Introduction: I picked up this 1988 Civic STD Hatch for pretty cheap. It hadn't been driven for a little while, but it started right up and I drove it two and a half hours (160 miles) home from North Jersey.



Once I got it home, I took it to get inspected and it failed emissions (and safety because of the clear corners) - see more about the emissions problem here: https://honda-tech.com/zerothread/2074464 it still hasn't passed...

But that didn't stop me. I was tired of looking at the faded red paint (roof was horrible, not in pictures), it had a lot of overspray, a black hood, and some bondo over the rust. I sanded the rest of the bondo (yeah its ghetto but for now it'll work) and sprayed her flat black with $0.96 spray paint cans from Walmart.





Since I work at a front-end shop, I did an alignment on it, four new tires (heh Sumitomo 75K mile tires $140 total ) and surprisingly the front end was tight. All she needs is new rear struts (but I am going to lower it w/ camber kit in the near future).

Plans:
-Pass Emissions
-Lowered with camber kits and alignment (may just use the omnipower's off my DA)
-I/H/E so I can pass cars on the highway
-Replace interior missing pieces/new carpet/etc

Once I pass emissions I'll be able to focus my time/money/effort on actually improving the car, right now I'm stuck messing with sensors and all that BS, but it will get there eventually.

In closing, here's some pics of my DA, then a group shot of my 3 Hondas:





Let me know what y'all think about my plans, I need ideas to fix her up! Thanks for looking!