FrederickRighteous

I am looking for a 100% stock EK Civic. It has to be manual.
I am using wwwAutotradercom for my search. I am located in Warsaw,IN and will travel up to 200 mi away to find the right Civic.

So far there is a 96' HX Coupe Red with 69,098 miles for $5,995 at a reputable Honda dealership in Fort Wayne (only 37 mi away from me). It is assumed the car is in excellent condition. I will check the car out Saturday. How good of a deal is this? Could I talk them down to $5,200 or somewhere in that range?

My other choice is a 99' EX Coupe White with 115,000 miles for $4,995 at a dealership in Chicago (109 mi away from me). It is also assumed this car is in excellent condition. Is this car maybe a better deal? I like how this one has the updated bumper, tail lights, dash, I like white exterior, and the price seems really good for a dealership. But I don't know this dealer and this car might need maintenance sooner than my first choice Civic.

Tell me what you guys think!

spray_bombed

hx....gas mileage FTW

mattyfo0z

I'd go with the EX. Newer, cheaper, and most likely more dependable than the HX (that is, if both cars had updated maintenance). I'd go with the EX if you're not getting the Civic for gas economy.

devney

I'd get the ex. It'll be a little more fun to drive and you'll still get excellent gas mileage. 99's are also better looking than the 96-98's IMO. Go with the 99 Coupe.

spray_bombed

yeah he has a point....ex will have a lil more options (sunroof) and will be quicker...but thats hella low miles for a 96 hx...(which I have too)....but with 157,000 on it...the hx will be slow as fawk but will get amazing mpgs...so its really up too you

FrederickRighteous

What is the gas mileage of HX and EX? Any real user reports (not what its supposed to be rated). I am going Civic for gas mileage. But also I want to get performance shocks and springs to lower and give aggressive stance and then get some wheels. At that point the car will have character, and then at that point I will see how far I want to go with the mods. But it will be my daily for sure.

hushypushy

Honestly I wouldn't go to a stealership...they just have normal cars at extreme markup. And just because it came from a dealership doesn't guarantee anything.

Since you're looking for something stock, I suggest browsing Craigslist and your local want-ads. With a little bit of luck and searching, you'll probably be able to find a very clean example that was just used as a commuter car by an old lady or something, which you should be able to pick up for much less than $6k.

If you were just going for the two you mentioned, I'd pick the EX over the HX...the gas mileage isn't that huge of a difference (my buddy gets 40+ mpg in his 00 EX), you'll have more power (SOHC VTEC ftw), and you said yourself that you like the updated looks. Not to mention a much lower price.

FrederickRighteous

Maybe I will test drive the HX since its 40 min away. And then go to Chicago to check out this white EX. 40+ mpg is better than I thought they had.

hushypushy

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by FrederickRighteous &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Maybe I will test drive the HX since its 40 min away. And then go to Chicago to check out this white EX. 40+ mpg is better than I thought they had.</TD></TR></TABLE>

On my last tank, my D16Z6 got 36mpg--and I don't drive like a grandma either. And the Y8 is just an improved Z6

kyalstyle

i personally dont like the 96 body style all that much. the 99 coupe would be a great deal, if its clean i would say its worth it. 100k on a honda is about 80k on any other car. check to make sure they've changed timing belt and water pump and such, and it should be good. miles are not an issue if you're serious about getting a car you want. if its that important to you, you'll be happier buying a car you like the looks of, and you can spend some extra money replacing the necessary milegae-sensitive parts, which could drive some people insane trying to keep up with. i know, i drive a 93 ex coupe, got a steal for $400 from some lady who wanted to get rid of it and buy a new car. it has 280,000 mi on it now. granted ive replaced many things on it, but it consistently gets 41 mpg, and i dont drive like a grandma either. i love this car and plan on driving it to 500k or more.

by the way, i would take a z6 over a y8 anyday, but ive got no solid reason... my buddy has a newer coupe with it, and for some reason it doesnt seem as quick. also ive heard something about the oil pump having issues in the y8. either way, both great sohc engines with great potential and phenominal gas mileage.