1989 Honda CRX

Coupe

1.6L 1590CC 97Cu. In. l4 GAS SOHC Naturally Aspira

Manual

JHMED9363KS003530

Clear

GAS

As I type these first words, every bone in my body is telling me to keep it. I have a lot of money, and even more time invested in this car, as well as a very strong passion for it, so without any doubt, I can say my loss will certainly be your gain here. I bought this 1989 CRX Si on eBay last year from a seller in Attleboro, MA for $1350. The car was cosmetically the same as seen in the pictures that I took today, but was a bit of a basket case mechanically. I enjoy working on these older Honda's, so I was happy to fix what was wrong. I am also fanatical about safety, so I ALWAYS replace all of the potential safety items like ball joints and tie rods before I drive the car, regardless of their original condition. The following is a list of what I replaced. All parts were replaced with NEW parts, no second hand or junk yard parts go into my cars. All parts were replaced less than 2000 miles ago. Brake Master Cylinder Front Brake Lines Front Brake CalipersFront Hawk HP+ Brake Pads New OEM RotorsNew OEM Flywheel/Flywheel Bearing New Exedy OEM Clutch/Pressure Plate/Throwout Bearing New OEM Front Upper Control Arms New OEM Front Upper Control Arm Bushings New OEM Front Upper Ball Joints New OEM Front Lower Ball Jonts New OEM Inner Tie Rods New OEM Outer Tie Rods New OEM Outer Tie Rod Boots New C8 Sport Shocks (All 4) New OEM Swaybar Bushings New OEM Motor/Trans Mounts (4)New Prothane Polyurethane Shifter bushings This CRX runs and drives EXTREMELY well. I am an avid autocrosser, and vehicle performance, safety, and handling are top priorities of mine. I know this is a bit of a cliche, but I wouldn't hesitate to get in this car and drive to California tomorrow. You should be confident that if you win this auction, you can drive this car home anywhere, and be worry free. Suspension and Brakes The car drives straight and brakes correctly. The car corners as well as a stock 1989 CRX Si should. The bushings are all in decent shape. No noises or knocks from worn bushings. Being an autocrosser, I'm a bit of a snob with regard to shocks, and I was actually pleasantly surprised by the quality and ability of the C8 Sport shocks that I installed. The car does not bounce around over bumps, everything is extremely tight, yet smooth and compliant. The rear brakes and ebrake work perfectly, but I also have new drums and shoes that I will throw in the trunk for the next owner. I'm also throwing in a set of less aggressive front brake pads in case the new owner does not want to deal with the dust from the Hawk HP+ pads. Engine and Transmission The Engine is great. It is the orginal D16A6 Non-VTEC engine. Power actually feels considerably better than the D16Z6 VTEC motor I had in a 1992 Si I that I own. It does not burn excessive oil, maybe half a quart in 2000 miles I've driven it. It does not smoke, knock, or tick. The best I can tell, the motor is extremely healthy. The transmission is also in great shape. There are no grinds, pop outs, lock outs, or any issues to speak of. It rows the gears effortlessly. The clutch is new, installed by myself, and works flawlessly. You are probably good on that for another 150,000 miles. The Speedometer just stopped working today. I have driven the car no more than 100 feet since the odometer stopped, so the mileage is accurate at 167,878, and I will not be driving the car between now and when the new owner takes delivery. Truth be told, I think the VSS cable has just come loose from the trans, but I can't fit my hand down there to wiggle it back in. It should be a 5 second fix. The temp gauge is also not functioning, but the car does not overheat, and the cooling fans still come on and cycle as they should. I never got around to looking into the issue. The temp gauge did function correctly when I bought the car, but stopped functining after I replaced the clutch. Perhaps it's just a loose connection, as I would have unplugged it during the transmission removal. The Tachometer and Fuel gauge function correctly. Interior The interior is exceptionally clean for a 25 year old Honda. I think the carpet has been replaced at some point in its life, and it shows extremely well. The same goes for the seats. They have been recovered in a faux leather vinyl type material, that shows well, is extremely functional, extremely durable, and has no tears or rips. The doors are not all cut up by the seat belts as is common in these cars. There are two mini hairline cracks in the dash that are really not noticeable, and are too small to photograph. There is some minor cracking on the top of the steering wheel from 25 years of sun, but it does not affect performance or function in any way. The radio is not currently working, but there is one in there. I do not like electrical work, so I made no attempts to get it going, and thus, cannot comment on condition, or what is wrong with it. The HVAC is a cracked unit that has been repaired as is common with these cars. It also has the metal repair plate on it. The unit itself functions flawlessly, but the blend door, and heater core valve cables are too stiff to move with the unit. So what I do is move the cables manually behind the dash, and adjust the vents, and fan speed via the unit. I'd imagine with a little penetrating oil, you could probably get those cables moving easily, and wire them back