To buy or not to buy. 1991 AWD
markymayhem
Band Wagon
Hey guys, first post!
Got T-Boned Saturday in my 1997 Accord LX coupe w/ 200K on it, insurance is gonna total it and I'm gonna walk away w/ ~ $2000 - $2500
so today I went by 'Herman the German's" to check out the 1980s Merceedes 300ds, his specialty... I see a nice little 1991 civic AWD wagon on the lot.
It was owned by a businessman, the carphone kit is still installed! The inside is almost PERFECT except for a slash in one seat, it's got a non-leaky sunroof, 118,000 miles, a 'new' transmission [automatic], cold AC etc. I drove it around the block, over traintracks and on the highway, it's solid, no weird noises or bottom outs etc.. The brakes seem... weak? No noise, the rotors looked fine, fluid towards the low end of good, it just seemed like they were a little weak.
The passenger side front fender was replaced with a dinged up panel of the wrong color, and the side marker was replaced, otherwise the outside is great too, with little to no rust.
Price on the window, $2500
Got the guy down to $2000
I could MAYBE get it for $1850
Also, having a problem renting a car [insurance and legal crap] so I need to get into something ASAP so I can make it to work [I run my own biz, the wagon would be PERFECT for hauling]
So, what's the verdict? Good price, worth checking out, anything I need to look out for etc?
-m
Got T-Boned Saturday in my 1997 Accord LX coupe w/ 200K on it, insurance is gonna total it and I'm gonna walk away w/ ~ $2000 - $2500
so today I went by 'Herman the German's" to check out the 1980s Merceedes 300ds, his specialty... I see a nice little 1991 civic AWD wagon on the lot.
It was owned by a businessman, the carphone kit is still installed! The inside is almost PERFECT except for a slash in one seat, it's got a non-leaky sunroof, 118,000 miles, a 'new' transmission [automatic], cold AC etc. I drove it around the block, over traintracks and on the highway, it's solid, no weird noises or bottom outs etc.. The brakes seem... weak? No noise, the rotors looked fine, fluid towards the low end of good, it just seemed like they were a little weak.
The passenger side front fender was replaced with a dinged up panel of the wrong color, and the side marker was replaced, otherwise the outside is great too, with little to no rust.
Price on the window, $2500
Got the guy down to $2000
I could MAYBE get it for $1850
Also, having a problem renting a car [insurance and legal crap] so I need to get into something ASAP so I can make it to work [I run my own biz, the wagon would be PERFECT for hauling]
So, what's the verdict? Good price, worth checking out, anything I need to look out for etc?
-m
Comments
Also, one other thing i forgot to mention, the oil was CLEAN, and about a quart overfull at least.
When I pulled the oil filller cap in the valve cover with the engine running, oil spattered out pretty decently, not all over or anything, but a decent ammount of small little droplets. I'm not familiar enough with these engines to know for sure if that [plus the overfull oil] is indicitive of bad rings & excessive oil burning/consumption. It doesn't smoke at all, and the oil isn't foamy, so the over-fullness isn't likely a head gasket, I think it was just overfilled. Herman's mechanic said they'd just gotten it in last week and hadn't done anything to it yet, so he wasn't sure for sure what was up, but after giving it a look-see he also thought it was just over-full
Also, anything I should check out before I bite? I think I'm gonna give $500 to hold it till the insurance comes in later this week, but once I give the $500, it's gone even if I change my mind on the car.
My first RT I paid around $2500 for a super clean red RT with 136k miles. My 2nd was a brown 2wd auto with just under 200k, which I paid $1200 for. And most recently, I bought a gold RT with 233k for $450. All of those cars I feel were worth what I paid.
Don't rush into anything. I'd say spend a couple/few hours on our site, look around, and get to know the Honda Civic wagon. It certainly isn't for everyone. But it is for us...
It must have been garaged it's whole life!
The factory undercoat looks great, the only rust is minimal and on the exhaust, all the shocks, struts, steering, etc. looks GREAT, almost still shiny, and certianly still black with no paint peeling off or anything.
