89 civic

Well the legacy is over, my 98 civic has met its fate on the back end
of a 93 ranger. I was the only one in the car, and walked away with
no injuries.

10500 in damage, it is beyond repair.

So I need a car, don't want to spend the whole insurance settlement on
a car.

Yesterday I picked up an 89 civic 4 door automatic for $375. Body is
a little rough, but runs like a charm! 276k kms, 171k miles.

Taking it for a safety tomorrow, hoping to get about 6 months to a
year out of er.

Any pointers from anyone on this vintage of civic?

t

 

=====================

Keep the coolant reservoir up to the =MAX= mark, change the oil and
drain-n-fill the tranny at least once with Honda Z1 ATF. Who knows
what's actually in there / how old it is?
Glad you're OK.

'Curly'

 

=====================

Keep the coolant reservoir up to the =MAX= mark, change the oil and
drain-n-fill the tranny at least once with Honda Z1 ATF. Who knows
what's actually in there / how old it is?
Glad you're OK.

'Curly'

 

Original owner, 91 Civic, 203k miles here. I get parts from
89 Civics at the junkyard all the time for my 91.

Why's the price so low? Just the rough body?

One thing I am on the lookout for with low priced Civics of
this era are failed head gaskets.

Check for oil in the spark plug tubes. For a car this old
with this many miles, it's likely the camshaft holder-cyl
head O-rings are leaking. OTOH, if you only want it to last
six months, maybe you can forego this job.

When was the timing belt replaced?

Suspension could probably stand rebuilding, butagain, for
only six months, I think the above is all I'd be really
worried about.

 

Original owner, 91 Civic, 203k miles here. I get parts from
89 Civics at the junkyard all the time for my 91.

Why's the price so low? Just the rough body?

One thing I am on the lookout for with low priced Civics of
this era are failed head gaskets.

Check for oil in the spark plug tubes. For a car this old
with this many miles, it's likely the camshaft holder-cyl
head O-rings are leaking. OTOH, if you only want it to last
six months, maybe you can forego this job.

When was the timing belt replaced?

Suspension could probably stand rebuilding, butagain, for
only six months, I think the above is all I'd be really
worried about.

 

i would do the same, you don't own anything as long as you have to
make payments

a complete tune-up: NGK V-power plugs one heat range colder (to deal
with E10 gasohol) , NGK magnetic core plug wires (the best), OEM or
Standard brand distributor cap & rotor (with brass terminals)
modifications: high voltage ignition coil (must have the same primary
resistance as stock), short ram intake (or simply run the stock setup
without the intake resonator), gutted catalytic converter (Hondas
don't need this Detroit's piece of sh*t)
fluids: Castrol Syntec 0W-30 or 5W-20 motor oil, PEAK 50/50 lifetime
antifreeze , Dexron II ATF with Lubegard ATF Protectant
filters: WIX oil filter and fuel filter

Note: DO NOT use Honda Z1 in your 89 civic's transmission. As a matter
of fact, all pre-1994 Hondas left the factories with Dexron II in the
transmission

 

i would do the same, you don't own anything as long as you have to
make payments

a complete tune-up: NGK V-power plugs one heat range colder (to deal
with E10 gasohol) , NGK magnetic core plug wires (the best), OEM or
Standard brand distributor cap & rotor (with brass terminals)
modifications: high voltage ignition coil (must have the same primary
resistance as stock), short ram intake (or simply run the stock setup
without the intake resonator), gutted catalytic converter (Hondas
don't need this Detroit's piece of sh*t)
fluids: Castrol Syntec 0W-30 or 5W-20 motor oil, PEAK 50/50 lifetime
antifreeze , Dexron II ATF with Lubegard ATF Protectant
filters: WIX oil filter and fuel filter

Note: DO NOT use Honda Z1 in your 89 civic's transmission. As a matter
of fact, all pre-1994 Hondas left the factories with Dexron II in the
transmission

 

Body is really rough. Good old winnipeg road salt can be blamed for
that. There is a small hole in one of the rocker panels, we are
repairing it. Rust at the bottom of the doors.

