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79cord
04-12-2009, 06:16 PM
Yikes!!!
I now have another 1st gen Accord on my driveway!
And for the first time it's not a '79, but a March '77 complianced model; possibly amongst the first to get out here since the car magazines were still publishing their first local roadtests at the time.
Previously I've always tried to stick with my '79's just to avoid chaos with the multitude of changes Honda made & stick with the EL drivetrain where earlier models had EF or EG drivetrains.
But it was advertised through the local Honda club and curiosity meant I at least HAD to investigate. I'm still not sure whether I bought it or was given it, since its previous owners have had it since 1982 and mostly just wanted to see it go to a good home. So while they weren't really interested in money I feel a little guilty for only giving them $150 since I REALLY don't need another car needing care & should be looking for a new job for the first time in 12 years since my workplace is closing down at the end of the month.
Its a white 5-speed hatch with factory A/C that's covered 268,000km over its 32 years, the owners just getting the clutch done (by a dealer) 2 years ago & having had a changeover rebuilt engine fitted 80,000 km ago! There's minor rust re-appearing on the rear corners of the doors & front fenders where some filler has been tried previously & some more suspicious repairs to check-out on the rear 1/4 behind the left door ( they filled in the side trim holes?), but overall its nice & straight bar door-dings, minor bumper wobbles & dodgey paint and goes and stops nicely but for steering to the left. Though it will still no doubt need a little time & effort to get it properly roadworthy.
I'm still spotting the HUNDREDS of tiny differences between it & my '79, at least as much or more than my car would have to an '81 model. From its blanked clock aperture, chrome alloy window-winders, chrome rear seat release, different ventilation controls, "clock" surround trim, AM only radio, minor switches, seatbelts, handbrake linkage, engine, g/box, rear suspension, front panels, grille, grille trims. Even the slider for the door locks is a slightly different shape!
Pictures will follow eventually but I'm excited even if a friend is already wanting to buy it until he gets his other car sorted out or replaced.

2ndGenGuy
04-12-2009, 07:02 PM
Cool man! Can't wait to see pics. Don't feel bad about the $150. The car is in a good place! Can't wait to see all the little differences on the early ones. Never seen one older than a 79 out this way. And that was the one I got all the good parts out of before it went to the crusher.

Hazwan
04-12-2009, 09:21 PM
Sounds like a deal! Pics!!!!

79cord
04-13-2009, 03:07 AM
http://memimage.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/241/33315120002_large.jpg
I thought it important to get a shot of the last owners; they had had it since 1982. But the husband ducked at the wrong time. And their "new" Honda, the husband admitting it wasn't as nice to drive in some ways; probably lacks the Accords torque.

http://memimage.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/241/33315120003_large.jpg
Paints a little scruffy at first glance but has been given lots of attention over the years, albeit of a more practical than perfectionist nature.

http://memimage.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/241/33315120004_large.jpg
As usual dash has cracked in the sun, & drivers seat is coming apart at the seams.
What do you expect after 32years & 268,000km?

http://memimage.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/241/33315120005_large.jpg

An unexpected bonus; the fairly rare accessory roof console with spot lights.
Should I fit it?
It might be a smaller Civic console though ...?
Would seem a little odd with the car not having the AM/FM radio, Digital clock, Tinted windows, Luggage cover, Wheel trim-rings that were standard here by '78.. Yet it has the $700 A/C (car would have cost $6000 & or a Civic around $4000) & full mudflaps!

Definitely an unusual Deal!

They mentioned "restoration or parts" & "$50" to a friend who wanted an early Accord 5-speed for his Civic... He proposed I have the rest before we went to see it!
Obviously it deserves better than that!

I wanted to give more than the $150 I had at the time, they agreed on $100, I gave them $150 anyway but still would have liked to give more.... but where do you stop?

