sde780

I've kept a thread on this car on a local forum, I'm copy/pasting it here to update.

April 2, 2011

I got this last week, this thread is to help me keep track of everything I do.

It's a 97 EX with 140k, power windows/locks/steering, A/C (needs recharge? blows warm), sunroof, remote locks, ABS, and some rust.

On the right:




Missing: Passenger sideskirt, driver front fender molding. Needs either wheel bearings or tires in the front, its making some noise past 35 mph. Rear bumper was hit and replaced with a black one, I need to see if I can fix the collision damage. Front bumper is cracked in 2-3 places, front grille needs screws and clips

3/30/11

Interior was a mess, found the previous owners shoes and dirty clothes and socks, there's some nasty stuff in the center console and shift boot. I see 2 french fries, cat fur, spit tobacco, and little rocks scattered on the carpet.






I took out the seats and cleaned them up:


I already cleaned the rails, before cleaning button:

after:





The hood/roof/trunk was very faded, I busted out my $30 harbour freight rotary and some Meguiar's ultimate compound on a wool pad and got to work:
You can see big difference where I made a few passes vs faded on the right


Done:


Also did the trunk, left is buffed right is faded:


I also bought a BYS replica bumper off a friend because it was cracked, I'm giving a shot at repairing it. Using fiberglass bondo to repair. So far the cracks I've patched seem pretty solid.


Nasty fuel door:

Simple Green and toothbrush later: Also fixed the door sticking out when closed by bending the latching tab in a little bit


Hopefully I can pick up a sideskirt and fender tomorrow off a member in Ashland KY.

April 3, 2011

First I buffed my lights:
Nasty

Other one is buffed. Didn't get a shot of both but they came out decent, I think the inside is a little dirty. But when I retrofit them they will be cleaned from the inside as well. I wetsanded with 2000 grit and then used Plastx on a foam pad.


My friend needed a place to put on a valve cover gasket and exhaust, someone else also came to help. Would have worked on the bumper more but the exhaust took a while. Open up the garage 1 hr later and see this!


After that I drove to Ashland, KY to pick up some parts. Got a good cupholder and floormats from a xruffrydax in Huntington, then got front mudflaps, fender, molding, and sideskirts from BrandonEM1. He also threw in a turbo oil return line and front strut bar from an Si. No more missing parts! I plan to fix my dome light cover, one of the tabs was snapped by the previous owner.


I cleaned up the floormats best I could, immediately noticed one was different.

"3 door Civic passenger"

Left one is the odd man out of the set.


Seller was a local on the forum with 1000's of posts...he insisted they were all the same.

Dirty sideskirts

I used this to clean them up

Cleaned up the cupholder as well


Check out my welding skillz! The sideskirt that I need has 2 cracks so I'm fixing it this way. Sanded area around crack with 60 grit and dabbed it with JB weld

End is cracked


That's it for today, I had work tonight so couldn't get much done

sde780

April 4, 2011

I went and got some JDM black floormats



The double pinstripe needs to go


Just kidding, I tried dying them but they turned out kinda brownish. I'll try a dark blue dye once they dry. At $2 a box I don't really care what color dye I buy.

Also worked on the bumper some more, I ran out of hardener for my fiberglass putty. Only got 1 more hole/crack then it's sand time

sde780

April 5, 2011

Worked on the bumper some more today. My arm is tired from all that sanding



I started up my car and it idled rough for a sec, then the CEL popped on. I had to give it gas to keep it alive. Pulled the codes, 72 and 74. Misfire in cylinders 2 and 4. Must be bad gas or something, it ran fine after I turned it off. Cleared the codes and they didn't come back. A plug wire was a little loose but idk what it was.


OEM CD player! Found a CD the previous owner recorded. I forgot it even had a CD player because the cupholder stays up, I haven't gotten the chance to put the working one in.


Hopefully I can find some time to finish the bumper tomorrow and prime it, I want to paint it with a real spray gun this time if a deal works out

sde780

April 9, 2011

I love my sedans!

