The 93 civic was my third car which I got from one of my friends as a standby car around 7 years back. Back then it already had 120,000 miles on it. However soon because of its reliability and its wonderful fuel efficiency I made it my daily driver and for the past 7 years it has given me zero major issues. The best thing is you can beat on this car as much as you want and still this car wont break down. I have done off roading with this car and gone on several long trips with my friends in this car. It has never left me stranded.
Although looks wise the 93 civic might not be the best one out of the three that I have but after calculating the total savings I have been able to make out of this car I would say that a bit of bad looks would be ok with me. Even now when it has 207,000 miles on it it seems as good as new. For those who would like to get a bang for the buck and want a car with zero maintenance issues this can be a good alternative. I intend to take it to at least 300k and would be giving a grand party for this car once it reaches there.
1. Tuning/Modding
2. Sale
3. Rating
4. Maintenance tips
This is a cool video of a civic doing a 1/4 mile in 11 sec in the drag racing.
Tuning
This is a great car when you go for tuning. You have lots of options available and you can get inexpensive parts easily. You can get good tuning information from "Torquecars" and "hondatuningmagazine" for your 93 civic. Also you can participate in forums like "hondaswap".
For those who want to keep it as a daily driver but want to add minor boost to its performance you can go for following changes:
Exhaust upgrade: Engine needs to be well aspirated. It should have an easy way of throwing out the used gases. Wider pipes made of stainless steel help in this process. Just by changing the exhaust pipes you can add around 7-10 hp to your total power. Besides this it is a must if you go for higher upgrades like turbo.
This was the first upgrade I did in my 93 civic.
Intake valve: Intake valve handles the most important function of controlling the fuel and air mixture within the engine. When going for a upgrade here almost all of them follow a simple process of getting more oxygen for combustion of the fuel. The cooler air has greater density and hence is able to burn well with the fuel thus boosting the overall performance.
Brakes: They are the most important item in any car. If you want to go very fast you should also be able to stop very fast. The basic mechanism is that when you push the brakes a servo is activated which increases the pressure in the brake lines which are filled with brake fluid. As the fluid does not compress it passes its pressure to the brake pads which push against the brake disks. It is the friction between the pads and the disks which causes the car to stop. As most of the work is done by the pads these are the major item to be upgraded. There are three types of brake pads the budget pads, oem pads and performance pads.
The budget pads have longer life however this comes at the price of having lesser friction surface thus reduced braking power. The oem pads are good and should be used on the roads as they have been built with exact specification. For major track days or heavy racing environment it would be better to go for performance pads. The standard pads in these cases would simply burn on heavy use or will need change frequently. Performance pads are able to work at very high temperature however the flip side is they do not work nicely when cold hence are not very suitable on road but for track these are very good option.
For those who want to go for major power boost and want to convert it into a performance car you can go for following changes.
Engine Swap: while going for an engine swap it is always best to fix a upper limit on your budget. Most of the times you will find huge number of options and each having its price and its unique benefits. You can either go for B16A1, B16A2, B16A3. The main attractiveness of these are they are cheap, easily available and the labor required would be lower. You can have a B16A1 for $1200, B16A2 for $2000-$2500 and the newer B16A3 for around the price of $3k. If you have a higher budget you can go for B16B. This is the rarest of the civic type r engine producing a whopping 185 hp@ 8200rpm and a good 120lb-ft of torque @ 7600 rpm. This would be a very respected mod in the tuning circles and a great magnet for thieves.
This is a nice video demonstrating the motor change in a 93 civic.
Turbo: This is another great option for those going for a bit higher budget. It allows greater input of air into the engine thus giving higher fuel burning opportunity. However this requires some other significant changes. You will have to reduce the compression ratio to prevent detonation of the fuel within the engine. Custom exhaust headers would be required for this and the air intake pipe would need to be taken through the turbo. Also you might see there is a turbo lag that is the turbo takes a while before it kicks into its peak performance. In case of a 93 civic keep this only if you want to go all out in converting it into a performance car.
