379kCivic
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Ok so I just saw a beautiful 2nd gen Si a few hours ago and got me to thinking... What would you be willing to pay for a completely restored CRX Si?
I'm talking about showroom condition (or VERY close) materials that have either been restored or replaced with OEM quality stuff.
Suspension? Just upgrading to 2011 grade stuff along with comparable rubber
Engine? How about a VERY low mileage/refreshed D16? or even B16?
$8500?
$10K?
$12K?
The CR-Z is okay, But for less than half the price I'd easily take the restored Si. I think the only new car out there new that has the spirit of the 2nd gen CRX is the base Mini; and that interior is awful! I couldn't even get past that on a test drive a few years ago.
So lets assume that, like me, you are a CRX nut and wish you could travel back to 1988 or so and buy a brand-spanking new one! Short of doing that, what you would be willing to pay to get something close to that?
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Grace141
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Restoring a CRX Si to original condition would be a project based on emotional attachment to the car which would be great fun, I think. Showroom condition would require a perfect shell and the paintwork alone might start at $5k US. In other words, I'd never be happy with spending $12k US on a CRX Si project because I'd always find the flaws so I'd either find a driver or plan on spending big money.
A dealer in my area borrowed a local '91 Si and parked it next to a CRZ EX in its showroowm for the CRZ launch last year. The Si was a nice car but the paintwork had serious flaws and there were many parts which needed to replaced. It was a true driver which is what Honda meant it to be. A time warp trailer queen CRX project would be $20k to $25k, and the 2nd gen CRX is falling off the Honda parts rosters so Honda parts are getting harder to find.
I think I'd be more tempted to find a nice CRX and set it up for autocrossing or club racing.
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Potenza
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379kCivic wrote:
Ok so I just saw a beautiful 2nd gen Si a few hours ago and got me to thinking... What would you be willing to pay for a completely restored CRX Si?
I'm talking about showroom condition (or VERY close) materials that have either been restored or replaced with OEM quality stuff.
Suspension? Just upgrading to 2011 grade stuff along with comparable rubber
Engine? How about a VERY low mileage/refreshed D16? or even B16?
$8500?
$10K?
$12K?
The CR-Z is okay, But for less than half the price I'd easily take the restored Si. I think the only new car out there new that has the spirit of the 2nd gen CRX is the base Mini; and that interior is awful! I couldn't even get past that on a test drive a few years ago.
So lets assume that, like me, you are a CRX nut and wish you could travel back to 1988 or so and buy a brand-spanking new one! Short of doing that, what you would be willing to pay to get something close to that?
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The parts are very hard to find. My brother and I searched for a CRX for a long time, and there was one thing we noticed - almost every car was missing (or had broken) interior panels behind the seats. The "personal trunks" (storage cubbies) were always missing the lid, and the panel separating the personal trunk from the rest of the hatch and the rear shelf (hatch cover) were always broken or missing. A large part of why we ended up with the car we did is because it had all the rear interior pieces present and mostly intact. But you cannot buy these pieces anymore from Honda. If your seat material needs replaced (luckily ours is in good condition), you're looking at over $500 to replace the fabric on one seat.
The interior door panels are no longer available. The sun visors are no longer available. The list goes on. So as for getting Honda OEM parts, it won't be easy.
Regardless, to me it comes down to: No way would I pay the kind of money you listed. I think ultimately if you did the kind of restoration you are talking about and then tried to sell it, you would actually take a hit, money-wise. Think about paint work alone. I had spent $2000 on paint work on my del Sol (and not even a full repaint) just before I sold it for $4900. I probably could have sold it for almost that amount without having the paint done ahead of time, and it would have worked out a lot better for me. But I didn't know the paint was going to cost that much (and I didn't know I was going to sell it shortly after).
If this is your own project and you're doing it to keep a nostalgic CRX Si in your possession, I think it would be a great project. But in my opinion, it's no money-maker.
I've got a 1972 Honda 600 Coupe. Parts are... rare. The car is decently rare. But I don't kid myself that that means it's really worth anything. I'm fixing it up for my own pleasure and not expecting to get my money back from it.
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Grace141
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That's a good point about interior pieces. I've heard the story for Honda in the US is they keep parts in semi-production for a model series for ten years and then rely on warehoused stock from there. Once the parts are gone they're gone.
From my experiences with tinkering with a couple of cars over the years whenever I think about buying something unique (such as an early Saab 9000 that was available locally recently) the first thing I do is stop by my favorite auto parts store and ask about parts availabilty such as master cylinders and alternators. During the past ten years a couple of companies have stepped forward with remanufactured components for Hondas such as A/C compressors for '80s and '90s Accords but it's still hit and miss with Honda parts.