I probably won't spend alot of money on it. I should clarify, I would
be happy if it lasted 6 months, though I am sure it will go for much
longer.

Not sure on the t-belt, will inspect to see if it looks fresh or not.
May just swap it out anyways, can't be much different than doing it on
my 98.

Antifreeze was clean, after sitting 2 yrs, I don't think this one has
a head gasket issue.

Literally put a different battery in and the thing started like it had
been used every day, but in reality had been sitting for over 2 years.

t

 

Body is really rough. Good old winnipeg road salt can be blamed for
that. There is a small hole in one of the rocker panels, we are
repairing it. Rust at the bottom of the doors.

I probably won't spend alot of money on it. I should clarify, I would
be happy if it lasted 6 months, though I am sure it will go for much
longer.

Not sure on the t-belt, will inspect to see if it looks fresh or not.
May just swap it out anyways, can't be much different than doing it on
my 98.

Antifreeze was clean, after sitting 2 yrs, I don't think this one has
a head gasket issue.

Literally put a different battery in and the thing started like it had
been used every day, but in reality had been sitting for over 2 years.

t

 

if the body's that bad, i'd just make sure the ignition system was good,
the brakes good, and leave it at that.

there's lots more you can do if you want, main relay, valve lash,
t-belt, rear trailing arm bushings, but they're not worth it for a
6-month gig. unless you want to have a bit of fun. if i were going to
thrash it, i'd inspect the t-belt and bushings as a priority.

 

if the body's that bad, i'd just make sure the ignition system was good,
the brakes good, and leave it at that.

there's lots more you can do if you want, main relay, valve lash,
t-belt, rear trailing arm bushings, but they're not worth it for a
6-month gig. unless you want to have a bit of fun. if i were going to
thrash it, i'd inspect the t-belt and bushings as a priority.

 

that's an ok plug, but a bullshit reason.

ok, they're good.

oem only. brass is bad because the zinc it contains vaporizes, then
condenses again weakening the spark with a conductive layer inside the cap.

no. oem quality is better.

absolutely not. all you do is suck hot air and make more noise. and
you reduce engine life with reduced filter efficiency. google this
group for filtration data that's been posted countless times.

so where are you going to buy dexron II??? at the honda dealer! it's
called "honda z1 transmission fluid".

utter bullshit.

which you can't easily buy any more. castrol don't make it for
instance. stick to honda z1. transmission works great.

 

that's an ok plug, but a bullshit reason.

ok, they're good.

oem only. brass is bad because the zinc it contains vaporizes, then
condenses again weakening the spark with a conductive layer inside the cap.

no. oem quality is better.

absolutely not. all you do is suck hot air and make more noise. and
you reduce engine life with reduced filter efficiency. google this
group for filtration data that's been posted countless times.

so where are you going to buy dexron II??? at the honda dealer! it's
called "honda z1 transmission fluid".

utter bullshit.

which you can't easily buy any more. castrol don't make it for
instance. stick to honda z1. transmission works great.

 

Body is not great. Wife hates the car. She says I didn't 'talk to
her enough about it'. oh well... lol

Will be replacing brake rotors, they are warped. If the bleeder bolts
on the calipers aren't too corroded, will do a brake fluid flush as
well. Brakes are mushy, hope its not the master cylinder. if I can't
get the bleeders off, will use the turkey baster method.

Will also do the standard fluid changes, oil and tranny specifically.
Coolant is new, PS fluid looks good. Picked up 4L of Honda Z1
today.... $40!!! geez....

A good sign on this car is the OEM oil filter I found underneath.
Also found an OEM timing belt brand new in the box in the trunk. I
will take this as a hint that the timing belt needs to be done soon.

