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"Weirdmobile" 1998 Accord Zombie El Camino
As I get older, I like nicer things and work harder to earn them. With work & family, life gets busy & stressful. It is almost therapeutic to get out in the garage with some friends, beers, and just wrench/hack/weld on something for fun. Something that doesn't really matter if it isn't perfect. This is how the Weirdmobile came to be.
The History… Summer of 2012: A friend got a Honda Pilot earlier that year and his 200k mi 1998 accord 5-speed had been sitting in his yard ever since. Another friend competes in the Medina County Fair Rough Truck competition every year, but didn't get his vehicle (turbo Geo Tracker) completed in time to compete. A few days before the event, friend 1 sold his 98 Accord to friend 2 for $500 under the condition that he had to run it in the Rough Truck Competition. https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/honda-t...72c7f1f9f3.jpg http://6thgearadvertising.com/pics/w...b/IMG_1515.jpg Mikey (friend 2) brought the car by after he bought it. It was actually a decent daily/nice beater. It had some rust on the rear wheel wells, rockers and hood. It needed brakes, fresh fluids and a cleaning. He could have flipped it and doubled his $500 and maybe then some, but that was not the agreement. He had to have fun with it. Figuring it would need all the extra support it could get, I was in charge of the paint scheme to make it a crowd favorite. Bath Salts & Zombies were big that year... So I came up with a theme: https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/honda-t...3a7ece751d.jpg http://6thgearadvertising.com/pics/w...ccord_comp.jpg ("Let's Get Weird" is a quote from the show Workaholics and something Friend 2 says when ever he gets a few beers in him and does something questionable.) https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/honda-t...6f0debcebe.jpg http://6thgearadvertising.com/pics/w...b/IMG_1516.jpg 4 days before the race, friend 2 (Mikey) got the car and brought it over to the garage. Friend 1 (Nick) showed up with the beer. We already had most of the aerosol paint colors between all of us combined. The rest was donated from Mike’s work. https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/honda-t...4f6cb4e22c.jpg http://6thgearadvertising.com/pics/w...b/IMG_1526.jpg https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/honda-t...cccf0f4c06.jpg http://6thgearadvertising.com/pics/w...b/IMG_1521.jpg https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/honda-t...d85de9d0da.jpg http://6thgearadvertising.com/pics/w...b/IMG_1558.jpg https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/honda-t...d35e6a809e.jpg http://6thgearadvertising.com/pics/w...b/IMG_1564.jpg https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/honda-t...e09a8f9bee.jpg http://6thgearadvertising.com/pics/w...b/IMG_1560.jpg https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/honda-t...ffabf1f094.jpg http://6thgearadvertising.com/pics/w...b/IMG_1527.jpg https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/honda-t...8139973f40.jpg http://6thgearadvertising.com/pics/w...b/IMG_1573.jpg Siliconed the teeth in so they wouldn't wiggle out of the gum holes and she was ready to go! We didn't have the time/$$ to find a set of 15" mud tires for the front or a set of Odyssey springs to lift it. Also we decided not to ruin the hood putting a CAI through it, just in case the car survived Rough Truck 2012. |
Re: "Weirdmobile" 1998 Accord Zombie El Camino
Well the $50 bought a new radiator and the Bath Salts Zombie Accord was being daily driven around town with no problems until the 30-day tags expired :thumbup:
Here's a pic he sent me, parked beside an identical stock accord at a gas station: https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/honda-t...7a2c0e68fc.jpg http://6thgearadvertising.com/pics/w...e_vs_stock.jpg So once the 30-day temp plates expired, the car was once again retired to sitting outside in a front yard. The drivetrain was great, so he didn't want to scrap it. He felt guilty trying to sell it on craigslist, as the front alignment was definitely off. The wheels were visibly further back in the wheel wells than before, although the car drove perfectly straight. Winter rolled around and the car was forgotten about. Then in 2013, he was tossing around the idea of keeping the drivetrain for a buggy/gokart project and parting out/scrapping the rest of the car. But as 2013 went by and winter came around, the car sat through another Ohio winter. https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/honda-t...78cf9f0172.jpg http://6thgearadvertising.com/pics/w...ase2/2013a.jpg https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/honda-t...82c3867480.jpg http://6thgearadvertising.com/pics/w...ase2/2013b.jpg Then in early 2014, his Daily driver (Suzuki Sidekick 4x4) was getting terrible mileage and needed a bit of work. Working at a new job with a long commute. So he registered the Accord, checked everything over carefully, and started daily driving it. It drove great and got 35 MPG! A few weeks later, I got a text from Mikey: "I need a truck to haul my quad or dirt bike... How do you think the accord would look as an elcamino?" I make a photoshop of what it could look like: https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/honda-t...62865b8fba.jpg http://6thgearadvertising.com/pics/w...hase2/comp.jpg And we decided to give it a go! The first thing we did was google search to see if this has ever been done before, as that would make it a lot easier. We found 2 older accords converted into a truck, along with some Civics, 240's, bmw's, vw's, an RX7... but no late model accord. It would have been easy to build a flat wall and drop a truck window in it. We saw a lot of conversions done like that but really liked the way the cab flowed into the bed on an actual elcamino & Holden UTE's. Especially with the little rear 1/4 windows the UTE's had. We searched online for about a month, looking for actual rear 1/4 glass from a UTE (not likely since they're from Australia) or any other similar shape of glass from a vehicle. That's why we settled on re-using part of the roof & C pillar and simply move it forward. Then we could just cut a new rear 1/4 window from plexi or metal to get that UTE look. The rear of the cab was the next issue. It would be awesome to have a removable rear wall to have an open cab/bed, sort of like an old Blazer/Bronco/4runner. But since Ohio weather sucks 6 months out of the year, we decided that it should be a permanent structure. That would also help things be more structurally solid. For the rear cab window, We found some reasonably priced truck rear windows, but I really wanted to use a Del Sol rear window. That way we could still have a (smaller) opening to the bed at the touch of a button, since the Del Sol rear windows roll down. Also, it would be cool to re-use Honda parts on this Honda. So after more searching and missing a couple wrecked del sols that sold too fast, we found a guy selling one that was a project car, hit hard in front & already mostly stripped. Mikey went out to Wapakoneta, OH with a trailer & sawzall and came back with a F22, H22 SH trans, some del sol body parts, most of which we would sell to fund the project, and beer of course. Most important was the entire rear firewall with window & all window mechanism intact! http://6thgearadvertising.com/pics/w...e/phase2/2.jpg http://6thgearadvertising.com/pics/w...e/phase2/2.jpg |
Re: "Weirdmobile" 1998 Accord Zombie El Camino
Because there wasn't really a good DIY for turning a sedan into a truck on the internet, we decided to document as much as possible and upload some videos of the progress.
