damian
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Post by damian on Aug 26, 2012 12:01:56 GMT 2
Hi there,
I'm Damian, and looking at possibly purchasing a Lada.
Now I will start off by saying I know nothing about cars, but am very keen to learn as much as I can. I really love the idea of owning a Lada.
I have heard many horror stories about Lada's.. Breaking down often and parts not being available. I have absolutely no idea how true any of this is. I just love the idea of having a 4x4 and love the look of the Ladas.
With that said I really don't want to buy a 'money pit' and can't afford to be waiting ages while I order a certain part should something break. Also I have no idea if I need a special mechanic to work on a Lada or if any mechanic should be able to work on one.
Lastly I would like my girlfriend to occasionally take it to work (I know that she would love to) So really don't want to purchase an unreliable vehicle.
Any advice would be absolutely amazing.
Much thanks,
Damian
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damian
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Post by damian on Aug 26, 2012 13:01:43 GMT 2
One other thing.. I see that lots of the Lada's for sale have cracks in the dashboard. Is this a big thing to replace and how hard would it be to find a replacement? (It would annoy me too much to have crack in the dash) Thanks guys! D
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spikes
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Post by spikes on Aug 26, 2012 13:34:57 GMT 2
Welcome to the forum Damian!
NIVAs are easy to work on. Most owners on the forum do all their own work. Service parts are freely available at very reasonable cost. Engine and gearbox spares are available from the 3 main sources in South Africa( Ventz in PMBurg, Chris Swales Motors in Pinetown or the 4X4 Dr in Durbanville.) Prices vary and stock is not always available. Importing your own spares from the UK, Russia Germany and the Ukraine is straight forward with delivery times 14 to 21 days. A lot of members use Ladapower in the Ukraine as a supplier with very good results.
The "unreliability" claims stem from abuse by previous owners and the previous difficulty in obtaining spares.
Replacement dashboards for Right hand drive vehicles will be difficult to source new. There is a place in Johannesburg that did an excellent repair on a badly cracked dash. I believe you will be able to have similar work done in any of the main centers
Read through topics on the forum to get an idea of the things to be on the lookout for. Go out and look at as many NIVA as you can test drive them and make sure the 4x4 parts are actually there and working
Regards
Spikes
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Aug 26, 2012 13:59:50 GMT 2
Hi Damian, Firstly welcome to the forum. If you want to learn to work on cars the Lada is a brilliant car to learn on. They are very basic vehicles and everything (except the starter) is easy to get to. All the manuals for the car are available here: locsa.atspace.com/technical.html. With these, you or any competent mechanic should be able to work on the car. A good place to start your research is here: www.ladaniva.co.uk/baxter/resources/newbies.htmThe horror stories you have heard are partly true. Because of their low purchase price, a lot of owners seem to feel that they should never have to spend any money on the car and have neglected the necessary maintenance. This is the main reason why they break down. If they are properly maintained they are very reliable. Parts are available, but don't expect it to be like a tazz where every Midas has spares. You will need to either import your parts from a place like www.ladapower.com/, or if you need something sooner you can buy Mike in the Cape, Jan in Centurion, Ventz in Pietermaritzburg, or Chris Swales in Pinetown. With regards to the car turning into a money pit, this can largely be avoided by buying a car that has been well looked after, and doing as much of the maintenance yourself as you can. It depends on which area you are in, as to whether there is a specialist mechanic you can use or not. By and large it shouldn't be necessary to use a mechanic, but if you do, it is definitely easier to use one that knows the cars and has the spares necessary to fix it on hand. The dashboards are prone to cracking in the sun, and unfortunately you cant get new ones, as they have stopped production of the rhd models. The dashboards can be recovered if you take it to a good upholsterer though.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Aug 26, 2012 14:00:30 GMT 2
took so long to type, I didnt see spikes had beaten me to it
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Post by Charles on Aug 26, 2012 16:58:28 GMT 2
Welcome Damian. You have been given great advice.
When you go test drive your first Niva, test all the gears and low range and tc diff lock, this should only be used on gravel not tar.
Also keep in mind that it has been designed in the 70s. So do not expect too much. Their lacking performance on road they more than make up for offroad.
