Great pics. As for camber. I only run it cause I have to. If I could get as close to positive I would. But gotta get past the wheel well arch. So its all on how u want your car to sit. If ur going lower then ya do some negative
Hey Billboard not sure if you saw my last post before the new site switch, but if you want to get into lighting I can help you on the cheap. $200 and you can get to strobin it up. PM any time.
I had added a few new pics but they didn't transfer to the new site so I'll go ahead and re-add them now.
Been wanting OEM Honda center caps for my Shakotan's but can't find any that fit yet. Ended up finding some 2" electrical conduit covers that are working for pretty nicely for now, especially for a buck each.
If anyone knows which OEM Honda center caps fit Rota wheels with a 2.5" center opening please let me know.
I also ordered some a 5K HID kit from DDM Tuning which I've read nothing but good things about. Wanted to avoid a cheap ass eBay kit that would probably just give me headaches in the long run...that's usually how eBay junk works. Here is a video of me taking a short spin with the 5K in one side and the OEM in the other. I like the 5K color temp...same as the OEM HID color temp and not that really annoying blue that people seem to love. I just wanted nice white light that would match my dash and improve night vision.
CLICK THIS PICTURE FOR VIDEO
I made some headway on the suspension woes that were troubling me. My friend Mechanic Mike who has been helping me work on stuff went on vacation to NY for 2 weeks so I'm left to my own devices to try and figure stuff out. Went out and bought 4 jack stands, 2 ramps and a jack. I took off the rear compensator arms and installed the SPC toe kit that I got from beastmode. The first one took me 4x the amount of time that the second one did....it seems that how things go for me when working on cars. The first time around it takes me forever to do something, and bang the hell out of my hands/arms, I cuss and throw shit a lot. The second time around after I've got it figured out it usually goes a lot smoother and lot lot faster. Here's a picture of the OEM rear compensator arm along side the new SPC rear toe link part # 69250.
For anyone wondering where the rear toe link is located, here's a picture. There's one on both sides obviously.
Gotta have some beats and beer while working. Mechanics 101.
While I had it up in the air I inspected the front end to try and figure out why the wagon was riding like shit since installing the Skunk2 Pro front camber kit. Turns out the top-back part of the ball joint is slamming into the shock tower. I bought the Skunk2 Pro with the slim design to try and help with clearance but it was still hitting as you can see in this picture.
The spindle thingy was also hitting the camber arm as well as the spring which I think was the knocking sounds I heard when going into and out of a sharp turn.
I pulled the camber towards positive to try and make some room in there so I could get it to Firestone for another alignment.
Little bit of 3 wheel motion!
Took back roads to the Firestone in Everett (they have a lift that goes flush with the floor so if anyone in the Seattle area needs alignment on lowered cars hit up Tyler at Firestone Evertt for the hook up. Tell him the wagon guy sent you). Same guy that worked on my car last time was there which made me happy cause he was easy to work with and seemed to be into the car. Told him about the issues I'd been having. Asked him about possibly hammering in the shock tower and if that would mess up the structural integrity of the vehicle. He said some people just cut out that part where it's hitting. He ended up pulling my rear wheels from + 0.3 to - 0.8. He pulled my fronts from -3 to -1.8 which is as far as they would go he said. The wheels look a lot better now as the angles match a lot better. The car drives a TON better now as well, pulling the ball joint out a bit gave some room and it doesn't slap the shock tower anymore...at least on small bumps and lane dividers. May still hit on bigger bumps I'll have to see. The squirrelyness was a ton better as well, made me so happy to be able to drive with one hand comfortably for the first time in a while. Still liking the new sound of the cold air intake as well, that thing is pretty neat. Really makes me want a turbo lol.
Here's a cell shot of the car as she sits now through the window of Blazing Onion (good burgers). If anything I'd push the rears out a half a degree towards positive next time but overall I'm very happy with the stance. Big thanks to everyone who helped me get to this point, I appreciate it so much.
Thanks! Glad that my LED info is helping in some way. I really love that mod! Well I recently went to Forum Fest 2012 with a few other guys from HCW, and even though the weather licked balls it was still a good time. It was the first show I had ever been to. Here are some shots of my wagon at the fest.
I stayed up late the night before the show working on a few things, one of which was painting the side skirts.
