Going to check out a wee 1995 hatch 1.5/1.4 Lsi (guy wasnt sure) civic at the weekend.. can you guys gimme some pointers on what to look out for in these beauties?? any advise seriously appreciated.

 

most likly a 1.5 or 1.6 l i dont think they ever made a 1.4 but i could be wrong......rear rust well rust in particular is a big one as i am sure you would know.....besides that if it is 5spd do the clutch test and make sure you start the car with a cold engine and listen for any ticking etc....then once it is warmed up test it on the highway and see if it hesitates when you hit the gas....shouldnt......besides that i would make sure that all of the tids and bits and peices work and that the rear works good, doors open nice and easy, windows arent off the track ohh one more thing turn corners and listen if you hear a clicking its a half shaft.....

 

mucho appreciated bud[sm=gears.gif]

 

hey skivicz, just saw you add in the new people announcements. have fun w/ ur make sure you check your thermostat in the civic ur lookin at, i bought one and it was overheating, make a longsotry short i gotta replace the cylinder head...ther goes my rims.

 

make sure to TAKE YOUR TIME. any seller would be an idiot to complain about you taking up their time and really looking the car over good. that's a mistake a lot of buyers make the first few times they buy a car.

be sure to write up a checklist of things that you want to look at on the car. so long as you have that checklist and you remember to look at it, you will NOT forget to look at anything you really wanted to look at. no seller would be offended by that either (not like that really matters anyway).

here are some things that I would like to add to classiccarsrule85's list (which is excellent):
mileage, timing belt status (should be/have been changed every 100,000 miles or so and is an expensive fix unless you DIY), look for leaks and previous body damage (ask to see where the car was usually parked if it's not obvious, look for leaks or massive broken limbs on trees above it if this applies), check the oil, be sure to get an accurate assessment of all the mods that have been done to the car (again if applicable because you want to know if they were done right), drive it and make sure it runs smooth with no excessive lagging or put-putting.

good luck, and happy looking. I'll always wish that I had made a list when I looked for cars. I definately learned my lesson on that one more than once.

 

just pay a honda technician $20 or so to go with you to look at the car when you're considering buying it and take all the guess work out of it...

 

thanks a million folks!