Glad I had polished up my Accord, replaced most of its trim & rear bumper a few months ago so it looked respectable as I parked it behind theirs when we went to investigate!

carotman
04-13-2009, 03:41 AM
This is a nice find indeed!

Hazwan
04-13-2009, 04:43 AM
Nice. I want the roof console!

2ndGenGuy
04-13-2009, 07:16 AM
Dude, that thing is clean. It's a 5-speed even! You've gotta love that. Pretty wild that it has A/C and a clock delete. You wouldn't think that the clock would be all that expensive. But that blankout plate is probably a rare piece in itself.

Man those early ones are the best looking. The recessed headlights, and the short bumper ends look so clean. Plus the taillights are so much more stylish looking than the later 81 lights. You guys with your non-US bumpers that are not huge, that look so good, and the smaller markerlights on the front fenders look great as well. And I dig the lights that are in-bumper as opposed to our lights that hang underneath.

Nice find on that car, and I wish you good luck with it. Should be fun, probably already is fun considering that it's one of the oldest, rarer 1g Accords, and it runs and drives!

Also, looks like somebody stole the H. That's how you know it's a Honda! What's the point in having a Honda if you can't show it off?

Hirst
04-13-2009, 01:35 PM
Now all you need is a Hyundai Excel/Pony to steal a "H" badge off, they're quite ungainly and unremarkable so I'm surprised I don't have one.

Anyway nice find, looks superb in white! What does the sticker say next to the window winder?

Civic Accord Honda
04-13-2009, 09:09 PM
thats fresh bro

79cord
04-13-2009, 09:21 PM
Anyway nice find, looks superb in white! What does the sticker say next to the window winder?

Up untill '80 Honda was printing the recomended tire inflation chart on the drivers door trim!

So I have some '81 door trims I'll be putting in my '79 eventually.
Note the passenger door of '77 doesn't have an ashtray in it either -also standard by '78!

No doubt I'll have a bonnet trim somewhere.. since normally It would be one piece of trim I'd remove..

Probably better to keep the '77 original though.

Not really a fan of white myself... surprised it has beige interior. Blue was Far more common with white.... at least after '78.

redr2
04-14-2009, 09:26 PM
That is an Accord roof console, the Civics was much shorter

79cord
04-16-2009, 06:35 PM
Yes I held the roof console up to the Accords roof & it looks about right to mount from the mirror & interior light mountings & wiring.. & it has all the mounting hardware required so I guess I've no excuse but to fit it up & see how I like it (black might contrast a bit against white headlining & beige interior). I guess that deserves its own thread.

Already discovered rearlights/wiring/earths need some attention since they're all out.
Frt indicator/park lamp globe mounting plastic has dissolved from the sun...

Surprisingly engine noise much louder than mine (less sound deadening on firewall?)
G/shift linkage much crisper/notchier so I guess it hasn't been abused/worn quite as much as mine.
Should have said A/C was actually fitted locally by Honda Australia when new from the nippondenso kit provided by Honda, as opposed to more common dealer fittment.
Oh and the windscreen is the original Asahi glass too!

tomatofiasco
04-24-2009, 08:58 PM
:eek5: yeah a 77! mines a 77 and it is kinda loud compared to other old cars i've been in. it also had the blanked clock and the AC on the ashtray, but no actual AC. and the window winders are pimp arent they?

hey man, if you really find you dont have room or the time for it, i will seriously honestly 100% buy it from you for a substantial markup, and ship it / drive it down here to tassie. i have garage space and every time i think of what car i might have next, i always come around to "another accord of course"

:rice:

79cord
05-09-2009, 03:03 AM
Investigating the new toy.

Here's a comparison picture between my '79 (beige) and the '77 (white) to give an indication on their differences.
http://memimage.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/241/33315120006_large.jpg
Most people think they will be just the same since the '79 models didn't have the longer bumper-end caps, thicker trim moldings, horizontally striped tail-lights & simpler badging of the '80 & '81 models. But the truth is the '79s have more in common with them than the '77-8 models.

