Oh dear I've bought another disaster:
1977 HONDA ACCORD SF NO RESERVE AUTOMATIC CLASSIC RARE HATCH DAMAGED FRONT | eBay
'77 Accord hatchback.
This cropped up upon Ebay with no reserve and since most of its body looked reasonably respectable, and knowing that I have some bits that could save it I was weak at the thought that anything selling for less than $200 was likely to bought by someone interested only in its scrap metal value.
I went to visit it and it isn't good. NO rust, rear quite good, but well used/worn, split seats & dash, the first foot of its left front rail badly crushed and the minor subframe (mounting an engine mount, sway-bar & frt trailing arm) attached to it pushed back an inch or two. Similar to, but worse than this:
This was my Accord many years ago after an altercation with a ditch, and I had the structure expensively & professionally repaired after providing a replacement front. The inner guard being pulled straight and the first 50cm? of front rail replaced along with Radiator support.
I was thinking this car might be repaired the same way, replacing the front section of rail, or taking it right back to the firewall including strut tower as I have seen evidence of upon another Accord.
I also have this sad silver '78 hatch as a parts donor that I made the mistake of buying before finding out it had no syncromesh on 2nd gear and the left rear 1/4 was heavily drowned in body filler after a substantial rear impact had corrugated the car (note tow bar), Aside from many other obvious faults. I also have another inner guard (without rail from the previous repairs), grille, bonnet & rust damaged '77 guard (no good bumpers though).
Car has now been dragged home with much appreciated help from its seller & his AMC Matador 401 and I am kicking myself for not noticing other aspects of the cars damage earlier. Such as engine mountings torn from the cast iron block and movement of the body structure opening up the door gap at the top of the A-pillar by about a cm, with other associated small dents in odd places like the cowl
I don't think that would be easy to rectify & haven't tried such before, though the car has nothing to loose if there were any way I could try.
Still amazingly NO rust considering it's accident occurred in '04! Though it has suffered a poor quality albeit shiny repaint so its panels aren't as straight as they first appear drowned in spray filler, many small dents and bodges like hand sewn repairs to the upholstery, mismatched paint daubed on DEEP paint chips, rear bumper mounted upside down, supplemental switches for engine thermofan, an assortment of different headlight brands etc. It even came with an undesirable Japanese spec. EF CVCC cylinder head & manifolds in the back so my have that engine block in it from a Japanese 2nd hand parts importer many years ago.
Perhaps I should re-evaluate the sad '78 in case I could use this cars rear panel and rear-side back to the strut tower including 'B' pillar upon that car, though I don't hold great hopes if it's tow bar had transferred loads straight into the rear rails. It's 'repairers' had attempted to push the back rearward from the inner 'b'-pillar denting that up in an attempt to straighten the corrugated rear 1/4 before it was body fillered (still bowed outwards).. with yet more damage being added after that. I have more deserving cars than to rush into that.
Most disappointing.
Yet more 'bits' I don't have room for but might not want to let go of.
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