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Newbie considering buying S15

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Hi,

I am Andy from Edinburgh in Scotland.

I currently drive a Mitsubishi Legnum VR4 but for various reasons I am considering buying a Spec R S15 aero Silvia.

I would be looking for one with low miles (50,000 or less) that has not been abused with few modifications although basic things like alloys, lowered, exhaust and filters I would consider (also maybe different rear lights). I tend to start off like that and then end up drifting into changing things but hey ho.

I will consider a fresh import and if anyone knows of any particularly reliable importers I'd be interested to hear about them.

Aside from the obvious questions about what to look out for on these cars I have a couple of more specific ones.

On the gear box, is the six speed manual really all that bad or is it a matter of it being OK if it has not been abused or on a car making greater than stock power? I have no intention of using mine as a drift car or anything, too old for that kind of thing.

Also does anyone have experience of the four speed automatic gear box? My VR4 has a superb tiptronic 5 speed automatic box which I am more than happy with but think it's might be quite a specialised one by comparison.

Finally, the price of these cars is still pretty high for their age and I wonder if people feel that the price will hold up or if it has been holding up recently?

Thanks

Andy
 
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Welcome!

You've made the right choice to consider an S15!

If you want a fresh import, Torque GT would be one of the best companies to approach. - Torque GT

6 Speed box is fine but when you start to push for big power I believe its the cir-clip that will usually fail on the 3rd and 4th gear selector, So most people change the box for an rb25 or Z32/33 when aiming big but you will need a kit.
Alternatives are a rebuilt S14a gearbox with Os Giken Internals.....or you can contact somewhere that will mod + weld the cir-clips..but I'm not sure how that would hold out.
As long as your not pushing big power the 6 speed is fine and I approve of it.

The price has been steady for a few years, about 5 years ago when I first had my eye on them they were all about 9k+ for a Spec R and they are now. I've believe they hold their value well if you take care of them.

There is also a lot of information here: http://www.s15oc.com/faqs with a few links with information on buying an S15 :)
 
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Welcome! Agree with the above, box is fine with regular fluid changes unless it's abused . I have run 320 hp through mine for 5 years now with no issues . Over 400hp you want to be looking at the swaps already mentioned. As for the price I bought mine 6 years ago for 9k (was up at 10 but had some issues so knocked some money off) and they still go for that sort of money now for a good condition one so I wouldn't worry about that as long as it's well looked after it will retain its value .
 
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Hello,

Thanks for the replies!

That is reassuring info on the gear boxes and prices. Does it feel like you are driving a £10K car?

Also, are there any friendly owners that you know of that live in my area? I'd quite like to have a look at one of these and, as I'm pretty tall, have a seat in one. I'm like 6'5" but I think the length is mainly in my legs and never had a problem with sitting in any car before but I read that these can be a tight fit especially if they have a sunroof.

Andy
 
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The cars feel solid and they definitely feel like a high quality vehicle, They don't rattle and creak like your average Vauxhall and I think dash is a nice place to be.
The cars feel and look like much more than a 10k+ car.

I'm nowhere near you otherwise that wouldn't of been a problem haha but I can confirm they are quite roomy, I'm 6'3" and fit without problem, the seat goes back far enough and I still have roof space.
My car doesn't have a sunroof though but I believe its a fairly rare option anyway, most commonly on the L-Package cars that come with silver headlights (I'm not too fussed) and some chrome trim inside.

Maybe try sitting in an S14 to give you a rough idea if you'll fit? be nice if you can get a seat in an S15 Local though.
 
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Also, are there any friendly owners that you know of that live in my area? I'd quite like to have a look at one of these and, as I'm pretty tall, have a seat in one. I'm like 6'5" but I think the length is mainly in my legs and never had a problem with sitting in any car before but I read that these can be a tight fit especially if they have a sunroof.
Where about do you stay? Is it right in Edinburgh? There's only really two active members in the central belt. There's tet offensive (who stays in grangemouth) and myself (alloa).

On the headroom front. I've got a sunroof, I'm bang on 6foot and my head is pinned to the roof with the standard seat unless I'm gangster leaned. Where as I can sit in tet offensives non sunroof one no problemo.
 
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Yeah I'm in Edinburgh, that's right. I don't think I've seen an s15 round here before. Both of you are a fair distance for me. I guess I'm going to have to get a seat in one or get you to do some sort of strange measurement exercise lol. Does the roof get higher the further back (on rails) the seat is? Sounds like no sunroof would be a safer bet.
 
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Having recently bought and sold my s15 for me the car was a flash in the pan , I'd previously owned s14/14a's and a ps13 and had always wanted a s15 , so made a impulse purchase a few months back and have to say it has been a massive disappointment ( I no this is a s15 forum so most won't like to hear this but ,it's just my opinion so please don't be offended)

yeh it was a nice example but the general build quality is crap , very lite and super tin'y and I honestly feel a s14a has a much more solid feel, I was running around 300bhp and they're a nice quick car with good handling but I feel for a car that commands £10k+ they are massively over priced for what they are , but command such big money due to there cult status much like ae86's , ps13s and the obvious exclusivity you get like other rare jap stuff but when you consider you could get a clean e46 m3 for less money I'd think long and hard before buying one ( wish I had !)

that being said they are a beautiful looking car with great lines and massive road presence , with the 6 speed box they are really good on fuel I saw 430miles from a full tank ( granny driving though) you also constantly get people asking " what is that " ?? Or " nice car " which you defo don't get with most cars.

honestly for me it didn't work as a daily driver, and there's many more cars out there to spend £10k on in fact I've just bought a audi s3 and love it to bits

my advice go and look at a few and drive them and check the build quality before committing to getting one imported and spunking around £10k on one
 
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Hi Jonnybravo,

Thanks for sharing your opinion.

