are Hyundai accents 4dr 1999 5 speed very good cars?

Question

I just sold my 1997 monte carlo and am looking for a more fuel efficient car. I noticed that there was a 1999 accent that had 107000 miles on it. It just had the timing belt, tires, and alternator replaced less than 3,000 miles ago. My questions is whether this is a good car to buy. Are there many problems with this type of car. I know the automatic ones are not very good but what about the 5 speed. please any help is great thanks

Answer 1

Hyundai makes a pretty decent car. I've never really heard anything too negative about them, and the Korean cars are really putting the scare into American and Japanese car manufacturers.

First of all, I'd look that car over real good. It's got over 100,000 miles on it, which is not that bad these days, cars are actually reaching 200,000 miles in some cases. I'd pull the oil fill cap on top of the valve cover and look inside that motor. If the oil has been changed frequently, you're going to see a rather clean motor. If not, you're going to see burnt engine oil inside and that's going to speak volumes as to how the car was maintained.

The timing belts are usually one of the first things to go on the 4 cylinder cars, if that was competently replaced, that's a good thing.

Tires, well....that's not a real worry.

If the alternator was replaced, that's fine. They're easy to put on and shouldn't be a problem for a long time.

At 100,000+ miles on a 5-speed, I'd be getting concerned about the clutch plates and the throwout bearing. If these have ever been replaced, then they should be ok. If not, then that might be a concern. It could cost you a bit for new clutch plates and throwout bearing, because you have to replace both when putting in a new clutch. The condition of the clutch depends on how much abuse it received from it's previous driver (s).

Pop off the radiator cap. Nowadays companies are putting in plastic radiators with metal cores. Check the inside for scale and see the condition of the cooling fins and the color of the coolant. If it's full of scale and the coolant is brown, it has not been properly maintained. Check also the upper and lower hoses, if they are mushy or cracked, they would need to be replaced.

Check anywhere a gasket would be, ie... valve covers, etc. Check for motor oil leakage. Check the PCV valve also, if it doesn't rattle, it's probably never been cleaned. That's not a big deal, but it does tell you how well the motor has been maintained.

Turn the car on, let it get up to operating temperature. Go to the rear of the car and see if water is coming out of the exhaust pipe. If so, then you're looking at a cracked intake manifold. If that's ok, then there is no problem there. High revving cars with 4 cylinder engines produce more heat, and sometimes the gaskets go bad, or you get a cracked aluminum manifold. If the car overheats alot, that would also damage the thermostat.

Check all the electronics. If they work, then you're ok.

Go under the wheel well, check the brake pads and rotors. If the brake pads are worn severely, then they will need to be replaced. If the rotors are scored up, then you will need to have them turned. You're talking $80-$100 per wheel, depending on who does the job and what part of the country you live in. If you know how to change brake pads, then you'll get off cheap, but you'll still need to take the rotors to a machine shop to have them turned!

I could list more things... but you get the idea. There are so many things to check on a high mileage car. If you've looked at these things, and there are no apparent problems, and the price is good for the car, you you're willing to take the chance, then by all means, get the car. Hyundai is usually a pretty good vehicle.

Hope this helps you.

Answer 2

best thing to do is check on the consumer reports web sites for that year and model of car. If there were any recalls or repetative problems with that paticular car its usually pretty obvious looking at the reviews. So much of used car tho depends on the previous and current owners maintenace. You could start out with the best car in the world but if you don't keep up the oil changes and repairs they all die in a hurry. My dad's still got an original equipment 1984 GMC pickup with 300.000 miles on it. He credits it to changing the oil every 3000 and a yearly tune up, thats it.

Answer 3

Well there are still plenty of 1st generation Accents being driven all over the world. There is even one rumored to have gone over 600,000 miles!

If it is a good deal go for it with the precautions mentioned above and enjoy your new fuel efficient vehicle!

Answer 4

I would have to say that all Hyundais suck big time. Buy something like Saab, or Lada, or even Niva