So how about a quick story? ...

I bought a '93 Civic CX with a B18B already swapped in back in August '08 for $2200. This was my first car, bought with my own money at the age of 18, it was also my first Honda. Well, little did I know about this site, otherwise I would've asked you guys to help me out before I bought it. Anyways, i soon found all the problems with it. I drove it fine for about 10 months and then it started bogging...so i cleaned the IACV and it worked fine for about 3 months before having to do it again. The idiots used a b16 harness with a chipped p28 ECu because they were going to do a frankenstein, or LSVTEC. Well, the car really started giving me trouble and after a front end collision and everythign paid by me cuz insurance was a bitch and yadda yadda, I sold the hatch about 2 weeks ago for $1600. So i lost $600, plus the parts to fix it from accident ($500) plus the upgrades ($1000).

So hopefully on May 8th, I will be the new owner of a '94 Integra LS with 180k miles on the speedo. Im 99% positive the car has the origional engine and everything, since this is what i was looking for, something completely stock to start fresh and clean with no bullshit, now that I know what I'm doing, sorta lol.

So what I need to know is, what should be the first thigns I do to the car to hopefully make it last me another 6-12 months if not longer? I really don't want to pull the engine just yet, cuz Im buying it for $1600 and I've promised the GF's family that it would last me at least a year before engine swap.

The car runs great and ive ridden in it...the guy works at my work but hes leaving to Finland in 3 weeks. It is in great condition inside and out. I am pretty sure it has the sir front end but i may be wrong.

so yeah. haha. hes take the car when he first bought it to a shop to have the engine cleaned with the **** they run through it, and weve put injector cleaner and other stuff through it to help get rid of the old gunk.

sorry for the ultra long post, i just want to be able to drive her for at least 6 months with little problems til i get more college grant money to buy another engine- if i need it.

-Arthur

Update 5/11/2010

This is how i got her...after her first wash; back side and front side:



This is some shots of the interior, after a quick (quick mind you lol) detail:



Also where can i get the missing uh brain fart, well here, the MISSING black piece ont he quarter panel? I tried junkyard, but its a small town with not that many tegs. tried ebay but they want you to buy the whole set.


And i need some tires real bad up front. Check ou these uber rare honda wheels =P (and the 4x4 status ftw lol):


Will post pics of grimy engine bay soon... first i have to go to my college to sell back some of those expensive books to make some money for the start of the build.

 

That's just the OEM bumper. Looks like a nice find for $1600 if it runs well. Why did you have to promise the gf's family it would last you a year?

 

You mean the side-mouldings lol...now i remember the name. And as far as promises go, well, i had bad experiences with my EG hatch, and they are kinda looking down on hondas for now so i promised itd run for at least a year so that i could buy it. it was my decision in the end no matter what but i look for their input. ive gone through a lot in my 19 years of existance that i would rather not discuss with the general public, but yeah:

heres a pick of the old hatch setup:


and the setup when i sold her (plus a battery in the bay lol, i was in the process of doing a MSD setup which epic failed):


Now onto the teg engine bay pics:

I didnt have time to clean it so here she is, all dirty and grimy:




So yeah, Im kinda trying to see if i can make this work by selling stuff i have, like my brand new paintball gear that ive shot maybe 100 rounds through( my friends bitched out after i bough the stuff) and some other stuff. its going to be hard. I work full time as a garbageman lol, and going to scholl full time so yeah.

 

Good luck 0n the project.

 

Wow! That engine bay is dirty. lol. Just needs some TLC and she'll be good. Maaco obviously didn't paint the underside of the hood....nice. But it was probably a cheap paint job so I guess it's expected...oh and I like your hatch build too!

 

shave the side moldings imo, but good luck with your build

 

Loose that donkey ***** shift **** too. I hate those things lol I have a couple of shift ***** I'll let go on the cheap, just shoot me a PM if you want one.

 

tH@|\|k y0u! like i said it will be a very slow project so itl probably die and come back ... im trying to decide if i want to go to the navy, if i enter, id enter as an e-3. im 19 and got my General AA degree last december, and im one semester away from getting an As in Computer Engineering. so yeah lol. trying to decide.

