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Opportunity to buy a '93 Civic for $300!

M

Mojoed

Diamond Member
Like the title says, I have the chance to buy a 1993 Honda Civic with 180k miles for $300. The catch is, it needs a new head gasket. Other than that, the car looks very nice, no rust, etc. I figured I'd buy it, have it fixed up and flip it, hopefully making a few hundred dollars. As of right now I don't know if it's a DX, or LX. I do know it has AC, but no power locks/windows.

I asked my regular mechanic what he thought and he told me, (paraphrased) "I don't think it's worth it, in my experience those cars, especially with high millage don't do very well after this type of repair. They run very hot and burn a lot of coolant, leading to additional issues."

Is this sound advice? Should I seek the opinion of another mechanic? I couldn't flip a car for a few hundred dollars knowing it's a time bomb. That would eat at my conscience.

Oh, and this car has been owned since it was new by a co-worker of mine, a very gentle older lady who has probably never had it over 70mph. Not sure if that makes a difference, but I want to include all the information I have!

Any advice would be appreciated!

Edit: And oh, roughly how much should this job cost me? Average auto repair labor rates in my area is $40/hour.

Edit 2: I forgot to mention, the car still runs nice, she just watches the coolant very closely.

UPDATE:

Not that anyone cares, but I bought it for $300, didn't mess around at all with having it fixed up, and just resold it on craigslist AS IS for $700. I clearly stated it needed a head gasket, etc and it didn't seem to matter at all. Got my asking price in a few hours. $400 profit for a couple of hours "work". I can see this getting addictive. 🙂 Thanks for all the advice guys!
 
Err if you replace the head gasket, you don't have to worry about the car burning any more coolant. Replace the water pump and thermostat and you're good to go.

I would definitely do it myself, not sure if it's worth doing if you're paying for labor.
 
Originally posted by: halik
Err if you replace the head gasket, you don't have to worry about the car burning any more coolant.
Click to expand...


Ya that's what I was thinking too, I was pretty confused by what my mechanic told me. 😕

Maybe he just doesn't like doing head gaskets on Civics? Any idea how much this would cost me at approximately $40/hour labor?

Thanks for the reply.
 
What about going to a scrapyard and just dropping an entire new motor in there? You can often get an engine for $100 or so from a scrapyard; you just have to remove it yourself from the car which I assume is a huge PITA. You should figure out which would take less time - an engine swap or fixing the head gasket.

By swapping the motor you could also make the car into an Si Civic. 🙂
 
Originally posted by: halik
Err if you replace the head gasket, you don't have to worry about the car burning any more coolant. Replace the water pump and thermostat and you're good to go.

I would definitely do it myself, not sure if it's worth doing if you're paying for labor.
Click to expand...

Unless the head is warped and / or cracked from overheating. He may be referring to the fact that when the hg goes out, it usually causes the motor to overheat, which tends to warp the aluminum head. If the head isn't resurfaced properly when the HG is done, the new gasket won't seat properly and you'll have issues similar to what he is describing, if not another blown gasket relatively soon.

I would agree on the doing it yourself bit. Paying for labor on that job (plus any possible machining needed on the head) would probably eat up any profit you'd make, and then some. It would, however, be a good learning experience if nothing else.
 
If you decide the replace the timing belt while you are at it and you might as well the crank pulley bolts on those was cranked on there by God and only he can remove it.
 
Is this even the type of job you can do on your own with little or no mechanical skill? Engine work sounds complicated to me, and I always thought it required specialized tools and equipment. It's not like a computer where all you need is a phillips head screwdriver.
 
Originally posted by: SickBeast
Is this even the type of job you can do on your own with little or no mechanical skill? Engine work sounds complicated to me, and I always thought it required specialized tools and equipment. It's not like a computer where all you need is a phillips head screwdriver.
Click to expand...

Gotta start somewhere 🙂 A head gasket is kind of a big job, but not too terrible as long as you take your time and follow the procedures in the service manual. The parts are relatively cheap, it's the labor that gets you.

As far as specialized tools go...maybe a torque wrench and a timing light, unless there's something I'm forgetting. Both of these things can be rented from Autozone for free, or bought cheap at Harbor Freight. Everything else required would probably fall under the category of "extended basic" hand tools.