There are many decent cars that are parted due only to a lack of sources for replacement glass, suspension parts, etc. The first Honda cars that come to mind that are at risk are the Acuras from the '90s having the auto climate control blower motor failures. The cool part in my area is there is a Honda shop that is willing to swap late model Honda parts into older Hondas to keep them running. As long as a person has no dreams of winning concours competitions a lot of the older rust-free Honda cars might just stay on the road for several decades. Of all the old Hondas and Acuras, the CRX Si might be one of the easiest to keep on the road.
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379kCivic
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Thanks for all the input!
I guess my overall goal is to find an example that's as near to showroom condition as possible, and then possibly upgrade/restomod/restore from there (wherever there ends up being) understanding that finding some obscure plastic panel might cost me time and money to find on ebay or something like that.
So at the very least the plan is to have this as my weekend fun car and possibly a part time daily driver.
Thanks.
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TonyEX
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379kCivic wrote:
Thanks for all the input!
I guess my overall goal is to find an example that's as near to showroom condition as possible, and then possibly upgrade/restomod/restore from there (wherever there ends up being) understanding that finding some obscure plastic panel might cost me time and money to find on ebay or something like that.
So at the very least the plan is to have this as my weekend fun car and possibly a part time daily driver.
Thanks.
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Honestly, we once owned an 89 CRX Si.... and a 95 GSR.
If you really, _really_ want to restore an older Honda, start with the mid 90s GRS. Its' a much better platform to start with, if you can find out that hasn't been trashed by the kiddies, that is.
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LudegarH22A7
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I dunno Tony... Despite the GSRs having VTEC, I've never found the Integra driving experience to be quite as exhilarating as pushing a CRX in stock form.
I was lucky enough to find a single owner ’90 CRX Si (owner was a retired nuclear physicist) with all service records and even the window sticker. During the 20 years he owned the car, he'd only painted it once and installed Alpine audio and security.
When I was shopping this past summer/fall, my goal was to find a stock example with a pristine interior and no serious rust issues knowing that the exterior and mechanical could always be fixed or modified to be much better than stock. As Potenza alluded to earlier, the interior can be tough to restore and dependable parts are getting increasingly harder to find. The example I purchased was only void of stock floor mats and the infamous driver’s side seat bolster is worn.
My purchase price was pretty good but since I found it out of state, the price of transporting it nudged that up a bit.
Even though I am a huge CRX fan, I could never see spending an exhaustive amount of cash for one, not even for a perfect example. To be brutally honest, I would consider that to be the antithesis of what the CRX is all about.
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Trip
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FWIW - I spent about ~$4,000 on my 89 Prelude Si. I was lucky enough to find a one owner vehicle that kept it stock. The car was babied. The interior didn't need much work but the body was ravaged by PA winters and a ton of door dings. Most of my money was spent on the body work, under carriage, new Honda OEM wheels, replacing exterior badges and trim pieces. Thankfully the engine only needed some steering fluid lines and a few other similar items that had rusted through. The only non-OEM upgrades I've made was a front strut tower bar and upgrading the audio system (97 Accord head unit with CD changer controls, CD changer in the trunk, powered bass tube, new speakers.)
It currently has 91,000 on the odometer and is still a blast to drive. :)
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JeffX
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LudegarH22A7 wrote:
I dunno Tony... Despite the GSRs having VTEC, I've never found the Integra driving experience to be quite as exhilarating as pushing a CRX in stock form.
I was lucky enough to find a single owner ’90 CRX Si (owner was a retired nuclear physicist) with all service records and even the window sticker. During the 20 years he owned the car, he'd only painted it once and installed Alpine audio and security.
When I was shopping this past summer/fall, my goal was to find a stock example with a pristine interior and no serious rust issues knowing that the exterior and mechanical could always be fixed or modified to be much better than stock. As Potenza alluded to earlier, the interior can be tough to restore and dependable parts are getting increasingly harder to find. The example I purchased was only void of stock floor mats and the infamous driver’s side seat bolster is worn.
My purchase price was pretty good but since I found it out of state, the price of transporting it nudged that up a bit.
Even though I am a huge CRX fan, I could never see spending an exhaustive amount of cash for one, not even for a perfect example. To be brutally honest, I would consider that to be the antithesis of what the CRX is all about.
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I guess you could make a case for that - in stock form the GS-R was a little bit soft in the spring department and a little hefty, especially compared to the CRX Si. And the B18C was pretty nice but the REAL game changer experience to be had in the Integra was absolutely the DC2 Type R. That car was really something special.
