Thread: Buying a P38

Not sure what you are hoping to find with a scanner. If there is a fault with the car you should spot it with a thorough check. Most faults will be shown on the Dash read out at start-up (if it starts) Those who have diagnostic will no doubt have them for their specific car as licences are mostly for one vehicle only.
Eas software is free. Problems with EAS is not a deal breaker, just negotiate the worst case $


Loads of info when looking to buy here and other sites. If buying from an enthusiast don`t expect a dealer history. None of my cars ever go near a Repair Garage but they are never the less well serviced and maintained.
Have a very long test drive with any prospect. You have obviously got a list of the most common issues already.

P38itis is not recognised as an addiction as yet so don't expect a Medicare rebate...though you can get plenty of therapy on this site (from fellow addicts that is...)

EDIT: on a more serious note... look carefully for evidence of coolant leaks around the #1 and #7 cylinder headbolts. If you can get a MY99 (Bosch upgrade = VIN later than XA410482 ), it's worth paying a bit extra: upgraded auto (ZFHP24), 4 pin diffs, upgraded Wabco brake modulator, 150 Amp alternator, supposedly more reliable EFI (Bosch) ...

Thanks guys. How the freaking hell do tell for all those upgrades?!

Here's a good thing you can do ....

Print out your point number one

"you don't need deep pockets if you have a clue ...."

Use a large font, and some brightly coloured paper, and stick it somewhere prominent, such as on your fridge. Say it out loud every day as you walk past.

After you have had your P38 for 6 - 12 months, report back here and let us know how you're going. There is a great thread here on how to sew extensions into your pockets to make them deeper.

As Hoges said, get the very latest model you can, and depending on where you are looking, get someone here to have a look at it as well. Most would be happy to help !

Dave

Originally Posted by Craig_Keira

Thanks guys. How the freaking hell do tell for all those upgrades?!

Not sure what you mean...

Not much more to add but to say, don't let low prices always rule your decision. i.e a 97 P38 with 115,000km selling at $9,000........ when i saw that advert a few months back the alarm bells went off, the engine was knackered and the seller played dumb!! Well as far as i know, that vehicle ended up bought by a wrecking yard for a fraction of that price after the owner couldn't sell it. Thing is, if you didn't know what to look for, it would have easily burnt the unsuspecting buyer, cause the engine had a cracked head. It ran ok when it was cold, but as soon as it warmed up it ran very ordinarily. My tip: (should you choose to go along with it) is look at at least 5 p38s, then narrow it down to the final 3, then pick the best of the 3. That is in my opinion anyway one of the safest way to iron out a goodie. Sure you may miss a good deal of one that you've seen, but patience is a virtue. And the p38 is still a bit of an un-tapped resource.

Yes, too good to be true is. I'm going to look at about 5. The thing that stopped me from buying tty05's was that it was the only one I'd seen (someone had to go first!). So I might look at about 5 or so. I'll probably have to go to Sydney and Melbourne (there's one at Albury as well which seems nice and owned by a LR nut).