Hello brothers,

I finally upgraded from my auto em2 (which ive had for 12 years) to a 03 Civic si. It needs a few things done, like suspension, key doesn't open the doors and the ac doesn't work. But overall it seems to be in pretty good shape.

The only thing that concerns me is there seems to be alot of rust on the drivers side by the suspension (I don't know what it's called).

Is this normal?


Rustified drivers side



Non rusted passenger side



Underneath rear- non rusted

 

No, that's not normal. Luckily, at least it's self-contained. Maybe it's related to battery acid leaking over time?

If it's not the battery in the remote, it's the actuators in the doors. There are several threads on here and the EP3 specific forums on how to remove them. It's tedious, as the panels have way too many points of contact with the doors, and it's a very tight fit to get in there and take the actuators out to replace, but it's very doable as a DIY.

Welcome, though. It's a fun car, but be careful with upgrades. It's a little more finnicky than other Hondas.

 

Hey man, thanks for the reply.


Yes it is a fun car- ive been wanting an si (99-00 but they are all destroyed in my area) for several years. The only mods it has is a Injen cai, lowering springs and 5zigen n1r rims.

Another question I had is regarding the suspension. It has orange lowering springs (Megan?) on the original stock struts ( the seller said these were never replaced) and no camber kits.

I like how it looks lowered, but the ride is very bumpy amd harsh and something about the handling feels off.

If I wanted to keep the orange lowering springs, what aftermarket struts/shocks should I look at and is a camber kit absolutely necessary?
Theres the Black Knight and my old Silver Bullet in the backround

 

Nice EP3, looks clean. I have been trying to find one but most around my area are beat to **** or way overpriced. The rust is not that bad for the age of the car. These cars just like the RSX dont respond well to drop kits. I think 1-1.5" is just fine. Get some TEIN or better drop springs and some KYB or better struts and shocks.

 

I would agree with foumer. Of course, the springs could be a part of the problem with your suspension, you never know. I would say that anything over 1 1/4" would probably require a camber kit, but a professional alignment would be able to verify that for you. I have the RSX A-Spec kit, so I'm not too much help on the larger drop side of the equation.

A CTR rear sway bar helps out a lot on the suspension. But I'd get the new struts and get everything squared away before doing any more suspension work. Hopefully that will fix the harshness of your ride. Could be bushings, which would not surprise me at all.

 

Thanks again guys.

I actually have a Progress rear sway bar on my em2 that will also fit the ep3. I'm going to switch it over asap, because I remember it making the em2 flatter while cornering vs stock sway bar.

As far as springs and struts go..Ill most likely raise the car back to a 1" drop with different springs and struts. Its too low right now and cant even park in my driveway without scraping.

The car also came with paperwork when the prior owner purchased new tires and was even recommended by them to get front and rear camber kits.

I like the rims and the way it looks lowered, bit I kind of regret not buying a stock height ep3 (but I was having a hard time finding ep3, preludes, gsr and sis that weren't overpriced).

This car definitely looks clean to me, especially the paint. But it seems to have been driven pretty hard.

In addition to the front popping/clunking noise there are also a few other issues im noticing.

First is the notchy shifter like I have to force the gear change ( this is my first manual so it may be normal with this car?). I already changed the tranmission fluid to Honda mtf so this isn't the cause.

Second there is a weird tugging delay when I'm in gear and suddenly step on the gas- like there is a delay in accelerating and then a pull.

Third there is a little play in the steering while im parked. The wheels move just fine but there is a few inches and then a feeling of the wheel "catching" like something is loose in the steering.

 

I would take a look a the shifter bushings on the trans for wear. Same goes for the shifter inside the cabin. If you are not getting grinds when shifting try a different trans oil like amsoil mtf. It got rid of the notch on my trans. It could also be a sign of a worn clutch.
The car is equipped with EPS (electronic power steering). Start by checking the inner and outer tie-rods for excessive play, also steering column inside the cabin. Worse case scenario your power steering might need to be rebuilt.

 

No grinds during shifting so far, but Im definitely still learning haha.

What does it mean if when the car is off and the shifter is super smooth..but gets notchy while Im actually driving it?

Pretty sure the stock struts are blown because I keep bottoming out over the smallest bumps (same a slightly raised sewer lid). Im actually acared to drive ob the freeway like this.

 

Yes, even with that drop you're on, if you're bottoming out, the struts are done for.

Hmm, that's an interesting question. As said, it could be the bushings or the tranny or engine mounts that are either loose or just worn out, and the resulting slop is what you're feeling when the engine is on. There are probably at least a handful of things it could be, though.

 

lol. why is surface rust underneath the car "not normal"?

if your shifting is notchy only when the engine is on...there is a good chance you need to adjust your clutch freeplay. There should only be about .25 to .5 inches of freeplay at the top of the pedal travel. If you have much more than that, the shifting will be notchy when the engine is on because the clutch is not able to disengage fully.

 

Thank you be thirious for the helpful response.

Is another symptom of "clutch free play" when u either let go/press to hard off the accelerator and there is a tugging action.

If Im in 3rd gear for example..and then floor it..there is a sluggish tug tug to the acceleration..unless Im in very high rpms and it's not as noticeable.

 

No, that sounds like a different issue. Maybe the clutch is also slipping.

 

Because it's uneven. Unless it's inferior metal on the driver's side (not likely), there's no "normal" reason why the two sides should be so different.

 

Usually rust like that underneath a car is caused from salted roads in harsh winter climate areas. It is indeed weird that the vehicle has more so on the driver side than the passenger side. It is mostly harmless until you try and remove lower suspension parts, sometimes you will find the bolts and bushings on the lower portion of the car are frozen when trying to remove them and result in breaking bolts in their removal. I mention this because you are also talking about returning the vehicle to stock or changing springs out, you might have a harder time removing spindle bolts, etc. PB blaster works wonders as does a heat torch if PB fails. Just be careful heating directly next to body panels and keep a spray bottle of water available just in case as sometimes the undercoating, interior, etc can ignite with enough heat. I'm sure you can look up videos on youtube for removing frozen automotive bolts if it comes to that. As for the rust, if you are concerned with the underside of the vehicle being rusty and want to stop this rust from further spread/damage this POR-15 Rust Preventive Coating works wonders. It is a simple brush on coating that locks rust down and also provides a nice black coating that looks a lot nicer than the rust. I've seen guys tackle huge amounts of rust with this stuff and it looks great afterwards.

I also want to mention that some people i.e. craigslist combers would be willing to pay you cash on top of giving you their stock springs if you wanted to swap them. I myself just purchased a black 03 ep3 about 2 weeks ago and installed eibach prokit springs for a 1"-ish drop and was lucky enough to find KYB excel g struts in the car already. The combo is great for a not too low but flatter cornering and sportier feel than OEM. I highly recommend them.