Jason Johnson wrote:
> In article <wsednbSCB7jWSOXZRVn-tw@speakeasy.net>, jim beam
> <nospam@example.net> wrote:
>
> Jason Johnson wrote:
> > In article <Ze2eg.82467$F_3.12351@newssvr29.news.prodigy.net> , "hondaman"
> > <jeffscomp@hotmail.com> wrote:
> >
> > i may be buying a 1991 accord that has 274,049 miles on it. the timing belt
> > and water pump have already been replaced probably for the 2nd time in its
> > life about 40,000 miles ago. the auto trans shifts ok. is there anything to
> > be extra concerned about with a car with that high of miles on it engine
> > wise. the body is better than some with lower miles that old.
> >
> > -jeff
> >
> > You may want to have it checked by a mechanic. A compression check should
> > be done. Many engines that have 274,049 miles have what I refer to as "bad
> > rings" and that's an expensive problem to fix.
>
> come on guy, how much honda mechanical experience do you have? be
> honest. you can have /very/ high mileage hondas that are almost
> perfect. similarly, you can have near new ones that are duds. chances
> are, if the vehicle's got this far, it's ok. it's all about
> maintenance standards. nothing else matters. and compression testing
> is pretty much a waste of time unless you've got some academic interest.
> minor variance means nothing. substantial variance you can usually
> hear on cold cranking. low compression is apparent from excessive
> blow-by, and even then, if the car's cheap and only going to be run for
> a year or so, so what? it'll still work, and keep on working for a
> /long/ time.
>
> > You may also want to run a carfax report on it--don't buy it if it has
> > ever been involved in a accidents. Bent frames are VERY expensive to fix.
>
> again, on a car this vintage, wtf does a carfax mean? if it had a
> reported repair year one, but has lasted the subsequent 14 years ok,
> then what? is it a lemon because it was repaired, even if the repair
> was factory standard? how does carfax help you differentiate between a
> good repair and a bad one??? carfax is utterly irrelevant at this stage
> - it's only possible value is on a nearly new car to see if it's a
> re-build or not, and even then, only as a price factor.
>
> > You might have someone else start the car while you watch the exhaust
> > pipe. If black smoke comes out--don't buy it.
>
> if the cat's cold, maybe. but if you're looking for oil consumption,
> oil gives blue smoke, not black. black is excess fuel, and that could
> be normal operation. catalysts mask a multitude of sins.
>
> > Mechanics can easily determine if an engine has a cracked head
> > gasket--therefore, have the mechanic check that--that's also very
> > expensive to repair.
>
> that's stating the obvious - advice on diagnosis would be much more helpful.
>
> >
> > try carfax.com or google Car Fax or carfax
>
> don't waste the money.
>
> Jim,
> I usually agree with your posts and I have also learned a lot from the
> posts of other real mechanics that post in this newsgroup. I am nothing
> more than a back yard mechanic. However, I disagree with you related to
> this car. Bad rings are a serious issue related to cars that have 274,049
> miles on them. We have both followed old cars down the freeway or
> interstate and seen black or blue smoke smoke coming out of the exhaust
> pipes. You don't see black smoke or blue smoke coming out of the exhaust
> pipes of most newer vehicles. I would not advise anyone (unless they were
> a mechanic) to buy a car that has bad rings. The best way of discovering
> bad rings is by conducting a compression check. Do you know of a better
> way of checking the rings other than a compression check? I would not buy
> a car if black smoke or blue smoke came out of the exhaust pipe. An engine
> that is working normally should have almost no smoke coming out of the
> exhaust pipe. I was referring to excessive amounts of smoke in my post--I
> should have been more clear on that point. The reason that I mentioned the
> carfax report was to help the poster avoid buying a car that had been
> involved in an accident. As you know, a bent frame is a major problem.
> jason

1. while high mileage can mean worn rings, worn rings do not mean high
mileage - mileage alone is not an indication of ring condition. and
cracked rings are another story entirely independent of mileage.

2. there are several reasons for blue smoke - rings is only one. black
smoke is something entirely different again and /nothing/ to do with
rings. and you /do/ see smoke on newer vehicles if there's something
wrong with them - just like older vehicles.

3. a carfax report doesn't tell you if the frame is bent. period. on a
car this age, it's an utter waste of money.

you have yet to make a single posting here of any value. even something
like "get aaa to do an inspection" would be more helpful that bleating
about a bunch of stuff you don't know about but irrationally fear or
worse, spending money on something you don't need and that won't help.