Need advice on what I could sell my Civic for

[95_Civic_4dr]

It's a 1995 Honda Civic EX sedan w/ 5-speed transmission with just under 225,000 miles. I've owned it since 2008.
It has both the original D16Z6 and transmission.

Now here's where I'm stumped on the value of the car.
I'm pretty sure the engine is about to give out, it has a pretty bad and loud metal on metal knocking noise at idle, the noise does not disappear in the higher RPM, it only accelerates. From my own knowledge I've deduced it's on the edge of throwing a rod. A repair I'm not willing to do, I'm kind of ready for a newer car anyway.

The second picture has the old window tint but it was replaced. Reason it has a black hood/front bumper is it was in a minor accident a few years ago. I t-boned someone that pulled out in front of me, the damage was mainly cosmetic and really the hood didn't need replacing but it had a small dent. I actually still have the hood...

In California, is there any requirements vehicles sold in private party must meet? Obviously I plan to sell it as is and I will tell them about the engine problem, it passed it's last smog and is smog certified for another 9 months.

The rims are matte black 15" 5Zigen FN01R-C on Kumho tires. I'm also unsure whether I'd get more out of trying to sell it as whole or just part it out then turning it over to a place like Pick-A-Part.

 

[SpeedTechnik]

Yes, there are many requirements. Here in California you have to do a smog check before the sale regardless if it passed last year and you must have it pass.You could have gotten away with it if it had been withing the last 14 days but it has been a while im guessing since it only has 9 months left. If it does not pass smog, then you cannot sell the vehicle unless you place your car under non operation at the dmv and you sell the car as is to relieve yourself of any and all liability after the sale. Your 95 civic has a rod knock, Not to mention anything else that may be wrong that lead your engine to that point. I would also guess that your car was placed as a salvaged title due to the accident. From a buyers stand point, I wouldn't pay over 800. From a sellers pov, that would depend on things such as time and necessity. If you want it gone now, then 800 is a good price. If you have the time and want more cash, you can part out your car out to people over the internet and craigslist. I apologize for the low pricing but that is just the pov of a buyer. I have seen these being sold from 500-1500. Its all how you present/sell the car and who you sell it to. But looking upon value, I would say 800 is fair. Had your civic never been in an accident and never had and frame or body damage you would surely be able to sell it for 1000 or more.

 

[Just a honda!!]

In mn a rust free shell would fetch good money

 

[SpeedTechnik]

In mn a rust free shell would fetch good money

yup, that's why it's all about who/how you sell it; But here in California we don't really see snow so its easy to find a rust free shell. Pricing depends but again, its all about presentation and the audience (along with other factors like chassis code rarity and etc)

 

[AlaskaB16]

I would also guess that your car was placed as a salvaged title due to the accident.

Only if he filed a claim from his insurance and the value to replace/repair his own car (not the others guys car) met the requirements to (certain percentage of cars total value) deem salvage. If he never claimed it and his insurance never came to inspect it, it should still have a clear title. ... At least that's how it worked the last few states i've lived in (Not CA).




OP, if it were me. I'd walk away from your car or make an offer for shell only. As a buyer i'd assume this car has been rodded on and would require a major engine over haul or replacement. If the whole car was mint with a bad motor, i'd offer you around $400-$600. That's my opinion of value in my eyes. You may get lucky though and find someone who needs a good 4 door shell and would pay you a premium.

That rule about having to pass SMOG before you sell a car in CA if after 14 days from last smog is crazy to me though. I never heard of that. You might have to fix the car yourself. Drop the oil pan and replace the bearing in question (if you can). That might be enough to get you to pass. Good luck man! Hope you don't have too much money tied up in this thing.

 

[SpeedTechnik]

Only if he filed a claim from his insurance and the value to replace/repair his own car (not the others guys car) met the requirements to (certain percentage of cars total value) deem salvage. If he never claimed it and his insurance never came to inspect it, it should still have a clear title. ... At least that's how it worked the last few states i've lived in (Not CA).




OP, if it were me. I'd walk away from your car or make an offer for shell only. As a buyer i'd assume this car has been rodded on and would require a major engine over haul or replacement. If the whole car was mint with a bad motor, i'd offer you around $400-$600. That's my opinion of value in my eyes. You may get lucky though and find someone who needs a good 4 door shell and would pay you a premium.

