Should I get another car?
 

I found a 98 civic EX coupe for sale (check it out on binghamton NY area craigslist). I'm pretty sure I'm going to get it - I drove it, and it seems fine. AC doesn't work (don't care) and it has 176k. It costs $2500 and I'm going to make sure the heater works tonight. Should I buy it? My 93 Corolla works like a champ and burns a little oil - has 140k, but I really want a honda and a little more stock MPG capability... OBDII would be nice too. What do you guys think?

http://binghamton.craigslist.org/car/768780201.html

Edit: it's a 98. I carfaxed it and it looks like the first owner was very nice to it for about the first 80-100k/ 7.5 years. The second owner had it for a year, not much info about that one. The most recent owner is in Turkey, and had studied here at the university, but decided not to come back, and needed to sell the car. He didn't seem to do too well with oil changes. I looked at the dipstick and it wasn't pitch black, but it was pretty dark. The heater DOES work, and when I press the a/c button, the compressor does seem to make an "engage" sound and the tach doesn't drop (which leads me to believe that the compressor isn't broken, or else the rpms would drop visibly when engaging the a/c... right?), but it doesn't cool. I think maybe it just needs to be recharged.

I watched for smoke out of the tailpipe when the engine started - nothing.

I told the seller that I would buy it on monday for 2300. I'm thinking it's a worthwhile calculated risk... any input appreciated. Still slightly nervous.

It's much newer, get it if you can!

I bought it, and added it to the garage. Can't wait to see what kind of mileage I can get out of it.

Congratulaions. Honda's are some of the best cars out there. That car probably has another 140k in it at least.

We have a 1998 Accord DX 5 speed 4 cylinder that just hit 210,000 miles with just basic oil changes, tires, and the brakes were just changed last week after 54,000 miles on the old ones. My dad uses it every day and drives 68 miles a day as a hauler/van for cargo and merchandise so the rear suspension is probably hte next to go. He gets an allowance from his company for payment,fuel, and insurance, but hey its paid for, gets about 33 mpg when loaded down with about 400 pounds constantly.

Assuming the "engage" sound is the AC compressor's clutch kicking in, the fact that rpms don't drop visibly indicates it's not seized - it may still be broken.

Use a thermometer in an AC vent to check for temperature change while running it for 5 minutes with the AC on and engine @ 1200 rpm or so. If there is some degree of cooling, a simple recharge may (or may not) do the trick. If no termperature change at all, expect to buy parts.

Better yet, test drive it over to your favorite mechanic and ask for a quick guestimate.

Good luck.

engage with no rpm drop tells me there is a blown seal preventing the compressor from having any resistance... but I can't say for sure.

Good luck with the "burns some oil". That can be a small problem that lasts forever, or a big problem that costs you an engine and a tow at any time. It may be worth your time to learn how to do compression/leakdown testing, or get it checked out.

@matt that car is off the road for now anyway, but 'twas a trusty steed. Once I drive my new civic for a while, and find that there's no problems, I'll probably end up selling it. I never could get the MPGuino working, and I think I fried my chip because it got really really hot one time when i was testing it. oh well. I may end up finishing it and giving it to my friend who has an old civic hatchback...I'll have to get him to join up here too.

I was looking at the AC with my dad yesterday and I think there actually is a tiny bit of cooling, which could be a good sign. If it is indeed b0rked though, I really hope there is some way of replacing the compressor with a passive pulley. anyone heard of people doing that?

Gee, I would sure hate to see a carfax on my Metro!! :eek:

Good purchase, though. Hope you get some good numbers with it!!!

I picked up and drove a used '88 Accord for more than 160k, very few problems at all (the AC compressor went bad... I replaced it with a used one from a wrecking yard and converted the entire system over to the new R134a freon myself). By most accounts, the newer Civics are even more bullet-proof. Sounds like you did good!

My theory on driving older cars is this...
We depend on reliable transportaion to get to and from jobs, businesses, and school. Miss a few days, and it cost time, money, and then what is called 'missed opportunity cost'. Buy a new car and make monthly payments (and take a huge hit on yearly depreciation), or own two older cars outright for less money.

My old cars rarely break on the way home from work heading into a three day weekend, where I'd have time to perform repairs at my leisure. They seem to break on the way to a job interview, the first day of school, or Monday morning when I am already running 15 minutes late. If you drive older cars like I mostly have, IMO you need two reliable cars running at all times. When one has an issue, you fix it within one week, while driving car #2. You don't loan it out, you don't leave it sitting with a flat tire or a blown head gasket for more than a day or two, one week tops. You keep both running well, insured, registered, the whole enchilada. When one is getting a little 'long in the tooth' and two-hundred and five-hundred-dollaring you to death, you take your time in finding a deal on another little commuter to replace the tired one.

