Please Help Me Choose

[FunkMasterJay]

Hey all.

Right, so far I have seen 3 dogs through gumtree and I have come across 2 bargains.

First one is on eBay. Individual dude..Silver IS200 with 6 owners, cambelt done etc but one key. He wants £1600 ono.

Next one is from a dealer with 198k miles, Full dealer history, 3 keys, tax and MOT and good tyres, good alloys, aero kit, spoiler etc. It just has a crack onthe windscreen.

I have offered him £1150 as he has been trying to sell for a couple of weeks now and he reluctantly accepted.

My heart and head is saying go with the dealer and my heart is saying at least look at the one in London tomorrow though he wants more money with less miles, but less car.

help please.

J

[inflames]

Mate i know the engine are almost bulletprof but i wouldnt buy 1 with 198k on the clock, its just my personal opinion. Keep locking mate you'll find 1 in the end. Plus you say the sliver 1 has only got 1 key, you can buy a key on eBay for a resable price and they fairly easy to programe with the guide on here.

[Russell-H]

The one key is not a problem if it is the 3 button master key, however if it is only ythe 2 button valet key you will not be able to program any more onto the car and that is an expensive problem.

I would go and look at as many as i can before buying as it is a buyers market at the moment and very few cars are changing hands at the advertised prices, there are normally lots on auto trader if you are prepared to travel.

Do not worry about which one of the two you have found is best find more and keep looking till you find the one that is best for you.

Regards

Russell.

[FunkMasterJay]

Cheers guys.

This is the dealer car in question. we have verbally agreed a good price if I was happy to take it after viewing. I know the mileage is high, BUT the dealer history, tax and mot and recent clutch change plus one previous owner really sways me.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=190516579181&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT

Just for laughs I am going to look at this one at 1pm today. It is only 30 mins from me and he has struggled to sell for the last 3 weeks. Spoken to him and it has 2 keys and necesary work done. In my sub £1500 budget I will not get a concours car so I am trying to be realistically picky as I can.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=190521373634&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT

I still have my Celica so not THAT desperate for a car so I have the option of just walking away.

Wish me luck folks.

J

[FunkMasterJay]

Finally bought one. I wanted to edit my post but could not so please forgive me if I am spamming.

Here are a couple of pics.

It has the typical ERR3 CD message and a tow bar that I need to remove. Master key and second key. Interior is ok....some dirty bits so I will have to properly clean it. All in all I am happy. It is a Sport model.

Ah one thing..it has a nasty Ripspeed Gear knob that I desperately want to change.

J

[Bob King]

Well done on becoming an IS200 owner......now enjoy :)

[Parthiban]

Well done mate, shouldn't be too hard to replace the gear knob. Also if you only have one master key (the black one with 3 buttons) worth getting another and programming it to be safe.

Unfortunately the ERR3 was an inevitability with the early stereos, wasn't a question of if but more one of when! Best to replace it with an aftermarket one :)

[FunkMasterJay]

Thanks Parthiban.

I have a US Import Pioneer Head Unit with iPod control, Bluetooth phone and CD Player etc. I only really listen to Radio 1 and LBC and I get those stations perfectly.

Previous owner fitted a really good Kenwood standalone CD changer which works well, so no rush to upgrade.

I know this situation has been covered to death, and I have read them all but here goes.

I ALWAYS fun front speakers and sbwoofers off an amplifier. I always delete the rear speakers. Question is If I was to install the Autoleads wiring, do I have to do the amp bypass as well as run new cables for the fromt speakers from the amp, or tap into the existing wiring like I usually do.

Also, I have TRC and heated seats, so which eBay fascia and spare cubby hole is best?

Thanks so far....and here are pics of my new car and old cars.

New...

Previous.

Banzai featured one-off home built Celica SR Turbo

My G5

and the G7

The coupe

Well so there it is.

I can't wait to get stuck in.

Jason.