5th gen ??'sShould I get One??

[ny2lv]

Hi,

I'm new here!One day I was looking through my local auto trader and I came across an add for a 1995 civic coupe with low miles and an auto trans for $3300.I thought to my self that sounds like a hella good deal.Because my budget 1st car spending range is $5000 and if I get something that cheap I would have $1700 to put into the car!Do you people think this is a good deal or should I look for something else?To tell you the truth I was going to get an 1995 eclipse for $5000 because I always liked DSMs and I never really was Honda fan, well for their cars at least,I love their ATVs! I'm willing to give Honda a chance though because of their price,reliability,and tons of aftermarket part availibilities.I have a few ?'s for you civic people and I'm sorry if they are dumb,but I really need to know because I don't want to end up with a car I would regret.My questions are:

1.Do 1995 civic coupes have power steering?

2.Do they have alot of room?Because I'm a pretty big dude!6FT 240Lbs!

3.My last question!Stock for stock how do you think 5th gen. civics compare to 2gen.(1995-1999) Eclipse N/As in terms of handling,performance potential,and interior space?That is all the ?'s I have now and I'm sorry if they are dumb or have been asked before,but I really need your input!



Thanks,
D.A.C.

 

[Dakkon]

dont get an automatic, youl regret it....id did and now I have to find a new car

 

[ny2lv]

What is wrong with the auto trannies?

 

[Dakkon]

everything?....hmm Im sure some one else whats to write up the page about the reason to pick manual over auto.

 

[M706]

get a manual.....i made the mistake of not waiting and getting my car cause i needed it bad....now i'm stuck with the auto

 

[Declectic]

stock for stock the DSM is going to ANALIHATE (sp?) a 95 civic ex coupe... why because no honda coupe comes with a DOHC engine in it, but the 99-00 Civic Si...

with that engine, thats what most people with fast 5thgens drop in.. that or a b18c1 (gsr engine). so to make it fast, you goin to have to get a swap into that EX and supe up the engine from there.

the swap alone could cost up to $2500 .. but with a b16a2 bone stock in a 95ex... should be hittin LOW 15's maybe even kissing the 14's...

from there you could go turbo on that engine and have a turbo car like a the DSM come stock with. or you could go NA (but thats VERY Expensive)

DSM are tight tho, preferably the 99GSX rockZ0rZ my boXZ0rZ ... nice car with plenty of potenial...

it really comes down to what do YOU want.. the Eclipse...or the Civic... which one piques your interest more, and so forth...

EDIT: yeah and get a manual civic, that way you dont have to do a conversion when you get the new engine... auto just is ghey and slower.. and so forth
good luck searchin for the civic u want, keep us posted

 

[BioHazard the Reaper]

yeah ask rice4brainz about autos lol....and also yeah dsm is going to spank the civic, and its funny to becuase lots of peeps when they swap their civic motor, go and buy a dsm turbo while they save up for a bigger one, if i had 5g for a car id buy a civic coupe, then swap the motor...civic are lighter than DSM's am i right, correct me if not....but thats what id do....and yeah autos = NO NO NO....if manuals are better becuase they are cheaper to fix(the have half the parts as a auto)autos arent that good for drag racing unless its like a seqeuential, but you aint gonna get one of those, and manuals are just plain fun

 

[Handlebars]

Originally posted by SeanJohn1802
stock for stock the DSM is going to ANALIHATE (sp?) a 95 civic ex coupe... why because no honda coupe comes with a DOHC engine in it, but the 99-00 Civic Si...