Note:

The recessed headlights and curved grille of the '77, without the horizontal central grille bar & painted rather than die-cast & chromed central grille surround.

The protruding lip around the lower grille opening of the 1979 front valance, it should also have a small 1" plastic air-dam beneath broken from my car. 1978 model valances incorporated a pressed-in air-dam shape while earlier models were smooth.

The smoothly blended lower front edge of the wheel-arch of the '77, where '79 & later models wheel-arch continued to protrude from the surrounding metal all the way down. & note how much higher and rounder the upper middle peak of the '79 wheel-arch is compared to that of the '77. ( I hadn't noticed that last bit before!)

Ignore my '79's custom wheels & removed badges, side-trim & side indicators which originally were exactly the same.

Underneath the changes were even more extensive with a new engine, gearbox, electronic ignition, wiring, longer rear suspension A-arms, new rear struts with revised mountings & angled spring mountings, new hand-brake cable arrangements & revised evaporative emissions. Not even the fuel door is interchangeable.

__________________________________________________ ____________________________________________

After a few tries the speedo cable is now properly connected into the gearbox.

The body looks pretty good though it's nowhere near pristine, there's evidence of previously repaired rust re-appearing on the top & bottom rear edges of the front fenders & the lower rear of the doors. & the rubber roof ditch moldings had been removed to attack rust in those areas, so the car hadn't been neglected & problem areas had never gotten out of control.


Unfortunately the plastic backing of one of my bumper indicators has disintegrated from exposure to sunlight - crumbling to dust. I thought I had a spare but found it was from an '81 Accord. Naturally Honda had revised their plug connectors by then!
http://memimage.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/241/33315120008_medium.jpg
Guess I better paint all these parts before I refit them to protect them from the sun!
______________

The windscreen wiper pivots were also badly worn leaving the wiper arms wobbling about loudly, especially the middle one, a common problem. By '81 Honda was using metal rather than plastic pivot bushes, though even they aren't immune if not lubricated. So I removed the wiper assemblies & dis-assembled the pivots (21mm socket good for pushing the plastic retaining clips in evenly). Filling the worn plastic pivot bushes with a metal-filled epoxy before re-drilling their holes oversize to allow for a thin sheet of polyethylene as a bearing surface against the wiper pivot shaft -which was also surface rusted & required some clean-up before everything was thoroughly greased & re-assembled.
http://memimage.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/241/33315120007_medium.jpghttp://memimage.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/241/33315120009_medium.jpg
__________________

With the wiper motor out I also had a good prod around the metal of the plenum area. Honda placed a bituminous pad over this area as a sound-deadener which sometimes doesn't adhere closely to every bump in the surface.. trapping water beneath for rust to develop. Unfortunately I found some rust so chipped the pad away to reveal a few holes...

Bigger once I'd removed the more perforated metal in preparation for a patch to be welded in. Though I don't want to remove the heater if I can avoid it! Glad I caught it early!

http://memimage.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/241/33315120010_medium.jpghttp://memimage.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/241/33315120014_medium.jpg
_____________________________________

I already knew the front fenders would need some attention -a common problem since Honda never fitted full plastic wheel-house liners to protect the area until '81. & the bonnet needed re-aligning.

So strip time!
http://memimage.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/241/33315120012_medium.jpghttp://memimage.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/241/33315120013_medium.jpg

Which thankfully didn't reveal any big surprises, some heavy rust pitting of the small weld-ledges of the cowl panel under the top-rear of the fenders had been filled previously -which could potentially crack & allow more rust so this was removed for welding smoothing & the use of a more flexible filler.

Some minor dents in the lower front valance were easily tapped out, and the small panel between the bumper & grille was also found to be quite rusty beneath it's covering trim & has been replaced before... guess I'll be using some filler & lots of paint there.

