PDA

View Full Version : Conozo's Daily Driver Adventures



Pages : [1] 2

conozo
04-13-2019, 04:30 AM
Since I have decided to daily drive the 3gee again I thought it would be interesting to start a thread with the adventures of owning and driving such an old car everyday. I know some of you drive yours everyday but in reality starting to daily drive a 31 year old car is ludicrous to just about everyone. I am willing to take it on.

Started driving it daily three and a half weeks ago. I expect a lot of new piddly issues during the first few months as the car gets broken in again. So with a fire extinguisher in the car lets go.

First thing is that this car has a lot of leaks. I have to park in clients driveways quite often and don't want to leave a puddle of oil everywhere but the past couple days it was leaving a trail of fluid as i backed out. Turns out its power steering fluid coming from the rack. Probably blew a gasket. I'll look at it this weekend and will post plenty of pictures in this thread.

InAccordance
04-14-2019, 09:22 PM
There's still a streak at my 1st kids old daycare where my car would dump PS fluid before I had the rack replaced lol
I feel ya though, I daily mine and have gone through just about every seal or gasket you can replace without tearing the engine apart. Only one I have now is the shift shaft seal, it leaves a spot when my car sits for a bit.

ShiRen
04-15-2019, 09:46 AM
I just got my car back together and planned to pretty much daily it, though I still have a perfectly practical Chevy Colorado too (gets shit mpg but the Honda isn't much better). Unfortunately I am leaking out the accel pump and the passenger side axle seal, leaving a nice spot in my new driveway. I don't expect this car to be that bad, though I am trying to get bike carbs on it asap, so my expectations still aren't high. No PS anymore, I think that remedied my rack leak.

InAccordance
04-15-2019, 04:57 PM
haha, mine gets the worst mpg for a car it's size. Just driving it to work which is 10 minutes away and 75% of the drive is interstate costs me 15$ a week. but I accepted that fact considering what I've done to it =P

Dr_Snooz
04-17-2019, 06:38 PM
I'm still rolling on a bent rim from when I ran into a curb months ago by driving like a meathead in the rain. :( And yeah, I have lots of leaks too. Nothing that leaves a puddle, but lots of seepage and wetness everywhere. When I got my rebuild kit from the machine shop, it didn't occur to me that they'd give me one they'd had sitting around since '89. Everything I replaced is leaking. So frustrating.

InAccordance
04-17-2019, 08:41 PM
I've got a full set of 13" steelies if you want em, lmao

Dr_Snooz
04-18-2019, 07:47 PM
I could get a rim from the junkyard easy enough, but I'm holding out for rims so I can be fancy. Too bad I'm broke all the time. So this is how I do it. I drive on the bent rim and bitch about it. Great strategy, right?

InAccordance
04-18-2019, 08:47 PM
the vibrations keep the women happy

Dr_Snooz
04-19-2019, 09:29 PM
Women bring confusion and pain. It's MGTOW around here.

conozo
04-26-2019, 11:17 AM
It didn't take long to find those blue and red flashing lights to follow me. Yesterday I took my daughters to work for a day with Dad. There was a roundabout we we're driving through and nobody around so I went around it twice at 35-40mph but not squealing the tires. As was going around the second time I noticed a car coming towards us and was sure it was a police SUV. I got off the roundabout and within a second or two I see the flashing lights behind me. Pulled over and then he asked me. Do you think this is a racetrack? I said, I was just having a little fun with the kids here. He took my license and registration and came back but didn't give me a ticket or a warning. Maybe it was the girls in the car that saved me from getting a ticket, I'm not sure but I probably could have gotten a ticket for reckless driving.

On a side note those left hand turns sure starve the oil pump. My oil gauge was pegged at zero for a few seconds around the turn. This car handles so well it needs a dry sump system.

InAccordance
04-26-2019, 11:09 PM
Had the same thing happen to me. My 5 year old loves the sound of my car and always is trying to get me to gun it. So I did once and sure enough, passed by a cop and got pulled over. Best part was my kid laughing her ass off at me getting pulled over and she wouldn't say a word to the cop, just stared at him.

Oldblueaccord
04-27-2019, 07:28 AM
Damn you guys! Bringing the cops down!

Dr_Snooz
04-28-2019, 06:10 PM
I'm learning quite a lot about cops on my daily commute. I've learned that if you are passing over a double yellow, and a sheriff comes around the corner and sees you, he will NOT pull you over and write you a ticket. However, your daily commute route WILL be crawling with Highway Patrol for roughly the next month after that.

I've also learned that if you sling shot past a school district patrol car at roughly 90... ish... he will NOT write you a ticket. But he will pull you over and give you a lecture that includes the word "reckless" several times.

I need to rethink my life.

InAccordance
04-28-2019, 06:36 PM
See, I just get boring shit... pulled over for doing 41 in a 35 once... LOOK OUT SPEED RACER!!
Now the one above was 51 in a 30 but that road does NOT need to be a 30mph speed limit and it's one of those ones that the limit changes multiple times so it's a massive trap.

twelve
04-29-2019, 02:36 PM
Glad to know I'm not the only notorious 3g driver. I've been puled over 3 times in the last month alone, still haven't managed to get a ticket though! ...Even though I was doing 65 in a 35. The car is just way too fun to drive slow with. Love the sound.

conozo
05-01-2019, 06:04 PM
I have noticed that as my gas tank gets low it takes longer to start. It always starts but just cranks a bit longer. I'm not sure what the cause of that would be. I have changed the filters a few years ago but the car did sit.for a year with the same gas in it.
As I post this I remember that I do have a fuel pressure guage in the engine bay. So ill check that as I run through a tank. Anybody have any ideas let me know.

InAccordance
05-01-2019, 07:41 PM
filter screen maybe all gunked up. Pull the pump out and check it.

Dr_Snooz
05-04-2019, 05:24 PM
Pump getting tired.

Shane86
05-06-2019, 09:17 AM
I don't know if you have one of these are not but it sure did make a difference on mine. fuel pump relay kit. https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.com%2Fulk%2Fitm%2F30 2951962397

tad70
05-10-2019, 06:23 PM
My 89 LXi was doing the same thing I changed the fuel filter and it did help a bit but then it started acting up again not wanting to start. So I changed out my fuel pump relay. All is good now.

conozo
05-14-2019, 08:51 AM
I finally was able to check the fuel pressure white it was doing it and it's not it. Fuel pressure is fine the entire time. It does appear to be flooding it by the way it sounds. Not sure how to tell for sure or what would cause that.

Dr_Snooz
05-14-2019, 07:07 PM
Oh, I know this one. Replace the ignition switch and clean your grounds. And replace your injectors. And install a fuel pressure gauge. And new brake pads. And put nice rims on it. And replace your coil and TW sensor for good measure. LOL




I got nothing.

Dr_Snooz
05-14-2019, 07:13 PM
Seriously though, that's what I just did for my warm restart issue. One of those things did it. Might have been the grounds or the ignition switch. It's the oddball stuff that strikes now. I can't tell you how I figured it out either. Just a lot of head-scratching, wild guessing and some easter-egging.

conozo
05-15-2019, 05:02 AM
I'm going to upgrade the grounds, they look tiny and my headlights are acting weird anyways. When i have the right turn signal on my left headlight will flip up once sometimes. I had an issue earlier with the headlights going crazy and i tightened the valve cover ground and it fixed it.

Snooz, already put the fuel pressure regulator on the new wheels and replaced the TW sensor in the passenger headliner......am i good now?

InAccordance
05-15-2019, 08:44 PM
You didnt put new brake pads on, you're screwed my dude.

Mine has a quirk in the hazard circuit, just pulled the fuse for it and it went away. Downside is I dont have a hazard flashing function but oh well.

One day I want to wire it so I can flip the lights one at a time just for funzies.

Dr_Snooz
05-16-2019, 07:24 PM
My hazards haven't worked for at least 20 years. Every time we tried to use them, they blinkers would stop working for a day or so. LOL. When we smelled burning wires, we pulled the module.

@Conozo, it seems like any time the electrical system is going weird, the grounds are the culprit. I was going to upgrade my grounds until I realized that it was going to cost somewhere north of $0, so I cleaned up the contacts as an interim measure and it really worked well.

ShiRen
05-18-2019, 05:39 AM
When I first got my car the headlights kept going out even after restoring the multifunction switch, so while driving at night you had to be ready to rapidly mash the high beam switch if you didn't want to end up in the ditch that day. I pitched the valve cover ground and routed a #1 cable from the pick up hook on the intake manifold to the shock tower and that was probably about the same time that stopped happening. The high beam switch is a perfect example of how you absolutely do not want bad grounds in this car, most cars use a relay to switch them, but the 3g sends all the current through the switch that sits right next to your left hand and any extra resistance in the grounds, or any wires for that matter, will make it hotter. When I pulled my engine I also replaced the battery-chassis ground with a #1 cable and a soldered battery connector for good measure. Believe it or not my hazards even work (though I just went out to test it and I had the flip the switch twice before they started working and that got my butt to pucker a little bit).

conozo
05-31-2019, 04:45 AM
I'm getting close to working on the power steering system that suddenly decided to leak everywhere. I was thinking about it and it still seems odd to me that it went from just fine to leaking at the pump, and every end of the rack all at once. I was wondering if possibly the speed sensor is not regulating the pressure correctly because if i fill the fluid up and get into the higher RPMs i can smell the power steering fluid coming out, i guess it could be the pump malfunctioning too.

Edit:

I also did clean up the grounds that were causing the headlight, turn signal, and wiper problem that was mentioned in another thread. This ground pictured here had the bolt sheered off so it was barely touching metal. I tried to drill the bolt out but I wasn't getting anywhere, so i made a new one underneath. http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/left%20headlight%20ground.jpg

InAccordance
05-31-2019, 09:03 PM
I feel ya about the PS system. When I bought mine, guy told me pressure hose leaked, which it did... badly. Replace that.
Month later the rack itself starts pouring fluid on left turns. Bad enough that I would leave streaks everywhere. Replace rack.
About a week after replacing rack, pump itself goes out. Replace that.
Then I had a hose burst near the speed sensor, fixed that.
and just yesterday I had to fix another hose that was leaking...
At this point, the PS system is completely replaced except for the tank, the metal lines, and a few rubber lines.
In the end though... worth it. I adore the PS in these cars.

Dr_Snooz
06-01-2019, 07:50 PM
Putting the wrong kind of fluid in will do that.

Hope you get it sorted out soon.

conozo
06-05-2019, 12:35 PM
I did put regular autozone powersteering fluid it during the FI swap, never started it but then found out that i shouldn't use anything other than honda power steering fluid because it doesn't have any detergents in it. Did drain it by unplugging a hose and refilled with honda fluid but i know it still had autozone in it.

Yesterday i drove on a scale, after subtracting myself and the stuff in the trunk, the car came in at 2545 lbs. I thought that wasn't bad at all. Basically im an SEI minus a radio, AC, power windows, locks, and sunroof. Anything i do in the future to the car will be mindful of weight savings. Driving my 1800lbs Honda Insight has taught me a lot on how important it is to be lightweight in a car.


Weights below for reference.
Curb Weight (MT)
DX: 1134 kg 2500 lbs
DX*: 1156 kg 2549 lbs
LX*: 1177 kg 2595 lbs
LXi*: 1218 kg 2685 lbs
SEi*: 1233 kg 2718 lbs

InAccordance
06-05-2019, 04:52 PM
I've used O'reilly's PS fluid for years and never had issues in Hondas. They have two different ones though so you have to get the right one. One is for vehicles prior to 2006 and the other is for after 2006.
This particular cars PS system was already damaged when I got it so can't really blame the fluid on it =P

conozo
06-19-2019, 08:08 AM
Just drove a full tank of gas at regular speeds to see what MPGs a normal driver would get. Got 33.25MPG which i thought was pretty good. I'm sure i could do better too. Typically before i was getting 28-29 with a lot of high speed driving and frequent 5k accelerations.

For reference -
26-27mpg average for stock carb and auto tranny
28mpg for weber carb and auto tranny


Other updates. Still trying to fix my Insight that was hit by a deer, haven't found a good fender for it yet. I want to get it fixed so i can drive it for two weeks while i button everything up on the accord regarding cruise control, suspension bushings, oil leaks, complete rebuild/replacement of the power steering system, and dash heat/air controls installed.

conozo
06-27-2019, 09:50 AM
Did an oil analysis the other day. Not too good, not terrible. I had a lot of cold starts where the car wasnt started in months and it was quite painful to watch the lag in oil pressure after start.

http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2019-06-03%20205000miles%20Honda%20Accord%2088%20Blackston e.PNG

This week i have discovered I have blowby. If i put a piece of paper on the oil cap opening it flutters, this may also explain my oil leaks everywhere. Not sure what to do about it or what caused it. Was it those cold starts, is it the fact that this rebuilt engine wasn't really rebuilt (that was another story a long time ago i would like to forget about)?

I'm going to do a compression test. Is it possible to pull the pistons out of the bottom and replace the rings as long as the cylinder walls are ok.

Hauntd ca3
06-27-2019, 11:50 AM
Did an oil analysis the other day. Not too good, not terrible. I had a lot of cold starts where the car wasnt started in months and it was quite painful to watch the lag in oil pressure after start.

http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2019-06-03%20205000miles%20Honda%20Accord%2088%20Blackston e.PNG

This week i have discovered I have blowby. If i put a piece of paper on the oil cap opening it flutters, this may also explain my oil leaks everywhere. Not sure what to do about it or what caused it. Was it those cold starts, is it the fact that this rebuilt engine wasn't really rebuilt (that was another story a long time ago i would like to forget about)?

I'm going to do a compression test. Is it possible to pull the pistons out of the bottom and replace the rings as long as the cylinder walls are ok.

Any engine is going to push a bit of air out of the oil filler , the crank spinning , pistons moving up and down move quite a bit of air around . The pcv takes care of a bit of it , but not all.
It would be easier to pull the head off to take the pistons out , you probably wouldn't get them past the crank .

Dr_Snooz
06-29-2019, 10:26 PM
If I'm reading the Comments correctly, he's telling you to test again at your next oil change and see if the metals are still high. In that case, you could be having excessive wear, but at this point it's potentially normal given the recent rebuild. Are you experiencing any runability issues?

You'll always have some blowby. The PCV should take care of that. If it's coming out of your seals, then you have a PCV problem. Most likely you just have old seals. A compression test should tell you a lot on that score. A leak down test would tell you more if compression is low.

PS: are you really changing your oil at 2500 miles?

conozo
07-17-2019, 06:34 PM
I might have changed my mind on the air conditioning. Its been crazy hot driving lately. I drive all over town throughout the day in my uniform of jeans and a polo and its been half sunny half rain. so i cant have the windows open and its raining and sunny, very humid. I'm showing up at clients all sweaty. Id need to get all the components from a parts car and id probably fill it with a propane mix.

Dr_Snooz
07-19-2019, 07:57 PM
id probably fill it with a propane mix.

You can buy 134 cheaper and easier. If you're going to pull all the parts anyway, you might as well dump some flush through them and convert it over.

conozo
07-20-2019, 03:08 AM
I thought that the compressor wouldn't work with r134 because the tolerances aren't as tight as they need to be for the smaller r134 molecules. Plus they do sell r12 replacement that's made of propane and isobutane mix, that's what I'm talking about with the propane mix.

ShiRen
07-20-2019, 06:20 AM
I bought the es-12a, idk what its made out of, but its pretty cheap per oz, granted you have to buy a case of it. My ac is going together today, ill vacuum it next week... really hope it works. I had r134a in the keihin compressor and it leaked a bit and it was noisy.

Dr_Snooz
07-20-2019, 07:41 AM
I'm all for experimentation, even when you know it's destined to fail. You learn a lot, have more fun and live a more interesting life that way. I tried Duracool a few years ago (followed by a foray into bbq gas which is another topic). Duracool was a hassle to find, a hassle to order, a wait to get in the mail, trickier to get the pressures right and after shipping, was quite a bit more than the 134 I could have bought at WalMart same day. When it all leaked out again in a week, I wondered why I'd gone to all the bother. If you have a Keihin, then do what you must. In my opinion though, the Keihin is just garbage period, and at 30+ years old is pretty much done no matter how you accommodate it. You're going to have problems with it and you're going to lose a few fills before giving up and putting in a Denso. Even in that case, you're still better off filling with 134 just for the ease and cost savings. With 134 you can easily find pressure charts and help on the web, you can talk to your buddies about what's going wrong with your system, you can take it to a shop and not worry. With propane, you'll find no documentation and everyone you mention it to will back away and call you crazy.

If it's just a car you're trying to squeeze a few more miles out of before sending to the crusher, then propane makes sense. If you're curious and want to give it a whirl, then do it. Have fun and know that 134 is probably in your future. It all depends on what you hope to get out of the car.

In your case specifically, conozo, where you're relying on this as a daily driver, ask yourself if you want to spend a lot of time fiddling with an experimental refrigerant and old parts when you should be driving to client meetings. For me, this is one of those cases where you need to drop some cash and do the job properly. Get a new Denso (if you can find one), replace the hoses, do the retrofit and put the project to bed. You don't want to be standing on the side of the road, in the heat, wondering where your refrigerant went and just how flammable propane really is.

As I continue to drive a very old car, I'm realizing that these creature comfort issues are the single most important thing to get right. A car that's uncomfortable, hot, loud, temperamental, broken knobs and windows, faded paint, lots of vibration, etc. is a car you won't keep, no matter how good the performance. So many guys focus on performance and produce a car that's unbearable. They pretend that they can live without seats or AC or power steering. They do it for a while, but end up driving a Prius because there's less drama. If you're serious about keeping any car for the long haul, then these things are very important; the most important. Yes, it's expensive, but a new car is always more expensive than the most expensive repair. I'm not telling anyone what to do, just framing these seemingly minor decisions in a wider context. What I will tell you to do is, since you'll have the system open anyway, flush your system properly and refill with Ester oil. That way, you'll have the option to go with 134 later if you want.

Oldblueaccord
07-21-2019, 09:29 AM
I'm all for experimentation, even when you know it's destined to fail. You learn a lot, have more fun and live a more interesting life that way. I tried Duracool a few years ago (followed by a foray into bbq gas which is another topic). Duracool was a hassle to find, a hassle to order, a wait to get in the mail, trickier to get the pressures right and after shipping, was quite a bit more than the 134 I could have bought at WalMart same day. When it all leaked out again in a week, I wondered why I'd gone to all the bother. If you have a Keihin, then do what you must. In my opinion though, the Keihin is just garbage period, and at 30+ years old is pretty much done no matter how you accommodate it. You're going to have problems with it and you're going to lose a few fills before giving up and putting in a Denso. Even in that case, you're still better off filling with 134 just for the ease and cost savings. With 134 you can easily find pressure charts and help on the web, you can talk to your buddies about what's going wrong with your system, you can take it to a shop and not worry. With propane, you'll find no documentation and everyone you mention it to will back away and call you crazy.

