Hey guys! So this is not only my first post here, but its about my very first car! So I recently purchased a used 2001 Honda civic ex. I had it looked at because I did have a few concerns and the technician told me I needed to replace my struts! I do know that a lot of places try to make your problems seem worse so that you'll pay on the spot to have issues fixed, but I don't have a grand to drop into this car right now.

It's been my daily driver for about a month now, just doing about 30-50 miles a day round trip anywhere from low city limit speeds to highway. There is definitely a noticeable amount of bouncing and knocking, and it tends to be worse at lower speeds (or maybe just more apparent...)

Either way. I attached some pictures.
There are photos of all four struts. Again, I don't have a huge amount of money and I'm trying to buy parts online and have some mechanic friends change them out for me. However, they live a good two and a half to three hours away, mostly highway. I'm asking for your help! Please take a look and tell me:

A. How bad they really are, and,
B. If you would say making a three hour trip (mostly highway) on them in their current state is a good or bad idea.

Thank you all so much and I look forward to your collective opinions!!!!




Right rear, I think.





I believe this is the RF.





LF?





Should be left rear.

 

This isn't something the forums are going to be able to diagnose by a few photos. Damage to shocks would have to be significant to be visible on the outside, and the effects on ride would be very pronounced.

What is noticeable about the bouncing? You say its your first car, so what are you basing your perception of "bounciness" on?
How many miles on the car and what is the rest of its history?
Where are the sounds coming from?
What condition are your bushings in?
Do you trust the mechanic, and have you gotten a second opinion?

 

I have had three different people look at it, all three gave me varied feedback. One mechanic at the dealership told me it would be fine going just A to B. He also drove the car after making previous repairs. A pep boys mechanic told me it needed practically immediate attention, but he didn't drive it at all. Neither mechanic I have had previous experience with. The third opinion was from my car-crazy at home mechanic boyfriend. He looked at them and drove it and said it was fine as long as I didn't push 80.

As far as the ride, it's just uncomfortable going over rough roads and bumps. Sometimes there's some minor shaking in the steering wheel, or the car will continue to shift up and down (almost feels boatlike) for a moment after going over a rough spot in the road. Stuff like that.

Thank you for your input. You're definitely right about a couple of pictures not being sufficient for any kind of diagnosis. Just looking to get as many honest opinions as possible. I really appreciate it!

 

Also, the car has nearly 200,000 miles on it. It had three previous owners, no accidents on file. I did, however, find out there was a hole in the radiator when it started overheating and steaming. That was replaced immediately under my warranty on it. I believe that the tech who did a 120-something point inspection on it did say that the bushings on most, if not all, of the struts are either broken or gone completely. If I recall correctly, and that was the part he was talking about. His notes say the strut boots.

And since it is my first car, all I'm comparing the ride to is every other car I've ever ridden in and driven in my life. Lol. And for the most part, I've only ever driven my family's new cars, all 2010 or newer with less than 50,000 miles on them.

 

replace them as soon as it is affordable imo. No need to rush and get in financial trouble, just drive carefully until they are replaced, at 200k miles they are worn out...

 

The worn out bushings are certainly your main culprit for knocking and clunking. Search the Honda-Tech forums for diagrams and/or articles on the bushings for your generation Civic to get an idea of where the bushings are located. It will give you an idea of where the trouble spots are so that you can listen for them while driving, and some articles might even give you an idea of approximate cost to buy new bushings (the labor to replace them will be additional). At the very least, you'll know where to look for them and visually inspect for yourself.

The up/down float sounds like a blown shock (or shocks).

 

Clunking can also be caused by bad strut bearings or bad sway bar links.

If you're looking to buy shocks by themselves on a budget, look at Koni STRT's.

I'm not sure if PIC makes anything for the EP/EM2 chassis.

My friend had blown stock shocks on his EP3. We replaced them with Tein Street Basis coilovers, which are like $600ish. They ride as well or better than stock, and give you the ability to lower the car if you want (although, I think the highest up they go is about 0.5" lower than stock). They're a really nice, minimalistic setup that's also high quality with good features for street cars.

 

Nothing for those chassis. But swaybar endlinks are indeed a good place to check too.