hyperblu

This is my 1997 Civic CX hatch that I picked up in July that has been severely neglected by it's previous owners. This hatch was originally from Hawaii and shipped the states. I am now the 6th owner. The car has ~189k mi. This will basically be where I document any and everything that I do to this car for future buyers, as well as making a portfolio with every receipt,picture,etc in it as well.

The hatch:




This bay has seen much better days. You can see that this front end has obviously been slapped back together after an accident. Carfax reported one accident in 2009, with no airbag deployment.


Here you can see where the previous owners banged the frame rail and heated it up in an attempt to straighten it out


- As of a couple weeks ago, I took the car to a reputable body shop to have it inspected and quoted to repair the damages. The frame tech looked at it and said the core support and wheelhouse panel will have to be removed and replaced as well as going on the frame machine to have the frame rails tweaked back to position. The core support,wheelhouse panel, hood, fenders, bumper, and grill are all aftermarket and fit horribly. There is only one way to fix this by going all OEM.

I started by ordering the core support. With my discount I was able to get it for a steal.
At work

After I got it home and opened it


Decided to gut the *** end of the hatch and scrub it down with degreaser and also to inspect for any other neglect. I removed the rear quarter plastics,rear seat,and spare tire cover and got to work.



Cleaned up with degreaser and scotch brite pad


Reconditioned the plastics and replaced a few clips,screws, and whatnot. Also mounted the brackets under the 6x9 since it wasnt even connected.


Found this under the rear seat, NOT EXPIRED!!! YAY!


My spare tire cover was warped and nasty, so decided to trace out a template for a new one (still gotta do)


Hatch carpet is disgusting and will be getting dyed when I have time


Today (9/22/11) I went to 4 different junkyards on a hunt for 96-00 civics. I finally found one that was full of hondas. S2000's,TSX's,Accords,GSR's, everything. I was tempted to grab a gsr rear brake swap, but funds are tight this week, so I passed them up for now.

I was able to get a front impact beam, the syrofoam, some hood stops,miscellaneous clips and screws, an ex cluster, and a minty set of NGK wires for $80.

Hate it or love the support beam. It may weight a ton, but my bumper wont sag.


Minty goodness.


Decided to install them as they were a freebie anyway.


Also installed the cluster since mine has no tach (which is annoying) Works like a champ


I have moved this thread from the appearance section, because I expect this thread to get much more technical in the oncoming weeks when the real fun begins. C&C always welcome. Got rent due with this next check, but more updates to come soon.

furious94ls

It's nice, and I like the project/update thread you will be doing. My only concearn is the extent of that frame damage.... Did the bodyshop say the car will be "safe" after these repairs? As it looks now I wouldn't really drive it.

Keep us posted. I subscribed. I like build threads. Also, how much did you pay for this car?

miked123

iTrader: (1)

subscribed. i like that intake 2 filters for enhanced filtering

easy_vtec

Keep up the good work! What junkyard did you visit full of s2k's and gsr's?!

hyperblu

The damage to the frame is minor. It did not reach the crumple zone right before the strut housing so the structural integrity was not comprimised. The damage you see is more from a hammer than the impact. I dont know what the previous owners thought they were doing. This is also why I opted for the impact beam as an added safety feature just to be on the safe side. I actually traded my em1 for this, which has similar damage. I paid $3700 for my em1, and I ended up doing a straight trade for this. He may have came out a little better than I did, but i'm okay with it. I wanted a challenge, and this certainly is a challenge.

easy_vtec

Keep up the good work! Where was the junkyard? Or name?

hyperblu

I drove an hour to a "recommended" scrap yard. I ended up paying $2 a person (me and my gf) to walk through the gate and we were barred from entering because we had flip flops on. They said we had to wear their nasty ratty boots if we wanted to enter. I wasnt about to turn around after that drive, so we sucked it up and went in just to find out that there was ONE 97 ek that was completely useless for me. We basically paid $4 to walk in nasty boots for an hour. So we started calling every junk yard in the area. We drove another 30 minutes to Murfreesboro to a place called "advance auto salvage". great guys, cheap stuff and PLENTY to choose from. Would definately recommend!