If it's just a car you're trying to squeeze a few more miles out of before sending to the crusher, then propane makes sense. If you're curious and want to give it a whirl, then do it. Have fun and know that 134 is probably in your future. It all depends on what you hope to get out of the car.

In your case specifically, conozo, where you're relying on this as a daily driver, ask yourself if you want to spend a lot of time fiddling with an experimental refrigerant and old parts when you should be driving to client meetings. For me, this is one of those cases where you need to drop some cash and do the job properly. Get a new Denso (if you can find one), replace the hoses, do the retrofit and put the project to bed. You don't want to be standing on the side of the road, in the heat, wondering where your refrigerant went and just how flammable propane really is.

As I continue to drive a very old car, I'm realizing that these creature comfort issues are the single most important thing to get right. A car that's uncomfortable, hot, loud, temperamental, broken knobs and windows, faded paint, lots of vibration, etc. is a car you won't keep, no matter how good the performance. So many guys focus on performance and produce a car that's unbearable. They pretend that they can live without seats or AC or power steering. They do it for a while, but end up driving a Prius because there's less drama. If you're serious about keeping any car for the long haul, then these things are very important; the most important. Yes, it's expensive, but a new car is always more expensive than the most expensive repair. I'm not telling anyone what to do, just framing these seemingly minor decisions in a wider context. What I will tell you to do is, since you'll have the system open anyway, flush your system properly and refill with Ester oil. That way, you'll have the option to go with 134 later if you want.


Snooz

I went ahead and signed you up for a new Civic Type R in white. Hop down to the dealership tomorrow sign the paperwork. I made an AM appointment.

https://www.tracyhonda.com/vehicle-category/new-hondas/civic-type-r/

Oldblueaccord
07-21-2019, 09:39 AM
I thought that the compressor wouldn't work with r134 because the tolerances aren't as tight as they need to be for the smaller r134 molecules. Plus they do sell r12 replacement that's made of propane and isobutane mix, that's what I'm talking about with the propane mix.

9675

I bought this new a few years ago I think it has a lifetime warranty. Direct fit if you have the bracket and the manifold that goes on it.

ShiRen
07-21-2019, 11:43 AM
My problem with the denso is where the hell do you get the bracket and the manifold? My keihin is working good right now, pegged my gauge set out on vacuum and held it, its not making any noises like it did on r134 and I dont see any leaks. Put an o ring on the low pressure side of the compressor and fill it with a really heavy refrigerant. This car still held enough of the original r12 to run the ac after 32 years, not that it was cold, but I have no reason to think it wont last several years on a charge of something like es12. Ill report back if Im wrong, but Im sitting comfortable in the sonic drive through right now after going through hell this week with no ac. I gave the keihin a bad wrap too but unless theres something glaringly wrong with your compressor I would give it a shot.

Oldblueaccord
07-21-2019, 02:32 PM
My problem with the denso is where the hell do you get the bracket and the manifold? My keihin is working good right now, pegged my gauge set out on vacuum and held it, its not making any noises like it did on r134 and I dont see any leaks. Put an o ring on the low pressure side of the compressor and fill it with a really heavy refrigerant. This car still held enough of the original r12 to run the ac after 32 years, not that it was cold, but I have no reason to think it wont last several years on a charge of something like es12. Ill report back if Im wrong, but Im sitting comfortable in the sonic drive through right now after going through hell this week with no ac. I gave the keihin a bad wrap too but unless theres something glaringly wrong with your compressor I would give it a shot.


Its a good question I dunno where to get the bracket or the manifold either. Im not sure the bracket is different.

I started on an AC conversion thread a while ago but it gets derailed and I dont have any info or Keihin. maybe we could split this one off to a new thread.

Dr_Snooz
07-21-2019, 04:42 PM
Snooz

I went ahead and signed you up for a new Civic Type R in white. Hop down to the dealership tomorrow sign the paperwork. I made an AM appointment.

https://www.tracyhonda.com/vehicle-category/new-hondas/civic-type-r/

I think you got that wrong. The guy you quoted obviously wants a Lincoln.



My problem with the denso is where the hell do you get the bracket and the manifold?

Junkyard. Get 'em quick before they're all gone.




maybe we could split this one off to a new thread.

Sure. Do we have anything more than 2 posts to put in it?

ShiRen
07-22-2019, 12:19 PM
Hahaha... yeah the only car in my junkyards was an 88 lxi that still had the keihin, and the only ones I even see running are dxs, heck I own 2

conozo
08-20-2019, 07:10 PM
My cruise hasnt worked since the conversion. I think its really a ground issue only to be solved by moving the body ground on the valve cover or welding the body panels together instead of having them just bolted. Like the painted support across the front by the radiator, its not connected very strong and the ground connection is weak.

Anyways i was looking for smaller cruise control options to clean up the engine bay, on newer cars its an electric motor that is all quite small. I know ours is vacuum operated. I found this on amazon Universal Vacuum Cruise Control (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B004J0PCWS/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_U_jolxDbHD31WT5) it appears much smaller, looks like the buttons could be wired into our existing stock cruise buttons, and it use VSS to control the speed. Has anybody ever used this system or some other alternative that is smaller and more simple than ours.

ShiRen
08-21-2019, 06:46 AM
Im going to work on an electronic cruise at some point. my plan is to chop the speedo cable and drive a speed sensor off it, use an arduino as the brain, convert to an electric speedo as well. its not super complex, but I dont have the time right now and Id like to wait for my next raise.

conozo
08-26-2019, 05:54 PM
Just did 3 days of road trips totaling about 700 miles. Car ran pretty good, found a couple items to be worked on. Cruise control as mentioned above, sound deadening, and i think my one non honda cv shaft is starting to go bad. It does have about 8000 miles on it so and is one of those autostore crappy rebuilt ones. It was making a metallic crunchy noise when letting off the gas around 30-40mph and in stop and go traffic it would go crunchy when starting out from a stop. Never any noise when turning but there seemed to be a lot of torque steer, maybe from the slop in the joints. So i'll make sure it is the longer CV shaft which i think it is and ill take it into a local clutch and driveshaft place here in town and see if they can rebuild it. I know others have mentioned it but the remanufactured CV shafts are total junk and i am tired of them.

InAccordance
08-26-2019, 07:13 PM
What's cruise control???
Just did 1900 miles to Texas and back with no cruise, no a/c, and this thing loud as hell. Fuck, it was fun though =D

conozo
08-26-2019, 07:30 PM
I'm not denying it was fun but cruise would help me keep my speeds in check. I often find my self speeding. Passed several cops going 7-10 over. Surprised they didn't pull me over.
This car is a speed demon for some reason, it's quite easy to go 100, I do it weekly.

InAccordance
08-27-2019, 01:37 PM
Most cops and troopers wont bother with up to 10 over... it's when you're doing 15 over they get upset.
I say most cause there are some who will, especially around the end of the month.
I had to do a double take when I hit Texas and saw the 75mph speed limit sign lol

conozo
08-28-2019, 07:25 AM
Here in northern Indiana and Ohio they will pull you over for going more than 5 over. In Indiana we have many 4 lane divided highways where the speed limit is 55mph which always seems agonizingly slow when you come from other states where there are hills and curves with 70mph speed limits.

I'm going to do an experiment since my other car is an insight that can get 95mpg I'm going to see what I can get on the accord on this tank. I'm shooting for 40mpg. Currently my best is 33.5mpg and that was just all highway and not trying to get good mpg.

InAccordance
08-31-2019, 11:41 AM
I was happy I averaged 28mpg on the Texas trip lol. I expected less.

conozo
10-04-2019, 12:30 PM
I tried to get good gas mileage but got 34mpg which is good but considering how different I was driving it was surprising. So I guess I'll just continue to drive it like I stole it.

I forgot to post yesterday that it was my cars happy adoption date. 31 years ago my dad purchased it. I wish I could figure out the exact manufacturer date but it doesn't seem to be coded into the window sticker. It only says September 88 on the door Vin tag.

Dr_Snooz
10-05-2019, 06:09 PM
Happy birthday!

I've had the same thing happen to me. If I drive very conservative, the mileage is underwhelming. I don't know why that is, but it's a convenient excuse. LOL

InAccordance
10-06-2019, 03:21 PM
Haha, mine drinks gas no matter what now.

conozo
10-23-2019, 07:34 PM
I had something amazing happen yesterday. When i was starting my car yesterday it sounded awful, a metallic grinding noise and it got worse the more i started it throughout the day. It was so bad that i even left the car on while i went in for a computer repair job because I didn't have enough room to push start it where it was parked. So the amazing part was that, at 8:30PM i called up the closest AutoZone and asked if they had a starter and they didn't but mentioned that the next closest store in town has one in stock. Amazing! I went and got it and installed it in about 30 minutes, car starts fine now. The old starter was the original Honda starter, had a good run till it exploded.
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/starter_explosion.jpg

Also recently upgraded the ground wire that goes to the valve cover. Now my left headlight works and the turn signals work when the headlights are on without spazzing out. I still may move that ground to a better bolt, i just don't like where it is, small contact areas to the sheet metal.

InAccordance
10-25-2019, 10:38 AM
Press F to pay respects to our fallen starter brother.

Dr_Snooz
11-02-2019, 06:59 PM
F

@conozo: I moved that ground wire to the shock tower and it's working well.

Oldblueaccord
11-03-2019, 08:52 AM
I think the valve cover ground needs an xtra washer because you can bottom out the original acorn nut nut the wire wont be tight. Also the last set of grommets I got were plated so I ground off the plating as well. Dielectric grease on everything of course.

InAccordance
11-04-2019, 02:57 PM
Think all the grounds on these cars need upgraded. I had an issue a while back with the battery terminal, ran a new wire to the shock tower from the negative terminal and never had a problem since.
Still need to get my signals working though...

conozo
11-07-2019, 04:48 PM
I may have to bust out the 2000 Honda Insight for a couple weeks while i get the accord ready for the winter. I need to put the new dash in so i can put the heater controls in. But along with that includes some rust repair, welding on the firewall. Remove the sound deadening behind the firewall and add new sound deadening material. I will replace the AC evaporator in prep for the AC system install next summer and get rid of my mechanical oil pressure guage and replace it with an electric one. My mechanical autometer one is very noisy even though i bled all the air out of the line. I'm debating weather to cleanup the wiring since im going to keep my car with manual windows, locks, mirrors, no sunroof so i can remove about half of those wires and dangling plugs under the dash from the LXI wiring harness.

Dr_Snooz
11-07-2019, 06:47 PM
I hear you. I'm sitting on a big pile of deferred maintenance myself. Have fun with the repairs.

InAccordance
11-10-2019, 11:30 AM
Holla if you want to sell that mechanical gauge😀

conozo
12-08-2019, 07:28 PM
Other news. I finally found all the parts and fixed my Insight yesterday. I hit a deer in it 8 months ago and it took that long to find a headlight, fender, door and a few other clips and screws. I was searching over the entire US and drove many hours to pickup parts. I'm going to drive it for a few weeks to make sure it's in good working order then sell it.

Let me tell you, I am never owing another rare car again. They sold this car for 6 years and only sold around 16,000 units worldwide. They are 20 years old but the real problem is that since they were so uncommon in the first place, parts were never made for them. You may be thinking our 3geez are rare but they actually sold a ton of them new, manufacturers actually made replacement parts. It's so much easier to find parts for the accord compared to the insight there is no comparison believe it or not.

Oldblueaccord
12-10-2019, 01:50 PM
I been wanting a Dodge Viper Gen 4 or gen 5 for a while but shopping around and research its a low production hand built car and parts are very hard to get even for the newest gen 5's. Its one of the reason I went with Camaro is they are everywhere and the warranty. Im got tired of working on my cars where I got to make every part or search for 6 months for something.

Dr_Snooz
12-15-2019, 01:19 PM
Amen. It's alright on your once-a-year classic, but not on a daily driver.

conozo
01-19-2020, 07:27 PM
Haven't done much to the accord lately. But I've been looking at it and researching a few things as it needs a bit of TLC to make it winter worthy and driveway worthy.

This summer i drove about 14,000 miles or so on it. Didn't really do anything to it, just drove it. My power steering bit the bullet early on, it leaked from everywhere, everywhere on the rack and pump itself. So I've been thinking about it. I really didn't mind not having power steering, sure it would be nice, but i want to try an experiment. I will be removing the power steering pump, lines, and rack to modify into a manual rack. I'll be taking the rack apart to remove the chambers (not sure what to call them) to remove all the resistance and remove any need for fluid. It will simply be greased and sealed like a manual rack. I would drive the car like that for a while till i figure out the next part which is electric assist. I have seen people use a Gen II Prius power steering to replace their steering column to get electric power assist. The Prius unit would be powerful enough for this car, it only needs a positive and ground for power and it runs in safe mode without the Prius ECU but still gives assist as normal.

2nd issue is oil leaks, it looks like i have blow by but i haven't done an compression test to confirm but it leaks a lot of oil so i am also wondering if its caused by a non working PCV system. I would like to rip it all out and replace it completely. I have a feeling the baffle box is full of gooey oil and blocking all flow.

3rd more minor issue is cruise control, as mentioned above i want to abandon the factory system and put the aftermarket system that runs off the pulse generator. The aftermarket system is much smaller and would be more reliable. I would make it work with the factory buttons on the dash and steering wheel.

4th issue, after starting the car the end of the fuel rail where the fuel pressure regulator is leaks fuel like a mofo. I have an aftermarket fuel pressure regulator with a gauge and its reading correctly so im not sure if it a loose connection or if its something more serious like a partially clogged fuel return line or something else. I really don't have a clue on that one at all but it does leak pretty bad for the first half a minute of driving.

In general as mentioned before i want to make the car as light weight as possible but keep it functioning which is part of the reasoning for switching the power steering system. I'll be keeping all the power steering parts just in case i want to put it back and it really doesn't work out.

Dr_Snooz
01-19-2020, 08:52 PM
The trouble with those electric PS units is they come with a giant motor attached. You have to find a space to stash it under the car or under the dash. If you put it under the car, you'll be grinding and welding. I haven't looked under the dash too much but there's a lot going on under there. Keep us posted on what you figure out. I'm definitely interested.

The PCV system flows pretty well so l don't see it clogging, but who knows. I'd be more suspicious of old leaky seals.

Cruise control is a common add on for classic cars. You shouldn't have too much trouble making it work. Summit has kits for ~$200. That's money well spent IMO.

conozo
01-25-2020, 07:43 PM
Did some things today. Weight reduction. I removed the power steering pump and all the lines and removed the cruise control. Is was a very messy job, that power steering rack had leaked everywhere and on everything, it was a mess. There was pretty much no fluid in it at all. im going to drive it like this just for a little bit just to see if its any different than with the pump installed. Then ill remove the rack and replace the seals and convert it to a manual rack thats sealed up with good grease.
Before
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/PS%20pump%20removal%20before%201%20(Medium).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/PS%20pump%20removal%20before%202%20(Medium).jpg

After
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/PS%20pump%20removal%20after%201%20(Medium).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/PS%20pump%20removal%20after%202%20(Medium).jpg

Oldblueaccord
01-26-2020, 06:42 PM
Haven't done much to the accord lately. But I've been looking at it and researching a few things as it needs a bit of TLC to make it winter worthy and driveway worthy.

This summer i drove about 14,000 miles or so on it. Didn't really do anything to it, just drove it. My power steering bit the bullet early on, it leaked from everywhere, everywhere on the rack and pump itself. So I've been thinking about it. I really didn't mind not having power steering, sure it would be nice, but i want to try an experiment. I will be removing the power steering pump, lines, and rack to modify into a manual rack. I'll be taking the rack apart to remove the chambers (not sure what to call them) to remove all the resistance and remove any need for fluid. It will simply be greased and sealed like a manual rack. I would drive the car like that for a while till i figure out the next part which is electric assist. I have seen people use a Gen II Prius power steering to replace their steering column to get electric power assist. The Prius unit would be powerful enough for this car, it only needs a positive and ground for power and it runs in safe mode without the Prius ECU but still gives assist as normal.

2nd issue is oil leaks, it looks like i have blow by but i haven't done an compression test to confirm but it leaks a lot of oil so i am also wondering if its caused by a non working PCV system. I would like to rip it all out and replace it completely. I have a feeling the baffle box is full of gooey oil and blocking all flow.

3rd more minor issue is cruise control, as mentioned above i want to abandon the factory system and put the aftermarket system that runs off the pulse generator. The aftermarket system is much smaller and would be more reliable. I would make it work with the factory buttons on the dash and steering wheel.

4th issue, after starting the car the end of the fuel rail where the fuel pressure regulator is leaks fuel like a mofo. I have an aftermarket fuel pressure regulator with a gauge and its reading correctly so im not sure if it a loose connection or if its something more serious like a partially clogged fuel return line or something else. I really don't have a clue on that one at all but it does leak pretty bad for the first half a minute of driving.

In general as mentioned before i want to make the car as light weight as possible but keep it functioning which is part of the reasoning for switching the power steering system. I'll be keeping all the power steering parts just in case i want to put it back and it really doesn't work out.

My friend with his Cobra kit car uses the Pirius gear boxes he really likes it. If you have any questions lemme know.

conozo
02-03-2020, 08:40 AM
Did some driving last week. The old Honda saved my life. Wednesday I was driving my Insight the I decided to switch it up, dropped the car off at home to use the Accord the rest of the day. I was on the highway with the Accord just starting to merge off to an off ramp and there was a Ford Escape coming right at me going the wrong way. We were both probably going 60mph. When I saw the car I wasn't exactly sure which way to swerve because I didn't know if this person was doing this on accident or if they were on a suicide mission, that thought was in a split second. I locked up all 4 tires for a split second and swerved to the right just avoiding the car. There was a car behind me by a bit, he went off in the grass and stopped. The off ramp goes down a hill so I couldn't see them for long but looked in my mirror but never saw them stop or move over. There was no way I could have moved out of the way if I were driving the Insight, it just doesn't handle like the Accord at those speeds. Thats probably the 5th time in my life I have avoided an accident from driving such a well handling car. Oh and driving without the power steering pump was not an issue at all, that was a real test.

