Carfax, Buying Used, & Craigslist.org

What kind of money are we talking about here? In other words, how much do you want to spend and where are you located? Maybe I will have a car for you.... :-)

With the car that old I would say actual millage is not as important as the current technical condition of the car.

I am not surprised new car dealers do not keep these cars. The car you are looking for probably is worth much less than a 1000 and takes the same amount of space on the dealer parking lot as tha 20k one. Also, on average it will look horrible compared to new cars, so new car dealer selling not old used cars does not want to clutter his parking lot with trash like top down rusted 1989 honda civic.

What do you consider a "low offer" for such a car? Junkyard is probably paying between 100-200 dolars for a car which can be driven to the yard... Slightly less if it has to be towed. If you see a car on some dealer's parking lot than it means the owner hopes to get much more for his trashy car than he could get from the junkyard.

Look at your local junk yard. Sometimes they have cars these old in quite good condition and you might score good find this way... Of course it is junk yard, so the car will not look good, guaranteed.

"Pszemol" wrote

Write me where you are located. :-)

A 90s Civic engine with 100k-125k miles on to me likely has at least 75k miles more left on the engine.

A 90s Civic engine with 200k and up miles on it to me may go at any time. If I knew the owner and the maintenance record, I might feel a little differently.

There's a huge difference in risk. This is all we can talk about here, ya know, probabilities.

Kelly blue book puts them at $1200-2500, depending on condition, for private party. Retail is usually more.

The dealers do not keep them because financing generally is not done with such a low cost.

I am sure you are right. :-)

Well sure. Fortunately Craig's List and Ebay often have shells for sale, so I know the asking price for a good shell is around $500 to $1000.

Indeed there is one local junkyard that buys running cars and sells them. I started checking it regularly a few weeks ago. Many of the cars there do not look too bad and could be fixed up nicely.

I saw such a humdinger a few hours ago. 90 Civic. Lifted the hood, and the first thing I always check is the coolant reservoir. Well huh, the cap is already unfastened. It's overfilled and bubbles are coming out the tube right before my very eyes. First blown head gasket yada I have seen. I ended the inspection there saying I would not risk it.

i think Pszemol is dead right on this one. there comes a point where mileage is irrelevant and you're buying the car for the platform, not any one single component. and with replacement jdm engines/transmissions being so cheap and plentiful, the condition of the original is not very important - unlike the quality of the interior which is pretty much vital.

i've seen up to $3k on craigslist for stock 88-91 civics here in the bay area. that's if you can find one. the local ricers go nuts for them. even harder to find now that gas prices are high.

buy it, but pay a price that reflects the problem. engines are fixable. trashed interiors and bent bodies are a giant pita.

If this is true that this car is in demand beween ricing enthusiasts than it will be very hard to compete them for somebody who is looking for an economy car...

I can hardly imagine what good could come from buying such an old car anyway. Yes, you could probably find a cheap one but it will not be in good condition! You spend a lot of time looking for it, driving around for inspections spending money and time to find one. Then, when you find one it will not be over... Is your main goal not to have montly payments? You

*will* be paying montly (or weekly) payments anyway but to the local parts store instead to the bank and live in constant fear that the car will crap out on you in the middle of the trip spoiling a day and causing you some towing costs..

Does not seem to be such a bargain to me, but you know, I am very spoiled ;-)

"Pszemol" wrote

Folks who know nothing about automotive engine systems should not buy such old cars.

Those who know these cars and have the time to work on them stand to save a lot of money.

the price is being bid up by people wanting gas sippers as well - even more demand than usual. but you can still get a sedan for under $1k, it's the hatchbacks that are in demand.

eh? "constant fear"??? statistically, a new car has a greater probability of failure than one that's in the middle of its life. [bathtub curve]. at 176k miles, my civic is in the middle of its life. there are certain weakness in this vintage civic, main relay being the most notable, but it doesn't cost much to sort that stuff out.

as elle says, if you know these vehicles, you can save a bunch of dough. my 2000 civic depreciated at about $1,100 per year that i owned it. i couldn't spend that much a year in maintenance on my 89 if i wanted to. and the 89 has APpreciated in value since i bought it, not DEpreciated.

and that's not accounting for the fact that certain models are better than others. imo, the 88-91 civic/crx is about the best car honda ever produced. i've tested/owned subsequent models of civic and they neither handle as well, nor are as comfortable as these first "real deal"

4-wheel wishbone civics. so that's why i drive them - they're the best.

