Honda Civic DIYs and Civic Tech ChatHonda Civic DIYs and Civic Tech Chat - for the true gearheads! Bring your wrench, it's time for some Honda Civic DIY projects! Questions about problems with your car do NOT go here.
for the hub rings, goto treadepot.com they will help you out on which ones to get based on your car and the rim type.
for ac compressor install, i would recommend having a GOOD shop do the work and make sure they do ac work alot. the system has to be depressurized and flushed, also you need to replace the expansion valve/orifice tube and the receiver/drier before installing the new compressor. then you need to follow the directions with the compressor as far as turning it with a spanner wrench before install. finally proper amounts of oil and refrigerant must be added to the system. warning: using the wrong oil type can seize the compressor!
for front axle shaft, prolly do both if you can afford it, but usually you only do the side thats broken. its a big job, and no i dont have a diy for it sorry.
for adding sway bar to dx/lx, i think you need the mounting kit from the ex which is basically the bolts and brackets. theres drilling involved too.
for rear deck rattle, use a layer of dynamat where possible, and maybe some foam pads. make sure all the clips are engaged and also the two hooks where the third brake light is one on each side. the worst rattle comes from inside the middle seatbelt holder. i just diy ripped mine out and boom no more rattle at all.
for rear lower strut bolt, did you try breaker bar? or pipe on a socket wrench, idk. look at mex's spring diy. i think you may need a jack to get it off. but alot of times its just seized and with enough pressure, the bolt will just break off. so yeah you gotta saw it off and start over lol.
for the seat, yeah its bad bushings. its kinda a pain to replace, and i couldnt find that diy with pics anymore. but yeah you could unbolt the seat, remove it, and then get to the bushings off the car. honda sells them, but i wonder how long the new ones would last if theyre the same crappy plastic as before.
do you know of any "tricks" to get the rear lower strut bolt off. ive tried an impact wrench @ 125psi
Torch. Should sell them at a general hardware store for a good price, got mine for about 30 bucks. I had a problem with my front driver strut with a nut that was on the bottom of the strut, connecting to the knuckle. A 450 ft./lbs. impact wrench didn't budge it, but with a torch, you should be able to get it off. Stupid me, I actually turned it the wrong way and ending up making it terribly tight, lol.
And yeah, I figured a shop would be better off doing the A/C than me. I knew the receiver/drier, expansion valves and the proper oil needed to be done, but damn, didn't realize there was more to it...
Wanted to thank you again for the help on the actuator question I had. I looked at the DIY for replacing the actuator again, and noticed that the part number was listed at the bottom. I went ahead and ordered the the whole locking assembly to make switching it out easier. I also ordered the electronic trunk release for the 01 accord, and I am expecting my new alarm to arrive around the same time, then I will be spending most of the weekend installing all of those items.
As to the poster asking about the rocking drivers seat, here is a link to a pdf of the TSB for the issue. You might try getting honda to do the work for free, but if that doesn't work, the directions(with pictures) are in the file.
My next question is to anyone who has installed a viper alarm, I have ordered a Viper 5701 Alarm\remote start, and was wondering if I would need to order any relays or items to install it properly. I have a Fortin SL3 Immobiler bypass already so I should haven't problems with the remote start. I was just wondering if it came with the proper relays for the door locks, and the trunk release I will be installing? Thanks.
Last edited by 04CivicLX : 08-21-2008 at 04:50 PM.
i think it should come with everything. my old viper did, but it wasnt remote start. all you need extra is the immobilizer module tho. for the trunk popper, should be easy for the alarm place to tie it in an unused channel.
ive had my viper 6 yrs and its been good so far so idk, they are both good tho and made by the same company (DEI) i believe so i doubt theres much if any difference. and if you dont like the siren, go on ebay and find a unique one. i ended up with an older style oem bmw siren which ive only heard on one other car before. quite rare. its stupid to have the standard one that everyone else does.
"yeah thats gonna have to be body shop work if at all possible. i tried to do the same to my rear door to get it flush with the body panel, but couldnt do it. my front door is similar to yours too, i had to get it opened by locksmith and he pried it open, now the window squeaks when it goes up."
Hey Gearbox, just an update here. Though I would share the fix I got. The towing company that did the damage came out to fix it and I was quite amazed, took him 5 minutes. Apparently they have to do this all the time after unlocking a car. He just rolled down the window, opened the door and put his knees against the bottom inside of the door and just pulled it back. Apparently the frames are quite flexible. Anyways, she seals like a charm now and looks great.
I didn't have any squeaking with my window, but I imagine it would since it is bending the window frame back to the way it was. I'm guessing you have some rubbing going on since the window frame is out slightly?
hey gearbox, I can't find your DYI for the fog lights and I'm sick of those OEM ones breaking. Could you point me to where the post is, or if it's been deleted, maybe you can post it again.
I've had two pairs of eBay OEM look and the Honda OEM fogs break.
Sorry to asking so many questions. I got my car (its an 01 ex) in november of last year, today I took the wheels off to change my break pads, and come to realize the two blots that are supposed to hold my rotors on( actually 4 counting the passenger and drivers side are missing and not there.
So my question is, is it unsafe to drive without those bolts. It seems that they are hold on pretty good by the brake pads etc.
And also, what size, thread, length are they so I can get some if needed. Thanks.
Last edited by 04CivicLX : 08-23-2008 at 02:01 PM.
are you talking about the little silver philips head screws? number 22 in the pic
If so you don't need them. but if you absolutely want them go to honda. they are right around $1 each
Last edited by sniperscout : 08-23-2008 at 03:13 PM.
