Explain your 3G love

[maxsideburn]

Let's hear the story of how you came across your 3G. Give us a nice little short summary of how you got it, what you've done to it, your plans, and a quick pic.

Mine started when I bought an 84 Prelude (the car that was the second best handling sports coupe of 1984, the first was the Porsche 944). Until this time I simply laughed at Hondas, I thought they were merely the domain of people who couldn't afford a real sports car. But having my Prelude for about a year I found out something quite different. You can shift a Honda quick, you can whip it around corners, you can rev it to redline...and it just keeps on taking it! The first thing I learned about Hondas is that they crave the redline like a crackhead looking for their next fix. Eventually my Prelude shot a plug out of the head and it still took me home down the highway on 3 cylinders. Then I used one of those heli-coil things to fix it, and after some serious weight reduction measures and a few other mods this car was still running strong and winning races quite often. Well eventually I sold it for $350 (minus the interior and anything else that weighed an ounce). I used that money to get my 86 Fiero legal, which I then drove for about six months and had it fixed up real nice, but it began to smoke and have other problems so I started tearing the motor apart for a rebuild. Well things started happening and I never got it finished. I bought an 89 Accord LX-i Coupe for $300, body and interior were nearly perfect, but the camshaft had sheared at the gear. Well towing it home some drunk fuck in a big Chevy pickup smashed into my mom's Blazer and the Accord being towed behind it. Well I used the settlement money to buy me a little 95 Ford Aspire for $700 to deliver pizza with. I used the rest of the money to buy an 87 Supra Turbo from my friend. Well a few weeks later my friend died and I had to deal with that shit. Shortly after I traded my Aspire and $500 for my 87 Accord that I currently have. I also traded the Supra I had gotten from him to another friend for a 77 Trans Am.

Well even though I have a deep seated hatred of 4 door cars this is the first one I've actually been able to tolerate. And I'll tell you the draw of this car...it's a mini-BMW for much less of the price. It has the distinction of a being a nice sporty little mini-luxury sedan with the reliability of being a Honda. It's probably the "nicest" car I've ever owned. It feels like I'm driving a little luxury sedan, yet I can still chirp the tires through 1st and 2nd gear. I have made up my mind that I will keep this car and fix it up nice. I want the interior done up real nice and mostly stock, I want the exterior to have a new paint color (probably charcoal grey) with a nice little lip kit. I've also been busy with bolt on power-adders for the motor. I don't want a race car, but just something a little faster than the stock Accord. I currently have a full cold air intake, MSD Blaster II coil, and a few other minor mods.

So below is a picture of my car as it stands. Now tell me how you got into your 3G, and why you want to continue to fix this super-nice little car up.

[maxsideburn]

As a side note I'd like to add that a lot of you guys who have been here longer than me have flamed me several times for not using the "search" feature, but trust me I do. Sometimes I just have questions about these cars that I can't find information on. Have a little patience with me and I promise I will be answering more questions than asking...I just need to get used to the car.

Anyways, nice to know you guys and I can't wait to find out how you got into your cars.

[HostileJava]

I've owned three of them and the story is way to long to tell, I'm sure know one wants to here me go on anyway, but basically even though I fight a constant battle between loving the car and wanting to sell it, I'm probably a 3ger for life. Now if only I could get the SE-i to run again

[2drSE-i]

you better get that damned se-i running, or i will hate you forever. I just got mine semi-running right again. 5 months ago it went from 28-30 mpg stock to 20 with a CAI. replaced o2 sensors and it went up to 23....wohoo. Custom exhaust...stayed the same. this weekend. i replaced dist cap, rotor, and spark plugs, and its up to 29!! yay! i figured it should be at about 33 tho...o well. Anyway, not much story to tell. Grandma bought it, brand new 1989 SE-i Coupe. Then she bought a BMW 325i, and gave the Honda to my dad, whos 87 Thunderchicken got tboned.....in my driveway....by a drunk driver. my dad owned it for about 5 years, then i turned 16. He let me drive it, up until i turned 18 (which i am now) and he gave it to me for my bday . I plan to be a 3ger for life.

