Big A Posted October 10, 2008 Report Share Posted October 10, 2008 Well Im looking for a new car and after looking today the best cars i could find that meet my needs include a 98 civic with 100K miles and a 2001 Corolla with 94K miles. Both are very close in price. The civic has some hail damage, has been hit in the rear end, new tires and is one owner. The corolla had some some small scratches but nothing major i could see. I didn't get the car fax from them yet so I'm not sure if it has been wrecked or not. Which would you go with? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghost face Posted October 10, 2008 Report Share Posted October 10, 2008 I'd go with the civic, more readily available parts for cheap, along with huge forums for any troubleshooting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zach1647545520 Posted October 10, 2008 Report Share Posted October 10, 2008 I'd go with the civic if the rear end isn't too bad along with hail damage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave1647545494 Posted October 10, 2008 Report Share Posted October 10, 2008 the toyota sounds like its in better shape has similar repair costs and gets about the same mileage Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sparky Posted October 10, 2008 Report Share Posted October 10, 2008 Corolla sounds like a much better deal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2 Sweet Posted October 10, 2008 Report Share Posted October 10, 2008 Personal preferences aside, and going by the details at hand, I would pick the car with the higher value (which seems to be the Corolla in this instance) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drewhop Posted October 10, 2008 Report Share Posted October 10, 2008 Corolla for the win Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sol740 Posted October 10, 2008 Report Share Posted October 10, 2008 Corolla. Great DD. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hpfiend Posted October 10, 2008 Report Share Posted October 10, 2008 I say civic as I prefer hondas to toyotas but does the toyota also have a timing chain issue at this mileage point? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest tbutera2112 Posted October 10, 2008 Report Share Posted October 10, 2008 the civic has more miles, hail damage, and its been hit in the rear....the corolla is newer, less miles, and im better condition....this should be a no brainer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farkas Posted October 10, 2008 Report Share Posted October 10, 2008 I say civic as I prefer hondas to toyotas but does the toyota also have a timing chain issue at this mileage point? No Corollas are going to retain value much better than the Civic. Finding parts is the same if not easier than a honda... BUT I am pretty biased even though hondas are great cars. ONLY, thing I will recommend is making sure that corolla doesn't burn oil.. the 1zz had problems with rings going bad- particularly that year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wease Posted October 10, 2008 Report Share Posted October 10, 2008 Corolla. I've got a '94 Geo Prizm (a rebadged Corolla) with 204K miles on it and it runs/drives near perfect. I usually buy American, but Toyota has got its shit together with reliability... :nod: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DKilbourne Posted October 10, 2008 Report Share Posted October 10, 2008 No Corollas are going to retain value much better than the Civic. Finding parts is the same if not easier than a honda... BUT I am pretty biased even though hondas are great cars. ONLY, thing I will recommend is making sure that corolla doesn't burn oil.. the 1zz had problems with rings going bad- particularly that year. Do the corollas hold value better than a civic? My wife had her civic for 4 years and someone hit her and totalled the car. She got a check for $2,000 less than what she payed for it four years earlier. She bought the car new, in case that question comes up. I have never seen a car hold value like that. If the corolla is better, then they must be paying almost what people payed for them in a similar situation. I am also with Sean on the whole Geo Prizm/Toyota corolla thing though. I just picked up a 92 prizm that has 150,000 on it and it seems to be in very good working condition. Hopefully it lasts atleast as long as his. Can't really go wrong with either car. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FourString Posted October 10, 2008 Report Share Posted October 10, 2008 I vote for the Civic. I am currently looking for a clean 96-00EX though so I am biased. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Hal Posted October 10, 2008 Report Share Posted October 10, 2008 Corolla, I would rather work on it than a civic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIGGU Posted October 10, 2008 Report Share Posted October 10, 2008 i vote the corolla honestly ive been seeing so many " my civic was stolen" threads and i have yet to see a corolla stolen thread. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