On another note, after removing my non working cruise control my bouncy idle has disappeared. It must have had a vacuum leak in it.

Dr_Snooz
02-06-2020, 08:32 PM
Eek! Glad you're okay. Please be safe out there.

conozo
03-26-2020, 03:47 AM
Ok, I am 90% sure I have excessive blowby. It leaks oil from every gasket and seal top to bottom of the engine. You can feel it when opening the oil fill cap and I'm loosing about a half a quart every 500 miles now. I don't think I'm burning much.

What can I do to test and figure this out. This is supposedly a new engine but had some cold starts after it sat for 3-4 years. The performance seems really good, pcv valve is fine, has plenty of power and doesn't smoke. I'll do a compression test and maybe get a boroscope to look at the cylinder walls but other than tearing it down to see if my piston oil rings are stuck I don't know.

Edit. One positive note the car has had no additional rust this winter because of the new coat of oil on the underbody everyone I drive.

Dr_Snooz
03-28-2020, 08:01 PM
Cylinder leak down test will tell you what you need. A vacuum gauge might also be useful. I'd start with the vacuum gauge.

conozo
04-17-2020, 11:33 AM
I purchased a leakdown tester and a boroscope the other day. When checking the engine cylinders 1,3,4 had no leaks but cylinder 2 had about 25% leak. So then i connected the air compressor to the cylinder and it was definitely leaking down into the crankcase. A look with the boroscope in that cylinder looked fine, all the cross hatch marks were there and there were no vertical scoring. So my guess is a stuck piston ring or oil control ring or both. I attempted to free it up if that was the case by putting just enough Marvel Mystery Oil in through the spark plug hole to cover the piston and let it soak. I did this repeatedly for 3-4 days, turning the engine over by hand before adding more. The last fill the oil did not drain through, the other times the oil was gone in an hour but this last time the oil sat there for a whole 24 hours. I got the oil out and ran the car for a bit and did another leakdown test and it did not show any leaking. I'm not calling it solved yet but that result was hopeful. I did drive it for a whole day after that and while i still had quite a few oil drips when parked the oil dipstick was still seated correctly and not pushed up.

Pic of cyl #2 and the spark plug. The other spark plus were normal, but you can see here it was definitely burning oil.
9987
9986

Other news, i exchanged the new starter that was put on the other month. It wouldnt start consistently all the time, sometimes resort to chugging. Replaced it and the new one starts fine all the time but now i get a metallic sound, its as if the gear is hitting the flywheel too hard. I am unsure if i installed it upside down, im not even sure that possible but ill take it off and have a look. The old one was off the car for a week or so while waiting for the autoparts store to figure out how to order the correct starter. They kept on ordering the automatic starter but since the old one was off for so long i forgot how it originally was on there.

Additionally i get a very loud hissing sound when starting a cold car for the first 5-10 seconds, i havent been able to diagnose it. Starts fine and idles like it always has, i initially though it was the sound of fuel spraying but i have watched it after starting and there is no fuel. I'll look next for a vacuum leak maybe by the brake booster. Hard to tell since its over so quick.

Dr_Snooz
04-17-2020, 08:07 PM
That's impressive that you got the blowby fixed so easily. If you had taken that to a shop, it would have been an engine rebuild.

conozo
04-18-2020, 05:06 PM
What can i use to clean the oil and grime off the paint in my engine bay. Every cleaner i have tried takes off the paint too. Remember that white does not have a clear coat just like phoenix red.

Oldblueaccord
06-10-2020, 03:35 PM
Ok, I am 90% sure I have excessive blowby. It leaks oil from every gasket and seal top to bottom of the engine. You can feel it when opening the oil fill cap and I'm loosing about a half a quart every 500 miles now. I don't think I'm burning much.

What can I do to test and figure this out. This is supposedly a new engine but had some cold starts after it sat for 3-4 years. The performance seems really good, pcv valve is fine, has plenty of power and doesn't smoke. I'll do a compression test and maybe get a boroscope to look at the cylinder walls but other than tearing it down to see if my piston oil rings are stuck I don't know.

Edit. One positive note the car has had no additional rust this winter because of the new coat of oil on the underbody everyone I drive.

I had a thought on this as my car leaks quite a bit too.

Do you run the stock EFI air intake setup?

Years ago I took all mine off and just run a KN filter cone straight off the TB. But it eliminated the port from the top of the valve cover to the air intake tract piping and I have always wondered if this is negating the PVC system.

Just a thought I have had over the years.

conozo
06-11-2020, 03:12 AM
I am running the stock intake and regular filter. Pvc system works as I checked it the other month.

As my previous post say, I do have excessive blowby and appeared to have fixed it but time will tell if it's gone for good. Still leaks a few drops everywhere I park, I've been putting some miles on it recently and will report how much oil I'm going through.

On another note I was driving in the country the other day low on gas and the car just died, luckily there was a random factory where I coasted into the parking lot. I thought I was going to have to call my wife to bring me gas way out to where I was but I smelled gas and thought that was odd to smell gas when running out of gas. I popped the hood and found the fuel return line popped off the fuel pressure regulator causing fuel to be sprayed all over the engine. Reconnected it and tightened it up more than it was before and was good to go. I was working so I had tools with me and I'm glad nothing caught fire even though I do keep a fire extinguisher in the car for reasons like this.

conozo
06-20-2020, 06:42 PM
Had some lady stop in her tracks to tell me how cool my Delorean was. :flash:

Also, purchased a set of rocker panels, so now I have those along with the rear quarter panels for the rust repair project in the future.

Dr_Snooz
06-20-2020, 09:26 PM
Where did you find replacement panels???

conozo
06-21-2020, 12:22 AM
Ebay

There's only a few left and I think they only have sedan panels. Sorry coup and hatch guys.

Dr_Snooz
06-22-2020, 04:18 PM
Oh my!

https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=m570.l1313&_nkw=89+accord+quarter+panel&_sacat=0&LH_TitleDesc=0&_osacat=0&_odkw=89+accord+rocker

https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=p2334524.m570.l1313.TR0.TRC0.A0.H0.X89+acc ord+rocker.TRS1&_nkw=89+accord+rocker&_sacat=0&LH_TitleDesc=0&_osacat=0&_odkw=89+accord+quarter+panel

conozo
06-22-2020, 07:22 PM
About a year ago I discovered a music genre I have never heard before and I love it. I do like techno/ electronic and this is slightly different. It's called synthwave or retrowave. It's the perfect music for driving these 80s cars in 2020.

Here are some of my favorite mixes on you tube
https://youtu.be/wOMwO5T3yT4
https://youtu.be/WI4-HUn8dFc
https://youtu.be/5C_gUic3cCo

What do you guys think?

ShiRen
06-23-2020, 04:06 AM
My goto driving music in an 80s car is stuff like Nujabes, Uyama Hiroto, MF Doom... but that may just be my goto anyway, the 80s car just adds to it.

There's always futurefunk and citypop when I'm feeling a little weebish too, and Daft Punk is always money.

Dr_Snooz
06-23-2020, 07:18 PM
What do you guys think?

I like it!

conozo
06-29-2020, 08:27 PM
I think I purchased the last set of rocker panels available for our cars.

http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/RockerPanelSet(1).jpg
Here is a closeup of the label for those who want to dig through the internet to find another set.
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/RockerPanelSet(2).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/RockerPanelSet(3).jpg

Maybe this winter I will work on this and the rear quarters. If not, ill still drive the car as in only in nice weather.

Oldblueaccord
06-30-2020, 12:17 PM
Ahhh there for 4 doors only? I thought they where in the rockauto discount parts list.

conozo
07-01-2020, 05:48 AM
My first order through ebay was cancelled, they gave a lame reason that my shipping address was incorrect. I think they just marked it that way so they wouldn't get a negative mark on ebay. So i ordered another set through a different ebay seller. I did notice that after the first seller cancelled the order, immediately online i could not find many of the listings for the rocker panels, they were just gone. Looks like the supplier figured out they didn't actually have them in stock.

conozo
07-08-2020, 09:36 PM
Question for you guys. What do you think my 0-60 time would be. I feel like my car is faster than most. It has no trouble going from 80 to 100 or getting up to 90 on an onramp. I do have some mods but so do most on here and they say their cars aren't that fast, maybe it's because I've never driven a real high horsepower car so my expectations are low.

Here's the mods.
2550 lbs weight
Fuel injected
Mild cam
Overbored pistons
Head taken off twice and shaved a little
Pacesetter header
No power steering or ac
5 speed from lxi

So what 0-60 times do you think I should get? I record some passes and post in a few days.

Oldblueaccord
07-08-2020, 09:41 PM
Since you live in the flat lands ill go...

8.8 secs 0 60 16.8999 quarter mile

When I had my gtech pro I never could get below 17.0 quarter. its the 60 foot kills the time very slow.

ShiRen
07-09-2020, 04:06 AM
Last summer before carb #1 cracked I think it was running 8 flat 0-60, good considering that getting off the line is a total money shot and you have to somehow not lean it out. This year I thought it felt a bit slow, but I never timed it and it may be the same reason that I had the cyl head off.

Dr_Snooz
07-10-2020, 08:48 PM
l say 10.

conozo
09-09-2020, 11:31 AM
Haven't had time to do a 0-60 test, i always have 100+ lbs of computer parts etc in my trunk that i want to take out before doing so. Did an oil change and wanted to tighten up the two sensors on the thermostat housing since it looked like there is coolant coming from that area. I found the infamous TW sensor was broken off but hanging on for dear life. It completely fell apart when i touched it so i found this post. https://www.3geez.com/forum/efi-tech/60400-tw-sensor.html As it turns out this is a common part between what it looks like all OBD 0 and OBD 1 honda cars. I got my Chinese part from amazon for $12 prime https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B07W7RL66R/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_IMswFb73E1DEV Car runs much better at idle with it.

Did some of the easiest rust removal. Replaced the rusted lugnuts and locks with Gorilla lugnuts.
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/WheelLugNuts(1).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/WheelLugNuts(2).jpg
I had an issue with the wheel lock, went to rotate the tires and the lock key snapped into a million pieces. Went to order a replacement with the number on the side of the lock and that wasn't good enough, you need an identification card with 3 numbers on it. I dont ever remember getting that even though I put those locks on 18 years ago. So I had to send a picture of the locking wheel nut to McGuard so they could match the picture with the key shape. $15 and a week later, i got it in the mail and it was a perfect match to remove it. Decided against those locks, less stress worrying about losing the key and honestly if someone wants the wheels its easier to take the entire car anyways. I don't park in bad areas or outside at night.

Selling the 2000 Insight and will be using the 3geez as my year around daily. Monies from the sale will go into fixing it up. It will be a challenge to daily it but i am up for it. This was actually my wife's suggestion. Definitely agree..

ShiRen
09-09-2020, 12:32 PM
I really like Gorillas allen style lugs. Its not going to stop your wheels from getting stolen, but nobody just carries a huge allen or a gorilla key with them, so better than nothing, might keep the local meth heads from giving you concrete wheels.

Oldblueaccord
09-15-2020, 05:28 AM
I think I purchased the last set of rocker panels available for our cars.

http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/RockerPanelSet(1).jpg
Here is a closeup of the label for those who want to dig through the internet to find another set.
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/RockerPanelSet(2).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/RockerPanelSet(3).jpg

Maybe this winter I will work on this and the rear quarters. If not, ill still drive the car as in only in nice weather.

Dang I dragged my feet and now there not on Rockauto.

conozo
10-04-2020, 03:54 AM
Yesterday was a historic day in the making. October 3rd 1988 my dad purchased the accord new off the lot. Also yesterday I sold my Honda Insight making the accord my only daily driver. 2nd time in history it was made a daily driver and happened to be on the same day.

conozo
10-15-2020, 04:23 PM
I thought years ago they stopped making tokico blue shocks for our cars. I see them available for our cars, they look a little different than the original models with those being baby blue and these are navy blue in color. Am i making stuff up that i thought they discontinued these and they are back now.

I think i blew my rears, one was leaking the other day and now going over bumpy roads the rear end skips all over the place. Got 13 years / 50k miles from them.

Dr_Snooz
10-18-2020, 01:55 PM
Buy them and let us know how they work!

conozo
10-20-2020, 04:21 PM
I'm considering getting some ksports coilovers then selling my used H&R springs, Front Tokico Blues, and Bilstein Rears since i wouldnt need them anymore.


I really need those rear control arm bushings to come in, need to replace my tires but want to do that after I replace all the original bushings so the tires wear even. Will be getting these tires Continental ExtremeContact DWS 06 Ultra High Performance All Season

Oldblueaccord
10-20-2020, 06:46 PM
I got those tires on my Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT. Im on the second set. There pretty good tires esp in the rain but I wouldnt brag to much on there over all performance handling. They do also quickly flat spot sitting for some reason which I find very odd in the year 2020. I think the treadware is 560?

ShiRen
10-21-2020, 04:33 AM
The Continental Sportcontact 6 that came on my Type R were awful. Not bad in grip or anything, but Continentals tire compounds are a bit questionable. 240 rated tires only lasted 11k miles and were extremely dry rotted after being a year and a half old. It doesn't surprise me at all that they flatspot on you.
I put some Hankook Ventus V12 evo2 and they have been able to keep most of the horsies down, even in the rain. For just under $100 I would probably be willing to try some 205/55r16s on the accord... thats really tall though.

conozo
11-24-2020, 08:41 PM
0 for 2 today. I tried to order the tokico blues that I found online and they didn't have them anymore. The other item was the rear trailing arm bushing. I guess ksports are in my future and poly custom bushings.

Parked the car for the week her to get a few things sorted out, still getting blowby on cyl 2 so I'm soaking it in seafoam. Then I'll be replacing all the bushings front and rear and also replacing my dash while getting the heat working.

ShiRen
11-27-2020, 05:59 AM
Ive had really good luck with marvel mystery oil unsticking rings

conozo
12-01-2020, 08:08 PM
Didn't get as much time as i wanted to work on the car during thanksgiving weekend but did manage to soak cyl #2 in seafoam for 5 days then marvel mystery oil for 2 days. Also took out the old dash and put in the new dash, connected the heater controls all up but still no blower fan.

Need some help with this blower fan.
I've been looking at the manual and tested the ignition switch continuity and it is working. The radio does turn on, the heater controls are light up and i can hear the vents move when switching modes. When i measure the voltage from the connector straight at the blower motor i get 8.2volts on high but it does not spin. I assume it should be 12v and i assume that if its only 8.2v this is probably a ground issue but i cannot figure out where it grounds to.

Also my dome light and chime sound when you leave the lights on are not working. I dont think those are related or connected to that circuit in any way although.

Dr_Snooz
12-01-2020, 08:35 PM
You're getting power at the blower, but not enough. Trace back in the circuit until you find 12V and whatever component comes next is your problem. It could be nothing more than a corroded connector.

Oldblueaccord
12-01-2020, 08:49 PM
Bet the blower connector is burnt toasty. Old motor pulls alotta amps and its fused for 70A,EDIT 40A. I put a 15A inline on mine and had to goto a 20A. At full fan speed I think it by passes the resistors s should be full voltage.


Chimes the box under the radio mount plug it back in.

conozo
12-01-2020, 08:53 PM
Also got this mysterious connector under the dash, between the fuse box and steering column, its just hanging out there. Blue/White wire and a black wire, so something is not grounded, pretty thin wire, doesn't power much.

http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2pinPlugUnderDash(1).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2pinPlugUnderDash(2).jpg

Oldblueaccord
12-01-2020, 08:59 PM
No clue on that one. Lost connectors I was always taught to pull it and do a 360 see what its reaches.

ShiRen
12-02-2020, 05:14 AM
I'm pretty sure that is the plug to the headlight chime on the panel below the steering column lol. Its been a while since I looked, but I swear its a 2 wire like that... and it would explain some things. Not so sure about the dome light.
There should be 12v to the blower on high, but it should get the motor to run. Anyway, you'd have to do the troubleshooting steps on 22-10 and 22-11 if you haven't already

conozo
12-17-2020, 07:36 AM
The connector pictured above is for some interior lighting because its the same color wiring and connector as other interior lights. I think there must be some driver side foot well lighting on the LXI that i dont have on my DX dash.

I did fix the blower, ill post pics in a bit but it turned out to be a bad ground. There are couple of wire block connectors just behind the side vent controls under the dash for the dash wiring, one is a blue 4 pin and all grounds. one of the grounds was completely burned up. So i had to splice the wire and run a separate ground wire to a bolt near the steering column and now i have a blower fan and door chime.

conozo
12-28-2020, 08:13 PM
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2020-12burntblowerground.jpg
This connector is all grounds and its for the dash wiring, its directly behind the levers that open and close the side vents. I bet this happens more often than people realize with how many post i found with sporadic blower fan issues on here.

I have one cabin tech improvement i would like to take a crack at sometime. A crude version of climate control. It is a modern feature in newer cars that is actually useful but also not a feature that takes your control away. I was thinking i could use my A/C button (since i dont have ac) to turn on the "climate control" which would really only adjust the fan speed automatically by waiting for the heater core temp to be higher than ambient temperature then it would turn the fan on high at first. As the cabin temperature improves it would lower the fan speed down to low.

conozo
01-05-2021, 06:58 PM
This week in quarantine I am replacing all the suspension bushings. They are all original, Ball joints are good, they have been replaced recently along with a few other times throughout history. They are all completely shot, some barely existed, surprised it still handled well and was quiet.

The front inner lower bushing was a major problem, the inner sleeve was loose and not attached to the rubber part of the bushing and was really rusted to the bolt, when i unbolted it, it pulled the bushing along with it. I had to use my angle grinder and completely cut through the sleeve and bolt in the very tight spot between the control arm and subframe bracket. I got it out eventually, will need to buy a new bolt.

Now i got another one in the rear. This is the offset bolt that you can adjust toe with, the nut came off easily but the bushing sleeve is rusted to the bolt, i can't even just hammer the bolt out. This one has access to both ends of the bolt unlike the front. Not sure how to get this one out, i would try heat but its right next to all the fuel filler lines for the gas tank, maybe a hammer chisel?

ShiRen
01-06-2021, 09:34 AM
No way in hell those cam bolts are coming out. You will have to get new ones from Honda, which are plated better thankfully, but the shank is a slightly different size, you will need to put a washer with an ID larger than the cam shank on it to actually tighten it in the subframe... That was a really stupid problem to have

conozo
01-12-2021, 06:57 AM
No way in hell those cam bolts are coming out. You will have to get new ones from Honda, which are plated better thankfully, but the shank is a slightly different size, you will need to put a washer with an ID larger than the cam shank on it to actually tighten it in the subframe... That was a really stupid problem to have

Which bolts are you referring to (which year honda and model) I cannot find OEM or aftermarket bolts for the car. Rock auto said they had one but it is out of stock, no autoparts stores have them, etc. Its the last part i need to get the car back together.

