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Meet the new daily driver - Project Log

Heckler

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Location
Northants
Car
Accord EX
I picked this up at the end of Sept last year for a reasonable price... It had plenty of issues and I discovered a few more as I started fixing things.

Wheels were in a pretty poor state, there was rust on 1 door that really needed replacing not repairing. The top LCD was flickering, the bluetooth was borked as was the alarm. There's some paintwork required as a result of the door swap, I got one in the same colour but it's not a close enough match and because of a little ding in the wing and a 1cm chip that's through to the primer... The whole drivers side of the car is going to be painted.

I've been doing jobs on her since Oct and on average have spent around £200 a month. Most has been maintenance and repairs, but there have been some upgrades too... I'm now just about out of money with a few more jobs left and once I sell the Tourer I can hopefully get that paint done.

Jobs done so far.
Air/Oil/Pollen filters and fresh 0w30 fully synthetic oil
Brake fluid flush
EGR cleaned, it was really clogged up
Air sensors cleaned (also rather dirty)
Drivers side rear door swap
Replaced top LCD
Headlights refurbished (the usual fogging)
Replaced Map DVD with 2018 one
Repaired alarm
Repaired BT module
Refurbished wheels (powder coated)
Reversing camera fitted
Painted & Fitted spoiler
Euro rear light cluster (YAY for symmetry)
All rear bulbs upgraded to coloured LED's, all new bulbs at the fronts (LED sides/Fogs, Osram nightbreakers main/dipped)
All interior lighting replaced with LED's
Ashtray lighting changed to blue
Heated seat switches changed to red

Then there's all the fluids, bags of clips to replace those ones that always break when removing trim panels and so forth... It's not been a cheap ride so far and although I paid a reasonable amount for the car... I've probably now spent more than I'd get back if I sold it... But as I plan on keeping her for a few years it's not so bad... But money is running out quickly and there are still the following jobs to do.

Rear ARB bushes and droplinks
Fuel filter (booked in for Monday)

I'm hoping that the drop links and arb bushes will help with a woolly rear end, she doesn't feel as planted as the tourer right now and something is rattling back there. If it's a worn sway bar... then I'll have to factor in the cost of replacing that with a whiteline one or something further down the road... it's thicker/stronger and should help too.

So here she is... I wish I'd saved some of those jobs till later... doing cosmetic things when there are still mechanical ones to resolve isn't the best way to do things and everything now rests on being able to sell the tourer to pay for the rest... Will probably have to do discs/pads before the MOT in Sept, and I know I'm gonna need 2 new front tyres in about 2000 miles... and then there's the paint... It never seems to end.

Anyway... here she is.

The day I bought her.


The state of the EGR before cleaning
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Replacing the rusty door
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Refurbishing the headlights
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Refurbished wheels
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Euro rear light to get back the symmetry these cars so desperately need. (Before/After)
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Reversing camera fitted
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Spoiler fitted - I've not yet wired in the brake light. It's too cold today and I'll be splicing into the 3rd brake light on the parcel shelf and then removing it
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How she looks today... When the weather gets warmer and brighter I'll get her cleaned properly and take some nice pics with my decent camera rather than a crappy mobile phone.

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I'll try to update this thread with any more work done over the coming months... Gotta sort out that handling at the rear and the fuel filter as she's getting harder to start when warm and I had a dreaded P1065 code last week briefly. It's not come back thankfully... But that fuel filter needs doing ASAP.

I'm just about tapped out financially... Gonna take me a few more months to save up for any more upgrades after this weekend.
 
Looks like really good progress and it’s great to see you’re persevering and making a nice car out of her
 
Looks like I've also got to replace the Fuel Pressure Limiter Valve, as I'm getting fuel past the valve when cranking. Problem is that on the Accord the power steering pump is in front of the valve, so you can't get a socket on it... and because they're on so tight you need really good leverage tog et one off.

So whilst it seems like a simple job... I may have to put in the garage to get done simply because I don't have the right tools to get in that small gap... I was hoping I could just stick my impact wrench on it... Other jobs may have to wait and I may have to borrow some money this month to cover the bills.
 