I was surprised to find that these cars are still £10K especially having experienced the slide in price of the VR4s over the passed few years. Perhaps you have though picked out a few positives for the s15 including the fuel consumption. Fuel consumption figures in the VR4 are appalling and along with the high maintenance costs is probably the biggest drawback of the car. The reason I'm looking at the s15 is mainly because I like to have something that's not only a great car but something interesting and different. There is simply nothing in my price bracket which can match the VR4 for looks and performance. The s15 looked like an interesting alternative (if a different class of car), although the costs are beyond what I would ideally like to pay.

I'd never have a 'normal' car like an audi or bmw (unless I win the lottery and can afford an RS6), it's just not me.

I think the advise you gave on going and having a look at an s15 in the flesh is the thing that I really need to do before committing. Unfortunately there don't seem to be many around here. Maybe I need a holiday to Japan lol.

Andy
 
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I'm 6"7 dude and I don't have any issues driving it comfortably, I do hit my head sometimes going through big dips in the road though I had an e46 m3 and in comparison it is full to drive . Yes it feels more solid but it's so heavy and just not exciting to drive. Same as most fast audis ,really they don't excite. Depends what you want, as a daily that goes fast the above would probably be better choices if you like a bit of luxury ha ha I drove my 15 daily for a while and loved every minute of it but it was nice to get back in my fn2 and have a bit of comfort for sure ha ha I have never had any issues with reliability (touch wood) build quality is good too , they are light so do feel lively /scary however you want to put it but that's part of the appeal , they keep you on your toes . It's a hard car to drive fast but very rewarding. Definitely would be an idea to for a test drive though just to get a feel for the car and see if it's something that works for you. 99% of people who own these cars absolutely love them there is a reason for that best of luck with it all dude. There are some really nice examples up for grabs ATM
 
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At the end of the day,if you look below the surface they are simply a 15 year old nissan.
Love mine to bits, If I won the lottery I would still keep :D
 
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Hi Jonnybravo,

Thanks for sharing your opinion.

I was surprised to find that these cars are still £10K especially having experienced the slide in price of the VR4s over the passed few years. Perhaps you have though picked out a few positives for the s15 including the fuel consumption. Fuel consumption figures in the VR4 are appalling and along with the high maintenance costs is probably the biggest drawback of the car. The reason I'm looking at the s15 is mainly because I like to have something that's not only a great car but something interesting and different. There is simply nothing in my price bracket which can match the VR4 for looks and performance. The s15 looked like an interesting alternative (if a different class of car), although the costs are beyond what I would ideally like to pay.

I'd never have a 'normal' car like an audi or bmw (unless I win the lottery and can afford an RS6), it's just not me.

I think the advise you gave on going and having a look at an s15 in the flesh is the thing that I really need to do before committing. Unfortunately there don't seem to be many around here. Maybe I need a holiday to Japan lol.

Andy

It it really depends on your budget aswell Andy , why not consider a kps13 ( a very similar car really but way more retro cool in my opinion ) I loved mine to bits and was gutted when I eventually sold it to fund my wedding !!!

S15's are a good car don't get me wrong but when you spend a large chunk of money and things like the centre arm rest comes off in your hand, the glove box feels likes it's made of cardboard , when you flick back the sun visor and it hits the roof making a ting noise as it's just all thin cheap materials and the rear boot liner is so thin one thing falls over in the boot and squashes half of it !!!! I just thought wtf ! I no all these are very trivial things and a lot of it is all down to weight saving making for a thrilling drive etc etc but if you went out and bought a fresh import for say £9k with basic mods ( filter,exhaust and wheels ) you can be looking at spending nearly half that again to unleash the full potential of the car with engine mods , suspension set up decent brakes and more .......

in standard form they're very vanilla but if you want somthing different and you have deep pockets and you enjoy modding then yeh consider one, if you want something that's well built feels quality, is fast in standard form, and well worth your hard earned cash then I'd look else where Andy
 
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It it really depends on your budget aswell Andy , why not consider a kps13 ( a very similar car really but way more retro cool in my opinion ) I loved mine to bits and was gutted when I eventually sold it to fund my wedding !!!

S15's are a good car don't get me wrong but when you spend a large chunk of money and things like the centre arm rest comes off in your hand, the glove box feels likes it's made of cardboard , when you flick back the sun visor and it hits the roof making a ting noise as it's just all thin cheap materials and the rear boot liner is so thin one thing falls over in the boot and squashes half of it !!!! I just thought wtf ! I no all these are very trivial things and a lot of it is all down to weight saving making for a thrilling drive etc etc but if you went out and bought a fresh import for say £9k with basic mods ( filter,exhaust and wheels ) you can be looking at spending nearly half that again to unleash the full potential of the car with engine mods , suspension set up decent brakes and more .......

in standard form they're very vanilla but if you want somthing different and you have deep pockets and you enjoy modding then yeh consider one, if you want something that's well built feels quality, is fast in standard form, and well worth your hard earned cash then I'd look else where Andy
100% agree with this. Silvia was a cheap car when new and you can certainly tell, everything is made down to a price and you can't expect anything more than a 90s Japanese car. When you put 4k or so into the engine, suspension and wheels then they are really cool, fast and fun to drive, at the same time any comfort you had as standard goes out the window.
Mine is noisy, uncomfortable, unreliable, extremely expensive to own. It's a labour of love though, when it works right I don't think there's anything out there quite as rewarding to drive, certainly not this side of 20k anyway.
 
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