Picked up some parts. Not pictured is an A/C compressor for my dad's EK sedan. Got intercooler piping, heat wrap, oil feed line, oil drain fitting, valve cover, and rear main seal


Bought some paint from NAPA to paint my bumpers


Today I went to Harbour Freight and got two HVLP guns, reviews were decent and yeah they were really cheap compared to name brand stuff. Also bought a water filter, moisture separator, some wire wheels, and pressure regulator. Hoping to spray the bumpers tomorrow if I can finish the bodywork before then. Will probably use Rustoleum Auto primer in a can since I didn't have enough money to buy a quart of primer to spray


Oh and ordered a used greddy manifold and downpipe w/o2 bung, that should be here in a week since it's from California. Need to find a turbo! And walboro fuel pump, figure out whats up with my misfire codes, fix rust and collision damage, get ARP headstuds, oil lines, put in good cupholders, buy a p28 and ob2a-ob1 harness, figure out whats up with the front wheel bearings, etc etc etc etc etc

sde780

April 11, 2011

Eric and Lauren came over and helped me sand the hubcaps, put on a roof rack that I picked up. My dad's using it right now to haul a ladder around but it'll be mine come winter time for snowboards


The roof rack is off a 89 Cadillac Deville and brackets didn't fit at all, so I made them fit by bending them to the door frame. More pics tomorrow


Here's pics of the painted bumper, I'm very satisfied with how it came out. I still have more than enough paint to do my sideskirts, front bumper, and whatever else needs painted.




I found 2 runs because the freaking gun was LEAKING FROM THE CUP, I figured out that I should have wrapped the threads with tape first. Otherwise paint is nice and smooth. I didn't sand the rear bumper at all, just prime and paint. Front bumper I'm gonna be more careful on

sde780

Gimme a sec, I'm still in April lol.

April 11, 2011

Thanks. Got some pics of it on the car


And the bad side, paint is faded and rusty everywhere:



What I used before with Rustoleum cans VS now


HP customer support for my laptop, I was playing around with my polarizer and happened to catch this

sde780

April 11, 2011

I painted the front bumper today

Pretty happy with my fiberglass job, there's a few small imperfections. I have a Chem test coming up, if I didn't spray it today it's gonna be next week till I have time

Little bit of orange peel. I wetsanded/buffed a side of my rear bumper and it looks like stock, albeit whiter

sde780

April 13, 2011

No suspension work until I'm boosted!

Lauren helped me put the bumper on today, it was a pain because it wouldn't line up! Both sides stuck out a little bit for some reason, the screw clip on each side kept popping out.
Honda logo

Or no logo?

Check out what I did with the grille

Different from a CTR in that the sedan grille surround is much thinner so there's more space in the middle for some reason. I realized it halfway thru but decided to do it my way instead of following this:
https://honda-tech.com/forums/honda-acura-28/diy-ctr-upper-grill-857357/

Coupe/hatch grille looks like this, thicker surround than mine


And the bad part for tonight...I shoved the bumper really hard because I was kinda pissed it wouldn't line up at all (had to cut a little bit of my bumper support out) and it developed a small crack where it was before Oh well as long as it stays that size it's fine with me...if I have to I can always re-do it

sde780

April 19, 2011

Got some goodies in the mail. Greddy cast manifold and downpipe with gaskets and bolts. Previous owner put 100k + on this, it had a couple small cracks but he welded it. Has 2 o2 bungs on the downpipe and a hole for an EGT gauge on the manifold itself.




Need to find a turbo that fits! it's actually 3" 3/8, I couldn't get the tape measure to stay straight. Most likely going with a used T25 off a Nissan SR20, unless I can find a GT25 off a Mazdaspeed Protege for a decent price, those are ball bearing. Super1chow needs to upgrade his turbo and hook a brotha up!



I buffed my lights some more and painted the inside. Eric came by and helped, I didn't tighten his endlinks enough when I put his ground controls on and they were popping on every turn. Fixed though, thank god.



I found a rebuilt T25 for $150, not sure if I should jump on it. Kind of want to find a greddy turbo that came with the kit but those are rare now. Plus I need inlet/outlet adapters and a downpipe made if I went T25, as well as run coolant lines and pray that it's still a/c compatible

sde780

April 21, 2011

Not having the best of luck finding one...the only person that's ready to sell wants $500 cause it has a carb sticker. I still need Walboro, wideband, oil lines, ecu, obd2A - obd1 harness, and the turbo. Clutch down the line but I'm hoping the stocker can hold 180 whp until I get more funds

Got my headlights on and picked out a fabric for headliner

sde780

April 22, 2011

Yeah definitely going to paint the core support black. Or paint match it if I have leftover paint, I mixed too much paint and kept it sealed in a container, took it out today and it was a rubbery block lol

I did the headliner and changed the oil today. Had a super generic filter and oil was pitch black




scraped off the EZ Pass mounting velcro as well


Headliner came out good, some creases because I ran out of adhesive but def better than the old saggy cigarette stained one

sde780

April 26, 2011

Haha it's growing on me. New parts came in today!





