Does the age of the car really matter?

Yes the age matters. Age matters in terms safety features (or lack thereof in older cars), crash worthiness, and in replacement/total loss value in an accident. You might not worry about those things now, but all it takes is 1 idiot in a newer car on his/her cell phone barreling into you to break your legs (or worse) in a collision and total your car. Then you'll worry about that stuff.

That Accord is both old AND has high mileage. In other words, it's mostly worn out regardless of what stories the current owner likes to tell. I wouldn't bet on it lasting you 1 year without problems, let alone 2 years. And even if it does last 2 years, $1000 is definitely the very highest I'd go on buying it (I'd probably go much lower myself...). At 25 years old and 250K miles, the car will be completely worthless to you if anything even moderately expensive to repair breaks or if anybody else hits you in it. Any insurance company will total it out if it's hit in an accident - giving you maybe $250-$500 if you're lucky for a car that old with that many miles on it. They certainly won't give you the $1000 you paid for it.

How well do you read people?

The reason I say this is because right now a 1000 dollars may seem like a lot of money to you. If you can tell a liar from those who are honest, then go with your gut feeling about how much you can trust them.

But pull the dip stick and look at the oil any way. If it is as dark as molasses suspect something. A little dirty is to be expected. But coal black and/or too thick is a warning sign. More so the thickness, that means that STP or other engine oil additives have been added to cut down on engine noises, blow by and to keep the oil pressure up. Check the throttle body and or the hoses leading to it for oil residue a lot of oil here says the engine has a lot of blow by.

When you sit in the car, does it feel right is a test of mine and a quick look to see if it is too clean or too dirty. Some people will spend a fortune getting a cars interior cleaned up, because it was a trash bin and they want to impress a buyer.

To tell you the truth, I would steer clear of it. I think they are trying to "roll cars over for quick profit". Check the title for when they bought it to make sure this is not the case.

the age dosnt matter the miles do. in my opinion 1000 is well worth it but i would have no problem swapping the motor either tho i have 3 motors laying around that i could put in it. Honda's are very reliable cars, but it could last a million miles or it might not go another 50 miles there is no way to really tell unless i drive the car. but if it has been taken good care of and not ran hard then it should be ok and 1000 is worth it.

Age is somewhat important but if the vehicle was well maintained it should be fine.

250K is getting up there but Honda has a well established record of making good reliable products.

If price is right, ask the seller to have the car inspected at a Honda Service Center for any problems and if none agree to pay half of that inspection as a selling and buying point.

Thats too much money.I wouldnt buy it.The best care in the world doesnt prevent electrical and structural errosion.Right now that car is in the proccess of being completely rebuilt and you are about to become a financial contributor.Another words its a running lemon.Try to get the owner down to $700-$800. And if the owner is a young "Fast and Furious"wanna be leave it alone.Young guys beat the snot out of those Hondas

Of course it matters. But it also depends on how much they want for this car.

The car is worn out even if it looks good. You can't tell how worn the internal components are. This car is going to cost you a lot of money in maintenance.

If the car runs great, looks good and passes a mechanical inspection and it's priced cheap (less than $1200) then it's probably worth the risk. Even if it dies on you in three months you can still sell the carcass for a few hundred bucks.

YES. but mileage is the most important. both give you a good idea on the amount of wear and tear the car/truck has gone through.

Yes it does! It has a lot to do with the miles on a vehicle. As well as the wear!

Not as much as the mileage matters.

But that's a lot of miles, even for a Honda. I wouldn't buy it unless I were ABSOLUTELY certain that I could buy a better one in two years, and even then I would look around for something better before buying it.

wow don't buy it. that car is on its last leg. you can get a much better car for 1000 dollars from all over the place