How long will you love your 4th gen?

Okay, sorry if this is a long read but pot>me right now, so I might babble.

How much do you love your 4th gen, and how much is too much?

I'm going into my 6th year of owning my Ceeblic, and I'm forgetting what life is like without it. I broke a timing belt about 3 or 4 months ago and have since been driving a Mazda 323 hatchback to get me back and forth from work.

The Mazda is basically the same car as mine in form, minus tilt wheel, 5 speed stardard, variable wipers and about 80hp. It takes regular gas wich is cheaper, and gets about 100 more Kms to the tank than my Civ. Its $165 a month cheaper (60%), and only cost me $600 to begin with.

But I miss my car a lot. It cost me $100 to store it for the winter, and I'm scared to know what its going to cost to get back on the road plus alll the additional costs of driving it normally. Its 14 years old, and I think its cost me over $12Gs just the cost of the car and mods. But now I need a timing belt, so oil pump and water pump too while I'm at it. Why buy all that for my 1.6 block when I can do it all to a 1.8 for better effects? And I need a tranny in the near future too.. So I'll need a good one with an LSD, and light flywheel and good clutch. But HAsport has the cable to hydro conversion, so I could use that and get a newer tranny.. And then I need to finish my suspension, and so on and so forth...

So, I'm wondering what you guys think? How far have you came? How far will you go with it? Am I crazy, or do other people have it as well?

Overall, I'm happy with it a lot and I miss it. Its gay, but I dream about driving it a lot now that I'm not able to. I finally have it looking the way I want it to, and its so fun to drive. I usually think I'll be an old man and just have this perfeted 4th gen, I think they're great, but it makes me wonder if I'm nuts and need to snap out of it and move on.. :yugosmili

Anyone feeling me, or am I a total moron for even wasting ten minutes of my life posting this?


CN: Missing car and not having it making me wonder if I should stop blowing money on it because I'm crazy in love and not thinking straight.

haha, i'm always stuck between modding the civic or saving the money up for a newer car. Sure, saving up for something else is the logical and least expensive way to go, because if you put a few thousand dollars into the civic, it's still a 14 year old car, with old car problems and parts starting to wear and tear and break, eventually costing lots more.

But who said it was about the money?

Many of the people who own and mod these probably fell in love with the bodystyle and driving such a fun, small compact car that has lots of options for upgrading, etc.

Almost everyday, many times a day, i question whether or not it's worth it to put money into this older car. I love the look, the way it handles, even though it could use some more power (a lot more power..lol). Just hafta take it one step at a time and see where it takes us. Where we'll put our money and where our heart is could be one in the same, or two different things.

But, i can probably guess that the only people who hate these cars have never driven them, or they are import haters (or both) :) I'm really not ever sure if imma mod the thing, i have my list, but money is also hard to come by...but i do know that i have the tuner bug, and i WILL mod a car, whether it be the civic, or the next import waiting for me to take a hold of the steering wheel and drive.

Car modding is a lifestyle, not a religion.

I got mine because it was sitting on the side of the road for sale. I like it, I'm not deadly attached to it, if something happens to it I wont really even skip a beat, just keep going.

:werd: I am wanting to get rid of my car. I like it and all but it just isn't for me.

I had my first 4th gen for about 2 years.....my second one for 2 years and counting.....and I also have a 3rd....and Ive had it for a while now......but I dont plan on selling my hatchback.....Ive had it for 2 years.....and have 15,000 invested.....whats the point....I dont owe anything on it, Ive had newer cars....but I just find my 4th gen nice to drive, and reliable....its got new suspention, new body pannels....its now rust free, new motor, new seats/interior, new stereo...and fresh paint....so what else is there to replace.....if i get a new car then I will want to do the same.....then I have a $20,000 new car with $20,000 invested.....so now I have a $40,000 car thats not worth more than $10,000........I just dont see the point in selling.

-Brad

Of all the honda's i've owned my current hatch is by far my first love in life. I tend to put other things aside in order to put more money towards my car, I wear my shoes longer and scrub stains from my worn jeans. I eat roman noddles and rock the dollar menu for cheap meals so I can save a few extra dollars for my car.

I too am not driving my car right now due to my meeting with a deer. Everyone thought I was going to trash my shell and do my swap in a different car. But to get it fixed is like 900. So I figured I'd never find another nice si shell like mine for 900 or less, so I decided im going to fix it, I wanted to get it painted this summer anyway. I threw my b16 in it just to give me more motivation to get it fixed.
I don't look at the money I spend on my car a big deal, because its my favorite thing in the whole world. I treat it like my girlfriend. LOL.

