About to buy a H22 Accord, I have a few concerns..

[atypical driver]

So I found a dirt cheap h22 swapped accord. 92 EX 4dr ABS. Guys bought it from VA and drove it up to NY for sale.(Must be ok shape if it can run that trip) Car looks ok inside and out. Engine started up on second pull (car has only been started twice in the past month).

Motor sounds quiet, exhaust is good. They admited right off the bat the car has some issues. Same story as the rest, body has 160k, engine has "around" 40-50k like all JDM's (Valve cover is black), tranny is JDM as well, they have no clue if its LSD or not, again, no real biggie to me. Just looking for transportation but this happens to have a swap.

Problems they let me know off the bat:

-Rear tail leaks water into trunk, they said new gasket will fix or you can epoxy the shit.

-Rear pass., drivers side window has a missing window motor, no big deal to me.

-Car has 2 ECUs, 1 'spoon chipped' ecu which runs 'choppy' as they put it. Say it runs but has some hesitation, and then the other is a straight f22 that runs good but you get no vtec. They said a jdm h22 ecu will fix the problems, is it that easy?

I have yet to receive a carfax or title from them. I have a feeling something is wrong, they havent been able to sell it for 4k or 3k so they got it sitting at the shop for 2700! I once had a 92 LX coupe 5 speed and loved that car to DEATH, I miss it like hell and it was my dream to H22 it, now I have an opportunity to have one.

I feel the car is a salvage or some shit, just kinda weird how you could get a decent car for so cheap. The body panels look aligned and all the paint matches so I dont think its been trashed but I'll find out I guess. I just have a bad feeling about it despite knowing these cars are pretty bullet proof.

Anyway, what do you guys think? Any suggestions? They guys are real cool and straight up, the owner is a long time respected member of the car community and does a lot of charity work, does appointment only installations and car work, they said he would give me good prices on any work I need on the car and beat any quote I get from any shop around so they will take care of me worst comes to worst.

Anyway for 2700 I feel I dont have much to lose other then a shitty title. Even if something breaks that is just too much to fix I could still dump the engine and tranny for 2k I think.

So Anyway, I'm looking for comments and suggestions on the situation. I'll prob be test driving it later this week and getting a carfax/ check out the title.

Thanks.

[ilovemycb7]

Hmm.

Make sure you figure everything out. I know when I bought my e30 the guy was straight up about a lot of problems. but didn't mention the leaking sunroof, trunk, other problems. So make sure they aren't hiding something major.

DRIVE IT. See what you can see for yourself. When looking at it, dont' get too excited. Walk away if you have to.

And the known problems are all easy fixes.

[atypical driver]

Yeah this is kind of an exciting deal to say the least, whats odd is me and my fiance and I were just talking about how a 4 door beater would be nice for our around the town errands and a winter vehicle for me. I was telling her how much I missed my coupe and then this comes up....lol

But like you said. I'm not to afraid to walk away. I'm a pretty tough sell. This swap looks a little choppy for someone who has a seen a few in his day. 1 thing I dont like is the PS pipe seems to have been welded together with another pipe. No shit, its got a bunch of metal boogers half way through it so it looks like it could have been hacksawed and pieced with another. Not sure if this is part of the swap or not but again, looks kinda suspect despite starting up relatively nicely and sounding very quiet internally and exhaust wise.

2 Things I will not settle for are Salvage title or shitty carfax. I dont need a money pit right now, just reliable transportation. If the drive is good and those are clean this is going be a done deal.

Thanks for the reply.

[woopwooph22]

well depending on the swap the welding ps pipe is pretty common how they do it... but if its shitty then you can always get it re welded or ps delete ive been riding with no ps on my h22 for about 6 years... and the ecu isnt that big of a deal kinda-ish if you can find a p-28 and get a mild tune for your engine it should run fine, the spoon is probly tuned on a performance base map the stock engine cant keep up with... idk tho drive it and tell us how it feels

*edit: tomorow ill go get the tranny code to see if you have an lsd or not... if someone doesnt do it first.... -_-

[4gen5thtime]

I'd say get it. The swap and everything is done. Thats half the battle. Trunk leaks can be many things though from taillight seals to a trunk seal, window seal, or just the metal trim around the out side of the window on the bottom. Is vtec wired up, you might have to do that. Test drive it, take it to a different shop that deals with hondas and have them inspect it or a good friend who knows hondas. Or I'm sure you could find a member on here that would inspect it for you on the cheap or for free in your area. If the title is clean and everything else checks out I'd jump on it small things are easy to fix a lil wiring and some finding of a leak and you have a nice platform to start on.

