Faults:

Clutch slave cylinder, clutch died due to lots of 8000rpm launches, rear diff shattered.

General Comments:

At first sight these cars look pretty standard and nothing really special, however with a few mods it doesn't take much to wake these cars up. Rated at 250hp and a healthy 308Nm of torque, the 92 VR4 is a capable machine.

My VR4 has a few mods done to it, enough to pull a 13.3 time on a quarter mile, which in a car tipping the scales of around 1500kgs is a pretty fast whale.

The engine is a 2.0lt V6 Twin Turbo intercooled; the turbos in these cars are really small, but can handle up to about 15 psi to redline. The rods in these engines are tiny, and if you put enough power and stress on them, the rods will break out of the engine and dance on your bonnet, however the engine is pretty strong.

The gearbox is almost bulletproof in these things; I have put serious amount of abuse on my gearbox and it's still fine.

I've driven an auto; they suck, don't get an auto because they have smaller turbos.

Suspension wise, factory ones are OK. I changed mine straight away and put coil overs in. Big difference handling wise.

Brakes will pull you up nicely thanks to a set of twin pots up front and ventilated all round.

The interior is simple, and what you would expect in a early 90's model car. Seats are comfortable, and being 4 doors, enough for your mates or family.

In general, these cars are pretty cheap in NZ, and have around the same acceleration as cars double the price. Gas sucks, if you looking for a car that's economical, get a non turbo.

Faults:

I bought the car with a blown head gasket and replaced it. I also replaced the water pump because all the fins were shredded off.

The ECU just broke, and it will cost $600 to fix. But from what I know, that's normal for these vehicles.

General Comments:

Replacing the ECU is a small price to pay for a vehicle this nice.

This is a great car! It's very fast and nimble. I can keep up with most Camaros and Mustangs. And my car is completely stock.

My car dyno'd at 224hp 247tq with a K&N air filter and Spectre intake. This car has great potential. I plan on making at least 350hp before I stop modifying it.

In my opinion, if you can find one of these cars, buy it! Parts may be expensive, but they don't fail often and it's worth the money!

Faults:

Clutch went out at 60000miles, its expected life of this component, i fixed myself costing me 350$ all components needed.

Water pump seal fail at 65000miles requiring timing belt and tensor pulley too, I do myself at home in a day, costing me 200$ in parts.

Idle speed problems at 70k miles, ECU of the car revealed 3 codes problems, but sensors and engine parts are fine, resulting in ECU malfunction some times.. finally I replace the computer at 400$ and the car ride like new.

The brakes are the same since new, but I'm resurface the front rotors twice.

General Comments:

The paint and interior still like new over the years. The performance its only fine for this engine, but its reliable, soundless, comfortable like a more expensive car and cheap to maintain.

Faults:

Spark plug came loose, and I tightened it back up again. No damage.

General Comments:

This car is excellent buying now 12-13 years on. It was a high class car and has many options, dual-mode AC, dual mode electronic 4 speed auto, 4 speaker stereo, central locking, adjustable seat heights, lumbar support, vanity mirrors, reading lamps for all, dual odometers, etc etc. All the mod-cons. Metallic paint.

Exellent ride, well noise insulated, acceptable performance, although no rocket. Standard ULP. Good economy, 10.5l/100kn in the city, 8.2l/100km on highway.

The hatch gives access to huge space, and the seats all fold down cleverly to provide almost bed like space.

Oil should be clean and not black, check for leaks.

Timing is from a chain, not a belt, so gives 100,000km life per chain. Check for replacement at 100,000k intervals when buying.

Only things missing are a CD player, and keyless entry, not standard in 1992.