up. The AC compressor was badly broken when I got the car, so I removed the compressor and broken lines from the engine bay. The compressor bracket is still on the block, and the car comes with a rather expensive new AC line. The condenser is still in front of the radiator, and the components are all still behind the dash. It would be easy to re-install the system. The only other thing to note, is that the drivers seatbelt needs a little care to get it to retract sometimes so that it doesn't catch the door panel, but it functions fine, and always retracts. Exterior This is by far one of the most rust free EF or EG Honda's I've ever seen in the last 10 years. Aside from the sunroof (which is always rusted on these cars, even in the desert), THIS CAR IS 100% RUST FREE. I cannot emphasize that enough. There is no surface rust, there is no bubbling, there is no bondo, the car is solid. The underside is no different. All of the factory rust proofing is still there. Because of this, the car has a ton of potential in my opinion. Fix the fender, quarter, bumper, respray and you've got a really nice finished car. However, as it sits, the paint is faded and peeling in spots. The front driver fender is dented from where the door made contact with it. The passenger quarter panel and rear bumper has a dent. The sunroof is rusted, but does not seem to leak and I have a better sunroof, track and all, that will come with the car. I paid a few hundred dollars for the extra sunroof that I am including. The secondary hood latch does not catch. Meaning when you pop the hood from inside the car, it is popped. This should probably be addressed by the next owner. I never made any attempts because I figured that would be something I would do during the body work stage. The hood has never popped on it's own. The driver door 'catch', the rod that keeps the door from opening too far has broken at its weld. However, it still functions as it should because Honda anticipated this might happen, and they designed it as a hook shape. It functions fine, but makes creaking noises. A quick tack weld will effortlessly solve the issue. Another one on my list during the body work. The glass is all in great shape with no cracks or leaks. However, a piece of the windshield trim did fall off on the highway a few weeks ago. The entire windshield trim can be replaced for $50. The driver side B pillar trim also snapped off a few weeks ago when I was getting in the car. It can also be replaced for $50, and the new one just snaps in place. Really simple stuff. There is no doubt about it, the car needs body work. If it didn't, I would not be parting with it, and/or I would be asking silly amounts of money like the nicer ones that have sold on eBay lately. Wheels and Tires The wheels the original 14x5.5J Honda CRX Si Alloys that are correct for the car and the year. All appear in good shape with no bends and minimal to no curb rash. There is some pitting and flaking of the paint, and one center cap is cracked. They'd be easy to restore. I planned to refinish them when I replaced the tires. The tires all hold air, and will get you wherever you are going. They do have some very small cracks, and are either in need of some balancing or have some flat spots that cause some vibration. I used a different set of steel wheels with new Fuzion tires (the steel wheels and Fuzions don't come with the car) that were only $150 from TireRack for the set, and these wheels and tires did not produce any vibrations. So I can confirm that the tires that come on this car will eventually need to be replaced, and any vibration in the car is 100% due to the tires, and not due to anything mechanically wrong with the car. As you can see, I've been through this car and have gotten to know it very well in the last year. She is a really good car, but certainly needs some small tinkering, and some cosmetic work to be great. I know this is a lot to take in, but I really wanted to describe this car to the best of my ability. I'm an honest and ethical guy, an ebay member for almost 10 years with 100% feedback, so I would like everyone to feel that they are able to bid with confidence. But with that said, it is possible I missed something, or overlooked something, so the car is sold as is where is. I have a clear title for this car in my hand. Good luck and happy bidding! On to the Pictures! On Jul-26-14 at 07:35:07 PDT, seller added the following information: I realized I forgot to mention three things. 1) The car has Energy or Prothane Poyurethane Motor mount inserts in the front transmission mount, and two side motor mounts.  I replaced the mounts with new OEM mounts, but still didn't like the way the car drove due to all of the drivetrain movement with the stock mounts, so I added the inserts to tighten things up.  They do cause slightly more vibration at idle, but not after you pass 1200rpm.  And the car drives much better with them.  They can be easily removed in minutes. 2) When I bought the car, I was told the sunroof switch always worked to open the sunroof, but didn't work to close it sometimes.  Because of that, I never tried opening the sunroof.  But again, I am including a second sunroof, track and all with the auction, but you may need a $20 switch also. 3) The front upper control arm bushings aren't OEM, they are an $85 set of HardRace hardened rubber bushings.  They look like stock rubber bushings, but are a little stiffer.