Amen. I'm thinking the same thing. So far she's working out just fine... There have been a couple days where I wish I had the AC working, but Fall is coming, and I know the heat works so I'll get round to the AC eventually. I'm very happy to have broken the 40mpg mark with ANY car, so now I'll have to give myself a smaller goal margin of 45mpg to break with this new civic.

We just call it a RAID

Redundant
Array of
Inexpensive
Drivers

Jim

I like it, Jim :thumbup:

After I married, the ratio was three older cars/two drivers. I've gotten older still, and have kids that drive (Only my 19yr old daughter will work on one) so having a spare car "loaded in the chamber and ready to go" works out great. Except dad is the head of the maintainence department :rolleyes: ;)

:D ROTFL

Nice numbers on the MPG and price. I picked up my 98 EX about 8 months ago for $3500 but just got into economic driving. Car came with new tires, clutch, timing belt, tinted windows and a mint interior and I got it from a good friend who i know took care of it, in fact I just broke 200K over the weekend with no major mechanical issues, just a small oil leak from the drain pan. 40MPG is my goal and now that I have my SGII Im sure I can reach it. Is your drive such that your 42MPG is pretty easy to get or do you have to work pretty hard to get it?

Well, there are a number of assumptions I have to make given that you don't break 40 with the exact same car I drive (is yours a 5speed?) I'm going to guess probably. It's all in technique, I've found. I'm looking for more mileage myself, so if anyone sees any sore thumbs in what I say, please speak up!

-I hardly ever break 2000 rpms when accelerating or cruising unless I'm on the highway. I always shift before 2000 rpms, and sometimes closer to 1500. I go through gears 1-4 in a 30mph zone pretty quickly, even when accelerating slowly. I've seen discussions on this forum and the hypermiling forum about whether it's better to accelerate slloooowwwly, but have your foot spend more time on the throttle, or accelerate as quickly as possible given that you will never break 2000 rpms.... In everyone's answers and my own results, I've concluded that the difference in negligible - I couldn't even tell you which is slightly better. I go for the "accelerate reasonably quickly, and get to a coasting speed ASAP" plan.

-I use the pulse and glide method when I can, but I'm not a fanatic.

-I definitely use the turn-off method on big downhills (even on the highway) and long stoplights (over 8secs is the rule of thumb). I wouldn't advise this if you drive an automatic.

-I drive 55-60* on all highways and avoid cruise control except on flat areas.
*I will definitely break 60 and go however fast a steep hill will coast me up to about 80... but I hate to waste momentum. I will also speed up a little before uphills, then use the driving-with-load method, and try to end up going 50 by the time I reach the top of the hill.

Those are the most significant things.

In a nutshell, my goal is to keep my foot off the throttle as much as possible without being a safety hazard to other drivers. A minor annoyance is okay if I happen to force other drivers to go exactly the speed limit (boo-hoo!)

Also, with that particular car, make sure you keep oil in it - my old corolla burned a little oil, and I found that it was VERY important to my mileage to keep it filled up. I would check it every 1000 miles. Try a little lucas too, about a half a bottle into the engine along with the oil in your next oil change. I didn't see any significant increase in mileage while using it, but it certainly cannot hurt for its price.

Hope this helps, feel free to PM any very specific questions.

Sounds like were doing pretty much the same thing in terms of driving styles. I just got my SGII and havent even burned half a tank yet, but it says im on par to hit 40MPG for the tank. It seem like its dead on with the expected mileage with the actual mileage only off by .8 miles, just have to see what happens at the pump. Ive been experimenting with PnG on the freeway and have averaged about 44MPG per trip on my 11 mile commute without topping out ant just over 60MPH. Been trying to work between 57 and 62MPG since that seems to keep in the speed range the far right lane likes to go, not to mention I have a lot of drafting opportunities with all the trucks on the road. I find myself driving more than normal to practice the techniques and get used to wrking with the SGII so future tanks will probably be better. Thanks for the input though, good to get feedback from soemone with the exact same car, and yes, mine's a 5 spd.

Regarding your AC, sounds like it needs to be recharged ..... maybe because of a leak, but most older vehicles you can get away with a recharge once or twice a year.

There is a refrigerant called Duracool, fairly inexpensive and non ozone depleting , enviro friendly .... and is supposed to be up to 40% more efficient than R134a.

I've used it in a vehicle with a R134a system as a direct replacement and it sure felt like it blew alot cooler than R134a even when it was working properly.

Well, you clever Canucks! First you get a kid who wins Canada's science fair by growing his own strain of bacteria that eats plastic bags...Then you've got this awesome refrigerant I've never heard of, but now must have. I'm surprised something so great is even allowed in the states. Thank you so much - everyone should check this stuff out! A new thread is in order.