free its worth the money. The value of these cars has exploded recently and that's on top of the fact that the value of all used cars has gone up. A lot of us have had these as teenagers and want to relive their youth. Theyre basically becoming the next generation of collector cars.
 
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