1989 Nissan Sunny ZX Coupe from UK and Ireland - Comments

Starter motor failed at 73,000 miles.

Back caliper seized due to a common fault where water gets past the seal on the handbrake cable and corrodes the the piston.

Back discs needed replacing, Nissan wanted £199 for the pair, pattern discs cost me £80. Another example of a typically greedy dealer.

Apart from that, the car's in good working order.

The ZX is surprisingly quick, it still surprises boy racers. Not bad for a ten year old nail.

The bodywork is generally good but seems to rust around the mounting points of the body kit (side skirts, front valance etc), have a good look before you buy.

Fuel economy is good, insurance is OK but the dealer backup is one of the worst I have ever known.

All this aside, if you can find a good one the performance you get for the money is outstanding.

I love this car - they can be got for about 700 quid nowadays, but if you can, look for a mint one that's been looked after (don't worry too much about the engine, even trashed ones still have loads of life left)

they look like 80's sports cars from Grand Turismo 3 on the PS2 - with alloys they look the nuts..!

They reach 60 from stand still in 8.0 standard (2nd gear will take you to 62mph almost touching the redline)

they have a top speed of around 140-145mph (if you can be bothered to wait till it gets there) with only the redline stopping you from going quicker!

Nb. I am talking about the 1809cc Twin-Cam 16 Valve CA18-DE engine here.

They way they are weighted helps with handling - supsension could do with upgrading if you get serious, but you'd probably choose something else for racing seriously, and as such - I'd say it has fantastic suspenion (lower and stiffer than average, but not speed bump intolerant)

with 2 people in the car its great, anyone sat in the back will moan constantly cuz there aint enough room for most folk.

If you buy this car, you WILL love it.

Everyone else will think it's crap, till they sit in it, then they'll want one :)