Hey guys,
I had been debating between a 93-95 Civic or a 96-99, and decided to go with the latter. I found one on Craigslist for $1500, and bought it for $1450. It was owned by an Acura/Honda mechanic before the current owner, but definitely has some "character". The hood and one fender are flat black, and the two passenger side doors are different colors than the rest of the car. The car HAS been wrecked, but it is not a salvage title, and I did not see any frame damage. The car only has 150,000 miles on the engine, and it's a 5-speed LX model, 4-door. The engine ran well, clutch shifts smooth. The driver's side door doesn't go down, and the exhaust has the common "hole" in the muffler...

I'm going to try to fix this car up, slowly but surely, myself. The owner did not know when the timing belt was last replaced. I'm hoping I can go to a local junkyard and cut off a muffler, and have it welded on for less than $100. As far as the window..I'm hoping I can do the same. It could use a set of tires, too..but only one drastically needs replaced.

All-in-all, I realize I bought a fixer-upper that is not pretty. But in a way, this is what I wanted: something reliable but not necessarily pretty. What do you guys think? All other Civics in this price range had 200k+ with various other problems... I'm hoping I made a good decision! I'm projecting at spending $2000 total on this car (so approximately $450 in repairs). I can do a decent amount myself (timing belt if it needs to be done, and other basic repairs) and I enjoy the challenge of working on cars. I will post some pictures on Saturday when I pick up the car.

 

Welcome to the world of Civic ownership!

 

Congratulations, you have chosen reliability, low maintenence, high fuel mileage and unlimited fun.

 

A '97 LX with a 5-speed? I'd say it was a good choice.

 

Here it is..I'm still debating whether it's worth $1450. I have only deposited $100 to the seller (but he is leaving the country within the week, so I don't want to screw him over by backing out).





Take a look at the rear quarter panel (in front of the rear wheel) on the passenger side. That's what worries me the most..

 

One tire "drastically" worn suggests the frame may be out of line and that wheel is not aligned straight (and perhaps never will be). I suggest taking it to an alignment rack and having it checked. The quarter panel is just cosmetic though.

 

It looked like an alignment-type wear...one side was worn and there was the small bubble. He had the paper showing that it had been aligned, but I didn't scrutinize it very thoroughly. If this paper shows that it was able to be aligned, then it would be good to go, right? Or am I missing something?

 

The paper shows the alignment results. It's not guaranteed that it's perfectly in spec.

If it's the right rear tire that's doing that, I can tell you it's permanent body damage causing the uneven wear. It'll continue to to do that unless you get aftermarket adjustable alignment components for that side.

I'm in the same boat. Been there, done that, threw the t-shirt away.



[edit for clarity] This was a long time ago. But it was the second hit on that corner.

 

Eww, that does suck. The uneven wear was on the front left tire. He says it shakes at speeds of 70mph (hopefully due to the bulge). The rear right tire had recently been replaced.. Which makes me wonder..... why?

Hey WellFedHobo, I was looking at your CarDomain (pretty awesome, by the way--makes me want to put that much love into this car =D) and I think your wreck on the side looked a bit worse than what I have on my hands here. How was the road noise? How bad was the alignment? If I can do some BASIC car work (most I've done myself is replace a timing belt), do you think the parts / installation of the new suspension pieces would be that hard to do? I am on a budget..and the only thing I don't want to do is sink a TON of money into this car and then regret it. But, on the other hand, if I keep the car for forever and really enjoy it, then it'll all be worth it. I'm just thinking that I could spend $2k and get one that is all one color, with no broken muffler/window problems...but then where's the "project" in that, I guess? I'm torn! Help me get off the fence :P

 

Update: So I bought the car, and started working on it already. I got 4 new tires ($272-not bad!) and also fixed the driver's side window. The regulator and window motor had been REMOVED and weren't even there! Found a used one for $30 and it works fine now. I also replaced the transmission fluid and oil today..I swear the person who installed the oil filter from the last oil change had hands of STEEL. I could have sworn that thing had Loctite holding it down...

I've stopped some rattling / interior noises that were coming from some trim pieces..and next thing will be to check/replace the timing belt and accessory belts. Any other suggestions? I also have a noisy exhaust that needs to be fixed... Other than these initial maintenance things, it's been a great-running car and is almost where I want it!