Honda Accord LX 1992

Vince, Visit the local Honda dealership and speak with the service manager. Ask him or her how much they would charge to repair the AC--including the price of the new condenser. Also, run a carfax.com report on the 92 Accord. If the report shows that it has ever been involved in a serious accident--don't buy it since it's possible the frame may have been bent during the accident. All of the above factors should be considered before you buy it. The 92 Honda Accord vehicles were great. I once owned a 93 Accord which is very similar and had no problems with it. I almost forgot--also ask to see the service records. Jason

Thanks, Jason!

I ran the Carfax report, and it shows no problems. The dealer however was pretty honest to tell me he didn't have any service records. The car is being sold "as is".

Also, I noticed an indicator saying "maintenance required", which has 3 states - green, yellow and red. It was yellow when I got into the car, but I could easily reset it to green with the key. I don't know if it being yellow is a cause for alarm, or just means time for maintenance is coming up.

I do like the idea of visiting a Honda dealership. I'm visiting dealerships anyway.

Any other tips also appreciated! Vince

It is tripped purely by the odometer. The entire car except the instrument cluster could be rebuilt with new parts from the dealer, and if you don't stick you key into the hole to reset the light, it'll come on.

I have a '92 LX that I bought new. It has 225,000 miles on it, and I love it. I recently found a '93 LX on the web in Fredrick MD, and bought it for $2500. My son is driving it. If you are in a rust prone area, I can give you a heads up on the problem parts of the body. My windshield recently cracked along the top because of rust. Sounds like you are on the right track. If I were you, I'd check Cars.com for a 92 or 93 that is for sale by a private owner. You might find one that has more maintenance info. bob

On Sat, 04 Jun 2005 02:38:36 GMT, Vince wrote: Hi,

I have a 92 LX which was purchased brand new, after 150K the car runs super. You will probably have to due a brake job and get the timing belt replaced to be on the safe side. The 92 honda is tuff on brakes. Over the years the only maintaince out of the ordinary was to get air conditioner over haul. One final thing the paint job is suspect, and quite faded.

I deal with a small independent garage that specializes in Japanese cars. When considering a used car, I bring it to them for an appraisal. They do an end-to-end mechanical inspection, list the condition of major systems, and prepare an estimate of service and repairs over the next year. They don't look at the body very much, although if they notice something, they will point it out. The estimates are no guarantee of repair costs, but they reduce the risk. It's well worth the $100 they charge.

Dan

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Thanks for that tip. What can go with the breaks? I think the one I had a look at had an ABS, and I tried to stop suddenly a few times to see how it behaves. Even on gravel, it stopped without locking the wheels, which I thought was impressive. How much would a break job cost - I am not quite sure what it includes - just servicing, or total replacement?

Vince

If just the pads, it is the typical cost advertised in your area - usually a shade under $100 US for the front and same for the rear. But if the front rotors are going to have to be replaced, it is a pretty big job - essentially the same as axle replacement but a bit more labor. In fact, it would be money well spent to have the CV boots replaced while it is apart if the discs have to be replaced. For this reason, I definitely recommend against having the discs turned on the car when the pads are replaced - if the discs aren't bad enough to replace, no sense in making them thinner.

Any reputable brake shop will do a free inspection (they get a lot of work that way) and tell you the score, complete with firm estimates.

Mike