Well I'm looking at purchasing my first Teg(my first Honda/Acura to be truthful). I test drove one today and it had my face plastered with a huge grin. Unbelievably fun car to drive. So I was wondering what I should look for as far as problems.

 

as you should do buying any used car

Test the transmission
automatic- switch from P to D and see how much of a lag it takes to engage, anything more than 3 secs i'd say walk away

manual- see if any gears are slipping and make sure you take it on the freeway to where you can go between all gears properly, Also reverse from a parking spot

Ensure the Check Engine light, oil light, & battery light come on for a brief moment when starting the car, if any lights do not show up that means they have tampered with the car.

Check to see if any visible leaks on the motor or around the motor before and after the test drive

Check all the minor things such as wipers, defrosters, heaters, signals, and electrical things that can cause trouble later

IF CEL is on get the code read, depending on the year you might be able to do it inside the car

i also heard you can simulate putting the car under a load in an automatic by putting your foot on the brake putting it in drive and giving it gas from 3-5 seconds, 2 or 3 times in a row, with foot still on brake, if car dies or chokes it has issues.

 

So no real model specific issues? the trans is a manual and shifts fine, CEL is on, and I forgot my reader(DOH!) everything on the car is in good shape. Needs a new lower bumper and some body work, but its in overall good shape.

 

Need more info...

MM&Y of car you ar looking at?

Automatic or 5 speed?

How many miles on it?

Any mods, or isit stock?

As mentioned, all the normal things you would check on any used car.

If it was me, the first thing I would look at is condition of the body, any rust, [pay close attention to the rear wheel arch, Integras start rusting there first, pull the "plastic" edge cover off the inside of arch and inspect the arch lip for signs of rust.

You also want to know if car has ever been in an accedent, even just a fender bender.

I would also pay a mechanic to go over the car, well worth the 1hr or less most will charge, $50-$100 now is much better then big $$$ later, a mechanic can also spot things that need mantanance right away, and give you a price so you can use that to lower the asking price of the car. 94

 

1998 Acura Integra, 80k miles, 5 speed, has a DC head and a full header back exhaust w/cat, crap Autozone shortram, stage 1 clutch, ricer front panels/hood, but hey they are all fiberglass. Go ahead and call me a ricer, you can suck my weight savings. It is missing the lower bumper up front and has some door dings. No rust, I'm in AZ, rust is not very common here. It has got a cel, but I forgot my code reader when I looked at it. The guy is asking $1900. Fair deal, or let it pass and look for another?

 

$1900 for a 98 with only 80,000 miles on it, and no rust, is a pretty good deal.

I would still have a mechanic look at it, have a compression test done, so there are no surprises.

Although I am no fan of "ricer" stuff, anything that would drops the curb weight of my 94 Integra I would grab in a hart beat, [as long as it still looks stock] in fact the cleaner the better, have replaced the rear quarters, shaved/filled all badging and paint on my 94 for a cleaner look.

Good find. 94

 

Unfortunately I didn't manage to sell my Fix Or Repair Daily, so I had To let it pass. But I'm on the look out for another good deal!

 

Well good luck on another good find

 

i highly doubt that those fiberglass panels weigh less than the stock sheetmetal ones.

fiberglass is heavy.

 

is he referring to the front fenders? adn the stock sheetmetal are quite light to be honest. hood fiberglass who makes it? and definetely have it checked out or youll be pissed later

 

Dc's are nice and fun to drive good luck with ur purchase

 

get it before someone else does. when you turn and you hear a clicking sound, those are the the axles, they go out on these older acuras.