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Hi guys, great forum that you guys have here, between this and 2 other sites I think I could answer and question I would ever need, except a few that are more circumstantial. To sum it up without getting into too much detail:
I want a Prelude as a first car, but I don't want to spend 3k for something with 150+k miles and "no problems" (nobody is honest in south florida). (and even with compression tests ect, you cannot really be sure).
So my plan was to: find a prelude shell with no engine/tranny, after 6 months I haven't seen a single shell without being wrecked. I then a few weeks ago I saw a 99 Prelude that "needed some work" for 1800$. 2 weeks later the car is still at the dealership, and they haven't even cleaned the mcd cups out of the car. Pictures by talel329 - Photobucket
Now here is the hitch, the car has A LOT of problems.
200k on the odometer.
No clutch (can't change gears, stuck in reverse when you try to start the car it jerks backwards).
An auto to manual swap was preformed (noticed because of the auto gauges and the "rigged" center console.
Bumper is loose, headlights don't fit right (minor crash as the front panels don't seem warped, will drop the bumper before purchase to check)
ALL the wires are out, most likely messed up from the theft. (I know how to splice and shrink wrap wires, I am sure with I diagram I can figure it out).
There is a 97 integra ECU in there... I have no idea why... I am guessing I would need to salvage used both inside and engine harnesses.
Given the fact that it has all of these problems and it won't even run, I think I can talk them down to around 7-800$.
From that point, I would probably get a JDM engine + tranny for 1500? or rebuild the engine if the block is in good shape. (research has told me this is the typical parts cost on a swap, correct me if I am wrong).
Harnesses + ECU = 200$? (junkyard)
Labor = me (broke college student)
total = 3000$ and my 3 week xmas break?
Am I way over my head? is the plan viable COST wise? Am I missing any major expenses or things that could go wrong?
Anyway to do a compression test without "cranking the engine without attempting to start the car" (because the car jerks back in reverse when cranked by the starter)
Sounds like a money pit to me. Hack job 5spd swap, who knows the quality of the work done there? That wiring mess could also lead to an endless amount of headaches down the road.
If you can't get in into neutral, I suppose you could always jack up the front end of the car to see if it runs. That would be the easiest way anyways.
As far as additional costs, I paid ~$500 to get my front bumper painted earlier this year....that one obviously needs painted. You'd also need to check out the underlying damage from the wreck, as bodywork is expensive and you really can't do that yourself. Also, being that it's been modified with unknown parts of unknown quality, it's difficult to gauge how much you will have to put back into it to make it reliable again.
As a whole, that car looks like it would be more trouble than it's worth IMO. However, if you can get it for less than a grand, you could easily get that money back by parting it out if you can't get it to run reliably. Either way, you aren't risking much of anything but your time.
Sounds like a money pit to me. Hack job 5spd swap, who knows the quality of the work done there? That wiring mess could also lead to an endless amount of headaches down the road.
If you can't get in into neutral, I suppose you could always jack up the front end of the car to see if it runs. That would be the easiest way anyways.
As far as additional costs, I paid ~$500 to get my front bumper painted earlier this year....that one obviously needs painted. You'd also need to check out the underlying damage from the wreck, as bodywork is expensive and you really can't do that yourself. Also, being that it's been modified with unknown parts of unknown quality, it's difficult to gauge how much you will have to put back into it to make it reliable again.
As a whole, that car looks like it would be more trouble than it's worth IMO. However, if you can get it for less than a grand, you could easily get that money back by parting it out if you can't get it to run reliably. Either way, you aren't risking much of anything but your time.
Ya.. I just "assumed" the crash wasn't so bad because the front quarter panels didn't show any dents bends, and they had chipped paint near the wheel wells so I didn't think they were new or repainted.
I have never done any major work on a car solo, always a helper or watcher... so I don't know what could cost a lot. I mean, if I replaced the engine/tranny what else could go wrong? I know there are hundreds of 1-20$ gaskets, seals, bolts, trinkets ect, but anything more than 100$?
I am not in too much of a hurry (I have until xmas break really, but I have been waiting for my first car for a year and a half already, so I guess I won't die any time soon.
As for parting out, I think I saw a Greddy exhaust which is what 150$? I guess I could part some of the stuff out, as I don't care TOO much about cosmetics, as long as there is room to improve (ei I will still want me prelude 5 years down the road.. where as if I picked up a civic clunker I might not)
can you do all the work yourself? if so i personally think that if you can egt this car for 1000 bucks and you can do all the labour to repair it and get it running thenit could turn out to be great venture, however if you ar4e not sure if you can do the work or you are overwhelmed by it then i would part ways now and find another car.
can you do all the work yourself? if so i personally think that if you can egt this car for 1000 bucks and you can do all the labour to repair it and get it running thenit could turn out to be great venture, however if you ar4e not sure if you can do the work or you are overwhelmed by it then i would part ways now and find another car.
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Well, I THINK I could, I normally work with electronics (xboxs, building pcs, laptop repair, household appliances) ect. BUT I think I can apply this same methodical thinking and procedure to cars... except instead of needing a clean environment and a steady hand, you need brute force and willing to get dirty.
I didn't consider the cost of tools because I have some basic metric sockets, breaker bar, torque wrench, and can hopefully barrow the specialty stuff if needed. But regardless, I would end up buying this stuff any ways so the cost of tools is not in my equation. I also have a 1 car garage.. but I can utilize my room or backyard for parts.
QUESTION:
My biggest worry is just the cost of parts... and i definitely need to check that frame damage, if the frame wasn't bent in the front is that a good indication that the rest of the frame is okay? Ill check for welds or paint near the radiator and stuff I guess. Do I need to take off the front panels to see the frame? or can I see from the engine bay? Any areas inside the car?
