I am seeing that right now I am having trouble finding a 4th gen car(i wnat a 5 speed, a/c, and around 150K miles on it). I know its a honda so its a really great car, i am just wondering how long do you think that will last? I found a, 89 lxi, 157K miles on it for $1500. Is that a good deal or what should I talk them down to? Also i was wondering what parts on it i would probably need to replace?(doesnt it have a timing chain instead of belt?)

ALso i was wondering, when was the conversion to the new type of air conditioners? if an 89 doesnt have the new stuff, how much would it cost to convert or put a new one in?


Modified by silentblackhat at 8:56 AM 9/25/2004

 

If it's in good shape and there's nothing much wrong with it, that's a great deal! 157k is nothing at all on a Honda, especially an Accord. 3rd gens are friggin bulletproof when it comes to reliability, durability, etc. Good old cast iron A20A3 may not be the fastest or most powerful engine, but it's definitely a solider in it for the long haul that's for damn sure. You can beat the living **** out of them and they just laugh at you, LOL. 3rd gen does use a timing belt, so if you don't know when that was last changed or it's been more than 60k, you will need to change that. Only real common problems are maybe CV boots tearing/axles going bad, electronic air control valve going bad, motor mounts wearing out, and main relay acting up in hot weather. Other than that, if it's been taken care of and the fluids have been changed regularly, there's really not much else that goes bad. They're fantastic cars and I absolutely love mine to death. Even with now 356k all original miles I have no plans on a new car anytime soon, and I still trust this one to take on any roadtrip no matter how far it may be. Runs 110% perfect, drives smooth and straight, cold a/c, and every single thing still works even down to the power antenna

BTW, the other 3rd gen in my garage ('87 LX auto) it at 308k miles, all original including original auto tranny which still shifts perfect.

On the a/c thing, most all manufacturers switched to R-134a in 1994, although it wasn't actually mandatory until the next year. 3rd gen still used the good stuff, R-12. If the a/c still works then keep the R-12 going as long as possible. If you really want to switch it (which I'm not a huge fan of myself, but that's just me), then do it right and change all the o-rings, expansion valve, reciever/drier, and completely flush the system. There's more details than that but it's just a quick overview.

Good luck!