Hopefully once I replace the fluids, and drive it for a week or 2,
some of the other tune up items will make themselves more apparent. I
am thinking plugs, plug wires and dist cap and rotor.

So far so good, and drives like a champ. Just got the old manitoba
safety inspection done today, it needed some bulbs and a hole in the
muffler welded over. $80 later I have a 'road worthy' vehicle...

t

 

Body is not great. Wife hates the car. She says I didn't 'talk to
her enough about it'. oh well... lol

Will be replacing brake rotors, they are warped. If the bleeder bolts
on the calipers aren't too corroded, will do a brake fluid flush as
well. Brakes are mushy, hope its not the master cylinder. if I can't
get the bleeders off, will use the turkey baster method.

Will also do the standard fluid changes, oil and tranny specifically.
Coolant is new, PS fluid looks good. Picked up 4L of Honda Z1
today.... $40!!! geez....

A good sign on this car is the OEM oil filter I found underneath.
Also found an OEM timing belt brand new in the box in the trunk. I
will take this as a hint that the timing belt needs to be done soon.

Hopefully once I replace the fluids, and drive it for a week or 2,
some of the other tune up items will make themselves more apparent. I
am thinking plugs, plug wires and dist cap and rotor.

So far so good, and drives like a champ. Just got the old manitoba
safety inspection done today, it needed some bulbs and a hole in the
muffler welded over. $80 later I have a 'road worthy' vehicle...

t

 

oh well!

before you replace, do this:
scrape off the hub face, and the inside of the wheel so they're both
free of rust. smear a little antiseize on both surfaces, then re-torque
the lug nuts in a 2 or more stage process, in the correct sequence,
correct torque.

every single time i've ever had a honda go in the shop where they fasten
wheels with air tools, the disks "warp". every time i do the above, the
"warp" magically disappears. no disk replacements for me.

sounds like you need to do the bleeding all the way through. need to
open up those bleed nipples even if you drill and replace.

sometimes you can try bleeding at the banjo bolt, but it's not
recommended because it's easy to make things worse, not better.

 

oh well!

before you replace, do this:
scrape off the hub face, and the inside of the wheel so they're both
free of rust. smear a little antiseize on both surfaces, then re-torque
the lug nuts in a 2 or more stage process, in the correct sequence,
correct torque.

every single time i've ever had a honda go in the shop where they fasten
wheels with air tools, the disks "warp". every time i do the above, the
"warp" magically disappears. no disk replacements for me.

sounds like you need to do the bleeding all the way through. need to
open up those bleed nipples even if you drill and replace.

sometimes you can try bleeding at the banjo bolt, but it's not
recommended because it's easy to make things worse, not better.

 

Replaced the sparkplug o-rings today.... they were leaking like
sieves..... Couldn't figure out why the car smelt like it had an oil
leak, but wasn't losing any oil... I guess as the spark plug tubes
filled up, they got to the point when they were in contact with the
plug boots, and made a burnt oil smell.

Also, rummaging around in the trunk of my newly acquired car, I found
a box... had a brand new OEM timing belt in it. SWEET... that belt is
worth like $60 up here! This leads me to beleive the former owner was
thinking about doing the t-belt sometime soon... Can I use a new belt
that has been sitting in the box in the trunk for 2 years?

t

 

Replaced the sparkplug o-rings today.... they were leaking like
sieves..... Couldn't figure out why the car smelt like it had an oil
leak, but wasn't losing any oil... I guess as the spark plug tubes
filled up, they got to the point when they were in contact with the
plug boots, and made a burnt oil smell.

Also, rummaging around in the trunk of my newly acquired car, I found
a box... had a brand new OEM timing belt in it. SWEET... that belt is
worth like $60 up here! This leads me to beleive the former owner was
thinking about doing the t-belt sometime soon... Can I use a new belt
that has been sitting in the box in the trunk for 2 years?

t

 

do the "b" seals, but don't bother with the ones below that. unless the
cam gets unbolted, they never leak.