is this a good deal?

[charmander]

im planning to buy my first car. im a newbie so guys i need your advice.

i saw this car. P300k
civic vtec 1997 model
stock engine
44k mileage

ive seen it personally. both the interior and the exterior look new. the owner said it never had any major accident, just minor scratches. he also said that there is no need to fix anything except some minor painting. he said something about the suspension but i wasnt able to ask for details. he said it was just fixed recently so there will be no problems. i still have to send a mechanic to check if everything that he said was true. some things included with the car are: chin, non-stock grill, gas saver(?), strut bar. the car has been lowered but i dont know if its a good thing especially since rainy season has started. the color coding is also similar with our other car which is kinda bad but its not really a big deal for me unless there is an emergency.

i need your opinion guys. is it a good buy? thanks!

edit: the car is first owned. automatic.

[voltscastillo]

automatic or manual? the gas saver device sounds like a bad thing because it points to an owner who doesn't care if he blows the engine by installing such things. wag ka na kumuha ng mechanic, just drive it around na lang...kalampag, hina pickup, lahat yan lalabas with 10 minutes of driving.

marami kasi mga "check the car" mechanics na luko-luko, isusubo ka to purchase dahil they've called the seller in advance to ask for a cut in exchange for an OK. tapos on top of that, hihingi pa commission sa iyo. i know, so trust me on this.

300T for that model sounds OK pero it doesn't hurt to make tawad.

[charmander]

thanks for your input voltscastillo. oops i forgot to say its an automatic. first owned. i dont know much about cars so its hard for me to tell if the car is running well or not. but the one ill bring is my moms friend so i guess its safe to get his opinion about the car.

should i remove the gas saver if ever im going to get the car? i know they are not really effective(according to the khaos threads here).

any more inputs?

[rayana]

you may ask the owner kung may iba pa syang ride.
imo. yung 44K na mileage for 8 years is 'quite' low (average is about 5.5K/year). unless, may iba pa syang cars/vehicles.

just my opinion lang po.

[badkuk]

rayana:yung 44K na mileage for 8 years is 'quite' low

hmmm...some rewinding perhaps?

[van_wilder]

yes, ask kung bakit mababa yun mileage... baka naman pinarewind niya... idaan mo sa lubak para makita kung may kalampag... or kahit sa humps lang ng mabilis... may duda ako dun sa gas saver... baka naman khaos ito...

[charmander]

they have another car. an older civic hatchback. they are selling the vtec because di naman daw masyado nagagamit and it consumes more gas compared to the hatch. may business kasi silang malapit lang sa house kaya siguro konti lang ang mileage. but ill still try to ask why the mileage is kinda low.

the current speedometer is not working but he said he would replace it with a new one for free if we are going to get the car. does this mean anything? i mean is it usual to bust your speedometer through normal use?

[odell]

pag hidne gumagana speedometer.. hinde rin gumagana un odometer.. correct me if im wrong... tsss.. dinaya ata ah..

[charmander]

wow.. thanks.. now i also have to ask kung since when pa hindi gumagana yung speedometer..

[Pro Staff]

personally, I'll never get a a car with a gas saver installed. Although unofficial, I've read something about engine damage related to this gadgets ireversible. with your budget, marami ka pa makikitang mas OK na ride

my 2 cents...peace

[van_wilder]

eh kaya naman pla low mileage kasi sira eh... baka nun nilagay yun 'gas saver' nasira yun electrical... dahil pinilit pagkasyahin... i suggest na hanap ka ng iba, so if gingamit nila yan ngayon, hindi gumagana yun mileage... or baka naman triny nila irewind tapos nasira...

[charmander]

i see.. i was thinking baka lang hindi masyado laspag yung car since parang medyo hindi ok yung mods na nilalagay nung owner (gas saver, strutbar, chin lang).. it could be a bad thing din pala since baka hindi masyado alaga..

[vinj]

Is the seller the actual "First owner" (with the car under his name)? Or does he claim to be selling it for his relative or someone?

It's unusual for a speedometer to get damaged so i'd think twice that someone tried to play around with it (perhaps rewinding the odometer?).

Put the car on a lifter in a gas station with your trusted mechanic, you can see a lot from this.

[rayana]

charmander- the current speedometer is not working...

odell-pag hidne gumagana speedometer.. hinde rin gumagana un odometer..

ganun din pagkakaalam ko afaik.

if that is true...that means whatever the odometer displays is not accurate and therefore yung claim na 44k lang mileage is untrue. and you'll have to rely on what the owner will say (kung kelan nasira speedo).

[charmander]

vinj - yes sya daw yung first owner. sya nga daw naglabas nung car from honda caloocan..

sabi nya sensor lang naman daw yung sira ng speedometer e..

[mazdamazda]

he said something about the suspension but i wasnt able to ask for details... the car has been lowered

suspension problems because of improper lowering?

check how he "lowered" the car... did he install proper lowering springs / adjustable shock absorbers? or did he just compress / cut the springs? if it is the later, stay away from it.

gas saver(?)

if that's the case, DON'T BUY IT.

[Field Master]

You may want to check the service record of the vehicle. There you will see if the car is properly maintained. You may verify the information on service manual on CASA. Honsa Casa entertain inquiry such as this. I did this on Honda Caloocan and Honda Makati when I bought my pre-owned civic. If the service record is no longer available then you may think twice before getting this car as your lists of confusing presentations is getting longer.

[BoEinG_747]

try mo din check kung may oil leak sa engine niya..much better kung makita mo sa garage niya na may mga marka ng oil sa flooring pag naka park ang vehicle....kasi dapat hanapan mo lahat ng diperensia..para makatawad ka ng malaki ...kung type mo talaga bilhin ang car..IMHO

[jim]

i'd buy another with a 300K budget..............

[CLAVEL3699]

they have another car. an older civic hatchback. they are selling the vtec because di naman daw masyado nagagamit and it consumes more gas compared to the hatch.

bro dito ka na magtaka. May gas saver and he/she claiming na mas matipid pa ang hatch.

parang contradicting diba.

just my opinion lang po.