75mm vitaras, eagle rods w/arp 2000 bolts, kings bearings set

Checked to make sure I got everything. Noticed 2 pistons were inserted into a cylinder or something, there's a couple light scratches on the sides, so not brand new like advertised. Surface rust on 1 of the rods. Kinda thought the vitaras would be better quality than this, I wiped the holes that were drilled near where the wristpin goes and small metal flakes came off. But whatever I'll be cleaning them best as I can, here's some better pics






Time to find a cheap z6 shortblock! There's a 15g greddy turbo, manifold, and downpipe for $200 3-4 hrs away, hopefully I can go pick it up after finals week

sde780

April 30, 2011

Decided to sell my greddy stuff and bought a rebuilt Garrett t3 60 trim and cast t3 manifold. No one has a 15g turbo for sale and I'll have to upgrade once I build my motor anyways. Also got a chipped and converted p06 and obd2a - obd1 harness for a nog price. I can use the $20 ebay downpipe flanges on this turbo lol

sde780

May 7, 2011

ECU, harness, competition stage 5 sprung 4 puck clutch and turbo came in today. Didn't realize there was a broken exhaust stud on the turbo and one of the manifold's (ebay cast) holes is drilled 2mm off I think I'll just drill one of the holes on the turbo bigger so I can fit it



Need a wastegate ($150)
Walboro ($80)
an fittings (~$60? I already have feed and drain lines)
gaskets ($50)
downpipe/exhaust made ($200)
ARP headstuds ($100)
not sure if I need a 3 bar map sensor or not. I probably get 94civiccx's if he sells his to upgrade

Total before tune ~$700. Hope I can find some deals to cut this down some

PICS!




Does this looks like 500 break-in miles on a new CC stage 5 clutch? I bought it used and seller said it only had 500

sde780

May 14, 2011

New rotors and pads. Old ones were chipping



Got a mechanical boost gauge



Mudflaps from a junkyard



Changed the passenger side wheel bearing





should have just taken the knuckle to the machine shop, they charge $30 to press old ones out/new ones in...charged my $30 to press new ones in as well. So much for hammering for 3 hours. Ordered a Walboro.

May 15, 2011

Walboro 255 is here, just need a wastegate and waiting for my .065" oil restrictor and drain flange to get here, then it's install time!!! Maybe swap my clutch/tranny too, I grind 2nd at high rpm and clutch releases kinda high (pretty sure its the original)

As far as bodywork I bought another quart of paint to do the mirrors, sideskirts, grille, and rust. Might just paintmatch my hubcaps if I have leftover paint that I mixed up. Had a pint last time and it solidified in a sealed container

oops just remembered still need compressor outlet and inlet flanges, they're $50 or something from ATP. I'm going to see if someone can make some for cheaper

sde780

May 18, 2011

Cool. Clutch change!


Old clutch

old vs new


This plug got caught and depinned



Fittings for the turbo



Eric and I changed up his projector setup. My old GTO projectors to new morimoto's with the gatling gun shrouds customize stylez y0

sde780

May 31, 2011

I broke my axle somehow, revved it to 2k rpms and let off the clutch and I heard a clanging sound. Looks pretty rusty




Got the broken stud out of the turbo, also waiting on a call from someone making me a compressor outlet adapter. ASR brace came in, I need to find a swaybar and put it on


JK tuning isn't answering email/calls very well, hopefully he's just busy

No updates other than my cat is dangling because the flange broke, basically running open header right now.