This was my procedure
Clean car
Clean side skirt with degreaser/water mix then wash off with water
Once dry, scuff with green scotch-brite lightly by hand
Apply painters tape and masking paper
Spray with Dupli-Color Bumper Coating. Let dry and repeat x3
Pull off paper/tape combo and enjoy my dope new side skirts in all their shiny glory
Here's a pic of me gettin it on in my carport
Another recent addition to my wagon are a set of something everyone wants but no one can find. Rear blinds! But not the Daisy electrics...these are a set that only one other person with a wagon has and the person that all the glory goes to for he did the research and leg work in finding these things. That man is HCW member beastmode who was kind enough to share the info with me before Forum Fest. There is a link to these that he just put up, and you can follow it here:
First I installed the support beams, then measured the rear window in all 8 slat positions
I then measured out the blinds and cut them with tin snips
After snipping them I hammered them back flat, as they would bend slightly
After all the cutting and measuring I painted the ends flat white to rematch them
I installed them in the slats using plastic shims for the moment on the underside of the blinds as to not be visible. I will be looking for blinds made of either plastic or wood soon to try and help with the vibration and weight. I'll report back with what I find. Thanks again for hooking me up with the info on these beastmode!
I now love this car. The electrical box covers look perfect, and really change the look of your Rotas..
Blinds look amazing.. roof rack is dope.. boom box is rad..
And your photos are out of this world.
Great Job Knotty, your wagon has changed a lot.
Ha ha...good call man I gotta get CW into my head instead of HCW. Yeah let me know when your wheels are done!
Man, that really put a big ol smile on my face:) Thanks for making my day, I just realized that I've only owned my wagon for a little over 2 months now. I feel like it's come such a long way, even though I really haven't done anything major just a lot of small things that I can handle. But I have learned so much over the past 3 months from just reading this site, that's probably the biggest transformation of all. When I first came to this site I didn't even know what the numbers on the tires mean, or what offset was. I didn't know the difference between Civic Wagons, Shuttles, Wagovans, Beagles, etc.. Heck I didn't eve understand the difference between a turbo and a supercharger.... I still have a lot to learn though till I shed my noobish ways.
And for my most recent addition....a new oil cap.
I'm gonna go see if I can get my fender mirror installed. I've really been wanting to get that on as I hate street parking without a passenger mirror.
Hey Knotty, where did you get those conduit covers from (if you don't mind me stealing your thunder haha)? I put on my centercaps and they stick out too far and look horrible.
Hey Knotty, where did you get those conduit covers from (if you don't mind me stealing your thunder haha)? I put on my centercaps and they stick out too far and look horrible.
You can grab them from Lowe's or Home Depot in the electrical aisle. Grab the 2" ones, they're $1 each. Tape the clips if you don't wanna scratch your wheels. Maybe you can spray them gold to match:)
I finally got an alarm installed yesterday, along with a new head unit and a 4 channel amp to power my 4 Polk coaxials. While my installer was in there I had him add a couple custom touches that I am loving. One is the install of the alarm light right in the middle on top of the heat/stereo cluster. I like it there as it's very visual.....blink blink blink.....back the hell away from my wagon jerk. I also had him set my stereo's iPod usb as well as a charging USB plug into an unused pop out panel to the right of my steering wheel. Nice and tidy, just how I like it. You can see what I mean better in this picture.
I also had him install a backup battery for my alarm as an added precaution. We tried to install my rear 6.5" speakers in either the rear door panels, or in the sides of the trunk but neither would work out that well. We decided that he is going to build me a box for my sub that will take up the space behind the rear seats, and in front of my rear strut bar. This will leave my trunk open for my dog and other things, plus then he will be able to mount my 6.5's facing upwards on either side of the top of the sub box. I'll carpet it to match the interior so it'll all blend together nicely, and I'll mount my sub amp under my drivers seat. The guy I hired is a mobile installer that I found on Craigslist, but he turned out to be nothing short of awesome. If anyone in the Seattle area needs help with their stereo, hit me up and I can put you in touch with Donato. Great prices, great guy, great work. Here is his work truck he showed up in.
Gettin busy
And did I mention that he can add power door locks?!? Geah!! Got all four power door locks installed for $150. So nice to be able to remote lock/unlock the wagon!
Now I just need power windows and I'll be set! Hoping to get the box built, sub, amp and rear speakers installed when Donato gets home from vacation in about a week and a half. Can't wait to finally have some beats in my ride. I'll probably dynamat a bit to keep things sounding clean.
You guys thought I was done with my shinanigans? Hellz nah! I got more stuff to do to my wagon! You say you want to see a fender mirror installed?? Boom......get some.
