Introducing my VX

[Farlander]

Dear All!
Congratulations to me for I have just bought my first Honda Civic VX! I have followed this site fastidiously for months and now that I have a car to talk about I felt obliged to join!
Unfortunately, the car is nothing to brag about, yet. I actually rode a bus 11 hours in the middle of the night to go see it, and was basically locked into buying it as my only means of return transportation, but nonetheless, it has the VTEC-E B15z1 motor and trans, manual steering, with the a/c belt removed. Downside- the driver door won't open, the car has 4 bald tires, the two front of which were at about 15 psi on the drive home, the car has a ghetto lowering kit on it, steel 14" wheels, the passenger window falls down, the windshield has a monster spider web crack right in the drivers face, the console lights don't work, the interior is in poor to average condition, the alignment is totally screwed, the heat and vents don't work, and the exterior is spray painted flat black. However, the car has absolutely no rust, and the engine purrs smoothly, (despite code 48 O2 sensor) and I achieved over 40mpg on the 200 mile road trip home! I paid $1000...
My next goal is to decide whether to swap the motor/trans assembly into a 92-95 civic in GOOD condition...
Also, whether to rebuild the motor, which has 177k on the odo...
Or whether to go ahead and start restoring the chasis that I have, given it is an original lightweight vx with no rust...
Any comments / suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

[Ryland]

If the dash lights don't work with the console lights then it's most likely the switch, if it's just the console then it's the bulbs.
I have yet to hear about a Civic VX that needs it's engine rebuilt that has less then 300,000 miles on it, replace the o2 sensor and check the engine over to see how healthy it really is.

[bestclimb]

Depending on the condition of the shell, your ability to do a swap. It may be better to just get the car sorted out as all of those issues can be remedied. It may take longer if you found a shell in good shape and swapped all the good bits to yours. The learning curve is less steep and the repairs can be broken into small projects like, replace the internals of the door, or swap out the seats and the like.

If there is a bunch of little projects that will take for ever and you have the means to do a swap to a good shell it may be just a couple weekends till you have a good running ride.

Of the Hondas I have had only one had less than 200000 miles. I had a CRX with over 350,000 and it was still running strong when I sold it.

For now till you decide or find a new shell/parts car.
Jack the car up and check the suspension bushings. If they are tight do a quick and dirty alignment till you can get a proper one done in concert with tires if you are going to use the shell you have.

[Farlander]

Thanks for all the advice!

I do have access to a shop (where I work as the assistant manager) however the availability of an open bay is scarce. I am however very knowledgeable and equipped with the tools to do almost any job, including an alignment rack. The car currently has lowering springs which are majorly annoying because it rides like hell. The control arms are all swapped out so to go back to stock suspension I really need the coilovers and control arms, added all up buying a good shell might make sense.

Does anybody know what the compression should be in each cylinder on the vx model? I will probably test that soon...

As far as the lights, not the overhead light nor any of the lights on the dash/gauge cluster are working. There are also some ghetto rigged fog lights which do not work either. The SRS and CE light however shine brightly....

Has anybody had any experience with doors not opening or windows falling down?

[gtstanger01]

Originally Posted by Farlander

it has the VTEC-E B15z1 motor and trans, manual steering, with the a/c belt removed

good motor to have and no a/c and manual are good eco mods

Originally Posted by Farlander

the car has 4 bald tires

good reason for LRR tires

Originally Posted by Farlander

the car has a ghetto lowering kit on it

lower is better for FE

Originally Posted by Farlander

the alignment is totally screwed

good reason for an eco friendly alignment

Originally Posted by Farlander

However, the car has absolutely no rust, and the engine purrs smoothly

solid car to start with

Originally Posted by Farlander

I paid $1000...

The best reason of all...it paid for!!

[Tri91]

I've had some minor problems with doors not opening, mostly of my own doing.
- Check the door gaps around the outside of the door. It should be roughly the same all around. If it isn't the door can be binding against the frame.
- Try using a flashlight to look inside the door gap. You'd be looking for anything that could be jambed in there. Or bad hinges.
- Carefully check the latch mechanism to make sure it is actually unlatching. If someone played with it, they could have misadjusted it such that it doesn't pull far enough. Or since, parts of it are plastic, something could have broke. Or could have done what I did and forgot to reinstall the small plastic clip that holds the rod in place. It worked for awhile until the rod slipped. Good thing I'd left the cover off. Not sure if it is possible to remove the door cover with the door closed without breaking the cover.
- If all else fails try laying into it until the door pops open, then the problem should be more obvious. Definetly a last resort.

Good Luck!