ShinnyGroove
ShinnyGroove Reader
12/21/19 5:10 p.m.

Short version, a buddy has one that he want to get rid of and will give me for free. The head is off it right now and it doesn't have a hood. What am I looking at here?  What are the cool motor swaps?  Suspension stuff?  Would be cool to make a time attack car or something out of it. 

BlueInGreen - Jon
BlueInGreen - Jon SuperDork
12/21/19 5:29 p.m.

Aftermarket? All of it.

K swap, B swap, turbo, vtec

The possibilities are endless.

ebonyandivory
ebonyandivory PowerDork
12/21/19 5:35 p.m.

If you don't take it I will vote for you to be banned!




BlueInGreen - Jon
BlueInGreen - Jon SuperDork
12/21/19 5:40 p.m.

This one, the Logdog Champcar, has a bone stock B20 with an Integra GSR trans because cheap and reliable is good for endurance racing. I’m told the GSR gear ratios make a big difference.

It’s never not finished a race.

bmw88rider
bmw88rider GRM+ Memberand UltraDork
12/21/19 7:13 p.m.

People love the CX. It's light, Swap able, and just a ton of fun. basically what ever you want to do with it, you can. Autocross....Check. Track Car.....Check. Drag car....Turbo it up. About the only thing it's not the greatest is actually being a good street car. 

kazoospec
kazoospec UltraDork
12/21/19 7:57 p.m.

If it's a clean shell, ship in North.  Most of ours are missing a few pounds of steel around the wheel wells.  My 93 DX was the best car I've ever owned, hands down.  Swap it, re-assemble and drive, flip it, race it, etc., etc.  You really can't go wrong.  

logdog
logdog GRM+ Memberand UltraDork
12/21/19 8:59 p.m.
BlueInGreen - Jon said:

It’s never not finished a race.

 

Thanks for jinxing us!  Im going to remember this when something weird like the anti-reverse clunker gear seizing to the output advance valve happens at Watkins Glen.

 

Never turn down a Civic hatch.  They are just such fun cars

ShinnyGroove
ShinnyGroove Reader
12/21/19 9:57 p.m.

I think it came down from Ohio, so I suspect rust is an issue. I'm going to check it over to see what I'm working with. 

spacecadet
spacecadet GRM+ Memberand SuperDork
12/21/19 10:46 p.m.
BlueInGreen - Jon said:

Aftermarket? All of it.

K swap, B swap, turbo, vtec

The possibilities are endless.

Seriously this. 

CX had power nothing, they're bare bones simple and your options are endless to build ANYTHING you want out of it thanks to the plethora of aftermarket hardware support and standalone ECU support available for Hondas. 

Seriously unless it's swiss cheese it's worth taking, even then.. it's probably STILL worth taking. 

GO GET IT!!! 

 

RealMiniNoMore
RealMiniNoMore PowerDork
12/22/19 7:32 a.m.

Isn't the CX the lightest of all the Civics? 

BoxheadTim
BoxheadTim GRM+ Memberand MegaDork
12/22/19 8:01 a.m.

Unless you need a broom and a bin to collect it, why isn't this on your trailer yet?

Daylan C
Daylan C PowerDork
12/22/19 8:03 a.m.

If you don't want the free Civic I'll take it. Literally been thinking about looking for an EG or EK for autocross purposes.

CrustyRedXpress
CrustyRedXpress GRM+ Memberand Reader
12/22/19 9:43 a.m.

In reply to ShinnyGroove :

 

Don't worry about having the head off; the stock e-vtec engine is the first thing you'll get rid of. Motor/trans swaps are D16z6, b16/18, k20/24 in order of decreasing ease of install. The car is Obd1, so you'll probably want to just chip the ECU and use crome or Honda Tuning Suite to tune it. If you go d16z6 you'll pay very little for the engine/trans, but you'll need to boost it to go above 125 hp or so. If you boost above 225hp you should replace the rods/pistons...but it's just a super easy platform to work on. LSDs will cost more for the d16z6, but again, you'll pay more for the b-series engine, and way more for the k-series. 

The chinese turbos for the d16 really changed the cost/hp for these cars.

