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View Full Version : Introducing 1986 LXi hatchback automatic



jjsamc
09-21-2016, 11:00 PM
Hello... Got this 1986 accord LXi earlier this year. 143K miles and seems to be in stock condition (except the radio). Me and my son have been working on it while he uses it for school and stuff.
Have gotten a lot of good ideas and information from this site so it's time we share what going on with this car since it does have wear and tear that needs fixing. The only big surprise so far is that parts can be hard to find and not usually in stock locally. Have had to order most everything and wait for it to come in.

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This is what we have fixed so far:
-Replaced AC compressor and accumulator. The old one was seized. The new one is working but makes too much noise for some reason. Thinking about returning to rockauto if it's not a belt of clutch adjustment issue.

-New spark plugs and wires. The old plugs looked worn but with no signs of engine problems. One of the old wires looked like it got caught in the fan.

- New distributor. The old one had bearing noise, oil leak, and weird red dust all inside of it.

-Oil filter base gasket. There was a massive oil leak here.

-Oil pan drain plug leaking. Finally stopped leaking with a bolt that has a rubber gasket sold at Autozone for Hondas.

-New idle screw, cleaned throttle body, dissembled and cleaned fast idle control valve. This was done to improve some weird idle surging at start up. Much better but still happens occasionally but just briefly.

-Fuel filter. This was hard to remove and had to get creative with impact wrench and tools. The old filter had a lot of fine rusty particles inside of it when we poured it out. Concerned the gas tank might be rusted.

-Oil and filter change with 10W-40 oil.

-EGR valve. The old one was not holding vacuum very well when we tested it.

-Coolant temp TW sensor. I don't know why we changed it, but it seems like an important sensor.

-Rear, driver side, and top dog bone engine mounts. Car was shaking too much when stopped and in gear and these mounts looked damaged. Big improvement but car still shakes some at stop lights, maybe because idle is too low when in gear.

-Power steering pump. The old pump seals were leaking.

-Muffler. The old one had some nice big noisy holes in it. This was a bolt on piece Bosal #278-311.

- Windshield wiper combo switch. The wipers kept turning on randomly. Could not find a cheap replacement switch for hatchbacks. Glued some material to the switch to keep the lever in the right position. Seems to be working for now.

-Rear view mirror flopping around. Took it apart and found some broken pieces that provide friction to keep the mirror from moving. Used a metal shim to correct that and wrapped the metal ball that the mirror attaches to with electrical tape to provide more friction and keep it in place.

These are some things still need work:

- Idles good at 750 rpm when in park, but the idle drops to 500 or less when in drive and rattles the dash.

-Speedometer stopped working the other day. Cable is busted and ordered a new one NAPA #615-1695. Hard time finding the 75" replacement speedo cable for this car.

-Shocks are worn out and not doing much. Rough ride over bumpy roads. Ordered some KYBs.

-Sometimes the PGM-FI dash light comes on with 12 blinks on the computer. I guess its an EGR issue but does not happen often enough to be able to troubleshoot it.

-Oil leak from oil pan gasket. It's minor but will change it with a new Honda gasket someday.

-Power steering fluid leak at the assembly that attaches to the steering rack under the car.

-A little transmission fluid leaks. Not sure if it's hoses or seals yet.

-Some other random minor (hopefully) things.

Samwise
09-23-2016, 01:29 PM
Your weird idle surging at startup might be air in the cooling system. If you notice it getting worse over time, it's probably a leak. Same thing was happening to me, and it turned out to be the heater core. That was a fun couple of days....

Anyway, she looks great. Glad to see it's in the hands of someone who cares.

Dr_Snooz
09-23-2016, 09:28 PM
Yep. Definitely looks like the car is in good hands. The leaking PS fluid could likely be caused by someone using the wrong fluid (non-Honda fluid) in the system. Sadly, the only fix is a new rack and pinion assembly. :-( If the trans cooler hoses are really old, they can allow fluid to bleed through. It's cheap insurance to replace them.

Nice work on the mirror.

5 Speed Speeder
09-28-2016, 02:43 PM
power steering is really not that necessary with these cars. my power steering belt burned off and it was one of the best things to happen to me with this car. steering feel has improved greatly

Oldblueaccord
09-30-2016, 08:16 PM
Welcome! Nice car.

Hazwan
10-08-2016, 08:56 PM
Welcome and looks like you've got the basics covered with the car.

jjsamc
01-20-2017, 11:28 PM
GOOD NEWS... Over the last few months got rid of most of the dash rattling by tightening up glovebox hardware. Replaced the speedometer cable. Replaced the struts. The code 12 light away and hasn't come back. Replaced leaky transmission cooling lines. Replaced Oxygen sensor and it feels even smoother. We replaced worn front brake pads w/ ceramic. My son was enjoying driving it almost daily.

BAD NEWS... Got hit by a BMW. Nobody hurt and it still runs fine but it's depressing. Oh well... Don't stick your front end too far out when waiting to make a left turn at a light. Went to a couple of junk yards and we found the parts to fix it and it will be back on the road soon. Also got all kinds of other random good parts while we were at the junk yard.

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Dr_Snooz
01-28-2017, 08:54 PM
Oh snap! How much work is it to fix it? Hopefully just a headlight bucket and some sheet metal.