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Old 07-25-2020, 03:04 AM   #7 (permalink)
Rivieraman71
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Join Date: Apr 2020
Location: Florence, OR
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Ecky View Post
I think if I were in the market for a 4 door sedan, a 1st generation Civic Hybrid with a manual transmission would be my top choice. The batteries in most of these have long since failed meaning they cannot be inspected or pass emissions, and the 12v system won't charge. The owners are unaware that the battery can be bypassed and the car can be driven entirely without a hybrid battery. I can find them all day long for $500 or less around here. Depending on Oregon's state inspection, the CEL produced can still be a dealbreaker however, but these cars are capable of 60mpg+ anywhere you can get away with having a CEL on.

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https://www.facebook.com/marketplace...4354930845198/

^ Not sure if this link works for you, but $3900 (or best offer - give 'em 3200) is actually not a bad deal at all for a clean Insight with 130k miles. With the tires aired up and the underbody panels in place, they're good for ~100mpg at 50mph, and are typically reliable past 300k miles. They're quirky cars with a few weird issues, but the mechanicals of them are bulletproof.

What kind of price range are you looking in?
Where I’m at in Oregon we don’t have inspections or smog so a civic hybrid with a CEL wouldn’t be an issue. I found one for $350 on CL last night but no response back. I actually just saw that insight the other day online. I have $2,200 saved so far and should have 3k by the end of next month. What are your thoughts on a Saturn SC1 or SL1? The single overhead cam had taller gearing in the transmission and was rated 29 city and 40 hwy. they are dirt cheap too, I’m finding them for around $1,000-$1,200 in good shape in my area. Saw one guy on here that was getting 45-46 mpg out of his with some basic hypermiling.
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