I'm bringing a turbo CRX to the challenge again this year-come down and join the fun!

dxman92
dxman92 HalfDork
12/22/19 10:03 a.m.

92 DX hatch was one of the best cars I ever owned hands down. The two part hatch was amazing (fit a mattress in the back with the glass open). Do eeitt.

Nugi
Nugi Reader
12/22/19 11:17 a.m.

In reply to ShinnyGroove :

Lightest eg hatch. Its a golden era honda with anything and everything available for suspension. Easy button is KONI Yellows and Ground Control coilovers, then play with swaybars to dial it in. You will have to buy LCAs and maybe a mount, as I think the cx lacked a rear sway. Replace all the rubber bushings in the suspension, its time. Poly is ok except in trailing arm bushing, it should be rubber or spherical. Plenty of swaps, depending on budget and goals. The stock engine can be boosted, or swapped with oem parts to a b-series for cheap, H swaps are cheap but a bit of work. K-swaps are the rage, but need trans swapped with it, not cheap unless you find a donor. V6 j-swaps exist, but are too heavy for handling. Cheap fiberglass 'carbon look' hoods are endemic, and stock hoods cheap, or just show off the swap. 

Thats a great fwd chassis. Lots of potential. 

 

 

(Not lightest civic, that goes to the 88-91 EF era, specifically the 88 CRX HF but the bit of weight is worth it for the chassis ridigidity.)

drainoil
drainoil Dork
12/22/19 11:48 a.m.

This really makes me miss my ‘94 vx. No mods but the best fuel mileage I’ve ever had and really fun to drive as a daily. It had Almost 400k miles (not all by me) before rust did her in.

CyberEric
CyberEric HalfDork
12/22/19 1:11 p.m.

Wishboooooooones. 

Do it.

Do expect it to get stolen several times before you even get it home though.

79rex
79rex Reader
12/22/19 4:44 p.m.

In reply to RealMiniNoMore :

For the US market.  They have something funky with the Canadian market shells that made them lighter.  At least it's that way with the EF chasis.

Nugi
Nugi Reader
12/22/19 10:22 p.m.

In reply to 79rex :

I think that is only for 89-91 where the usdm seatbelt is mounted to the door (instead of having airbags or motorized seatbelts that were the usa reg then). The usdm 88 hf did not have that, or the side impact bars in the doors iirc. You can tell the diff on later cars as the trim panel at the door edge is much wider, the 88 has glass that goes to the edge like most cars. 

The canadia only crx se is becoming pretty collectible now. 

 

spacecadet
spacecadet GRM+ Memberand SuperDork
12/22/19 11:17 p.m.
79rex said:

In reply to RealMiniNoMore :

For the US market.  They have something funky with the Canadian market shells that made them lighter.  At least it's that way with the EF chasis.

The door belts was exclusive to the EF and only on the 90-91 models when Honda added extra structiren the doors as well. Made them about 40-50 lbs heavier than the 89 and 88 models.

And the "holy grail" of lightness for the USDM EF Si hatch are the very VERY rare, Japanese built 1989 models. They're an additional 40 lbs lighter than the 1989 Canadian built models. The 1989 Japanese built EF hatch are nearly as light as the CRX which were ALL built in Japan.

dean1484
dean1484 GRM+ Memberand MegaDork
12/23/19 7:48 a.m.

Great car we won a lemons event with one. The owner went on to win several more even with the penalty laps being added. Reliable as gravity and great fun to drive. 

ShinnyGroove
ShinnyGroove Reader
1/15/20 7:52 p.m.

I went cold on this over the holidays with the realization that I don't have anywhere to store it.  That said, I'm about to send my Lemons car off to Chicago, so I started reading up on the Challenge rules for kicks.

How do you all feel about a $500 fair market value for a rusty CX hatch that's missing a hood and the top end of the motor?

spacecadet
spacecadet GRM+ Memberand SuperDork
1/15/20 7:59 p.m.

In reply to ShinnyGroove :

post over in the $2k forum with photos to ask for a FMV, but that seems reasonable.. maybe?

CrustyRedXpress
CrustyRedXpress GRM+ Memberand Reader
1/15/20 9:06 p.m.

In reply to ShinnyGroove :

That would be about right in Florida. 

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