I have a 1996 EX that I've had since brand new. I obviously have an attachment to this car, but I'm at a crossroads. I want to fix it up some, but don't know if it is worth it. I currently have 205,000 miles on it and here are some of the things I need/want to do:

New seals around the doors and windows

New headlights - current lights are cloudy/yellowing

New front bumper cover - I had cut part of the lower grille to put in fog lights and have since taken the fog lights out.

Body work and paint - I have a friend in the business who said he will paint it for $900.

I put Carbon fiber in it right when I got it. I would like to replace the parts with carbon fiber, but don't know how much work it is to replace the instrument cluster. Everything else is simple.

If I keep it I want to get a head unit with nav and touchscreen. I have been a pioneer guy, but will consider another brand that will do what I want. I currently have some nice speakers in the front, the rears disconnected (I have one speaker out and need to take the other one out) and a 12" sub in the rear. I put some dynomat on all the doors. My concern with the stereo is theft. I don't want to have my car vandalized for the 4th or 5th time!

I think I need a motor mount. I also had/have a leak. I put some of that stuff in it to stop leaks and haven't looked back. I park it in my third garage and had already put a mat down for the slow drips.

I have wheels that I like, strut bar, aftermarket springs and struts, rear lower bar, short shifter (not the adapter), header, intake and Apexi WS exhaust.

If I started to do all of this slow I have other cars to drive so I can leave it ripped apart.

Any suggestions?

 

TAS Auto for ALL the OEM parts you need to replace, I have only had excellent experiences with them.

 

Thank you. I always look at their products, but I haven't ordered from them. So I'm assuming you think I should fix it up?

Do you know how hard it is to replace the gauge cluster?

 

Great car to work on if it's not your daily driver. I've been working on mine for a few years now. I'm glad I kept it as a hobby car. Very easy to work on and modify.

The gauge cluster is a little bit of a pain in the ****, but if you have the shop manual it's not too bad.

PM sent....

 

Accord FAQ - I have a write-up I did and another user put pictures to it on how to remove the cluster, it is a pain but is fairly straight forward.

I'd fix it up, especially since you're the original owner. The headlights you could get the DEPO ones (black housing) and just replace with those.

With the door seals, unless they're ripped or completely gone, I'd use some of Honda's Shin-Etsu grease and go over all of them. It does a great job of revitalizing the rubber seals, I did it recently to my 97 sedan. Helps seal out a bit more of wind noise too.

 

My vote goes to doing all the regular maintenance stuff first.