91 Civic EX -- should I buy it?

Axl Jack · 06-01-2007

I had an 03 Civic, but that was totaled thankx to a drunk driver.

So anyway, I'm thinking of pocketing the insurance $$$ and getting myself this little 91 Civic EX thats a few towns over from me.

It's a 5 speed stick (clutch is great in it) and has 127,900 miles on it. Carfax on it is CLEAN. And I do bodywork, so I can tell when fenders have been replaced/painted.

Guy wants $1,900 for it. The car runs great when the RPM's are up. When you're on the highway it runs like a champ. But put it in neutral and it idles rough. It doesn't stall out. But it runs rough and you have to rev it a little high to get going in 1st gear.

So basically what I'm asking is if all this car needs is a new timing belt replacement? Does this sound like an issue that is timing belt related? Or would I be looking at a much bigger headache if I were to purchase the vehicle?

Thankx for your input.

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oopsracing19 · 06-02-2007

if i was you i would ask the guy if he has any service recipts or if you can get any service history on it. it may just need a tune-up.

Buds302 · 06-04-2007

me personnaly id offer him 500 bux.

this particular civic...if its a sedan. which it should be. has MPFI. which is the best thing ever for that generation car. its basically labeled the four door SI. and ive seen this problem before. twice before actually. both my bros car and my car both had burnt out valves in the car. they idled really rough but seemed to run great at higher rpm. its and easy fix actually. the valves are anywhere from 15-22 dollars at the auto parts store. you take the head off and replace the valve. you dont need a valve spring compresor. but you will prolly need 2 people. one to push the spring down and one to insert the keepers. literllay once you get the head off it takes all of maybe 5 min to change a valve. make sure you know which one you need to replace once you get the head off. i made the mistake by ordering an intake valve but needed an exhaust valve. the auto parts store doesnt stock them they have to order them. so i had to wait 2 days....lol

but in any sense. if you buy the car. there are some good things about this car that you wont find on any other 88-91 civic.

first off it has MPFI....all others have DPFI...which blows huge donkey balls.
second it has power steering
third...it has AC
fourth it has a sunroof
and the biggest one i like....it has the largest front brakes made for any a civic! 10.2 inch rotors. you cant run anything other than a 14" or larger rim.
youcant find these brakes on anything else but an integra.

id buy it but i wouldnt pay that much for it.

if you do buy it....do a compression test first thing.. and give the results here. i think youll find that atleast one cylinder has no compression

Axl Jack · 06-04-2007

^ Thank you very much for the info. I bought the car for $1200 because I told the guy that at the very least I need to replace the timing belt and the brakes/rotors. You might think that $1,200 was a little high, but the body is in excellent condition. Not a spot of rust. The guy garage kept it all the time. Even the undercarriage/frame is in great shape for its year. And besides a little fading from the sunlight, the interior is in great shape as well. So, given those factors, I gave him the extra couple bucks for it. (KBB actually lists that vehicle at $2,500.) Screw it. If I drive the car for 3 years it will have been money well spent. Bear in mind that I should be getting $13,795 for my smashed Civic.... so I can definitely afford it.

My buddy is a mechanic for Birney Honda (Scranton, PA). He told me to go buy it and he can fix anything thats wrong with it.

He's currently on vacation in Florida for two weeks. But when he gets back he's going to help me get it running 100% Until then I have my 1994 Jeep Wrangler to run around in.

Once again, thankx Buds302 for the info.

Axl Jack · 06-07-2007

If you're interested:

http://riggem.dcssites.com/1991civic.html