[Deadhead]

Well... I was driving with one of my friends and he took me to see his car that he couldn't drive yet. He let me drive it around their property for a bit and I fell in love with it... It was comfy, had some go, and EVERYTHING worked.... I love a/c...

But anyway, one thing led to another and we bought it for 1150..... BIG mistake.
I had to put 1000 into it to get it running right (fucking shop ripped us off big time)

Then after I decided to work on it, i got it running great getting 27mpg consistantly. Drove it for 20k miles with little to no problems... i had to replace the alternator.

So I got in a few accidents with it and bent the frame. Drove for another 5k miles, then traded it in for my 96 civic which I like. The accord had 253k miles when i traded it in and ran awesome. The car was extremely reliable and I almost wish I kept and straightened the frame out. Oh well... good bye 3g and hello civic.

List of things I did to it :
Distributer
plugs
wires
alternator
TW sensor
O2 sensor
Exhaust
air filter/ oil changes... etc etc
Intake manifold gasket (NEVER DO ONE OF THESE IF YOU CAN HELP IT!)
Brakes

I know there's more, but that's all i can think of at the moment.

[lostforawhile]

lets see,I used to race antique civics in vintage sports car racing,as far as the three g,it's the last generation accord hatch ever made, it's a two door sports car(family car nothing,that back seat is made for midgets) it's the style that was copied for the first generation tegs, it's an early third generation so it's lighter and it has the more classic looking early interior with window cranks. it's light,has the first honda double wishbone suspension on all four corners,handles like a go cart,revs like one too,and with the proper exaust like i've got,has a beautiful engine note like a lot of early brittish cars,not like a whiny civic. what more can I say?

[BITESIZE]

No other car can compare to a 3G. Nough said.

[Vanilla Sky]

my grandparents bought my first one new in 1987. i used to hate seeing that car come around the corner because i knew that was about 6 hours of my life gone.

well, in 1998 or so, my grandma wrecked the car and tweaked the frame. at the time, we needed something cheap and reliable so we could pay off some bills and the lease on our car had just ended. we drove that car for about a year until we bought mom's mazda.

the accord was the first car i ever drove. it was the car i learned body work on. it was the car i wanted to put an h22 in, paint lime green, and bolt on a set of 18" gold wire rims on. i started doing something to it, and it just didn't run right. i saw the how-to on rebuilding the carb, so i thought i'd try that. i never finished getting the carb off. the cylinder head to that car is sitting here at my feet as i type this.

i bought my second 3gee 2 years ago. it needed a carb rebuild (which i never got to) and some very ultra minor body work. i got the car running pretty well, until i blew the transmission. i replaced the trans with the one from my first 3gee and it ran for a little while. it kept having problems. it now sits awaiting me to throw some money at it and turn it into a track car.

i own a couple parts cars. the first one was purchased while we were still using the first accord. that was the first car i ever dismantled. i did it using a 1/4" drive ratchet set, an array of screwdrivers, and a few combo wrenches. i probably put that car back together a few times as well. the second parts car was purchased for an EFI and a 5 speed swap, neither of which i've even bothered with. i pulled the EFI stuff, but i decided to go DCOE since my current 3gee will be a track car.

i guess the worst part is that i have to clean up the back yard, and i have to get rid of 3 cars. 2 3geez are going to the crusher, and one is going to go back to its owner as soon as i get it finished up. either way, i'm losing my first car and the first car i dismantled. sucks.

[lostforawhile]

you still have that cyl head? i might make a run down there one day and get it if you don't

[Vanilla Sky]

it's a bare head. i can include the valves, springs, and retainers, but the valves are all shot. it has been cleaned up at a machine shop, though.

[lostforawhile]

yea my stepson just said you are only an hour and a half from me. cool.

[88Accord-DX]

Back to the topic. I bought my Accord back in late Dec. '01. I was looking through the Houston classifieds & eyeballing the Preludes, Civics & Accords. I decided to look at this black 88 Accord w/ tinted windows $1,500. So, went to look at it & it was clean. The tint was all jacked, but pulled that off soon.


