Almost Bought a CB9 Today

[Scolirk]

By the looks of it, someone's picked up this car. Hopefully I didn't pass up on a good deal, especially at my original offer of $300. Oh well, I might look at what's required to buy one from the US and import it across the boarder.

[Scolirk]

For the price, that would've been a worthwhile purchase if you were willing to put about $3000 into restoring it.
The rust wasn't out of control. Rust repair and paint could've been done for under $1000. AC can be replaced for $500 or less, especially if you source the parts yourself. Windshield is a $300 job for a full replacement... less if you just have someone reseal the old one, if the glass isn't damaged. Muffler (or the entire exhaust system) is fairly inexpensive to replace (about $150 for a full stock-diameter catback). Cigarette smell fades, and a good cleaning or two would essentially eliminate the smell in time (the interior looked quite clean otherwise.) Mirrors, rear washer, fuel door, antenna... all tolerable flaws that can be fixed with inexpensive junkyard parts over time. Other restoration would be wise... tires, suspension, bushings...

Not a bad decision to walk away, if you weren't looking for something to restore... but I feel the extremely low price and overall decent condition of the car would make for a worthwhile project. A total of $3500 invested may exceed the car's resale value, but I would still see it as a reasonable investment on a car that you'd both enjoy and use.

I was going to budget that sort of cash anyway. In terms of a daily I've been looking at a W210 Mercedes E class wagon, which most in the area are asking $4,500 certified, so at $300 for this wagon plus another $3k in repairs it would have made sense.

I really do need to figure out how to repair the A/C on my car though. My family mechanic still says it'll cost 'a million bucks' to repair it, meanwhile a quote from Honda was around $8,000 to replace every single component of the A/C along with labour charges, which probably converts to a few hundred thousand US based on our current exchange rate.

My main worries were the water issues, which appear to have penetrated the electronics in the dash, and my wife ending my life if I brought it home in that condition.

[deevergote]

Ah yes, if the windshield leaked that badly, that would be a valid concern. If the car ran and all electronics worked, I'd imagine it would be fine... but that would make me nervous as well.

The CB9 would be a much cheaper to own than the Benz, for sure! Though I'd love an E55 AMG wagon myself! I was in San Diego a week ago, and somebody ripped down the street in one with a loud exhaust.

[Scolirk]

Ah yes, if the windshield leaked that badly, that would be a valid concern. If the car ran and all electronics worked, I'd imagine it would be fine... but that would make me nervous as well.

The CB9 would be a much cheaper to own than the Benz, for sure! Though I'd love an E55 AMG wagon myself! I was in San Diego a week ago, and somebody ripped down the street in one with a loud exhaust.

I don't think we ever got the E55 in wagon form here, but I could be wrong. There's a few E55 sedans for sale in my area, around $9,000 - $12,000, which would leave me without a reserve fund for repairs. I have to say that I had my heart set on the Benz for months now, right up until I test drove that CB9, and now that's the only car I can think about.

I've been looking on some random car sites in the US to see if anything's available. Not sure what the de facto car site is, but carsforsale.com seems to have a few to chose from. Am I correct in assuming that all US EX CB9s have a remote entry key?

[Scolirk]

I can move on from that first one, because the Honda Jesus has presented me with a solid second option when it comes to wagons: http://www.kijiji.ca/v-cars-trucks/m...ationFlag=true

Car has no rust.
Professionally done custom satin grey paint.
Standard Suspension coilovers R1 system. (camber plates installed)
F22b Motor shipped from Japan and swapped for the american F22a.
5 Speed manual transmission.
Stage 2 Exedy clutch.
2.5 inch custom exhaust with Magnaflow muffler.
ROH 5 spoke rims Painted grey with epoxy
Cold air Intake.
New Battery.
Power Windows.
Power locks.
Power sunroof.
Hella horns.
Brakes done before parking it for winter

I can include Kenwood double din screen & honda BBS rims on winter tires for right price.

Looks like this thread is turning more into an advice column. Any thoughts based on the photos and description? I've emailed/texted the seller but haven't heard back yet, trying to see it tonight if possible. The paint looks matte which isn't the end of the world. The tinted tail lights aren't my thing, and I'm hoping the grill is missing for 'appearance' and not because the horns are too large for it to fit.

It's a 5sp which is perfect, except I haven't driven stick in a decade, although I do want it in manual. I'm bringing a buddy to boot around with it if we can see it so I don't obliterate the clutch.