I've got about 5k into it and plan to put in more.

yea, i hate not being able to drive my car, just recently it was the hole in the gas tank, it was down for liek 4 days... that sucked. I dont know what im going to do at the end of next year (since im planning to No-op it cause of smog). Ill be buying a replacement car while i let my hatch sit til i move outta cali. Thinking about getting a 4 door, or maybe an Si hatch hehe. we'll see when the time comes cause i might find a way to smog it by the end of next year. but if i dont get it smogged its going to get somewhat restored, prolly pull the engine and build it up for the turbo, do some body work etc. either that or ill just spend money on the new 4g i get hehe.

Damn... I go for weeks at a time without driving my hatch, other than moving it in and out of the shop to move stuff around.

I've had my CRX for over 2 years now, and I've loved every minute of it, even when I hate it. Peopel are always like, damn dude you need a new car. I guess slammedcivicsi said it best. Why would I spent $20,000 on a new car, that's going to be completely stock, probably slow, and then I'll end up having the same problems, AND have to pay full coverage insurance, car payment, and probably not be able to work on it myself.

I see myself keeping my CRX for a long time, even when I have enought money to waste on a new car, I'll still keep it as a project car. I think the greatest thing I keep modding my CRX is for the joy of taking a 14 year old car and beating the crap outta a lot of newer cars. Then when you can beat most V8's, it's worth getting up in the morning.

i've had mine for 2 years as well and plan to keep it for a lot longer afterwards, who knows? i had a dream lastnight where i tansformed it into an all fiberglass 9 second racecar and had 3 other 4th gens parked in my driveway as well, i tell u, if i had the room and got rid of these vw's chevs and fords in my driveway, i would have 3 more 4th gens. i definately want a crx, i'm looking for a shell at the moment right now, i have a full acura interior i can put in it and either my 1.5 or my 1.8 and just have something else to drive around thats jacked up for the winter, but then it comes back to insurance, i'm gonna get killed with it if i have one of these cars, i dont understand why insurance for a 14 year old car is so much and i get get like a 95 cavalier and its half the cost i'm paying now. i think the hatch i have right now, is the car i'll be buried in most likely. i'll prolly never let this car go. too much time and effort into it, too much money as well. like someone else stated, why spend like 40 grand on a car when u can only re-sell for 10? its not worth it to sell it, might as well keep it

I remember when a I started looking for a new car after my El Camino got wrecked. We went and I saw it and just had that feeling that I knew it was mine. When I got it it had 15" Enki's, intake, and some NGK plug wires. So like most young kids with a Honda the first thing I wanted were some bigger rims and exhaust.

First rims: Sold 15"s for $300 and bought 17" white 5 spoke exels for $950 with Kumho Ecstas
First Exhaust: Power 1 exhaust that was too big to come off the right side so it come out from under the passenger side rear. $70
Then: I got a little boom in the back and was ready to roll. $500

Then something hit me and I decided to mod it a little more. I got into a minor accident and the guy left and I only had liability. So the whole front was screwed up.

Second rims: 17" Exel 5 spokes gunmetal. $550
Second exhaust: Custom header back system $300
Carbon fiber hood: $400
R33 Skyline front: $250
Z3 fenders: $175 (before they got really cheap)
Carbonfiber tail's: $120 (my stock ones broke and yes I like them!)
CRX console swap: $40

Repairs:
New radiator: $120
New Dizzy: $200
Rotor capr and button: $15
MSD rotor cap and external coil: $90 (seco is expensive, but get warranty)
Had gasket and head swapped: $200
New plugs: $36
Water pump: $26

Then the engine crapped out. So now it sits waiting for the transplant. About to get a Y8 swap. Mods so far:
Y8 block with bored .02 over: $175
JE 10.5:1 c/r pistons: $430
JE Rings: $90
Eagle H beam rods: $300
Balanced crank: free with purchase of bearings
Main and crank bearing: $60
Y8 head already port and polished: $220
Bottom end put together: $200
Water pump new: $20 (gotta love ebay)
Timing belt: $35
Bottom end gasket kit: $50
Top end gasket kit: $95
Custom turbo manifold and t28 turbo: $300 (got a good deal from a copany just starting out.)
Turbosmart RFL blow off valve: $150
Deltagate Wastegate: $190
FMIC: $300
450 cc injectors: Free!

Still needs: Headgasket ($38) oil screen gasket ($3.50) Intercooler pipes ($60) SAFC2 ($220) 15" Rotas ($???) Plug wires ($45) After that who knows...