The car got hit in the back about 2 years ago. Instead of letting it be totalled, I took the $1,500 insurance money & bought a trunk on-line, tail-lights & new center light. I painted the car & rebuilt the motor.
This car is basically a project car. I don't drive it yet. Here is a few pics of it. I might get some rims for it too. Just waiting to sell another car I have.

[lostforawhile]

nice looking motor,sorry to get off topic back there.

[86-accord-lxi]

Well... When I turned 16, My friend gave me a 91 chevy corsica with a 3.1 liter v6 rice eater, J/K ! I ended up fliping the corsica because the front passenger side tire blew out while travelling 55mph on a gravel road ! That nearly made me piss my pants! I walked out of the wreck without a scratch,
However the corsica was totaled. For about a year or two, every time I went to my friend Matt's house, His sisters little honda was sitting out front. I was always curious about the honda, Even when I had the corsica. After the wreck I asked her if she would sell it, She was asking $1,000. It had been sitting for about 2 years, I didn't have $1,000, and would not have been willing to give her that much for the car if I had it. She soon dropped the price to $500, I still didn't want to pay that much for it. I offered her $100 cash, She accepted, And the little honda was mine. Dead battery, So off to the store I go to get a new battery. On the way to the store I found a battery on the side of the road with the receipt attached ! I took that battery back to the store it came from and exchanged it for a new one.
Back to the little honda we go ! Drop the battery in, Turn it over, and VROOM ! She fired up on the first try ! Get it home and put $600 into it,
plugs, wires, cap, rotor, new windshield, oil, new transmission, coolant, valve cover gasket, lots of miscellaneous parts, ALL filters, some bulbs, wipers, pcv valve, replaced small cooling lines, cleaned throttle body. And now, drum and shoes with hardware. brake pads, rear upper control arms !!!! I am so glad I didn't pay $1,000, or even $500 for this car ! After all this work I think she's a keeper ! I love the body design, The way the interior is layed out, and everything flows together nice and flush ! I love the pop up head lights !
There are some times I feel like selling it, and getting another one in better condition, But...

I'll get some up to date pics up soon, Need a bright suuny day, My camera sucks ass !
Im getting ready to start body shop, and plan to completely re-do the whole body.

[A18A]

well back in late 02 my dad bought our 3gee, it was in mint condition he was gonna give it to my sister, but when she was driving she stopped at the lights and this idiot rear ended it and pushed it into the back of a hilux, my dad tried 2 sell it but we only got offered $100, so he thought fuk them, rather keep it. nothing happened to it for about 3 months and then he said that i might aswell have it. i was so happy i didnt think much of it at first but then it just started growing on me and i started to love it so much but untill the front window smashed, that car just went downhill, now i got this one, and i love this one to pieces now if i had a whole lot of money, id fix up my other car as it was my first one, and i spent more time with it and loved it a whole lot more

[Shadowkat]

My family bought our 89' LX-i in Nov 88. The car has been owned and daily driven by my family ever since. The car was my sister's once she turned 16, then her and I shared it when I turned 16 a few years later.

Then last summer, the automagic tranny went fubar. My dad was planning to replace it with a 97 GSR that my sister and I would drive, but a few days before we went to the dealer to test drive it, I let my friend drive a 2004 TSX loaner car that he somehow managed to crash while going around the block(my fault for letting him drive, his fault for being a dumbass).

Months later, having no car and needing something to occupy my time and take my mind off schoolwork(I used to drive to do clear my head) I started tinkering around with the car. Many months later, I finished my first ever mechanic project of replacing the engine(had 232,000 miles on it) with a lower milage engine, and switching it to stick.

The car is now officially mine only and I no longer have to share it with my sister(mostly becuse she can't drive stick).

My plan for this car is to keep it as long as I can and slowly replace the old parts with new as they break. Hopefully, by continuouslly repairing the car it will last me indefinatly. Do by like 2030 the car will probably have a whole new frame and body, plus a supercharged b18 or something cool like that.


So that's My 3g story. 3GEEZ for LIFE!

