The weather was beautiful today so I decided I'd wash the car as it was kind of filthy from sitting for a couple weeks. I also added the all-important timing belt service sticker under the hood. I also recorded the service in the Carfax online should something happen to the sticker, but the sticker makes it easy to see that it was done.
Bought a Cheap Accord
- Thread starter JoeDirt41
- Start date
hey you got the no-name Chinese power steering pump.. see what I was saying how good it is?! It is almost a complete copy, that's how I experienced it with mine. How is the steering feel now? I found I had better steering feel with the no-name pump. And yup with mine the movement of the shaft was very smooth!
I'm glad you found a working distributor shell, sensors built into it, with the Honda internals transferred over. That's how one of the aftermarket distributors left me dead on the side of the road, the igniter (brain) of the distributor died. Glad you used the Honda internals!
Happy it's all working out very well, for little money!!
hey you got the no-name Chinese power steering pump.. see what I was saying how good it is?! It is almost a complete copy, that's how I experienced it with mine. How is the steering feel now? I found I had better steering feel with the no-name pump. And yup with mine the movement of the shaft was very smooth!
I'm glad you found a working distributor shell, sensors built into it, with the Honda internals transferred over. That's how one of the aftermarket distributors left me dead on the side of the road, the igniter (brain) of the distributor died. Glad you used the Honda internals!
Happy it's all working out very well, for little money!!
Yes, as much I don't like buying stuff from China, the quality of the knockoff pump is very good. The steering feel is honestly about the same, but it's working very well with no leaks!
Another update. I noticed as I was driving around that I was smelling brakes burning. I've put about 300 miles on the car since I did the brakes so they should've been bedded in by now. After taking it for a long ride, I went around to each wheel and felt the temperature. The right rear was a lot hotter than the other three. So I diagnosed it as a bad caliper. I got both reman rear calipers from Autozone, who price matched Advance and had them in stock.
As I was installing the new calipers, I noticed that the left rear parking brake cable was frozen. So I left it unhooked, and ordered two new cables from RockAuto. I went and bled the new rear calipers and wow, the fluid was really dirty. I decided to go ahead and bleed the front calipers as well just because of how dirty the fluid was.
The new parking brake cables showed up today and I began putting them on. I had to lower the exhaust, and remove the exhaust heat shields and also drop the plastic gas tank cover to access all the bolts. Luckily all of the small 10mm bolts came out trouble-free. I got the first cable in place and that is when I ran out of daylight. Tomorrow I plan to get the other cable done and put it all back together.
I also got new spark plug wires from RockAuto, ill get those installed soon too.
As I was installing the new calipers, I noticed that the left rear parking brake cable was frozen. So I left it unhooked, and ordered two new cables from RockAuto. I went and bled the new rear calipers and wow, the fluid was really dirty. I decided to go ahead and bleed the front calipers as well just because of how dirty the fluid was.
The new parking brake cables showed up today and I began putting them on. I had to lower the exhaust, and remove the exhaust heat shields and also drop the plastic gas tank cover to access all the bolts. Luckily all of the small 10mm bolts came out trouble-free. I got the first cable in place and that is when I ran out of daylight. Tomorrow I plan to get the other cable done and put it all back together.
I also got new spark plug wires from RockAuto, ill get those installed soon too.
Got everything back together this morning. Decided since the right side cable is fine, I'm just gonna leave it for now. Don't want to open a can of worms by fixing what isn't broken. I'll put the cable in my parts stash so I have it if I ever need it. So I've got new rear calipers on both sides, new brake cable on the driver's side, and clean brake fluid all around. And if you look, you can see the rotors still have machine marks on them, so they are barely broken in.
Also got the new spark plug wires installed. I put a dab of dielectric grease on each end. The new wires fit really well, better than the old ones which were a bit too long. The blue color is a nice touch too.