Sorry I don't have any pictures of the install, my camera batteries ran dead. What I can say is that I ran into problems on the install but nothing that couldn't be overcome. I want to thank JesseCRX for the guidance on this install. He really gave me some critical info, and I truly appreciate it. The bracket that went on the bottom of the fender couldn't fit because the mirror was mounted so close to the fender wall that there wasn't enough room for the bracket to sit right. I had to grind it down to make it fit. Even when it was ground down it was still very had to get the spacers and nuts on the mirror bolts because they sat so snug against the fender wall that there wasn't enough room for the nut. I had to push the mirror inwards towards the motor with my forehead while trying to get the nut on with my two pointer fingers. It took me quite a while to just get that nut on, it was a real bitch to get line up correctly in the small amount of space that I had but in the end I got it handled. I used a step bit to make the holes and painted them to stop rust before installing the mirror. Really loving this mod as now I can parallel park and see what's going on. I was a little scared that the fender mirror would stick out like a sore thumb, but I actually think it matches the quirky wagon quite well. I think it sets it off nicely, and really adds a great touch.
Comments
i would love some decent lighting equipment, but i have so many hobbies, all require monies!!
i need more monies!!
I had added a few new pics but they didn't transfer to the new site so I'll go ahead and re-add them now.
Been wanting OEM Honda center caps for my Shakotan's but can't find any that fit yet. Ended up finding some 2" electrical conduit covers that are working for pretty nicely for now, especially for a buck each.
If anyone knows which OEM Honda center caps fit Rota wheels with a 2.5" center opening please let me know.
CLICK THIS PICTURE FOR VIDEO
I made some headway on the suspension woes that were troubling me. My friend Mechanic Mike who has been helping me work on stuff went on vacation to NY for 2 weeks so I'm left to my own devices to try and figure stuff out. Went out and bought 4 jack stands, 2 ramps and a jack. I took off the rear compensator arms and installed the SPC toe kit that I got from beastmode. The first one took me 4x the amount of time that the second one did....it seems that how things go for me when working on cars. The first time around it takes me forever to do something, and bang the hell out of my hands/arms, I cuss and throw shit a lot. The second time around after I've got it figured out it usually goes a lot smoother and lot lot faster. Here's a picture of the OEM rear compensator arm along side the new SPC rear toe link part # 69250.
For anyone wondering where the rear toe link is located, here's a picture. There's one on both sides obviously.
While I had it up in the air I inspected the front end to try and figure out why the wagon was riding like shit since installing the Skunk2 Pro front camber kit. Turns out the top-back part of the ball joint is slamming into the shock tower. I bought the Skunk2 Pro with the slim design to try and help with clearance but it was still hitting as you can see in this picture.
The spindle thingy was also hitting the camber arm as well as the spring which I think was the knocking sounds I heard when going into and out of a sharp turn.
I pulled the camber towards positive to try and make some room in there so I could get it to Firestone for another alignment.
Little bit of 3 wheel motion!
Took back roads to the Firestone in Everett (they have a lift that goes flush with the floor so if anyone in the Seattle area needs alignment on lowered cars hit up Tyler at Firestone Evertt for the hook up. Tell him the wagon guy sent you). Same guy that worked on my car last time was there which made me happy cause he was easy to work with and seemed to be into the car. Told him about the issues I'd been having. Asked him about possibly hammering in the shock tower and if that would mess up the structural integrity of the vehicle. He said some people just cut out that part where it's hitting. He ended up pulling my rear wheels from + 0.3 to - 0.8. He pulled my fronts from -3 to -1.8 which is as far as they would go he said. The wheels look a lot better now as the angles match a lot better. The car drives a TON better now as well, pulling the ball joint out a bit gave some room and it doesn't slap the shock tower anymore...at least on small bumps and lane dividers. May still hit on bigger bumps I'll have to see. The squirrelyness was a ton better as well, made me so happy to be able to drive with one hand comfortably for the first time in a while. Still liking the new sound of the cold air intake as well, that thing is pretty neat. Really makes me want a turbo lol.
Here's a cell shot of the car as she sits now through the window of Blazing Onion (good burgers). If anything I'd push the rears out a half a degree towards positive next time but overall I'm very happy with the stance. Big thanks to everyone who helped me get to this point, I appreciate it so much.
Thanks! It's a Basketcase by Yakima. Great if you want a cargo rack but not a huge one. I use it all the time!
Thanks man, I feel the same way!! Giggidy Giggidy.
I stayed up late the night before the show working on a few things, one of which was painting the side skirts.
