1998 Nissan 200SX SE

Flashpass · Feb 2nd, 2006, 01:18 PM

Hello everyone, this it my first post on the forums.

I will most likely be getting a 1998 Nissan 200SX SE tonight and I just had some general questions for people who have driven this specific car.

1. It's going to come with about 100k miles on it, in general how reliable have they been?

2. The numbers given to the engine seem pretty low, how does the power and performance feel in real life compared to other cars in it's class, or just in general?

3. Are there any known issues with the car I should be aware of or pay special attention to?

4. Are there any low cost methods of improving it's performance?

Thanks in advance,
Daniel A. Bradshaw

psuLemon · Feb 2nd, 2006, 01:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Flashpass

Hello everyone, this it my first post on the forums.

I will most likely be getting a 1998 Nissan 200SX SE tonight and I just had some general questions for people who have driven this specific car.

1. It's going to come with about 100k miles on it, in general how reliable have they been?

2. The numbers given to the engine seem pretty low, how does the power and performance feel in real life compared to other cars in it's class, or just in general?

3. Are there any known issues with the car I should be aware of or pay special attention to?

4. Are there any low cost methods of improving it's performance?

Thanks in advance,
Daniel A. Bradshaw

haha, i actually just traded my 98 in... mods are easy, depends what you want.

Now, things to look for. look in the door jams, our car had shitty seals and water would get in the door jam area and could lead to rust. I would look under the hood and see if you can see any oil. drive it. try to listen near the valve cover to see if you can hear a clicking. Around 100k the timing chains tensioners start to go, but the upper is an easy fix.

What color is the car, any more details about it.

Flashpass · Feb 2nd, 2006, 02:04 PM

Hey thanks for responding!

I actually haven't got a chance to see or drive the car yet. Tonight hopefully. We have a friend of the family who is a car dealer and he'll be giving me the car at his cost and with everything fixed up, I'll be getting a complete checkup with pepboys as well. I should be paying around 2800 for it which seems like a really good deal to me. Apparantly it's completely black, won't have body damage or scratches in the paint, has power everything, moonroof, etc..

I'm curious to how the power and performance is without any modifications?

Also, more specifically what kind of low cost mods could I perform on the car, and how much performance gain would I get from it?

Thanks!

psuLemon · Feb 2nd, 2006, 02:06 PM

90whp and 90whp for the ga16de. mod wise, you will max out at 115whp if you stay n/a.. thats if you do head work and all. Turbo is really the bet way to go or do an sr20det swap. Which is easier on your budget.

Flashpass · Feb 2nd, 2006, 02:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by psuLemonn

90whp and 90whp for the ga16de. mod wise, you will max out at 115whp if you stay n/a.. thats if you do head work and all. Turbo is really the bet way to go or do an sr20det swap. Which is easier on your budget.

How difficult are these mods to do? And about how much would they run (cost-wise)?

And again I see the numbers are very low, I'm wondering how the power actually feels while driving?

Note: My current car is a 1985 Toyota Celica GT, how does the Nissan compare?

psuLemon · Feb 2nd, 2006, 02:19 PM

well with an N/A car, you can run a mid 15's 1/4mile. There isnt much of an aftermarket for it. The swap will run you about 4-5k if you do it yourself and it takes some time and knowledge. Turbo will run you about the same.

Nostrodomas · Feb 2nd, 2006, 10:03 PM

Its not the fastest car out there, but for a 1.6l engine, its got some great get up and go. Im am speaking about the 5 sped manual though. Im not sure about the auto. The thing about the nissan ga16de or any Nissan motor for that matter is the torque numbers. The torque numbers of the ga are very close if not the same amount as the HP.
The engine responds very well to mods. Don't let the numbers fool you. Just because you only gained 2hp, that doesn't mean that the mods equalized the power curve of the motor. You will feel the difference with most mods.
N/a basically consists of Intake/ Header/ Exhaust, Ur underdrive pulley, and advancing the timing. Those are the basics. Im sure Lemon will fill you in on the rest of the mods you can do if you are interested.

nastynissan · Feb 2nd, 2006, 10:12 PM

Trust me It DOESNT feel like 90-100HP. These Engines respond Well to the Mods and more important then #'s is the Torque Curve. These (Like MOST Nissan) engines pull well from down low. They do even with better with the Basic Timing/ Intake/ Exhaust Mods. Ive had SEVERAL people who Refused to believe that ALL I had was a basically stock engine and only 100whp.

As far as reliability..... I just installed a 93 GA16DE with 220k+ into an 88 pulsar. The engine had sat for a year. Fired on the second revolution of the engine and Hasnt smoked yet.

Flashpass · Feb 3rd, 2006, 02:10 AM

Good to hear, thanks all for the info!

Nastynissan, were the comments you made referring to your experience with the manual transmission or the automatic? I'll be receiving the automatic version, and again the pickup date got pushed back to noon tomorrow! Boo.

About how much would the low end mods end up costing, just for example? Also , I'm familiar with the concept behind torque and horsepower, but when driving the car...how does the torque affect it's performance? How does the torque/hp ratio affect performance?

Thanks!

B14Nismo · Feb 4th, 2006, 06:55 PM

I have a 95 auto and i have to say that from the idle to about 2 1/4 rpm its kinda of laggy but then it starts to pull quite well(you get a boost from like 3.75-5.75 rpm) for an auto. A key thing for me though even though it has low numbers, 115 hp/ 109 ft-lbs of torque, is weight only weighs about 2,400 odd pounds which helps a lot. torque helps get you off the line much quicker, helps acceleration while hp power gets you more top speed.

nastynissan · Feb 4th, 2006, 08:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Flashpass

Good to hear, thanks all for the info!

Nastynissan, were the comments you made referring to your experience with the manual transmission or the automatic? I'll be receiving the automatic version, and again the pickup date got pushed back to noon tomorrow! Boo.

About how much would the low end mods end up costing, just for example? Also , I'm familiar with the concept behind torque and horsepower, but when driving the car...how does the torque affect it's performance? How does the torque/hp ratio affect performance?

Thanks!

ALL my experience with the B-13 has been with a manual. The ONLY 4cyl auto Ive owned was a 94 Cavalier with the 2.2l, And that was only because it was for my Mom.

Personally I'll ONLY have a Stick unless its a Family car. But thats just me.

Flashpass · Feb 6th, 2006, 02:36 PM

I ended up buying the car for around 3k. Wen't through a pep-boys 125 point check and passed all across the board. I have to agree the car does have some "get-up-and-go" to it. I'll post some pics soon!

Flashpass · Feb 9th, 2006, 12:48 PM

Here ya go!

jharris1 · Feb 9th, 2006, 04:02 PM

The GA16DE is a very reliable engine. I've had my car for three years and haven't had a major engine problem. One thing to look out for on these engines is the infamous front main crankseal leak. It is not a bad fix though. So when you look at this car, look for any oil buildup on the passenger side around the axles and control arm, etc. If you see any, it's most likely due to the front main leaking.

The 5 speed makes the GA16DE peppy. The auto is a real slug. I've driven both. Your only saving grace in the auto is to try not to let the O/D kick in too early. Other than that, this is a real workhorse engine. It gets the job done and if you take care of it, it WILL last over 230K.