Looking to Buy/Build a GSX: Buy a nice bone stock one?

[nli10d]

Back years ago I had a '99GS and had always wanted to build a fast GSX. I don't really have much experience at all with working on cars but look to build up my knowledge over time. The thing is given my job and my kids, I'm not really looking for a project where I'm getting in way over my head and I don't really feel like dealing with the pitfalls of learning as I go. I'd like to buy a GSX and take it to a place like Ivey Tune in NJ and have them build me a car and I can learn a bit along the way as I need to maintain it. My goal is to have a 400+hp type car that is reliable enough to drive it pretty regularly and for decent distances.

Should I be looking for a shell GSX to just build off of, a previous project, or a nice bone stock GSX? I found the car below which is a '98 GSX which looks like it was bought new by a mother then passed down to a daughter. It's completely bone stock and seems to have been maintained by a local Mitsu dealer. Recent clutch replacement and timing belt 2 yrs ago. They want $6500 plus I'd have to ship the car to myself. What are your thoughts on the car below and how I should proceed? The only things which the seller noted and I can see are the scratch on the passenger door and the driver's seat.


Also what kind of cost am I going to be talking about having the work done by a shop...suspension, engine, brakes, motor, trans etc...

Apologies for the simple questions but any help I could get from people that have been through this whole process would be greatly appreciated.

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Features: Cruise Control, Power Seats, Bucket Seats, Tinted Glass, Rear Window Wiper, Anti-Lock Brakes, Airbag: Driver, Airbag: Passenger, Power Windows, Power Locks, Leather Interior, Sunroof/Moonroof, Rear Window Defroster, Alarm, A/C: Front, Power Steering
Seller's Notes: The car is in great shape. My mother bought it brand new and I purchased from her 10 years ago. A new clutch system was installed last week and timing belt was changed in 2014. All done through Larson Mitsubishi/Hyundai as well as regular oil changes. Yokohama tires were put on in 2014 and still in excellent condition. Hate to sell but do not have room to store.

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[19gsx91]

Depends on what you want to spend, For someone that wants to do light bolt ons I think that car would be ideal, but for someone that wants a power level that your looking for you might be better off buying a project car since your going to take everything apart anyway.

I paid 1000 less for my bone stock 1 owner 92 6bolt/4bolt GSX with 67k on it and they had paperwork for everything that was ever done to it... In hindsight I kind of wish I would of just trolled craigslist and the classifieds here a bit to get EXACTLY what I wanted (a white 1GA) so I could of built it accordingly. Starting from scratch can be a bit daunting once you start getting into it.

There aren't many dsms left that are that clean or that stock anymore, they're VERY hard to come by in excellent condition... I'd let a purist have it and grab a project car, It would be cheaper to buy a clean rolling chassis for 1000 and build it then to tear that apart starting at 6500 and still having to buy everything.

 

[Kuzi]

I would agree. You could buy and build a project car into one nice car if you find a good deal. It takes patience and time though.

 

[nli10d]

Yeah, I don't think I'm going to make it what I want it to be with just bolt on's. Once it's approaching 300hp with some upgrades I'm probably already already pushing the limits of the stock parts from what I understand. I'm not sure if I'll be happy with it at that level. To be honest I'm also potentially considering a 93-97 supra but then I'm talking $30k minimum

 

[Pacey]

I had the same thoughts about a supra, but then I remember I have a wife and kids also. Hahaha. Ended up buying a bone stock 90 tsi for $1300 with only 85k back in July 2015. I have bought and done all the work myself since buying the car. I have about $4800 including purchase price invested into it now to give you an idea and it is now a strong running car. I still need to address the brakes and some suspension bits though. To give you an idea prior to buying this car my automotive experience consisted of brake work and tune ups, no major experience but between a Haynes Manual, YouTube, google, and Dsmtuner I have managed to get it to a nice place where I can start to build more power reliably now. Just waiting for some more cash. . That car is nice though. If I had $6k when I started, I would of started with something like that myself.

 

[Kenneth Schlorf]

If you want a 1GB, I found this one that I would love to go get, but realistically, I won't be going to get it.

http://fortcollins.craigslist.org/cto/5353341158.html

 

[nli10d]

If you want a 1GB, I found this one that I would love to go get, but realistically, I won't be going to get it.

http://fortcollins.craigslist.org/cto/5353341158.html

I really want a '97-'99. Don't even really want a 95-96 for the cosmetics. Thanks though.

 

[nli10d]

Any clue any clue on the build cost at one of these tuner shops. I've read the forums and contacted one of the recommended shops in Nj Ivey tune but have' heard back yet; will call on Monday. The other dsm option is a 3000gt vr4; there are a few options out there...actually more than for a gsx. I've also thrown the idea around of a 944 turbo s but think that will be harder to upgrade.


http://atcm.co/S2PVDP/1890D96E

http://atcm.co/S2PVDP/18C96469

http://atcm.co/S2PVDP/17D91095

http://m.cars.com/vehicledetail/#vdp?listingId=657874347

 

[Aproductions]

im in bethlehem if you need help. Also there is a nice 73k mile 99 gsx in hazelton for $6k obo. red with tan leather

 

[nli10d]

im in bethlehem if you need help. Also there is a nice 73k mile 99 gsx in hazelton for $6k obo. red with tan leather

Ha, I literally was going to reply that I may be better off trolling craigslist for someone else's project and that I came across this car. I just asked the seller of that car whether it's still for sale. I'll save the cost of transport and a decent amount has been done to it. Easy to deal with the beaten up seats at a later date. Thanks for the heads up. I'll let you know if I move on the car, but think I agree that with some earlier responses to just be patient and probably best to just find someone looking to sell their project.