not really true. the dohc n/a dsm motor is a 2.0l with 130 hp, only 5 more than the civic ex coupes d16z6. and the eclipse weighs about 500 lbs more than the civic. a guy i work with has a 97 talon rs with that motor, and while it has a bit more torque than mine, it certainly is no faster, nor does it handle any better. i personally feel my civic is superior in the twisties than that car. honda auto trannys are pretty crappy, they suck a lot of power, they are extremely weak, and they are not smooth by any means. the manual is just better no matter how you look at it. the n/a dsm motors are ok, but the turbo motors and drivelines are garbage in terms of reliability.l the turbo motor- 4g63 is incredibly strong, with the bottom end able to handle about 500 hp stock. but they break down a lot, even unmodded. also the trannys and transfer cases (on the awd models) are very weak, and they break with alarming frequency. go to any dsm board and seach for broken trannys or post up a thread, and they will tell you what your up against with a turbo dsm. the 2g (95-99) dsm turbo motors -4g63, especially the 95-97's have a terrible problem with crankwalk, and if your car has it your only option is to swap or get the whole bottom end rebuilt. as for interior room, im 6'1 170 lbs with long ass legs and i fit into my civic just fine. the ex model civics do have power steering, but if you drive a lower end model, you'll find that you really dont need it, it only helps at parking lot speeds. the civic stock is a pretty low performing car- as is the n/a dsm, but imo the civic has more potential to be whatever you want it to be. the dsm motor does not take well to a turbo (the n/a motor) and swapping in a turbo is quite difficult compared to swapping a b series into a civic. i dont remember the specifics off the top of my head, but its definitely not a bolt in swap. honda motors, especially the d16z6 in the 92-95 civic ex and si and all b series motors take very well to turbos and can put out some monster hp with only a little bit of boost. several companies make turbo kits that, on an otherwise stock b18c or b16a, make in excess of 300 wheel hp at about 8 psi of boost (the stock 1g dsm's boost to 12? psi and the 2g's are like 14 psi. but dont quote me on that im not entirely sure of the exact numbers) to make 190 and 210 crank hp, respectively. if you want a drag car for cheap, no question get a turbo dsm. if you want something thats going to be a good, reliable daily driver, but more expensive to mod and with better handling, get the civic.

 

[Linguistics]

Originally posted by BioHazard
yeah ask rice4brainz about autos

get a manual IMO, then you dont have to mess with the crap that i have to and dont have to do the swap that im going to do

 

[Shiznit]

IMO get a manual. if your straying away from a manual because you dont know how to drive one. its really not hard to learn i think there was a post on here a while back explaining how to do it. but definetly go with a manual for any car that you get.

 

[caddy]

Originally posted by handlebarsfsr
not really true. the dohc n/a dsm motor is a 2.0l with 130 hp, only 5 more than the civic ex coupes d16z6. and the eclipse weighs about 500 lbs more than the civic. a guy i work with has a 97 talon rs with that motor, and while it has a bit more torque than mine, it certainly is no faster, nor does it handle any better. i personally feel my civic is superior in the twisties than that car. honda auto trannys are pretty crappy, they suck a lot of power, they are extremely weak, and they are not smooth by any means. the manual is just better no matter how you look at it. the n/a dsm motors are ok, but the turbo motors and drivelines are garbage in terms of reliability.l the turbo motor- 4g63 is incredibly strong, with the bottom end able to handle about 500 hp stock. but they break down a lot, even unmodded. also the trannys and transfer cases (on the awd models) are very weak, and they break with alarming frequency. go to any dsm board and seach for broken trannys or post up a thread, and they will tell you what your up against with a turbo dsm. the 2g (95-99) dsm turbo motors -4g63, especially the 95-97's have a terrible problem with crankwalk, and if your car has it your only option is to swap or get the whole bottom end rebuilt. as for interior room, im 6'1 170 lbs with long ass legs and i fit into my civic just fine. the ex model civics do have power steering, but if you drive a lower end model, you'll find that you really dont need it, it only helps at parking lot speeds. the civic stock is a pretty low performing car- as is the n/a dsm, but imo the civic has more potential to be whatever you want it to be. the dsm motor does not take well to a turbo (the n/a motor) and swapping in a turbo is quite difficult compared to swapping a b series into a civic. i dont remember the specifics off the top of my head, but its definitely not a bolt in swap. honda motors, especially the d16z6 in the 92-95 civic ex and si and all b series motors take very well to turbos and can put out some monster hp with only a little bit of boost. several companies make turbo kits that, on an otherwise stock b18c or b16a, make in excess of 300 wheel hp at about 8 psi of boost (the stock 1g dsm's boost to 12? psi and the 2g's are like 14 psi. but dont quote me on that im not entirely sure of the exact numbers) to make 190 and 210 crank hp, respectively. if you want a drag car for cheap, no question get a turbo dsm. if you want something thats going to be a good, reliable daily driver, but more expensive to mod and with better handling, get the civic.

Hit the nail on the head. The Turbo DSM's are in our shop often for computer, electronics, and turbo problems. You'll get far better reliability out of a honda (provided the previous owner took care of it). The Civic suspension is superior to most cars in its class or above it's class in that matter. My favorite quote from SCC mag:

"My first experience flogging the car came when trying to chase a bunch of tuner WRXs through the twisties up a mountain pass just hours after buying the car. How impressive that Honda engineers placed a double-wishbone suspension in a cheap shitbox; even with ass tires, the car rotated when asked and provided an impressive ride."

