A lot of uninformed nonsense here about old Civics.
We had a '76 Civic 1500 hatch and two '86 Civic Wagons.
These were sticks, of course, as most small cars were at the time.
Great cars all.
Reliable and easy to fix when needed with zingy engines.
The '76 would reach redline in fourth, its top gear, or about 96 mph.
The two '86 Wagons would hit about the ton in fifth.
No problem with driving as fast as you might want to go and no problems with any hill, including mountain grades.
These cars had ample power for their weight and the Wagons had great utility.
Nothing has better shifting than an old Honda and the handling is go-kart sharp with very minimal understeer or body roll.
Now, you are looking at a thirty year old car, but if it sees regular use and has no glaring problems, I'd consider it.
The timing belt job is easy in these guys as well, which is good, since you should probably do this fairly soon should you buy this car. A clutch is not as easy as it would be on any RWD but isn't too bad. Drive axle replacement is easy as are brakes. These cars also had an easily replaced mechanical fuel pump as well as an easy to get to fuel filter on the driver's side just ahead of the rear wheel.
IOW, these were cars ideal for anyone trying out their first tool set.
Good luck with that on later cars.
