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After meeting a guy and working out a deal to buy a salvaged 94 EX that is in decent shape... (kinda), I ended up not being able to afford it, and at one point the guy said I could have it for free.... but I offered some cash as I could.... here and there with no worries/rush on both ends.

So... I picked up basically a free honda the other day, but am gonna be paying $$$ over time to be nice.

The pics:

Drivers Side:


Passenger Side:


Drivers Side Interior:


Passengers Side Interior:


Back Seat:


Instruments:


Body Damage Close-up:


Look for the hole in the block, you can see the edge of it:


And finally the coilovers:


Now... all I need to do is get a block, and head kit and it should be running again. I might switch from my 92 4Dr LX to this.... so more TBA... but was it worth FREE? or the $400-600 I am going to be paying over time? ***Especially since I have a signed pinkslip and bill of sale in hand?

worst case you can part it out and make a heck of a lot more than the 400-600 invested.
It doesn't look real bad, all though it's hard to tell from pictures how far the damage goes. Is there any subframe damage?

I just need to get a block in it, but I know what you mean.

I didn't see any subframe damage in the front, and the rear, well, it's too low to look without a jack and I didn't wanna tow it up with the Yoda to the shop to see..... But the worst I think coulda happened was a slight amount on the rear subframe (maybe; only if the car was hit on the wheel too, but the damage looks like a truck hit it) where the a-arm meets. But good news:

All the bushings look in good repair, compared to my 92 EG, which you can hear the metal pins clacking inside the collars cause 90% of the rubber is gone in all of em but the few up front I have changed.

I think I will go with the EX (even though a salvaged title) and sell my EG8 cause it has a clean title, and spend that cash on a smog legal turbo kit, plus a non-legal turbo/mani/dp for when I aint smoggin =P

That red has got to go though.....

Funny thing:

Get this, the voltmeter gauge didn't work when I got it... so I tried following the wires after pulling out the rats-nest called a crimestopper alarm, and followed the wires to the engine bay..... and it was wired IN SERIES to the starter solenoid... like it was part of a remote start setup.... WTF?!?!?! I tried hooking up the guage, and it went straight to 60V, and started to melt the wire... so those $20 kragens special guages have got to go... Ill buy a set of the $30 white face ones from there... lol I get employee discount.

that sounds more like an ampmeter rather than a volt meter.

nope, it's a posative and negative sweep voltage gauge.... not an ammmeter... cause when I hooked it up correctly, it would go negative 60V.. it is fried...

what relic meant is that Amp Meters are wired in series while volt meters are wired in parallel.

In my 20+ years of working on cars, I have yet to see an automotive volt meter that goes to negative values. Amp meters on the other hand do have negative values and do tend to have -60 to +60 scales.

I agree.

we had a set of gauges on my dad's 69 Camaro with +-60 sweep

ammeter usually has a 'shunt' or resistor installed between what you are measuring.. it is usually wired between alt and battery, not starter..
the ammeter connects between either side of the shunt.. based on voltage drop across the resistor affects which way the needle swings.. current flows 1 way, you get positive sweep, other direction, negative sweep..

Most places don't sell ammeter any more, because you can easily diagnose voltage issues with a voltmeter..

under 12v.. battery/alternator issue... at 12v, battery OK, alternator not working(or engine speed too low), above 12v but below 14 = good alternator and battery. above 14 = bad alternator..

Not trying to split hairs, but it is very common for solid state regulators to go above 14V, but rarely ever 15, although I have seen it with a completely drained battery on more than one occasion.

Lead acid cells usually hold about 2.1 +/- volts in a fully charged state so total is usually 12.5-13V


I miss the old ammeters going out of style. It's sometimes nice to know exactly how much load you are exerting on your alternator.

makes me wonder if it would be possible to datalog ELD readings...

"would be possible"???

It IS!!
and the capability is in FreeLog!

Now... how to route my audio amplifiers through an ELD and into the ECU...

My amps pull a max of 55 amps(measured with Fluke 337 DC clamp meter).. but that would tip the stock ELD to max with the other accessories, which is around 80-something..

I used my Fluke to calibrate the ELD formula I use... so I know it is dead-on accurate

took another look... yeah, it is an ammmeter....

Why you would put it there.... I have no clue... I think im just gonna ditch it and get a new set of gauges.

I got a call back from the previous owner... his other civic was overheating, and now it just plain doesn't run.... he wants me to get it running so he can sell, and I think he's gonna give me cash outta that instead of putting it twards the "free car"....

yeah... I am assuming I need to do a headgasket and a timing belt/water pump in an EK....

So... more TBA...

I almost have a motor lined up...

Anyone in the Bay Area Cali have a shortblock for sale? (SOHC, Z6 preferred, but for the right price, I will take anything, almost about to drive 100 miles and pay $50 for a D15B8....)

yep.. picking up that D15B8 and an already chipped p06 for $100 this weekend.. just need to get myself there... pics of swap to come shortly.

Update: Head is off the motor... the piston tops have some black buildup... and I just finished cleaning off all the old head gasket. The 8 valve head is immaculate.... I think im gonna sell it... it should be a good replacement for anyone that might need one, or if they want to practice porting or something.

But I spent $180 on a complete upper set, oil pan gasket, oil, filter, etc... The head set only cost me $129, but it came with some weird errors... the box actually has the wrong throttlebody gasket... the one for the D15B8.... WTF.... I need to take it in and show it to them.

Anyways, so I have spent roughly $300 on this car so far, and it should be smogged and running pretty soon now. I just need to get the time inbetween the 3 part time jobs and the one full-time jobs.


Oah yeah.... for all those riders out there, I now work for Custom Chrome at the main headquarters. Pretty kick-back job. Last thursday we had beer'n'brautworst for lunch =)

here's a good pic of the motor: