Does anyone know if there’s any serious issues on purchasing a used 2005 Honda with 111K miles one it? Could anyone give me suggestions on the questions I should ask the dealer when purchasing a used car with high mileage? What is a 2.4L DOHC MPFI 16-valve i-VTEC I4 engine?
The engine is a 4-cylinder, 16 valve double overhead cam. The engine has been reviewed as reliable but noisy and underpowered. Hondas in general are great cars, and if well maintained can be expected to last well over 100,000 miles, with scheduled and some expected repairs: brakes, timing belt and water pump, some front-end work, etc. But the engine and transmission should be good for at least 200,000 with proper maintenance.
You should get the CarFax information. This will let you know how many owners the car has had (one owner is what you want), whether it was purchased or leased (leased is better), whether or not the car has been in an accident, and will provide you with the car’s maintenance history. I hate to sound like a commercial, but make the dealer provide this information for you, and take it home and read it before you do anything. Do not be pressured by “someone else is coming to look at it tomorrow”, and do not buy it without the CarFax.
You can also go oneline to CarFax and purchase 30 days of unlimited CarFax reports for any car you have found online at any site. Which I recommend. Combine this service with a used car website, looking for the car you want in the price range you want, in your area, by inputting the VIN from each of the advertised cars. You can often get car reviews as well, although they are mostly pertinent to new or fairly new cars.
You can find many reviews of this particular car, at various mileages, at www.Edmunds.com, which is just one of such sites. You can find out how much you should pay for a car at Kelly Blue Book, www.kbb.com.
Do the research online.
As for what to ask the dealer, not much to ask. Your 111,000 would be car is not going to be certified pre-owned, and will be covered by no manufacturer-backed warranty. Many small dealerships offer warranty packages themselves. Investigate the dealer instead, online, using reviews and BBA.
Hope this helps. Don’t be in a big hurry to buy this car, take the time and spend the $30 or so to get the CarFax. I prefer Toyota over Honda, personally, by the way.