Honda Car Forum

All

Sadly my unmodified car won't pass inspection until it gets $2500 worth
of body work done to its rocker panels; nevertheless,the car runs great!

I feel it's worth more than the $50 the guy at the body shop is offering
me to unload it.

What would you do?

On Mon, 07 Apr 2008 14:50:11 -0400, Dave Skipper
<das216@NOSPAMMYMAMMY.net> wrote:

>All
>
>Sadly my unmodified car won't pass inspection until it gets $2500 worth
>of body work done to its rocker panels; nevertheless,the car runs great!
>
>I feel it's worth more than the $50 the guy at the body shop is offering
>me to unload it.
>
>What would you do?

If you did $2500 worth of work to the car would the car be worth more
than $2550? If yes do the work, but I don't think so. With a dealer
retail of less than $1000 it does not pay to do the work.

ray <spammers@do.not.reply.com> wrote in
news:3m0lv31ire1pj33lukm1j73ikr321i6i6r@4ax.com:

> On Mon, 07 Apr 2008 14:50:11 -0400, Dave Skipper
><das216@NOSPAMMYMAMMY.net> wrote:
>
>>All
>>
>>Sadly my unmodified car won't pass inspection until it gets $2500 worth
>>of body work done to its rocker panels; nevertheless,the car runs great!
>>
>>I feel it's worth more than the $50 the guy at the body shop is offering
>>me to unload it.
>>
>>What would you do?
>
> If you did $2500 worth of work to the car would the car be worth more
> than $2550? If yes do the work, but I don't think so. With a dealer
> retail of less than $1000 it does not pay to do the work.
>

the true value is what it would cost to obtain another "great running" car
in similar condition,but that would pass inspection.

Why can't you pop-rivet on some new rocker panels yourself?
cut away as much of the rusty metal as possible,sand and paint what's
left,then rivet the new panels to the remaining sheet metal. Then paint
them to match. Get underneath and spray on some undercoating.


--
Jim Yanik
jyanik
at
kua.net

On Apr 7, 2:50 pm, Dave Skipper <das...@NOSPAMMYMAMMY.net> wrote:
> All
>
> Sadly my unmodified car won't pass inspection until it gets $2500 worth
> of body work done to its rocker panels; nevertheless,the car runs great!
>
> I feel it's worth more than the $50 the guy at the body shop is offering
> me to unload it.
>
> What would you do?

If you spend the $2500, it'll either be worth $1,000 or be priceless
(to you)...... And pop-riveting on new sheetmetal?? I'm assuming the
rockers are structural, so that doesn't sound like a real good
solution.

OTOH, there aren't any more CRX's being made, and they are cool little
cars. You haven't said anything about the rest of the car's condition.
If you spend the $2500 and it's not in great shape, it could be worth
it to a ricer.

Dan D
'07 Ody EX
Central NJ USA

I think any solution here is going to be an annoyance, so
you have to be motivated.

Honda-tech.com has a fair amount of discussion of folks
trying to fix these panels with riveting, various putties
and epoxies, and welding. See for example:
http://www.honda-tech.com/zerothread?id=881836&page=1 .
OTOH, the rocker panel areas may be structurally unsound
(may fail when a jack is placed underneath). Hence, as you
probably know, the inspection failure. I am not so sure a
cheap fix would let me sleep at night, besides.

To get more money for it, I think your best option would be
Ebay. I see a lot of CRX's going for parts there, typically
for a few hundred dollars. Certainly shop around there for
some idea of what you might be able to make on the car.

You could also considering purchasing a "shell" for yourself
(body only; no engine) and swapping your CRX's engine into
it. Shells seem to go for under a thousand dollars.

Of course, finding a buyer or seller near you is always
tricky. Still, the turnover seems high at Ebay.

Check your yellow pages for auto wreckers, then call and see
if they have a lot of imports. See how much they would give
you for your car. Or: I often run into a few CRXs (tops) at
any large wrecker yard. Chances of finding a complete shell
are slim-to-none. But you might be able to coordinate with
the body shop to cut out parts of an old shell and use them
on your CRX. Again, see honda-tech.com for examples.

For the record, how many miles are on your CRX?

Updates welcome! As others say, these are popular little
cars.

"Dave Skipper" <das216@NOSPAMMYMAMMY.net> wrote
> Sadly my unmodified car won't pass inspection until it
> gets $2500 worth of body work done to its rocker panels;
> nevertheless,the car runs great!
>
> I feel it's worth more than the $50 the guy at the body
> shop is offering me to unload it.
>
> What would you do?

"Elle" <honda.lioness@spamnocox.net> wrote in
news:V3MKj.12847$yD6.7696@newsfe08.phx:

> I think any solution here is going to be an annoyance, so
> you have to be motivated.
>
> Honda-tech.com has a fair amount of discussion of folks
> trying to fix these panels with riveting, various putties
> and epoxies, and welding. See for example:
> http://www.honda-tech.com/zerothread?id=881836&page=1 .
> OTOH, the rocker panel areas may be structurally unsound
> (may fail when a jack is placed underneath). Hence, as you
> probably know, the inspection failure. I am not so sure a
> cheap fix would let me sleep at night, besides.

good points.I was thinking of some states that fail cars if they have rust
holes in the bodywork. Even patching them with metal tape gets them past
the inspection.

I know Florida and the southern states still have a lot of CRX's running
around. We don't get much rust here,unless you live near the seashore.
Here,the paint,plastic and cloth goes first.

