Hey Dave....

Well congrats on the Civic. Good times. As far as the vtec question... I believe so. I too have a 5th Gen EX and I have the sohc vtec. YOu have the auto though and I have a 5spd, so maybe it's diff? I don't know auto Hondas at all. My thought is that they just didn't give you the cool snazzy valve cover, that's all. But then again I could be wrong. I've been wrong before, so what's stopping me now?

I bought my 95 EX last fall. I paid 4000. It had 122K on it. Needed some minor body work, interior detailing, engine bay detail... but other than that... she was in tip top shape. I know I got a smokin' deal on mine though. So, since you paid 3800 for your 93 with more miles. I don't think you got ripped off, but maybe not such a deal though either. Check kbb.com to see what todays value on it is.

This is my third Civic. The last 2 I had over 265K on them when I sold them. (They both were still running great) I plan on keeping this one even longer. Oil changes. It's so key. I change my oil between 3-3500 miles. I also spend one Sunday a month and check maintenence items on her from head to toe. Once a season I take her to my mechanic to give her another look over too just in case. Keep up with it's scheduled maintnence and you should be just fine. It's when you start to neglect the car and let stuff slip some time, that's when sh!t goes south. Also, the harder you drive your car...the faster stuff goes bad. You know that... you sound like a smart guy.

Hope I was of some help. If not.... oops.

-Mindi