Hellow Honda-tech'ers. I'm looking for a new daily driver. I'm not new to Honda's but have never owned an Integra so I'm not completely keen on things to look out for and/or avoid with purchasing an older Integra.

I'm going to look at 2 different Integra's this afternoon. Here is the first:

http://images.craigslist.org/00l0l_3...Wf_600x450.jpg

The things I like about this car is that the body looks like its in great condition for a '90. The only downside of this car that I know of at this point is that the transmission may be stuck in 3rd gear (the owner didn't realize this until after he listed it for $2k so he's not currently asking $2k for it anymore with the problem). Obviously an issue, but in my previous life I swapped a B20 and installed an Integra tranny into my 98 Civic so I feel somewhat confident I could install a new transmission if necessary. But the upside to this is that I may be able to get the car for cheap.

The second Integra is here:

/*Link dead: car sold */

The upside here is obvious: it runs. The downsides are that the interior appears torn and the body doesn't look as nice as the first. Also, no ps or ac.

I haven't looked at either car myself so I may completely change my opinion when I see them in person, but I think I'm leaning toward the first because of the body, all stock, and because I may be able to get it cheap. I'm willing to take my chances with the tranny. I'm pretty confident I could swap a new tranny in, but I think trying to perform massive rebuilds on the tranny would outside of my abilities.

I looked up their value on edmunds.com and car #1 without the tranny issue came up at about $1k. Car 2 came up as $700 - $800.

I'd appreciate any thoughts/advice from people more knowledgable than myself on these cars. Honda-tech single handedly got me through my engine swap 11 years ago so I definitely understand the value of experience. Thanks in advance.

 

A no-brainer, the first one, if it has no signs of rusting, [Integra rot] at the rear wheel arches it is the best looking G2 I have seen in a long time, some more pix would help.

Engines/transmissions, drive train, brakes, suspension and so on can all be replaced with new or good used parts, the chassis is a diff. story, once gone, [like second one your looking at] it will never be as good as new again without spending way more then it is worth.

If the first one was in my area, I would pick it up in a sec. and drop in the "spare" 94 Integra LS engine and transmission I have sitting in my shed. 94

 

first one 100% the 2nd one looks like **** especially with the "drift spec" muffler . swapping in a new tranny is easier then replacing the clutch+flywheel(les steps lol). just set a day aside to do it.

 

Thanks very much for the responses, guys. I'm definitely leaning towards car 1, but we'll see after I check it out.

The seller said he was asking $1000 with the tranny issue, but I'm going to ask him to come down based on the probable tranny work required.

I understand how to diagnose a bad clutch, but according to the seller the car will not come out of 3rd gear. Any ideas on what the problem could be or other steps I may take to ascertain the amount of work required to get the car driving? Thanks again.

 

bent shift fork would be my #1 call or something internal(synchroniser), it has a b18a1 correct with a cable trans ? if you do the work yourself you'll be busy for a day and maybe 300-400$ for a new trans. if you can get it for 800$ even that's a steal lol heck if that was a 3rd gen(DC) I'd pay 2K for just a rust free/clean shell !.

 

Bent shift fork would also be my first guess, but I would inspect shift linkage very closly first.

I will **** my pants if you can get it for less then $1000, up here a full shell in that condition, [no engine or tranny] will cost you at least that, [if you can even find one, and I have looked for years] this assumes no Integra rot. 94

 

Thanks for the helpful responses guys. I checked out the car and the body looks great except for a small rust spot where the back right fender meets the wheel well. See this thread here: http://www.clubintegra.com/board/showthread.php?t=55928 . The rust on the car I looked at tonight may not be this bad but it was very dark when I saw it (stupid daylight savings).

As far as the tranny, the shifter was very loose feeling, but I didn't hear any grinding or clanking when moving the stick. The car started with a jump, and when the clutch was let out it started to move but stalled, I'm guessing because its in a higher gear. The interior was a bit rough, but not awful (a tear in a seat, door panel fabric falling off). I talked him down to $750. I'm going to pick it up this weekend.

Any ideas on how I tow this thing while its in gear? Thanks again for your responses, guys. You rock.

 

Almost forgot to mention, the paint is factory and looks amazing, except for the minor rust on the back right rear qtr panel. If not for that it'd be mint. How easy is that kind of stuff to fix? Or how much to have repaired?

 

For towing if you can get a flat bed i'd do that or a buddy with a trailer, I know it may be stuck in gear but you can still roll/pull it onto a trailer/flat bed. If that's not an option just lift the front up and tow it that way for rust depends on how bad it is only rust I've ever dealt with was easily sand-off-able lol Fcm knows about body work I think. not sure what it would cost if it's just sand off/repaint and such 70-150$ at least around here I'm not into DA's but for 750$ holly ! I'd grab it in a a heart beat.