ShiRen
01-12-2021, 07:13 AM
I had been good about taking pictures of all my oem part numbers, but I did not for these. I would love to double check, but I believe it is 52387-SE0-023. I wonder if you got the cam washer (52388-SE0-030) as well if it would not bottom out. I swear the shank had to be a good 1/16" longer though, thatd make for a thick washer. Also don't be a dummy like me and find out you lost your old nuts and don't have a suitable replacement. They need to be a very high strength stover lock nut, ideally at least, I am using 2 10.9 regular flange nuts and using one as a jam nut. Here is that part number 90216-SE0-010 EDIT: these actually might be a nylock... I don't remember removing a nylock and using one sounds a little dumb

conozo
01-12-2021, 02:46 PM
I found someone selling a used toe bolt kit one on ebay and went ahead and purchased it since I know its the correct size. Also had to purchase a genuine honda control arm bolt from a 03-07 accord to replace the front lower inner control arm bolt. Ours measures 12x80 and this one was 12x84, should be fine with the extra 4mm in length. I could not find that bolt anywhere at fastener stores, apparently 80mm is pretty long. Spent about $180 on those two bolts and 4 of the tiny control arm bushings in the rear. Way to much for what i got but i am glad to get it ordered.

ShiRen
01-12-2021, 03:01 PM
Really? I ordered 2 cam bolts and 2 of the regular bolts for the other 2 lcas, that was $50 at the dealer, and I may have bought out all the $5 bushings, got 5 beck-arnley bushings from rockauto, 1 from amazon, and a 2 pack of moog bushings also from amazon. I was really worried there is little to no stock left. I maybe paid $100 total.
I hope that toe bolt kit is right... make sure you can't move the arm front to back once its together, before you bolt it to the trailing arm. I specifically opted for oem rather than the one on Rockauto that may or may not exist, so itd be right, we don't get that luxury though.

conozo
03-01-2021, 12:40 PM
Got a bunch of posting to do, will add pictures later but for this year 2021 the car was down for about a month while I was sourcing suspension bolts and extra bushings since i didn't order enough for the rear. I was able to get it all replaced with new bushings and was able to find bolts that work. The front inner lower control arm bolt is a similar sized bolt that actually for a rear acura suspension. Pics of part to come for reference. My window weld large rear trailing arm bushing fill is working great. Car is much less clunky going over bumps, handling hasn't improved much as it was already pretty good. Replaced my blown rear Tokico blues with KYB shocks and I can't tell the difference. I'm using H&R springs.

Then it started to snow big time, did order some new tires from costco. Special order as they werent on their website, they gave me a little fit about my car being too rusty to lift, but i insisted it will work just fine as i knew it would. Rocker panels underneath are pretty much gone because previous shops just lifted the car wherever instead of the pinchweld lift points.

Its been a hard winter on the old honda but its still trucking along. Lots of things on the to do list for it, still super fun to drive.

conozo
04-23-2021, 05:28 AM
I've made a decision to do an OBD1 upgrade on the car. I've been researching parts and how to's and will start sourcing everything I need. I am going to do it right and get all the tuning parts and software too so i can learn tuning which is something i have wanted to learn anyways. Part of the upgrade i will also but a B series intake manifold on there to get rid of all the unnecessary parts and ports that are on the A20 head. I will not be doing coil on plug.

Right now the car runs pretty well warmed up but there are a few things leading me this direction. I think the A20 is a great engine but the fuel and ignition system could definitely be modernized and simplified. All the mechanical ignition parts of my system are tired and quite frankly i don't want to try and fix them with other tired parts. My car runs well when warmed up when its warm outside but when its cold or doing a cold start it runs pretty bad, fluctuating idle, really notchy throttle, and the fumes that come out of the tail pipe are bad, it also runs rich a lot of the time.

Oldblueaccord
04-23-2021, 06:56 AM
Id start off with a wideband guage even before you do any modifications.

It will give you a good idea what the engine is doing in all conditions. I ran mine for more than a year before I did anything to it. its kinda like watching your oil pressure gauge you get pretty good at predicting what and where fuel ratio is going to be. I logged mine a little but alot less than I thought I would.

Oldblueaccord
04-23-2021, 07:18 AM
I've made a decision to do an OBD1 upgrade on the car. I've been researching parts and how to's and will start sourcing everything I need. I am going to do it right and get all the tuning parts and software too so i can learn tuning which is something i have wanted to learn anyways. Part of the upgrade i will also but a B series intake manifold on there to get rid of all the unnecessary parts and ports that are on the A20 head. I will not be doing coil on plug.

Right now the car runs pretty well warmed up but there are a few things leading me this direction. I think the A20 is a great engine but the fuel and ignition system could definitely be modernized and simplified. All the mechanical ignition parts of my system are tired and quite frankly i don't want to try and fix them with other tired parts. My car runs well when warmed up when its warm outside but when its cold or doing a cold start it runs pretty bad, fluctuating idle, really notchy throttle, and the fumes that come out of the tail pipe are bad, it also runs rich a lot of the time.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ajcm21n1lAE&t=1745s

conozo
04-23-2021, 07:20 AM
Thanks, this is a good idea.

ShiRen
04-23-2021, 08:08 AM
I recently just purchased coolant/battery and oil pressure/temp gauges, already had the innovative afr gauge. Data logging with those extra inputs in a daisy chain will really help. Might be more than you want to get into, but if you want more inputs but not the gauges they make the SSI-4 box that allows you to add in several extra inputs... might do one later for rpm myself, depends on how well megajolt and innovative logs overlay.

Also, I can't wait to replace the stock coolant temp sensor with a k type thermocouple... that thing is crap!

conozo
05-12-2021, 08:40 PM
Purchased the AutoMeter 2-1/16" WIDEBAND AIR/FUEL RATIO, ANALOG, 8:1-18:1 AFR, GS Sku 3870
Its their GS series gauges, they are black with white letters that light up green when lit. Same as the dash, it also matches my oil pressure gauge from the same series.
2-1/16" WIDEBAND AIR/FUEL RATIO, ANALOG, 8:1-18:1 AFR, GS (https://www.autometer.com/2-1-16-analog-wideband-fse-gs.html)
https://www.autometer.com/pub/media/catalog/product/cache/a6c303224f3701ca10b95d6c87373f59/3/8/3870_39.jpg

Also
Realized today that sometime this month in 2001 my dad gave me this car to drive. Hard to believe that i have had this car for 20 years or that I am old enough to drive a car for 20 years. (I am 37, i know not that old but in terms of a cars lifespan its old)

conozo
09-18-2021, 05:51 PM
Its been a while but I'm still kicking and the car is doing the same. Summer has been busy with camping, going to the lake, kids activities. I drive the kids to taekwondo every weekday, they love riding it it just as much as I do. I haven't really done anything to the car as for repairs other than taking a few parts off and cleaning them. Whats new is that during a 5 hour road trip to an roller coaster and water park i hit the best i have ever done with 260 miles on a half tank of gas. 34.6MPG on the entire tank.
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/260milesonahalftank.jpg

Also I have decided not to reinstall the radio. I have been driving without a radio for over 2 years and honestly I like it. Cruising in the summer with the windows down or even in the winter you get time to think about things. So for the sake of going light weight (another goal) I 3D printed rear speaker covers to replace the metal ones, plus the metal ones have no way of staying there without being on a mounted speaker. Its a louvered design if the pictures don't do it justice. Where the radio goes, i am going to put my extra gauges, oil pressure, wideband O2 sensor, and i have room for one more but don't know what that is yet.

http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/RearSpeakerBlanksV1%20(1).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/RearSpeakerBlanksV1%20(2).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/RearSpeakerBlanksV1%20(3).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/RearSpeakerBlanksV1%20(4).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/RearSpeakerBlanksV1%20(5).jpg

ShiRen
09-20-2021, 08:30 AM
I bough this: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B072LDM7N6 I can't live without my radio, already have a stripped miata and it leaves a lot to be disired, but I will definitely be getting rid of the head unit because aftermarket ones always look like shit. I don't know why they all still have to look like they're straight out of 2001. Sony, Pioneer, and the lot should take a page out of Blaupunkt's book and look at the SQR 46 DAB, except for that insane price tag.

conozo
09-20-2021, 08:41 AM
I bough this: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B072LDM7N6 I can't live without my radio, already have a stripped miata and it leaves a lot to be disired, but I will definitely be getting rid of the head unit because aftermarket ones always look like shit. I don't know why they all still have to look like they're straight out of 2001. Sony, Pioneer, and the lot should take a page out of Blaupunkt's book and look at the SQR 46 DAB, except for that insane price tag.

I agree about aftermarket radios look odd in any car. I have the original radio i was going to put in to be authentic but honestly its just an am/fm radio so pretty useless. But that bluetooth/amp looks pretty nice. Small package and no other user interface to put somewhere.

InAccordance
09-24-2021, 08:35 PM
I put one of those media player ones in mine. They're shorter than a CD or tape deck. I do want an old school tape deck though for the look eventually but that's later down the road when the major stuff is taken care of (probably never lol)
Only have 3 speakers though, rear right isn't working and I did put all new speakers all around and even swapped the left and right rears just to be sure. It's in the wiring somewhere.

conozo
11-22-2021, 08:11 AM
My engine sort of went kaput. But as usual i think the solution will be to take it apart, clean it up and put it back together.

Friday i was driving around town and parked at a clients parking lot for about an hour, when i came out there were two big oil leak spots from me. One the size of a big dinner plate and another the size of a medium plate. On the way back home i was stuck in stop and go traffic and the engine started smoking like crazy. The oil was leaking on the exhaust header from the valve cover gasket. I'm sure people though i blew up my engine. I know what the problem is, when the car sat for years while i was doing the carb to fi conversion, cylinder #2 piston rings became stuck, its causing excessive blow by so oil leaks out of every gasket. Its been this way for 30,000 miles and i knew the day would come where i was forced to fix it. So I have it in the garage and this week i am tearing the engine down to fix that piston ring. As far as i know its not cracked and there are no scratches on the cylinder walls from when i looked at it a while ago with a boroscope. This week is the best week for me to do a project like this being that its thanksgiving week. Pics to come.

Looking forward to improved performance and probably a smoother running engine when all 4 cylinders will have the same compression after this. Although it has run and performed just fine even with this cylinder #2 problem. Typical Honda (works even though its broken)

Oldblueaccord
11-22-2021, 03:35 PM
Good luck with it!

ShiRen
11-23-2021, 05:53 AM
I found marvel mystery oil to be fantastic at unsticking rings... but Im not sure I would believe it would have stayed stuck for 30k mi, at least not without taking out the bore with it

conozo
11-24-2021, 10:15 PM
ok, well i got the piston out and the ring is not stuck. So now i really dont know what the issue is. I have excessive blowby where it even causes the dipstick to pop out every drive thus causing all my oil leaks. Cylinder #2 measured about 20 psi lower compression compared to the other pistons. Also a leakdown test showed %25 percent leak compared to the other cylinders which had no leak. That cylinder has lots of oil in it, you can tell by the pictures and by the spark plug. I'll spend more time looking at tomorrow.

http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(0).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(1).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(2).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(3).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(4).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(5).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(6).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(7).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(8).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(9).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(10).jpg

http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(0).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(0).jpg (http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(1).jpg)
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(0).jpg (http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(2).jpg)
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(0).jpg (http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(3).jpg)
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(0).jpg (http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(4).jpg)
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(0).jpg (http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(5).jpg)
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(0).jpg (http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(6).jpg)
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(0).jpg (http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(7).jpg)
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(0).jpg (http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(8).jpg)
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(0).jpg (http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(9).jpg)
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(0).jpg (http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(10).jpg)

conozo
11-24-2021, 10:16 PM
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(11).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(12).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(13).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(14).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(15).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(16).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(17).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(18).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(19).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(20).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(21).jpg

http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(11).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(12).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(13).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(14).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(15).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(16).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(17).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(18).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(19).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(20).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-11-25enginedissasemblypiston2%20(21).jpg


Yes i was wearing underwear ......... yes i was using my sons old underwear as oil rags.

Now i see the #2 exhaust valve looks funny, i will look at it more. But could a bad valve cause excessive blowby?

ShiRen
11-25-2021, 11:10 AM
in pic 17 is that a crack in the exhaust valve? That would cause the loss of compression. Valve stem seals would put oil in the cylinder, maybe. What led you to believe #2 had stuck rings? Really trying to think what would cause the blow by unless it simply needs rings because the bores look pretty good. I am assuming your pcv system was near stock.
If that valve is broke I've got an extra head that I only needed for the exhaust valve springs, so there is probably a decent valve in my collection Id be willing to send you

conozo
11-25-2021, 01:01 PM
I assumed it was my rings because when i did the leakdown test i listened to where the air was going and it was leaking into the crankcase only on that #2 cylinder. It was not leaking into the intake or exhaust manifolds.

From the pictures that #2 exhaust looks sketchy. So i will need to replace it, it looks like its crumbling apart. The valve stem seals are new as of 30k miles ago but i guess thats the most probably blow by cause if the rings are fine. I am going to look closer at the rings and make some measurements.

ShiRen
11-26-2021, 05:16 AM
I see this motor has been apart, at least for a head gasket, but was it ball honed as well? Is that correct? If its already been ringed and honed it might be time to go .040" over (or b20 pistons hehe).
I wasn't saying the valve seal would cause blow by, not even sure if that is really possible, I think it would rather go out the rest of the exhaust. If the compression was escaping out a bad valve then its going to be hard to tell if the rings were bad. And I assume the cause of death of the valve would be a burnt valve... so make sure you check that fuel injector too!
Let me know if you need a valve... I thought they were out of stock, but there seem to be a few new now.

conozo
12-20-2021, 07:24 PM
Update: I have it all back together and have been driving it the past couple days.

I replaced all the valves with new ones and lapped them all. Replaced every gasket and seal i could. Cleaned everything I took off as best as i could with a rag, engine degreaser, carb cleaner, and compressed air. Adjusted the valves and timing. I think the timing belt is off one tooth because its supposed to be timed at 4 degrees but i could only turn the distributor to 3 degrees. I would assume i would have more room to wiggle it. As i was aligning it up it always seemed to be on the half tooth mark. That will be an easy fix, probably take about a half hour now.

Only two problems i ran into were just waiting for parts. I'd work on the engine for an evening then order a part and wait a week, work on it for another evening or day and wait another week for another part. So all in all it took about a month to complete with about 4 whole days of work with most of that time being cleaning parts. I did not take the engine block out to do this rebuild/refresh.

My diagnostics is that all three valves on cylinder 2 were not sealing well at all causing the combustion to go back up the intake and up through the intake valve guides past the valve stem seals. There was a lot of carbon in that area and also the valves were very crusty and pitted. Cylinder one had the same carbon on the intake valve stem seals. This make me replace all 12 valves. All the valve seats were pitted. I installed the valves, filled up the chamber with water and blew compressed air from the exhaust and intake runners onto the back of the valve to see if i got any bubbles. Pretty much all had leaks and especially cylinder 2. I took the valves off and lapped them, repeating the test till they sealed perfectly.

The car does seem to run smoother. It still has a loopy idle on cold starts, but thats not an engine problem its a vacuum leak, distributor, coolant sensor, or multiple things, i havent figured it out yet.

conozo
12-20-2021, 07:42 PM
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-12EngineReassembly(1).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-12EngineReassembly(2).jpg
Pretty sure mine is an interference engine now. Didnt measure it but any carbon build up would be game over if the belt broke.
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-12EngineReassembly(3).jpg
New Valves and cleaned carbon
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-12EngineReassembly(4).jpg
some pistons cleaned super easy and some were very difficult to clean
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-12EngineReassembly(5).jpg
Utterly amazed here. This is the original factory catalytic converter. Still good after all these years, light shines right through it. Bolts still good too, zipped right off with impact.
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-12EngineReassembly(6).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-12EngineReassembly(7).jpg
I desperately need a new downpipe exhaust gasket for my pacesetter header. Havent called pacesetter yet to see if they have one but couldn't find anything online.
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-12EngineReassembly(8).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-12EngineReassembly(9).jpg


Links if the pictures dont work above.
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-12EngineReassembly(1).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-12EngineReassembly(2).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-12EngineReassembly(3).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-12EngineReassembly(4).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-12EngineReassembly(5).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-12EngineReassembly(6).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-12EngineReassembly(7).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-12EngineReassembly(8).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-12EngineReassembly(9).jpg

ShiRen
12-21-2021, 06:33 AM
I am assuming you go the head resurfaced? You probably don't have the timing out, thats just the best its going to get. Just make sure your cam is advanced (lobes moved counter clockwise from stock, if it leaves you with sufficient valve clearance) rather than retarded and set the ignition timing between 6-10*BTDC. It will help if you can find actual TDC instead of going off the markings on the crank, but its hard to do with the spark plugs at an angle. Engine should run pretty good if you can manage that.

conozo
12-21-2021, 09:48 AM
Day 2-3 now. Engine is running very good. Transmission is not. Slipping out of 1st and 5th. Before anyone says my transmission or syncros are bad i know they are not. I had zero issues with it before. I can say this with confidence because when i put everything back the clutch cable seemed odd, it just doesnt come straight off the transmission and lay across the engine bay the same way it did before. I cannot figure out how exactly it was. Pictures online seem to have it lay across the distributor, mine has never been there for sure. The big radiator hoses seem to be in the way. If i move the clutch cable to a different location, the clutch pedal feels completely different and it works for 5 miles until the cable moves in the engine bay then the gears keep popping out. Also the cable does seem to be binding at times, there were a few times when i started out in first it felt like i was dropping the clutch even though my foot was off the pedal at that point.

Its almost like its been wrong its entire life and it needs to stay that way. looking at old pictures now....

Good news is i might be on to something as to why our 5th gears go out all the time. Clutch or clutch cable issues... (5th gear doesnt necessarily pop out completely, sort of half pops out and you can hear the teeth not engaging completely as you get a whine sound especially when you let go of the gas)

ShiRen
12-21-2021, 11:30 AM
There is a lot of padding behind the clutch pedal you might try to remove and see if it fixes the issue. I'll admit to not routing it where the cable normally goes (because its ugly as sin) but I had to get every bit of travel out of my clutch pedal as I could though. Never had issues with it binding or anything like that though. My gears don't pop out, but 5th grinds. I should probably look at the cable again, maybe you're onto something. 5th is the last to get any oil, so its basically doomed if the clutch and oil are an issue, very few of these trans are going to see their 40th birthday. The clutch pedal needs a higher pedal ratio imo, it would solve all the troubles if it was allowed ample travel to begin with, and our clutches are light as a feather.

