My HF Restoration

[opelgt73]

I started restoring the CRX HF that I bought a few weeks ago. Last Friday I got it back from the shop to repair a bolt that the PO had broken off in the block. It cost a lot less to fix than I thought, only $60. So now I have a new alternator installed and the engine runs pretty good, still needs a tune up though.

Today I am taking it to a body shop to pull the frame straight. The car was involved in a front end collision and while the PO replaced the top half of the frame the bottom is still a little over an inch too far back. You can see in the second photo.

The car still needs a lot of work after that. I am torn on how much I want to do. My biggest problem is that I am somewhat of a perfectionist and I will want to fix everything on the car to 100%.

[Mr Incredible]

I, too, have the perfectionist bug. However, a long time ago I developed this mantra:

Sometimes perfect is good enough. Sometimes good enough is perfect.

It has helped me in the fixing of my CRX DX. I had rust holes in the doors the size of tennis balls. Multiples on each door. The rocker panels had rusted away. The normal rear fender rust had gone into the whole rear corner on both sides. The bumper bracket on the back was swiss cheese and the front was only marginally better. It's a good thing I'm already a welder.

I've got all that fixed now, and finished masking it off for primer last night. If all goes well I'll get two coats of epoxy primer and two or three coats of high-build primer on it tonight.

It's been a huge undertaking for me, but I still have all my fingers. I highly recommend eye protection at all times. I cannot state that enough. Make sure a fire extinguisher is handy. And, safety-safety-safety.

Good luck.

[opelgt73]

Just located a set of 13in HX wheels, going to pick them up tomorrow!

[EH3]

VX wheels you mean?
HX are 14". VX are 13".

[opelgt73]

Originally Posted by EH3

VX wheels you mean?
HX are 14". VX are 13".

Must be VX then. Is there much of a difference other than size? My current wheels (and tire sizes!!!) don't match so I needed to get a matching set of wheels anyway and lucked out that I found these for sale close to me. The guy said he had 4 ea of 14" and 13" HX wheels and the 14's had already sold. I wanted the smaller ones anyway so it doesn't matter to me.

[EH3]

if i remember right HX=11lbs, VX=9lbs

[theholycow]

Originally Posted by EH3

if i remember right HX=11lbs, VX=9lbs

But, with two pounds difference, will you gain that much in extra rubber to keep the same tire height? If so, you're better off with the larger wheel, as shorter sidewalls handle better, so you can brake less for the turn and accelerate less after.

[opelgt73]

Originally Posted by EH3

VX wheels you mean?
HX are 14". VX are 13".

Got them tonight, they are 13" and guy swore up and down they were from a 93 HX.

I was pretty happy to find out that two of them had brand new tires on them. Which means they are already saving me money!

[opelgt73]

Got the car back today from the frame shop. They couldn't find anything wrong. I also cannot find any visible frame damage. I may take it to another frame shop for a second opinion. However I was told that someone may have put in Integra radius rods which are longer and would put the wheels further back, so I am going to check that first.

I have been driving it as is. Haven't been able to calc FE yet as it will take a while to get through a tank of gas!