Hazwan
05-09-2009, 03:30 AM
Holy crap I didn't know the fenders are different! And all that minor changes thats barely noticeable to most person. Nice work there, as always!

79cord
05-09-2009, 03:43 AM
Makes my '79 look like a 4WD by comparison doesn't it!
Don't think the front ride height is much different!
Also makes my front overhang look smaller.
80-81 had the same panels as '79 except for the bumper end-cap mounting holes.

Funny how many early models you will see with a later fender fitted on one side once you know what to look for... & two of my '79's came with the recessed headlight mountings fitted on one side from careless repairers!

lostforawhile
05-09-2009, 06:57 AM
somewhere around here i have a set of those window winders let me know if you ever need them i'm sure they are off of that accord,look identical too

2ndGenGuy
05-09-2009, 11:38 AM
Nice compare and contrast write up! I never did notice the larger wheel arch on the later models. That's pretty interesting, I wonder what the thought was behind doing that? Did they fit wider tires from the factory later on?

I do love the recessed headlights too. Pretty rare to see a 76 or 77 model around here. Funny how many 81s you see though.

SZfiftyfour
05-09-2009, 05:25 PM
To me the 1g looks better with recessed rather than flush headlights. Its kind of like a baby 69 challenger lol. Wonder if they changed it just for styling or more for aerodynamics/fuel savings.

Ichiban
05-10-2009, 12:26 AM
Very cool. Im sure that most people would have missed the front fender changes, but now that you mention it, you should throw a transfer case and locking hubs into your '79!

I parked my '81 next to my buddys '71 challenger, and we both drank beer and discussed the similarities in the front ends.

SZfiftyfour
05-10-2009, 05:50 AM
^ yup, your right, thats the model/yrs i was thinking of. Did they even make a 69 callenger? lol

Hazwan
05-10-2009, 07:13 AM
Chargers :drool:

And yeah I love the recessed grill better.

79cord
05-11-2009, 12:36 AM
Must admit I've thought about recessing a '79 grille with my excess recessed headlight buckets (which could go back even further with custom mounting plates), if I ever get around to doing a 'proper' custom Accord. Since I always thought the tunneled '77 headlights looked a little bizarre. Clearing the bonnet hinges & remounting it the biggest obstacles.
And I now want to see a metallic blue hatch done with a colour-matched metallic blue interior (or contrasting white) for true '60's-70's American fashion.
& must get around to making a deeper replacement chin air-dam for my '79.

Ichiban
05-11-2009, 03:11 PM
I've been tossing around the idea of concocting a recessed aluminum beehive grille for my '82. As well as aluminum strut tower bars, body brace bars, and all sorts of other shit.

2ndGenGuy
05-12-2009, 10:01 AM
I've been tossing around the idea of concocting a recessed aluminum beehive grille for my '82. As well as aluminum strut tower bars, body brace bars, and all sorts of other shit.

Do it!!!

79cord
05-25-2009, 04:08 PM
Some progress.
http://memimage.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/241/33315120016_medium.jpg

Welded the plenum holes, seam-sealed the front cowl panel seam & painted, followed by the application of more bitumen sound-deadener from a tin.

http://memimage.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/241/33315120015_medium.jpg

Painted the rust free under panels.

http://memimage.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/241/33315120017_medium.jpghttp://memimage.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/241/33315120018_medium.jpg

Here's the state of the front fenders once I ground out the cracking fiberglass & body filler.

http://memimage.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/241/33315120019_medium.jpg

So some metal bashing ensued to make a new lower corner; though the thin metal did warp about as I welded it so some filler is still required.

At the top corner the shapes are a bit more complex & faults more obvious; so after drilling out the spot welds to remove the corner reinforcement I welded the holes closed since they were small & widely dispersed.

Now for the other side....