Oldblueaccord
12-22-2021, 06:43 PM
Day 2-3 now. Engine is running very good. Transmission is not. Slipping out of 1st and 5th. Before anyone says my transmission or syncros are bad i know they are not. I had zero issues with it before. I can say this with confidence because when i put everything back the clutch cable seemed odd, it just doesnt come straight off the transmission and lay across the engine bay the same way it did before. I cannot figure out how exactly it was. Pictures online seem to have it lay across the distributor, mine has never been there for sure. The big radiator hoses seem to be in the way. If i move the clutch cable to a different location, the clutch pedal feels completely different and it works for 5 miles until the cable moves in the engine bay then the gears keep popping out. Also the cable does seem to be binding at times, there were a few times when i started out in first it felt like i was dropping the clutch even though my foot was off the pedal at that point.

Its almost like its been wrong its entire life and it needs to stay that way. looking at old pictures now....

Good news is i might be on to something as to why our 5th gears go out all the time. Clutch or clutch cable issues... (5th gear doesnt necessarily pop out completely, sort of half pops out and you can hear the teeth not engaging completely as you get a whine sound especially when you let go of the gas)


Classic ole time valve job does it again! Glad its running good!

The cable uses one of the valve cover hold down bolts and a U clip to keep it from moving around. If you forget that it wont move good.

All your pictures are post now which I think before they were not.

Dr_Snooz
12-24-2021, 10:21 AM
There was a lot of carbon in that area and also the valves were very crusty and pitted.

That car got a lot of love. Do you think the carbon caused the poor seal, or the poor seal caused the carbon?

conozo
01-04-2022, 09:45 AM
That car got a lot of love. Do you think the carbon caused the poor seal, or the poor seal caused the carbon?

I think when I had the head refreshed locally during my carb to fi conversion they did not get the 3 angle valve grind at the correct angle. They were all off evenly but cylinder #2 was the worst with the carbon build up in that cylinder. One problem caused another causing the original problem to get worse.


Classic ole time valve job does it again! Glad its running good!

The cable uses one of the valve cover hold down bolts and a U clip to keep it from moving around. If you forget that it wont move good.

All your pictures are post now which I think before they were not.

I dont know why my pictures dont show up right away. They are directly linked to my server as i have always done and there is no restriction to having it this way.


I'm still having shifting issues with it popping out of 1st and 5th. So far i have adjusted the clutch cable and can confirm it is working as it should. I loosened the motor mounts and re tightened them to let the engine settle as it was before because i though maybe the engine was tilted to much causing a weird angle on the shift rod and therefore i couldn't shift into gear all the way. I changed the tranny oil with new Penzoil Synchromech which is what i was using before. I had a though that maybe coolant had leaked down into it through the speedo sensor which is why i changed the oil but it looked just fine with no sparkles or anything.

I dont know what else to check. Possibly my exhaust pipe is hitting the shift rod, ill take a look. It feels like it shifts into every gear just fine.

ShiRen
01-04-2022, 11:17 AM
I say best bet is pop the 5th gear cover off and see what the wear looks like, I need to do it myself. If its the shifter then I am pretty sure you would have problems in 1, 3, 5 or 1, 2, 5, R. If it is hard going into gear with the trans stationary, you need to put it into a forward gear and go back to neutral without letting off the clutch to stop everything, then something might be binding up.

conozo
01-05-2022, 09:28 AM
I may be jumping the gun but it keeps getting better every mile i drive after the fluid change. Maybe i did have coolant in there causing fluid contamination. Been driving around half of yesterday and today using all the gears and it hasn't slipped once. Out of fear i am driving super easy on it. Wish me luck.

ShiRen
01-05-2022, 12:06 PM
I swear if I change my oil and my trans goes back to being happy I don't know what I will think. I have dumped gallons of water through the engine since I did the clutch. I mean I blew up 2 radiators in that time :dunno:

Oldblueaccord
01-09-2022, 05:40 PM
I think when I had the head refreshed locally during my carb to fi conversion they did not get the 3 angle valve grind at the correct angle. They were all off evenly but cylinder #2 was the worst with the carbon build up in that cylinder. One problem caused another causing the original problem to get worse.



I dont know why my pictures dont show up right away. They are directly linked to my server as i have always done and there is no restriction to having it this way.


I'm still having shifting issues with it popping out of 1st and 5th. So far i have adjusted the clutch cable and can confirm it is working as it should. I loosened the motor mounts and re tightened them to let the engine settle as it was before because i though maybe the engine was tilted to much causing a weird angle on the shift rod and therefore i couldn't shift into gear all the way. I changed the tranny oil with new Penzoil Synchromech which is what i was using before. I had a though that maybe coolant had leaked down into it through the speedo sensor which is why i changed the oil but it looked just fine with no sparkles or anything.

I dont know what else to check. Possibly my exhaust pipe is hitting the shift rod, ill take a look. It feels like it shifts into every gear just fine.

Another angle on it is/are your shifter bushing and shift rod bushing in good shape?

The shifter bushing I run is solid nylon and the shift rod I run the polyurethane one. These are pretty much "goto" mods in my book. I did it so long ago I forget to add this. I kinda forget how the stock set up shifts but it was never my favorite until I did these too mods.

Does 1st and 5th pop out as your driving along or pop out right after you release the clutch on a shift. Ones syncros and one is not.

conozo
01-10-2022, 03:43 PM
The shifter bushings were replaced a couple years ago. I will take another look at them, i also wanted to take a look under the shifter boot to make sure everything is good there where the shifter rod attaches to toward the rear of the car. It does all feels like it did before the engine work. I will say there has always been a little slop from what i believe is the bird cage bushing but i am not 100 positive on that.

So about 20% of the time when i shift it into first, as soon as the clutch starts grabbing i will see the shifter move back and when it does that i know its not in the gear fully. If it stays put then i know i am good to use 1st. If it does pop out its instant the first move the car makes, never while i am up to speed.

For 5th, its not so obvious. I have to go by sound to tell if its not in gear, i can hear a whine and the shift knob does not move even if its actually in gear or not.


Again, i had zero issues before the engine rebuild. I never had a miss shift or anything like that ever.

ShiRen
01-11-2022, 05:11 AM
Did you bend the shift rod when you pulled the engine? I know it sounds silly, but I did it when I pulled mine, dont remember how I managed it though. I think I bent the stationary rod.

Oldblueaccord
01-11-2022, 07:03 PM
Did you bend the shift rod when you pulled the engine? I know it sounds silly, but I did it when I pulled mine, dont remember how I managed it though. I think I bent the stationary rod.

I thought that too dropping the trans it can happen, that thing is all balanced weird.

conozo
01-12-2022, 07:35 PM
What do you say oldblueaccord which behavior is syncro and which is not?

ShiRen - I did not pull the engine, i left it in the engine bay. Only transmission items i touched was removing the clutch cable and took the speedo sensor out of the hole and put a rag there.

I try something different every day but the last two days of quite a bit of city driving 1-4 worked every time. (I did not attempt 5th) Didn't check the bushings yet because its been brutally cold here recently. Typically its mid 30s during the day but its been between 10 to 15 degrees and windy.

Oldblueaccord
01-12-2022, 11:22 PM
What do you say oldblueaccord which behavior is syncro and which is not?

ShiRen - I did not pull the engine, i left it in the engine bay. Only transmission items i touched was removing the clutch cable and took the speedo sensor out of the hole and put a rag there.

I try something different every day but the last two days of quite a bit of city driving 1-4 worked every time. (I did not attempt 5th) Didn't check the bushings yet because its been brutally cold here recently. Typically its mid 30s during the day but its been between 10 to 15 degrees and windy.

Pops out when you first shift its syncros. Pops out as your driving under load is some shaft flex in the trans misaligned shafts.

Some of the older designed trans the shift rails run under a plate outside the trans and the flex makes them pop when you have a high torque modern motor. I dont really think Honda's are designed this way.

Just to give you a lol my 2018 Camaro trans t-6060 pops outta 1st once in a great while just like my dads 1969 Chevelle wagon did. They all got there quirks.

Maybe new oil fixed it.

ShiRen
01-13-2022, 05:22 AM
Torque can definitely pull a honda out of gear... Ive done it on the drag strip in a hastily built turbo crx. Its not a normal failure mode, but it has everything to do with the bushing that sits right behind the shifter. Its supposed to allow some fore/aft movement, but not wiggle when you move the shifter, if something is wrong with the stationary rod or the bushing then the torque can pull the car out of gear or the shifter out of the bushing. Thats not what is happening here obviously.
Ive never had an old honda pop out of gear while cruising, but I have had a k series trans pop out of gear when I got it back from a mechanic with barely any oil in it. I wonder what would happen if extra oil was added.

conozo
01-20-2022, 06:41 AM
New theory here. Sorry i'm all over the place but in my experience problems on a 34 year old car are never common and sometimes includes parts that never typically fail.

In the last week for several days in a row i have only been driving in 1-4 and those gears have worked every time. I tried 5th a few times and after i did 1st did not work every time. Also if i park on hill and the transmission is holding the car in place, 1st does not work that first couple shifts afterwards. My new theory is that the fluid change did nothing, i am wondering if when that clutch cable slipped the day after my rebuild it loosened the nut on the end of the tranny shaft therefore causing the gears to be loose and moving around a bit. I will pop the cover off the tranny and take a look to see if that nut has moved and see if i can tell of the gears are sloppy.

ShiRen
01-20-2022, 07:28 AM
All of your theories are valid, there is a lot that can go wrong in a 30 year old gearbox, and probably a lot that is wrong. Definitely could be something like mainshaft slop.
Does your gearbox whine at all? That would be a good indication of slop in some direction.

conozo
01-20-2022, 10:19 AM
5th gear does wine sometimes. I believe when its wines it pops out of 5th gear, when it doesn't wine 1st gear pops out.

I am very afraid to open the 5th gear cover especially with the intention of looking for something wrong. I have no way of just getting those parts and i have been looking for an entire spare tranny to have just incase for years. I have an automatic junkyard search that will notify me of any accords in a couple hour drive around me. I've never seen a manual transmission pop up.

ShiRen
01-20-2022, 12:02 PM
This is why I am very fixated on using b series trans.
Honestly Im afraid of opening the over on mine too lol. Part of that fear is not finding anything wrong in what I know is a ticking time bomb.

conozo
04-06-2022, 01:56 PM
Still driving with the tranny the same and still looking for one in case i need it when i take it apart.

Last night i replaced the IACV with a new unit from a 90-95 Civic. It was posted here a few months ago as an option, it does fit but you need replace the coolant hoses with longer ones, just 3 feet of generic 5/16th will be plenty for the project. Also one of the bolts needs shortened or washers stacked. I think i need to bleed the coolant more because during warm up for a minute or less, the idle is high and fluctuating. 2k to 3k in a very consistent loopy pattern. Its very interesting to drive like that. I'll figure it out but its almost comical on how high it is. Tomorrow ill take a video and post it. I didnt know we had anything on our engines that could make the idle fluctuate that much. Definitely no low idle or stalling issues right now.

conozo
04-07-2022, 04:28 PM
Here is a video of it, the revs above 3k are me trying to stop it.
https://youtu.be/C93GloaZfUM

I'll go out tonight and take another look, i did bleed the system good this morning but i do have and had a very small coolant leak which i wonder if its introducing air into the system as it sits and cools down. I did put UV die in the coolant so i can see but i think one of the temperature sensors on the thermostat housing is leaking internally through the plug.

conozo
04-08-2022, 08:00 AM
In the picture of the inside of the throttle body. There are two air holes for idle control. Which one is which idle control? I will say during idle and when its surging the covering the top port basically does nothing. Covering the bottom completely will make the engine stall and the bottom one is connected to the surging idle. We have the IACV on the middle front of the intake that i replaced, then there is the IAC? on the rear of the intake between the throttle body and the firewall. I am wondering if when i replaced a bad part with a good part, all the other bad parts (the IAC?) are rearing their ugly heads.
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2022-04-08ThrottleBody.jpg

Also on the IAC? on the rear of the intake, i took the top cover off with the two phillips screws and inside it is screwed down all the way but if i push the plunger down all the way i get the same high surging idle. I'm not sure if its supposed to do that or not.

It is my understanding that both are for idle control. One is for when the engine is warm and the other is for when the engine is warming up.

Oldblueaccord
04-08-2022, 09:55 AM
In the picture of the inside of the throttle body. There are two air holes for idle control. Which one is which idle control? I will say during idle and when its surging the covering the top port basically does nothing. Covering the bottom completely will make the engine stall and the bottom one is connected to the surging idle. We have the IACV on the middle front of the intake that i replaced, then there is the IAC? on the rear of the intake between the throttle body and the firewall. I am wondering if when i replaced a bad part with a good part, all the other bad parts (the IAC?) are rearing their ugly heads.
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2022-04-08ThrottleBody.jpg

Also on the IAC? on the rear of the intake, i took the top cover off with the two phillips screws and inside it is screwed down all the way but if i push the plunger down all the way i get the same high surging idle. I'm not sure if its supposed to do that or not.

It is my understanding that both are for idle control. One is for when the engine is warm and the other is for when the engine is warming up.

well the IAC your calling on the backside of the throttle body is the fast idle valve. its comes into play when the engines cold. Screwing the plunger down just lowers the fast idle speed. Once the car is warmed up it shouldn't effect anything unless it has a vacuum leak I would guess.

The EACV? on the front of the intake manifold Im not sure where the ports are in the intake I never have taken all this apart.

Not my best answer.

EDIT: adding in make sure you have fluid flow to the FIV and EACV. I know some of my small hoses were so bad I was not really getting coolant flow. Also I loosen the hose going out the EACV and bleed air from there too you will hear air escape when you pull on the hoses.

conozo
04-08-2022, 11:58 AM
Yes you are correct, i didnt have the shop manual with me when i posted. Below is from the shop manual.

The FIV Fast Idle Valve is the thing on the back by the throttle body. Sometimes called the FITV or Fast Idle ThermoValve
-(From the manual)Prevents erratic running when the engine is warming up. Cold coolant contracts the thermowax valve allowing additional air to be bypassed into the intake manifold so the engine idles faster. When the engine reaches the operating temperature, the valve closes, reducing the ammount of air bypassing into the manifold.

The EACV is on the front of the intake manifold. It appears that only the 88-89 models have this. Also to make it more confusing its called the IACV on later model Hondas
-(From the Manual)The idle speed of the engine is controlled by the EACV and FIV. When the EACV is activated, the valve opens to maintain the proper idle speed. After engine start the ammount of air is increased to raise the idle speed about 150-250pms. When the coolant temperature is low, the EACV is opened to obtain the proper fast idle speed. The ammount of bypassed air is controlled by the coolant temperature. When below 122 degrees F the FIV opens

When looking at the diagram of this EACV, i dont know why there is coolant running through it at all. There are two wires. One is a ground and the other goes to the ECU to activate the coil/plunger.

The FIV on the other hand is purely mechanical. I've questioned if mine has been working correctly for years. What are the chances that that wax valve is still there after all these years and overheating in the past. The shop manual test procedure for it doesn't make sense to me. Put your finger on it and make sure there is air flow. Well.. air flow where, around my finger? In the throttle body port? Its so noisy in the engine bay i cant really tell whats going on.

One more thing i just read. In the shop manual for adjusting the idle speed it says to disconnect the electrical connector on the EACV while the engine is running before adjusting the idle. I can tell you that if i unplug that with the engine running it immediately stalls.

Can anyone find that thread from a half a year ago or so that presented this idea of replacing the EACV with a newer civic model. I can never find a thread again once i see it.

Dr_Snooz
04-08-2022, 09:19 PM
A vacuum leak will also cause the infamous bouncing idle, though it seems unlikely in your case.

Oldblueaccord
04-09-2022, 06:45 AM
https://www.3geez.com/forum/showthread.php/139076-Can-I-delete-the-IACV-(block-off-plate)

I think this was the only thread on it...I can find anything else either.

conozo
04-21-2022, 04:56 AM
Does Pacesetter Exhaust company exist anymore. I was going to call them to get a gasket that goes between the header and down pipe and i cant find them on the internet. I did take it to the store one time to try and match one but didn't have any luck.

Jamnar_V
04-21-2022, 06:25 PM
Try this: https://www.carid.com/pacesetter/exhaust-systems/

Although I don't see Honda listed it seems Pacesetter is still in business. Also saw Jegs and Summit sell Pacesetter but again, no Honda. :sad2:

ShiRen
04-22-2022, 05:26 AM
What kind of gasket? Its unlikely that they used anything non standard

conozo
04-22-2022, 11:40 AM
Its this one...well.. whats left of it.

http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-12EngineReassembly(8).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2021-12EngineReassembly(9).jpg

ShiRen
04-22-2022, 01:03 PM
Ah yes, the blank one? lol

conozo
04-30-2022, 07:56 PM
Worked on the car a bit today. Some good, some bad, some weird.

Oil change. After my rebuild where i was fixing my oil leaks and valves i decided to go with only synthetic oil and change it every 5,000 miles. The oil has improved over the years and im not running out of oil, but the best part was that the oil still looked clean when i drained it. Thats never happened before, its usually black as can be even at 3000 miles and synthetic.

Weird next. I noticed all over the outside of my car the other day lots of red/brown dirt all over the car and in every crevise. I figured it was clay dirt from driving by a construction site where they track mud on the main road or something like that. But futher inspection its all rusted metal flakes and it is everywhere. Everywhere in the engine bay, wiper cowel, door jams, under the car, stuck to my wheels, in the back bumper, there are even shards stuck in my front bumper. I have no idea where it came from but i would guess some other car or truck was just shredding metal material (bearing, brakes, etc) on the road and during a rain it was washed onto/into my car.
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2022-04-30ExhaustFlex,MetalFlakes(1).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2022-04-30ExhaustFlex,MetalFlakes(3).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2022-04-30ExhaustFlex,MetalFlakes(6).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2022-04-30ExhaustFlex,MetalFlakes(11).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2022-04-30ExhaustFlex,MetalFlakes(12).jpg


Next I've had this rattle in the back when going over a bumpy road such as my stone driveway for a while. I honestly thought it was the door or the gas tank ratteling but i jacked up all 4 tires and starting checking everything. I noticed that the rear driver side tire was moving forward and backwards a little and discovered that the bushing bolt for the front of the trailing arm was completely loosened and the only thing holding that control arm on was the fact that the bolt couldn't back out completely since it hit the body first. Obviously fixed that and put some thread locker on it.