I need to:
Reach JK tuning and get a basemap
Get downpipe made (2.5" crushbent into 3" turndown or piping back to a muffler)
Get the fabricator to machine me a flange for the compressor housing oulet. It's been a week and no news

sde780

June 3, 2011

I can't reach a tuner near here! J-K tuning and Innovative both haven't replied to me. Emails, calls, voicemails, nothing. I think I'll be heading down to Mr. Jarvis for a tune. Ordered basemap today and test fitted my intercooler and piping. Gonna have to figure something out for the driver side to clear a/c. Right now I'm driving around with just a filter on the end feel like a ricer

sde780

June 11, 2011

So I said screw A/C and ripped out the compressor and condenser and fan - I tried recharging it and it leaked out somewhere right away. Screw it for now, I got my sunroof.

My car's now boosted, but the BOV doesn't blow off. Used my windshield sprayer hose as vacuum line for that cause I didnt' buy enough vacuum line, think that'll be the cause? It's getting replaced tomorrow but I have a feeling it's something else. Also should I be tapping vacuum off the compressor side of the turbo or is the intake manifold fine? I tapped wastegate, boost gauge, and BOV from the same nipple on the intake

I still need to run coolant lines and wire my boost gauge correctly, and put in the 2 step colder plugs, get a downpipe made, then it's time for tune!

sde780

June 17, 2011

Expert exhaust made me a full downpipe/exhaust, didn't think he'd charge me that much but it was a good bit more than what he quoted me. 2.5" all the way back to a Mazdaspeed protege muffler, sounds super quiet and deep. No cat or resonator, my turbo muffles it already

Got tuned finally, I need to hook up the coolant lines and clean up the interior. I'm pretty broke so updates are slow. Gonna head to the junkyard sometime to find a swaybar for that ASR brace. Also as far as suspension, thinking of saving up for full coilovers or a coilover/shock combo. Anyone recommendations? I do not like Koni Yellows, from my previous experience with my Prelude 1 snap ring does not hold up the coilover sleeve very well. I'm looking at Function Form type 1's, they seem to be priced very well. Otherwise I'll see what used stuff I can get on craigslist







4x4 status!

sde780

June 23, 2011

Another wheel bearing went out. Turbo is leaking a oil where the exhaust housing meets the center cartridge, I checked the intercooler piping and it's got oil/black soot in it. This means seals are bad right? I'm running a 0.065" restrictor at the turbo, and my drain line is not kinked. using 10w-30 oil. I didn't put sealant in after I took off compressor and exhaust housings, but I'd have a boost leak not an oil leak right?

I smoke blue going down a hill in gear, even at low rpm. When I hit boost I also smoke, blue and black. But the turbo was just rebuilt by a shop so idk





Oh I gutted my PCV and ran a tube to the ground, same with my valve cover breather so I'm not directing any fumes back to the intake

sde780

July 3, 2011

Got some 15" rota slips and washed/buffed the whole car. Picked up a sideskirt that fit right, the one I got from brandonEM1 "came from a 4 door" but all tabs are off and it flares out exactly like a coupes. Also got some front EK mudflaps because the Integra ones that supposedly fit don't at all.




July 9, 2011

Mr super1chow hooked it up with a TurboXS boost controller, I'm now at 8.5-ish psi running good. ARP headstuds are going in soon and I'll do 10 psi. In other news, the gauge pod finally came in and I've been getting 31 MPG in town boosting a good bit :smile:

This guy made close to 250 whp and 185 ftlbs at 10 psi with the same turbo, on a stock Z6. I doubt I'd be able to get anywhere close to that without a good dyno tune though

https://honda-tech.com/forums/forced-induction-16/dynod-single-cam-2129088/

sde780

July 27, 2011

Been busy with the PCAT and stuff, finally painted my wheels today. Only did 2 because I ran out of daylight.
Before:


After:


Hit a stupid curb while delivering, now my bumper's cracked


My sweet exhaust that sounds stock

sde780

July 28, 2011

Bought a breather filter, torque mount, Beltronics Gmeter, and a radiator bracket to replace my rusty one.



Got the other two wheels painted, also decided to bust out the HVLP and paint my sideskirts and mirrors. Looks 100x better IMO.





I need to be lowered ASAP but I think I'll spring for the Wisp season pass instead :headbang:

sde780

July 29, 2011

Thanks Gixxer, I just picked them up



I think 1.7" front 1.5" rear drop, not sure what version. Driver side has a tiny bit rust, the passenger side is the worst. I don't know what I want to do yet, maybe just por-15 and fiberglass putty. It's my DD so I know the rust will be back no matter what




July 30, 2011

Lowered the front today. Ran out of time for the rear