You do need access to an impact gun with frightening amounts of torque to bust off that crank pulley bolt, as someone above me said. Assuming the car still runs, you could probably limp it to a nearby service station on a slow day prior to beginning the job and slip the mechanic $10 to put one of their industrial strength air impacts on the bolt and crack it off. Then tighten it back on with a regular socket wrench (at a much lower level), carefully drive the car home, and then start working on it.
 
I had a 1991 integra that I bought with a supposedly blown head gasket. I check the anti-freeze, looked ok. Checked oil, looked ok. I torqued the head bolts back down and drove it for another 15k. Sold it to a friend who drove it another ~30k before wrecking it.


Moral of the story - maybe someone lied to the old lady about what was wrong with it to get her to buy a new car...
 
You can try and do it yourself, but there are some things you need and to watch out for.

Torque Wrench is a must ... .Shop manual for procedures, torque values & bolt tightening patterns,
and for how to replace / index the new timing belt. On some cars, you need a special tool to properly
align the timing belt (tool holds the pulleys / gears from moving while belt is indexed & parts are tightened)
You should do the water pump & thermostat / hoses as well as complete coolant flush.
Head must be checked for warpage, resurfaced (if needed), valve job & valve seals while it is all apart.
Replace main drive belt or serpentine belt & tensioner while all is apart.

It can be done, but it will take a new mechanic the better part of one day (if all the parts are on hand)
If anything has to be sent to the machine shop, figure they have it for 1 day also.
 
Originally posted by: LOUISSSSS
$300 is def a good deal, if you end up keeping it you can still get another 100k miles on it easily.
Click to expand...

Really. Why the fuck did it break down in the first place. After all its a Honda. I thought those would run forever and require no maintenance.
 
Originally posted by: zoiks
Originally posted by: LOUISSSSS
$300 is def a good deal, if you end up keeping it you can still get another 100k miles on it easily.
Click to expand...

Really. Why the fuck did it break down in the first place. After all its a Honda. I thought those would run forever and require no maintenance.
Click to expand...

I mean, it has 180k on it. You're a fscking idiot.
 
it is a good deal, depending on how you look at it. Good learning experience for a new shade treee mechanic and when done, you have a beater car for short commutes or use in winter (especially if you are where it snows). But you should talk him down a bit, as parts will not be very cheap, around $400 or so for everything & machine work on the head (provided your old head is not cracked, in which case you need a new one)
and the fact you might not even be able to drive it home (may need to be towed)
 
Originally posted by: Turin39789
An "opportunity" to buy a high mileage 16 year old car that you think needs a new head gasket?

I'd pass
Click to expand...

Well. There are several ways of looking at this.

For someone who knows how to work on motors, particularly experienced with Hondas, this would be a great deal, as a few parts and some sweat later, he'd have a car that he can sell on CL or whatever for $2k or more.

For someone who wants to gain greater automotive knowledge, has the spare time and some cash to spare, $300 is a good cheap start where he can learn a lot of things without risking either a lot of money or his daily driver (assuming this wouldn't be his only car).

For someone looking for this as their immediate-future daily driver, bad idea.

For someone without experience or much $$/time to spare, bad idea.

OP, you can also get the JDM ~30k used Honda of Japan motors from many vendors, I've seen them used a lot with great results. But remember, replacing the motor on a 180k car, everything else is still 180k miles old, and it will show.
 
Originally posted by: Deviant Grasshopper
Originally posted by: zoiks
Originally posted by: LOUISSSSS
$300 is def a good deal, if you end up keeping it you can still get another 100k miles on it easily.
Click to expand...

Really. Why the fuck did it break down in the first place. After all its a Honda. I thought those would run forever and require no maintenance.
Click to expand...

I mean, it has 180k on it. You're a fscking idiot.
Click to expand...

Apparently 180k is nothing for a Honda. That's the sentiment that I get from a lot of the fanboys here.
 
I would buy it in a second and have a DOHC VTEC engine dropped in. Then it will be fun and will last a long long time.
 
Originally posted by: zoiks
Originally posted by: Deviant Grasshopper
Originally posted by: zoiks
Originally posted by: LOUISSSSS
$300 is def a good deal, if you end up keeping it you can still get another 100k miles on it easily.
Click to expand...

