I currently have a 93 Vigor which has 222,000 miles on it. It's still running but is getting the usual Honda rust of death. I was looking into getting an RL to replace it. I've found one that has 138,000 miles on it, body is in good condition with no rust. Seller is not sure if timing belt has been replaced yet or not. Also says that rear window regulator is bad and ABS is not working. He is asking 5k. The RL would just be an extra car for me as I already have an 06 Accord. Do you think the 5k is too high with the pending things that need to be fixed? What other issues should I be looking for? Are these older RL known to be money pits after they get higher mileage? I want to make the guy a fair offer, but I don't want to buy something that I'm going to have to dump a lot of cash into right off the bat...espeically since having an extra car is a luxury not a need.

TIA

 

Also I just spoke to him and he says the ABS is not working. I would assume that this would be a bad speed sensor as I've had these go out on my vigor. Think this car is one I should completely avoid? What would be a reasonable offer?

 

try offering $3,500 to start shoot a low ball, and see if you can get it for less than $4,500. bring cash. My RL has 110K miles with an issue. I do drive that one hard also.

 

I agree with this, although I wouldn't put more than $4k in it. At that price, it would be worth it to fix it up and have a nice car. That is assuming it has good tires, paint, interior, etc. Timing belt will run you about $900 to $1000 at the Acura dealer in Cary.

 

After more thought about the 96, I was thinking to maybe avoid it. I don't know whats wrong with the ABS and if the timing belt hasn't been done yet, that would add more expense. Even if he gave it to me for 4k, I'd probably have to put some serious money into it to get it back to ideal condition. Not sure if it's worth it on a car that has a 11 year old body that will probably start rusting soon.

I'm now looking at a 99 RL with 149,000 miles on it. Owner wanted 7k for it but he's willing to go to 6,300. Timing belt has already been done. No warning lights on. Car is in pretty good condition but it does have a nice amount of stone chips on the front bumper. Anybody know how much it would cost to spray the bumper on a navy blue RL? Anyway I am a little concerned with the mileage. The current owner said he is the third ower of the car. He purchased from a guy who bought it off a pharmaceutical rep which seems to coincide with the autocheck report I ran. It shows the majority of the miles on the car racked up in the first few years of ownership. So my guess would be that most of the miles are in fact highway miles. Should the mileage deter me on this car? Is it worth $6,300? Anything to look for in particular on the 99?