Also this bad ass car down near baltimore:

http://baltimore.craigslist.org/cto/5376779304.html

 

[pimpy rider]

i would buy an already built car. get a way better deal that way.

 

[lasershark]

You have two options when looking to buy a dsm.
1.) Buy a close to stock dsm and learn about them and build it to your liking along the way and if/when something breaks you can fix it and tune it yourself.
2.) Buy one already built, learn nothing and hope nothing breaks and hope it was done right. And when it does break or have a problem pay an overpriced shop to fix it or tune it.
This is not meant to be an insult by anyway, sometimes you can get a good car and other times you won't. If the previous owner didn't take pride and do a good job you will be left with their expensive problems to fix.
Good luck on the hunt...

 

[chrysler kid]

I wouldn't do either. If you want a maintenance free car with 400whp they do sell new camaro's and new mustangs that will never need the attention that our stock 200whp car does.

You are talking about doubling the factory horse power rating and paying some one else to do it. This is not the platform for you.

If you buy it, you must build it and understand it.

 

[19gsx91]

Which is why I pitched a third option. Buy a rolling shell and build it. They cost much less then a complete car and you southern guys don't even think about how much a rust free one is worth to us up here in the north!! I've got almost 10k into my car (including price) and I'm not expecting 400whp and I'm doing ALL of the work myself, You have to be prepared to pay to play. It really is that simple. 90% of the guys on this site that are 400whp+ didn't just take it to a shop to have them do it, maybe when all the mods were done for tuning but that is a different scenario.

 

[usmcjay]

I bought a stock GST for little over a grand and modified the hell out of it. All I can tell you is this, it all comes down to how deep your pockets are. I originally planned to spend only 5 grand on a rebuilt but I'm over 9 grand deep now. Getting a modified vehicle is not a bad deal if everything is documented and there and receipts and dates for you to reference. I don't like to second guess anything when it comes to my car thats why I just got the stock one and went from there.

For my next DSM I plan on just getting a GSX shell and go from there. Check out my profile if you like, I have the price breakdown for a lot of parts thats on the car. It gets really expensive quick!!

 

[estoyaqui30]

I read that for the '99 model year, there only 28,000 GSXs built, so I would think there are only so many to be had at this point.

 

[nli10d]

I wouldn't do either. If you want a maintenance free car with 400whp they do sell new camaro's and new mustangs that will never need the attention that our stock 200whp car does.

You are talking about doubling the factory horse power rating and paying some one else to do it. This is not the platform for you.

If you buy it, you must build it and understand it.

Yeah, I hear you; I really don't have the time to go through the whole process, but I also don't mind paying up a bit to have a shop put together a reliable equipment package. Maybe 400+ is a bit aggressive, but I do want something running 300hp+ with maybe the parts capable of running 400hp, so I'm not not pushing the components / stressing anything. I know most guys here do their own work, but I was thinking along these lines: pay up a bit to get a shop to do the heavy lifting of building a machine through proven components / experience from previous builds and then learn / work on maintaining it. I'm not going to be replacing major components and then tuning them.

The original car I'm looking at is nice but don't think it's going to be worth $7k+ to get it and have it shipped to me.

I am considering other options though, I just have a sweet spot for 2G GSX's. At this point in the game I'm not a fan of mustang's or eclipses, but I have considered going the route of a VW (golf r / or '04 R32). I've had a few GTI's and now drive a GLI as a DD. Do any of you use your built car as a DD?

 

[Chumpaumpalumpa]

Why dont you just turbo an f-body if you're having a shop do it. That would probably be cheaper for your plans.

Yes I use my car as a DD and drive it hard. I also maintenance pretty hard to.

You say you have a sweet spot for 2G GSX's but dont like the eclipse? Whaaaaaaaat?

 

[estoyaqui30]

Mine is not only a DD, but my only car. So during my catastrophic failures, it's a rental car. I fact, I'm going to have to deal with rust soon. Both strut towers and both rockers are starting to rust. I guess I'll be in for a few grand and a rental car again.

 

[Chumpaumpalumpa]

Mine is not only a DD, but my only car. So during my catastrophic failures, it's a rental car. I fact, I'm going to have to deal with rust soon. Both strut towers and both rockers are starting to rust. I guess I'll be in for a few grand and a rental car again.

Buy a civic that has been run down for $600 and no more rental car.

 

[19gsx91]

Buy a civic that has been run down for $600 and no more rental car.

You can also go to a dealership and ask if they have any rough trade ins on the lot that they aren't willing to fix. We get a lot of those at our yard and normally They're 2-3 thousand dollar cars that we pay 150-300 for because the dealership didn't want to fix some rust spots or replace a CV shaft or even do brakes on it. That all depends on the size of the dealership and their policies, If they smile and basically tell you to shove.. keep moving.

 

[estoyaqui30]

Buy a civic that has been run down for $600 and no more rental car.

You can also go to a dealership and ask if they have any rough trade ins on the lot that they aren't willing to fix. We get a lot of those at our yard and normally They're 2-3 thousand dollar cars that we pay 150-300 for because the dealership didn't want to fix some rust spots or replace a CV shaft or even do brakes on it. That all depends on the size of the dealership and their policies, If they smile and basically tell you to shove.. keep moving.

That is a really good idea! I'll seriously look into that.

 

[Dxc545]

I just happened to be looking at the same car. http://seattle.craigslist.org/tac/cto/5408849261.html
It looks very clean and well taken care of. The clear coat almost always fades on those black mitsu's. Clean Stock ones occasionally pop up here in wa state but 7000 is a little steep and considering it needs shipped.