1997 Honda Civic

Ex Coupe

1.6L 4 Cylinder Gasoline Fuel

Manual

1hgej8145vl096976

Front Wheel Drive

Gasoline

Adjustable Steering Wheel

Up for auction is this 1997 Honda Civic Ex Coupe for sale in the Chicago area. It has around 112,740 miles. It is a two owner car, with my mother being the second owner since she bought it in 1999 with around 12,000 miles. It was purchased at a Chicago area Carmax, but then it spent a good chunk of its life in Florida. It currently has an expired Florida license plate, but is located in north suburban Chicago. It drives fine, has low miles and should provide many more miles of trouble free and efficient motoring. It has air conditioning, power windows, a power sunroof, and an AMFM stereo radio. The air conditioning works fine, but the freon needs to be recharged. Mechanical Condition: My mother was always sure to change the oil every 3,000 miles. The engine is still strong and doesn't seem to burn any oil. There is however a leak coming from the top of the engine as seen in the photos. I am sure it is just that the valve cover gasket needs to be replaced, which is very cheap to do. The right side parking brake was just replaced last week at Midas. Major service was done in 2006 at Moorone Honda of Hollywood, FL when it had 73,798 miles. At that time the passenger side axle, timing belt, air filter and front brake pads were replaced. A four wheel allignment and tire rotation were also done at that time. Part of the exhaust system was replaced at Midas a couple of years ago. There was a problem before with the power side windows moving very slowly, but that has been remedied with grease. The GoodIt has never been in a major accident or seen a body shop and has the original paint.It has only had two owners.The oil was changed every 3,000 miles and the engine is still strong.It has low miles for its model year.It is original and has never been modified or raced.It is the disireable EX model with the more powerful engine, bigger brakes, bigger wheels and power windows and a power sunroof.It has a fun and economical 5 speed manual.It has been adult driven, which I am sure has extended the life of the engine tremendously. I have never seen my mother shift gears at a RPM higher than 5,000.The car does not have any major rust as many cars of its age do in the Midwest. (This of course is because it was in Florida for many years.)It is in good mechanical condition and can be safely driven on a long road trip.It has a clear and clean Florida title. The BadAs can be expected of a car this age, there are a lot of superficial miscallenous scratches, nicks, dings, etc.There is a dent in the trunk door.The fitment of the rear bumper is a little off, there is a small dent in the left rear quarterpanel, the left side of the rear filler panel is dented and a small and largely unnoticeable part of the bottom of the left rear corner light broke off from a minor shopping center parking lot mishap.My mom is a smoker, so as you can see from the pictures there are some cigarette burns in the interior.The car was parked outside in the hot Florida sun for several years which has resulted in fading and wear of the interior, including the sun visors, steering wheel, sunroof cover, etc.The car was parked outside in Florida during a hail storm, which resulted in some small but not that noticeable dimples in the body as can be seen in the pictures. This is most noticeable on the hood of the car. All in all I think this car is a good buy because it is all original, has low miles, was adult driven, has a clear title, has never been in a major accident, is in good mechanical condition, is fuel efficent and is reliable. I know that there are flaws with the exterior and interior, but I have set the reserve price very low accordingly. In fact, I don't think you will find a cheaper Civic Ex Coupe with a manual for sale anywhere, especially one with such low miles! If you can look past these visual flaws, you can have a very cheap, reliable and fun to drive car that I am sure will last you many years and miles to come! Thanks for looking and good luck bidding!!! P.S. If you want to see 151 more photos of the car, please click on the following link to a Picasa Web Album: https://picasaweb.google.com/zzzz.brian/1997HondaCivicExCoupe# On Nov-17-11 at 21:54:48 PST, seller added the following information: I want to correct a typo. My mother purchased the car at a Chicago area Carmax in 1999 when it had 22,000 miles (not 12,000 miles).