My point is yeah its a lot of money, but the car will be the way I want it. And it will still be way cheaper than a new car (and kill most the new cars might I add) Ok now this got long so I will shut up.

you are crazy SiZ. but so am i, and a bunch of others. there are generations before us. as i get older i realize we are another generation...the next generation is already here. i can tell you right now that high school kids of today are doing much different things than we were doing 10 years ago. and yes, i had a 4th gen a decade ago in high school :loser: i was in school, it was a stockie. ask anybody in our parents generation and they will say the same thing "we built cars differently in our day"

i've had many 4th gens slip thru my hands, none have i been attached to like my 89 si. i have sunk a disgusting amount into it. i still have a disgusting amount to go. and when it's done i'm not going to want to daily drive it, especially in the winter. my dad constantly tells me "what good is a car if you can't use it?" i used to tell him "but i do use it and i've never had to worry about a car payment"...i can't possibly say that now, it's been sitting since august.

so what good is the car to me? i have spent a lot with a lot more to spend. after it's finished i'll have maybe 4-5 mos i can drive it. so....what good is it?

it makes me happy. just knowing that even though i'm not driving it at this very moment, it's still mine. if i really wanted to i could start it at anytime and go. it's the driving experience that my car gives me that makes it all worth while. all the drama that it brings is what makes the difference between driving a stock car and a car built to suit the driver. anybody can buy a car and drive. it takes a sick, i mean special kind of person to love a modified car.

i'd like to take a moment and say....
"hi! my name is Lady, and i'm a HONDA-holic" :wave:

Thinking about getting a 4 door

i have a sedan you can buy for cheap....you just need to come up and put the engine in so you can drive it home :grinno:

well for me ive had my car almost 7yrs now, and for the last 2 of em, ive been trying to install this b16 with an auto trans. suffice it to say, ive spent soo much money trying to get this contraption to work, that ive all but given up on my old girl.

it may be time to move on, im 23(tomorrow:)) and im a big guy(6'2 275) so the tiny crx is just too small. i will be greatly disappointed when i have to give her up, it has been my only car since i started driving.

unless i can find someway or someone to install this motor, and fabricate whatever needs to be fabricated, you may see a shell and motor combination on ebay soon.

my accord has treated me well, especially with power everything, i dont know how to even go back to a car that doesnt even have power steering!


i think a pickup truck is in my near future, but i will stay tried and true to the honda family. its been a long ride, and i will be sad if i have to pack the crx up.

What troubles are you having with the B16? YOu have a 91 right?

trouble is it doesnt fit, there are no mount kits around for the AT b16, so only custom mounts will suffice. however i just stumbled across a shop that said they can do the work, the fastest automatic b16 crx will live and will destroy all competition, ok maybe not all.

Why didn't you just swap it to manual? Would be easier and cheaper.

Greg, buy mine.

Damn Siz dont get rid of it. If you said u have the chance to throw a 1.8 in there then GO FOR IT. Do it right! You wont have any problems.Especially if you hardly do anything to the motor. Maybe upgrade cams , bolts ons and hondata ;) My boy thought EXACTLY like you except his honda was low 11s. He got rid of it because he had too much problems with the tuning. One day it runs fine then the next day it bogs crazy. He got sick of it and sold it after he put his blood and sweat in for 3 years. He drives an S2k now but still. I would never get rid of it if you had it for that long. I got rid of mine for a good reason. That piece of shit rust bucket was getting on my nerves and i need money to move anyways. Eitherway i'm still debating if i should get me another rex but first i gotta get me a new car :)

wow..... you guy's really need to get out more.lol.j/k

you know i always live buy the saying you only live once. if you don't do what you want to now, you will think back later and say damn i wish this and wish that. so just doit be broke and have fun!!!

shake that ass (_Y)....(Y_)....(_Y)....(Y_)....(_Y_)

I'm sort of having a debate with myself. I have a 91 CRX Si, stock engine with 187k miles, except my problem is that I don't have any money. Currently in high school (private) and trying to save up for college. I'll probably have enough saved up for college by the end of school year. Then I want to work all summer as much as possible, hopefully will end up $5000. I would really like an MR2, because it's RWD and will handle a lot better than a CRX. However, I could just put a K20 in my CRX for that much, but it will still be FWD.

mr2's are ok, but i'd rather have a CRX

i got out of high school in may, and i didn't feel like going to college, so i got a job and some cash flow to work on muh honda

my stock engine has about 203k miles now? It still runs nice, just need a tune up - the d-series lasts forever :) if you don't have enough money, then why buy an mr2? Just keep the crx and mod it bit by bit, as you get some cash. That's what i'm going to do.