When I jacked up the car and lowered it on the jack stands I heard a crunching sound, one of the rear jack points was giving away due to rust. This made me sad, I know i need to fix the rust and i will but it is such a big job. My rockers are pretty much gone all because shops over the years just kicked the lifts under the rockers and lifted it without making sure it was on the lift points so they are all bent and rust started to form years ago.

continued...

conozo
04-30-2022, 07:57 PM
Then i took my exhaust off. When i did the engine rebuild i shined a light through my catalytic converter and thought it was good because i could see the light but it was actually clogged and my flex pipe was rusted/broken so it has been very loud and really too loud. I confirmed it was clogged by looking at the exhaust with a thermal camera and you could see all the heat before the catalytic converter. I sprayed it out with carb cleaner and it make a big improvement, right now its soaking over night in water and Dawn dish soap as some people said that worked for them. Got a new flex pipe and found a gasket for the pacesetter downpipe. Its a Felpro 95088 from a 1991 Subaru Legacy Turbo. A ton of Subarus use this same gasket kit for 15 years or so. I think the subaru one actually matches the ports better than the original pacesetter one.
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2022-04-30ExhaustFlex,MetalFlakes(2).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2022-04-30ExhaustFlex,MetalFlakes(4).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2022-04-30ExhaustFlex,MetalFlakes(5).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2022-04-30ExhaustFlex,MetalFlakes(7).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2022-04-30ExhaustFlex,MetalFlakes(1).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2022-04-30ExhaustFlex,MetalFlakes(9).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2022-04-30ExhaustFlex,MetalFlakes(10).jpg

Lastly the transmission is dripping a little oil here and there now. Looks like its coming from the 5th gear cover. It really wants me to take that 5th gear cover off which i am still afraid to do so.

conozo
05-11-2022, 06:25 PM
I'm going on vacation soon and my thought is to take the 5th gear cover off before hand so that i can look at it and have time to order parts or think about what to do during vacation.

I'm loving the much quieter car. Its not even completely quiet because there is still a hole in the muffler but it was so loud before it was vibrating the car and it feels so much smoother driving down the road now. At some point I will replace the muffler and originally i was going to get a Maglaflow that had some noise but now I'm thinking stock quiet. The A20 will make enough noise without help from the exhaust if I really want to hear it.

Next on the list is to get the rear toe sorted out. After i replaced all the bushings i could not adjust the toe anywhere near where it should be. Its pointing in quite a bit. The lower control arm toe adjuster is turned to the max and i still need quite a bit more. I was wondering if i got the trailing arms or other parts mixed up left to right but I'm not sure that is possible. The toe was perfect before hand.

Oldblueaccord
05-12-2022, 01:39 PM
Thats odd the toe is so bad off after all that. Ill dwell on it a little we can get you some measurements are length if you need it.

ShiRen
05-13-2022, 04:03 AM
I am having a similar issue with my front toe and camber. Youd think that I could get more than .8 deg front camber with prelude arms... lol think again
Really might have to get creative on where you squeeze your toe out of or its cheddas lcas for you. Knuckle to trailing arm mounts maybe?

Oldblueaccord
05-13-2022, 05:48 AM
i get very close to -2 degrees camber just with the TRW camber mounts.

conozo
06-08-2022, 08:07 PM
Trying to get maximum MPGs out of this tank and the next tank.

After i recently unclogged my catalytic converter with brake clean and soaking it in Dawn dish soap overnight my mileage went from 25-26 to 31 normal driving. So i though lets try for 37 MPG on this tank. I didn't start this tank till i was 1/4 the way down so we will see. My best mileage ever was 34.7MPG on two tanks in a row, it was %100 highway driving and i did have 5th gear. This time i am doing a mix of city and highway with no 5th gear.

I used to have a 2000 Honda Insight, for 5 years or so I got a lot of practice with increasing MPG, best I did in that car was 90MPG

The key is to get up to speed fairly quickly then hold that gas pedal steady. You'll loose some speed going up any hill and you'll gain it going down. Stay at the speed limit or 5 over. Coast as much as you can before stops. You do not want to accelerate slowly, you want to minimize your time accelerating. Find that sweet spot where you find the engines maximum torque for accelerating and it will feel peppy without stomping on the gas pedal.
This all can be done without being the annoying super slow driver.

If i reach 37MPG i will try for 40MPG

Dr_Snooz
06-12-2022, 08:43 AM
Slowing down is always good for a boost here. I gained more than 1 MPG (~10% improvement) on my truck by dropping from 70-75 down to 64. Fifty-five is great, but exasperating.

Ninety MPG???? Wow.

conozo
06-12-2022, 07:34 PM
I got 34 MPG on that last tank. It was about 80% city so I'll do better this next tank because I wont be starting a 1/4 way in like last time. Not sure if i can get to 40MPG without that 5th gear.

That 2000 Honda Insight is the MPG king, no car gets the mileage that car does even to this day. Its thanks to its lean burn, all aluminum body weighing in at 1800 and the super low rolling resistance tires. It was a hybrid but the gas engine ran all the time and did not help with MPG, it only helped it accelerate a little faster since it was a 3 cylinder 58 HP engine. I ended up getting rid of it mostly because its only a 2 seater and i need to carry around more than one kid but Honda really sacrificed everything to improve its mileage so the ride quality was not very good. It was super reliable and I'm still glad i got to experience that car.

Oldblueaccord
06-12-2022, 10:06 PM
I got 34 MPG on that last tank. It was about 80% city so I'll do better this next tank because I wont be starting a 1/4 way in like last time. Not sure if i can get to 40MPG without that 5th gear.

That 2000 Honda Insight is the MPG king, no car gets the mileage that car does even to this day. Its thanks to its lean burn, all aluminum body weighing in at 1800 and the super low rolling resistance tires. It was a hybrid but the gas engine ran all the time and did not help with MPG, it only helped it accelerate a little faster since it was a 3 cylinder 58 HP engine. I ended up getting rid of it mostly because its only a 2 seater and i need to carry around more than one kid but Honda really sacrificed everything to improve its mileage so the ride quality was not very good. It was super reliable and I'm still glad i got to experience that car.


Thats pretty good considering Im getting 14 mpg in my Jeep with 93 octane. :bowrofl:

ShiRen
06-13-2022, 06:11 AM
Thats pretty good considering Im getting 14 mpg in my Jeep with 93 octane. :bowrofl:

Jesus, how are you driving that thing in these times. Id be inclined to push it. Glad the most I ever paid for gas when I had a truck that got 17mpg was $3.

Oldblueaccord
06-13-2022, 01:37 PM
Jesus, how are you driving that thing in these times. Id be inclined to push it. Glad the most I ever paid for gas when I had a truck that got 17mpg was $3.

The air works! MAX AC!

I didnt really buy it for gas mileage...91$ to fill it last night. Im going to convert it to flex fuel some day probably be better sooner or later. I been mixing 3 gallons of E85 with 7 gallons 87 for a while and thats been working very well...hint there some videos on my channel.

ShiRen
06-14-2022, 07:03 AM
You can get good AC out of about any car :rofl: meanwhile Im taking my klr everywhere, it was 98F yesterday with Missouri humidity

conozo
06-23-2022, 08:02 PM
Got 34mpg again. Not bad but I'll need some improvements to get higher. 5th gear and wheels that point straight.

I mentioned before that my rear tires toe was all messed up. After I replaced all the bushings I did a string alignment and I could not adjust the toe enough to be anywhere near close. It was so far off that if I went over a series of bumps or even drove over a painted line on the road the back end would scoot sideways because one tire would lose traction. Tonight I decided I wouldn't take a look at it again and I think the bushings have settled because I was able to adjust it a little better. I just used the tape measure method and didn't get out of the string but when I took it for a test drive it was much better but not completely gone. This weekend I'll do the string method and hopefully get rid of it completely because it's really annoying.

I also was checking out a noise I was hearing in the rear driver side when I took right turns. I ended up that two lug nuts were loose. I haven't taken the tires off in a very long time so I'm not exactly sure why it would just suddenly loosen now other than I replaced those lug nuts about a year ago and there are definitely cheap because they're already rusty

tristanpark
06-30-2022, 11:57 AM
Hey, fellow 3Gee daily-ers! I bought my 89 LX recently to daily drive, and have been slowly cleaning it up as I go. Bad gas milage and fuel smell at idle makes me think AFR is off, but I haven't seen the suggestion of cleaning out the cat before to improve milage. Only got 100k so probably not necessary but I can't imagine it'll hurt to do.

conozo
07-01-2022, 05:28 AM
Hey, fellow 3Gee daily-ers! I bought my 89 LX recently to daily drive, and have been slowly cleaning it up as I go. Bad gas milage and fuel smell at idle makes me think AFR is off, but I haven't seen the suggestion of cleaning out the cat before to improve milage. Only got 100k so probably not necessary but I can't imagine it'll hurt to do.

Before you go cleaning it you need to check if its clogged first. The temperature should be much hotter after the cat than before it. I got the cheap harbor freight thermal camera but you can also get one of those even cheaper infrared thermometers for $20 to check. Check it right after you have driven it for at least 15 minutes to give it a good read.

On the rear alignment note i think i figured it out. The side that is messed up is the side the toe adjuster bolt was rusted in place when i redid all the bushing on the suspension. I remember i had to wack it pretty hard and put a lot of effort in getting it out so i bet i bent the "subframe" 1-2mm toward the middle of the car throwing the whole alignment off. Next week i should have time to give it a couple of good wacks to push it back where its supposed to be.

Dr_Snooz
07-02-2022, 07:36 PM
Ah the fine art of alignment tuning with whacks. ROFL

conozo
07-25-2022, 06:37 PM
Got under the car while my wife was rowing through the gears and the bird cage was so sloppy i went ahead and ordered the kit from cheddas.

Also was inspecting the ball joints on the suspension and found that the front upper control arms are toast. The rubber seal was actually fine but when i lifted it up it was all rusty underneath. The metal clip on the bottom of the seal is missing on both sides and allowed water in. I'm glad i caught it now but i think its been like that for a while because they look fine from a distance. Had to order Delphi brand, we'll see how long they last.. was willing to buy OEM honda ball joints but they don't exist.

ShiRen
07-26-2022, 04:58 AM
That bird cage will take a lot of massaging to get together, had to take a lot of material off mine

Oldblueaccord
08-03-2022, 11:32 PM
You mean a Cheddar part...hack to fit.

ShiRen
08-05-2022, 04:27 AM
I had delrin and a lathe the the time I put in mine, they would have been easy to make myself. Good solution though.

conozo
08-28-2022, 07:14 AM
I got the Cheddas shifter bushings installed, haven't even test drove it yet but they are definitely firm and a few of the original ones were definitely shot.

I also had purchased Prelude upper front ball joints since the ones on there that were only a few years old were shot. I purchased Delphi brand since i had Moog on there and they were junk and the boots looked the best in the pictures as far as i could tell. When i went to put on one, one of the studs stripped out of the ball joint while simply threading the bolt on. I hadn't even gotten to tightening it down. Complete junk, so i put the old one back on for now.

What brand do i buy?

Moog (didnt last very long)
Delphi (what i just tried, the cotter pin was as skinny as a paperclip too)
Ultra-Power
MAS
Quick Steer
Local auto store brand - Autozone, Advanced, o'Riley


I was watching the South Main Auto Channel and he recommended a made in Japan brand called (Three Five) 555. It seems to be a manufacturer of some Moog parts. I also saw a post that said Moog ball joints that have silver backing are the value line and Moog ball joints that have a "gold" backing are the premium parts, dont know if that true. Ideally i would love to run all oem ball joints or find a ball joint and press it in but im not sure how you would press these upper ball joints in since they don't use a snap ring.

conozo
09-01-2022, 06:56 AM
I purchased a 555 set on ebay. They dont sell them on rock auto.

Had a little fun with a break down yesterday. I went to pull out of parking lot and the shifter linkage just fell off, i could hear it hitting the exhaust shield under the car. I was able to get the car sort of in first and pulled to the side of the drive to the lot. Had my wife pick me up and drop me off with tools. The bolt that connect the shift lever in the car to the rod to the transmission fell off. When i was putting it on the new bushings were slightly bigger so i couldnt tighten that bolt all the way as it made the shifting too stiff, so i intentionally left it a little loose thinking ill probably have to come back to it at some point but not necessarily three days later. While in the parking lot i could not jack up the car high enough to really get to it so i restored to a zip tie and i could only get one in there. It did work and i was able to drive it home to get it properly fixed with new bolts and locking nuts. I also swapped rubber extension mount Part Pic #22 (https://www.hondapartsnow.com/genuine/honda~rubber~extension~mounting~54306-sb2-000.html) back to what it was before, the cheddas delrin transferred too much vibration to the car.

I didn't have any missed 1st gear shifts but it still didn't seem 100%, so i looked at the mounts. they all looked ok visually but when i was rocking the car back and forth, it was lifting and twisting. Most of the slop being in the dog bone. I took the rubber bushings out which were never in there tight even when they were new and filled it up with the automotive window weld, let it dry and pressed them back in there. Basically making a solid mount, so far it feels so much better and the engine doesn't twist or lift when i was rocking the car afterwards. This was the only mount i took off during the engine rebuild so it could have very well been this mount making 1st and 5th pop out. They were worn more on one side probably allowing it to move in a new direction when i reassembled it. The engine vibration is just about the same as before.

conozo
09-26-2022, 07:03 AM
Update on my theory. I have some evidence that bad engine mounts destroy 5th gears. Since i filled in my dog bone mount with window weld the shifting in 1-4 has been working 100%. 5th Gear still doesnt work but i think the synchro was fried from not engaging all the way because it wines now. I think what happens is that the engine twists/rocks that when you shift into 5th gear it doesnt engage all the way. Causing the synchro to be the engagement and therefore causing overheating. From my research online bad engine mounts can cause shifting and popping out of gear issues with shift rod shifters like what we have. Cable or hydraulic shifters dont have this issue.

Another new unrelated problem I'm having is that the coolant gauge drops or stutters when i go above 4k RPM. Car did not overheat but i assumed i had air in the system. I did find that the thermostat housing was leaking a little, so i got a new gasket and really cleaned the mating surfaces while also adding a little RTV since there was pitting in the housing. It still does it so i assume i have a pinhole leak in the intake coolant pipe under the intake manifold causing air to get sucked into the system. I did rent one of those radiator pressure testers from the auto store but none of the adapters fit on the radiator so i couldn't use it. Next I'm going to take off a small coolant line somewhere and pressurize that to 10psi using my air compressor.

Oldblueaccord
09-26-2022, 11:04 PM
Update on my theory. I have some evidence that bad engine mounts destroy 5th gears. Since i filled in my dog bone mount with window weld the shifting in 1-4 has been working 100%. 5th Gear still doesnt work but i think the synchro was fried from not engaging all the way because it wines now. I think what happens is that the engine twists/rocks that when you shift into 5th gear it doesnt engage all the way. Causing the synchro to be the engagement and therefore causing overheating. From my research online bad engine mounts can cause shifting and popping out of gear issues with shift rod shifters like what we have. Cable or hydraulic shifters dont have this issue.

Another new unrelated problem I'm having is that the coolant gauge drops or stutters when i go above 4k RPM. Car did not overheat but i assumed i had air in the system. I did find that the thermostat housing was leaking a little, so i got a new gasket and really cleaned the mating surfaces while also adding a little RTV since there was pitting in the housing. It still does it so i assume i have a pinhole leak in the intake coolant pipe under the intake manifold causing air to get sucked into the system. I did rent one of those radiator pressure testers from the auto store but none of the adapters fit on the radiator so i couldn't use it. Next I'm going to take off a small coolant line somewhere and pressurize that to 10psi using my air compressor.

My coolant gauge did that to it was just green with corrosion at the connector. I cleaned it up and it stays solid now.

You are certainly on something about the 5th gear. mounts can do that.

Glad you are still zinging along I am very close to my 340k mark maybe this week.

conozo
10-03-2022, 05:58 AM
Jordan. Can you make your own new post about your car and issues. We'll respond there.

Today is the Accord adoption day or whatever you want to call it. My dad purchased it on this day in 1988, 34 years ago. I asked him if he expected this car to still be around and driven daily and his response was, "definitely not!"

Oldblueaccord
10-03-2022, 11:33 AM
I moved the post.

I hit 339,900 yesterday!

conozo
10-03-2022, 11:46 AM
I hit 240,000 miles recently. If the car didn't sit for so long during my conversion i bet it would be at the same miles as yours, Blue

My goal is to get to 400,000 on an A20 engine and tranny. I may have to swap them out a time or two but i am ok with that.

conozo
10-17-2022, 09:43 AM
Current Issues
-Ongoing rear toe alignment issues, too much toe in. I adjusted them to their max toe out position. Still too much toe and now the car drives a little sideways down the road. I am wondering if my H&R springs that have 100,000miles/17 years on them are sagging too much. The car is a lot lower than in my signature especially in the rear. I'm going to jack the car up a little to a good ride height and see if my toe changes.
-Oil leaks, crankcase pressure. My PCV system is trashed, all the hoses are cracked leaking oil all over the place, dont think its working. I would like to replace it with a catch can. But i am unsure how to go about it because isnt there two ports to the crankcase, one being in the oil pan and one on the block that the breather box plugs into. I guess I could thread a pipe fitting insert in there so i could attach a hose, the other issue is that the oil pan hose needs to be so big i haven't found a hose that big thats rated for oil contact.
-Inner wheel well rust. I've been welding a few things here and there, definitely need more practice. Tending to burn through the metal, not sure if im working with really crappy thin metal or what. All the things i have welded so far have been super thin and cheap chinese metal products.
-5th gear. it works but whines so i dont use it, i think its going or a at least a synchro. I'm on the lookout for another trans i can rebuild so then i can swap it out. I wish i hadnt gotten rid of my rebuilt automatic, i would have put that back in by now.