 

I'm going to pick it up tonight so I'll post some pics after I do. Car #2 actually sold before I could go look at it.

Thanks for everyone's input.

 

One more question about the car: Is the Integra rot in the back right quarter panel a deal breaker? The rest of the exterior looks great except for that one spot.

 

The rust, [Integra rot] is a common problem and unfortunately, if you see rust, your only seeing a small portion of it, like an iceburg most of it is hidden, this is not surface rust 99.99% of the time, the rusting started from behind.

It's an easy enough check, remove, [pull off] the rear wheel arch protectors and carfully run your fingers along the inside of the arch lip, [not the back edge, but the back side of the sheet metal] if it is dry and clean, [free of dirt moisture] you may only have surface rust, however, you will most likely find wet dirt and rust flacking, the inside of the arch protector will also most likely be wet and full of dirt, and thats the probem, the cause of Integra rot, wet dirt held up against the sheet metal, and because the back side of the arch lip is not painted the rust starts there.

If it is dry and clean, DO NOT reinstall the arch protectors, clean the inside lip real good and spray with someting like Rust Bullet, then cover with a spray undercoat.


Yes, the rust would have been a deal breaker for me, add to that a less then good interier, even for $750 I would have walked, its a 20+ year old car that's not running and not in very good shape, I can find cars in that shape but running for $500 or less. 94

 

Well I picked it up and had it towed to my house today rather than risk damaging anything. Got it tucked away in the garage and tomorrow I'll start taking a more in depth look at it. Here's some pics:

http://sdrv.ms/1bMovFc
http://sdrv.ms/HRj5PY
http://sdrv.ms/HRj7Hy
http://sdrv.ms/17d1Q3r
http://sdrv.ms/HRjd1W

And here's the couple of rust spots. Upon further inspection in better light, it didn't appear as bad as I thought. I'm willing to live with it or get it fixed at some point.

http://sdrv.ms/HRjhyK
http://sdrv.ms/HRjzpb

I'm pretty excited about getting this puppy running. Tomorrow I'll begin by cleaning it up a bit. So what do you think my plan of attack should be? Here's what I've got so far.
1.) new battery
2.) oil change
3.) new plugs
4.) new air filter

Once I've got those things done, I'll start to try to troubleshoot the tranny. Am I missing anything that you can think of as far as getting the vehicle cleaned up? At what point should I replace the tranny fluid? Before or after I figure out the problem? Just trying to keep from wasting brand new tranny fluid. Thanks for all your help so far guys.

 

Not a bad looking car imo, I'd inspect the suspension components ex: inner/outer tie rods, ball joints, and all the bushings. probably wouldn't hurt to change the cap+rotor+wires if they look old if not just leave them. As for the trans when you go to drop it you'll have to drain all the fluid or else it spills everywhere and it smells horrid(think rotten eggs), so i'd say just leave it for now till you fix/replace your current trans. ohh and as fcm said rip off those wheel arch protectors I see they're still on there. The trans is cable right ?

 

I'm not immediately planning on dropping the tranny. My initial guess on the issue with the tranny (I'm hoping) is shift linkage so if thats the issue then I won't drop the tranny. But I'll just play it by ear.

I'll check out the wheel arch protectors. Good advice. Thanks guys.

 

Not too bad, but that does look like it is more then surface rust.

Along with what you are doing, drain and replace ALL fluids, oil, coolant, brake and transmission fluids, the coolant is best done at a shop so the system can also be flushed. 94

 

I went to drain the tranny fluid and discovered there was about 2 whole tablespoons of fluid in there, so pretty good idea the cause of the tranny problems. Nonetheless, I added new tranny fluid.

I changed the oil, added the new plugs, but haven't flushed the coolant yet, but the coolant does appear full. I have the compression test gauge but haven't had a chance to perform the compression test yet. I had a heck of a time finding the main relay.

But back to the transmission: I'm definitely not a transmission guy. I installed a clutch, flywheel, and a transmission onto a b20 that was removed from an engine so thats the extent of my experience.

Here are the symptoms with the transmission:
1. Appears to be stuck in gear.
2. When the car is running, if I let the clutch out with the shifter in neutral, the car starts to move.
3. If I try to shift to another gear, the shifter is still loose even though I can feel it click like I actually shifted to another gear.
4. If I let the clutch out after shifting to another gear, the car stalls no matter how slowly I let it out while giving it a little gas.
5. There's no broken sound coming from the transmission.

Thanks for the help guys. Any ideas on what my next steps are?

 

It's a cable trans right ? makes a difference in what we suggest on how to fix it, but only 2 tablespoons ! ? it's supposed to hold 2.3QT's lol.

My first guess is still bent shift fork/synchroniser related.

 

It is a cable tranny. Yes, I was very shocked to see the lack of tranny fluid drip out of there.