Here's episode 1! |
Re: "Weirdmobile" 1998 Accord Zombie El Camino
Here's part 2:
So between all of that, plus the typical honda rust on the bottom and rear of the car, we decide to modify the original plan... https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/honda-t...f03fc0ccb1.jpg http://6thgearadvertising.com/pics/w...e/phase2/9.jpg We're going to keep it "Weird" and stick with the zombie theme. Instead of a smooth flush body (which would be nearly impossible to achieve with the way the car is now) we're going to keep it raw: Exposed stitch welds, pop rivets, wear the blood and honda rust proudly. That brings us to 2015 and we have been working on the car while he continues to drive it daily. We get together one or two evenings a month and make a little progress at a time. :beer::beer: If you're in NE OH, you might see it on the road in the Medina, Cleveland area. :thumbup: Episode 3 should be ready in a couple of weeks. |
Re: "Weirdmobile" 1998 Accord Zombie El Camino
I'm in Columbus and I can't wait to see the progress!
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Re: "Weirdmobile" 1998 Accord Zombie El Camino
epic
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Re: "Weirdmobile" 1998 Accord Zombie El Camino
hmmm
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Re: "Weirdmobile" 1998 Accord Zombie El Camino
I uploaded Episode 3 last night...
We finished stripping the interior & back half of the car, then attempted to remove the rear window - and failed :cry: https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/honda-t...e5345090b9.jpg After cleaning up broken glass, we decided keep it simple, focus on beer and customize the new gas tank. :beer: Next time, we weld the doors together! :) |
Re: "Weirdmobile" 1998 Accord Zombie El Camino
Cliffs: Ohio
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Re: "Weirdmobile" 1998 Accord Zombie El Camino
Here's part 4:
We got the impact beams inside the rear doors welded together with a long piece of 1" square stock and also welded the stock to the rear floor to tie everything together. Then we built a couch in 60 seconds using leftover honda parts from the Accord rear seat & donor Del Sol :beer: |
Re: "Weirdmobile" 1998 Accord Zombie El Camino
Hahaha so awesome. I watched episode 5 and all I want is more...
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Re: "Weirdmobile" 1998 Accord Zombie El Camino
Subbed for more shenanigans and malarkey!
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Re: "Weirdmobile" 1998 Accord Zombie El Camino
Oops, I've been slacking on updating here...
Here's part 5: We cut out the rear deck and the middle of the roof. Here's part 6: We cut out the rest of the roof and trim the rear 1/4 panels. Next time we will be trimming down the Del Sol rear firewall to make it somewhat fit in the back of the Accord. :beer: |
Re: "Weirdmobile" 1998 Accord Zombie El Camino
Strictly because you guys are going at this with the mentality that you are I gotta say I love it LOL.
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Re: "Weirdmobile" 1998 Accord Zombie El Camino
Pretty cool stuff.
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Re: "Weirdmobile" 1998 Accord Zombie El Camino
Here's part 7:
We cut down the Del Sol rear wall to fit inside the Accord. |
Re: "Weirdmobile" 1998 Accord Zombie El Camino
Part 8:
Mikey got the Del Sol rear wall welded into the Accord! |
Re: "Weirdmobile" 1998 Accord Zombie El Camino
I love the weirdness. I also think it would be cool if cleaned up all nice when done. Blow some minds...
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Re: "Weirdmobile" 1998 Accord Zombie El Camino
Part 9:
We added some structural support and welded the back half of the roof on. :beer: |
Re: "Weirdmobile" 1998 Accord Zombie El Camino
Originally Posted by JoshTheJerk
(Post 50407616)
I love the weirdness. I also think it would be cool if cleaned up all nice when done. Blow some minds...
If I had the time, I'd get a rust free accord sedan, and build another one. Now that we've learned how and made our mistakes on Weirdmobile, I'd love to build one for show. |
Re: "Weirdmobile" 1998 Accord Zombie El Camino
Wow ... Just wow !
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Re: "Weirdmobile" 1998 Accord Zombie El Camino
This is pretty awesome. In for the rest of this.
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Re: "Weirdmobile" 1998 Accord Zombie El Camino
I've been slacking... Here's parts 10 and 11:
Episode 10: We take the Weirdmobile on a road trip to our local scrap yard. Back at the garage, we finish welding the roof and delete the rear door handles. Episode 11: We did a little body work/welding on the new rear c-pillars and got the Del Sol power rear window installed & working. We were pretty hammered by the end of this episode. :beer::beer: |
Re: "Weirdmobile" 1998 Accord Zombie El Camino
whoop whoop!
thanks for the updates! watching now! :popcorn: |
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