I figured that if i saved all the money i got from my job, it'd take me at least 8 months to save up enough to buy a USED car, not even new. Then again, a 4 year old car wouldn't be too bad. But if i wanted one sooner, i'd be making huge payments since i have absolutely no credit rating yet. The honda is perfect because, no monthly payments (except insurance and gas, as with any car), and i can mod it as time goes on. Kinda like the cell phones u pay as you go.

So, basically, i can save a little of what i make from work, spend the rest on the car and other necessities, and after 8 months have an awesome civic that i like and that suits my personality and that has enough power to satisfy my urge to floor the gas pedal...

or i can save my money...and after waiting 8 months i'd still have a stock car. Sure it'd be a newer car, but it'd still be stock, with the same insurance and gas payments. B o r i n g

4th gens 4 life!

^Well, and Mr2 wouldn't be much newer (91-95). Also, the reason why I want RWD is because I'd like to go to a race track and race it there. I know of a track 30 minutes from my house, and I don't think that a CRX would be able to compete with an MR2.

it could with a lotta engine work ^_^

but RWD would be very nice to have - mr2 turbos are nice

And here I thought I was alone in my delimma...

I've had my Civic for almost 6 years (damn! didn't realize it had been that long!), and she is NO WHERE NEAR where - I feel - she should be. That frustrates me to no end. It always seems like something comes up & the Civic gets pushed lower on the list of priorities...

I have toyed with the idea of selling her (even more so lately), but I honestly don't think I could. I've put too much into her, and have too much left to do, but I still can't help wondering if it's all worth it...

Not to mention my increasing dislike for the "import scene" as a whole, but that's another subject altogether...

A lot of you brought up excellent points about why we should keep our 4g's, and they're the same ones that prevent me from getting rid of mine.

CZ-R - Exactly the same as myself. Too far to turn back, but looking back I realize I've gone too far.

The thing is now, it looks satisfactory, it handles, accelerates and brakes satisfactory. It pretty much does everything good enough for me, that another car of equal dollar value wouldn't do for me.

So, I guess I can't wait to see what comes of my car this year again. Every year it just gets bigger and better, and most people in this thread have hit the nail on the head. A few in here (you, mellow, ami, and a handfull of others) seem like they love 4Gs as much as myself and have came a long way..
So, I guess its just a little tough love for the car that I miss a lot.

love for the 4g is the only thing that keeps us going :) if it wasn't for that, how many of these cars would still be around?

And I thought I was alone?

I've had my hatch over a year and a half now and it still is a car of promise. I'm still tyring to find all the things most people don't really worry about (crx visors, crx headrests, rear wiper) all because I want it to be unique. I don't want to go to some meet and find that these other kids have something I don't have, so I get the odd things. Then it turns heads and soon they're asking how did you do that. :) I love the feeling and it makes everything worth your time.

Which brings up another good point. These cars may be old, but they still pack a serious punch in the tuner market. They are versatile, light weight, sporty with bullet proof engines and look better as they age. Have you ever noticed that about honda's? The older they are, the better they look.

I've considered getting another civic, but being able to do what you can to these cars is just plain awesome. And if I do get another car in the future, I will surely keep this as a car that I will still be fixing and moding for years to come.

"The older they are, the better they look."

I never thought of it that way, and you're absolutely right :) the body style is sweet, and not so curvy like the newer cars. The sedan is a little more boxy but its sweet :P

I dont know about that statement... have you seen some of the really old hondas?

^ lol, true...but we're talking about 4th-gens only

i have always been in your situation Siz, that was when i bought the daihatsu charade GTTi but then after working on it for 3 months to get it on the road and getting no where near where i wanted to i sold it and bought another 4g but the best one in the EDM market, its better the devil you know.....

i look at it like this, with the car i have now , its quick ,handles,brakes,looks how i want , and i KNOW whats wrong with it

whereas if i bought another car i would have to do the brakes, wheels exhaust, filter, lower, repairs, and yes it may be a little quicker but i wouldnt know exactly what "needs doing" to it in repairs,

so i have decided to keep mine and just repair what needs doing

(mines going in on the 20th of jan :) )

ok ive finally broken done and realized i cannont do this AT b16 swap myself. someone asked why auto, because occiasionally my mom needs to use my car and she cant drive stick, and i figured since the car was auto before how hard can it be to swap another auto in its place.

