Man, that Dana story hits hard. Watching somebody do everything the "right" way and still get shoved to nights would make anyone feel sick. It's rough when you put that much hope into a process and it just... doesn't show up for you. I've seen people keep their heads down and grind through stuff like that alone, and it wears on you after a while. At least she had somebody in her corner who actually came through with a real way out. Sometimes that's what saves you, not the paperwork.

Man, old fluid bites you every time. That brown color is the giveaway, it's full of water and junk after a few years. I've seen guys drop $300 on calipers when they just needed a $4 bottle and 20 minutes of bleeding, lol. Good catch before you threw parts at it.

My buddy did this exact thing with a 97 hatch a few years back, paid $600, rod went through the block about a week later. He pulled the motor and sold the head, trans, ECU, and the little stuff like door panels and tail lights on Craigslist over like two months. All in he cleared maybe $1,100 after fees and hauling the shell to the scrapper, BUT it took forever and his garage was full of Civic parts the whole time. The junkyard motor route is quicker but you're rolling the dice again on a 25 year old D series that could knock just as fast. If the body and interior are clean I'd part it, if it's beat to hell just swap the motor and send it. Just know parting out is a part time job for a couple months, not a weekend flip.