This was my procedure
Clean car
Clean side skirt with degreaser/water mix then wash off with water
Once dry, scuff with green scotch-brite lightly by hand
Apply painters tape and masking paper
Spray with Dupli-Color Bumper Coating. Let dry and repeat x3
Pull off paper/tape combo and enjoy my dope new side skirts in all their shiny glory
Here's a pic of me gettin it on in my carport
Another recent addition to my wagon are a set of something everyone wants but no one can find. Rear blinds! But not the Daisy electrics...these are a set that only one other person with a wagon has and the person that all the glory goes to for he did the research and leg work in finding these things. That man is HCW member beastmode who was kind enough to share the info with me before Forum Fest. There is a link to these that he just put up, and you can follow it here:
http://www.civicwagon.com/showthread.php?14428-Rear-Metal-Venetian-Blinds-(white)
Here is how I installed them
First I installed the support beams, then measured the rear window in all 8 slat positions
I then measured out the blinds and cut them with tin snips
After snipping them I hammered them back flat, as they would bend slightly
After all the cutting and measuring I painted the ends flat white to rematch them
I installed them in the slats using plastic shims for the moment on the underside of the blinds as to not be visible. I will be looking for blinds made of either plastic or wood soon to try and help with the vibration and weight. I'll report back with what I find. Thanks again for hooking me up with the info on these beastmode!
BOOM!! Rear Blinds Sucka!!
Blinds look amazing.. roof rack is dope.. boom box is rad..
And your photos are out of this world.
Great Job Knotty, your wagon has changed a lot.
Subscribed.
Man, that really put a big ol smile on my face:) Thanks for making my day, I just realized that I've only owned my wagon for a little over 2 months now. I feel like it's come such a long way, even though I really haven't done anything major just a lot of small things that I can handle. But I have learned so much over the past 3 months from just reading this site, that's probably the biggest transformation of all. When I first came to this site I didn't even know what the numbers on the tires mean, or what offset was. I didn't know the difference between Civic Wagons, Shuttles, Wagovans, Beagles, etc.. Heck I didn't eve understand the difference between a turbo and a supercharger.... I still have a lot to learn though till I shed my noobish ways.
And for my most recent addition....a new oil cap.
I'm gonna go see if I can get my fender mirror installed. I've really been wanting to get that on as I hate street parking without a passenger mirror.
You can grab them from Lowe's or Home Depot in the electrical aisle. Grab the 2" ones, they're $1 each. Tape the clips if you don't wanna scratch your wheels. Maybe you can spray them gold to match:)
I finally got an alarm installed yesterday, along with a new head unit and a 4 channel amp to power my 4 Polk coaxials. While my installer was in there I had him add a couple custom touches that I am loving. One is the install of the alarm light right in the middle on top of the heat/stereo cluster. I like it there as it's very visual.....blink blink blink.....back the hell away from my wagon jerk. I also had him set my stereo's iPod usb as well as a charging USB plug into an unused pop out panel to the right of my steering wheel. Nice and tidy, just how I like it. You can see what I mean better in this picture.
I also had him install a backup battery for my alarm as an added precaution. We tried to install my rear 6.5" speakers in either the rear door panels, or in the sides of the trunk but neither would work out that well. We decided that he is going to build me a box for my sub that will take up the space behind the rear seats, and in front of my rear strut bar. This will leave my trunk open for my dog and other things, plus then he will be able to mount my 6.5's facing upwards on either side of the top of the sub box. I'll carpet it to match the interior so it'll all blend together nicely, and I'll mount my sub amp under my drivers seat. The guy I hired is a mobile installer that I found on Craigslist, but he turned out to be nothing short of awesome. If anyone in the Seattle area needs help with their stereo, hit me up and I can put you in touch with Donato. Great prices, great guy, great work. Here is his work truck he showed up in.
Gettin busy
And did I mention that he can add power door locks?!? Geah!! Got all four power door locks installed for $150. So nice to be able to remote lock/unlock the wagon!
Now I just need power windows and I'll be set! Hoping to get the box built, sub, amp and rear speakers installed when Donato gets home from vacation in about a week and a half. Can't wait to finally have some beats in my ride. I'll probably dynamat a bit to keep things sounding clean.
Sorry I don't have any pictures of the install, my camera batteries ran dead. What I can say is that I ran into problems on the install but nothing that couldn't be overcome. I want to thank JesseCRX for the guidance on this install. He really gave me some critical info, and I truly appreciate it. The bracket that went on the bottom of the fender couldn't fit because the mirror was mounted so close to the fender wall that there wasn't enough room for the bracket to sit right. I had to grind it down to make it fit. Even when it was ground down it was still very had to get the spacers and nuts on the mirror bolts because they sat so snug against the fender wall that there wasn't enough room for the nut. I had to push the mirror inwards towards the motor with my forehead while trying to get the nut on with my two pointer fingers. It took me quite a while to just get that nut on, it was a real bitch to get line up correctly in the small amount of space that I had but in the end I got it handled. I used a step bit to make the holes and painted them to stop rust before installing the mirror. Really loving this mod as now I can parallel park and see what's going on. I was a little scared that the fender mirror would stick out like a sore thumb, but I actually think it matches the quirky wagon quite well. I think it sets it off nicely, and really adds a great touch.