Picking This Up Monday

[Ichiban]

Yes, what tires are you running? When I picked up my 82 it had some brutal 165/80 all seasons, and it handled crap. I switched for my 185/70R13's, and it was much better.

[offthahook]

Yes, what tires are you running? When I picked up my 82 it had some brutal 165/80 all seasons, and it handled crap. I switched for my 185/70R13's, and it was much better.

When I got my 84, I had some bald ass out of balance nonmatched set and it was scary. That car rode like absolute crap, even just driving straight on smooth concrete. Tell you what though, I put on some 15" tires on Teggy rims and it was like night and day. The +2 upsize FTW.

[Xipher]

I didn't get a chance to look at the wheels much, I forgot to find the size on the sidewall, but I think they are stock size, 165's, almost brand new Toyo touring. I checked out the drivers side brakes, and they looked OK today, good pads, good disk... hopefully the rest are like this

I cleaned out the carb a bit and its actually running pretty ok, still has some issues, but, its better

Current issues, if I can remember right, little tired

High idle sticks

Leaks, from where, I duno! What does it leak? no, no... what DOESN'T it leak?

*HARD* start, wont start most of the time without the pedal to the floor

Sticky choke (? Kinda... stickyish)

Exhaust is original after the axel and in dire need of replacement leaks, rattles, bad repairs...

Brake booster may be bad? Brakes hiss from time to time when stomped on, brakes are HARD, pedal vibrates as if an ABS system has engaged when hissing occurs.

Tranny "chinks!" going switching gears at a stand still

Engine dies going from park to any drive gear from time to time

I'd swear the carb is leaking fuel all over the heat shield for the exhaust manifold but I cant see where it would be...!?

The brake booster may be a cuddy plastic "L" fitting that was used next to the carb

The tranny probably needs some SERIOUS service done... T-TECH, Auto-RX and Honda ATF 2-3 times flushed...

The hard start suggests an iffy float... but the the idle is ok, it doesn't seem to be drowning in gas, bit running rich from the iffy choke is a possibility, my chase vehicle complained of "smoke" and "chunks of crap" flying out the exhaust when I used the fast lane to get around some one. As a note, after the drive home, the exhaust is MUCH worse than it was at the impound yard!!

[2ndGenGuy]

I didn't get a chance to look at the wheels much, I forgot to find the size on the sidewall, but I think they are stock size, 165's, almost brand new Toyo touring. I checked out the drivers side brakes, and they looked OK today, good pads, good disk... hopefully the rest are like this

I also went up to the 15 inch rims. It was a huge difference. 205/50-15 is a beautiful setup. However, maybe just something a little wider will help, as guyhatesmycar said.

High idle sticks

Check the thermovalves. My car had this problem where the high idle would stay on for a good while until the car really warmed up. I think it was a result of a sticky or worn out thermovalve. Since there is indeed a high-idle thermovalve, I do believe.

Brake booster may be bad? Brakes hiss from time to time when stomped on, brakes are HARD, pedal vibrates as if an ABS system has engaged when hissing occurs.

Hard pedal does sound like a brake booster leak. IIRC that was a common problem on these cars with the original booster. I know mine blew out and did the same thing. When you hit the brakes at a stop, does it affect the car's idle? That would be a surefire sign.

Tranny "chinks!" going switching gears at a stand still

I also think that this is just a characteristic of the Honda automatic tranny. Even up into the 90's they always had hard shifting. My dad's 95 Civic EX shifts kinda hard into gear. But it's done it for years and has survived 235,000 miles.

Engine dies going from park to any drive gear from time to time

Is your foot on the brake when you do this? Could be part of the leaky vacuum from the brake booster.

The tranny probably needs some SERIOUS service done... T-TECH, Auto-RX and Honda ATF 2-3 times flushed...

I would do this anyways. Who knows, it could be the original fluid from the factory in there

The hard start suggests an iffy float... but the the idle is ok, it doesn't seem to be drowning in gas, bit running rich from the iffy choke is a possibility, my chase vehicle complained of "smoke" and "chunks of crap" flying out the exhaust when I used the fast lane to get around some one. As a note, after the drive home, the exhaust is MUCH worse than it was at the impound yard!!

Smoke is normal on an old engine, as you probably know. I woudln't worry about it unless it's just plooming. Passing is a good way to blow a bunch of it out. As far as the chunks of crap, well could be just bad carbon buildup in the cylinders and on top of the valves, and you're the first person to blow it out.


Anyways, sounds like you've got a fun little project. Once you get these things taken care of tho, I bet it will be a great car. It just sounds like it's been neglected in it's previous life, and is in need of some love.

[offthahook]

Here's another tidbit... Chances are slim, but try to see if the carb. on there is the right one. Honda made a ton of slight adjustments to the 80's carbs and each carb is pretty much model, body style, trim line, emissions, transmission specific. I KNOW that people would replace carbs. on older Hondas and "make them work okay" (start/run). Yours is probably the original, but there have been stories of cars ending up in a conscientious person's hands (like most of us), but someone has put on a wrong part previously. I bet somewhere on that car, you'll run into that. The wrong part might work well, halfway well, or not at all. People just take shortcuts to keep a car "running" as it ages and gets out of warranty. Just didn't want you to scratch your head trying to figure out why something isn't working right when it's the wrong part!

According to Honda, these are the carb. designations for an 82 AT DX...

KA (49 state)-- CB59B
KH (Hi altitude)-- CB60B
KL (Cali. model)-- CB60D

83's had totally different numbers. Not saying they wouldn't bolt up, but they may or may not run right. The numbers are different for 4 doors and manual shifts. Just something to keep in mind.

[Ichiban]

Wrong carb? Hey? I always hunted out the 82 manual choke carbs when I had the 83 as they were way simpler, and easier to work on..the auto choke 83 carbs were just a nightmare.

Anyways, a likely source of the fuel leak is the accelerator pump diaphragm on the bottom corner of the float bowl. The diaphragm is also the seal between the carb body and the pump chamber, and when the carb sits, the seal shrinks. wiping on a little gasoline compatible sealant (just enough to re-moisten it) and re-torquing the 3 screws usually makes it go away.