About two and a half years ago, I bought a used 2000 Honda Civic LX that had supposedly been rebuilt or “refurbished” with 140,000 miles on it. Prior to being rebuilt, it had been sitting in this lady’s yard unused for about 15 years, whom the mechanic that sold it to me decided to buy it from and fix it up to be sold. In the short time that I’ve had it, it’s had a host of issues, including a blown head gasket a month into owning it, at least five oil leaks, a bad muffler, a faulty turn signal register, an intermittent check engine light during cold weather, air conditioner issues (which I’m currently still dealing with after having had that fixed once back in June), and now I’m seeing some oil in my coolant reservoir. This car has quickly become very costly to maintain. Is this normal for an older Honda, or should I just cut my losses and start looking at newer options?

 

Sounds like you bought into a sketchy situation.

No, none of that is normal for an older Honda assuming it's been properly maintained or looked after. Sounds like they did a bad job "rebuilding" the engine. I'd suggest either doing a full engine swap with another D series engine (assuming that's what you have in your car) or cutting your loss and selling.

If it's a coupe and the body/interior is in good condition you could still get a somewhat decent price for it. If it's a sedan or the rest of the car is as rough as the engine, probably not going to have a lot of luck.

 

NEVER buy a car from a so-called mechanic. Most of them don't give a damn...hence the situation you're in right now.

 

Gotcha. What worries me is that since it’s a rebuild, insurance won’t cover it for more than liability. How much might I be able to get for it? Would it be worth taking it to a detailer to make it more presentable for selling?