figured i'd try to get some opinions on a car i was looking to buy. Its a nice looking car, sounds good, but its an automatic. It needs to be an automatic as im buying it for my woman to drive. I havent seen a JDM front with an auto trans for sale before, so im wondering if its worth it?

96 SE with JDM front end conversion with lip,
CW paint job,
carbon fiber hood,
WW side skirts and rear lip ,
jdm taillights
coilovers on Tokico blues,
Tenzo-R 17" wheels,
ITR rear spoiler,
ITR back seat
kenwood deck,
front and rear strut tower bars,
AEM cold air intake.
Keyless entry with remote start.

I know the guy that put the car together, and its been driven by a female for the last 6 years or so that i know of.

Sorry for the tiny pic, its all i have

 

how much are they selling it for and mileage?

 

alot of the price depends if the car has a clean title or salvaged title i think some of you other states call it a "rebuild title"


if it has a clean title, and depending on miles/and overall condition of the car like body, were the door jambs/under hood painted?, does the car drive straight?, are the tires good ? brakes good? , i work as a mechanic at a dealership and give me about 15min with a car and i can tell you if its good or not but since i wont be there heres some tips.


1. outside is the easiest to see if theres any dents or dings, also checking door jambs see if they were painted, CHECK ALL LIGHTS PARKING, BRAKE, REVERSE, EVEN THE LICENSE PLATE LIGHTS

2. tires are super easy to check, if there worn out then it more than likely needs an alignment/camber kits

3. when driving at freeway speeds and you hit the brakes if the car vibrates alot then the brake rotors are out of round, if it shakes in the steering wheel then the front rotors are out of round if it shakes in the seat then rear out of round.

4. peek thru the wheels and look at the brake pad, if you can see the brake pad and its low, then for SURE THE inside brake pad is even lower

5. check all fluids, ESPECIALLY coolant, alot of people neglect there coolant, and it should be green not rusted brown color, check oil for any milkshake type look also.

6. inspect the interior for any missing trim, check for the spare tire and jack as well

7. while on test drive get on it and look in the rear view mirror make sure you dont see no white smoke(which would indicate a cooling system problem like a blown headgasket, or excessive black smoke which would indicate a rich problem), Make sure the car idles good when its warm as well.


8. MAKE SURE the temp gauges goes almost to the middle not all the way to the middle but ALMOST to the middle, if it runs to cold then its a typical stuck open thermostat problem which alot of integras have, mine got stuck on me a month ago.

ALL THIS CAN BE CHECKED EASILY WITHIN 15MIN and all of this can be used as your bargaining deal,


but i would say a 96 with lets say over 100,000 miles with all that stuff i wouldnt pay more than 5,500

 

For 99% of people on here, it wouldn't be worth it. But since you're looking for an automatic, then you should be more concerned with the condition of the car and if the mods are what you're looking for. It kind of seems like you're asking a question that only you can answer. Just don't expect to be able to sell it very easily, for the same reason that most people on here wouldn't want it. You could always just teach her stick!

 

the title is clean, it has high miles,, but it doesnt need any repairs that i can tell

sounds easy huh! lol, ive volunteered plenty of times, she doesnt want to learn. So that sucks for her since almost all the cars ive owned have been manual.

 

I got my immaculate auto 97 gs wth 50k on it for $8k.
Keep in mind that cars with parts on them usually have been driven hard and put away wet...

 

Haha yeah I've tried to teach an ex stick once and she thought it was too hard to push the pedal down :rollseyes:. And that was when I had my little D17 Civic with a feather weight clutch. At least you have the car to yourself!

 

The setup looks good but the Tenzo-r parts sounds very questionable. I guess its all up to how much you love the car.

 

this is all you need to know

 

i wasnt really asking how to inspect a car since ive owned about 65 cars... I was more looking for a perceived value of said car, lol

 

high mileage with the jdm front and no existing problems. hmm..probably 4000-5000, probably 5000 since it already has a lot of the bolt ons done.

 

so, i looked at the car today. Cam seal is leaking (of course), the hot/cold selector on the climate control isnt working, there's a very small dent on the drivers fender, and the CF hood needs a serious buffing or to be recleared. Im going to try to get it for $4200-4500

 

nice rims man lol
I didnt like them on my hatch but the price was rite. i paid 100$ for them with brand new tires from the junkyard sold them for 350

 

ive had a set before too, the rims have been on this car since it was put together in 02' i believe

 

those rims have to go and the sideskirts are kind of .....different...i'd say you're right on at 4500

 

its a nice car, but for auto..nah i wouldn't bother buying....

 

the mirrors arent painted?

 

The side skirts are old WW RS, remember, the car was put together somewhere between 00' and 02'. Before this, the car was painted EBP, and had the old combat front with the CL headlights lol

the mirrors are gloss black for some reason

 

did you read the first line the OP wrote about it needing to be an auto?

 

i'll trade you front ends with $$ on top. not kidding. i'd go for it.