Body kits: these are used not only for improving the looks but also help in giving better aerodynamics to the car if done properly. However do not go for heavy mods here as the car can end up looking bad aesthetically.
You can search for either of these parts on net and you can find very good parts sale companies, many doing custom tuning if you have a bit higher budget. You can go to following sites for parts:
Horsepowerfreaks
Slickcar
However do take into account the long term cost while going for the upgrades because once you convert it into a performance car you might need to go for regular maintenance and the wear and tear of parts might also be greater.
Sale Price/Comparison
You can purchase a 93 civic on internet from following sites:
Lemonfree
Autos.aol
Besides this you can also go for following cars while going for a used car:
Toyota Corolla
Subaru Impreza
Mazda Protege
| Name | 93 Honda Civic | 93 Toyota Corolla | 93 Subaru Impreza | 93 Mazda Protege |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Retail Price | $2,885 | $2,325 | $1,950 | $2, 175 |
| Private Party Price | $1,985 | $1,500 | $1,150 | $1, 375 |
| Estimated Payments | $55 /mo @ 4.99% APR | $44 /mo @ 4.99% APR | $37 /mo @ 4.99% APR | $42 /mo @ 4.99% APR |
| Gas Mileage | 29 mpg City / 36 mpg Hwy | 23 mpg City / 31 mpg | 22 mpg City / 29 mpg Hwy | 24 mpg City / 33 mpg Hwy |
| Engine | 4-Cyl,VTEC, 1.6 Liter | 4-Cyl, 1.6 Liter | 4-Cyl, 1.8 Liter | 4-Cyl, 1.8 Liter |
| Transmission | 5-Spd Manual | 5-Spd Manual | 5-Spd Manual | 5-Spd Manual |
You can look for further price information at "Kelly blue book" site
Rating:
1. Performance(8/10): This is a great car with a good engine which you can rev nicely. While in the city you can zip around easily and it can give extra power on the highways easily. Adding a turbo or doing an engine swap with B18C1 or B18C5 would turn it into a real monster.
2. Comfort(8/10): This is quite a comfortable ride. You can go on long trips in this and you will not feel a lack of space in passenger area or in the cargo. I have taken my friends on long trips with lots of material without any worry.
3. Fuel Economy(10/10): This is one of the chief reasons why civic are one of the most sought after cars and the major reason which has allowed it to establish itself in America. I get 29 city/34 highway mpg from my 93 civic.
4. Fun to Drive(9/10): I like beating on this car. During the earlier years I used to take it off roads and other things. It allows you good amount of experimentation.
5. Design(9/10): I like the overall design. With a good paint job it looks as good as new. The interiors are also good and there is very little tear.
6. Build Quality(10/10): there is not a single area where the quality has been compromised. The engineers have been able to put a good car within the budget and you will not find parts falling apart even at high mileage.
7. Reliability(10/10): this is one of the most reliable cars in the market. If you need a daily driver which is easy on your pocket and does not give maintenance issues than this car is very good.
Maintenance Tips:
Engine oil: you should check if the engine oil is dirty or is below the requisite level required. It is generally advised to change it every 3000 miles.
Engine coolant: Again changing this twice a year is a good thing so that silt does not build up in the coolant system.
Automatic transmission fluid: This fluid needs to be changed every 30000 miles. This is because the fluid has to undergo a lot of friction when the fluid moves in the torque converter and because of the friction of gears and bearing.
Tire Pressure: Do check the tire pressure regularly as it can save good cash on tire maintenance and the overall car ride would be much better. Check it with a tire gauge or at your local mechanic shop.
Do regular inspection: Through my brief experience in cars I have learnt that sticking with the maintenance schedule helps in saving a lot of cash in the long run and would prevent you from unnecessary car repair trips to the dealer.
For general maintenance queries for your 93 civic you can visit Repairpal.
Overall I would give this car a 9/10.
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