[drummersteve7]

where are you located man?

I would recomend that you take a fellow tuner that has a p13 ecu
with you and swap it into that car for a test drive.

that could help, if your close enough to me, I can def help ya!

lemme know!

[4gen5thtime]

See just as I said, there are members willing to help out. But also even if you bring a p13 ecu doesnt mean vtec will work if its not wired up. What ecu is the "spoon chipped" one?

[mj213]

Yeah, throw a p13 in there (ECU). It sounds to me that your instincts may be telling you to walk away. A second opinion is a good option, too.

[PhatAccord]

m2b4 is the lsd tranny code, i believe...
you mentioned you wanted a reliable ride...i dont know if this is the way to go for you...theres gotta be a good reason why they drove it up to ny to sell it and let it go for cheap...as for it running choppy...see if you can borrow someones ecu for a few hours to make sure that h22 runs fine and vtec engauges...i'm thinking that they cant get it to pass smog or something like that. so in the long run it might cost you some more dough...
as far as the body, look under the hood and check the frame, radiator support for straightness...look at the fender 10mm bolts as well. see if the paint is chipped off of them. if its chipped, chances are, the fenders have been off. check the trunk, pull the trunk liner and look at the inside metal of the trunk for damage...also look for matching vin stickers on panels/bumpers...
and for the p/s pump line...the cars got the stock cb7 p/s rack, and a prelude p/s pump which do not mate/bolt up together. so the pressure hose has to be cut and welded or a new custom line put in place to run power steering...in this case, it sounds like they cut and welded, just w/ sucky skills...hope this helps you and good luck

[4gen5thtime]

If there is rust, bondo, or chipped paint on fender bolts and the title is dirty walk away. Check the wiring out to look for heat shrink and not butt connectors. Pull back the carpet and look at the connections to the ecu to. If any of the wiring is shoddy then walk away, or plan to spend a good day or two rewiring the car. If you want a good relable dd go find a clean older person owned cb they usually let them go cheap and they run great and probably never been beat on, and works probably been done at a good mechanic or a dealership.

[atypical driver]

Hey guys, thanks for all your posts. I didnt even think to check out the wiring job on the ECU or under the hood really. Thanks for that.

Actually I know a guy in my area who has owned and hooked up several cb7's. I think I'm going to contact him and see if hed be willing to come out and check this.

As I said before. I'm gonna get a test drive in this week sometime. I'm not sure I feel like getting in vtec with this spoon chipped ECU, I'm unsure which ECU this is btw. I'll see if this local guy I know has an ECU or would let me borrow his if he can meet me there.

Reliability is really the name of the game here. I would love to tinker with this total sleeper but I'm getting married in a year and I'm moving out soon so time and cash are pretty limited.....(that and I have an RSX-S I been sinking my cash into ) So I might just have to abandon this for something like a 1 owner high mile stocker.

As far as it being cheap, that is sort of a red flag but he said he had it out for sale for a month for 4k, and then a month at 3500 and got nothing up low ball 1-2k offers. So he just decided to "sell it for what its worth" and put it up for 2700. I was planning on offering 2500 cash for it, if this shit is clean.

I'll keep you guys updated, thanks for the replies, very helpful.

[StinkinLincoln]

Buy it sounds like a Good Start to a Happy Ending!!

[StinkinLincoln]

OH and TAKE PIC and POST to us...We can help you decide...lol

[atypical driver]

UPDATE:

I have an AutoCheck Report given to me this morning from the seller:


Title and ProblemCheck
Your vehicle checks out! AutoCheck's database for this 1992 Honda Accord EX (1HGCB7576NA006670) shows no negative titles or other problems. When reported to AutoCheck, these events can indicate serious past damage or other significant problems.
0 Problem(s) Reported: 15 Title/Problem areas checked:
No abandoned title record
No damaged title or major damage incident record
No fire damaged title record
No grey market title record
No hail damage title record
No insurance loss title record
No junk or scrapped title record
No manufacturer buyback/lemon title record
No odometer problem title record
No rebuilt/rebuildable title record
No salvage title or salvage auction record
No water damaged title record
No NHTSA crash test record
No frame damage record
No recycling facility record