Let me put it this way. If you're really set on the DSM then get the civic as your first car, gain experience with it as it will be much more forgiving. You will have loads of aftermarket support for a good price, the potential will be there even if you have to build it slowly over time, and its a proven car. And if it's still to slow, while that yenko camaro is tailing you and laughing at you, lure him into the twisties and give him the finger.

 

[terceltyler]

i tried to drive a manual 2 weekx ago it was a POS car but it stalled goin into 1st gear and it was the wrong battery and the elctric circuit was completed by a pair of vice grips

 

[ny2lv]

Thanks people for your replies!I feel much better abut wanting to get a civic.To tell you the truth I kind of have to get a auto because I never learned to drive a stick shift and everyone I know drives autos,well except for my dad,but I'm not about to ask him because he is an A-hole,me and him don't really get along.My mom can't because she hasn't drove one for 20 years.I could always pay to get lessons ,but why would I do that because what ever money I get I want to put into my Civic.You see where I'm coming from?BTW isn't there a way to make the auto trannies stronger?What about Level Ten performance?Also I'm really not looking for a dragracing super car.I really just want a car to get me to A-B and will last through my last year of high school and college.Most of my money was going to go into sound or the appearance of the car.I would like to up grade the engine also,but I need your guy's help!So what do you guys think?

Thanks,
D.A.C
8)

 

[Shiznit]

yeah thats what i kinda figured why you didnt want to get a manual. lessons = waste of money. it took my one day of driving my car on the road to learn how to drive a stick. i still suggest you get the stick. theres no point in putting money into your engine for more speed if you have an auto. look at i think its rice4brains. i believe hes trying to do an auto to manual conversion on his car.

 

[Wessy]

Get thee sen an auto ( Brit speak )
Translation : Get yourself one with an automatic gearbox.

I've drove manuals for over thirty years and have had to swop
over to auto because I have detached tendons in my elbow,
trying to select reverse in a manual gearbox for me is almost
impossible.

Going back to the original question, manual EVERY time both
for performance and cost should the box go wrong. I understand
also that cars fitted with automatic transmission tend to use
more petrol. I never know whether the Vtec ( spelt right this time ! ) is kicking in or whether the 'box has down shifted.

Whats a DSM ?

Brit Speak :
Hood = Bonnet
Fender = Bumper
Windshield = Windscreen
German Speak :
Das Flipin Flopin Winscreen Woshin = WIndscreen Wipers

Have you any more different words for car components ?:grin:

 

[Wessy]

Whilst we're at it, can anyone explain the following mystery ?

Why is there only ever ONE glove on the park railings ?

Oh, and you lads have got some funny ways of spelling

Tires well that is spelt Tyres

Color, we spell it Colour

 

[Je]

IMO manual owns!

 

[caddy]

Originally posted by Wessy
Get thee sen an auto ( Brit speak )
Translation : Get yourself one with an automatic gearbox.

I've drove manuals for over thirty years and have had to swop
over to auto because I have detached tendons in my elbow,
trying to select reverse in a manual gearbox for me is almost
impossible.

Going back to the original question, manual EVERY time both
for performance and cost should the box go wrong. I understand
also that cars fitted with automatic transmission tend to use
more petrol. I never know whether the Vtec ( spelt right this time ! ) is kicking in or whether the 'box has down shifted.

Whats a DSM ?

Brit Speak :
Hood = Bonnet
Fender = Bumper
Windshield = Windscreen
German Speak :
Das Flipin Flopin Winscreen Woshin = WIndscreen Wipers

Have you any more different words for car components ?:grin:

DSM = Diamond Star Motor Vehicles

Diamond = Mitsubishi
Star = Chrysler

DSM is the name of their cross platform vehicles. Someone correct me if i'm wrong.

 

[ny2lv]

Thanks guys,but what about torq converters and shift kits or other stuff from level ten performance wouldn't that help the auto tranny?

 

[Handlebars]

that stuff will help, yes, but no matter how much custom work you do on the tranny, it simply wont be as strong as a manual. they just cannot handle the forces induced by a high performance engine. autos also suck a lot of power from a small engine, and that power decrease is amplified when you mod the car. just trust us on this one, unless you want to get a v8, stick with a manual transmission.