Working on a 79 Hatch

Hi, I know this forum isn't very active anymore compared to several years ago, however I have found some great information here. So after lurking for a few months I thought I'd share some pics of my current project car. 1979 Accord 2 Door Automatic with A/C. I bought it in non running condition with a bad head gasket and the previous owners attempt to R&R the cylinder head. I went ahead and pulled out the engine and transmission to clean everything up and since the wife and kids want it a different color, I repainted the engine bay. I will say finding parts is harder than I thought it would be :)
Cheers

Here's picking up the car

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Dirty engine bay

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After some pressure washing

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All the junk in the fresh air cowl - took awhile to clean out and make sure the drains were clear. luckily no rust though

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Block back from the machine shop and ready for rebuild

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Cylinder head getting ready to grind valves and assemble

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Engine bay painted

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Engine ready to go back in

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Ready for road test - please ignore the copper rtv around the valve cover - chasing a leak and I found the valve cover is slightly tweaked, so another new fel-pro gasket and right stuff gasket maker has it fixed I think

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Also any good ideas on getting a door silencer for the passenger door?

This black piece

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Also it looks like I'll need to plumb the PCV system into vacuum like the OEM and not just the air cleaner, as I get a slight oil leak from around the distributor o-ring if I run on the freeway at 4000 rpm:omg: for anything over a few minutes. Around town it seems okay though. So off to the manual and look over the factory setup, especially any restrictions so it's not just a huge vacuum leak.

Looking good

When I did work on a '78 civic I found someone on the 1stgencivic forum page who 3d-printed door silencers. Not sure if they work for the accords but it might be worth a shot! Shipped them right to me and they installed perfect.

Great thanks for the info. I also posted to the 1st gen Accord facebook group and found a guy who does 3D print them out of rubber.
Thanks

Is that what causes the squeaky latch whrn driving? I fixed it before on my 85, but I don't remember how. Now my 86 started the same thing (a strangely very nostalgic sound) and I need to fix it before I go nuts. Any chance these are the same piece?

A very different latch silencer after the 1st gen Accords, whose doors will rattle badly & not latch properly (even possible to open unexpectedly) when those parts are badly worn or missing. I've even carved & filed replacements from scrap plastic pipe.

Very bright new color! Honda offered a bright yellow in Japan, but didn't think it would suit their desired upmarket image for most other markets.

Congratulations upon the progress & hope the Hondamatic's unique character suits you.

Thanks for the note about the yellow paint, always cool to learn some unique facts. Yes it's very yellow, however it's a free gallon of paint and reducer and my family said they wanted it yellow so....
I'm enjoying the quirkiness of the automatic around town, however on the freeway not so much. Turning around 4200 rpm at a little over 70 seems to be bringing my mileage down. So far I'm only getting about 21mpg. I do need to order the high altitude kit for the Weber since I live around 4500'.
Also I installed a PCV system instead of just venting to the air cleaner and that seems to have fixed the small oil leak I had when driving on the freeway. I'll try and get some pics up

Great work! Always impressed when someone finds these old beauties and restores them. It is a challenge to find replacement parts and sometimes you have to improvise. Keep up the great work. Lookin' good so far.

Car is looking great! Nice work on all the cleanup on the engine bay and the engine itself. Looking super fresh!

Really curious to check out your PCV system. I've always wanted something better than just the little vent on the valve cover. Newer cars have a true PCV system with a proper vent to allow fresh air back into the crankcase, so you get sort of a circulating flow. I don't think just having a vent connected to the air cleaner is really sufficient to help get out excess pressure or to clean out any nasty oil/fuel/combustion vapors.

This is what I have for the PCV so far. After another 200 miles it definitely fixed the oil leak from the distributor o-ring when driving on the freeway at 3500+ rpms, so no leaks or drips now. I've pulled the valve off after driving and there is a touch of oil residue in the line between the cover and valve but not enough for me to think it's sucking up oil. Also when I did my overhaul I dipped the cover in our chemical tank at work and it cleaned all the gunk out of the oil separator area (should have seen the mud running out, crazy)
My only nagging thought is if it causes to much vacuum in the crankcase if I'm at an extended idle and would this suck in a seal or ?? So far I'm happy with it though. Best part is it was cheap to do! Hope this helps some.

This valve fits the line out of the cover, and then reduces it down to the (3/8" I think) line the brake booster uses and I just used a T. Made sure I was between the factory brake booster inline check valve and the vacuum port in the adapter plate.

Edit - I have thought of replacing the line out of the valve cover with one bent at a 90' and that could maybe help any possible oil issues getting into the valve

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Hey I have a latch problem with my 80’ Accord when I’m driving the passenger door opens how do I stop this??