Rep Power: 0

So I might get a hold of an 01 civic but I need some knowledge on what type of issues I should expect and if it worth spending money on

The information I have is that the transmission and engine was swapped from another recked civic. This engine has 147xxx miles on it and the body has 214xxx. The o2 censor needs to be replaced. Other than ware and tare on the car I don’t know what else is wrong yet. What should I look out for?

According to his girlfriend, who gave me info about it, he’s willing to sell it for 1k-1.2k

 
Rep Power: 126

Head gaskets are notorious for failing. Wouldn’t hurt to at least check the timing belt. I also speak on behalf of everyone here when I say to use OEM sensors. Aftermarket sensors DO NOT work.

I owned my 7th gen from 150k miles up until about 210k. With the exception of a snapped timing belt (my own fault for not doing it in time), it was a fantastic car. It’s now my brothers first car and he’s had no issues either.

 
Rep Power: 512

If it was well maintained, should be a good car. It's a great econobox, that's for sure, and they're easy to work on.

Like chezboat said, head gaskets are notorious for going out on these. Some people have had zero problems, some people have had many. I had 2 head gasket failures on my 2002, but then again, I beat the **** out of my car. Well maintained, but modded, worked on, tore apart, put back together, turbo, internals, you name it. Only thing I didn't do was tear the transmission apart. Toward the end, I got lazier with maintenance bc life took over and put off hunting down coolant loss issues until it was far too late. I owned my 2002 from 6 miles to 205k miles over the span of 15 years. First head gasket was at 127k miles, second was changed because I FUBAR'd buttoning up everything and ended up shredding my timing belt which ended up bending all of the valves, third was at the 205k mark, and that engine block just called it quits while I was buttoning that one back up.

Other common issues:

• Manual transmissions have a slight 2nd gear synchro issue. Just kinda pops out every now and again after a while. A MT fluid change does a great job alleviating that for a while.
• Clutch squeak after some time. Live with it or lube up.. uh. .some part behind the boot of the slave cylinder.
• Autos have some failure issues, but again, really hit or miss. If it's an auto, remember: drain and fill only, no flushes.
• Driver's seat rocks after a while. No big deal. There's a DIY on how to fix that with parts from the store. Basically it's replacing a worn bushing.

I'm gonna hop on chez's bandwagon and say Honda OEM sensors or bust. Lots of resources here for where to get them on the not-so-expensive side. This includes things like O2 sensors. If they're not OEM, at least use the same brand that OEM uses (e.g. Denso makes a lot of the OEM sensors) and make sure they're direct fit, not universal fit. Loads of knowledge on this forum, too. Just have to ask.

more on chez' bandwagon.. check when the timing belt, tensioner, and water pump were changed. Pretty much do all those at the same time. I think the manual says like.. 100-120k? Or was it closer to 80-100k? idk. It seems a lot more daunting of a task than it really is. I was scared to **** when I first did it, triple checked everything and spend the better part of a day doing it. Pretty much able to replace all those things within 3 hours start to finish after I did it the first time