Norlael

Hey everyone my name is Rob and I have been in the Honda game since 1999, when I bought my first car, a 1992 Honda accord SE. I didn't do much to this car other then some rims, stereo and exhaust. I didn't take digital pictures of this car (before digital cameras imagine that..) so other then scanning them to my computer trust me when I say it was really clean.


My next car was a 95 civic ex coupe on which I went to town with. yea, yea this was in the F&F days so some of the build may look ricey but whatevs.







I know it looks like a hackjob inside of there but I was only 18-19 at the time. This car had a 92ish jdm ls engine dont remember the exact code but it was 1.7l I think. I used all of the goodies that early 2000 had to offer such as msd boost retard ignition, apexi fuel controller, missing link, t3 turbo from a mercury 2.3L, same one the Merkur xti or whatever.

This car was great and all but I could never drop into the 11's. My best I ever managed was 12.3, so I got it into my head that the chassis+engine combo was the problem. So right around then is when I got serious and had a whole jdm sir front clip imported and dropped it into an EF.





This car was quick! The lightweight chassis combined with a turbo b-series and close ratio tranny was sick! I utterly loved this car for how super quick it was all inside of a shitty boxy looking package. I never actually got it to the track but it was easily faster then my EG so im thinking it was in the 11's for sure. Unfortunately I was living in florida in 2004-2005ish when the 4 hurricanes came through there. My car was spared for the first 3 but on the 4th one a tree pancaked it for a total loss, and because of all the crap just scattered everywhere it was hauled away with everything else never to be seen again.

Fast forward 7 years, (after a few years hiatus because of work/school/family) I bought my current EG HB as a rusted, faded, crapped out shell, with a barely running engine for a steal at $400. I did not take any pictures of the bodywork and paint because my intention was to keep it stock as a DD. But none the less, after I got to the point where I decided that I wanted to do a full on build the pics came in, starting with the swap/engine build:

Fresh GSR swap with bearings/rings/head studs


Would love to weld 2 of these together and make a V8 Anyone who has had one of these sitting on an engine stand knows what im talking about when I say it just seems natural



My next challenge I had to face was the 20 year old wiring harness in the engine bay that kept cracking and breaking:



After dealing with the headaches associated with a bad harness I decided it was time to upgrade to Ry-wire. I know alot of people have nothing but good things to say about rywire, my experience with them was terrible. dont get me wrong, the fit and finish of the harness is really nice, my problem was trying to get customer support. There is a clip inside of the grounding harness that they had forgot to install, and I spent about a week pulling my hair out trying to figure our what was wrong, and the whole time they dodged and ducked my calls and emails until I threatened to do a charge back on my cc. Needless to say they fixed the problem, but it was a bitch to get them to do it.

All in all it is a really nice piece, just lacking in customer relations..


Next I shaved and mini tucked the bay. I didnt not get super crazy with the tuck and shave like some people do I just prefer a clean but stock kinda look. once again Im kicking myself for not documenting the process, but at any rate here is the finished product:





My next step was changing out the rotas for some basset racing 15x8 +0 rims, I know, I know it's ricey or trendy or whatever but after 15 years in the game im tired of looking at the same type of aluminum wheels all the time :p I did opt for tires that were only stretched about a 1/2" so there is meat to the tires and they dont look like they are about to pop off.



Out with the old:



In with the new:



My next project was to wire in a switch panel for fogs, and a few future projects etc..

Made a template of the lower console pocket:



Traced to an old CF hood:



Wired up:



Installed:



So this should bring us all up to date on what I have done so far. Eventually my plans include turbo and tranny rebuild, along with interior restoration and some aero mods. (diffuser, side skirts, front splitter)

At any rate here is how she sits today:







So sit back relax and enjoy watching me as my dad says "mess up your car" (old man cant handle noise and vibrations ).

Norlael

And here is my project for this weekend:

Alarm install. basically im doing a full stealth alarm install and will be adding power locks to my hatch. I plan on welding in the siren in an undisclosed location and putting in a backup battery too. It's all going to be installed deep under my dash and loomed up so hopefully any would be thieves will not find it.

DEI python responder 2way alarm, door lock solenoids, and backup battery:



Neptune RTP, PWM boost control circuit, Tunerview RD1, Bluetooth module, and fuel level converter:



already messed around with figuring out the wiring and hook up with the RD1:



basically the 4 pin ttl goes from the demon 2 unit into the RTP plug of the RD1 and the bluetooth module hooks into the daisy chain output on the RD1.