You've done so much already, fair play to you, I can't believe you now need a garage to undo a bolt or two.
There must be a way you can do this yourself, I always find a way if I can.
I continually invest in new tools so that I don't need a garage to do the work
 
 
stellamon said:
You've done so much already, fair play to you, I can't believe you now need a garage to undo a bolt or two. 
There must be a way you can do this yourself, I always find a way if I can.
I continually invest in new tools so that I don't need a garage to do the work
 

The guide I was reading was for the Civic and that's got loads of room at that end of the fuel rail... Sadly not so on the Accord. You 'might' be able to fit a cut down socket on there and a small ratchet... But you need a decent sized breaker bar to crack the thing loose (apparently it has to be tight as the rail needs to withstand up to 1600psi). Removing the power steering pump to get better access is not an option. I'm gonna see if I've got a 17mm ring spanner and find a breaker bar that will fit over the other end... But spending money on tools for a single job when it's going to cost roughly the same to have it done in a garage... I'll probably opt for the latter.
 
Wired up the brake light spoiler this morning, so aside from the paint on the drivers side that I'll do after selling my other car... All of the cosmetic work is done... Now it's just more mechanical stuff to finish sorting out (Fuel filter and Pressure relief valve)... and then I can turn to more performance related stuff.

I was thinking along the lines of lowering, and perhaps a remap and/or egr delete.

nsEEUPp.jpg
 
latest update... New fuel pressure relief valve fitted. Car now starts properly again. Total cost was £53.50 as I found a Bosch unit for £35.50 (new) and the garage charged me £18 to fit as I couldn't crack the seal on that nut and to get the valve out, you have to undo the top bolt oft he power steering pump and rotate it about 1-2cm.

This then causes a slight issue in getting it back in position as the tensioner and belt adjust to the new position... So then you have to get a long ring spanner on the tensioner nut and pull to move it slightly... Allowing a second person to push the PS pump back into place and slide the bolt home.

And as we did that job... we noticed a slight leak in the power steering pipe near the support bracket at the top. So a new one of those has been ordered too.

It does seem like a never ending supply of jobs at the moment. Still gotta do the rear drop links and ARB bushes and considering an uprated whiteline ARB with poly bushes.
 
Another week, another update... Car is booked in for the power steering pipe on Thursday, and I sold the Tourer over the weekend... So towards the end of the month I can think about getting the last bit of paint work sorted.
 
RIP new project

On the 18th Aug a drunk, uninsured driver decided to crash into 3 cars when I was visiting my mum in Milton Keynes... The Cucking Funt also did a runner.

End result, my car is toast... after all that work and all that money. He hit the wheel, pushed it back into the wing/door & a-pillar splitting body work, ripping the drive shaft out of the gearbox and snapping the lower control arm clean in 2.

Still waiting for the insurance to sort out the payout... I have a hire car at the moment which is nice and I've found a replacement that is identical to the old one... same colour and spec... it's a year newer and it's got 25k fewer miles on it too... and cost less than the old one did.

Needs some TLC of course, but it's got working parking sensors and the BT module also works... as does everything else.

However... it's got the disgusting stock wheels, whilst my old one had a lovely set of Honda Enkei S3N 770B ones... and I need a replacement for the damaged one.

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So if anyone knows of anyone selling one of these wheels (ignore the colour as I had them powder coated) so I can have a full set for the new car again... Please let me know.

and if any one spots the seller on ebay with a set for £218... he's a waste of space with delusions about the value of things... He thinks a set of badly scuffed and scarred wheels with bald tyres are worth a ridiculous amount given they need over £500 of refurbishment and tyres.
 
What an absolute shame ☹️
 
Ahh mate, just read the thread and amazing work.
You covered all the main issues on the 7th gen Accord, I just replaced my top high pressure power steering hose on mine yesterday.
It seems that is a very common issue, the anchor bracket causing stress over time on the hose.

Then to go and read that someone writes it off.
Damn! Really sorry to hear dude.
I hope the insurance comes through but I ***ume due to the cars value the payout wont be very much.
Glad you have eyed a replacement though.
 
Just a question, did the police take paint/metal residue from the three cars, or perhaps identified the vehicle / driver that did this ?

Even if uninsured, and long gone, you can still put a claim into the victim's compensation system (not sure exactly how it is called, or works) which might cover any shortfall you get after the grubby insurance people value the vehicle at Glass's price minus the damage.

How did you get the info the cucker was drunk anyways ?
 
 
Channel Hopper said:
Just a question, did the police take paint/metal residue from the three cars, or perhaps identified the vehicle / driver that did this ?
 
Even if uninsured, and long gone, you can still put a claim into the victim's compensation system (not sure exactly how it is called, or works) which might cover any shortfall you get after the grubby insurance people value the vehicle at Glass's price minus the damage.
 
How did you get the info the cucker was drunk anyways ?
 