Let me tell you, this was the hardest thing ive ever done, i highly suggest noone and i mean noone follow in my footsteps, if you want a fast automatic, sorry to say but buy a Camaro or a trans-am V8, my friends stock auto TA ran a 13.6. with all the thousands of dollars invested into my swap, i cant give her up when im this close, so im turning my baby over to a real shop with ASE mechanics to finish her off. hopefully by the end of feb. she will have all her quirks worked out and running like the champion she always was.

ok ive finally broken done and realized i cannont do this AT b16 swap myself. someone asked why auto, because occiasionally my mom needs to use my car and she cant drive stick, and i figured since the car was auto before how hard can it be to swap another auto in its place.



Here mom, go take my JDM b16a powered CRX and pick up some milk.:biggrin:

hahaha funny you should say that , my dad borrowed my VT to take my nan home , and when he came back he said "it goes alright doesnt it, i had your nan screaming down the road lol"

all i said was " i hope the engine was bloody warm" lol

I'm sort of having a debate with myself. I have a 91 CRX Si, stock engine with 187k miles, except my problem is that I don't have any money. Currently in high school (private) and trying to save up for college. I'll probably have enough saved up for college by the end of school year. Then I want to work all summer as much as possible, hopefully will end up $5000. I would really like an MR2, because it's RWD and will handle a lot better than a CRX. However, I could just put a K20 in my CRX for that much, but it will still be FWD.

Look at the aftermarket for an MR2 and compare it to a CRX. Also the parts are going to be a lot more expensive when you break stuff. But I would also love to have an MR2.

Why don't you just fabricate your own mounts? For what that shop is going to charge you you can buy a wielder and make the mounts. After that keep the pattern and market them.

mmm automatics rule :)

My aunt used to drive my cousens chevelle with a big hood scoop and everything to the grocery store on occasion. People would stare like "what the hell.."

wowa! long time no post! anyone remember me? guess not many lol..
I'll hope to love my 4th gen forever. No matter what other cars I will own I always keep the Civic next to it if I can.
Crazy? maybe, I don't care. 4th gens just have a little place in my heart :D

Man, this is my second 4th Gen, and there is no way in hell that I'm getting rid of it. I do have a kid and a wife, so I'm looking for a 2nd car, but this one I am keeping for a while. I have driven the newer ones, but for some reason this one is more fun to drive than the rest.

wowa! long time no post! anyone remember me? guess not many lol..


wowa! is right!!! its my favorite 1.6i owner. :wave: how the heck are you?

wowa! is right!!! its my favorite 1.6i owner. :wave: how the heck are you?

Hey Amy! :wave: The Civic and I are fine :) How are you?
And where the hell is moppie? He still ows me a SiR rear wing.. :wink:

shhhhhh! or he might show up :uhoh: :grinno:

This is the 14th Civic I've owned - and the only one that I can't concieve of selling - ever. I plan to restore it to as close to showroom condition as I can get it - but will mod up the engine internals.

I have 280,000kms on the factory B16A and it's still going strong... a full rebuild inc performance parts should set me back Au$5000 including a piggyback ECU, ITR cams etc.

So the EF9 SiR will become a permanenrt fixture and I'll pick up a second project as a daily driver :)

/me waves to bracer

wowa! long time no post! anyone remember me? guess not many lol..
I'll hope to love my 4th gen forever. No matter what other cars I will own I always keep the Civic next to it if I can.
Crazy? maybe, I don't care. 4th gens just have a little place in my heart :D


Damn welcome back! :) :wave:

Thanks for the welcome! Good to see you are alll still here.
That goes to show that the 4th gen Civic is timeless. Perfect thread for a come-back ;)

wow bracer i remember you too man, welcome home.

howdy bracer :wave: hows your site going?

Even more oldschoolers! :wave: this is fun lol :icon16:

The site is going ok, hits don't really drop through the years. I'm guessing the same goes for 4thgenerationcivic.com? I wonder how the hits will be in a couple of years. Which brings us back to the thread topic, how long will people love their 4th gen?

brace i dont know you but hi lol :P

all of us 4g enthusiast keep the love for our cars going

I love my 91 EF. I will drive it till it rots.

The site is going ok, hits don't really drop through the years. I'm guessing the same goes for 4thgenerationcivic.com? I wonder how the hits will be in a couple of years. Which brings us back to the thread topic, how long will people love their 4th gen?

just about to reach 229,000 unique visitors. i'm sure my hits have dropped off. my health has been getting the best of me lately...i haven't put up a new civic of the month in a couple of months. bah, people will live. it's only 1 section of many on that site.

the site is still good, lots of tech tips and DIY write-ups, and pics :) it's the first site i looked up when i bought my civic ^_^