ThatGuyPeary
10-19-2022, 01:19 PM
Current Issues
-Ongoing rear toe alignment issues, too much toe in. I adjusted them to their max toe out position. Still too much toe and now the car drives a little sideways down the road. I am wondering if my H&R springs that have 100,000miles/17 years on them are sagging too much. The car is a lot lower than in my signature especially in the rear. I'm going to jack the car up a little to a good ride height and see if my toe changes.
-Oil leaks, crankcase pressure. My PCV system is trashed, all the hoses are cracked leaking oil all over the place, dont think its working. I would like to replace it with a catch can. But i am unsure how to go about it because isnt there two ports to the crankcase, one being in the oil pan and one on the block that the breather box plugs into. I guess I could thread a pipe fitting insert in there so i could attach a hose, the other issue is that the oil pan hose needs to be so big i haven't found a hose that big thats rated for oil contact.
-Inner wheel well rust. I've been welding a few things here and there, definitely need more practice. Tending to burn through the metal, not sure if im working with really crappy thin metal or what. All the things i have welded so far have been super thin and cheap chinese metal products.
-5th gear. it works but whines so i dont use it, i think its going or a at least a synchro. I'm on the lookout for another trans i can rebuild so then i can swap it out. I wish i hadnt gotten rid of my rebuilt automatic, i would have put that back in by now.

Relating to rust, im having the same issue also add in my fuel filler neck from the recall in 93, thinking about how to go about both. thinkin of just wire wheeling back the fenders and sealing it up till next year to get it professionally fixed. maybe the fuel filler neck can be solved with a fuel cell in the spare tire B)

ShiRen
10-20-2022, 07:19 AM
Pcv is just a lot easier to vta... I put a filter on the valve cover and a small squared off U shaped radiator hose on the black box. It doesn't spray vapors so I'm happy with it

conozo
10-21-2022, 01:33 AM
Pcv is just a lot easier to vta... I put a filter on the valve cover and a small squared off U shaped radiator hose on the black box. It doesn't spray vapors so I'm happy with it

Can you post a picture of your setup?

RI86DX
10-21-2022, 11:43 AM
Relating to rust, im having the same issue also add in my fuel filler neck from the recall in 93, thinking about how to go about both. thinkin of just wire wheeling back the fenders and sealing it up till next year to get it professionally fixed. maybe the fuel filler neck can be solved with a fuel cell in the spare tire B)
Surprised you have those issues, your car came from California. Meanwhile mine that spent it's whole life in RI only has a smidgen of wheel well rust & the filler neck & tube are fine.

conozo
10-25-2022, 01:55 PM
I just jacked the rear of the car up 1.5 inches to match the front ground to top of the wheel well distance and it did change the toe but made it slightly worse so that theory is out the window. I guess I need to fabricate some adjustable lower arms. Also I double checked for any bent suspension components or subframe back there and it all checks out ok, so i dont know.

ShiRen
10-31-2022, 04:24 PM
Can you post a picture of your setup?

Only really bad pictures
https://pixelfed.de/storage/m/_v2/280347239405195264/e942685c2-4a0fac/T170zx4UxuXx/5LyVgPrPq480FCTMQNiLhYUwLOCK4xIZBvA9OGl5.jpg
https://pixelfed.de/storage/m/_v2/280347239405195264/e942685c2-4a0fac/roCLmhe9OF03/xMJUFxyoahVGs0VENQq0GqlMLK2Uo3lzIfd6Nwqx.jpg

In pic 1 I tried to outline the end of the hose in green and the black box in orange. It is a very short hose, the long section is maybe a little over 6". Wish I just had a part number to give you. I believe it was very early on in my ownership that I did this or else I would have
In pic 2 you see the filter on the valve cover.

Something that should probably be done in this scenario is add a very fine mesh to the inlet of the black box. Could probably also stuff the hose with steel wool. Just to cut down on the particulate it sucks in.

The reason I suggest vta is catch cans are done wrong way too often. Usually the crank case gets the catch can and it is routed back to the vacuum side of the intake, and the valve cover side gets one of these filters. That is straight up a vacuum leak. They need to be both in the engine intake stream or both to atmosphere. The other way you often see it is they are conjoined to the catch can and routed back to vacuum. Can't do that because they need a pressure differential and the intake probably also has a stronger vacuum than the crankcase side, so even if there was like a check valve to alternate their flow with the pulsations, one has to breathe and the other one blow, but every single cycle the intake will pull vacuum on the crank case.

The solutions are in order of most difficult to least: ITBs, with each their own vacuum source, but if pulled from the runners directly they will be allowed to breathe correctly because of only referencing the vacuum of one cylinder. 2 separate catch cans connected to the stock locations, this is the way to go for forced induction. These 2 are the best because there is merit to pulling a vacuum on the crankcase. Lastly is vta... its dirty but it works, and no catch cans to maintain or pcv valves to stick.

conozo
11-07-2022, 06:55 PM
My coolant gauge did that to it was just green with corrosion at the connector. I cleaned it up and it stays solid now.

You were correct. My connector was full of liquid. Not sure which liquid it was but i cleaned it out and haven't had issues yet.

conozo
11-17-2022, 06:43 PM
In the garage right now trying to figure out a no start issue. Yesterday morning when I went to leave for work the car wouldn't start, so I opened the hood and found the o ring on the fuel pressure regulator was leaking. So I replaced that and the car started up just fine. Today it's the same no start issue but no fuel is leaking out.

Not sure what the issue is yet but I think The fuel leak was unrelated to not starting yesterday. I do notice the battery gets pretty weak even after 5 seconds of cranking. I've already tried jumping it and I have a charger on it at all times here while I'm working on it. It does seem to crank for a while a good speed and I'm getting 12.5 volts out of the battery.

EDIT

-Checked for fuel pressure - Good
-Checked the coil - Good, even replaced it with a spare i had.
-Checked ignition switch - was getting good voltage on all the different wires/circuits
-plugged in my timing light to see if i was getting spark and its not sparking during crank but when i let go of the key to stop cranking most times it will spark once and you can feel it fired one cylinder.
-tested the igniter and i am not getting any continuity test between any of the pins in any direction. So i assume its bad and guess what....I replaced this part a year ago because of the same crank and no start issue last winter. Another new part gone bad.

Going to order an igniter but its odd that it sparks once when i let go of the key sometimes, that makes it sound like its a ignition switch.


https://youtu.be/4WGP8A0e0O8

Oldblueaccord
11-18-2022, 02:00 AM
Alot of times when you let go of the key the starter disengaging gives it enough voltage to fire off. I would guess cranking your voltage is under 12 volts. The last two cranks sounds too low a voltage to start to me.

If you remember the brand igniter that would be great to post.

conozo
11-18-2022, 06:06 AM
That makes sense on the voltage. On a normal day the car cranks like one revolution then fires up. Its super fast to start.

The previous igniter i got was from eBay. Brand: Standard Motor Products This was the title: Standard LX539 NEW Ignition Control Module (ICM) ACURA,HONDA,STERLING (But my igniter does not look like the other standard motor products listing because mine has the rubber gasket around the pins, so im not sure what brand it is i cant find any that look similar)

The new one i just ordered is also from eBay. Brand: DTS Part Number: 26-NM-412 Title: New Ignition Module for Honda - NM412
https://www.ebay.com/itm/114747578001

Oldblueaccord
11-18-2022, 12:45 PM
OK thanks for the info.

I think if you check the voltage cranking you will find its under 10 VDC.

My car will start with the battery reading under 12 VDC but I dont have what the voltage drop actually is I dont think. The book should call it out. It will however crank over and get a no start. I think you know that but some people dont understand a motor turning over doesnt mean there is spark.

You are not getting any resistance measurements on the igniter pins?

Oldblueaccord
11-18-2022, 12:55 PM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z7W11e7funs

hers on of the old Scamp.

Ill do one of the Accord its outside sitting cold be a good test.

Oldblueaccord
11-19-2022, 07:32 AM
That makes sense on the voltage. On a normal day the car cranks like one revolution then fires up. Its super fast to start.

The previous igniter i got was from eBay. Brand: Standard Motor Products This was the title: Standard LX539 NEW Ignition Control Module (ICM) ACURA,HONDA,STERLING (But my igniter does not look like the other standard motor products listing because mine has the rubber gasket around the pins, so im not sure what brand it is i cant find any that look similar)

The new one i just ordered is also from eBay. Brand: DTS Part Number: 26-NM-412 Title: New Ignition Module for Honda - NM412
https://www.ebay.com/itm/114747578001


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NcK-BZAsQOc

conozo
11-28-2022, 11:24 AM
Thanks for the videos. The battery was bad. Only 3 years old, Honda OEM 100 month warranty so it was swapped out with a new one at the dealer and i only paid $42 for the new battery. Research shows that these HONDA batteries are Interstate batteries and for a battery that is warrantied 8.3 years they only last 3 years in my accord and 5 years in my Odyssey. Granted I do alot more starts in the accord than the odyssey. 6-14 per day vs 2-4 but i would like a battery that last much longer than what I get out of them.

The igniter i ordered 10 days ago is stuck at some post office. I dont think i will ever get it so i put the new battery and the igniter that tested bad back in and the car started right up. As i was putting the igniter back on the cover fell off so i took a few pictures before gluing it together. It looks like its picking up on a magnetic pulse from the distributor. Never knew what it did before.

The igniters test in the manual states that:
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2022-11-28Igniter(1).png
-I did get 38,000 ohms from terminal D to ground at 45 degrees F
-I could not get any continuity between A and B in any direction

http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2022-11-28Igniter(0).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2022-11-28Igniter(2).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2022-11-28Igniter(3).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2022-11-28Igniter(4).jpg

I don't know how this car works when every electrical part i test is way out of spec or test bad. Even the coil in the car and the spare coil i have equally test bad according to the shop manual. The Secondary Winding and the secondary winding terminal A is supposed to be 11,074-11,526 ohms and i got infinite resistance. I know the multimeter works because i have a couple of them that get the same results and it works for everything else. This all is pushing me more towards either going no electronics and straight carb again or getting a stand alone ECU (Speeduino or MicroSquirt) to get rid of everything old.

Oldblueaccord
11-28-2022, 11:49 AM
Just make sure the ignitor is grounded well when you reinstall and I would put dielectric grease on the pins. You may have to run a separate ground wire,I think there should be one already. The transistor sinks to ground so its important.

The new coils dont ohm like the book says. I never followed up up standard auto parts on this but I did find my original maybe Ill get around to it.

The A and B test is just continuity thru the transistor im guessing. So your meter sends a small DC voltage thru and its open one way and closed the other. Im not sure continuity is a good way to check a transistor. If your meter battery is low the voltage could be low enough that transistor cant let it pass.

The D resistance test seems correct for temp. and again how well your probe grounds effects the number.

ShiRen
11-30-2022, 11:22 AM
I wish there was a good replacement for the TEC ignitor, I don't own a TEC anymore, so I can't fiddle with retrofitting a GM ignitor until I get my hands on one again unless somebody else wants to give it a go.

As for the coil, the stock ones are poo-poo, but any ol off the shelf canister style coil works. Ought to just throw the stock one out the window.

conozo
11-30-2022, 12:10 PM
Update today. Drove the car to my office then tried to leave a few hours later and the car wouldn't start again. Same as before, would crank but not start. This no start issue has always been no spark and my hunch is that my distributor or part of it is going bad and it seems to act up when its cold as in 30 degrees or below. I got it started by heating the distributor with a heat gun then it fired right up. Not sure what part that would be inside the distributor that would cause that but i will be investigating it tonight. As for now if i keep the car somewhat warm, it starts but if not i need to be parked next to an outlet so i can use the heat gun with the extension cord.

ShiRen
11-30-2022, 08:29 PM
Only other part to go bad would be the pickup coil, which is unlikely unless the resistance is way out of spec (its just a coil of wire that gets a voltage fluctuation when the reluctor swings by), idk if there is a spec anywhere though. The more common culprit is still the ignitor.

Did you check for a voltage drop at the dizzy, or resistance in the key on power lead and the dizzy body to batt negative? If you have at least verified it is getting its 12v in those conditions and you are certain its no spark then that pretty much rules out anything outside of the dizzy, like the ecu. Afik, the ecu doesn't give a flying hoot what the ignition is doing, it just has the trigger wheel in there to fire the injectors on time.

Oldblueaccord
12-01-2022, 01:44 AM
Update today. Drove the car to my office then tried to leave a few hours later and the car wouldn't start again. Same as before, would crank but not start. This no start issue has always been no spark and my hunch is that my distributor or part of it is going bad and it seems to act up when its cold as in 30 degrees or below. I got it started by heating the distributor with a heat gun then it fired right up. Not sure what part that would be inside the distributor that would cause that but i will be investigating it tonight. As for now if i keep the car somewhat warm, it starts but if not i need to be parked next to an outlet so i can use the heat gun with the extension cord.

Well thats interesting that cold effects it but heat doesnt.

conozo
01-23-2023, 11:26 AM
Looking to replace my fuel pressure regulator with an actual fuel rated o ring. Can't seem to find what size they are. I purchased the $10 assortment size pack at the auto store and none of them matched up. Ordered one from honda directly and its too big.

My regulator is the newer 88-89 flat style, like this https://www.ebay.com/itm/354510190207?epid=9037535681&hash=item528a74367f:g:FV0AAOSwTPdjcwY1&amdata=enc%3AAQAHAAAA4FQC1UvBp6wZPN5V44rAT%2FYQFWU XXU6SmFkCa9bRazfPPajfJmUakG5T6snQpqg5c0NKL%2F7fQPP zGZg%2BP40DJK0hiJwxNcm8BlRJbqofGdVD%2Bji3iUrtu%2F3 lUf8LY5vy4ovv%2BuRZE6KmQRLHnYyK7GEppRyVCAXk1608S20 IlfaGmZ6Z4rMIqMkuhjp6RYEj9Ki8OciGdc%2FNprLfiFgrgF6 pVKx0yhTIEcfU1uHeXkWDA%2BRbPWiUfhvLBFkXAIGlkP%2B4f RixHJATPemZNV%2B8LG4N5ZmDmXQRyo0plAo9nn3v%7Ctkp%3A Bk9SR5ab0YC8YQ

Honda says its this 16741-PG7-005 part number but its not close, too big on ID and OD.

I have measured the opening on the regular to be
ID 9.52mm
OD 14.3mm
Thickness 1.52mm

What size would this translate to?

Oldblueaccord
01-23-2023, 03:21 PM
Looking to replace my fuel pressure regulator with an actual fuel rated o ring. Can't seem to find what size they are. I purchased the $10 assortment size pack at the auto store and none of them matched up. Ordered one from honda directly and its too big.

My regulator is the newer 88-89 flat style, like this https://www.ebay.com/itm/354510190207?epid=9037535681&hash=item528a74367f:g:FV0AAOSwTPdjcwY1&amdata=enc%3AAQAHAAAA4FQC1UvBp6wZPN5V44rAT%2FYQFWU XXU6SmFkCa9bRazfPPajfJmUakG5T6snQpqg5c0NKL%2F7fQPP zGZg%2BP40DJK0hiJwxNcm8BlRJbqofGdVD%2Bji3iUrtu%2F3 lUf8LY5vy4ovv%2BuRZE6KmQRLHnYyK7GEppRyVCAXk1608S20 IlfaGmZ6Z4rMIqMkuhjp6RYEj9Ki8OciGdc%2FNprLfiFgrgF6 pVKx0yhTIEcfU1uHeXkWDA%2BRbPWiUfhvLBFkXAIGlkP%2B4f RixHJATPemZNV%2B8LG4N5ZmDmXQRyo0plAo9nn3v%7Ctkp%3A Bk9SR5ab0YC8YQ

Honda says its this 16741-PG7-005 part number but its not close, too big on ID and OD.

I have measured the opening on the regular to be
ID 9.52mm
OD 14.3mm
Thickness 1.52mm

What size would this translate to?

https://www.ebay.com/itm/125153127220?_trkparms=amclksrc%3DITM%26aid%3D1110 006%26algo%3DHOMESPLICE.SIM%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D24526 6%26meid%3Dd6d1cc7e1e9a42e79192c497e3cef6fe%26pid% 3D101196%26rk%3D2%26rkt%3D2%26sd%3D392392172095%26 itm%3D125153127220%26pmt%3D1%26noa%3D0%26pg%3D2047 675%26algv%3DSimplAMLv9PairwiseWithPLXWebFitmentFi lterConfirmFitSignalV2%26brand%3DStandard&_trksid=p2047675.c101196.m2219&amdata=cksum%3A125153127220d6d1cc7e1e9a42e79192c49 7e3cef6fe%7Cenc%3AAQAHAAABIDU6PGz1iUo3%252BUwA%252 Fr%252F1asTruM4q6NwlzB%252By2VU9G5w515xWEIslX2M1hX b5DoStyDW1Xv5dLEdoz371F2%252BcCPZyh6WiPxNlzMgZWBY% 252BCzh6mGcU%252FQK37s%252BLtCiOITGtKukVYTmerEigR6 vcN2WdbBAp%252BRFRywbyHHqEvqgXSK%252B9z0cOQX008lpJ bu395099ToEX8QCrTd96PpuvSdkQurWWh1XgWJp52KOx5lrLo9 IXUxMhHKlKiRGRErfwT4%252B2bqTRCW6IsFfJXy2lj0wGPNxf ugzYzHU%252Brb39bnGZ7kjSfoS9qiQI0x8IsYSN5CUMDEpMX7 bFRQevC3vK%252Fyg7jy4xRA6NAY14Uqu36XB%252BHc5TShfF 8%252BmRJFEl0hDPr9Simw%253D%253D%7Campid%3APL_CLK% 7Cclp%3A2047675&epid=1141249589

Sk116

This one is listed for every Honda car every made.....16$ :rant:

I would use a little "duck butter" on it. O ring lube.

conozo
01-23-2023, 10:58 PM
https://www.ebay.com/itm/125153127220?_trkparms=amclksrc%3DITM%26aid%3D1110 006%26algo%3DHOMESPLICE.SIM%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D24526 6%26meid%3Dd6d1cc7e1e9a42e79192c497e3cef6fe%26pid% 3D101196%26rk%3D2%26rkt%3D2%26sd%3D392392172095%26 itm%3D125153127220%26pmt%3D1%26noa%3D0%26pg%3D2047 675%26algv%3DSimplAMLv9PairwiseWithPLXWebFitmentFi lterConfirmFitSignalV2%26brand%3DStandard&_trksid=p2047675.c101196.m2219&amdata=cksum%3A125153127220d6d1cc7e1e9a42e79192c49 7e3cef6fe%7Cenc%3AAQAHAAABIDU6PGz1iUo3%252BUwA%252 Fr%252F1asTruM4q6NwlzB%252By2VU9G5w515xWEIslX2M1hX b5DoStyDW1Xv5dLEdoz371F2%252BcCPZyh6WiPxNlzMgZWBY% 252BCzh6mGcU%252FQK37s%252BLtCiOITGtKukVYTmerEigR6 vcN2WdbBAp%252BRFRywbyHHqEvqgXSK%252B9z0cOQX008lpJ bu395099ToEX8QCrTd96PpuvSdkQurWWh1XgWJp52KOx5lrLo9 IXUxMhHKlKiRGRErfwT4%252B2bqTRCW6IsFfJXy2lj0wGPNxf ugzYzHU%252Brb39bnGZ7kjSfoS9qiQI0x8IsYSN5CUMDEpMX7 bFRQevC3vK%252Fyg7jy4xRA6NAY14Uqu36XB%252BHc5TShfF 8%252BmRJFEl0hDPr9Simw%253D%253D%7Campid%3APL_CLK% 7Cclp%3A2047675&epid=1141249589

Sk116

This one is listed for every Honda car every made.....16$ :rant:

I would use a little "duck butter" on it. O ring lube.

