New member, old wagon. Intro and advice requested.

marmer

I've had Phoebe since she was new. She's a 1986 2WD 5sp. In fact she was on the Marketplace forum a few years ago but found no takers. Well, the rules have changed so I can't repost in Marketplace, but the truth is I'm not so sure I want to sell her anyway.

She runs well but doesn't idle. She needs new A/C. She has some rust and needs a paint job. Her interior is a little worn but still pretty solid. She has 210,000 miles. What do you think? Sell for next to nothing? Scrap? Restore? I've pursued several vehicle donations which fell through. I'd love to be able to drive her again, but not sure it's worth the $2-3K it would probably take. She was great fun to drive when she was healthy, perky and nimble, though geared for the 55 mph national speed limit and a little buzzy on the freeway.

http://s142.photobucket.com/albums/r108/marmer01/Car%20pix/Phoebe%20pix/

unlimited02

welcome back again... and i think u need in intro and 50 posts first before u can post anything in the marketplace...

marmer

Yea, I saw that although I believe it's 5 posts. I don't know that I have 5, let alone 50 posts worth of stuff to say, frankly. It's pretty much all in my first post.

jbw

Nice for the '86 Wagon... Scroll down the page and check out my '85 DX Wagon/write-up.

I had my wagon restored by a professional body shop about six years ago. My wagon has always been garage stored, but harsh winters in Milwaukee and the mid-Atlantic region with road salt applications initiated the cancerous rust doom. All vintage Hondas face this fate. Otherwise, you'd see more N-360's, N600's and pre-1980 Civics and Accords. Fortunately, California still has a few models left!

My car was completely disassembled, rebuilt with new metal (custom molded) as needed, then primed and coated with a $$$ paint scheme. Additionally, new seat covers and other ancillary interior parts were replaced to bring the car back to like-new condition. No after market parts were used -- all Honda (from California, New Jersey and Japan). Even the wheels were restored, including the addition of 16 new (Honda) lug nuts. Total Cost: ~ $6,000. I'll provide pics of the disassembly if I can find the CD.

Air-Conditioning: To replace the one you have (all parts; that is, the condenser, compressor, evaporator, expansion valve and other ancillary parts) will run $2000+. I doubt the parts are available for your model. You may be able to retrofit with a modern unit, and at a lower cost. I replaced my AC unit (all components) about three years ago. Talk about expensive freon (R-12)!

Professional restoration is expensive, but it's worth it if you want the super vintage car. Otherwise, think about a new Honda Fit! This car reminds me alot of the old wagon. I'm considering selling my '85 to a Honda dealership...

Good luck.

j.w.

marmer

jbw wrote:

Nice for the '86 Wagon... Scroll down the page and check out my '85 DX Wagon/write-up.

I saw that before posting. Great job! I agree that a Fit is the modern replacement for the Civic Wagon. Thanks for the info about restoration. That's pretty scary.

evol911

I'm betting the carb needs a rebuild which isn't all that hard if you have some mechanical knowledge. If you need some good info on the older carb'd motor, you should definitely check redpepperracing.com. Very helpful site, and very helpful people just like here but maybe a liitle more knowledgeable about the older motors.

Welcome back!!

jbw

Wagon Guru,

For some reason I thought the '85 wagon was the last year with a carb. Maybe it was '86. Believe it or not, my carb with the exception of its floats has never been repaired or replaced. Cleanings - yes, but no other issues. Honda replaced the floats through a recall around 1987. The '84 and '85 wagons are identical, but the AC unit was much improved for '85. My original AC unit ran for 22 years. I did replace the clutch assemblies and cooling fans around 1995.

More stories later...

j.w.

marmer

My '86 definitely has a carb.

jbw

OK Houston... I stand corrected on the carb.

Does your '86 have the sealed front headlights? The '85 and has the open headlights.

Now you've got me thinking. Maybe fuel injection was introduced in '88 for the wagon. I had an '89 that I ran the heck out of for ~ 285,000 miles. I sold that wagon in 2005 and purched an Accord.

Let me go research those wagons again.

Thanks...

j.w.

marmer

JBW, Yes, sealed headlights. Also the cool retractable center A/C vent, the dash-width A/C vent, the under-glove-box shelf, the ridiculous amount of rear-seat legroom, the (slightly) reclining rear seats, the roof glass "skylights" in the back, the electric rear hatch release, non-power steering, and better interior materials (especially seat fabric) than most modern Japanese and Korean cars.