--
Jim Yanik
jyanik
at
kua.net

"Jim Yanik" <jyanik@abuse.gov> wrote
> "Elle" <honda.lioness@spamnocox.net> wrote
>> I think any solution here is going to be an annoyance, so
>> you have to be motivated.
>>
>> Honda-tech.com has a fair amount of discussion of folks
>> trying to fix these panels with riveting, various putties
>> and epoxies, and welding. See for example:
>> http://www.honda-tech.com/zerothread?id=881836&page=1 .
>> OTOH, the rocker panel areas may be structurally unsound
>> (may fail when a jack is placed underneath). Hence, as
>> you
>> probably know, the inspection failure. I am not so sure a
>> cheap fix would let me sleep at night, besides.
>
> good points.I was thinking of some states that fail cars
> if they have rust
> holes in the bodywork. Even patching them with metal tape
> gets them past
> the inspection.

I read you about how little fixes to improve appearance are
possible. Yet right now, for example, I do have concerns
about the jacking points on my own 1991 Civic. It was driven
in the Northern U.S. for about half its life, and the jack
points are corroded/ing. I have to start getting used to
jacking at the control arms or front and rear points.

> I know Florida and the southern states still have a lot of
> CRX's running
> around. We don't get much rust here,unless you live near
> the seashore.
> Here,the paint,plastic and cloth goes first.

I am annoyed that my Civic's sills (the equivalent to rocker
panels?) cannot really be replaced properly except by
welding. Tegger talked to me about it, along with some posts
at Honda-tech.com . So I contemplate (dream, really) of
buying a shell and switching engines or similar. (Plus I
have this wild idea that I must switch at least one engine
out before I die or get too old to be able to handle it
physically, or my life will be incomplete. :-)) ) I think
if I happen upon something at a wrecker yard or in the local
used car ads, I might go for it. 'Cause I like knowing my
Honda's engine, suspension, brakes, and electrical system so
well. It seems a pretty easy car to keep running. Knock on
wood one day the engine (rings first?) will fail.

"Elle" <honda.lioness@spamnocox.net> wrote in
news:RaPKj.12851$yD6.12544@newsfe08.phx:

> "Jim Yanik" <jyanik@abuse.gov> wrote
>> "Elle" <honda.lioness@spamnocox.net> wrote
>>> I think any solution here is going to be an annoyance, so
>>> you have to be motivated.
>>>
>>> Honda-tech.com has a fair amount of discussion of folks
>>> trying to fix these panels with riveting, various putties
>>> and epoxies, and welding. See for example:
>>> http://www.honda-tech.com/zerothread?id=881836&page=1 .
>>> OTOH, the rocker panel areas may be structurally unsound
>>> (may fail when a jack is placed underneath). Hence, as
>>> you
>>> probably know, the inspection failure. I am not so sure a
>>> cheap fix would let me sleep at night, besides.
>>
>> good points.I was thinking of some states that fail cars
>> if they have rust
>> holes in the bodywork. Even patching them with metal tape
>> gets them past
>> the inspection.
>
> I read you about how little fixes to improve appearance are
> possible. Yet right now, for example, I do have concerns
> about the jacking points on my own 1991 Civic. It was driven
> in the Northern U.S. for about half its life, and the jack
> points are corroded/ing. I have to start getting used to
> jacking at the control arms or front and rear points.
>
>> I know Florida and the southern states still have a lot of
>> CRX's running
>> around. We don't get much rust here,unless you live near
>> the seashore.
>> Here,the paint,plastic and cloth goes first.
>
> I am annoyed that my Civic's sills (the equivalent to rocker
> panels?) cannot really be replaced properly except by
> welding. Tegger talked to me about it, along with some posts
> at Honda-tech.com . So I contemplate (dream, really) of
> buying a shell and switching engines or similar. (Plus I
> have this wild idea that I must switch at least one engine
> out before I die or get too old to be able to handle it
> physically, or my life will be incomplete. :-)) )

My very first car was built from two Triumph Heralds(4 seat 2dr sedan),one
whose motor had broken a rod and went thru the block.I had to swap the
motor with Dad's help and guidance,and then the driver's door,convertible
top and trunk lid.
1200cc's and slower than a VW,but a fun car that I drove all the way out to
Denver(from Buffalo).It really didn't have enough power for the mountains
and high altitude of Denver.USAF auto hobby shops were a valued asset!
I've also pulled motors on a Cadillac and an English Ford Anglia.



--
Jim Yanik
jyanik
at
kua.net

"Jim Yanik" <jyanik@abuse.gov> wrote
> My very first car was built from two Triumph Heralds(4
> seat 2dr sedan),one
> whose motor had broken a rod and went thru the block.I had
> to swap the
> motor with Dad's help and guidance,and then the driver's
> door,convertible
> top and trunk lid.
> 1200cc's and slower than a VW,but a fun car that I drove
> all the way out to
> Denver(from Buffalo).It really didn't have enough power
> for the mountains
> and high altitude of Denver.USAF auto hobby shops were a
> valued asset!

Ha, a USAF auto hobby shop is what I need. :-)

I shall continue to consider swapping engines/bodies.

On Mon, 07 Apr 2008 14:50:11 -0400, Dave Skipper wrote:

> Sadly my unmodified car won't pass inspection until it gets $2500 worth
> of body work done to its rocker panels; nevertheless,the car runs great!
>
> I feel it's worth more than the $50 the guy at the body shop is offering
> me to unload it.
>
> What would you do?

Gimme a friggin break. The ****ing piece of shit car is 20 goddam years
old, dimwit! Get rid of it and drive something decent fer chrissakes.

Take the $50 before he reduces it to $25.


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