So my impressions of this are that I cant make ECU map changes via bluetooth, only datalog. Is that correct or will the bluetooth communicate thru the RD1 into the D2 unit?

Also was reading the moates site here:https://support.moates.net/pinouts-f...ious-products/ from what I am reading here is that I need to depin one side of the TTL cable that plugs into the RD1. my issue arise when I need to plug the BT module into the RD1 do I need to repin it all? If I cant find the answer ill contact HRtuning or Moates, but if someone here can save me the time and tell me what to do that would be cool too!

tony_2018

I skimmed through it and the last picture I saw, I was like. wtf is this?

94 accord typeR

seriously nice builds in the past and nice one u got going on now

Norlael

So got my car alarm installed today, not taking pictures don't wanna give thieves any help! Needless to say it's a stealthy install. Door sensors, starter interrupt, shock sensor, back-up battery.

Also got some work done on my RD1

Here is the dash puking it's guts out lol:



Next cut out a panel and sanded it to fit into the stock cluster bezel:



Got the holes all drilled and the selector buttons and indicator lights in:



Here's what the layout looks like:







I think it came out pretty good except if you look at the carbon, right under the screen, it blistered a little bit. When I cut everything out I covered the surface in blue masking take to try and prevent this but I guess being 10+ years old, the carbon was weak. Oh well tomorrow I should have it all wired up and cluster back in.

Also thought I would take a shot of my lawnmower wheels since people like to make fun of steelies and how they look like lawnmower wheels.

Hellaflush Stanced lawnmower y0!!1!

Oaken81

Wow! Thats a clean car! How bad was the rust?

Norlael

luckily the rust want too bad, it was all the dent and dings every where that was a pita, ended replacing all the body panels instead of trying to fill them up

Trey

Nice build! Specs on the wheels? Those would be great for a track day! Thanks!

Norlael

they are bassett racing wheels, 4x100 15x8 +0 45degree lug nut seats, using domestic lugnuts with ARP studs, with (from top of my head) 205 45 15 tires they have only about 1/2' stretch so they dont look like low rider tires. got the rims from summit racing and they have a DOT safety bead so you dont have to worry about them like the diamond wheels. not a bad buy for only $50 a wheel.

Trey

Thanks!

Norlael

Small update:

got my RD1 hooked up to my ecu and the D2 unit. just have to say that the wiring is kinda a pain in the butt. For anyone searching for a guide on this online I found a few resources:

Neptune forums

Pinout Diagram

Basically I'm using a Demon 2 board --> RD 1 --> BT module. The way that this is wired is by a 4-pin ttl cable from the D2 which should be GND 5V0 RXI TXO with the arrow on the plugin on top. this cable then goes into the RTP board with TXO RXI GND 5VO. And finally the BT module with the plugin having the arrow on top goes TXO RXI GND 5VI. basically they way that was explained to me is you want to ignore the colors at first, they are there just to help you trace the pinouts. What you want to do is connect GND to GND and 5VO/5VI together and have TXO go into RXI. TXO = output RXI = input.

at any rate here is the layout I chose for my RD1, keeping it simple for optimal resolution, and quicker draw times.

it lives!!:



Simple layout, gonna mess with it some more later, maybe add a few gauges or something but I like this for now:

tony_2018

Nice cluster!!!

Norlael

small update: got the fuel sender, RD1 and D2 unit all communicating together nicely, gonna post up a vid of what it looks like at night time and a quick overview of how responsive the tach is compared to my trusty old Autometer monster tach.

just need to get the BT module working for real time readings on my galaxy tablet, gonna work on that tomorrow and then make a proper post.

Norlael

so made a quick video of the cluster in action at night since most people wanted to see how bright this is at night...

RD1 nightime brightness

and on another note- ordered up about $2000 in trim, carpet, suspension goods and a bunch of other stuff, should be a crap load of updates to come!

tony_2018

That VX didn't have a fighting chance.........poor thing..........

Norlael

haha nope!

joey1320

Nice build bro. Cool wheels!

