Hi I'm new here and a new Civic owner, my Dad and I just bought me a 1999 Civic LX Sedan with a manual transmission for my second year of college and I was curious what are the best things I can do to keep it in good running order and get it to last. Right now it has 150,000 miles on it and it runs real nice, just some exterior dings (alright since its going to be a college car) and like 1 small interier hole on the ceiling. It also has brand new tires. But again, what would be things for me to watch for and maintain/service to keep the car running past 300,000 miles? Thanks.

 

just do your oil changes whenever u have to, your transmission fluid also, and your filters air,fuel etc. you can also buy a haynes or chilton manual and it shows you how to do all these types of stuff. i have a 98 dx sedan and it runs great the only major thing i needed done was a leaking head gasket dont know how that happend but just treat your car like a lady and you will be fine good luck

 

1st thing to do is to get the hole i dont really know how to fix holes in ceiling i would say use Bondo but i dont think u can use bondo for ceiling than i wouls say use some silicon bu im not sure about tht too..
next is if u change ur oil when ur suppose to and listen for any signs of a problem than u should be good.

becasue cars usualy try to give u a sign when something is goin bad beleive it or not

 

Change the oil, timing belt and transmission fluid unless you have records from the previous owner showing those are up to date. Also if your brake fluid is old and dark brown, change it.

Keep a close watch on those tires; if they start to wear unevenly have the alignment checked. Pretty common for dealers to just slap new tires on to get the car sold without fixing the underlying issue.

 

Change all fluids at soon as possible.
Cheapest and most important thing that you can do.
Complete tune up is also a great idea asap...

 

Most important thing is to make sure the timing belt has been changed. It should be done about every 100K miles or the engine could be junked if it snaps.

Get yourself a Factory Service Manual, especially if you don't have an owner's manual. Consult the manuals for service intervals and items. Keep the fluids/lubes fresh and full, the belts and hoses in good shape, the filters clean, and the sparkplugs and wires within spec. Check your brakes occasionally, fix small problems before they become big problems, and don't beat on the car.

You can fix the ceiling if you look at various autoparts stores for a repair kit. A cheap security measure is to pull the fuelpump fuse when you parkso the car isn't easily stolen.

 

The car didn't come with any manual. Where can I get a Service Manual for the car?

 

Unless you're going to do major work yourself, you just need an owner's manual for the schedule. Should be able to get one cheap or free at a dealer.

 

When my dad and I bought the car, we were told that the timing belt and water pump should be changed within the next 10,000 miles since they aren't sure of the exact time that it was last changed. I'm also told that those last 90,000 miles. They said they could do it for $350. Is that a good price? and how soon should it be done?

 

Well there's two possibilities. Either it was done at 90,000 miles, so you're not due until 180,000 (but it certainly wouldn't hurt to do it immediately), or it wasn't done, in which case you need to do it immediately. The 10,000 miles doesn't really make much sense here. The price is not bad but you should get a new tension roller as well as the belt and water pump. This is a job that any third-party garage can do so shop around but do specify that genuine Honda parts be used,they are notextremelymore expensive than aftermarket.