furious94ls

Ok cool, yeah def keep updating. As long as it's safe that's all that matters. lol Good luck with the build

hyperblu

LMAO... I never paid that much attention. hahaha.

creationz

hahah I got the same project car. Did the same thing with the interior but havent done the core support yet. Need to move first then i will have room to do the job. Good luck with it!

hyperblu

Not much of an update, but I cut out the hardboard for my spare tire cover and dyed the rear carpet... I pressure washed it and dyed it for 45 minutes or so and was hoping to see better results. It didn't dye quite as dark as I expected but more of a navy blue and the stains continue to show through. This was only a test run though. I was testing the powered rit dye, as opposed to the liquid. I will soak the carpet in degreaser to loosen up and grease stain and will steam clean it, Then I will soak it in dye for 3-4 days and I HOPE to get really nice results... On a positive side, I met with a former honda tech with a stunning 500hp em1. Some of you may have seen it at IA this year in Nashville. It was a flawless milano red em1 on mugen and ctr headlights... Car inspired me to put as much effort into my car as he did his.

hyperblu

Been busy painting and color sanding a 92 firebird for a family member this week and havent had much time to devote to the hatch... On a good note, im ordering a new 99-00 bumper from the dealership friday morning and an oem si front lip the same morning... Then I can test fit all my oem ish. I'll also have some money to spare for this check, but havent decided on any other goodies... probably an si grill if i can find one... Also waiting on a good deal for oem ctr headlights.. Willing to pay around the $400 range if anyone wants to hook me up. will update early next week with pics of the new goodies.
Also, expecting to paint my new bumper and lip as soon as I figure out the problem with my paint gun... Something is hella clogged.

Noraterpk

nice

hyperblu

To start this update, My 2005 jetta's oil pump decided to fail and blew up the motor, so off it went to the dealership and picked up a new vehicle to haul parts around and accomodate for my daughter.

07 Nissan Pathfinder with 89k miles.


New part even took up the whole *** end of my SUV:


Unwrapping


Out of packaging


OEM Honda stamp


My small collection of OEM Honda parts... like I said, no corners getting cut


Still looking for OEM 99-00 CTR headlights... Willing to pay $400 shipped. LMK if anyone can hook me up!!!
Also found an OEM Si lip on craigslist that i should be picking up soon...

hyperblu

Still debating to hack up this brand new bumper for some raybrig fogs and putting h3 hids in them? Think it would look nice, but can't decide if I want to or not... Still looking for ctr headlights and oem si grill, pm me if you have one or know of anybody

hyperblu

Can anyone verify the difference between the 96-98 and 99-00 bumper support bars that go under the headlights?

b16ej8jdm

im doing a 99 front end conversion on my 96 coupe. the 96 headlight stays i believe you are talking about are longer then the 99-00. i just picked up a 99 front bumper support and it came with the headlight stay brackets. i can get you a picture of the difference between the two if you need it! good luck on the build!

hyperblu

Please do... I took the 96-98 stays and tried to clip them to the bumper, but the holes didnt line up.

92lxsleeper

same part number

92lxsleeper

97 DX http://www.hondaautomotiveparts.com/...atcgry5=BUMPER


00 SI http://www.hondaautomotiveparts.com/...atcgry5=BUMPER


same part number

hyperblu

Im talking about the stiffeners, sorry... On another note, I picked up an OEM Si Lip for $100 today... Got a few scuffs on the bottom, but all tabs are in tact... A good sanding, a little body filler, more sanding, and she'll be good as new! Pics coming soon

b16ej8jdm

here in the picture you can see the top stiffener is from a 96 and the bottom one mounted on the bumper support is from a 2000.. the 96 is much longer..hope this helps!

hyperblu

Awesome... I noticed the p/n's were different. Guess i'll order new stiffeners!

BryanM.

iTrader: (1)

What major goals do you have planned for this car? (engine, suspension etc)

Will it be a street car?


Cool project, I'm interested to see more.

jdmkid1989

looks good thus far, keep it up