May buy an HCH, important questions for you guys!
#1
12-15-2011, 08:10 AM
May buy an HCH, important questions for you guys!
Hey there, I'm very very new to hybrids, and civics in general (always been a toyota person)
Well, I'm going to go test drive a civic hybrid later, 5 speed, with an odometer reading of 78,000, at the price of $4900.
However, the carfax reports it as 230k. (They did not hide this in their craigslist post, thankfully.). I asked about this, and the current owner hasn't had it very long, but here's the email we exchanged regarding that:
Any thoughts/opinions would be greatly appreciated, is it worth even going over there to test it? They do live pretty far. Apparently the battery was replaced in march of this year, and they have the receipts to prove it. But 230k? That seems.. absolutely high lol.
Thanks in advance, I hope I get a reply before tonight.
Well, I'm going to go test drive a civic hybrid later, 5 speed, with an odometer reading of 78,000, at the price of $4900.
However, the carfax reports it as 230k. (They did not hide this in their craigslist post, thankfully.). I asked about this, and the current owner hasn't had it very long, but here's the email we exchanged regarding that:
The odometer is reading just under 78,000 right now. Carfax shows it consistently going up to 230k miles. This vehicle started out as a corporate vehicle so I think that is why it had so many miles, the good thing about that is it was always serviced on time and Carfax even shows regular maintenance and oil changes at dealerships up until last year, which is when someone bought it and I'm assuming messed with the odometer to get the IMA battery fixed under warranty. I'm surprised Honda still replaced the battery, but I have the paperwork showing it was done in March of this year. There has only been about 5,000 miles put on the car this year.
This car blue books for around $8500 with only 77,000 miles and about $5300 with 230,000 miles. The clutch, transmission, steering, brakes... everything feels great on this car. The engine even looks great, especially for having that many miles on it. We haven't had this car for very long, but we had it checked out at the Honda dealership and another mechanic shop here in Mesa before we bought it. We planned on keeping it for a while, but this is a 3rd car for us and with another baby on the way, we could use the money.
Let me know if you have any other questions. I know the mileage is confusing. I don't even know if the engine has been replaced... which is possible too.
Keep in mind, I'm dealing with craigslist here, so naturally I'm hesitant. This car blue books for around $8500 with only 77,000 miles and about $5300 with 230,000 miles. The clutch, transmission, steering, brakes... everything feels great on this car. The engine even looks great, especially for having that many miles on it. We haven't had this car for very long, but we had it checked out at the Honda dealership and another mechanic shop here in Mesa before we bought it. We planned on keeping it for a while, but this is a 3rd car for us and with another baby on the way, we could use the money.
Let me know if you have any other questions. I know the mileage is confusing. I don't even know if the engine has been replaced... which is possible too.
Any thoughts/opinions would be greatly appreciated, is it worth even going over there to test it? They do live pretty far. Apparently the battery was replaced in march of this year, and they have the receipts to prove it. But 230k? That seems.. absolutely high lol.
Thanks in advance, I hope I get a reply before tonight.
#2
12-15-2011, 07:30 PM
Re: May buy an HCH, important questions for you guys!
First of all I would be EXTREMELY wary of a car where the odometer has been tampered with. Mostly for legal reasons. What kind of trouble might you run into getting the car registered and inspected? Do you report the 230,000 or the 80,000 miles. That would in all likelihood be a deal killer for me unless I could straighten it out with the Dept of Motor Vehicles beforehand.
Having said that my 2003 5 speed Civic hybrid just turned 250,000 miles a couple weeks ago. I still have the original IMA battery pack (the IMA light is on and it should be replaced but the car still gets over 50MPG) and have had zero problems with the engine. The car has stood up very well here in upstate NY, with all the winter snow and salt. If the car has been in a dry environment in Az I would think the car is in very good shape. And with a brand new IMA battery $4900 is a steal. I would take it for a good test drive and tax the IMA battery on some decent hills to make sure the IMA light doesn't pop on.
I would probably jump if the test drive went well and I could get the odometer/mileage issue cleared up legally.
Good luck....
Having said that my 2003 5 speed Civic hybrid just turned 250,000 miles a couple weeks ago. I still have the original IMA battery pack (the IMA light is on and it should be replaced but the car still gets over 50MPG) and have had zero problems with the engine. The car has stood up very well here in upstate NY, with all the winter snow and salt. If the car has been in a dry environment in Az I would think the car is in very good shape. And with a brand new IMA battery $4900 is a steal. I would take it for a good test drive and tax the IMA battery on some decent hills to make sure the IMA light doesn't pop on.
I would probably jump if the test drive went well and I could get the odometer/mileage issue cleared up legally.
Good luck....
Last edited by mrkcohen; 12-15-2011 at 08:38 PM.
#4
01-12-2012, 11:29 AM
Re: May buy an HCH, important questions for you guys!
there are several stick shift hch's with less than 100k miles for $3500-6000 if you're willing to come to socal, look on la's craigslist. There are dozens if you're willing to drive a CVT
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