Norlael

thanks!

well the parts are starting to roll in. hopefully within this month I can have all of the car's bushings replaced. suspension dialed in, interior replaced, and possibly rebuild the tranny

at any rate heres what I got in today:

the obligatory energy suspension upgrade. almost 20 years of wear and tear on the factory bushings, just easier to replace with these..


next thing that came today were these new control arms I wanted to try. Got them from eBay, they are upper control arms, from a brand I never heard of. read about their product description, and according to them they are an oem supplier. Being pleased with the quality of the piston rings that were made by a similar company, I decided to try them out. not expecting much for a cheap brand I was pleasantly surprised when I got them out of the box:

nothing spectacular about the box looks like typical suspension box:




upon opening them I got a surprise:









yep that's right hardrace bushings in there, not bad for a budget brand, included all new hardware and hardrace control arm bushings also. Basically truhart is just rebranded hardrace stuff but cheaper:




And lastly, been working on trying to fix the factory side moulding/bump strip. the guy who had this car before me shaved the mouldings and when he did it he mig welded strips of like 16ga onto the inside. barring access to a plasma cutter I decided to just get new mouldings and glue them on because the factory holes are missing. maybe this was a boneheaded plan because I'm using 3m super bond, so basically these are never coming off again lol.

at any rate i glued on some peices of wood to the body then glued the moulding to these wood blocks:



the foamy **** you see there is where I tried it with foam at first, then later on decided to go to wood for durability. I know its not the best solution but if this does not come out right then my next step is to cut the holes in the no matter how much of a pain it will be.

so thats where I am so far. most of the rest of my parts will be here by friday, so stay tuned for major updates this weekend!!

bri09dac

Love the car, love the wheels, love the "track ready" stance
But the sound is awesome. What exhaust is that?

Norlael

thanks, that is an apexi ws2 exhaust. it's only 2" and I am going turbo soon so gonna be going 3".

Norlael

more more more!!!

OEM mudflaps:



I think it is funny, that of all of the parts that I have ordered, the simplest one to install is the only one that came with instructions lol:



Next came the oddyessy pc680 battery:



I think it is funny how small this battery is. The first thing I thought when I opened it, was that I bought the wrong one. After seeing that I can't return it, and alot of people using it and swearing by it, I decided that i'm going to try it out and see if it works..



Next on the list is OEM fender splash guards. Gong to have to modify these so that my lowered stance will work with these:



I wish I could simply leave them out but they are there for a reason. I was driving around without them and there was a storm, went thru a puddle and car shut off. Got home and checked it out, seems that water splashed up through the fenders and saturated the underdash electrical componets. Luckily the car didnt catch fire, and only the starter interrupt relay got fried.

When I repainted the car, I took off the original weather seal, was too cracked to put back on so got this:



Not an oem part but came from my local napa, who is also the area's supplier for professional body shops, so should be good quality

And last but not least, got a new carpet from Auto Custom Carpets. was about $20 more then stockinteriors.com but I have seen a couple bad fitments from them, and wanted to try something else out:



I know why they send they carpets in the box the way they do, because shipping it any other way would be crazy. But rolling it up the way they did put a crapload of wrinkles in it. granted after sitting for about 3-4 hours it looks alot better. after 24 hr though I will cast my first judgement of the way it lays. if all is not kosher, im thinking I'll use and iron to smooth it out. This is also making me think that the reasons most people have had problems with the carpet by mail is improper/hasty instillation.

joey1320

You can use steam and some books to weight the carpet down and reform it.
Nice work.

Norlael

I was thinking of using an iron on lowest steam setting possible, have you tried that before? and yea got some books on it now

joey1320

Yes I have on MINI Cooper carpets. They come is a big box and not as bad as yours, but when the customer is waiting we need to form it quickly. The steam softens the fabric/foam and makes it more flexible.

Just be careful and don't do too much steam to the point it accumulates and changes into actual water spots, this can cause mold if not dried properlly. But for you, a bit of steam and some books/time, will make it a lot better.

Norlael

ok thanks for the tip

so tried out this 3m glue that I got from the local body supply shop. the guy swore by it and said it is what everyone uses:



Let me tell you this stuff is awesome. if anyone has any problem bonding abs plastics get this stuff. I tried all of the epoxies and jbweld crap that they had at auto zone. that stuff as soon as it dried I could just pop the plastic right off. With the 3m glue I can yank on the plastic trim and practically move the car by the trim peice lol. big thumbs up for 3m products

heres how the trim peices came out:





not too shabby eh? Hopefully they will hold up, only time can tell...