It’s 2024 and everyone’s still looking for the next big thing in the collector car market. Hey, we get it, speculation is fun, but the future is hard to predict. However, what I can say right now is that late-’90s Honda Civics are so hip right now. This particular Civic might have very little mileage on it, but aside from that, it didn’t roll out of the factory with inherent specialness. Still, it fetched $10,800 on Cars & Bids; and you can thank two irrefutable facts: 1. People rarely preserve basic commuter cars for 25 years and 2. Nostalgia sells.
See, this 1999 Civic isn’t some rare trim level. It’s one trim up from the cheapest DX sedan, which means it gets a four-speed automatic transmission and air conditioning as its two headline features. Alright, that might not seem lavish by the standards of 2024, but back around the turn of the new millennium, you were a baller if your car had remote locking.
Of course, being one-up from the DX means that this Civic VP features a single overhead cam 1.6-liter D16Y7 four-cylinder engine with no VTEC, making 106 horsepower and 103 lb.-ft. of torque. It’s no speed demon, but this Civic has a properly reliable motor. Well, reliable to some, but not David Tracy, for the car still uses a timing belt.
Mind you, that timing belt was changed in 2023, but not because it came up to a mileage interval. See, this Civic only has 23,900 miles on the clock. Yep, the four previous owners averaged just 956 miles per year, which means that despite this being a rust belt car, it doesn’t look all that rusty. Sure, there’s a little corrosion on the exhaust hanger, but these sixth-generation Civics are notorious for quarter panel rot thanks in part to rubber seals on the inner fender lips. Over time, they’d trap water and debris, rotting out the steel. Aren’t you glad we don’t really do that on cars anymore?
Oh yeah, circling back to the number of previous owners — four people have wanted this Civic, and the first owner kept it until 2023. That means multiple people just in the past 14 months or so have wanted a clean late-’90s Civic enough to buy this one, and it’s easy to see why. In fact, it’s the same sort of nostalgic cycle many classic cars have benefitted from. See, the people who grew up with these things are entering their prime purchasing power years, and since the sixth-generation Civic was such a popular gateway enthusiast car, people want to go back.
However, because few of these Civics were ever preserved, finding nice ones is difficult. Not only are we talking about a car renowned for its durability, we’re also talking about a car known as a blank canvas for tuners everywhere to make their mark. From long-serving daily drivers with hundreds of thousands of miles piled on them to those owned as first cars during the Fast and Furious tuning era that were modified, be it elaborately or dubiously, many of these great little compact cars were simply used up and recycled, having done a damn good job as transportation.
Will these cars ever fetch insane money? Unless we’re talking about high-performance Si models with near-zero mileage on the clock, probably not. However, we’ve reached a point in time where nice 1996 to 2000 Honda Civics are five-figure cars again. If that isn’t proof that Gen X and Gen Y are key players in the collector car market right now, I don’t know what is.
(Photo credits: Cars & Bids)
Support our mission of championing car culture by becoming an Official Autopian Member.
-
A James Bond-Associated Aston Martin Vanquish Is Going Up For Auction And It Should Only Cost As Much As A New Corvette
-
I Was Entirely Unprepared To See A Version Of My Childhood Minivan On Bring A Trailer
-
You Can Buy A V8-Powered Mercedes C63 AMG For The Price Of America’s Cheapest New Car
-
What’s This Regular-Ass Volkswagen Jetta Doing On Bring A Trailer?
-
This Ridiculously Clean Cadillac Cimarron Looks Like A Great $5,100 Luxury Car
Got a hot tip? Send it to us here. Or check out the stories on our homepage.
One with 4x the mileage would be half the price and nearly as good to drive. Paying $10k for an old Civic is just silly.
I’d pay 10k extra for a modern car to have a screen free dash like that along with climate control KNOBS. Yes, I’m GenX and remember driving these.
So, I had one of these, albeit an LX with a stick.
Loved it even though it was basic, and at the time, I realllly wanted to get an Amigo. I dodged that bullet, though I later got an Amigo that showed me in so many ways why I should not have bought one new.
But I digress. In that Civic, I was in a head-on car accident with an Alero. Absolutely totalled that car, but despite us all taking damage, it absolutely kept us safe enough. So, it’s not always about zoom-zoom when buying one of these.
am I the only xennial not nostalgic for these?
I was 19 when this car was new, and test drove one (a non-si 5-speed–don’t remember if it was dx, lx, or ex) when they were new and I was looking for a car. Went to the dealer, took one out on a test drive, and turned around after a block to return it because it was so dull to drive. Sure they’re reliable and fuel-efficient, but true penalty boxes in every sense of the word.
My lusted-after car of the time was the BMW E39/E46, and I ended up buying both when my purchasing power intersected with the depreciation curve. Way better cars than these Civics, IMO.
Long story short. You could afford a BMW – of course a car half the price is going to drive better. (for the warranty period).
I could afford a 10-year-old BMW in the early 2010s. $10k these days would buy you a very nice E46 or E39, which I would gladly take over a 1999 Civic LX automatic. I’m comparing prices now in 2024 for Y2K-era cars, not what their initial MSRP was.
