Lot's of questions :)

Boris · Post by **Boris** » Sun Apr 04, 2004 12:56 am

1) Are AusCar wheels any good? Any website with prices of em?

2) Has anyone heard of this brand or name "super cat" below...
<img border="0" src="http://www.boryadesign.net/fto/my/exhaust.jpg">

3) Is the above a normal design? It is rather strange... Initially i though it is a silencer... but i think i'm wrong...

4) Does any one here have a vacuum gauge? are they any usefull?

5) Does anyone get like grease built up on their engine?

Ok, i thinks that's all for now... i hope some of you can maybe help answer a couple questions for me.

FTO338 · Post by **FTO338** » Sun Apr 04, 2004 10:42 am

1.) AusCar is very average type of wheel, nothing special.

2. & 3. Never heard of the brand before but that is one type of silencer you can get for an exhaust, you can always remove it by taking the nut & bolt at the end of the bottom tip.

4.) Vaccum gauge is kinda a cosmetic for a N/A car, doesn't give you any "real" info .

5.) Over time if you don't clean you car engine bay, you get dirty & minor grease build up, but only minor.

Well i think this FTO had gone to lots of local garage to get things done instead of going to Japanese aftermarket tuner shop. Thats why most of the stuff isn't well know or you can't find them on the internet.

Remember it doesn't what brand it is, as long as you are happy with the looks & performance are the same or if not better. But the main thing is that you save loads of money compare to the "branded" product.

Boris · Post by **Boris** » Sun Apr 04, 2004 11:30 am

FTO338 wrote:1.) AusCar is very average type of wheel, nothing special.

2. & 3. Never heard of the brand before but that is one type of silencer you can get for an exhaust, you can always remove it by taking the nut & bolt at the end of the bottom tip.

4.) Vaccum gauge is kinda a cosmetic for a N/A car, doesn't give you any "real" info .

5.) Over time if you don't clean you car engine bay, you get dirty & minor grease build up, but only minor.

Well i think this FTO had gone to lots of local garage to get things done instead of going to Japanese aftermarket tuner shop. Thats why most of the stuff isn't well know or you can't find them on the internet.

Remember it doesn't what brand it is, as long as you are happy with the looks & performance are the same or if not better. But the main thing is that you save loads of money compare to the "branded" product.

Thanx mate!

Yeah i know that it all depends to if I personally like it or not, i was just asking cos i wasn't sure about the brands

AusCar did seem like an avarage brand... atleast they didn't have any scratches...

Also i know there are a few different types of silencers out there, would this one reduce performance by heaps? Due to the small outlet size...

I'm really happy with this fto, ruchi would be proud

Cos it's a 95 model... I've put a deposit down already.

ruchi · Post by **ruchi** » Sun Apr 04, 2004 12:10 pm

LOL!

All that matters Boris is that you are happy with it and that the car is special to you, regardless of what year it may be

Hey I saw the full picture of the car in the "Spotted" thread it looks to be in very good condition and looks very nice with those wheels.

Again, for any FTO that you're serious about, make sure you get a full mechanical and body check on the car. Don't be too worried about any minor stuff as it is a 9 year old car and will have general wear and tear. The two big things to look out for will be the condition of the engine and rust.

I think you've done well for youself. Well done!

What did your parents think of this car and what made them say OK to a '95 model?

Boris · Post by **Boris** » Sun Apr 04, 2004 12:23 pm

Thanx!

Well, i don't have the car in my drive way, so it's not time to celebrate just yet!

ruchi wrote: What did your parents think of this car and what made them say OK to a '95 model?

Well, let's not mention my parents

Umm, they said it's your car = your problems, but the main main reason was that it has warranty, i can get 3yr warranty that will cover anything that happens to the car, ie my window doesn't go up... etc. completely everything...

It's getting an SVI, which should be fine, cos it was already inspected by a guy that couldn't get finance. And i'm just doing it to make sure the dealer and the guy are telling me the truth about the car, which all seems good.

I think the inpection should be fine, that's why i put a deposit down. I spent like 2 hours inspecting & looking at the car, and 30 mins driving it in sydney on my own...

ruchi · Post by **ruchi** » Sun Apr 04, 2004 12:49 pm

Be VERY careful of the 3 year warranty it may not be worth the paper it was written on! Most after-market warranties are a way for the dealer to make some extra cash as they get a healthy commission for selling them.

The key issue is that the conditions on the after-market warranties are VERY strict, some would even say unreasonable. Break just one of these and the whole warranty becomes void.

Read the fine print very carefully, but in particular tha maintenance conditions you are obliged to follow!

Also look for any clauses about imports and about who can and cannot service your car.

I'd ask for a copy of the conditions of the warranty now, so you can read it fully before you sign the dotted line.

D-TRAIN · Post by **D-TRAIN** » Sun Apr 04, 2004 4:05 pm

Boris, that picture you've got in the spotted forum of that FTO looks very familiar. I'm pretty sure someone has mentioned it before in the forums. Do you know how long that car has been at the dealer?

Boris · Post by **Boris** » Sun Apr 04, 2004 5:19 pm

Thanx ruchi, I haven't actually signed the warranty yet...