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379kCivic
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Maybe I'm just stuck in the late 80's and early nineties...
But to this day I still believe the two cars that best embody 'Hondaness' are the 2nd gen CRX Si and the original NSX.
Sure, here in the states we only got the tame 108 hp d-series in the Rex; but the overall simplicity with which the Rex was executed in my mind was near genius.
And the search continues...!
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Grace141
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Trip wrote:
FWIW - I spent about ~$4,000 on my 89 Prelude Si...
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By the way, Trip, that's a good looking Prelude you have there.
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Potenza
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379kCivic wrote:
Maybe I'm just stuck in the late 80's and early nineties...
But to this day I still believe the two cars that best embody 'Hondaness' are the 2nd gen CRX Si and the original NSX.
Sure, here in the states we only got the tame 108 hp d-series in the Rex; but the overall simplicity with which the Rex was executed in my mind was near genius.
And the search continues...!
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Thankfully I can fix my own vehicles, but after awhile it gets frustrating. In the end you're still just driving around in a rattling 20 year old car. Every time I look at that Prelude from a distance (like Trip's, but after the MMC), I think "No one will ever make another car that looks like this again." Like a baby NSX, if I may exaggerate. And mine has a mechanical 4WS system. On a perfect day, the Prelude is great. And on a perfect day, the CRX is a pure delight. But you soon find out there aren't many perfect days. So despite the positives, it won't be long before I ditch these old cars for a Fit or CR-Z or other small, new, solid, reliable car. Something I can still enjoy, but without having to ever think about it.
May I ask, what is your daily driver now?
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379kCivic
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Potenza, I always loved those 4WS Preludes.
I hear what you're saying! But my goal, is to find/fix the CRX for weekend fun duties, not a daily. I want to have a decent but fun daily and spend my money on a couple (three?) weekend toys.
The current daily is '94 Accord LX 5sp sedan. The interior/exterior are in very good shape but the engine is very tired. I'm strongly considering keeping the Accord for my daily and swapping one of the 2.4L K's in. The car has zero squeaks/rattles and I still consider it the best-looking Accord design.
So unless something really blows me away, the plan is to just keep/upgrade the Accord for daily duties and spend cash for a couple (three?) fun weekend toys.
1. '88 CRX Si
2. 90's NSX
3. What if Mazda builds an RX7 that recaptures the spirit of the original?
4. Lotus Elise?
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Madddog
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Trip wrote:
FWIW - I spent about ~$4,000 on my 89 Prelude Si. I was lucky enough to find a one owner vehicle that kept it stock. The car was babied. The interior didn't need much work but the body was ravaged by PA winters and a ton of door dings. Most of my money was spent on the body work, under carriage, new Honda OEM wheels, replacing exterior badges and trim pieces. Thankfully the engine only needed some steering fluid lines and a few other similar items that had rusted through. The only non-OEM upgrades I've made was a front strut tower bar and upgrading the audio system (97 Accord head unit with CD changer controls, CD changer in the trunk, powered bass tube, new speakers.)
It currently has 91,000 on the odometer and is still a blast to drive. :)
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Seeing your car made me miss mine. I had an 89 Prelude SI; it was white with a black interior. I bought new in 03/89and sold it in 2005. Except for some dings, the paint was still in good shape(it was only garage kept from 11/99 to 03/05) and the interior looked good - just a little wear on the driver's seat. It only had 120K on it and the engine still purred. Sadly a year later the kid I sold it to decided to junk it; everything kind of went at once - the clutch, AC , power steering etc.
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revvin
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I've had two, I'll own another some day.
Best seats, best driving position, best view, I could go on all day about the virtues of that car.
Minty fresh car, Trip.
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Dren
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A friend of mine had a white 89/90? Prelude Si 4WS. It was a blast to drive. I had a few CRXs, the 90 Si was the most fun. I drove a GS-R last year for the first time and wasn't blown away by it. It actually seemed somewhat tame. I was left very unimpressed.
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BLK
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Trip wrote:
It currently has 91,000 on the odometer and is still a blast to drive. :)
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And I thought my 12 year old 9/10 condition coupe was something. Much applause to you.
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TonyEX
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Dren wrote:
A friend of mine had a white 89/90? Prelude Si 4WS. It was a blast to drive. I had a few CRXs, the 90 Si was the most fun. I drove a GS-R last year for the first time and wasn't blown away by it. It actually seemed somewhat tame. I was left very unimpressed.
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Huh? Did you rev it past 6000 rpm?
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DCR
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I saw this 89 at a Dodge dealer 2-3 weeks ago. The car looked new.
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