1987 Nissan 200SX EX

Summary:

Will keep it since is does 30 mpg highway

Faults:

Power steering pump leaked all fluid, and not working now.

General Comments:

Bought the car for $500, and have since added 50,000 without major issues.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 4th August, 2011

1987 Nissan 200SX SE V6

Summary:

One of the 5 best I've ever owned

Faults:

Starter quit @ 77,000.

Transmission failed @130,000.

I've installed 2 steering racks.

General Comments:

I've owned this beauty since its 14,000th birthday. It's now celebrating 202,000, and is still very strong.

The car is black; the exterior needs new paint to look sharp, and the black interior is still original (although somewhat sun-faded).

The motor and trans are primo, and the rebuilt suspension has made the coupe into a handler.

Four years ago, the A/C failed, but I had it rebuilt to the non-Freon standards.

Except for the trans dying, it's never left me at the side of the road.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 4th October, 2003

30th Jul 2004, 08:19

The 200sx SE was never produced as a coupe. You may want to check to make sure you actually have the SE.

18th Jan 2006, 01:53

Yes it was available as a coupe. I have only seen one or two. You could also get the 4cyl in a hatchback. The V6 cars period are rare as hen's teeth. I have only seen one in a junkyard ever.

5th Mar 2006, 10:26

Poor choice of words, sorry. My SX is a 5-speed hatchback.

It's now at 210,000, and I'm sad to say, the A/C has quit.

I have just put a new set of Coopers on it, and I'll need brakes soon. Otherwise, it just keeps rolling on.

1987 Nissan 200SX SE 3.0 V6

Summary:

I'm glad I bought the car and if I had it to do over, id buy it again!

Faults:

Thermostat replaced about 103,500 miles.

My water pump was replaced at the same time as well, since these parts are so hard to get to. It was for the best.

The speedometer hasn't worked since I bought the car.

I had to replace the starter, but that was from previous owners abuse.

Replaced exhaust system, normal wear and tear.

General Comments:

The car runs extremely well and has ample power.

The seats are very nice and have NO wear that I can tell.

The material on the sides of the doors is starting to fall off and sag.

I Bought the car for $800.00, and the repairs I have made are well worth making.

The transmission shifts smoothly.

The engine has litlle noise and no leaks.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 10th February, 2003

1987 Nissan 200SX SE-V6 3.0 V6

Summary:

This car is falling apart...Finally!

Faults:

Rear brake calipers are a pain. The sliding pins constantly stick and burn up one pad.

Transmission rebuilt at 170,000.

Water-pump replaced at 180,000.

Thermostat bypass hose replaced at 190,000.

Very complicated and sophisticated features, many of which no longer work (factory alarm, low fuel light, etc..)

A/C compressor locked up.

Sunroof now leaks.

General Comments:

What a great car. Not the fastest thing on the road, but certainly not the slowest, either. Will hold it's own against most any non-turbo V-6 and even older V-8s.

Handling is good for a four seater (well, they call it a four seater). Enormous rear hatch and stowage with the seats laid down. Nice cloth seats have held up VERY well, but the headliner and vinyl interior panels are coming apart. Not a complaint, just an observation.

This car is just amazing. I bought it in 1998 after my Honda Civic was totalled, hoping that it might last a couple of more years. Now, it is totally falling apart, but it just keeps on running. The engine is bulletproof, transmission is the only weak link.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 11th July, 2002

1st Nov 2007, 11:16

I'm glad to see that you have FINALLY worn a 200SX out!

Mine--an '87 SE V6--now has 220,000 on it and it just keeps rolling along. The motor is strong, the handling is fine, the trans like butter. I have had it 17 years and it makes no sense to trade it, it's so dependable.

There have been problems, like blowing the trans at 160,000 (it was replaced by a 5-speed from an '89 Z-car) rebuilding the A/C twice, etc.

Obvious stuff, like water pumps, steering racks and batteries got replaced over the years, but I'm STILL using the original fuel pump, radiator, wiper motor, clutch/brake assemblies, among other ancillaries. The heads have never been cracked, and I finally put my third-ever Tailpipe/muffler on it last Summer.

The car could use some new paint, but overall, it's still all there and does for me the same thing it's done since most of the current class of college Seniors got born.

And I LOVE humiliating ricers with it.

Despite years of deliberate abuse, it just won't wear out, so I plan on keeping it indefinitely.

29th May 2009, 15:47

I have an 87 NISSAN 200 SX SE (V6) which I bought new and still drive regularly (22 yrs later). I've had the same problems as mentioned above over the years, but mine is a manual tranny, so I've only replaced the clutch twice with over 280,000 miles on it.

I wonder if I'm one of the last original owners still driving their 200 SX? NISSAN should trade me for it with a new 370Z-Car, so they can show off how durable the linage is, particularly the 3.0 L engine that has never blown a head despite bad thermostat/water pump/hose leaks that have forced it to run basically air-cooled in Yuma and Houston Summer heat for long enough to get to a repair shop.

In it's day I wound it up to well over any speed limit out in West Texas and down in Florida. But lately I baby it because of a makeshift repair to keep the harmonic balancer pulley on the crankshaft with Lock-Tight because the key notch was worn off. At some point it will stop working, but for now it keeps limping along.