2ndGenGuy
05-25-2009, 06:09 PM
Sweet man! Good progress. Bodywork is what most people seem to like to do least. But you are definitely not afraid to jump right into it! Gotta stay on top of these cars.

speedpenguin
06-04-2009, 09:45 AM
This is very impressive. (Subscribed)

Daddy
06-09-2009, 06:44 AM
Wow great deal! very thorough in your details too!

Ichiban
06-09-2009, 04:10 PM
What kind of welding setup do you have? I've found that the weld will shrink as it cools, so what I do is hammer and dolly each weld to stretch it back out flat, and the panel returns to it's original shape. If the metal begins to work harden, simply warm it red with a propane torch, allow to cool slowly and continue beating it.

79cord
06-09-2009, 07:36 PM
Welding with a 130amp MIG welder & 0.8mm wire.
Front panels seem to be 0.8mm thick.
Unfortunately not great access for much reshaping since I didn't separate off the rear edge reinforcing close-out panel... though I have had a go with a little propane bottle torch where possible...
Especially required for the other side where I tried welding in a patch to retain the original front & rear formed edges rather than making up a complete section ( rust reached further up & I didn't want to affect door gap), so warpage was even more pronounced.
Winter cold & rain here has slowed me up.

Should really strip out some filler from minor dent repairs to the front corner of left guard too. Still looks good but doesn't feel quite right. White hides imperfections well...
Not well enough for other dubious shapes behind left door but I'd rather leave those for the moment.
Also want to wait on applying filler until panels on car so it doesn't crack in the usual battle to get them fitting nicely.
My '75 Lancia's expensive factory 3mm door gaps has me hating Honda's generous gaps of the period.

I also found I have an old tin of '77 Accord white I was given with my S600 basketcase.... hope it's still good.

79cord
10-20-2009, 02:15 AM
Time for an update!

The tin of paint I had wasn't a great match so took the cowl grille/vent cover to an auto-paint shop for matching in automotive acrylic paint.

The fenders in primer: the left side had a few subtle professional semi-repaired dents left in it after the bumper had obviously been pushed in to it.
http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/241/33315120028_medium.jpg
http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/241/33315120029_medium.jpg

Inspite of relatively minimal repairs getting the fit and panel gaps correct after things were painted still took some effort and a several tries!
I also cleaned and painted the hinge areas white since though thoroughly primed, Honda's colour application was sparse there: only painted once all panels were attached.

The bonnet needed a little work on a small dent on the left side of the raised area; I tried to push it out as much as possible first but access was limited by reinforcements, so some filler was needed, whilst spray primer/filler was used to fill minor hail (?) damage scattered over the panel & surface rust around the bonnet emblem.
http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/241/33315120024_medium.jpg

I never noticed before: '76-78 emblem on left, '79-81 on right!
http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/241/33315120026_medium.jpg
Both still need their cracked & dull clear red logo backgrounds repainted.

Repainted the Grille; Previously it looked to be a metallic dark grey, Unless that was just from sun exposure?, with slight overspray from painting the central grille surround silver also covering the central grille grid (probably factory) that had then been gone over by hand! The painted portions of the end chrome pieces also badly needed painting. Explains why '79 & on grilles continued the full car width with separate new chrome pieces.
http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/241/33315120023_medium.jpg
Now in satin black...though it polished up a bit more than anticipated removing imperfections.

Sorry I don't have any painted & assembled front photos yet. There's a sick Integra in the way.

The roof paint has also polished up reasonably but betrays minor hail dents & terribly miss-matched touch-up paint used along the roof weld-channels.

Rear hatch also polished up ok, though the lower half has previously been repainted, probably from fairly typical surface rust under the window rubber. And scraping the black paint(!) the owner had applied along the inside sides was a pain! Equivalent to polishing the exhaust stains from the right side hatch gutters. Found a tiny bit of body rust just below the left hatch hinge also.

This is about the extent of rust in the doors!
http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/241/33315120025_medium.jpg
The left side already thoroughly attended to previously, (though with terrible paint). I used a metal filler on the right side & cleaned & painted the inside of the door (revealing that the right door glass has been broken & replaced before).