The car was abandoned a couple hundred yards up the road and missing a a wheel. A claim is in with the motor insurance bureau and so far they are covering the cost of the hire car I have (had that for almost 4 weeks now) as my insurance are being really feecking slow. the police were still sorting out having the car taken away when I went to bed and it was gone the morning after.. so I honestly have no idea if they took it away to be examined for forensics... they never took any samples from my car.

I've also filled out the other MIB forms to reclaim my excess (£200) and my dashcam that seems broken... it powers on and then turns off a second later. I think when the impack shook it loose it either hit the windscreen or damaged the power socket as it was left hanging from the cable. So a new one of those with the accessories is around the £150 mark (I had a next base 512, polarising filter, 64gb memory card, hard wire kit and stealth mount. You can get them for around £100 on amazon at the moment, but throw in the other bits and pieces and it pushes the price up. However, the insurance company have warned me that they may not approve my claim for my excess and dashcam. So I could be a further £350 out of pocket there.

As for him being drunk... the noise oft he crashes brought out a couple dozen people from their houses... Some had phones out and were hopefully taking pics of the c*nt.. it's those witness who said he was unsteady on his feet, slurring his words and stank of alcohol. However... when he was trying to make a sneaky exit down the road and some one shouted out that he was the driver... he took of at a rather fast pace.

The police have been next to useless... just gave me a reference number and told me to give that to my insurance... didn't even bother writing down my reg number, name or anything else... and have done absolutely nothing since. Quite disgusted by it really. I expected better given that this person could easily have killed some one driving a car under the influence as dangerously as he was.... Getting into a 2 ton car is the same as intentionally going equipped with a weapon... people who end up killing others like that should be charged as pre-meditated murderers. Some scum bag killed a friend of mine because he drove drunk... that was 30yrs ago and it still lives with me to this day. It's why i'd readily turn in my best mate if they ever tried to drive drunk. they're scum and don;t deserve sympathy or leniency... string up by the balls and use them as a piñata.
 
Also... I have the new car... it's identical to the old one in colour and spec. But it's a year newer and has 26k fewer miles on it... and it was cheaper than what I paid for the other one. Previous owner was a bit of an enthusiast too, having owned a few Hondas over the years and current has a 4-5yr old Civic.

So far I've transferred over the bootlid with spoiler, the euro rear light, all of the LED interior lighting, wired up the dash cam (for when I replace it) and the reversing camera... which works nicely with the rear parking sensors the new car has (old one didn't).

I've also removed the nearly new air and pollen filters (fitted about 1300 miles ago) and will be giving it an oil change shortly... I'll also try and clean out the EGR valve and air flow sensors. On the driver back from London according to the on board computer she averaged 59.4mpg... Given that my previous car could be out by 5-6 mpg. I'm hoping that if it's in the mid 50's that's a good sign. It was mostly motorway driving all the way home. M3, M25, M1 and then some cross country and major dual carriageways and A roads.

I was able to give it a good booting when I finally got of the motorway... The car had only done 800 miles since it's last MOT in Jan so it needed a good clear out... First flooring, huge plume of black smoke... Second, medium plume of black smoke... third, small amount of black smoke.... fourth, nothing.

Everything works, heated seats, aircon is ice cold, even the bluetooth module works. The mini LCD was flickering, so I swapped thast from the old car.... swapped out my car mats and of course my 2018 map disc, it's got rear parking sensors and I found an ipod aux connector in the glovebox. But I don;t own an ipod, so I'm gonna borrow my brother in laws next time I see him and test it. If it works, I'll pick up a used one on ebay, and fill it with music. HFT has all been set up and works fine with my phone... I replaced the cover over the alarm sensors as it was cracked with the good one from mine. The alarm siren appears to be non functional, I repaired the one on mine, so that's a simple swap over as it's got a brand new battery in it.

Just need to find a replacement wheel and get that powder coated and a new tyre... I do like my Honda Enkei ones and would hate to have to sell the remaining 3... I figure it's gonne cost me around £200 to buy a used one, powder coat it and fit a tyre.

Old car will be broken once the insurance pull their fingers out and pay me what it's worth... I've seen enough similar cars on autotrader and gumtree in the £2300-3000 range to justify asking £2500 for it after excess and buy back I'll come out with around £2150 which covers the cost of the new car and the wheel.

Then I'll break the remains of the old one to recoup as much of my losses as I can... I'll be close to a grand out of pocket in total after what I spent... However, at least a couple of hundred of that has been transferred across to the new car. So if I can cut my losses to around the £500-600 mark and strip the car for as much as possible... I reckon I can recoup a few hundred of it.
 
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