The SK116 replaces part 16741-PG7-005 which is what i already have.

ShiRen
01-24-2023, 09:50 AM
Look on mcmaster-carr, just search the viton section

Oldblueaccord
01-24-2023, 11:55 AM
The SK116 replaces part 16741-PG7-005 which is what i already have.

Better worded response from me...

Sorry wasnt trying to be a jerk. I bought a few of these over the years I have an adjustable fuel pressure regulator. there 1.99 at Summit racing.

I am perplexed yours isnt the standard "Honda" size.I just assumed all the fuel rails and regulators are the same.

conozo
01-24-2023, 07:15 PM
No worries oldblue. It is an aftermarket fuel pressure regulator but i thought it looked exactly the same. It did not come with its own o-ring.

Converting from my measurements to inches. It seems to be a
OD: 9/16
ID: 3/8
Thickness: 1/16 or 5/64 or 3/32 at the largest. Not sure what the thickness should be.

May have found one here at O'reilly - Part 110 NAT
https://www.oreillyauto.com/detail/c/national-o-rings/hardware---fasteners/o-rings---grommets/o-ring---sae/e26a2f3e5fac/national-nitrile-rubber-nbr-o-ring/nat0/110?pos=0
National Nitrile Rubber (NBR) O-Ring - 110 Thickness is 3/32

I forgot to give an update on the starting issue from last month here in this thread. I ended up figuring out that it was the igniter that did not like the cold below 32 degrees. One week the temperature dropped below 20 degrees so every start involved heating the distributor, then i started only heating the igniter and it worked. I started carrying around a butane lighter to hold on the igniter for 20 seconds or so and it would start everytime after that. Eventually the new igniter that i ordered and was lost in the mail arrived, i swapped it out and haven't had an issue since. The old igniter was only about a 1 year and was an ebay item.

conozo
03-07-2023, 12:38 PM
Rethinking my suspension. Maybe im getting old, maybe the roads are extra bad this time of year, maybe the suspension is actually worn out but either way i want to do something about it. I have H&R springs that have 10years 100k miles on them, KYB struts in the rear, Tokico blues in the front. I feel my suspension travel is hardly anything at all. Any bump sounds like the car is falling apart, partially because it is but it also skips, bump steers, and hops over bumps. The rear end sags and the toe is still messed up and i wonder if returning to stock height would address the rear toe, bump steer, increased suspension travel, improve ride quality, and reduced noise over bumps.

On my 2000 Insight the rear suspension was real weak and crappy, hitting the bump stops all the time. I put slightly stiffer springs in there which helped a little but then added a custom spacer increasing the ride height by only 1/2 inch and it was a huge difference, basically never slammed into the bump stops after the spacer. Wondering if normal springs would do the same for the ride in this car, its been so long since the car was stock i don't remember how it was.

ShiRen
03-10-2023, 12:31 PM
Im assuming your springs are very, very stiff. Part of the reason I went with civic/crx skunk2 front springs and cut the rears. For some reason you can't get lowering springs that arent twice as stiff as stock on any car unless you get coilovers and play with different universal springs. I wouldn't suggest cutting the rear springs like I did because they dont sit in the perch as well, but the stock rate is pretty good, bottomed out crx springs almost made my wife piss herself, but she actually commented that the cut stock ones feel really good lol.

I can go find the numbers for my spring rates if you want a good starting point. If you want to keep it low just get the YSRs or ksports, its probably cost about as much to gather all the parts for my setup than it would be to just get coilovers.

conozo
03-15-2023, 07:48 PM
Finally popped off the 5th gear cover. Been driving without 5th and an intermittent 1st for about 1.5 years and 15,000 miles. This week 1st was getting pretty bad.

Found the shaft nut completely loose which could have caused the shaft to move side to side. Tightened it back up and put it all back together. Didn't go for a test drive tonight so we will see tomorrow. Cant believe it worked so well. 5th gear isn't completely destroyed but it was missing 1/3 of a tooth.

https://youtube.com/shorts/AV2rzbl2AZU?feature=share

http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/LooseTrannyNut(1).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/LooseTrannyNut(2).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/LooseTrannyNut(3).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/LooseTrannyNut(4).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/LooseTrannyNut(5).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/LooseTrannyNut(6).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/LooseTrannyNut(7).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/LooseTrannyNut(8).jpg

conozo
03-15-2023, 07:49 PM
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/LooseTrannyNut(9).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/LooseTrannyNut(10).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/LooseTrannyNut(11).jpg
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/LooseTrannyNut(14).jpg

Oldblueaccord
03-16-2023, 05:03 PM
You got enough oil in there?

Some of those gears look like they have rust pits and rusting between the teeth?

conozo
03-16-2023, 07:25 PM
It does look like rust in the pictures. I check the fluid often and it was never low when i checked. Maybe its because I drove it 15,000 miles without ever using 5th gear.

After driving today 1st gear is solid. Never popped out or had the shifter move when starting out in gear. 5th gear still has a lot of whine and I'm not too keen on driving it with a partially missing tooth. So here is how I think all this happened. When i refreshed my engine a while ago, i did so leaving it in the engine bay, i did not touch or remove the transmission. On my first day of driving after the rebuild I was starting out at a light in 1st gear and the car made this huge bang and it literally felt like the engine dropped out of the car and I drove over it. But it was the clutch cable that was bound and released during acceleration, so i basically was dropping the clutch and that loosened the countershaft nut. The indent in the nut was sheered off. Now with the countershaft sliding all over the place, 1st gear shifts were odd, never consistent. Also when using 5th, the countershaft 5th gear would move side to side and would make contact with the 5th gear shift fork, pushing it out of gear if i gave it enough gas. You can see the edge of the teeth on that gear are rounded and also this is where the broken tooth is from. Hitting the 5th gear shift fork and pushing it into neutral position toward reverse position! Luckily i don't think it could have pushed it that far because you can see the nut was hitting the tin cover.

I ordered new nuts and a new 5th gear set. I'll do a couple fluid changes to hopefully get that gear piece out and I'll drill the 5th gear oil passage larger.

Oldblueaccord
03-20-2023, 03:40 PM
It does look like rust in the pictures. I check the fluid often and it was never low when i checked. Maybe its because I drove it 15,000 miles without ever using 5th gear.

After driving today 1st gear is solid. Never popped out or had the shifter move when starting out in gear. 5th gear still has a lot of whine and I'm not too keen on driving it with a partially missing tooth. So here is how I think all this happened. When i refreshed my engine a while ago, i did so leaving it in the engine bay, i did not touch or remove the transmission. On my first day of driving after the rebuild I was starting out at a light in 1st gear and the car made this huge bang and it literally felt like the engine dropped out of the car and I drove over it. But it was the clutch cable that was bound and released during acceleration, so i basically was dropping the clutch and that loosened the countershaft nut. The indent in the nut was sheered off. Now with the countershaft sliding all over the place, 1st gear shifts were odd, never consistent. Also when using 5th, the countershaft 5th gear would move side to side and would make contact with the 5th gear shift fork, pushing it out of gear if i gave it enough gas. You can see the edge of the teeth on that gear are rounded and also this is where the broken tooth is from. Hitting the 5th gear shift fork and pushing it into neutral position toward reverse position! Luckily i don't think it could have pushed it that far because you can see the nut was hitting the tin cover.

I ordered new nuts and a new 5th gear set. I'll do a couple fluid changes to hopefully get that gear piece out and I'll drill the 5th gear oil passage larger.

Thats good you got a new 5th gear set.

I just look at those pictures and to me thats gears that arent getting any oil for some reason. I look at alot of gear boxes at work.

I thought about your suspension deal. I didnt see all new stock struts for sale so maybe you could buy new springs just at a reduced spring rate. The front stock struts I used the low speed valving always sucked anyway. First set was Honda the second was Gabriel and I think there was a third set were Sears/Monroes.

EDIT: I did see some new ones on Rockauto!

conozo
03-20-2023, 06:29 PM
False alarm on the 5th gear. I ordered one from the Aneheim Gear website but they refunded my order since they don't have them. The year long quest continues.

Does oil get pumped out of the middle of the mainshaft. I see at the end on the tin cover what looks like a tube to redirect fluid to above the gear so oil is shot down on the top of the gear. Also wonder if the countershaft also pumps fluid out, since the nut was loose and touching the tin cover it possibly was blocking the oil from entering the 5th gear part of the transmission.

OldBlue, what do you mean new springs at a reduced spring rate? Softer springs? I will say that i am pretty sure my struts are ok because they feel pretty firm and seem to rebound fine. It just feels like there is only 1 inch of travel before hitting the bump stops, any significant bump on the roads is painful to go over now and driving the same bumps in other cars is like no big deal.
The only new stock set of springs i can find is the Lesjofors and they all look to be the ones made for an Automatic with AC, whereas mine is a manual, without AC or powersteering.

Oldblueaccord
03-20-2023, 06:47 PM
yeah I see what your saying at a lower ride height the spring rate needs to be high to keep from bottoming out. I was meaning get springs that measure the same just different spring rates. Like with my K sport I can get just about any rate for the fronts from 400-1200 lbs.

All the rockauto struts I saw I think were KYB's. The springs are just the stock replacement ones, Moog.

ShiRen
03-26-2023, 08:37 AM
I'm same/running lower than stock spring rates with at least a 2" drop and have no issues with travel or bottoming out. We have very forgiving suspension geometry. Buy some good bump stops though, you should at least hit the stops before you actually bottom out on the chassis, but start with them at full length and give the car a shakedown then adjust as necessary if you actually want to dial them in

conozo
04-08-2023, 04:17 PM
Worked on the car today. Put some stock springs (Husky brand) on the rear with the KYB GR-2 Excel struts. Also replaced the right rear caliper because the parking brake would not release. Something was bound up internally. Also put new pads in the rear because that side got a little scortched from driving around on a stuck parking brake before I realized what was going on.

Whent to replace the front springs and when i was compressing the spring to take it off, my Tokio Blues that I was going to reuse let out all the gas before my eyes. So I have some front KYB GR-2 Excels on order now.

This was mentioned before but no more than two years ago i replaced all the rubber on my suspension with new stuff, mostly Moog and its all cracked and sagging now. Total junk. Every ball joint while still good has cracking boots. These aftermarket ball joints seem to be ok, other than the rubber. I wonder if there is a silicone aftermarket boot replacement for all these ball joints and for the bushings I guess I'll just have to go poly.

ShiRen
04-09-2023, 04:21 AM
Pretty sure you can buy silicone boots in assorted sizes. I'll probably go the same route once I see boots cracking. Already accidentally split an outer tie rod boot, but I'm just going to keep an eye on it.

conozo
04-18-2023, 07:45 PM
Wow, what a difference. Stock springs and KYB GR2 struts all around. The car does sit a lot higher but it is a way better ride. Honestly i think handles better than before. It is not a wallowing ride, its still sporty.

Replaced the solid copper oil guage line with a braided stainless steel one and its quiet now, replaced the rear right caliper because the parking brake was stuck and also the rear pads. Thermostat was stuck open, replaced that. The car is so much better in so many ways. Much quieter inside from the quiet oil guage and the smoother suspension. When braking i get way less shimmy. The suspension is great, no bump steer, tracking issues, no hopping or skipping over the road, less torque steer, the bumpers line up with other cars better, and my seat wont wear out as fast. I even still need an alignment.

Next on the to do list is some rust repair in the inner rear wheel wells. I have the rear seat out and will be grinding away to see how much is left and what i need to repair.

This is the first time in a long time the car got better, usually i just take off the broken part and do without it.

ShiRen
04-18-2023, 08:40 PM
Interesting, because I complained about bump steer a long time ago, and with my current setup it's just as bad. Maybe it's actually jacking forces and I'm feeling it because of my lack of power steering. My kybs feel pretty stiff over bumps too, were your tokicos like that when it was lowered?

conozo
04-21-2023, 07:22 AM
The KYBs do feel relatively stiff, stiffer than i would expect stock suspension to be. But in my experience, I use KYBs for every car i have owned and they always feel slightly stiffer than stock which is what i do prefer.

The Tokicos were definitely more stiff than the KYBs. For example, if you pushed down quickly on a corner of a car to do the "shock bounce test", I couldn't get it to move. Now when i push down i can get the car to at least move with force a 1/2 inch or so.

Also forgot to mention that now the CV shaft and tie rods are straight.

Oldblueaccord
04-21-2023, 11:43 AM
The KYBs do feel relatively stiff, stiffer than i would expect stock suspension to be. But in my experience, I use KYBs for every car i have owned and they always feel slightly stiffer than stock which is what i do prefer.

The Tokicos were definitely more stiff than the KYBs. For example, if you pushed down quickly on a corner of a car to do the "shock bounce test", I couldn't get it to move. Now when i push down i can get the car to at least move with force a 1/2 inch or so.

Also forgot to mention that now the CV shaft and tie rods are straight.

Man sounds like you have a great set up now. Glad it worked out.

All that other stuff,bump steer,bottoming out is from lowering a car. (edited)

conozo
05-14-2023, 04:34 AM
Spending a lot of time lately making the car nicer.

-Just last night i believe i fixed my cooling issue. Cooling fans would blow the fuse then wouldn't come on, i had a failsafe thermostat in so then the car wouldn't ever heat up. I honestly think my cooling fan fuse was blown all winter but it was cold so i never noticed until it started to warm up for winter. I initially though it was the condenser fan that was bad, when i unplugged it, it wouldn't blow the fuse but then after a week or the temp gauge got a little high sitting in traffic then that tripped the failsafe thermostat again. Last night I replaced the thermostat with a regular one and while i was bleeding the system waiting for the fan to kick on i saw sparks shoot out by the fan, i found that the main fans wire has rubbed against the front engine mount down to the wire. So I repaired the wire, zip tied it out of the way, regular thermostat, and i think im good to go now.

-I found a brand new 5th gear set online the other week so i ordered it expecting it to be wrong but it was legit. Installed it and now i have 5th gear again.

-Added some additional weather stripping on the passenger side door to fix wind noise. It was sounding like the window was open all the time.

-Also put in the center console and other dash parts back in that have been off for a long time, got the useless cupholders in now and mounted my oil gauge where the radio goes and replaced the noisy solid copper line with a braided line that got rid of all the noise.

-The car is so much quieter to drive, now that i have 5th gear, no wind noise, no oil gauge vibrating, better suspension. I've been doing all of this partially because its needed but i will also be taking a 2300 mile trip very soon. Wish me luck.

conozo
05-28-2023, 04:31 AM
Just completed the 2nd longest road trip the car has ever done. Went to Florida from Indiana for vacation and drove the Honda, 2000 miles round trip. We had to drive two cars this year due to taking an extra person. All the prep work I did before the vacation paid off especially the suspension, 5th gear, and making the car quieter.

Only had one issue on the way back, after driving for a couple hours the car just died so I coasted to the side of the road while trying to start the car in neutral. It would crank but not start. I initially thought it was a loose ground under the dash and i actually did find a loose ground and tightened it but it didn't fix it so then i checked the main relay and it was completely full of water. So on the way down we drove through some of heaviest rains i have been in, in a long time and for like 2 hours straight. I couldn't go faster than 40 mph mostly because the car didn't have enough power to plow through that much water. It was crazy, everybody else had their flashers on and was parked on the side of the road but we just kept going. I have a few rust holes and a ton of water got in everywhere. The back seats and carpet were all soaking wet. So water came in through the firewall and ran down the wiring into the main relay filling it up completely. Dont know how it worked at all, especially since it worked like this all week on vacation and for the first few hours on the way back. I tried to dry it out but it was also so corroded and super hot when i plugged it in. I found one of the relays in there, I think the ignition one wouldn't swich on, it would make this clicking sound, so i jammed a piece of paper in the relay switch so that it was always on. It worked for the rest of the trip, we just unplugged it whenever we stopped so the battery wouldn't die.

Other than that adventure the car did great. It was suprisingly more comfortable than our Honda Odyssey, my butt wasnt as sore. The car had never been south of just below the Ohio bottom border. Last time I was in that area, it had the stock carb and was automatic and it really struggled going up some of the hills but this time with the FI and 5 speed, it was no trouble, even accelerating up the hills at times. I was a great trip. I'll post some pics soon.

Before the next trip i will fix the rust and get cruise control.

conozo
10-26-2023, 01:05 PM
You guys will be the first to learn of this mod I have not seen and told its not possible by many. Its so simple.

1990-1997 Rear lower adjustable control arms by Megan fit perfectly without modification and give you plenty of adjustment for toe in the rear. I needed more than the stock eccentric bolt could offer and in my research they checked out, i was unsure if the adjustment i needed would be pushing them to the limit of the adjuster threads but its not even close. Finally my rear wheels are straight, been trying to figure out what to do with this problem for years.

The kit i ordered from www.meganracing.com was.
Rear Toe Control Arms for Honda Accord 90-97 - MRS-HA-0170
SKU: MRS-HA-0170
$122 including tax and shipping
They were on back order, i had to wait 1.5 months but they now have them in stock again.



http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2023-10RearControlMegan(1)
http://honda.conozo.com/pics_3geez/2023-10RearControlMegan(2)

ShiRen
10-26-2023, 04:35 PM
Doing the lords work. Ordered. My rear toe is also slightly out and the eccentrics are just annoying.

conozo
10-27-2023, 05:02 AM
I didn't replace the eccentric bolts with regular bolts yet. I will eventually. Without looking I would assume it could use the same bolt as the bolt for the inner connection on the longer control arm.

ShiRen
10-27-2023, 06:32 AM
Not sure if it can be deleted. I think the hole in the subframe is enlarged to allow the bolt to rotate because the eccentric is just a lobe on the head, the rest of the bolt is standard. You'd need to weld a washer on or have one that fits really well into the guide slot.
I wouldn't be too worried about it, they aren't likely to move.