So I sold the SI and picked up a beater 56K *no way*

EBPcivicsi

GOT PREP?
Out of the blue a guy emailed me from Birmingham and was interested in my SI. He drove in on a Sunday and brought cash. I couldn't have asked for a better experience, it was a very smooth transaction. IMO, the value of Hondas (especially these Si's) is grossly overstated. I loved my car, but everything has a price, and he met it. :)



So I after I sold the civic I needed to pick up some transportation. I wanted four doors, enough room to haul all of my detail stuff around, and above average gas mileage. I just wanted a beater to ride around in until I decide what I *really* want (rumors of the four door SI have me giddy).



The perfect solution was an accord wagon, not easily done. Thses suckers are rare and sell very quickly(I had no idea). I looked for a few days before getting lucky and finding one in Nesbit, MS. The car is mechanically sound at 185,000, but needs some TLC--perfect for me. I paid very little for her and commenced to giving her a make over.



Here she is just after I picked her up. The paint was dull and lifeless, the interior needed attention, and I put a set of tires on her ($262 for four tires with lifetime rotation/road hazzard from Costco--WOOT!!).



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No reflection in the paint, very dull, full of "gunk."

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There was wax residue in *every* molding on the car!!

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The wheels are IMO about 3 out of 5, with some curb rash and a few deep scratches. They had brake dust embedded in the "holes" and needed to be polished.

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The wheel wells were extremely dirty and needed a fresh application of undercoating.

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I pressure washed, degreased, rinsed, then wiped with prep sol. I then applied a layer of spray way rubberized undercoating. It dries to a satin finish, this is just after application:

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I then turned my attention to the rest of the car. I split this up into two weekends, but it is basically about 20 hours of work. There is still stuff that I need to do, but I can drive her now without obsessing over the things that I *have* to do to her.



For the exterior this was the process:



-wash



-clay bar



-Apply Hi temp extreme cut via the rotary polisher with a twisted wool pad @2100 RPM's



-Apply Meguiars #84 via rotary and a knitted wool pad @1750 RPM's



-Apply Meguiars #83 via rotary @1000 RPM's with a polishing pad



-Apply 3M perfect-it-III machine galze via rotary @1000 RPM's with a foam finishing pad



-Apply OP with a foam finishing pad on the porter cable @ speed 5



-Apply one coat of Meguiars #7 show car glaze via PC @ speed 3



-Apply two thin coats of Meguiars #26 by hand



-Applied optimum polymer technologies wax by hand



The glass was polished with 1grand glass polish, the wheels were polished with a wool spot kit and meguiars NXT metal polysh, the tires are dressed with Meguiars all-season dressing, and the trim is dressed with Meguiars #38 trim dressing.



There are still some little things that I need to do, but she makes a hell of a DD....so far (crosses fingers). :)



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Wow, 2 rotary cutting steps, 2 rotary polishing steps, and 2 PC polishing steps? And you used metal polish on the wheels? Aren't those clear coated? Well, looks new now that you are done.
 
Nice find and even nicer turn around. Those cars are pretty difficult to get your hands on! I'm kind of excited about the 4 door Si myself. How much did you get for you Si if you don't mind.
 
Really enjoyed reading about this one! A good sale, a great find, and a superb cleanup :xyxthumbs



Heh heh, gotta love those rust-free southern cars, huh?
 
SpoiledMan said:
Nice find and even nicer turn around. Those cars are pretty difficult to get your hands on! I'm kind of excited about the 4 door Si myself. How much did you get for you Si if you don't mind.



9 grand with 144,000 miles on the clock. ;) I also gave the guy ALL the stock parts too, we were both happy. Did I mention that I detailed her one last before she left? :)



yeah, I can't wait to see if Honda releases a four door SI, we should know after the Chicago Auto show in a few days!!!!



Setec Astronomy, the paint was as hard as glass, hardest paint that I have worked on thus far!!! The wheels are CC'ed, but I have found the Meguiars metal polishes to be excellent on CC'ed machined wheels. I typically top the metal polish with #20, but I wanted to see how the NXT metal polish will hold up on its' own.



Thanks guys!!
 
just goes to show you.... you've taken such great care of the si, it's not surprising you got top dollar for the condition it was in, on top of the high re-sale value. btw, great job on the accord! you can probably sell it for more than you just bought it for, lol. :cool:
 
Setec Astronomy said:
Accumulator always tells us that SS white is the hardest paint due to the titanium dioxide pigment.





Well in that case, here is the example that supports that theory!!! One pass @2100 on the rotary with extreme cut barely cut 80% of the "dead" paint. This stuff was like buffing diamonds!!!
 
I have a 94 accord for my son and that white SS paint is TOUGH! The best way to show off the white is how you handle the black trim. I really like the looks of Megs #38 but one drive in the rain and it's gone! I've tried Megs ASD and it seems to streak on some black trim???
 
tomstin said:
I have a 94 accord for my son and that white SS paint is TOUGH! The best way to show off the white is how you handle the black trim. I really like the looks of Megs #38 but one drive in the rain and it's gone! I've tried Megs ASD and it seems to streak on some black trim???





Yeah, they all streak for me, I just wipe them down after application and hope for the best. :)
 
I'm amazed at how few paint blemishes it has. The previous owner was a careful driver. You could turn that car around and make some $$$ now.



Looks great!
 
That's a dramatic improvement! Great job and congratulations!!



I'm definitely interested in hearing more about the Spray Way undercoating...



P.S. Get some tint on that thing! :D
 
hadboosttroy said:
well i for one am sad, i hope you at least kept the twin loop





LOL!! Nope sold the TL with the car. :D I did request that he blast through the gears one more time on his way out...he obliged. :) The sound of that exhasut when vtec engages is what b series motors *should* sound like, it is perfection.
 
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