Anyone seen this car on the forum before? Am I looking at issues with the engine (which I assume is non-vtec), or any other problems with the mods?

[deevergote]

Since that was someone's project, I'd be very wary of shoddy mechanical work, or cheap parts choices.
Honestly, I'd avoid it... Restoring that first one would probably be less of a headache than undoing someone's questionable modifications... I'll run down the list as to why I suspect this to be a questionable "build".

Originally Posted by Kijiji Ad
Car has no rust. May be true. I can't tell otherwise from the blurry, long distance pictures.
Professionally done custom satin grey paint. Again, the picture quality doesn't show if the paint is well done or not. It may be.
Standard Suspension coilovers R1 system. (camber plates installed) I was about to say this was a big red flag (in fact, I did, then deleted it as I researched the brand...) Standard Suspension is a brand I've never heard of, but they do seem to design and manufacture their products in-house, in North America. I have no real gauge of their quality, but that alone gives me more confidence in their stuff over junk like D2 or Truhart. "Camber plate" is a definite red flag, however... because our camber is not adjustable by a "plate". That's for cars with a MacPherson strut setup.
F22b Motor shipped from Japan and swapped for the american F22a. There's not much info on this engine to be found online. It's likely a JDM equivalent to the 140hp F22B6 found in the North American Odyssey. ACTUALLY... upon closer inspection, those exhaust ports appear to be evenly spaced... which would make that an F22A head. To my knowledge, unless the JDM F22B is an oddball, all the SOHC F22B engines had 0_00_0 exhaust port spacing. If so, that's an F22B block and an F22A head... not disclosed, which makes me question how much the seller actually knows about his own car.
5 Speed manual transmission. Good.
Stage 2 Exedy clutch. Exedy = Good. "Stage 2" = "I don't know anything about clutches, but 'Stage 2' sounds like an upgrade, so I'm putting it on my 140hp engine!" The Exedy Stage 2 clutch is made for torque output well over 200 ft-lbs. That's turbo power. The most powerful N/A engines on this site likely aren't making enough torque to require a clutch like that, unless they are frequently raced... so either this guy is a fool, a regular racer, or that engine was boosted.
2.5 inch custom exhaust with Magnaflow muffler. Not bad... but not great. 2.5" is a bit large for a stock F22B. That's what I have for my H22A. It won't hurt anything, but low end suffers a bit. It's also likely to be pretty loud, since "custom" systems often don't involve resonators or catalytic converters.
ROH 5 spoke rims Painted grey with epoxy Not pictured, which is a red flag. Epoxy coating is an alternative to heat-cured powder coating. It's interesting. I've never seen anyone around here do that. This could be interesting...
Cold air Intake. Can't tell from the picture, but I'm assuming it's a no-name cheapie. If the filter is the same, that's no good. Those cheap filters aren't much better than running with no filter at all.
New Battery. Not pictured, I assume... because that battery in the picture looks like ass.
Power Windows. No shit, Sherlock. All CB9s had power windows.
Power locks. ...and power locks.
Power sunroof. So it's an EX-R or an imported USDM EX. Which means the original engine was an F22A6. 140hp. So the original engine was "swapped" for another (maybe) 140hp engine?
Hella horns. Meh.
Brakes done before parking it for winter "Brakes done" means pretty much nothing.

I can include Kenwood double din screen & honda BBS rims on winter tires for right price.
To my knowledge, the only BBS wheels available as optional wheels were 5 lug... the ones pictured are not, though similar to the factory Prelude BBS RG-II. If you're interested in the wheels, at least verify that they're legitimate BBS wheels before paying for them. I'm not sure if they're actually "honda" wheels, but if they're real BBS wheels, they're still good.




So yeah, my instinct would be to run... though some of the parts are intriguing, there's too much uncertainty behind that description to give me any confidence. Check it out and see what you think... but I'd be very wary of ANY modified vehicle.

[Scolirk]

This is exactly what I was hoping to see, you're the man!

I never trust what a seller advertises anyway, I'd have to verify everything myself before relying on it. I'm not a fan of much of the mods, but having a manual transmission is a huge plus, and the wheels mean nothing to me. I would bring my steel wheels and swap them on and leave the two sets he claims to have.

Still haven't heard back from the seller, but I'd certainly like to look at it. If it's not poorly modded I might be able to restore it back to factory better than my OP wagon which still belongs in the junkyard.

Interestingly, that OP wagon is now listed at $1,500, up from the $1,000 yesterday, and $300 I offered.

