I have a 97 Civic EX Sedan.
I bought it used about 5 years ago with 82,000 miles.
I bought it to use as a commuter car. I did some upgrades to make my commute more comfortable.
Upgraded with Integra front seats, Remote start, tinted all windows, updgraded stereo with MP3 input etc.

The car now has 233,000 miles. Still runs excellent but it's due for a timing belt.
Should I spend $400 on a new timing belt and continue to drive it or should I sell it & get another used car with a lot less miles?

If I keep it how many miles can I realistically expect to get from my Civic?

 

You should sale it and buy another car with alot less miles i don't know if you will be able to sell it I doubt it

 

If its still running good and everything, i dont see why not just do a timing belt change and continue to drive it untill it falls apart.

If you buy a new used car to daily drive, even if it has low miles you never know how the previous owner treated it. it could have a lot more problems than just due for a timing belt.

IMHO i would do a timing belt and continue to drive it. YOU know how well it has been maintained for over half its life.

 

TRUE!

You put so much into that car & it runs great now right? So why not keep the car you put much into, instead of getting another used car that you might not know how good it's gonna run 15 miles down the road.

Also....If you have friends that know cars, have them do the Timing Belt for you! You can pay them like $150-$200 to do it......But if he's a real friend he'll do it for free...but if he's a smart friend he'll take the money

Or You can learn how to do it yourself...

 

Thanks for the input guys.

I probably will keep it. I just put new 60,000 mile tires on it about 8,000 miles ago.
I've always maintained it and it still runs GREAT.

I wish I could the timing belt myself but I don't want to even try. I can do lots of other stuff but I've never done a timing belt.

 

Well....Check out the Honda Manual(from the forum) & search Youtube for how to change a timing belt on your Civic. I'm sensing you have enough tools to do the job. Only hard part is getting the Crankshaft Bolt off..But there's a special socket tool(about $25) just for that to make it all the easy.
I believe you need a timing light as well..I'm not too sure when it comes to 6th Gen Civics.

Changing a Timing Belt for the 1st time will be HARD & time consuming(A whole weekend I say)....but you'll know how to do it without spending so much money. Its all an learning experience.

 

^wrong, change the timing belt yourself. its quite simple. theres lots of resources online for someone who has never done it before. if you do decide to sell it, put it on craigslist and it will sell if the price is reasonable. even a nice ek shell will fetch some nice cash, let alone a running driving one.

 

Yeah man i would definitely give the timing belt a try.
I've never done it myself, but there is honestly a lot of good videos and tutorials on the web that will make you feel comfortable doing it lol.
Get a friend to help, and to make sure you dont over look anything.

 

Timing belts are cake as long as you have the proper tools to remove the crank pulley bolt. Other than that its as easy as anything else.

 

Either way... if it's paid off, still mechanically sound, and has been well maintained, you should change the timing belt and keep driving it. Well maintained Hondas routinely go for 300,000 miles.

Beats a car payment every month.