Buying an FTO - What to look for?

[mezje]

Hey All,

I did a quick search and all the results for people asking similar questions seemed to be from 2004, I was only 10-11 then when FTO's must have been all the rage. I suspect that most of the information in those threads is pretty outdated given the cars are now 20ish years old. I am looking exclusively at the MIVEC GPX model, as suggested in many threads I have seen around and am on my P's currently.

I currently on a Mitsubishi KJ Verada (first car) and have a put a lot of time and money in to it since owning it making a damn nice ride. I am getting pretty bored of the car though now and it has held value pretty well so I am looking to sell and buy an FTO. When looking for one is there any huge warning signs I should look out for, what would likely need doing after picking one up etc.



- Max

[Daniel2019]

There's already lots of posts on this.. use the search button up the top. Info is still relevant.

[mezje]

There's already lots of posts on this.. use the search button up the top. Info is still relevant.

Thanks, must have mucked up the search last time I did it because only got a few results, thought it was a bit strange...

viewtopic.php?f=27&t=8085 thread seemed pretty comprehensive but got a few questions, apologies for them being pretty basic...

1. What is the tappet/lifter? noise, what should I be hearing for?
2. How do I do a compression test while inspecting the car, is it really necessary?
3. How do I know if the plugs are 'Platinum' or better?

Cheers!

[Daniel2019]

There's already lots of posts on this.. use the search button up the top. Info is still relevant.

Thanks, must have mucked up the search last time I did it because only got a few results, thought it was a bit strange...

viewtopic.php?f=27&t=8085 thread seemed pretty comprehensive but got a few questions, apologies for them being pretty basic...

1. What is the tappet/lifter? noise, what should I be hearing for?
2. How do I do a compression test while inspecting the car, is it really necessary?
3. How do I know if the plugs are 'Platinum' or better?

Cheers!

Tappets/lifter noise is the constant ticking noise that increases with RPM. Doesn't necessarily hurt the car, is just annoying to listen to.

Compression test I would leave for a mechanic or similar. I have never compression tested any cars that I have bought, but would be nice to do if you have access to the tools. Although because you're asking, I'm guessing you dont Its not really necessary, just nice to have.
And finally you won't know what plugs are in there unless you take one out.

When you buy a car (any car that is) it's best to give it a proper service anyway, so you can just replace them with Platinums then.

[mezje]

Thanks heaps!

I would be flushing all the fluids, I will do the plugs too

I am hoping my Dad will lend me money as my car and an FTO are roughly worth the same amount however finding an unmolested FTO is proving rather hard. I may have to take out some kind of Loan to buy the FTO then pay it off with resale value of my car, any advice on how I would best do this? Loans with CBA don't seem too bad and I could pay it off with ease even without the sale of my car but I want to avoid interest as much as possible, that being said having good credit rating would help...

[Daniel2019]

No idea, I have paid for and owned all of my cars outright.

[mezje]

The wonders of needing a car but needing to sell it afford a new one, uni life

[dstocks]

OK, Firstly, dont rule out a version R. There are 2 FTO's at the top of the range. The luxury version is the GPX (fold in mirrors,climate control). The sports version is the GPvR (Factory strut braces, LSD, uprates suspension components). Both have the mivec engine so power is the same. GPvR willout corner a GPX though. Unfortunately, GPvR will cost you more as well. Ive owned both and would choose a version R manual over all the other models.

Roof Rust is probablyone of the more costly issues. Occurs in models 1997 and earlier. Look for rust bubbles on the roof. If it has them, will cost at least $800 to get ridof them. The glue holding the subframe to the roof is defective and holds condensation. Rusts the roof from the inside out.

[mezje]

Version R is a bit out of my price range (4.5 - 5k) and at this point I am only looking at auto. I live with my Dad and he is rarely home so getting hours was really hard, we also do not own a manual car I got some lessons about 3 years ago and felt confident after 5 but would need to resit my drive test and get confident again which I don't really have time for, might have to wait until I have my full license

I will definitely look for paint bubbling or any signs of rest, thanks.

[bjk]

There haven't been many Version Rs around lately for sale as well, at least outside the club. Having owned (well, owning, haven't sold it yet lol) the auto, I can attest that it is still fun to drive, and obviously is less annoying for city driving. I only got as far for power as the extractors and intake, but it still had a decent kick to it. The handling upgrades definitely made more of a difference (strut bars, sway bar, wheels).

That being said, I've still bought a manual FTO now to replace the auto, because you do lose power due to it.

