My VR-4's been sitting 10 years, now what?

[Ninja Performance]

Drain and flush the gas tank.

Maybe do a seafoam on the engine and the gas tank as well.

-Chris

[johnwattvr4]

Hey your situation sounds very similar to mine. I drove my VR4 at Western Carolina when I was there and the last year my valve stem seals, turbo seals, and steering rack seals went out. I have had it sitting since 2008 and every time I get close to getting the money to fix it I spend it on things like wedding rings, fixing other cars that are less money, my business way back when to name a few. My goal is to get it completely fixed and ready by the next national gathering. I am living one county over in Canton right now. I have never done a 120K replacement or anything yet but that is on the list for me as well. My advice to you is not to sell if you find out it is less than a couple grand to fix. If it is way more than that you might want to either put it on the back burner for a while or eventually sell it. The main reason I havent sold mine is I wont be able to get anything out of it with all that work needing to be done and it is my favorite car ever. It has a lot of sentimental value for me. It was the first nice car I ever had and it is still the nicest car around in my eyes. It is an unmolested 1994 VR4 red, which is my favorite year and color combo. It looks decent, just needs a little work. Maybe I could give you a few pointers or something. I know last year my car was running really rough and it just needed a tune up to idle well again. Good luck

[OhioSpyderman]

I am "that guy in Ohio"

REALLY glad to see you thinking about getting "back in the game"....

Didn't you also send me a "piggyback" ECU that I reported did NOT work in my car, and you told me to keep it? (I still have it downstairs if you want it back....)

Bob.

[Sabotage]

I am "that guy in Ohio"

REALLY glad to see you thinking about getting "back in the game"....

Didn't you also send me a "piggyback" ECU that I reported did NOT work in my car, and you told me to keep it? (I still have it downstairs if you want it back....)

Bob.

Hey Bob, it's great to see you here!
I was wondering what happened to that ECU. I thought I might had sent it to you to test, but I couldn't remember for sure. I still don't think it's worth the shipping costs to get it back to me, and I'm sure I wouldn't have a use for it. You've got my permission to consider it yours; sorry I couldn't give you something better.

To everyone else, I appreciate the advise. I'm still trying to weigh my options.
I'm not as concerned about the labor costs to get it on the road as I am with potential repair and labor cost later on down the road. Without having a second car or friends & family to rely on I don't need a car that's going to spend a lot of time broke down.
I'd love to ride my 3000GT for a while, but at the same time I'm married and a reliable four-door gas saver or an old Toyota 4X4 with an r22 would probably fit my current life style better. I just don't see how I could afford something with low enough miles to be considered reliable with my budget. From what I've seen I'm looking at getting into cars with more miles than my VR4 or LeBaron.

Is the 120K you're thinking of strictly the timing belt stuff and water pump?
I'd want to replace the oil pump and valve stem seals (and bearings, but some people disagree). Parts alone are going to be something like $1200. Labor will probably be like $800-$1200.
You're in NC... Why not call 3SX and see what they'd recommend/charge?

Since it's been sitting so long, milage is at 118k, and if I put the money into it I'll probably drive it at least two years unless someone makes the right offer that puts me into something with less miles, I would like to do a little more than the regular 120k service. Basically I'd like to cover any known problems before they occur. I was planning on replacing the oil pump and possibly bottom end rebuild. I didn't consider the valve stem seals, can that be done without having the heads ported?
What's the disagreement with replacing the bearings?
I posted here before calling 3SX because I didn't want to waste any of their time if I decide to sell it as is, and because it will be about six weeks before I have the cash to fund the project.

[Amphiron]

As long as oil is in the car the bearings should be fine. I would still inspect them and do 120k first off, don't forget oil pump. I would also replace all vacuum lines and most of the rubber hoses and piping. Even after that I still wouldn't DD any VR4 unless I was making decent money and could afford to put $200+ into parts every time it breaks. As opposed to a Honda where it costs about $100 for all the parts for a 60k

[OhioSpyderman]

Hey Bob, it's great to see you here!
I was wondering what happened to that ECU. I thought I might had sent it to you to test, but I couldn't remember for sure. I still don't think it's worth the shipping costs to get it back to me, and I'm sure I wouldn't have a use for it. You've got my permission to consider it yours; sorry I couldn't give you something better.

I was just trying to help you. I didn't want anything from you.

If you decide that that ECU could help, I would be happy to ship it back (no charge)...

Bob.