Also got the new spark plug wires installed. I put a dab of dielectric grease on each end. The new wires fit really well, better than the old ones which were a bit too long. The blue color is a nice touch too.
wow that old caliper was definitely looking crusty! and the brake fluid looks like some tropical fruit drink! lol.. glad you were able to fix it on up!
and thanks for the info about the power steering pump, mine must have been bad (but wasn't leaking) because the steering feel improved a lot after putting the no-name Chinese pump on. It was a very vague feeling with the original. I know what you mean about trying to buy something made here in the US. I was thankful someone still made a new one that was good quality!
and yep the NGK plug wires are good, I used a multimeter for the Honda (made by Sumitomo) and the NGK's, very close in resistance numbers the Honda's are a little less resistance, but for the price you can't go wrong with the blue NGK's.
and thanks for the info about the power steering pump, mine must have been bad (but wasn't leaking) because the steering feel improved a lot after putting the no-name Chinese pump on. It was a very vague feeling with the original. I know what you mean about trying to buy something made here in the US. I was thankful someone still made a new one that was good quality!
and yep the NGK plug wires are good, I used a multimeter for the Honda (made by Sumitomo) and the NGK's, very close in resistance numbers the Honda's are a little less resistance, but for the price you can't go wrong with the blue NGK's.
I ended up going with the NGK wires because the factory wires are long gone. The ones that were on it were probably generic parts store wires. I've read the Sumitomo OEM wires are the best but sometimes even the OEM replacements aren't made by Sumitomo, so going the dealer route is a crapshoot. Plus these were significantly less expensive than OEM, and they are almost certainly better than what I had!
Exactly.. that's why I was mentioning the "gold standard" sumitomo's and comparing them to the NGK's.. The NGKs being very close in resistance numbers to the sumitomo's, and since the NGKs are cheaper and available you're not missing much at all. You're right the dealer can be a crapshoot and not always cheaper! Glad you are getting good deals and good quality stuff for your Accord..
Since I mentioned it before of what you were replacing and it was going down the same list of what my Civic had replaced.. the other things I had replaced were..
Fuel filters, fuel injectors, fuel pump (at about 220k miles), hvac blower fan, leaking steering rack, radiator (at 200k miles, original), radiator fan, a/c condenser, a/c compressor, a/c condenser cooling fan, both front headlights (tyc brand capa certified), leaking rear tail lights (seal), idler pulley for drivebelts, alternator, vtec solenoid and gasket and both axles (raxles.com replaced the oems). and both front wheel bearings, orginals lasted about 200k miles.
I mention it only to be aware and know of anything similar down the road with yours. I've always thought it's good to know ahead of time..
Update time again.
I wanted to aim the headlights on the car because one was aimed way too high and the other was aimed way too low. While I was doing this, I noticed the passenger side headlight was loose and was moving with the vibration of the engine. Then I noticed a bolt was missing from headlight assembly and the only way to access that area was to remove the bumper.
Well I went to remove the bumper and found that it was not attached correctly at all. Lots of incorrect and missing hardware and broken tabs and the brackets were all rusted. I went to the junkyard and got a better reinforcement with perfect condition brackets. I snagged all the correct hardware off the same car too.
I had to fix two of the tabs on the bumper. I used JB Plastic Weld Putty to reform them, then shaped them with a file and die grinder.
I was able to see some evidence of a previous collision in the left front and it made getting the bumper back on correctly a real pain. I had to get a hammer and knock in where the bumper mounts attach to the core support a bit. But finally, I was able to get it back on properly with the correct hardware. The gaps still aren't 100% perfect, but they are much, much better. And the headlights are firmly affixed, and aimed correctly.
I wanted to aim the headlights on the car because one was aimed way too high and the other was aimed way too low. While I was doing this, I noticed the passenger side headlight was loose and was moving with the vibration of the engine. Then I noticed a bolt was missing from headlight assembly and the only way to access that area was to remove the bumper.
Well I went to remove the bumper and found that it was not attached correctly at all. Lots of incorrect and missing hardware and broken tabs and the brackets were all rusted. I went to the junkyard and got a better reinforcement with perfect condition brackets. I snagged all the correct hardware off the same car too.
I had to fix two of the tabs on the bumper. I used JB Plastic Weld Putty to reform them, then shaped them with a file and die grinder.
I was able to see some evidence of a previous collision in the left front and it made getting the bumper back on correctly a real pain. I had to get a hammer and knock in where the bumper mounts attach to the core support a bit. But finally, I was able to get it back on properly with the correct hardware. The gaps still aren't 100% perfect, but they are much, much better. And the headlights are firmly affixed, and aimed correctly.