Surface rust under the mirror mount had been attended to before (again with terrible paint, & note the extreme rearward mirror location of '76-77 Accords) so I figured I may as well primer/fill slight door dings while I was at it.
http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/241/33315120027_medium.jpg

2ndGenGuy
10-20-2009, 07:22 AM
That's funny about those emblems. The Honda badge just kept getting bigger and bigger, and now the H is huge. But that's how you know it's a Honda! Great update! Get pics of the finished product when you get a chance! ;)

79cord
02-18-2010, 12:11 AM
Polished the paint, new & old so its now shiny enough to show up my '79 apart from its dowdy & slightly rusty wheels.

http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/241/33315120035_medium.jpg (http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/241/33315120035_large.jpg)

I also painted the roof weld channels to eliminate previous miss-matched touch-ups, happy to leave off the shrunken original rubber trims that usually fill them so I can see any impending trouble coming, rust not uncommon there.

http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/241/33315120036_medium.jpg (http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/241/33315120036_large.jpg)
The window surrounds are now dark grey under the roof gutters & around door frame. The (surface) rusty window trims had faded from dark grey to silver, I chickened out of an idea to paint them in silver so they are now somewhere in between. (My small hobby airbrush & compressor has proved surprisingly usefull for these little jobs !)


http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/241/33315120037_medium.jpg
The door is still not perfect but much better, and has its proper '77-8 mirror after I cut a $1 mirror glass to fit the housing with glass-cutter, pliers & sandpaper.

http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/241/33315120034_medium.jpg (http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/241/33315120034_large.jpg)
Rear wiper & washer are now giving problems though: Pump operates but cannot generate ANY pressure. While switch & wiper motor works when tested on my Prelude but not on the Accord so I suspect the wiring through the hatch. Front wipers also aggravating me by not parking at the bottom of their travel.

http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/241/33315120038_medium.jpg
Oh I also found some '81 Accord plastic front wheelhouse liners to hopefully reduce the likelyhood of the panels rusting again.. The fitted easily with after drilling two small holes near the strut tower to wire them onto, the '77s not having the factory mounting holes my '79 had. I also had to drill new holes in the liner to suit the mountings of the slightly smaller '77 front mudflaps.


Unfortunately the otherwise good tyres are suspect with cracks in the sidewall but I took it for a little drive which reminded me how loud its engine noise is without the extra firewall/cowl insulation of tne '79... & how lock-prone the rear drums are when you jump on the brakes sharply (too soft brake linings fitted ?).

Not sure what to do yet about side trims since I'm missing left rear & door side trims are starting to bubble with rusty steel reinforcement within the rubber as my '79 had. Cut apart to attempt de-rust or replace with generic aftermarket trims?

I've bought some generic aftermarket trims for the moment but would like to space them out a bit further from the body since the bodies upper crease still protrudes out further than the trims (like the originals) negating their usefulness. I'll have to get some strips of 6mm(?) plastic cut to achieve that.

eduardo i.
02-18-2010, 12:33 PM
Nice car, its very instpiring to see a restoration job like that.What paint brand did you use?

SZfiftyfour
02-18-2010, 04:54 PM
Looks pretty damn good. Im lovin the white on tan color combo too.

2ndGenGuy
02-19-2010, 11:43 AM
I've got an occasional issue with my wipers not parking as well. I have no idea how they even work where they stop at the same spot. Some effin' magic I guess. Most of the time they're ok though. It's annoying when you set the wipers on the intermittent, and they stop half way down the window, then stop at 3/4 then stop in some other random spot ugh...

Car is looking great though man. The window frames look good that color actually. The paint polish came out great too! Nice work!

79cord
02-19-2010, 06:00 PM
I guess we must do some research on wiper motors...

