I know there are guides about buying a used car, but I wanted to ask fellow S owners what I should be looking for specifialy to the Type S. I'm buying it from a dealer btw.

1. Where is the engine code on the engine PICS would really help (making sure the engine wasn't switched).

2. Exterior wise the car is good. Anything else I should examine?

 

If I were buying a used car, id check for mods which usually means it had the **** ran out of it. The engine code for 2004 and under is K20A2, and 2005-2006 is K20Z1, someone correct me if im wrong. But, id also pull the dipstick out and check the oil to see what it looks like, and check the air filter to see if it looks like they kept up on maintance.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by HondaTom &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">If I were buying a used car, id check for mods which usually means it had the **** ran out of it. The engine code for 2004 and under is K20A2, and 2005-2006 is K20Z1, someone correct me if im wrong. But, id also pull the dipstick out and check the oil to see what it looks like, and check the air filter to see if it looks like they kept up on maintance.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Do what he ^^^ said and one thing I might add is when you test drive it look/listen/feel if you get the famous 'second gear grind' when shifting first to second. If so have the dealership fix it, there is a TSB out for it. Maybe you would want to have them pull up the records to see if the TSB was already performed on that car.

 

^^^ Also adding the 3rd gear pop out. Then the suspension popping noise, to check if that suspension is making a popping noise move the car slowly and turn the wheel as if you're parallel parking. If you hear popping they NEED to fix that. That is probably the biggest annoyance of the car.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by HondaTom &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">The engine code for 2004 and under is K20A2, and 2005-2006 is K20Z1</TD></TR></TABLE>

04 and under is the K20A2
05-06 is the K20Z1

 

If it ain't a 6-speed,
got leather guts,
and a spoiler,
It ain't a type S.
The easiest way to check is to get the VIN off any of the windows and search online to make sure it's a type S.

 

carfax, you should be able to get it free at the dealer... also check the clutch.....if it's wearing out you should ask them to replace it, it's not something cheap to do it on your own........

how old is the car????? (milage)??
price??????????

 

I haven't bought used in a long time, but I recall the dealer used to have to provide the name of the previous owner, at least in my home state. A quick polite call to the previous owner answered a lot of questions about maintenanced history and any nagging or pending problems.

 

look for the things stated above

famous 'second gear grind'

3rd gear pop out

the suspension popping noise

and lots of mods

and take it on the highway and let your hands off the steering wheel to make sure it doesnt pull.
I've test driven a few used cars lately, 1/2 of them pulled one way or the other at highway speeds.

 

u see mods

u walk away

 

I dunno I'm going to disagree with that ^. A car can be modded and still be well maintained. You just have to be more careful and know what to look for with certain mods.