Ive encountered yet another stumbling block...

There are some who will recall in my previous threads that I recently
procured a JDM 98 Spec ITR.

There are almost none of these cars in South Africa, so before I'm asked
why I didnt see its flaws prior to purchasing, the answer is simple, It's
because prior to seeing this ITR, I had never seen another, & the chances
are that I wont see another, so I have nothing to compare it to.

The problem is that the car came from Japan with several parts missing,
presumably removed by either the previous owner, or at the docks in Japan.
or so I'm told, is not an uncommon practice.
It also came with a hideous fg front bumper.

These are the parts I discovered, subsequent to purchasing, that are missing:

-Front bumper & lip (Was aware of this.)
-98 spec HID headlights (One was cracked & both were replaced with 96 headlights. I do, however, have the 98 set.)
-Both front fender liners
-Rear fender liner extensions (bottom rear)
-Lower plastic and kick panels in footwells and under steering column.
-Upper plastics in glove box.
-The plastic access panels in the boot that close up the holes to the lights, etc. Large and small ones.
-Recaro seats (They were substituted with Integra SIR-G seats, I believe its called.)
-Rear upper sway bar

I have been searching for these parts with little success, not only because I cant source them, but also because some of the items, once shipped, become unaffordable.

Heres the new problem:

During the course of my research, I discovered that, further to the above items missing, theres also a performance rod in the trunk, beneath the tail lights, & a performance rod attached to the rear cross member, that are both also missing.

This troubles me, because its what I have picked up with my limited knowlege of these cars.

My question:

Please look at the pics below & confirm that it is an ITR subframe, which I am pretty confident it is, as the mounting points are there for the rod, & that I am looking in the correct place.

Also, is there anything off the front suspension that could potentially be missing,

or

Is there anything else I should be looking for in general, that could be missing.

My car...




Will these work as replacement parts?

Trunk brace/Performance rod:



Bottom brace/Performance rod attached to rear cross member:


Front lower brace: (I also have a Megan one)


Please help. Most important is to try to figure out what else is potentially missing...

 

your VIN stamped on the firewall will be a sure sign if the chassis is a ITr chassis.

The vin should be stamped DC231.......

The rear stabilizer bar is not the OEM bar obv, but looks to be mounted in the same position and is doing the same thing as the OEM bar.

You have the rear lower and front lower sway bars. The white bar installed up front is an aftermarket piece. No OEM piece mounts like that, blocking the headers.

Do you have the front upper shock tower bar?

 

that rear trunk brace, see if you have the threaded hole with welded nut in that same area.

A lot of those parts you can pick up on ebay for a reasonable price if you need them.

 

The chassis has the correct mounting points, the aftermarket bars look like they hang too low and reduce clearance under the car. You dont want to snag one on something and bend the chassis.

The welds on the sheetmetal behind the trunks bar...was a repair done or was this a stitch weld attempt? Get some paint on there.

 

Sorry. Allow me to clarify. The first two pics only are of my car, with the Skunk2 gold bar. The balance are off the Ultrarace website. My car, bar the missing bits is pretty stock.

I'm missing the oem performance bars i.e. the rear strut bar, the performance trunk rod, and the performance rod attached to the rear cross member, so I'm asking if these Ultrarace pieces can substitute, as they are actually more easily available to me than the oem parts. I know the front one is an aftermarket piece.

The other thing I'm asking is, if these oem pieces were removed, as they seem to be easily removable, what else could be missing, particularly from the front suspension.

To answer the questions:
- the VIN number is DC21300...
- I do have the engine bay TypeR strut bar.
- there are the apertures in the plastics in the trunk, behind which there are threaded holes.

I'm not really doubting it's an ITR, as it has all the telltale bits and numbers. I'm just questioning to what extent parts were removed. Is the correct subframe in, which it seems to be.

It seems to me that the parts taken were the quick to remove 'high value' items. I'm trying to figure which other parts could've been taken as well.

 

 

The oem performance bars for the trunk, lower crossmember and upper shock tower under the hood are really the only extra bolt ons for the R. You have the correct subframe, as the other models don't have the mounting provision. But these are mainly basic stamped steel parts that can be replaced easily without a huge price tag. The R's also had the five lug, bigger brakes and different rear lower control arms.

 

I do have the bigger brakes & 5 lug hubs, thankfully, lol.

I did a bit of homework, & off ebay, including shipping, but without tax and customs,
just the oem trunk bar & the cross member bar will set me back a minimum of $220.

The UltraRacing trunk rod, cross member rod AND front lower brace worksout to $280
delivered to me.

Opinions?

 

That ultra racing rear sub-frame bar hangs lower than the Skunk2 bar that is on the car currently so that would be a step backwards for you if you want more ground clearance. The Skunk2 bar that's on the car now is accomplishing the same thing the OEM bar would so I see no reason to change it. The ultra racing trunk bar looks fine, really just depends if you prefer the look of it or the OEM bar. I wouldn't even bother with that front lower brace. Just going to make the car more difficult to work on. You won't notice one bit of difference with or with out it.

 

I'm happy with the Skunk bar, so I wouldnt change it, especially because I also have the gold Skunk2 lca's to fit, so I can use my fork type Teins.

The only reason I'd want to fit the Ultra racing bar there, is entirely because its in a different location to the Skunk bar, & something is meant to be where the oem bar is missing. In truth, I'm half considering just going to a friend who does engineering & fabricating, & rather just getting him to make the lower & trunk brace out of stainless tube.

If I did go with the Ultra Racing braces, I'd want to fit the front brace, in truth, only for aesthetic value, & symmetry, considering I have upper & lower bars at the rear, I'd want the same for the front.

Looking at the rear cross member bar, is it really that much lower than, for instance, a Beaks bar?

 

The rear wheel well extensions that you mentioned I believe are rear mud guards, when they are removed they leave an opening in the rear which isn't good for dirt or moisture... If you want to fill those holes and don't like mud guards ive seen guys take the rear mud guards and cut them right along the line and only mount the inner part effectively sealing those holes perfectly, most guys on here are pro mud guard so I apologize if I hurt any feelings lol.

Also I think someone mentioned already but the rear upper strut tower bar was/is an optional piece so your car probably didn't come equipped with it unless you were told otherwise. Nice pick up on the itr, I'm jelly of weather you must have there, I can only drive my R a couple times a year in Canada lol. Old man winter is a real *******, especially this winter.

 

I figured I'd just fabricate a piece there. A heat bent piece of ABS will do the trick. I'm also pro mud guards, but I want to fit an the optional rear 2 piece valance, so mud flaps are a no go. In the process, I'm trying to come up with an unobtusive diffuser design to fit underneath, that will be an extension to those pieces. Might help with the rear bumper drag. I wont drill holes in my rear bumper, lol.

Maybe the car didnt come with that bar, I'll never know unfortunately.

Weather in SA.....pretty much summer all year long, very little in the way of natural disasters, in fact almost nothing. So yes, lol, I can drive the ITR any time I feel like. My wife has family in Canada, & they complain about exactly the same thing, along with the salt on the snow causing rust.