Really. Why the fuck did it break down in the first place. After all its a Honda. I thought those would run forever and require no maintenance.
Click to expand...

I mean, it has 180k on it. You're a fscking idiot.
Click to expand...

Apparently 180k is nothing for a Honda. That's the sentiment that I get from a lot of the fanboys here.
Click to expand...

Well, it depends a lot on the year/model as well as pure luck. Although I have known far too many Hondas from say '87 to '95 or so that just ran and ran and ran, and wouldn't stop running even when they should have been out of their misery. I still see heaps of them on the roads today, and you can't say the same for most other common makes/models from that time period. I mean, how many Ford Tauruses, Probes, Luminas, Escorts, Cadavaliers, and so on were sold during that same time, and you seldom see any of those on the roads today.

Obviously, this is not an ironclad rule, otherwise the '93 Civic in the OP wouldn't have head problems at 180k 🙂

Anyway, this is all anecdotal at best, and I'm currently a happy Ford owner. But I can say that a healthy respect for the golden age of Honda/Toyota isn't entirely misplaced, although they certainly aren't what they were in those days, and neither are the domestics (although I still think Dodge sucks).
 
Originally posted by: zoiks
Originally posted by: LOUISSSSS
$300 is def a good deal, if you end up keeping it you can still get another 100k miles on it easily.
Click to expand...

Really. Why the fuck did it break down in the first place. After all its a Honda. I thought those would run forever and require no maintenance.
Click to expand...

Not really no maintenace, you need to clean the hamster cage once and a while.
 
Wow, thanks for all the replies/advice guys.

About a 'do it yourself' job, I'm unfortunately hopelessly inept at just about anything mechanical. I would be way way over my head doing this type of work.

A few people suggested I just drop a used motor in there instead of messing with the head. What is "JDM ~30k used Honda of Japan motors from many vendors"?

Can anyone provide links for where I can find and obtain one of these replacement engines? Is the timing belt, water pump, thermostat, etc part of the new engine, or are those seperate? Sorry about all these newbie questions!
 
Originally posted by: Arkaign
Originally posted by: Turin39789
An "opportunity" to buy a high mileage 16 year old car that you think needs a new head gasket?

I'd pass
Click to expand...

Well. There are several ways of looking at this.

For someone who knows how to work on motors, particularly experienced with Hondas, this would be a great deal, as a few parts and some sweat later, he'd have a car that he can sell on CL or whatever for $2k or more.

For someone who wants to gain greater automotive knowledge, has the spare time and some cash to spare, $300 is a good cheap start where he can learn a lot of things without risking either a lot of money or his daily driver (assuming this wouldn't be his only car).

For someone looking for this as their immediate-future daily driver, bad idea.

For someone without experience or much $$/time to spare, bad idea.

OP, you can also get the JDM ~30k used Honda of Japan motors from many vendors, I've seen them used a lot with great results. But remember, replacing the motor on a 180k car, everything else is still 180k miles old, and it will show.
Click to expand...

I've certainly bought my share of el cheapo cars, and I recognize that older honda's and yota's can do some amazing things, but the value aspect of it tends to get killed by what people think they are worth.

I picked up a 14 year old Dodge Aries for $500 once, put in a new radiator and a few hoses and had a reliable car for several years and 20k+ miles.

Does the car just need a head gasket? Is something else going on? I think there are probably better bargains than this in the used beater market. Even if the problem is just the head gasket and he can fix it himself at 180k there is no real garauntee this car is going to go another 100k LOOUUUISSSSSSS miles or that you will get $2000 for it when you fix it.

 
Originally posted by: Mojoed
Wow, thanks for all the replies/advice guys.

About a 'do it yourself' job, I'm unfortunately hopelessly inept at just about anything mechanical. I would be way way over my head doing this type of work.

A few people suggested I just drop a used motor in there instead of messing with the head. What is "JDM ~30k used Honda of Japan motors from many vendors"?

Can anyone provide links for where I can find and obtain one of these replacement engines? Is the timing belt, water pump, thermostat, etc part of the new engine, or are those seperate? Sorry about all these newbie questions!
Click to expand...

I forgot to mention, the car still runs nice, she just watches the coolant very closely.
 
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