Need help buying a used car

[sharkythesharkdogg]

Don't worry, I haven't forgotten about this. I've done some research, but I'll probably post up what I think over the weekend when I can really get a chance to sit down and type it all out.

Okay, get ready for a long, unfocused rant. Hopefully some of it is helpful.


General things for both cars.

Maintenance Schedules. Have the owners been following them.

The engine bay is exposed to a lot of heat, and heat is the death of motors. Heat breaks down rubber parts, fluids, and seals. The cars should have had several fuel filters, air filters, coolant hoses and belts replaced in their history with the amount of mileage they have.

Ask when was the last time the vehicle’s had their coolant flushed, brake fluid flushed, transmission fluid changed, etc. Don’t be afraid to call them out on things. If they say it has fresh fluids, be ready to inspect them. Know where the brake fluid resevoir on the cars are. Ideally the fluid should be clear to light tan. It’s to be replaced about every two years. If the fluid is black, it’s not fresh. The same with coolant. It’s either green or orange. It’s to be replaced seasonally. At LEAST once a year. If it’s brown, it’s not fresh.

If the belts are supposedly new, look at them. This one is easy. If the belts have cracks in the rubber, it’s time for new ones. Hoses are a little more work. Check around points where they attach. If they’re a lot fatter where they attach it means they’re getting weak from lots of heat cycles. Look for stains around where they attach. That shows signs of leaking. If the hoses are overly hard, they’re bake from age and waiting to spring a leak.

Ask when spark plugs and wires were replaced. Ask when the cam cover gasket was replaced.

If the owner hasn’t replaced any accessory belts, coolant hoses, filters, etc (and they likely haven’t, most people don’t) then I expect the T-Belt/Water pump for the car need replacing quite badly.

Here’s why the T belt is so important. It is literally a timing belt. It keeps the motor in time. You have pistons, valves, cams, and many other moving parts all moving together in a synchronized fashion thanks to that timing belt. If the belt breaks the internals of the engine continue to move, but they get out of time, collide with one another and basically the engine is ruined. It’s a catastrophic failure if the belt breaks.

So I can’t emphasize enough making sure that car gets a new belt if it doesn’t have one. The water pump is replaced because it’s BEHIND the timing belt. Eventually it will fail too, and it keeps the motor cool. So replacing it while the timing belt is off is standard procedure and a very wise move.

Are the cars used for lots of short trips, or interstate commuting? A car that receives lots of short trips is much harder on it’s motor internals, and therefore it’s motor oil.

If the answer to that question is “short trips”, it’s especially important to establish that the engine had it’s oil changed at a regular 3k-4k schedule.

Collision damage.

It’s easier to check for than you think. The vehicle’s have what’s call a VIN sticker. Vehicle identification number. Every panel on the car has them some where. If you pop the hood, you’ll find the VIN sticker for the fenders along the inside of them right underneath where the hood would meet the fender. Once you raise the hood out of the way, you can check along that lip on the fender for their stickers. If the stickers have paint on them, it’s a good sign that body work has been done to the car AFTER it left the factory. Usually from a collisions. You won’t get paint on a VIN sticker from the factory. You can check along the inside of the trunk using the same methods. The rear bumper usually has them along the back inside lip. It means getting on the ground and brining a flash light, but it’s not too difficult to check.

Example of a location. And another.

Close up of sticker.

Alignment issues.

Check and see how the tread wear on the tires look. It should be nice and even. If yer getting far more wear on the inside as compared to the outside, or uneven wear along the edge of the tread, or other strange wear patterns then the car needs an alignment. It could also be a sign of something bigger, like a tweaked chassis from collision damage.

Throw the car around.

It might sound obvious, but test everything. All the windows, all the radio options, any electric mirrors, defrost, blinkers, horn, washers and wipers. Once the car is warmed up, don’t baby it the whole time. Get to place like an empty parking lot where you can accelerate hard, brake hard, and turn hard. Make the cars work. Try to expose any weaknesses.





Civic

Check for signs of leakage in the trunk. Some TSB’s I read note the early Civics (01-02) of that generation had issues with moisture getting into the trunk.

Check yer climate controls. Some Civics develop issues there.

If it’s a manual transmission, it seems the car can develop issues with 2nd gear. As yer driving the vehicle make sure to note any signs of the vehicle being difficult to get in or out of second.

Inspect CV axles. These are the axles that run from yer transaxle to yer wheel hubs. Basically check to see if there’s a large amount of grease around them, or if they have torn rubber boots. A quick easy way to check is in an empty parking lot. Stop the car, and turn the wheel to almost full lock one direction. Then accelerate with some urgency. Leave the wheel turn so that you’re traveling in a tight circle. Listen for any clicking, popping, or knocking sounds. Now do the same thing in the other direction.
Some Civics of this generation appear to also develop weak power steering pumps after some miles, so this test will also let you listen for any whining or moaning sounds as you turn the wheel. That’s an obvious sign that something is going on with the PS system.

Timing Belt/Water pump/Maintenance schedule. The T-belt and W-pump shoud be replaced at every 100k miles according to the factory maintenance schedule for that Honda. It seems these cars can develop an issue with their timing belt tensioner. Before it fails, it begins making an audible noise. So in a perfect word those items should be replaced earlier than 100k. The point of all this is that with the mileage the Civic you’re looking at has, those components should have been replaced at least TWICE. If the owner doesn’t know if those have been replaced, it’s very likely that car has a belt that should have been replaced 150k miles ago. Then again 50k miles ago. Don’t let him confuse the drive belts (also called accessory belts) with the timing belt. The drive belts are the ones you can see on the front of the motor that drive yer A/C, power steering, etc. The timing belt is behind a cover and cannot be seen. It’s a much more fundamental part of the motor.

Taurus

The venerable old Taurus.

The build quality of the interior bits and pieces on these won’t be as good as a Honda.

The transmissions seem to shift hard from 1st to 2nd. It’s a common problem, so fresh transmission fluid as part of yer regular maintenance isn’t a bad idea.

One glaring, ongoing issue with this generation of Taurus is that the springs seem to catastrophically fail, and ruin the tires by puncturing them. Reading about it, it seems it happens early on in the car’s mileage 50k-150k, so I think there was a bad batch of springs. They either break, or they don’t. With 200k miles I think the one you’re going to look at doesn’t have the bad springs, but you need to be aware it’s a possible risk. There is no factory recall for this issue that I can see. So if they do break, it’s on you repair it.

Look under the car, or have the mechanic do it, and check the springs for rust and cracks. If you do take the car to a mechanic, REALLY have him look hard at those springs. It could save you a headache.

One advantage is that is has a timing chain, instead of a rubber timing belt. This means it won’t need changing nearly as often. Still, with over 200k miles, it’s probably time to consider it.

I’d do the same CV axle test to the Taurus as you will with the Honda. Check all of it’s hoses, belts, etc.

The Taurus has a v6. The gas mileage will not be quite as good as the Civic, but power and smoothness will be better. It is a better highway cruiser, and is more comfortable on long trips.


If you’re not sure how to look for something I mentioned, just ask, and I’ll find a picture or something to help you get and idea of what I’m talking about.