1989 Nissan EXA 1.8 from Australia and New Zealand

Summary:

Pretty cool sports car if you have lots of money for age releted repairs!

Faults:

Water pump blew a seal, cost $200 including workmanship, but took two months from Japan for the parts to arrive!

Cam belt needing doing.

Small prob with rear boot struts, with the two Exas I owned, both had dodgy struts!

Sunroof leaked on passenger side in both my Exas.

Shocks needed replacing.

Needed larger radiator cooling system, seemed to always run slightly hotter than usual japanese cars.

Birds seem target the roof to poop on!

General Comments:

Really good cars if you don't need to travel with a load much bigger than your groceries and handbag!!

Nice and low, easy to park, and has enough grunt to pull away from pesky little boy racers at the lights, only you have to wring it out in second and third to get ahead. Have done 200 kph though, pretty scary being so close to the road.

Have since then traded it in for Toyota Caldina GTT wagon '99. Much better!

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 2nd August, 2008

1989 Nissan EXA 1.8 from Australia and New Zealand

Summary:

The best budget second car there is!

Faults:

Front end needs a little work.

Car needs a good tune-up & oil change.

Wiper arms to be re-painted.

Front tyres worn; just bought new set of wheels & tyres.

Oil & power-steer fluid low.

Different locks either side of car.

Leaks in heavy weather, but basically good; it's an old targa so needs protection!

General Comments:

I had one of these eight years ago; that was a dog & cost $15,000. This one is lovely & cost $5,000. I wanted a car that I could fiddle with & keep for cruising, rather than kill it in the daily grind. Sure, she needs a few little bits & pieces doing mechanically, but her body & interior are mint & where else are you going to get this much fun for $5k? As a day to day hack, you're not doing it justice. But look on one as a long- term project & you will enjoy it immensely. You just can't believe how people in cars costing far more look at you enviously in one of these, especially with the targa off. A real feel-good car, but make sure you keep the servicing up to date as they are an early high- tech vehicle & neither deserve, nor will they tolerate, poor maintenace.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 9th December, 2005

12th Mar 2006, 22:16

Update! The new wheels & tyres I bought for $300 solved the front end issues & I sold the old ones for $110! It's been diagnosed as needing cv joints & a steering rack in the future, but seeing how I'm only likely to do 4,000km a year in it, that can wait for 12 months. I plan on spending $1,000 a year on improvements, on top of normal servicing.

1st Nov 2006, 03:13

Update 2!

Now has 16 inch wheels, sports wheel & Razo knob, handbrake cover & multiple leather boots, ally window winders, sports muffler, pod filter, new CV joints, oxygen sensor, tinted windows, alarm & central locking, clear indicators, mesh in front grille.. list goes on. Plus have 4 spare coil packs!

Yup, she's staying around for a long time :-)

1989 Nissan EXA 1.8 16v, Twin Cam from Australia and New Zealand

Summary:

It is an Attractive sports car that is far ahead of its time

Faults:

The Crank Angle Sensor (electronic distributor) broke, which was quite costly.

High Beam Switch (costly)

Top Tank in the radiator corroded requiring replacement (costly)

General Comments:

The first thing you notice about this car is its hot looks.

My car has 17" alloys and various decals so it stands out.

It has great performance and can beat most cars off the line.

Sounds great (courtesy of 3.5" cannon exhaust)

Roof lifts off.

I could not have asked for a better car, it looks great, goes great, I can't believe how many heads it turns, not bad for a 16yr old car!

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 29th August, 2005

1989 Nissan EXA 1.6 Twin Cam from Australia and New Zealand

Summary:

A great car and despite its age still looks great

Faults:

I knew that there were a few things wrong with it when I brought it. These included Faulty water pump, the need for a new air conditioning system, and a new power steering pump. But this was all fixed and now runs like a dream.

General Comments:

Nice car, drives well and I am planning to start modifying it seriously. This will be a fun car for me and I hope I can enjoy the T top when weather improves.

The seats are fine and the suspension (standard) is better than average. I have a set of 17" wheels with low profile tires which has improved traction tenfold.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know

Review Date: 16th July, 2005