617_ej8
New Member
How's it going everyone? New to the site and figured here was the best place to check-in, had a handful of Hondas in the past and recently picked up my first civic!
It's a '96 ex coupe that had been LS swapped by an owner before the previous owner, found the car on craigslist and was in for alot of headshaking after traveling an hour and a half away from home to see a car that was worth nowhere near the p.o.'s asking price of 2,600. The car was hurt, the swap was cobbled together, the motor mounts seemed to have been on their last legs about 30k miles previous to my looking at it, the LS leathers that were "mint" looked as though a dog had chewed on the bolsters, and the engine bay had an eighth inch of sludge covering everything, all signs of a neglected car. The "intake" consisted of a cone filter strapped to the throttle body with duct tape to makeup for the coupler being a bit too large for the TB. I was frustrated to say the least.
The car did have a few things going for it however, the body had zero signs of rust or rot on the rear quarter panels ( a huge problem for those of us in new england) the running gear had PAPERWORK to go with the swap, the engine did not burn oil as i found on the test drive, and the transmission shifted smoothly, recent receipts for an exedy clutch install, and brand new falken tires all around. But still, 2,600 was WAY more than i wanted to pay for a car that was this rough around the edges.
I came back from the test drive with a number in my head of 1,800, my expectation was to be declined by the owner and start the journey back home being cursed by my friend for wasting his time going all the way out for nothing, I offered 1800, and after talking it over with his girlfriend, the previous owner and i came to a meeting place of 1,900 dollars. For that price, a clean ej8 that had been ls swapped i was very pleased with the purchase.
The car has been a fairweather project to keep my hands busy, after getting it home, degreasing the entire engine bay, replacing the plugs, wires, tube seals, valvecover gasket, intake, and hasport motor mounts, i was pleased with the car mechanically, and a pair of rsx leathers from a local junkyard to round out the interior repairs, i've become even happier with the car thus far.
future plans include a rear disc conversion, ditching my temporary blox spring/koni yellow setup for my integra's old buddy club n+ coilovers, lightweight wheels and stickier tires, upgraded swaybars (and installation of a rear swaybar), and use of polyurethane bushings here and there should make the car both tolerable on the street and capable for the occaisional trackday! I look forward to learning more about this chassis and the way it responds to modification as opposed to my previous DB8 and BB4 Prelude, but without further ado, PICTURES!
After getting it home and cleaning up the bay, ghetto intake and sloppy wiring:
under the car, frustrated, seeking "alternate methods" of getting the new rear mount in there, from underneath was hopeless as many probably already knew LOL! note the crappy blown out oem mounts on the ground
and some exterior shots sporting the secondhand rear window visor
Sorry for the long post, hoping to start a build thread, in depth coverage of whats gone on, and of future mods, new front bumper has since been put on the car, that dent looked awful. Anyways, further suggestions to make a fun daily/ weekend warrior out of this thing?
It's a '96 ex coupe that had been LS swapped by an owner before the previous owner, found the car on craigslist and was in for alot of headshaking after traveling an hour and a half away from home to see a car that was worth nowhere near the p.o.'s asking price of 2,600. The car was hurt, the swap was cobbled together, the motor mounts seemed to have been on their last legs about 30k miles previous to my looking at it, the LS leathers that were "mint" looked as though a dog had chewed on the bolsters, and the engine bay had an eighth inch of sludge covering everything, all signs of a neglected car. The "intake" consisted of a cone filter strapped to the throttle body with duct tape to makeup for the coupler being a bit too large for the TB. I was frustrated to say the least.
The car did have a few things going for it however, the body had zero signs of rust or rot on the rear quarter panels ( a huge problem for those of us in new england) the running gear had PAPERWORK to go with the swap, the engine did not burn oil as i found on the test drive, and the transmission shifted smoothly, recent receipts for an exedy clutch install, and brand new falken tires all around. But still, 2,600 was WAY more than i wanted to pay for a car that was this rough around the edges.
I came back from the test drive with a number in my head of 1,800, my expectation was to be declined by the owner and start the journey back home being cursed by my friend for wasting his time going all the way out for nothing, I offered 1800, and after talking it over with his girlfriend, the previous owner and i came to a meeting place of 1,900 dollars. For that price, a clean ej8 that had been ls swapped i was very pleased with the purchase.
The car has been a fairweather project to keep my hands busy, after getting it home, degreasing the entire engine bay, replacing the plugs, wires, tube seals, valvecover gasket, intake, and hasport motor mounts, i was pleased with the car mechanically, and a pair of rsx leathers from a local junkyard to round out the interior repairs, i've become even happier with the car thus far.
future plans include a rear disc conversion, ditching my temporary blox spring/koni yellow setup for my integra's old buddy club n+ coilovers, lightweight wheels and stickier tires, upgraded swaybars (and installation of a rear swaybar), and use of polyurethane bushings here and there should make the car both tolerable on the street and capable for the occaisional trackday! I look forward to learning more about this chassis and the way it responds to modification as opposed to my previous DB8 and BB4 Prelude, but without further ado, PICTURES!
After getting it home and cleaning up the bay, ghetto intake and sloppy wiring:
under the car, frustrated, seeking "alternate methods" of getting the new rear mount in there, from underneath was hopeless as many probably already knew LOL! note the crappy blown out oem mounts on the ground
and some exterior shots sporting the secondhand rear window visor
Sorry for the long post, hoping to start a build thread, in depth coverage of whats gone on, and of future mods, new front bumper has since been put on the car, that dent looked awful. Anyways, further suggestions to make a fun daily/ weekend warrior out of this thing?