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Recently bought a red 1995 Civic VX hatchback with 5spd MT and 168k miles. This will be my personal thread for any repairs/upgrades I make to the car. The goal is to make it look stock in some areas and do a few upgrades in others. For now, every fluid in the car will be flushed: oil, trans fluid, coolant, clutch and brake fluid, as well as air and cabin filters.
List of things it needs so far:
Paint job using the original red color. This will likely be put off for last.
OEM or CAPA certified hood. Currently it has a CF hood, which is chipped and has some cracks. Not a fan of CF.
Driver seat frame is cracked which causes it to lean. I'll reweld it with a metal plate for reinforcement.
Steering wheel foam is loose. Going to cut it open and fill with adhesive, then I'll just add a steering wheel cover to cover the mildly worn foam.
Rear seats are missing their rear covers; it's pretty much just the upholstered foam. Plus they're just moving around unbolted.
Reupholster the interior, including ceiling. Will likely go with something not OEM but that looks clean and simple. Right now, I'm leaning towards black synthetic leather.
The center console/arm rest is grey while the rest of the interior is black. Gotta find a matching color.
The spare tire cover is missing. Gonna make one out of wood and cover it with matching carpet.
OEM cassette radio. I'll add a speaker box with a Blue Tooth receiver in the trunk which will work independently of the stock stereo system.
I see some loose wires under the dash. Gonna tidy that up after I find out what they go to.
Some dash lights don't come on, like Low Fuel, and other lights I don't really need. I might leave that alone. I do want the CEL, oil light, and any service lights to work; I'll have to check those.
Dome light doesn't come on.
Suspension with OEM-ish components. The current suspension has a subframe brace in the rear with some matching lower control arms. It gives a very rough ride and makes a rubbing (almost like leather or thick rubber rubbing) sound when compressed; at the very least, I'd like to get rid of that rubbing sound. I might do adjustable coil overs, but comfort trumps "performance", as this isn't a race car. I'll have to find some smooth riding coil overs (if they exist) so I can adjust the height to my liking.
Currently has projector headlights. Not sure if I like them yet. I'll wait and see.
Eventually, I'd like to plastidip the car myself. This will allow me to change the colors whenever I want, and it will help protect the paint.
It has nice OEM wheels, but I will likely upgrade those to something more to my liking and just store the OEM ones.
2/5/21 170k miles, brought in for alignment due to severe inside wear on the rear tires. Spec sheet shows everything was okay, so the wear was probably there beforehand. Sucks cuz the tires look almost new otherwise. Front tires look 90%.
Note to self: Potential tire/wheel sizes are 175/50r13 (hard to find; 19.89" OD) with a 13x7 wheel, or 185/55r14 (22" OD) with a 14x7 wheel, and 195/45r15 (22" OD) or 195/50r15 (unlikely), 15x7 wheel https://www.fitmentindustries.com/wh...orks-coilovers
OEM ties are 175/70r13, 22.65" outer diameter, bolt pattern 4x100
Last edited by 1uglybastard; Feb 19, 2021 at 11:51 PM.
Much easier to find 14" tires and rims, even easier to find 15"
I'm beginning to realize that as I scour the internet. I've found some nice wheels and tires in those sizes, so I'll likely switch to those. I don't want to come across supply issues in the future.
3/11/21,
driver seat frame was cracked. removed back of seat and welded the bracket back on then welded a strip of steel along it for strength.
It's not a pretty weld but it'll do the job
7/8/21 170,826 miles
Replaced distributor (WAI GLOBAL DST17404 {alternate part #30100P08006}) from Rock Auto.
The black/yellow striped wire had power when the key was on the On position, but when I cranked the engine, the spark plugs weren't getting spark. I removed the distributor cap and held a grounded wire to the spring in the distributor and no spark. So, I assumed it was the distributor, and I was right. She's purring now.
Replaced the kill switch. Accidentally broke the old one. Also, I got a call that my new rims are finally arriving and they'll also install the low profile tires. Can't wait. Once the wheels arrive, I'm going to install coilovers and a camber kit, adjust the height, get an alignment, get the front seats reupholstered, and send the car off to get painted. Lastly will be a mild audio system upgrade.
Last edited by 1uglybastard; Jul 8, 2021 at 09:29 PM.
Going to start taking apart the entire suspension system until it's an empty wheel well so I can clean and paint it. I'll keep and paint parts like the steering knuckle, but I'm going to replace all shocks, ball joints, control arms, and maybe even plastic fender covers if they're not in good enough condition. Also have to order a camber kit. Afterwards, it's off to get an alignment.
Hey, did you find smooth riding coil overs?
Everytime I'm blown away by workload and patience of people who willing to build their cars！
Love your post and hope all goes well with your car-upgrading!
Hey, did you find smooth riding coil overs?
Everytime I'm blown away by workload and patience of people who willing to build their cars！
Love your post and hope all goes well with your car-upgrading!
Test fit the new Luxor wire wheels today with my son. I think they stick out a little too much, maybe by an inch. I'll keep them however. While putting the OEM wheels back on, 2 lugs broke due to seizing, so that and a new suspension are next on the list.
I’ve never seen a civic made into a donk before. It’s quite the look.
it's a very specific niche, so I don't expect everyone to like it. I fell in love with the Civic hatchback in 1992 when I saw a 1991 Civic lowrider passing me on the road. I've been planning this project since then.
171,819 miles 10/30/21
Replaced rear brake shoes (Beck Arnley 081-2362) and rear brake spring kit (Beck Arnley 084-1143) and rear wheel bearing hubs (SKP SK513035).
Brake shoes for the 92-95 Civic vary in size. The best way to figure out which ones fit your Civic is to measure the brake shoe width. The ones for my 95 VX were 30mm, which fit Civic years 84-95. Other sizes I came across were 31mm and I think 36mm, which I don't think fit my VX.
173,5XX Civic build is terminated. My son came to visit from out of town and needed some wheels to get around. The Civic was the only available car I had. A woman darted across 4 lanes without looking and T-Boned him. Fortunately, he and his little sister are okay, but the car is trashed.
I'd been planning this lowrider build for decades. In 1992, I remember seeing a 4th Gen hatchback lowrider whiz past me on the road. I was 15 and completely fell in love with the style, especially when the 5th Gen came out. So, over the next 29 year I tried 4 times to build the 5th Gen lowrider I'd always wanted. Each of the cars either got stolen or wrecked. The Universe just doesn't want me to have this. So, I'm hanging up my gloves.