Paint is Standox Automotive Acrylic, Acrylics generally quick drying, an advantage when painting outside... but perhaps making it harder to get a perfect finish "off the gun" so needing more polishing afterward to get nice... & I guess might not survive as well as some finishes without being looked after.

Hazwan
02-19-2010, 08:44 PM
I suck at explaining things but heres what the wiper motor looks like inside
http://img707.imageshack.us/img707/174/img010j.jpg

Basically how they work is they stop moving when the contact stopped umm... contacting :lol: and mine have the same issues with them stopping at the random place. I tried cleaning them up but one of the contacts broke :(

And heres me with my OCD to keep things clean cleaning them up before I put them back together again :kekeke:

http://img13.imageshack.us/img13/8819/img011sq.jpg

http://img6.imageshack.us/img6/8643/img012fq.jpg

Anyway 79cord, that paint looks nice!

79cord
01-28-2011, 06:44 AM
Goodness it has been a while but it's update time!

Like the front bumper indicator lamp housing the Rear lamp housings were also suffering from sun exposure -especially reversing lamps whose clear lenses didn't block as much light & were thinly painted, so were starting to crumble & no longer able to retain their globes. So the rear lamps were dis-assembled and the remains of their housings glued back togeather, before being thoroughly filled & painted.

I also removed the rear bumper to repaint areas behind that were leaving stains from surface rust ( & fill hole of removed rear wiper while at it)... Unfortunately I placed the bumper trims in the boot and they were MELTED by the summer sun! I suppose I'll have to replace these now and fit a rigid luggage cover from a later Accord. Apparently a vinyl one was sometimes offered as an accessory for these early examples before the rigid one was made standard for our market in '78.

Regarding the cars body side trims,
for the moment I've bought some adhesive generic aftermarket trims of a similar size to the original for the moment but wanted to space them out a bit further from the body since the bodies upper crease still protrudes out further than the trims negating their usefulness. '80-81 Accords received different, thicker trims for some markets but ours only became deeper & ribbed. I had some strips of 10mm thick plastic cut; tapered away at the front tip of the doors to allow for their opening, and used these behind the trims.

http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/249/33315124004_medium.jpg (http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/249/33315124004_large.jpg)
I also had to do something about the cracked engine support stay -from firewall to head, but had no success sourcing replacements from Honda or aftermarket parts suppliers, and most Accord seem to suffer the same problem. I had some urethane automotive windscreen adhesive so used that to fill a cracked example, (before covering in plastic food wrap pulled tight for minimal wrinkles & sandwiched by oversized washers to give a reasonable appearance once adhesive had set & these were removed).

I also had to replace the gearshift selector oil seal. (Similarly had no luck sourcing until I gave up & asked aftermarket suppliers about early Civic parts -Honda being even less useful.)

Removing the shift linkage from the gearbox proved a minor pain by being retained by a stubborn little pin that I finally forced out with an 8mm bolt through a large nut by a small g-clamp. I should have replaced it by a simple nut and bolt as Honda did for my '79. Similarly I should have sourced a '79 & on magnetic gearbox drain bolt.

Anyway I FINALLY got around to getting the car back on the road with limited-use Classic/Historic registration so here are some more pictures! (click larger)

http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/249/33315124002_medium.jpg (http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/249/33315124002_large.jpg)
http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/249/33315124003_medium.jpg (http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/249/33315124003_large.jpg)
http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/249/33315124001_medium.jpg (http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/249/33315124001_large.jpg)

The car certainly feels healthy & shows up my well-used beige '79 example in some areas like a crisp shift linkage (though syncromesh easy to beat), and the engine even feels more lively & elastic without the later upper-firewall/under-plenumn sound insulation and the later cars emphasized torque, even though later 1602cc engine has shorter stroke so "should" rev easier.

Would like to paint wheels - possibly darker grey like early Civic? I've fitted some later Accord trim-rings.