Basically this guy wants to see the car being services by a mechanic every 10000k's and if i don't keep a record of that then that will void the warranty. I didn't say who can service the car or anything. But i will discuss this with the dealer further.

I dono, having some kinda of waranty is better than none...

D-Train, i belive the car was at the dealer for about 3 weeks. The story is that the dealer initially put it up for sale around the $17000 mark, then a guy put a deposit on it, and got an inspection but couldn't get the finance sorted.

So the dealer lowered the price to $14500 to sell it quickly, and that's where i came in.

Overall, this car is worth 17/18 grand... i reckon. The interior and the engine are the cleanest and their condition is the best i have seen so far, even 25k 97 models.

D-TRAIN · Post by **D-TRAIN** » Sun Apr 04, 2004 7:52 pm

14.5K sounds like a very good deal! Good find!

ruchi · Post by **ruchi** » Sun Apr 04, 2004 10:20 pm

I'm not saying don't go for the warranty, as I agree with you that some kind of warranty is better than none. All I'm saying is be careful about the conditions as some of the 3rd party warranties are nearly impossible to keep within their T&C's.

Also remember that you don't have to buy the warranty through him, you could buy it direct through a company you feel more comfortable with.

Just check the conditions, that's all, if they seem workable then do it, if they seem crazy then seek your own warranty directly.

Remember the car will car with some sort of statutory warranty any way, but probably for only 3 months.

SilentBob · Post by **SilentBob** » Sun Apr 04, 2004 10:27 pm

which dealer(if ya dont mind me asking)
SilentBob

Teania · Post by **Teania** » Sun Apr 04, 2004 10:34 pm

The dealer I went through chucked in the 3 year warranty for free.... which was good cos I wasn't going to buy it, and after reading the conditions - (for mine) it didn;t really do that much anyway.....

Boris · Post by **Boris** » Mon Apr 05, 2004 12:07 am

Hmm, some very interesting responses here... thanx

Ruchi, your spot on mate, it's got 3 month warranty, i'm still deciding on the warranty, but i think i should get something longer than 3 months.

The manager sounds pretty honest and decent, he's not willing to give me free warranty longer than 3 months though, as he is already giving me a good price.

Like i said, i'm still deciding, i think the terms & conditions that i got are a bit vague, so i'm waiting till i talk to him.

I haven't really had experiance with warranties like this, so i appriciate all your comments.

I belive the warranty that he offers is through the "All State Warranty Network", looking at their website it looks ok...

http://www.warrantynet.com.au/intro.htm

The dealer is "Haberfield Classic & Sports Car", it's just of Parramatta Rd. you guys that live in Sydney probably drive past this place pretty often

I booked the inspection for tuesday, unfortunatly SVI don't actually inspect dealer cars... so i had to get the NRMA guys to do it

So tommorow, i will be insurance shopping...

Let's see how many different quotes i can get...

Teania · Post by **Teania** » Mon Apr 05, 2004 12:21 am

The 2 cheapest I found for insurance were:-

Dawes
www.dawes.com.au
Famous Car Insurance
www.famousinsurance.com.au

Good Luck

ruchi · Post by **ruchi** » Mon Apr 05, 2004 12:40 am

Again, I'm not trying to talk you out of the warranty, I'm just saying read the fine print as some warranties are useless and have unreasonable conditions.

Don't rely upon the salesperson as he makes a commission from selling the warranty, so he's hardly going to tell you not to buy it.

If the warranty sounds good, then buy it, as having a car covered for 3 years would be great peace of mind and a lot better than 3 months!

I had a quick look at the website but it really doesn't tell you much about the warranty. When you read the terms and conditions pay close attention to any limitations or exclusions and also look for what things would void the contract. If everything looks fine, then go for it, if sus, then either ask if they have other warranties from other companies or look around.

DUK35Y · Post by **DUK35Y** » Mon Apr 05, 2004 9:28 am

Teania wrote:The 2 cheapest I found for insurance were:-

Dawes
www.dawes.com.au
Famous Car Insurance
www.famousinsurance.com.au

Good Luck

I went through Famous Classic Car insurance as well the one thing you should look at is that they require a 3 point immobliser where as Just Car and a few others only require a 2 point system you should probably factor this into your budget.

rxboy · Post by **rxboy** » Mon Apr 05, 2004 1:26 pm

If you're looking for a good warranty company, then I would recommend AVC (Australasian Vehicle Cover). They have very strict rules about servicing, ie. must be done every 6 months or 5000km by a mechanic with ABN number. But my experience with them turned out positive. The only problem I encountered was a stuffed auto transmission after 1.5 years. It cost $2500 to recondition, of which $1250 was paid by AVC. And I only paid approx $880 for the 3 year cover. Plus they have free roadside assist for the 1st year. Never tested this service, so I don't know how prompt they're when u call them.

Just my 2c

FTO338 · Post by **FTO338** » Mon Apr 05, 2004 1:35 pm

$880 for 3yrs, thats not bad, so can you please post their details Alex?

ruchi · Post by **ruchi** » Mon Apr 05, 2004 1:48 pm

You need to have you car serviced every 5,000km otherwise you void the warranty?

That could get a little expensive.

G1 · Post by G1 » Mon Apr 05, 2004 2:10 pm

i think oil change should be done every 5000km anyway
i'd say an oil change service is probably the minimum req.