'99 Civic, Low Miles, Thoughts?

[Nebbers]

Yet another one of these threads by me... haha.

Found a 99 Civic EX, auto, only 93,000 miles, no problems at all and in very good condition. KBB value is like $5700, guy will take $4500. Seems from my research this is a good year for transmission issues (or lack thereof, rather) for Civics.

So far this seems like the best bet from everything that's for sale around here. I'd rather an Accord than a Civic, but it's hard to say no to something that should, with any luck, last for many many miles.

Thoughts?

 

[punjabiplaya]

I'm assuming it's an auto then. Do you have another ~2k for a new transmission if it does break?

Personally, I'd offer $3500 to $4000 or leave it

 

[ballmode]

$4000 is the most ill pay for any civic 1996-2000 including Si.

 

[ballmode]

rather get a 120-140k accord/camry for that money with belts and everything fixed as my beater for the 4000-6000 price range

 

[jmarti445]

I'd go for it, My civic has been great and as long as you avoid the 2001-2005 models you should have a very reliable car. You will want to check the CV-Boots though in those cars. They tend to be a trouble spot in Japanese cars(haven't had an issue with my civic but I had a Nissan Maxima that had them go bad on me).

 

[slugg]

I have a 2000 Accord and it's been absolutely reliable. The automatic transmission was replaced for free by the stealership due to a service bulletin/recall many years ago. Other than that, it's been absolutely rock solid and I highly recommend the car to anyone. Everything down to the paint job is high quality. I get great gas mileage, it's comfortable, and I've never had a single problem with it other than user error (I've left the lights on and killed the battery). If you can find an SE or other trim that comes with 15 inch wheels, then that also puts you into a tire size that is cheap and plentiful!

My only complaint about the car is that the AC takes a while to cool the cabin. I'm sure I could recharge it and restore it back to normal, but I figured I should mention it. Obviously it's not a sports car, so complaining about speed and agility is kind of stupid.

One thing to watch out for with Hondas is the ridiculously expensive (and required) "big" maintenance checkpoint. Somewhere between 80 and 100k miles, the timing belt, water pump, spark plugs, and wires have to be replaced. If you can't do this yourself, you're looking at about $900 retail on average. Your best bet is to find a used one with paperwork showing that all of this has been done. The spark plugs are easy enough to do yourself, but I don't recommend attempting the timing belt and water pump unless you're mechanically experienced and talented. I am not at all, LOL

I can't speak for the 99 Civic, but if it's any reflection on the same generation Accord, then it must be a fantastic car.

 

[Throckmorton]

How can KBB possibly be $5700 for a 13 year old Civic? Oh right, fanboyism.

 

[Doppel]

Yet another one of these threads by me... haha.

Found a 99 Civic EX, auto, only 93,000 miles, no problems at all and in very good condition. KBB value is like $5700, guy will take $4500. Seems from my research this is a good year for transmission issues (or lack thereof, rather) for Civics.

So far this seems like the best bet from everything that's for sale around here. I'd rather an Accord than a Civic, but it's hard to say no to something that should, with any luck, last for many many miles.

Thoughts?

This is why I said not to buy a used Honda. 12 year old civic for $4500, for fvcking serious? You can buy a brand new Nissan Versa out the door for $12,000 (that's MSRP; truecar shows them in my area for going a few hundred less) with full factory warranty, better mileage, six air bags, ABS, traction control, stability control, etc.

How can KBB possibly be $5700 for a 13 year old Civic? Oh right, fanboyism.

Honda tax! Used Hondas last for 50 years requiring only brake service, didn't you know?!

 

[Nebbers]

This is why I said not to buy a used Honda. 12 year old civic for $4500, for fvcking serious? You can buy a brand new Nissan Versa out the door for $12,000 (that's MSRP; truecar shows them in my area for going a few hundred less) with full factory warranty, better mileage, six air bags, ABS, traction control, stability control, etc.Honda tax! Used Hondas last for 50 years requiring only brake service, didn't you know?!

... all right, but what can I buy new for $4500?

See my point? I don't HAVE the option of spending any more than that right now.

 

[mvbighead]

... all right, but what can I buy new for $4500?

See my point? I don't HAVE the option of spending any more than that right now.

Lexus ES300 in the 1997-1999 range. I am waiting to sell my house before buying one of those as my daily driver. (Currently driving an older Jeep that nets me about 18mpg.)

From what I am told, they are fairly easy to work on, reliable (you'll see a number of them up about 200k and a good few in the 300k area). I have seen several in my area for about 3500-5000. Just patiently waiting to have the dough to buy one.

 

[Nebbers]

Lexus ES300 in the 1997-1999 range. I am waiting to sell my house before buying one of those as my daily driver. (Currently driving an older Jeep that nets me about 18mpg.)