It's the kind of car you get for your young son, and let him fix it up for the fun and experience. It's not a serious daily-driver for anyone.

"Larry in AZ" Elle wrote

For anyone who has taken their c. 1990 Honda beyond 200k miles, a second Honda with 120k miles original engine or

163k miles body and 70k mile engine can result in a daily driver.

rubbish. mine's a daily driver. and at 40mpg freeway, you can bet that's serious too.

I see...

Main relay, or - bigger problem like head gasket. I am seeing blown head gasket the major fear of older civic owners compared to other japaneese cars.

But compare the benefits of driving 2000 year model year with 89. Yes, it is more expensive but it is a better car overall.

I am glad you are so enthusiastic about this little car :-)

That was exactly my feeling about it. I would not take my family for a ride in anything '89 especially if I did not owned it for the last 10 years and I am not really sure what the previous owner did to the car - this is the case when you BUY that old car.

I got my 1995 toyota camry when it had 47k miles in 1998. Since then I hapily drive it still today, with 246k miles. No head gasket problems or any other major things to worry. But I KNOW THIS CAR! Every day of its history since May'98. It does not mean I would seek a camry that old from a stranger.

No matter how much time you spend inspecting the car at the seller location there will always be something that can surprise you after the purchase and cost you in a long run...

Look yourself at your original post - how many cars you have already seen and rejected? How much time and gas you spent driving there to look for them? How long more you are going to look for this crazy-cool'89 civic deal?

Is it really worth so much trouble? :-) Maybe is not rational anymore but just emotional? ;-)

Freeway 40mpg? I think it is just average for a small car like civic. You should achive it easily with modern models of nissan sentra.

I make 32mpg easily on my 4-cyl 2004 accord coupe EX-L. And it is not just freeway for me, its probably mixed 80/20.

My 1995 camry does not perform as good anymore @ 246k miles.

Sure, but that's moving the goal posts.

in my experience, gasket only fails after the radiator cracks and the motor cooks. the gasket goes about a year later. moral of the story, replace the radiator every 10 years.

i strongly disagree. my 89 is a much superior vehicle to the 2000. better handling, better interior, better ergonomics, better power to weight...

only thing going for the 2000 is full electronic control of the automatic transmission, but the benefit of that is marginal, especially if the mechanical auto transmission is properly adjusted and has the right fluid.

but that's exactly the situation with your rejection of the older vehicle! it can be completely rational to purchase it if you know what you're doing and the price is right!

there's a bunch of things you can do that might help. egr valve, tw sensor, valve lash... - it needs a little love.

"Pszemol" wrote

Agreed, not knowing the history is one of the drawbacks of buying a secondhand (or thirdhand or more) car. Carfax helps a lot. I reject a car with too many owners in too short a time, for example, of which there are many out there, at least on Craigs List where I am.

I am seeing consistently that the little c. 1990 Civic hatchbacks feel somewhat too much like a death trap. The DXs and base model hatchbacks do not have power steering, plus the suspension bushings generally seem worn (though I could fix this), so the road feel is generally lousy. Then too they are small and cramped. Great mileage, but I like feeling a little more like I am not the smallest, most vulnerable vehicle on the road.

Only one of the circa 1990 Civics I have seen had what I would call very good a/c. It also had a great body and 166k mileage, with only two owners. I made an offer on it, but as JBeam observes, offering more than KBB was not quite enough, and it got snatched at a significantly higher price before I could counter. I was testing the waters. Now I am seeing good, newer c. 1995 Civics sell within two hours on Craigs List.

Having driven a few 95-97 Civics now, I am leaning towards spending more and making this second car the one that will replace my 91 Civic in a few years. Meanwhile my friend will use the newer one for commuting in summer, then use my 91 Civic (no a/c) the rest of the year.

Like you were saying when comparing cars, the newer ones have a much much better feel. I am not in a rush. Which means I end up saving as much as a few thousand dollars.

California cars rarely rust. There are many older vehicles available that are in very good physical condition. If well maintained, they can be fairly trouble free vehicles......