That rule about having to pass SMOG before you sell a car in CA if after 14 days from last smog is crazy to me though. I never heard of that. You might have to fix the car yourself. Drop the oil pan and replace the bearing in question (if you can). That might be enough to get you to pass. Good luck man! Hope you don't have too much money tied up in this thing.

If he didn't have a claim placed or the other party and had things fixed on personal terms then he would have a clean title and can maybe sell it for more but I highly doubt that anyone here wouldn't notice the damage. Checking the chassis is the first thing most people do here because we know the deals people make in order to not have to pay more for their insurance. At best, he can maybe fool a kid into buying but how much can a teen offer anyways?

The smog requirements here are very stringent, but there are always ways to get around it. Say I just renewed my plates and passed smog 10 days ago, if I get a rod knock and want to sell it. I have 4 days or the rest of the month to sell it without smog; otherwise I have to conduct a smog check for emissions for the sale or non op the car and sale as is.

 

[AlaskaB16]

I'm not suggesting he try and sell it hiding an accident. In my eyes, as a buyer if I know a car had been in a accident, I'll still at least look it over. If it's got a salvage title though, I won't even call the guy. I have bought a few salvage/reconstructed title cars before in the past but only because they were sold so cheap that I knew I could still flip them for profit. Normally though, for me, accident = ok. Salvage = walk away.

It's still crazy to me that California's vote in all these laws and things that make life so much more difficult. I would LOVE to live in the San Diego area (and some day I may) but it just pains me to have to jump through so many hoops

 

[95_Civic_4dr]

Well I wasn't expecting more than $1,000 out of it. It's a great car, no issues other than the rod knock. I was taking a closer look at it this morning and found that one of the parts of our valve train where the valve cover screws go into shattered. The front left one was heli-coiled after being stripped a couple years ago, I pulled the valve cover off to find that one shattered so I'm pretty sure metal got into the oil system and tore up a bearing.

It actually still has a clean title, the damage wasn't so severe that the insurance company deemed it as salvage.

I'd get it smogged but honestly I don't think it'd make it to the smog shop. And even if I towed it I wouldn't be surprised if it threw a rod in the techs face. So I wasn't sure what to do with smog. I guess I can do the non operation thing and sell it like that, or just part it out and take the rest to an auto recycler. Really it's only good to someone wanting to do an engine swap or willing to rebuild the Z6, I think I'd get most out of someone who's into these cars rather than the general public.

You might have to fix the car yourself. Drop the oil pan and replace the bearing in question (if you can). That might be enough to get you to pass. Good luck man! Hope you don't have too much money tied up in this thing.

At this point I'm kind of just done with it lol. I'm capable of doing the repair and I love the car but I just can't keep dropping money into it anymore.

 

[SpeedTechnik]

Well I wasn't expecting more than $1,000 out of it. It's a great car, no issues other than the rod knock. I was taking a closer look at it this morning and found that one of the parts of our valve train where the valve cover screws go into shattered. The front left one was heli-coiled after being stripped a couple years ago, I pulled the valve cover off to find that one shattered so I'm pretty sure metal got into the oil system and tore up a bearing.

It actually still has a clean title, the damage wasn't so severe that the insurance company deemed it as salvage.

I'd get it smogged but honestly I don't think it'd make it to the smog shop. And even if I towed it I wouldn't be surprised if it threw a rod in the techs face. So I wasn't sure what to do with smog. I guess I can do the non operation thing and sell it like that, or just part it out and take the rest to an auto recycler. Really it's only good to someone wanting to do an engine swap or willing to rebuild the Z6, I think I'd get most out of someone who's into these cars rather than the general public.


At this point I'm kind of just done with it lol. I'm capable of doing the repair and I love the car but I just can't keep dropping money into it anymore.

Who knows the damage that can lay further into the engine and etc. Certainly not for the general public and even an enthusiast wouldn't pay a lot of money for it. I tune cars constantly and do many engine swaps for different applications and drivetrains; And I wouldn't pay anything over 800 and would consider 500 a fair price.

 

[95_Civic_4dr]

Who knows the damage that can lay further into the engine and etc.

Yeah that's partly why I'm done with it. When a large piece of metal like what I found gets lost inside the engine, all kinds of fears start popping up. I'm just gonna part it out and send the rest to the junk yard. I could probably get more out of the rims alone than I could selling the car in it's entirety.