Buying a used 3000GT (or any car) can be a difficult process. Scams are everywhere. Sellers don’t know anything about their cars. Some sellers are trying to hide problems or unload cars that they expect to have problems, like a VR-4 that runs fine in the low-end but stumbles and has boosting problems in the high. When inspecting and test-driving a used 3000GT, you’re looking for these major things: Does the car behave normally when you drive it hard? Does the car appear to be well-maintained? Does the owner seem to either have a good knowledge of cars himself, or, failing that, does he seem to know enough to make sure that the car is taken care of?

The Inspection:

It is essential, in my opinion, to jack up any VR-4 you look at. A 3000GT is low to the ground, so it is impossible to see some of the problematic leaks that occur. With the engine off and the car in the air, crawl under and look at the oil pan, transmission, and transfer case.

• Make sure the oil pan is not leaking. There should be no wetness anywhere.

• Make sure the transmission is not leaking. Again, it should be dry.
• Grab the half-shafts and wiggle them to make sure they are working properly. Check the boots as well. They should not be ripped.
• Look at the flex sections in the exhaust. If the weave is worn or missing, you are likely looking at an exhaust leak.
• Look at the lines going to the power steering rack. These lines can leak on older 3000GTs and are annoying to replace.

Look for other signs of general damage or work done as well. Does it look like the car has been off-roaded or bottomed out many times? Does the oil filter look new? Does the undercarriage of the car have any streaks of oil that might indicate a blown oil cooler line or large leak in the past? Unlike the items in the list above, which are fairly major, these things alone do not necessarily mean that the car is a poor choice, but they give you an idea of how the owner has treated the car.

While the car is in the air, you should check the front suspension. Grab each front wheel with your hands at 3 and 9 o’clock. Shake hard. You’re testing for tie rod end play here, and you shouldn’t feel any wiggling. Then, do the same thing with your hands at 12 and 6 o’clock. This will tell you if there is play in the ball joint. When doing these tests remember that the front wheels will still turn a little bit. You shouldn’t expect absolutely no movement back and forth. If you want to be very certain, put one of the front wheels on the ground while you wiggle the other one. This isolates ball joint and tie rod end play.

Now take the car off the jack, start it, and take a look at the engine bay. I like to look for evidence that the car has been apart many times: New bolts, cable ties broken, new clamps. Again, these aren’t necessarily bad, but they tell you a little bit about the car’s history. I also check the brake master cylinder and power steering lines for leaks. They should be dry. While you’re there, check the oil. You’ll be amazed how many used cars are low on oil or have nasty, black, burnt oil. If the oil is old or low, you know exactly how meticulous the owner’s maintenance habits were.

And, finally, take the obvious walk around the car and look for body damage. I generally don’t worry about the body too much. Dents and scrapes are straightforward fixes.

The Test Drive:

Your test drive is the most important part of the overall inspection. Most people drive very cautiously on test drives because they don’t want to upset the owner or appear to be a boy-racer. This is a mistake. You want to put a 3000GT through its paces, and you especially need to drive a VR-4 hard to make sure it boosts properly.

A few things to keep in mind:

• Drive at highway speeds—this will reveal any high-speed vibrations that the owner either didn’t know about or is trying to hide. Test the brakes and see if the rotors are warped (the steering wheel will vibrate if they are). I usually hit about 80 on my test drives. Anything that’s going to feel weird will feel weird by 80.

• Redline the car—very few people do this on test drives, but it’s important. Many car owners are wusses that do not redline their engines; but you need to redline a 3000GT to check for blowout and proper turbo operation. The car should pull smoothly to redline and not stutter, buck, or snort.
• Drive on some windy roads—you want to load and unload the suspension to see if there are clunks or bangs. If you can’t find any, sawing at the wheel with a little violence on a regular road will work. I like to do both.
• Take note of the synchros—you should be able to upshift smoothly without a lot of grinding.
• While you’re driving, pretend you’re doing a state inspection for a minute and test all the controls. I know it sounds obvious, but you do want to be aware of little problems like discharged A/C (especially if you’re looking at a first gen VR-4, which has R12 refrigerant).

I like to watch the owner’s reaction to this type of test drive. If the owner seems very nervous and reluctant to let me take the car on the highway (for example), I know that he’s probably never beaten the car. If he’s egging me on, flipping other motorists off and telling me to weave through traffic, I’ll probably take a pass on the car even if it seems fine. One final note: Do not buy a car if the owner will not let you test-drive it. He either has something to hide or is a major anal retentive. A test drive should be a matter of course.

em>The Conversation With the Owner:

This is an underestimated aspect of buying a used car. How an owner talks about and treats his car is usually directly linked to the car’s condition, and often you can catch owners covering up little issues that they don’t want you to know about. For example, if you’re looking at a VR-4 or some other turbo car that has been modified, get the owner talking about it. How much boost does he run? Does he use a datalogger? Who did the work?

Ask about his driving habits too. Does he take the car to the drag strip? Track days? Try to get a feel for what he considers to be “abusive” or “rough” driving.

These are some of my standard questions:

• Why are you selling the car?

• What work have you done to it recently?
• Who does the work, and do you have receipts?
• Has the 60K service been done? (huge with 3000GTs, as you probably know)

This probably seems excessive and overcomplicated. But, as you can see, there’s nothing particularly special about it, nor is there anything particularly special about buying a used 3000GT over any other car. If the car doesn’t have any leaks and feels good if you beat it a little, and if the owner seems to have taken care of the car, you’ve probably found yourself a good one. However, don’t ever—ever—be afraid to turn down a car. If something feels wrong or out of place, walk away. In fact, if I can leave you with one closing thought, one thing more important than any other when buying a used car, it’s this: Always look at several cars before you buy one. A car always looks good when you haven’t compared it to anything else.