2ndGenGuy
01-28-2011, 10:16 AM
Wow. She is a beauty! Nice work, and I love how your dogbone mount turned out with the filled poly! Looks great!

eduardo i.
01-28-2011, 05:20 PM
Nice accord, alot of picture would be nice:omg:

Hey, is the 77 grill different from the 79 or is it just the picture? Also My 80 accord brought wheelhouse liners; perhaps it was from 80 to 81?

79cord
01-30-2011, 11:34 PM
Yes the '76-78 grille is quite different from '79-81 (we only ever received those two types here), the early grille having more curvature when viewed from the side with deeper 'tunnels' to the more recessed lights, and only reaches to the middle of the outer lights, with the ends incorporated into different chrome side pieces which were partly painted black, later grille was full width. The silver outline around the central grille opening was just painted on, where later was fitted with a cast metal chrome piece. The grille "mesh" spacing was also revised & a thicker horizontal bar added to the middle of the later grille.

The grilles & different front fenders were all interchangeable between early & late , indeed according to some the later fenders would even be fitted by Honda under "Warranty" when some US owners of early examples found their fenders starting to rust within 3? years! I've seen too many Accords about with one of each style fitted (& recessed light brackets) though.
Not sure about the interchange ability of the front valance. Radiator support & lower member under the radiator was revised for '79, & radiator & rad. mountings revised again for '81.

Not sure when plastic fender liners were introduced to other markets but I've only seen them on '81's here... though my '79's had all the mounting holes to be able to fit one up!

More photos to come, should get some more with the '79 & with a white '81 hatch in the local club soon also :
http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/2/3208/4549/20519774011_medium.jpg (http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/2/3208/4549/20519774011_large.jpg) '79 & friends '81

openpulse
03-03-2011, 11:06 AM
Hi 79cord, the new accord looks very nice! And the coupe does have it's looks!
Question, did you buy the car for $150? If so, looks like a nice deal!

Congrats! :)


PS: Does the interior smell right? :lol:

79cord
03-05-2011, 02:27 AM
Out & about with the local Honda club
http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/249/33315124005_medium.jpg (http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/249/33315124005_large.jpg)http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/249/33315124007_medium.jpg (http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/249/33315124007_large.jpg)

Unfortunately that white '81 in the last picture didn't come along this time.

Also took it along to when I went to the Ballarat swap meet 100km? away (for car & motor bike bits; BIG- but spread out, estimated 15km of walking & walked 2 1/2 times), where I was hoping to get some '67-8 Honda CD90 bits.... bought another '76-8 side mirror & foolishly another old CT90...with another 3 ct90 parts bikes/frames. Fitted 1 or 2 in the '79 before but these will be delivered by a friend.
One of the heater hoses started spraying coolant about from a hole by the hose clamp so had to be shortened at a friends house before I left, but otherwise behaved well. Gearshift lever does sometimes "sizzle" with audible vibrations at speed unlike my '79's loose, worn linkage. And there is wind noise on the drives side from either the door or window seal. Since there were glass fragments in the door to suggest the glass had been replaced so maybe I should try adjusting its fit slightly.

HON-DUH
04-03-2011, 12:40 PM
Man, I love these cars...

79cord
04-10-2011, 11:30 PM
Here's that 1967 Honda CT90 bought at the swapmeet mentioned above.
http://memimage.cardomain.com/ride_images/2/3208/4549/20519774013_medium.jpg (http://memimage.cardomain.com/ride_images/2/3208/4549/20519774013_large.jpg)



and some more with the '79
http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/249/33315124008_large.jpg
http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/249/33315124010_medium.jpg (http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/249/33315124010_large.jpg)http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/249/33315124008_medium.jpg (http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/249/33315124008_large.jpg)

http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/249/33315124009_medium.jpg (http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/3327/249/33315124009_large.jpg)

2ndGenGuy
04-11-2011, 09:10 AM
You have so many toys! I want more! About to add a CL-175 to my collection this week. :)