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Hi! I do not have a lot of money and would like to buy a used 2000 honda civic. I think that is the best model based off of my research. I am looking for a reliable car with good gas mileage and cheap parts.

What do I look for when buying a used car, specifically this model? How much should I expect to pay? Are there any known problems with this model that I should look out for?

Ex. is a 2000 civic with a clean title for $3200 with 135k miles a good deal? Should I not get it if the timing belt has never been changed?

I really don't want to get another lemon, so any help would be greatly appreciated! Thank you so much!

 
Rep Power: 245

Try to find a one owner car, preferably a car that was owned by an old man or lady. It's not always guaranteed but usually means that nothing was modded and it was well maintained. Honda's make great first cars to young drivers who don't know that the low pressure oil light on the dash is not a recommendation that you may need oil soon.

Stay away from "Billy Bob's Auto" type of places if you can Help it. These places will do whatever it takes to get a car to look good just long enough to sell it (ie mechanic in a bottle). They also generally use the cheapest parts available. Sometimes you have no other options due to credit and financial reasons. A private seller from the paper or Craigslist may be a good option.

Honda's hold there value well so your going to pay more for a Honda then say a Ford, or Chevy. Check kbb to insure you are getting a good price.

I would not buy a car if the timing belt has not been changed but I would take off money for that. To get it done at a shop probably around $300-500. It is very important to make sure it gets done. If it breaks it will bend valves and cost more.

 
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Thank you for the advice!

I always was told to look at the kbb for the value, but when I went to get my car appraised at carmax, they told me they look at edmunds. Where kbb would appraise a car for around 4k, edmunds would appraise it for 2k. That is a big difference! Do you know why that is? Most people still take the kbb value?

Also, I heard that for the 2000 model there might be some problems with the oxygen sensor and other types of emission sensors going bad. Would you recommend that I take the car into a mechanic for them to look over the car and to get a car fax for the car as well before I buy it? I feel like good cars go fast off of craiglist and if I ask the owner for all these extra steps then they might just wait for someone else to buy the car.

 
Rep Power: 245

My wife and I just traded her car in at a dealer and they used a different source then both of those but it was still close to kbb (500 off). I have never used Edmunds. Maybe take an average.

All cars have problems. Hondas have less then others. You take a chance getting a bad car with any car purchase it is just less likely with a Honda.

Having someone look over the car is always a good idea.

 
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Take it to a mechanic, one that you trust; maybe even the Honda dealer. Tell the mechanic that you're thinking of buying the car and he'll know what to look for. It'll cost you $100 or so but it'll be worth every penny.
I bought a Mazda Protege without taking it to the mechanic. I am mechanically inclined and I think I know cars pretty well. turns out that the previous owner blew a head gasket, did up for repair job and seal it with some cheap sealant. Oops
go ahead and drive a friend in 2000 Honda Civic and see how it properly working on should feel
sorry for the typos, tablet sucks
Edit: if the mechanic finds any problems, you can use those as bargaining chips