Charles
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spikes
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Post by spikes on Aug 26, 2012 18:29:54 GMT 2
took so long to type, I didnt see spikes had beaten me to it Thanks for the links Conrad. I was on the netbook when I first replied. Its difficult to look up and copy links Regards Spikes
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Post by ronnie on Aug 26, 2012 20:01:55 GMT 2
Hi Damian Welcome to the Forum. Depending on where the dashboard is cracked you can fit a new top like this, for very little cost. There is better photo`s in an old thread, but I am not sure where you will need to search for them. Ronnie Attachments:
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damian
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Post by damian on Aug 26, 2012 23:28:00 GMT 2
Hi all, Thank you so much for all the help! This is such an awesome forum. I am definitely going to look for some Lada's to test drive. I will post as soon as I have test driven some for some more advice! Cheers, Damian
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Citfield
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Post by Citfield on Aug 27, 2012 10:19:05 GMT 2
Hello Damian
First of all welcome to the forum and i hope you enjoy the Niva.
When buying a Niva please make sure that it is still a 4x4 and as Charles said: "When you go test drive your first Niva, test all the gears and low range and tc diff lock, this should only be used on gravel not tar." Make sure that all the 4x4 parts are still attached as i bumped my head that way, the front prop-shaft was not attached.
Regards, Allen
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spikes
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Post by spikes on Aug 27, 2012 13:58:05 GMT 2
Hi Damian Welcome to the Forum. Depending on where the dashboard is cracked you can fit a new top like this, for very little cost. There is better photo`s in an old thread, but I am not sure where you will need to search for them. Ronnie Those pictures are in this thread:http://locsa.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=technical&action=display&thread=14 Spikes
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Post by ronnie on Aug 27, 2012 15:11:24 GMT 2
Hi Damian Welcome to the Forum. Depending on where the dashboard is cracked you can fit a new top like this, for very little cost. There is better photo`s in an old thread, but I am not sure where you will need to search for them. Ronnie Those pictures are in this thread:http://locsa.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=technical&action=display&thread=14 Spikes Hi Spikes Thanks for finding them I did look but could not find them. Ronnie
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spikes
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Post by spikes on Aug 27, 2012 16:04:29 GMT 2
Hi Ronnie That is where they should be Spikes
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damian
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Post by damian on Aug 28, 2012 11:51:17 GMT 2
Hi all,
Forgive me for this question.. (I am a complete noob when it comes to cars in general so I am going to be asking some really silly questions)
If one wanted to make their Lada look like this (with the really high suspension) -
How would one do so, any ideas how much that would cost?
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spikes
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Post by spikes on Aug 28, 2012 13:13:47 GMT 2
Hi Damian I'll leave this for Ari or Charles to reply. Ari has lifted his NIVA. I lift mine when I want drain the oil
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Post by Ari Bezuidenhout on Aug 28, 2012 13:25:09 GMT 2
To lift 40mm now from ladaworld will cost about R2000. That Niva in the vid is lifted in excess of 200mm it looks like. That will cost plenty unless you do it yourself and even then it will be expensive maybe 10 000 or more.
Ari
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Post by Charles on Aug 28, 2012 13:30:25 GMT 2
That Niva is running portal axels.
Charles
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Post by Ari Bezuidenhout on Aug 28, 2012 15:32:57 GMT 2
Then its about R30 000 to R50 000 I thinnk last time I checked the cost of portals. Its for when you win the lotto.
Ari
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damian
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Post by damian on Aug 28, 2012 16:27:26 GMT 2
Thanks Spikes
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Citfield
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Post by Citfield on Aug 28, 2012 22:49:43 GMT 2
So Ari that will make the diffs more expensive than the Lada, haha crazy.
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Post by Ari Bezuidenhout on Aug 29, 2012 8:57:22 GMT 2
Yes but it will be the Lada of ALL time and kill anything else.
Ari
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Citfield
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Post by Citfield on Aug 29, 2012 10:22:19 GMT 2
I must agree with you Ari.
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spikes
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Post by spikes on Sept 1, 2012 7:45:49 GMT 2
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