v8s

I have resigned myself to the realization that the best value out there for a first car for my daughter is an Accord/Civic/Camry. I am looking at a '99 1-owner with 141K on it. Status of the timing belt is unkown, but the seller (who states he was a Honda mechanic for 18 years) showed me the missing seal on this bolt (http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e6...tLocations.jpg) and said that the fact that it its missing is an indication that the timing belt has been changed. He said that most mechanics don't bother putting them back on when buttoning up after changing the belt.

Can anyone verify this?

Other than that, this looks to be a decent car. CV joints are quiet, boots are not torn, it tracks and stops true, hoses & belts appear to have been changed previously, not just swapped out to sell the car. Tranny kicks down okay, shifts appropriately and the little 4-banger surprised me by its get-up-and-go. VIN numbers seem to be everywhere on body panels, panel gaps appear fine, both Carfax and Autocheck show no known issues. Numerous expected dings and dents, but no major damage. No apparent water leaks around the hole in the roof or in the trunk. Floor mat on driver's side shows expected wear

phootbag

Sounds like you are educated and thorough. Your daughter is probably going to end up with a fine car.

While it is possible that the Tbelt was replaced based on the fact that the rubber seal is missing, that is not a definite indication. I always have said, if you are unsure of when a Tbelt was replaced, replace it now. At least you'll have a known date/mileage to go from.

Hope this helps.

v8s

educating myself as fast as I can on this stuff. If I was looking at a '65 Impala, I would feel pretty good about my abilities to figure out what was what. This "new" stuff has me feeling like an old fart who's VCR still blinks 12:00 12:00 12:00 cause he can't figure out how to set the time...

Thanks for the reply. That was what I was thinking. I was hoping for a bargaining chip to bring down the $5k price tag...

v8s

Is $4900 a decent deal on this or is it overpriced? It seems outrageous to me for something with this many miles, but I'm from up north where the bodies fall off by the time the engine turns over 100k... Based on what I'm reading, this thing should be good for 200K or better if I keep the maintenance up. Most of its life was spent in TX, but not on the coast.

Balwin

make him take off the cover if you are unsure and check the belt.

4900is pretty good for a 6th gen.

see if you can knock it down to the low 4000 range.

I bought my 96 in 2006 and it was pristine with 128k. A 10 year old accord for 4200.

an 11 year old accord with 141k just doesnt make sense for nearly 5k

lastly,

check in the trunk under the panels to make sure it hasnt been rear ended.

get a carfax.

post pics of the car and I can help more.

phootbag

I own a 1994 Accord. The mileage is around 275k. I plan on getting 400k - 500k from it. Honda makes an amazing engine. I work on it myself so I save a bunch of money on maintenance.

Somewhere around $4,000 is appropriate for that year/mileage. The value will vary depending on the condition of the vehicle.