87GT Posted October 10, 2008 Report Share Posted October 10, 2008 Check the wheel bearings on the back end of the civic before you buy. Either one will work well. I would go with the one with less damage but I rather drive a civic. That is just my opinion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big A Posted October 10, 2008 Author Report Share Posted October 10, 2008 Do the corollas hold value better than a civic? My wife had her civic for 4 years and someone hit her and totalled the car. She got a check for $2,000 less than what she payed for it four years earlier. She bought the car new, in case that question comes up. I have never seen a car hold value like that. If the corolla is better, then they must be paying almost what people payed for them in a similar situation. I am also with Sean on the whole Geo Prizm/Toyota corolla thing though. I just picked up a 92 prizm that has 150,000 on it and it seems to be in very good working condition. Hopefully it lasts atleast as long as his. Can't really go wrong with either car. From what I have seen, I believe the civic does hold better value. No Corollas are going to retain value much better than the Civic. Finding parts is the same if not easier than a honda... BUT I am pretty biased even though hondas are great cars. ONLY, thing I will recommend is making sure that corolla doesn't burn oil.. the 1zz had problems with rings going bad- particularly that year. How can i check this on just a simple test drive? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farkas Posted October 10, 2008 Report Share Posted October 10, 2008 From what I have seen, I believe the civic does hold better value. How can i check this on just a simple test drive? Ask the owner if he's ever had any problems with the car.. find out if it's on it's second motor or not and check the oil dipstick to see if it's low. If the car is running, always check for blue smoke, CEL or anything out of the ordinary. I would just ask some simple questions about general maintenance that might give you any hints about how well it was kept. There is a way to tell by looking at the block code if it's the problematic engine or not, I'm looking it up as I type this. They made some changes mid-year to solve the oil burning issues. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big A Posted October 10, 2008 Author Report Share Posted October 10, 2008 Ask the owner if he's ever had any problems with the car.. find out if it's on it's second motor or not and check the oil dipstick to see if it's low. If the car is running, always check for blue smoke, CEL or anything out of the ordinary. I would just ask some simple questions about general maintenance that might give you any hints about how well it was kept. There is a way to tell by looking at the block code if it's the problematic engine or not, I'm looking it up as I type this. They made some changes mid-year to solve the oil burning issues. yea if you could find that out that would be great. im going to look at it and drive it sat i hope. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crossle Posted October 10, 2008 Report Share Posted October 10, 2008 I'd go with the civic, more readily available parts for cheap, along with huge forums for any troubleshooting. I'll agree with the forum comment, but parts are just as readily available for the Corolla's as a Honda and they are just as cheap. Corolla's are less of a cluster fuck to work on as well. I'll take a Toyota over a Honda anyday. My opinion having to work on both on a daily basis. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farkas Posted October 10, 2008 Report Share Posted October 10, 2008 yea if you could find that out that would be great. im going to look at it and drive it sat i hope. Found it for you http://www.toyotanation.com/forum/showthread.php?t=255210&highlight=1zzfe Yes, compression check will tell you if you have the 'loose piston tolerances' 1ZZFE corolla motors. These burn oil. About 5% of the engines from 00-01 era have this issue. Also check your engine serial on the side of the motor. If it ends with -K75ZN, you may likely have an oil burner. The 01-02 corollas/prizms Ive owned with the -K85ZN serial endings have never had any oil burning issues. There is an issue with improper pistons vs. bore tolerance. This causes rings to quickly wear out and an oil burning issue. *EDIT* Just to help out with your decision, consider up-coming maintenance both cars might need. Hondas usually need TB and waterpumps around 100k so I would see if that's been done recently. Timing chains are less worry since the first thing to fail, if they even do, are the chain guides. There are no other common problems with the corolla other than what I had previously stated. Well aware of the oil problem, I was actually in the market for one of these before I bought my VW.. just couldn't find the exact S model that I wanted. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GonneVille Posted October 10, 2008 Report Share Posted October 10, 2008 Civic. Maybe not this particular one, but definitely Civic. Toyotas have no soul. While it may be shriveled, rotten, black, and smell slightly of rotting strawberries, Civics do have a soul. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Jones Posted October 10, 2008 Report Share Posted October 10, 2008 Why does this decision sound like: "Hey guys, should I get the stab in the balls, or the knife in the eye.." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Hal Posted October 10, 2008 Report Share Posted October 10, 2008 Why does this decision sound like: "Hey guys, should I get the stab in the balls, or the knife in the eye.." 'Cause he won't listen to me and buy something sweet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.