[Daniel2019]

Version R is a bit out of my price range (4.5 - 5k) and at this point I am only looking at auto. I live with my Dad and he is rarely home so getting hours was really hard, we also do not own a manual car I got some lessons about 3 years ago and felt confident after 5 but would need to resit my drive test and get confident again which I don't really have time for, might have to wait until I have my full license

I will definitely look for paint bubbling or any signs of rest, thanks.

You can drive a manual on your green Ps.

[mezje]

Version R is a bit out of my price range (4.5 - 5k) and at this point I am only looking at auto. I live with my Dad and he is rarely home so getting hours was really hard, we also do not own a manual car I got some lessons about 3 years ago and felt confident after 5 but would need to resit my drive test and get confident again which I don't really have time for, might have to wait until I have my full license

I will definitely look for paint bubbling or any signs of rest, thanks.

You can drive a manual on your green Ps.

You learn something new everyday I get my greens in June.

[dstocks]

Oh and feel free to come along to the bonfire on the 28th if you are interested. Will be quite a few FTO's there and youll be able to talk to people and get a pretty good idea what to look for. Is at my place on the South Coast (NSW). Have cars coming as far away as SA and QLD

[mezje]

Oh and feel free to come along to the bonfire on the 28th if you are interested. Will be quite a few FTO's there and youll be able to talk to people and get a pretty good idea what to look for. Is at my place on the South Coast (NSW). Have cars coming as far away as SA and QLD

A bit far and too much time out for uni and work sadly.

Checked the VicRoads laws, P2 license is still restricted here - not the case in NSW though

[mezje]

Update...

Had a look at one today, it is about 1k pretty keen on picking it up but obviously there a few things wrong and I was wondering your thoughts... The photos I took are here:
http://imgur.com/a/2epJ6

1. The strut towers seem to have cracking at the top - is this OK?
2. It is a 99, owner replaced with with a pre-facelift bumper. It has some paint peel on the right rear panel, I assume there is rust underneath some touch up paint, how bad is this?
3. Someone mentioned to check for the laminate on the headlights peeling, is that what I am seeing here or would they come up fine after a resto/polish?

Apart from that the car was tidy, ran well and Mivec kicked in as it should at about 5000-5500rpm, the coolant was a pretty disgusting colour though however the radiator was nice and clean. The power steering felt a bit off though, there was very little fluid in there. The brakes/rotors were pretty rusted and I suspect there was not much brake pad left as they grinded a bit too.

Thanks in advance

[dstocks]

1. The strut towers seem to have cracking at the top - is this OK?

They need replacing. About $60 brand new from memory

2. It is a 99, owner replaced with with a pre-facelift bumper. It has some paint peel on the right rear panel, I assume there is rust underneath some touch up paint, how bad is this?

Youd have to remove it to find out, but itmostlikelywont be bad. Never really seen rust there though, soprobably just paint peel. Check to make sure is a 99 though. They have probably read the compliance plate and said its 99. The chassis number is what you need to look at though. The number will be stamped on the firewall and willstart with DE3A and will be followed by a 7 digit number. If you let us know what itis,we can tell you the build date.

3. Someone mentioned to check for the laminate on the headlights peeling, is that what I am seeing here or would they come up fine after a resto/polish?

Yep, peeling headlights. Dont look too bad though. 15 minutes of polishing per light would fix that.

Apart from that the car was tidy, ran well and Mivec kicked in as it should at about 5000-5500rpm, the coolant was a pretty disgusting colour though however the radiator was nice and clean. The power steering felt a bit off though, there was very little fluid in there. The brakes/rotors were pretty rusted and I suspect there was not much brake pad left as they grinded a bit too.

Honestly, you arent going to get much for 1K and this seems like a pretty good buy for that price. The things you have highlighted will either be fairly cheap to fix or can be ignored for now.

[Vectose]

It has a MAF sensor. MIVEC engines don't use a MAF sensor.

[dstocks]

Well spotted, didnt notice that

[mezje]

2. It is a 99, owner replaced with with a pre-facelift bumper. It has some paint peel on the right rear panel, I assume there is rust underneath some touch up paint, how bad is this?

Youd have to remove it to find out, but itmostlikelywont be bad. Never really seen rust there though, soprobably just paint peel. Check to make sure is a 99 though. They have probably read the compliance plate and said its 99. The chassis number is what you need to look at though. The number will be stamped on the firewall and willstart with DE3A and will be followed by a 7 digit number. If you let us know what itis,we can tell you the build date.

I decoded the VIN and the compliance plate definitely says 99.
VIN: 6U9000DE3A0400317

[Vectose]

Well then it's a GX, which has had a MIVEC engine put in it.

If it's still got the GX ecu/loom you are most likely going to have issues with it.