I had one very much like these, and they were outstanding. I don’t know what your post is about. This and a BMW are completely different rigs. You might as well have lamented about really wanting a Lexus LS.
try reading it again, but slower. I’m comparing what you can get now, in 2024, for $10k, and an E46 in decent nick can be had for well under what this base model civic costs.
Except at a certain stage when reliability becomes a factor the Civic becomes a lot more valuable. They still don’t compare. Doesn’t matter how well the E46 handles when you can’t afford to keep it on the road.
yeah, seems like this dude owns an E46 and reallllly wants you to know it
there is no way that they are comparable other than “they both have four wheels” sort of stuff.
“See, the people who grew up with these things are entering their prime purchasing power years, and since the sixth-generation Civic was such a popular gateway enthusiast car, people want to go back.”
I have found a far, far cheaper way to scratch that itch is to buy a mid to high end bicycle from your childhood, fix whatever needs fixing, throw on a powered speaker + phone mount and play whatever was on the radio when you were a kid.
You’ll be 30 going on 13 in 1994, even 60 on 16 in 1964 in no time. And once that itch is scratched you can probably sell that bike for about what you bought it for.
After the auction the Civic was promptly stolen and then stolen again from the thief…by another thief.
As easy as these cars were to steal, they’re also easy to make a bastard for a thief to take.
Several easy and concealed mods can be done
I used to challenge my car friends to try and steal my 90 Integra for fun after I thief-proofed it. Those were some good times.
Lol, that’d make for a fun afternoon.
We did similar stuff to demo car hondas since we didn’t want local turds walking up and taking off in em.
Did these have distributor rotors? That’s how I used to do it. Even just loosening the coil wire was enough.
Sure did, right up to 00 for honda d series, 01 for b series, and 99 and 01 iirc, for honda h/f, and iirc 05 for the last of the c motors
Dealer offered me $1500 for my under 100k miles 2001 Civic 2dr LX with a manual. Nothing at all wrong with it. Ended up giving it to a friend rather than put up with that crap
“we’re also talking about a car known as a blank canvas for tuners everywhere to make their mark.”
No we aren’t. Nobody hops up Civic sedans of this generation, because they’re kinda ugly. Coupes and hatches of this generation, yes. Sedans of the previous generation, yes. An automatic 1996 Civic sedan with the D16 is as undesirable as it gets in the Honda scene.
My buddy has exactly this car, this color scheme, except manual and old and worn out(23x,xxx miles and burns a lot of oil). It’s not a bad car, but Civics are pretty crappy next to an Accord. It’s a commuter gas saver car, and a long lasting durable one too.
This is valuable for the same reason a mint 1996 Geo Metro is cool. It is NOT valuable for the same reason a mint 1996 Supra is valuable.
You’re not a Honda enthusiast. I bought a 1999 Civic LX Sedan for $1500 a few years ago. Was bone stock but paint was rotted out from the AZ sun. I cleaned up the interior, got it resprayed along with front/rear lips, slapped some aftermarket smoked housing headlights and some Si wheels on it, and it was absolutely glorious. So glorious in fact that I realized I couldn’t even drive it to the movies without risking it being stolen. So I eventually sold it to a young kid and actually made a few bucks on it, two years later he still refuses to sell it back to me.
I am a Honda enthusiast, and I don’t think you actually said anything contrary to what I said about the car.
Yes, you cleaned one up and it was good. These cars are good. No, you didn’t hot rod it or hop it up, and neither has anybody else. Have you ever seen a K swap or even a B swap in sixth gen sedan?
I maintain that basically any other(pre-2000) Honda is more desirable than this car, at least in the context of Honda modification and hotrodding. They are great cars, just not great cars to rice out.
Have I seen an engine swapped 6th gen sedan? Of course, a shit ton. Hell, if I had more than a two car garage my sedan would’ve had a TSX swap and currently be parked under a cover, but I don’t. Since then I’ve had an 2004 RSX (sold last year), a 1999 Prelude (also sold last year), a 1998 5-speed Accord sedan (sold a few days ago), a 6-speed 2005 TSX (sale pending to a buddy), and two EP3 (one a full Type R/TSX build that I sold last year, another is my current project car that I’ll be racing in Oct). Not to mention the 2019 Si that we’re buying for my GF later tonight.
So yeah, true Honda enthusiasts like myself love clean examples of these and most any others, but I’m especially partial to the 6th gens (99 &00 in particular) as I worked at the Honda dealership during this time as I was in high school.
Maybe you’re older or maybe you’re younger, but most my age think the 6th gens were the last of the purebred OG Hondas, and that the 7th gens and beyond got too vanilla and/or too big.
RB is just mad.
“Will these cars ever fetch insane money? Unless we’re talking about high-performance Si models with near-zero mileage on the clock,”
yeah about that….
https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1991-honda-crx-si-6/
One modification.
Remove wheel covers.
That is all.