[A18A]

My family bought our 89' LX-i in Nov 88.

wtf?

[MIK3]

wtf?

Assuming this response is to his family buying an 1989 car in 1988, do not forget that usually between September to December, car companies will release the next year models. This shouldn't be a shock to you.

My story is grand. My grandma and grandpa bought the car as new back in 1987. It was my grandpa's first new car. Unfortunately, my grandpa died 6 months after buying the new car, so there was no way my grandma would get rid of it. 16 years later, she just had to get something newer, but refused to sell it. There I was, 15 years and 4 months old, in need of a car soon. Low and behold, she passed it down to me. She knew how well kept I was and everything in her told her that I would take car of it. And that I have. Nearly 4 years later (god, it's been that long already), it's it the best shape it has been since probably 12-14 years ago. I love it. And am thankful that she decided to hand down the Accord to me.

[Blkblurr]

I bought my SE-i new in 89 and still drive it year round. I keep it in good condition and it still runs like it's new. I have 241k miles now and plan on fixing the rust behind the rear wheels and fixing the leather seats. I need a new sound system as the stock Bose system is dying. I love this car cause it never leaves me stranded. It drives well and is very comfortable. I just like the way it drives.

[LiTtLe xOx BitT]

Well heres my story. It was my parents car that they bought from a friend for $700 in 2004 with like 90k miles on it 1988 LX-i. My mom drove it and i used it to take my license test and used it on weekends when she wasn't. I would always be working on the car and putting new parts on it, I don't know why I liked the car so much. A couple months after we got it my brother put the car in reverse while he was moving forward and wrecked the transmission. My parents were going to junk it but i told them I wanted it so they gave it to me with no trans. So i went to the bank and took out $300 of my $600 life savings and bought a used trans for $200 and then some small parts like fule filter, brakes, rotors and drums. Me and a friend of mine spent like 2 weeks putting in the new transmission which none of us have ever done before. I found this website while i was looking for a how-to on replacing the trans. After the trans was done my car became an obsession, i work on it all the time and i am constantly looking for ways to make it better and if im not out working on the car on my free time im on here. So after about a year of having the car, countless hours and about $1500 later here i am. This is the diary of my 3g, you think you know but you have no idea! DUN DUN DUNNNNNNNN.

[88accordhb]

i love the 3g










because i'm poor







and chicks dig red







and it has 4 wheels.








facial!

[MIK3]

Haha. Yet another classic post by the one and only.

[Lockleaf]

I picked mine up from my sister because I could afford to wait to pay her for it and drove it for about 3 months when I got hit on the pass side and both doors were totalled. The car was called totalled by insurance and they gave me $3100 plus I got to keep the car. I only owed my sis $1800, then spent $200 to get new doors, which I installed, and the rest of the money i gave to help out my parents. this was when I was 17. I fixed the doors, the first major auto work i had ever done. Found I loved it. Since then, it's been like your first girlfriend. She'll always have a special place in your heart. But i just found a new g/f (ok, car) who is a lot like my old one, only hotter and more fun. So now I have the SE-I and i have to sell my LX to pay of the SE-I. But I'll love them for life.

[halxi]

Well my parents started looking at cars when they found out my mom was pregnant with me back in August of 1987, my mom didnt want an automatic, or a 4door. Which my dad thought would be best for her, seeing as how a kid would be in the back seat, and a clutch in stop in go traffic just isnt fun. Well my mom insisted on a 2dr, she didnt want a "fuddy-duddy car" as she calls them, and my dad didnt really want an automatic. So they went looking, and got into accords. Big time. My dad said he loved the way the thing handled, and drove when it was brand new. However, the main sunroof option was the moonroof. My dad is 6'2". (and im 6'1" If i sit up straight enough, my head rides the headliner as it is) So they had a 1988 Maroon 2dr, 5spd, LX-i , with A/C and a flip up sunroof orderd from the honda dealership. They picked it up in December of 1987.

