2004 Civic repair thread

[Daox]

This weekend began the repair of the 2004 Civic DX 5 speed that I bought at the very end of January. I started my search for a car back in early December to either replace the Metro, or to drive while I fixed the Metro. At this points I think it will be a flipper and use it while I fix the Metro. But, I haven't driven it much yet so the jury is still out on what this car will be.

Here is a picture of when I first got the car. I'll get more pics as things progress.



I got it for a very reasonable $1000, and I was able to drive it home. I bought the car from the original owner, he used it as his commuter for the past 12 years. The car only has 116k miles on it which was a huge perk IMO. Being a deal car though, it obviously has some issues to deal with. Here is what I know is bad so far:

- The input shaft bearing is shot on the trans (common issue). Already got a replacement bearing, a whopping $30 purchase. But, you have to take apart the trans to replace it, so it is a good amount of labor.
- The timing belt has never been changed. Its slightly overdue so its running on borrowed time at this point.
- The clutch seems fairly worn, though I'm not sure if it can be adjusted or not. The pedal engages very high up. I didn't try to beat on it to see if it would slip on the way home due to the trans issue, so I'll likely just replace it when things are apart.
- There is a clicking in the front suspension. I assume this is the control arm bushings as it was with the 2002 Civic I fixed up a couple years ago (common issue). Ball joints will get replaced along with this as well.
- The passenger side exterior mirror is missing the glass. I'll nab one from the local salvage yard.
- The driver's side door lock is screwed up. Apparently the locks wear out (common issue). I'm hoping I can swap the drivers door and passenger door lock assemblies as I'm sure that one was almost never used.
- It has tons of little scratches in odd places (c pillar and above the doors). I'm not sure if they'll buff out or not.


So, it has a lot of labor intensive fixing to be done on it. To help me out, I hired a friend who used to work with my wife. She wants to go to school this fall to be a mechanic and I figured a bit more experience up front would do her well and get my car done faster too.

Our first work day on the car we got a lot done, but nothing fully done. Everything we started on we had to stop due to something not going quite right. First we couldn't get the ball joints out of the control arms. Then, we couldn't get the control arms unbolted from the chassis. Next, we couldn't figure out how to remove the door handle (a quick youtube search fixed this after we stopped for the day). Lastly, we couldn't get the crankshaft bolt off to get at the timing belt. But, we got a lot of things disassembled.

So, I have a new ball joint removal tool and a new impact wrench on the list to order today. Suggestions on a good impact are welcome. I am currently thinking of getting and Ingersol Rand 231C. Actually, I'll start a dedicated thread for this: http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...nch-33578.html

I'll post up some images of the car torn all apart.

[Daox]

I gave the pickle fork one last go last night with a bit more gusto from my 2lb sledge. It ended up working... bleh felt a bit dumb as that was what was holding me back from removing the trans (the biggest issue on the car) on the work day with my helper. Alas, those are out now.

The penetrating oil on one control arm bolt did its job. However, the metal tube in the center of the bushing is bonded to the bolt... So, as I spun the bolt, it bent the upper metal flange as shown in the picture below. This of course ripped the rubber around the tube as it spun. Ack, this one will be fun. Ideas welcome! I left the rest of the control arm bolts to soak in more penetrating oil.





Here are some more pictures of the car torn apart thus far.

[Ecky]

Subscribed.

[Fat Charlie]

The lock is probably the latch, generally not interchangeable. Grab one if you can while you're mirror shopping at the salvage yard.

[user removed]

Do you have to buy the control arm to get the bushing?

If so then get an acetylene torch. If the torch is not available a grinder. Cut the outer bearing surface (of the bushing) of the control arm away or burn it off with the torch. Once that is done you can heat the collar and drive the bolt out for reuse, or just replace it and cut it away.

regards
mech

[darcane]

Originally Posted by Daox

The penetrating oil on one control arm bolt did its job. However, the metal tube in the center of the bushing is bonded to the bolt... So, as I spun the bolt, it bent the upper metal flange as shown in the picture below. This of course ripped the rubber around the tube as it spun. Ack, this one will be fun. Ideas welcome! I left the rest of the control arm bolts to soak in more penetrating oil.

Are you replacing the control arms? Normally when the compliance bushings wear out, Honda wants you to replace the whole control arm and many dealers won't sell just the rubber bushing. If so, cut off the control arm and hold the sleeve in place with vise grips.

FYI If you don't already know, Majestic Honda has good prices on Honda parts.

[Daox]

I'm not sure if I'm replacing the control arms or not yet. A friend at work had the same gen Civic and he thinks he might have a new set of bushings he didn't install. If he still has them they're mine for free, so I'll go that route. Otherwise I'll probably buy new control arms as the price is a wash when you pay for the press work.

[darcane]

Originally Posted by Daox

I'm not sure if I'm replacing the control arms or not yet. A friend at work had the same gen Civic and he thinks he might have a new set of bushings he didn't install. If he still has them they're mine for free, so I'll go that route. Otherwise I'll probably buy new control arms as the price is a wash when you pay for the press work.

I went with aftermarket because they can be installed without a press. Two piece polyurethane bushings that slide in from either side of the hole.
http://www.amazon.com/Energy-Suspension-16-3116G-Front-Control/dp/B000CNAVJA/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1458165440&sr=8-1&keywords=16.3116G

They weren't easy to get out without a press, but I did.

[gone-ot]

Got a BIG C-clamp available?

[Daox]

Yeah, I got a pretty decent sized one, 8-10" opening.