Or just slap on em2 ex wheels or dc1 acura blades to make it snazzy
Even dowdy shop runners need some shiny shoes
As the owner of a well preserved hand-me-down 94 Accord 4 cyl with 100k miles (thanks, Mom!) I can tell you why the car keeps getting flipped: it’s simply not that good.
Sure, it’s reliable but it’s underpowered, the 4 speed auto is extremely annoying, only gets mid 20s for fuel economy. My 04 Impala 3.8L (hardly a high bar) is better than the Accord in every measurable way. I choose it over the Accord for daily errands every time.
If it had the 5 speed I’d be singing a different tune
Considering what a late-model economy sedan with comparable mileage costs these days – I’d say it’s a perfectly reasonable number.
With all the government regulations and the insane pricing on new cars, I think we’re headed to a Cuba-like existence, where people driving a 40 year old car isn’t a rare sight.
Have you been to Cuba recently?
Lots of newer Soviet, European and Far-Eastern cars there now.
The famed pre-revolutionary cars are now primarily overpriced taxis for the tourists. Most of which are just body shells with replacement smaller motors and generic, carpet-less interiors covered with blankets or marine vinyl – because hurricanes and no garages . Any coupes and even some sedans have had their roofs removed to make them into more-desirable open cars.
I hope it doesn’t reach the point that I’ll need to get something that new.
I can’t even explain how much I love this comment
We already are in an existence where people driving a 40 year old car isn’t a rare sight. In Idaho at least, 1984 bullnose Fords and squarebody Chevys are pretty common on the roads. There’s a tree trimming business in my town that uses an original Highboy dentside as their chipper truck.
Yep, these are becoming collector cars, and the powertrain doesn’t matter as much as the body condition since Hondas from this era are so swapable. Kinda like the model T or 55 Chevy of this generation.
The price is fair. Its a golden era honda with low miles and no rust. Even if you just wanted to use it as a normal driver, not a collectible you could easily get 20 years out of it with little hassle.
Doesn’t seem like this is worth three beige Pontiac Aztecs, but I guess the market knows more than I do.
I got a ’98 civic EX coupe for 600$ (as I’ve said a couple times), and it’s bone stock. I intent to fix it up and repaint it but that’s about it. Maybe aftermarket headlights, and I’m going to install a cold-air-intake pipe kit I got for 8 bucks because not using it would be a waste.
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again-
Any showroom-condition car more than 25 years old, no matter how mundane, is worth 10 grand.
These things are peak practical automobile, but that’s still a bit much even for a well-preserved low-mileage specimen.
Well it’s certainly the right color.
For the condition and mileage, honestly I don’t see many other 10k cars I’d rather own, so keeping that in mind, the price doesn’t irk me that much. Yeah I know nostalgia is a hell of a drug, but if said nostalgia steers you into a minty 90’s Honda product, well, you could do a lot worse.
Yeah, like my low-key but constant desire to own a Fiero.
And i’m sure theirs also a low-key desire for the Ferrari kit they had for it.
You should give into that desire, as should everyone.
Mine’s so much worse even. I actually prefer the look of original 2M4 version!
“You know it’s the one that catches on fire…”
“But it’s got a manual, right?”
What? No! I just invested heavily in the “early ’80s pseudo-Hondas with renamed Hondamatics” market instead. I guess I’ll have to keep driving it, then.
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/53958968424_fbb558552a_c.jpg
Over the Saab? You’re mad!
You’re not wrong but even taking into account the limitation imposed by the question of what’s running that day, I still can’t drive more than one at a time. Today I drove the yellow Volvo 66 GL to work.
RIP Saab 🙁
It’s really more of a ring-a-ding-ding sound.
Wow, that looks great! Love the blue
Green over tan is a color combo we don’t see nearly enough anymore.
How about just tan in general? Our current era of mandatory black cave interiors actually makes ’90s mouse fur gray look appealing again…
So my ’98 honda has mouse fur in it? Interesting…
This was from the era of peak Honda interiors. It still looks great today.
It reminds me of the influence on Saturn, which made a great choice mimicking that cleanly functional style.
I think that the influence on Saturn is mainly a Capricornian trait, or maybe it was Piscean. Some girlfriends are harder work than others. I wish her well, she was stylish and clean and functioned quite well.
This is just after Honda’s peak interiors, at least in density and durability. My 91 and 92 Accords are much nicer inside than a 1996 Civic.
This Civic was bought by a flipper who flipped it to a flipper who is flipping it. Its history has turned into a tongue twister.
Flipper flips a flip that fills the flipping market with flipped cars.
Reminds me of that photo of a ship-shipping ship shipping shipping ships.
Thats an awful lot of flipping. I hope their moms didn’t see them.
Great color! I wonder if that helped drive bidding higher.
I remember seeing a ton of these in black, white, silver, and blue, but I don’t recall the green.
I shudder to think what this would have cost had it been a manual coupe.
Weird, every one of these I see round here is that exact green.
The deep blue over a tan interior was a great combination. The only time my old man ever went out of his way to get a certain color was blue over tan in his 2002 Civic. Every other car he has bought came in whichever color cost less.
The fact that the clearcoat is still there is a miracle. Probably want it as a shrine…