While I was at the junkyard I got a undercarriage splash shield that was in much better shape than the one on my car. Mine was all warped from being covered in oil leaks and scraped on the curb pulling in and out of the driveway. You can see how warped it is sitting on top of my tool box. The new one from the junkyard is hardly warped at all.
I also found some OEM rear splash guards. They don't seem to be a very common option and they help hold the rear bumper in place, so I had to grab them.
I also found some OEM rear splash guards. They don't seem to be a very common option and they help hold the rear bumper in place, so I had to grab them.
thanks for the updates! looks great!
looks great!
Based on your mechanical aptitude, if you’re competent at math, and have the drive, mechanical engineering sounds a great fit for you.
I helped a coworker replace brake pads on his 2000 honda civic. The new brake pads didn't fit and weren't the same. On a hunch I had the parts guy grab a set of 2001 brake pads. They fit. I'd never seen this happen on any other vehicle.
Thanks for following along! I'll have more coming soon. I want to get the A/C working next. I'm hopeful *fingers crossed* that it is just a small leak causing a low charge.thanks for the updates!
Thanks! The math is challenging but I enjoy it. I've gotten through Calc III, and it was definitely tough, but people tell me that Calc II and III are the hardest ones, and I've got them knocked out.
With this car, I've had to be careful with a few things. The Japanese made cars were completely different with a lot of parts you wouldn't think would be different. The washer fluid bottle for example- different on Japanese built cars. And there were a lot of suppliers for certain parts. Brake calipers were either Akebono or Nissin with no real rhyme or reason as to which cars got what.
Happy (almost) Easter! A couple recent updates. Turned 1000 on the trip meter today, so finally put 1000 miles on the car since I acquired it. I feel very comfortable driving it at this point and I’d trust it to go just about anywhere.
I vacuumed the AC system down and charged it the other day. It held vacuum and it is fully charged and the compressor is spinning, but it’s still blowing warm air. I think the compressor is shot. I’m gonna need to get a compressor for it because I don’t think I’ll last with no AC all summer. A used one from the junkyard is $50, and a new Denso one from RockAuto is $200. Guess I gotta decide if I want to take a gamble on a used one.
I vacuumed the AC system down and charged it the other day. It held vacuum and it is fully charged and the compressor is spinning, but it’s still blowing warm air. I think the compressor is shot. I’m gonna need to get a compressor for it because I don’t think I’ll last with no AC all summer. A used one from the junkyard is $50, and a new Denso one from RockAuto is $200. Guess I gotta decide if I want to take a gamble on a used one.
looking good Joe! Thanks for the update.. I had a brand new aftermarket Denso in the civic, it wasn't compressing enough and I had to return it. Got a reman Honda (yeah was about $300) but it worked fine after that. But.. I agree, try the used part, might be ok!
oh and Happy Easter back at ya!
Thanks for the update.. I had a brand new aftermarket Denso in the civic, it wasn't compressing enough and I had to return it. Got a reman Honda (yeah was about $300) but it worked fine after that. But.. I agree, try the used part, might be ok!oh and Happy Easter back at ya!
EDIT.. My previous post I meant a a/c compressor, aftermarket from Denso.. Went through two of them. First one only lasted a few years.. Replacing it the 2nd brand new one was bad after a week or so. sad but thought you'd like to know. This was Denso's copy of the orginal Sanden compressor.
Well that’s unfortunate that new Denso stuff failed. My OE compressor is a Denso. I’m probably gonna give a junkyard unit a shot. I’m not replacing all of the components (just not worth the hassle or cost) and I’d hate to burn up a new compressor if there was some sort of debris in the system. I don’t believe there is much, if any debris in the system because the old compressor is still spinning freely and isn’t making any noise, so I don’t think it was any sort of catastrophic failure.
and being OEM it might be made differently than what the aftermarket version is. There was an article about how when Toyota has Denso make something, Toyota takes the tools back. That Denso makes copies when they have their own aftermarket version. but.. I like your idea, I'm not one for junkyard parts but in this case.. You probably not only will be successful with the junkyard but it will definitely be cheaper!
I agree sounds like the your old compressor just wore out, minimal if anything in the system, it's probably clean you were able to pull vacuum so no big leaks letting anything in either.