[CyborgGT]

Power Windows. No shit, Sherlock. All CB9s had power windows. It's on a general classifieds site, not an Accord forum. The casual Joe (...that likes cars with dorifto-spec fart cans) might like to know whether the windows on such an old car are manual or not.
Power locks. ...and power locks. ...and power locks.
Power sunroof. So it's an EX-R or an imported USDM EX. Which means the original engine was an F22A6. 140hp. So the original engine was "swapped" for another (maybe) 140hp engine? Old car, old engine. Maybe the F22A simply wore out and needed replacing, and this "F22B" happened to be convenient to him?
Hella horns. Meh. "Meh" isn't a strong enough word for pointless trendy parts that people insist on making very visible.
Brakes done before parking it for winter "Brakes done" means pretty much nothing. It means new parts are probably very lightly worn... or maybe he's saying they failed, so he parked the car.

I can include Kenwood double din screen & honda BBS rims on winter tires for right price.
To my knowledge, the only BBS wheels available as optional wheels were 5 lug... the ones pictured are not, though similar to the factory Prelude BBS RG-II. If you're interested in the wheels, at least verify that they're legitimate BBS wheels before paying for them. I'm not sure if they're actually "honda" wheels, but if they're real BBS wheels, they're still good. I learned something today! Too bad they're only 16".

You wanna point and laugh at something, here you go. "Turbo Accord." Click and the ad corrects to say "turbo ready" and looks to have a janky, incomplete intercooler system hooked up to the intake. RSX seats, though!

[Scolirk]

Well this car was absolute garbage, made Wagon #1 look like it belonged in the showroom. In my limited research, it appears the F22B'0' is best for turbo builds, and that's what this car was intended for. Previous owner was a Realtor much like myself, wanted to track the car, did the swap and gave up.

This car started off as an automatic, swapped the engine and transmission but didn't change the cluster, so the Sport light was flashing. The rear wheel wells were bubbled with rust, but painted over with this 'professional' paint job.

My Driver and I walked away after a few minutes, didn't even bother taking it for a spin. Maybe I should have just to get a bit of practice with the manual, since the car was poop.

The hunt continues...

[deevergote]

The F22B is no better for turbo than any other F or H series engine. Anyone who says otherwise has no idea what they're talking about.

Sport light flashing means they didn't even have the sense to remove the TCU.
I wonder what they did for the transmission mount and/or bracket. Either it has to be a conversion mount, or it has to have the manual transmission mount bracket welded in.

Glad you walked away. That one would've been a headache, I fear!

At least I learned some stuff because of it, though... such as the fact that the JDM F22B SOHC has little info online, that Standard Suspension might not be total crap, and that epoxy coating of wheels is a thing.


Also,

"Meh" isn't a strong enough word for pointless trendy parts that people insist on making very visible.

[CyborgGT]

Honestly, what are those supposed to say about the driver? That they have road rage issues?

[Scolirk]

The F22B is no better for turbo than any other F or H series engine. Anyone who says otherwise has no idea what they're talking about.

Sport light flashing means they didn't even have the sense to remove the TCU.
I wonder what they did for the transmission mount and/or bracket. Either it has to be a conversion mount, or it has to have the manual transmission mount bracket welded in.

Glad you walked away. That one would've been a headache, I fear!

At least I learned some stuff because of it, though... such as the fact that the JDM F22B SOHC has little info online, that Standard Suspension might not be total crap, and that epoxy coating of wheels is a thing.


Also,

The car was bouncing as it pulled into the parking lot, either the suspension was shot, installed incorrectly, or was garbage to begin with.

[CyborgGT]

Oh lawd, that wagon I posted keeps dropping in price. $1900 > $1500 > $1300 > $1100. At this rate, the thing's gonna sell before I can spare the cash, and I don't know how I feel about that

[Scolirk]

Oh lawd, that wagon I posted keeps dropping in price. $1900 > $1500 > $1300 > $1100. At this rate, the thing's gonna sell before I can spare the cash, and I don't know how I feel about that

Hopefully it won't! But then again, maybe something better will come up. That's where I'm at right now. Because of my profession, I don't get paid regularly. I'm waiting on a big payout which may or may not arrive this coming week.

Why don't you see if you can put a small deposit on that wagon in the mean time?

[Theos92VR4]

Keep your eyes open, something will pop up. The first wagon was definitely a better option then that rice box though. Then again I don't think ive ever bought a car that someone else has modified.