There is a 1985 honda civic wagon for sell locally for $200. It won't pass emissions b/c it has a "slight misfire." one of the cylinders doesn't fire right.

I have very little knowledge about cars, but I'm guessing it could be something as simple as the distributor or one of the wires leading to the distributor. It could even be the distributor cap as I know the contacts need to be cleaned every so often.

Or could it be something so bad that the whole engine would need to be rebuilt?

This is all of the info I have... but if I can get it and fixit up myself, it wouldn't be bad for a second car.

 

dont buy that car you dumbass... i wouldnt even pay 50 bucks for it

 

don't listen to him. those cars are really nice for d16a1 swaps, which is very similar to a zc.

or, if you wanna leave it stock, that's good, too.

yeah, a misfire could be a lot of things

things that are easy:
dirty/cracked/misgapped(worn) spark plug or plug not tightened right
plug wire bad/not on all the way
distrobuter cap cracked, points worn, rotor bad/worn
valves WAY off adjustment

things that would be bad
burned valve (never heard of it happening on one of those engines)
headgasket
distrobutor bad (not a huge repair, but not as easy as a plug wire)
broken ringlands (i highly doubt it)

if this were a fuel injected motor, i'd say you could have a problem with an injector or wiring, but i know you have a carb, so if the other cylinders are fine, the carb probably is, too.

i'm probably missing stuff from my list, its just what came to mind quickly. anyone feel free to add...

 

yeah dont listen to him, i had a 88 wagon and i beat the crap out of that thing and it is still runnin with 400k on it and completely rusted out...