I ALSO noticed that the RUBBER at the top corners of the wind shield was poped out, is that an indication of warping/crash? or is that normal.
Also, not sure where this would go, Advanced auto parts has a 20 off 50 and a 40 off 100 online orders code called "CCABIN". Great for batteries or random crap.
its worth checking it out if you have time. you can make your money like they said on parting it out and scrap if it doesnt work out. youll get to know your way around the car while your doing it to(all the little problem spots). if the frame and everythings ok a swap could be done. alot of places sell the motor, transmission, wireharness, ecu, and even axles all together, if you went that route. alot of the interior parts and such can be found on here to.
Just got back from the dealership... well, apparently somebody was going to pay 1500 and just hasn't followed through. The dealer thinks he is sitting on a gold mine... A Prelude with 200k miles, jumbled up wires, bad clutch, chipped/faded paint, no headunit or speakers, 1 broken tail light, messed up bumper, headlights supported by foam (squishy), and a bad ECU, broken drivers side glass, and to top it off: lovely idle problems.
PS, if the kid who is going to buy it needs an extra pair of hands and you aren't too far I may help you out if you need just to get more familiar with Preludes.
I was in your shoes looking for my "2nd" first car, one to work on, like a 5spd S13, lude, teggy, civic, etc. for under $2k since that was my budget. took me a year and couldn't find anything then found a lude for 1600 that needed some body/suspension work, but the engine/clutch/trans are good (other than an exhaust leak and a oil leak of a drop per day).
Expect to drop a lot of money of course. And you'll need lots of patience for used things to turn up on CL if you plan on saving money that way.
Something that takes you 3 weeks could turn into 3 months so also expect the car to be sitting in a useless state for a while. Keep that in mind if you'll be needing a car to get you from A-B.
__________________
'94 Accord: winter beast
'95 Lude SR-V: project/restoration/summer toy
I was in your shoes looking for my "2nd" first car, one to work on, like a 5spd S13, lude, teggy, civic, etc. for under $2k since that was my budget. took me a year and couldn't find anything then found a lude for 1600 that needed some body/suspension work, but the engine/clutch/trans are good (other than an exhaust leak and a oil leak of a drop per day).
Expect to drop a lot of money of course. And you'll need lots of patience for used things to turn up on CL if you plan on saving money that way.
Something that takes you 3 weeks could turn into 3 months so also expect the car to be sitting in a useless state for a while. Keep that in mind if you'll be needing a car to get you from A-B.
Ya, I know what you mean, BUT given the circumstances I am in the BEST possible location for parts/cars, South Florida has a huge import scene, I see cl adds for h22s and engine swaps, complete part outs (sadly alot of times from chop shops).
I do have a car... its a 98 Lincon Navigator, I am spending 20+$ a day on gas to go to college and pick up my siblings during the day... the thing is GAS is not an investment... and at 10mpg a gallon, even a prelude @ 22mpg (or more if I get it running well), thats HALF the cost, and I would MUCH rather spend money fixing up / modding a Prelude than a gas gusler that I can't even sell (other than the 700$ junk yard offer).
lol, the cost of parts is all dependan on how able you are to sourece out your own parts and how talkative you are to talk the best deal you can get. The type of build also determines the cost of parts as different builds require different parts, some more parts some less. But the biggest thing is jsut look for the parts you want and look for the deals. Allot of people on here think that a certain price range is the best price you will ever find but do to ****ty economy, if you send a company an email with your best offer usually they will make concessiosn jsut to make sale (prime example is hte new floor mats i just bought, i sent the mechanicsville online store an email with my best offer and then i get one back the next day saying they accepted my offer and in the edn i saved a fair amount of money. Dont ever be afraid to ask " is this the best you can do?" as usually people will always give you small break. If you try hard and look hard enough you can find all sorts of parts on the cheap.
oh I see. dayum, the landyachts people get stuck with. sucks lol
Quote:
Originally Posted by bouckarooo
lol, the cost of parts is all dependan on how able you are to sourece out your own parts and how talkative you are to talk the best deal you can get. The type of build also determines the cost of parts as different builds require different parts, some more parts some less. But the biggest thing is jsut look for the parts you want and look for the deals. Allot of people on here think that a certain price range is the best price you will ever find but do to ****ty economy, if you send a company an email with your best offer usually they will make concessiosn jsut to make sale (prime example is hte new floor mats i just bought, i sent the mechanicsville online store an email with my best offer and then i get one back the next day saying they accepted my offer and in the edn i saved a fair amount of money. Dont ever be afraid to ask " is this the best you can do?" as usually people will always give you small break. If you try hard and look hard enough you can find all sorts of parts on the cheap.
didnt know, thanks for the info.
I always thought their prices were final/non negotiable, whereas with sellers on CL its flexible and you can talk em down and they may even throw in something or have a bunch other parts you might need. from my experience anyways.
__________________
'94 Accord: winter beast
'95 Lude SR-V: project/restoration/summer toy
the issue with buyign from CL and off of forums and what not is that it is easy to get bad parts and that is always a fackshow to either get it fixed or the money back and sometimes niether happens. Myself, i dont mind searching around and calling and sending emails requesting deals, as the more moeny that company can save me the more likely i will use that savigns to buy another product from them. Stay clear form multiple middle man deals as they increase price as well as increase chances of bad deal, bad part etc. Also, it is much easier to get deal when you build rapport and phone people and ask questions and are serious about what you desire. Hondas are always easy to get deals on as people who like hondas and sell parts are usually willing to give a fellow enthusiaust a discount.
the best offer email works nine times out of ten, just be honest and freindly and make sure you have payment and forward that payment when you say you will, as this will show the company that you are serious and a good customer to interact with.
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