Yes it is....was going to clean it like the b18 i had in my hatch, but peopel wanted pics so i posted lol. will hopefully get cleaned soon...i live in an apartment so itl be hard to find a place to spray it down. yeah maaco did a shitty job of it, i wish it was still red lol...but i didnt have a say so in it lol otherwise i wouldve done at least the jambs/hood also and painted the bay like black orsomething for the time being. andf thanks on the hatch comment, im sad she is gone, but i bought this integra off of what i made on the hatch so im not too upset.

hmmm....how would i do that? like fill it with bondo? cuz if so, i dont have money for a paint job right now and im tired of seeing a 5-color car with bondo and primer all over lol. and paint is def not the top priority for me now.

donkey ***** shift ****? the stock integra one? and i need tires in b4 shift *****.

 

also, when i got home, i opened the oil cap and there was very thin smoke coming out just a little,,,, is this normal?

i really dont want it to crap out on me right now

 

Smoke coming out from an opened oil cap is normal after driving. The motor is extremely how so of course there would be smoke

 

I Googled it after I posted it; I know kind of backwards. A lot of the articles said something about overheating and faulty oil/water pumps etc... and the last article said it is just the oil condensing, which is kind of what I figured since the "smoke" was really thin and watery, not the thick, white/blue smoke that we all know is a problem.



I also started my cash stash today lol. So far, in two days, I've put $88 dollars into it from selling two college books. I'm going to try to sell a few things here locally to get some money to start the build... but then again, if I join the military, I might be getting this thing done as soon as I get back from my first year. I'd be entering as an E-3 if I join now, or an E-5 if I join in two more semesters. Still trying to figure out what I want to do.

My plans for this Integra are:

1) Outside:
-SIR-G front end conversion w/DIY blacked out housings
-Custom Kevlar lip, diffuser, and side skirts (done by me)
-New trim around all windows
-Paint: some kind of blue or dark gray, possibly white
-Wheels: I have no idea what wheels, although I do want 16" and I'm powder coating them (got a few ideas floating around in my head)

2) Inside:
-Red suede interior with Kevlar plastic pieces. (I'm probably going to get flamed for doing this, but then again, this is my car, and I represent who I am and what I like through the way I design it)
-Um, I'm not sure about the "coding" but i want one of those OEM Honda steering wheels from the newer CRV/RSX/Fit (not sure which one lol) so that I will still have the SRS system.
-I'z haz a 2009 CRV radio/deck from my GF's Dad's CRV ( helped him install his audio system so got it in return for labor)
-Possibly bleaching the stock carpet (which is black) and then dying it red to match
-And some other odds and ends like shift boot/****, etc.

3) Suspension:
-Some kind of coil-over/spring-shock setup (still researching what I need, if anyone has any input please let me know... I'm looking for something that will lower the front to the point where the tires tuck about 1/2 inch-1 inch and the rear tires are either flush with the fender, or tucking 1/2 inch. Also, I would somewhat like "good" ride quality- I had blown shocks with eBay coil-overs on my hatch so I know what shitty means lol) I'm kind of siding with the GC/Koni just because of the reviews I've read so far, or F&F Type 1's
-Bennen 3-point strut bar (powdercoated)
-Suspension Techniques or equivalent sway bars
-ASR subframe brace
-Undecided on control arms, probably Function7 or Bennen

4) Wheels & Tires:
-Wheels: Undecided on brand/type, but I want 16" and if the car is white, then the wheels will be black, but if the blue/dark gray, then I have a custom color idea I'll do
-Tires: Nitto NeoGens; probably 225/50/16 ( had 'em on the hatchy, loved them)

5) Engine/Performance:
-Either a J-series swap OR boosted LS OR N/A built "something else"
-Cold-air intake, fuel rail, FPR, dual-core aluminum radiator with (2)12" slim fans, H, I, E

I'm pretty sure I forgot a few things, but only time will tell. Also, this is a SLOW build thread for a reason; I'm 19 y.o. I live with my GF in my apartment, everything I own is bought by me and bnever got anythign from my parents (whole other story there- basically i was abused and DCF took me from the house when i was 17). I got my General AA degree this past december and am 1 semester away from getting my AS in Computer Engineering. I currently work for the city as a garbageman. So yeah, it will be slow lol.

 

Today i found my Mugen pedals I've had hidden away for a while... going to add that to my little stash for later.

 

You won't get anything resembling a "good" ride with the ride height you're wanting.

Are you going to document the engine swap and other tech-oriented stuff? If it's mostly appearance stuff this needs to go in the Appearance Builds forum.

 

yes everything will be documented. although i dont know when it will happen so if you want to move it to that then please do so.