I have many memories of the car from different points in time throughout my life, and when i turned 12 i started getting into the tuner scene. It started with the usual Ricer crap (fart can, stickers, wing, you know... the usual), and after i saw my first "JDM Style" car i said "fuck wings" and grew fond of the sleeper look.

My mom got a new car in 1998, and my car sat around for the most part, my dad would drive it on occasion, just to keep it healthy and what not. After we moved from one city to another here in colorado, the car sat for about 3 years, and it was then my turn to get it. The summer before i turned 16, i was heart set on a 99-00 Toyota Tacoma, with all the bells and whistles. We were going to sell the car and pickup a truck for me, however (in a NON racial way), only mexicans who couldnt speak english hit us up for the car, and ran with their hands in the air after they found out it was a 5spd. So i got stuck with the car, and its issues.

In febuary of 2005, just before i got my license, i put new speakers in it, and my parents paid for a few new things: Belts, hoses, water pump, plugs, wires, cap, rotor, and they bought me new power window motors/regulators (since the drivers side window would not roll down, and the passenger side is dying) to make the car roadworthy.

At the end of March 2005, i had a deck installed in it for my birthday and officially recieved it loooking like this:

http://users.4x4wh.com/4x4master/Hon...ol/IMG0068.JPG
http://users.4x4wh.com/4x4master/Hon...ol/IMG0073.JPG

It needed the sunroof fixed (leaked horridly), a new fender, new turn signals, new bulb housing for the tail lights, a trunk latch, and floormats. Everything from the time when i recieved the car, until now, ive paid for. That includes the short list i just gave you.

Shortly after recieving/purchasing my car from my parents, i started to make my own CAI for it, which was my first mod. About a month after that i went on a JDM Corner search, and scored some for a realitivly cheap price.

Here are pics (CAI before finished, just a short ram, and then finished, and my JDM corners upon installation)
http://users.4x4wh.com/4x4master/Hon...ol/IMG0163.JPG
(after this point, i also picked up a new digital cam, so no more crappy pics)
http://users.4x4wh.com/4x4master/Honda%20Pics/CAI1.jpg
http://users.4x4wh.com/4x4master/Honda%20Pics/CAI3.jpg
And here are the JDM Corners
http://users.4x4wh.com/4x4master/Honda%20Pics/sig.jpg

I then drove the car from June til about September, until i decided i wanted to continue the modding process. Over the summer i purchased my sound system (Over $2000 invested into that alone), and then proceeded with Suspension (lowered the car 1.7" with intrax springs, on tokico struts) and exhaust (pace setter header, test pipe, res, and a borla pro xs muffler).

A few pics of those mods:
http://users.4x4wh.com/4x4master/Honda%20Pics/3.jpg (muffler/struts)
http://users.4x4wh.com/4x4master/Honda%20Pics/4.jpg (after drop)
http://users.4x4wh.com/4x4master/Honda%20Pics/Drop.jpg (springs/struts)
http://users.4x4wh.com/4x4master/Honda%20Pics/E.jpg (exhaust setup)
http://users.4x4wh.com/4x4master/Hon...s/Exhaust2.jpg (muffler)
http://users.4x4wh.com/4x4master/Honda%20Pics/R3.jpg (headlights/header)

Then about a month past, and winter started to set in. So i decided, well, i need new tires, why not get new rims as well? Saved a few pay checks, and bought me some Nippon F-2's and General Exclaim UHP's

http://users.4x4wh.com/4x4master/Hondar/2-20-06/F2.jpg wheels/tires


My future plans consist of; I'd like to get the car repainted (same color) sometime soon, im probably going to start that project over spring break. Then i want to start with SE-i rear disc, run larger slotted rotors, and maybe try dual piston calipers. Then replace the Sway bars, change out ALL bushings to new poly bushings, get rear lower tie bar, and upper strut bars. Over the summer id like to rebuild another a20 for boost while i drive my car, that way i have minimal downtime. Im not positive on any of the future plans, but its something id really like to do.

Before:



After:




And thats my story that took me nearly an hour to put together with all the links/pics lol

[Mike89Accordcom]

Too much to write for me, but jus click my banner to read my story....