OdometerCheck
Your vehicle checks out! AutoCheck examined the reported odometer readings reported to AutoCheck for this 1992 Honda Accord EX (1HGCB7576NA006670) and no indication of an odometer rollback or tampering was found. AutoCheck uses business rules to determine if reported odometer readings are significantly less than previously reported values. Not all reported odometer readings are used. Title and auction events also report odometer tampering or breakage.
0 Problem(s) Reported: Mileage Date Reported
92,555 07/14/1998
124,791 02/23/2004
125,000 02/24/2004
146,979 05/07/2005 not included in rollback calculation
145,120 07/30/2005
146,000 08/15/2005
163,269 09/13/2007
163,837 10/04/2007


Vehicle Use and EventCheck
Information Reported! AutoCheck shows additional information reported to AutoCheck about how this 1992 Honda Accord EX (1HGCB7576NA006670)has been used and other events. This includes reported accidents and corrected or duplicate titles and storm area registrations.
0 Event(s) Reported: 6 Vehicle uses checked:
No fleet, rental and/or lease use record
No taxi use record
No police use record
No government use record
No livery use record
No driver education record

3 Event(s) Reported: 9 Vehicle events checked:
Accident record(s) reported through state agencies or independent sources
No corrected title record
Duplicate title record(s)
Emission/safety inspection record(s)
No loan/lien record
No fire damage incident record
No repossessed record
No theft record
No storm area registration/title record


Full History
Below are the historical events for this vehicle listed in chronological order. Any discrepancies will be in bold text.
Report Run Date: 2009-05-27 13:45:52.695 EDT
Vehicle: 1992 Honda Accord EX (1HGCB7576NA006670)
Event Date Event Location Odometer Reading Data Source Event Detail
05/09/1995 GA State Agency FRONT IMPACT WITH ANOTHER VEHICLE
MODERATE DAMAGE REPORTED
03/19/1996 DECATUR, GA Motor Vehicle Dept. TITLE (Title #:30605168)
BONDED
06/17/1997 ATLANTA, GA Motor Vehicle Dept. REGISTRATION EVENT/RENEWAL
07/14/1998 CHEVY CHASE, MD 92,555 Motor Vehicle Dept. TITLE (Title #:27508130)
REGISTRATION EVENT/RENEWAL
09/04/2002 POTOMAC, MD Motor Vehicle Dept. TITLE (Title #:27508130)
DUPLICATE TITLE
09/04/2002 POTOMAC, MD Motor Vehicle Dept. REGISTRATION EVENT/RENEWAL
02/23/2004 ANNANDALE, VA 124,791 Motor Vehicle Dept. TITLE
02/24/2004 ANNANDALE, VA 125,000 Motor Vehicle Dept. TITLE
02/24/2004 ANNANDALE, VA Independent Emission Source PASSED EMISSION INSPECTION
02/25/2004 ANNANDALE, VA Motor Vehicle Dept. REGISTRATION EVENT/RENEWAL
05/07/2005 MANASSAS, VA 146,979 Independent Emission Source PASSED EMISSION INSPECTION
07/30/2005 CENTREVILLE, VA 145,120 Motor Vehicle Dept. TITLE
REGISTRATION EVENT/RENEWAL
08/15/2005 STERLING, VA 146,000 Motor Vehicle Dept. TITLE
REGISTRATION EVENT/RENEWAL
09/13/2007 LEESBURG, VA 163,269 Motor Vehicle Dept. TITLE
10/04/2007 WINCHESTER, VA 163,837 Motor Vehicle Dept. TITLE
REGISTRATION EVENT/RENEWAL
06/17/2008 WINCHESTER, VA Motor Vehicle Dept. REGISTRATION EVENT/RENEWAL

This Vehicle's Glossary
Below are the specific definitions for events that appear in this vehicle's report.
More information is available in the full AutoCheck glossary.
Term Section Location Definition
Accident Data Vehicle Use and EventCheck Accidents are reported by state agencies, police departments and other sources and varies from state to state. It is recommended to have pre-owned vehicles inspected by a third party prior to purchase.
Duplicate Title Vehicle Use and EventCheck The vehicle had a duplicate title issued by the DMV.
Emission/Safety Inspection Vehicle Use and EventCheck An approved emission testing station has inspected the vehicle to measure the amount of pollutants the vehicle emits into the environment.



Doesnt look too bad to me, pretty straight forward on that end. Car isnt registered or inspected in NY though, not sure how a test drive is going to work out. More updates as I get them.

[mj213]

GOod luck. It's hard to say if it's worth it or not, without seeing the actual results of the swap. Plus, if swapping to a p13 ecu would fix the problems, why hasn't it been done?