It has all 4 AWD mudflaps, and not only can you still read them, they are the not scuffed up AT ALL.
I'm gonna bite in the AM
Look forward to seeing pics!
x2.
hurry it up mayyyne
your lucky... garage kept
most of us have or had rust issues.....
Sell the car phone to the museum of technology. It's probably worth the asking price of the car.
Funny thing about the carphone, when I was test driving the car I noticed a little... dealy-wire thingy poking out near the drivers side mirror adjuster.. I touched it and it broke right off..., at first I was like OH CRAP! but then I realized it was the mic for the old-school handsfree setup that musta been on the phone...
Anyone seriously wants the phone, I'll send it for shipping
So, I got the price to $1900, put down $500 to hold it. I couldn't find my title to the 97 Accord that wrecked so I am waiting for the new title to get the insurance check.. Maybe today, or the beginning of next week.. So... Unfortunatly, a little wait for pics.
Carfax shows 2 owners, no wrecks. It's had a little one at some point obviously because of the body panel, and it's got a replacement tranny, none of which showed on carfax... but whatever.
Question 1: what kind of MPG can I expect with the AWD and 3spd auto? The #s I found online are pretty low, 22 city, 27 hwy or something... Well... low considering I was driving a 2.2L 5spd and getting around 30 combined.... 28 or so with the air on..
Question 2: as I mentioned before, the brakes seemed.. soft? they stop the car fine, with no noise or anything, but you have to push the pedal almost to the floor. Pedal effort seems normal though. The fluid was on the low end of OK, and the booster seemed leak-free...
[edit]
question 3: is a 5spd swap a realistic goal?
thanks!
-m
Anybody on here that tells you their stock wagon gets high 30's is full of it.
when i had my 88 wagon, even after replacing the master cylender and all the brake lines and bleeding the system 3 times, my pedal always went a lot further down then most cars .... almost to the floor. my new wagon ('86) is kinda the same..... not to say this wagon doesnt have any problems with the brakes, just mine were kinda the same....
Right on, that's good to know. It'll pass safty, I know so that's good anyway..
I'm picking it up Monday for SURE, so first thing I'll fill the cylinder and check the pads, but I'm thinking the brakes just feel that way on this car, as it stops fine and with no noise...
Thanks, and pics Monday!
-m
It died within 100 miles, wiring issue - under-dash is a mess!!!
check the electrical and fuel forum for details - I NEED SOME HELP!
just check out this page ...
http://www.tegger.com/hondafaq/mainrelay.html
Scroll down toward the bottom of the page ..
it shows a good picture.. check the fuses also while your under there...
I guess I'm full of it then. I get 35mpg and I have the gas receipts and a spreadsheet tracking the mileage to prove it. New tires as skinny as is practical for your rim, alignment, pressure at 38 psi, synthetic oil, valve adjustment, 85 octane at 4000 ft elevation, shifting at 3000 RPM.
OP, what do you mean by "it's a mess under the dash"? Was there an alarm installed?
So... I have a 90 ff wagon, and a few months ago, I drove from Knoxville Tn to Richmond Va on one tank of 87 from chevron. If you don't know that's close to 500 miles. I did the math and it worked out to be about 42 mpg. Yes, I was driving easy by trying to stay off the gas, keeping it between 65-70, and coasting down bigger hills, but I learned that your fuel mileage is more dependent on how you drive than you might think. I typically get around 34-35. Also I felt pretty accomplished after that trip. Put a big ol' smile on my face.
'nother tech issue though... see the new thread I guess..
Then I smelled the exhaust pipe right after cranking and smelled gas, so I knew I had fuel. We threw a dizzy in there, and VROOM!
And - I had a weird no-start issue earlier today, non-dizzy related.
I accidentally posted in tech instead of general, and so's I don't cross post, if you wanna help, check out my other post at:
http://www.hondacivicwagon.com/bb/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=9762