Things To Look For When Buying A Civic Hx

[panamacolin]

HI,

Once again just trying to figure out things to look for when looking to buyI a CIVIC HX...The one I am looking at is a 1997 with 84k on it..has only had 1 owner and its red (not my favorite color)...

Everything seems to be pretty clean on the car. The front bumper does have a ding in it but I think I will be able to push it out...not 100% sure. The car is about 4 hours from me. I just would like to know some things to look for.

How many RPMS should the car be at when going 70mph? I know to look for oil leaks etc. Also wondering if there is a way to check the O2 sensor? If the 02 sensor is bad would the check engine light come on? Is there a way to tell if the car is running in lean burn mode? Anything you guys can think of to look for would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks in advance...

Also what is a fair price for a 1997 hx with 84k on it?

[GasSavers_TomO]

Personally I would stay away from it if it's the CVT model...very expensive to get rebuilt (talking $3000) Just make sure the alignment is good and the car was taken care of well. If it's a 5spd listen for any noises from the transmission and see if the noises change when the clutch is engaged or disengaged.

[SVOboy]

Front bumper is plastic, so pushing it out is prolly not possible. Forget about it though.

I'm not sure on the engine speed at 70, but it won't be *too* high. It's really hard to check the o2, it might get lazy and not trip the CEL. You can hook a multimeter up to the 02 signal wire and monitor the voltage to figure out if it's getting lean-burn, but that is prolly more involved than a test drive.

What are you going to pay for it? I think they go for 4-5k in that condition.

[panamacolin]

yeah its a 5 speed...

[panamacolin]

4k...seems like a good deal...all the ones i have seen with that type of mileage is in the 6k range...

[SVOboy]

Go for it, it will have the resale to buy your vx and more...or you might just fall in love with it.

[panamacolin]

yup...thats what im thinking i just want good mileage and reliability with freezing *** A/C....

[panamacolin]

what kind of noise will the tranny make if its no good?

[GasSavers_Ryland]

a bad tranny bearing will make sort of a soft grinding sound with a bit of a rattle, put it in nuetral, and let the clutch out, it should sound smooth, with less then 100,000 miles I can't see a 5 speed going bad unless it was abused, so check out the owner, if they let their teenager drive it for the last 3 years don't buy it, but if they used it as their "new car" and are middle aged older or something they go for it!
from what I remember reading the HX had an engine that got it's power from slightly higher revs, not sure on the exact speed, but that is part of the reason for the reduced mileage, that and the extra weight.

[panamacolin]

anything else to look for?