From what I am told, they are fairly easy to work on, reliable (you'll see a number of them up about 200k and a good few in the 300k area). I have seen several in my area for about 3500-5000. Just patiently waiting to have the dough to buy one.

That sounds good, but I don't think I've seen a single Lexus listed here, period, unfortunately.

Edit: Just checked again, only used Lexus anywhere near that is a 1990 LS400 at $3500, 186k

 

[Nebbers]

There's a 96 SC300 for $4700, came from the Katrina area, guy says it wasn't flooded though and has Carfax. Dunno.

Edit: Rear wheel drive, no thanks... not here. Winter would be suicide

Other than that, everything is $10k+ Lexus-wise here

 

[mvbighead]

Check surrounding areas (IE - 150 miles away or so, especially larger cities.)

In Omaha (where I am), I see a few here and there. If I look in Kansas City or Des Moines, I see a few more usually. When it comes time to buy, I will be looking everywhere to find the best one I possibly can (looking for a body that is relatively unblemished (no rust, major dents, etc.)). If it means a weekend trip, so be it.

But you'll likely want to stick with the ES300 as it is FWD. Granted, people do say that RWD with snow tires is better than FWD with all-seasons, but imo, I would simply rather have the driving tires under the engine in snowy conditions.

 

[Nebbers]

Closest 'larger city' is Minneapolis at 430 miles away :| Not really the greatest option.

RWD can work if you have snow tires and you weight the shit out of your trunk, I'm sure, but I'd rather stick with what I know.

Maybe I'll get lucky any one will pop up here but I pretty much need a car a week ago.

 

[mvbighead]

You have to have some sort of relatively similar sized cities near you, no?

What city are you in?

 

[Nebbers]

Bismarck, ND.

The site I'm searching on includes all of ND and SD already. There really isn't shit going on here.

 

[mvbighead]

That sucks OP. You ain't kidding, there is nothing going on up there.

If it was me, I would be pretty damned serious about getting out somewhere that I had some options. I know you said Minneapolis is a long ways away, but at least that place has options.

http://minneapolis.craigslist.org/hnp/ctd/2666504722.html

http://minneapolis.craigslist.org/ank/ctd/2666127028.html

http://minneapolis.craigslist.org/ram/ctd/2655825836.html

Hell, I looked in your area and couldn't find a CAR in the 4000-5000 dollar range of any make or model. I suppose your best bet is to drive around and check out rinky-dink used auto places. Either that, or get a buddy and go on a road trip.

 

[Nebbers]

Craigslist doesn't get used much here.

www.bismanonline.com is about the only place with any traffic for used car sales.

But yeah... there are five million pontiacs and dodges and other things I don't want to go near. Decent amount of Hondas. Not much else I'd want. The Lexus option really does seem like a good way to go, been reading about that car for a while now... just not too common around here. I guess people hold onto them once they get 'em

 

[Nebbers]

All right, here's a little better looking deal... still in Honda land, but it's a 99 Accord Coupe, 130k miles, think I can get the price to about $3700

 

[mvbighead]

I would think that could be doable.

 

[Knavish]

Lexus ES300 in the 1997-1999 range. I am waiting to sell my house before buying one of those as my daily driver. (Currently driving an older Jeep that nets me about 18mpg.)

From what I am told, they are fairly easy to work on, reliable (you'll see a number of them up about 200k and a good few in the 300k area). I have seen several in my area for about 3500-5000. Just patiently waiting to have the dough to buy one.

I'm sure a 12-15 year old lexus is reliable for a 12-15 year old car, but it *will* need repairs. Luxury brands will always be more expensive to repair than standard brands. Do not buy one of these without some extra money in the bank in case something breaks.

Any Ford Focuses available in your price range?

 

[Nebbers]

There are a few around, but not the lowest prices on those here...

May be that people are trying to get more money out of their cars right now because a decent number of people have actually moved to the area as we're one of the few places that have an economy that isn't in the crapper right now. Just a theory.

But I'm working on this Accord, $3700 seems like a good enough price assuming everything checks out maintenance wise and the history report looks good. So far it seems like one of the best deals around here at the moment.

 

[mvbighead]

I'm sure a 12-15 year old lexus is reliable for a 12-15 year old car, but it *will* need repairs. Luxury brands will always be more expensive to repair than standard brands. Do not buy one of these without some extra money in the bank in case something breaks.

Any Ford Focuses available in your price range?

Actually, that is really the beauty of these cars. It's basically a luxury car built around a Camry. The repair manual for the ES300 is the same as the repair manual for the Camry:

http://www.amazon.com/Toyota-Camry-1...9561125&sr=8-1

It isn't a BMW or Jag. It's a Toy-exus.

 

[desy]

Can you buy in Regina and move back across the border?
You 'd find tons of choices on Kjijiji

 

[sleep]

my questions to that person would be

any major problems with the car
why are you selling it so cheap