Took the little guy out for a ride today.....does a ton of just running in the driveway but decided to take it out on the road for a bit.

Considering that it got less than 200 miles on it from it's Aug 2014 to Aug 2015 state inspection.....I figure the ~30 miles I put on it today to be a big deal

 

Changed the oil for the first time since buying it. The oil life indicator said I had 60% life left, but it had been 2000 miles since we bought it and, if you go by the sticker on the windshield, the selling dealer had put the wrong weight oil in (5W-20). Temps are expected to drop below zero this week.....so fresh synthetic 0W-20 and Purolator Pure One filter and she's ready for it!

 

Replaced the bushings in the drive side front lower control arm.

This was the last of it -- I have now replaced all rubber and ball joints in the entire front suspension, including tie rod ends.

 

Had a 2014 Accord Plug In and the best thing I did was get rid of that thing.
The car was ok but the Service Departments destroyed any credibility I had in Honda service. Complaining to corporate resulted in a gift card to use at my local Honda dealer. Too bad. The Honda dealers in Torrance and Gardena CA are not concerned about doing the job right. I have a 2016 Ford Fusion now and not regretting the move to Ford. Not one bit.

 

On Sunday I re-installed the aftermarket radio with a different trim kit to get a cleaner look. I changed from DIN to ISO format.

I didn't know this until now -- DIN format involves the metal cage that you insert into your dash trim and bend the tabs to hold in place, then the radio slides in and out of the cage for easy removal. The problem with this design is that it results in a surface mount of the radio faceplate, which doesn't look very stock. You also use the trim ring that comes with the radio since it is designed for surface mounting.

In constrast, the ISO format involves side plates to hold the radio, using screw holes on the side of the radio. Not only does this secure the radio chassis better, but it also allows you to pull the radio more into the dash to obtain a flush mount of the front of the radio faceplate. The ISO dash kit comes with it's own trim ring which has a standard size opening which fits the faceplate nicely ... and the trim ring is flush with the dash.

So, although you may see DIN and ISO used interchangeably, they are two different things ... and ISO looks better

-- John

 

A couple of weekends ago I replaced the transmission side motor mount with a new Corteco unit that I found on wholesale. Corteco is a very reputable OEM aftermarket brand for German cars, so I figured it would be a safe bet.

The original mount did look compressed, so I was hoping I would detect a noticeable reduction in noise and vibration. Unfortunately I did not.

I still have the drives side mount to replace ... if that one is collapsed then it will still be transmitting a lot of noise and vibration to the car.

Fyi I don't have a problem necessarily with engine noise and vibration -- I was just hoping to eliminate the small amount of it that is there ...

 

Today I replaced the left rear door latch ... the plastic cover on the rotating latch mechanism had broken off over time, leaving the metal latch lever exposed, and making nice "clink" sounds whenever I opened or closed the door.

Found a used OEM unit on eBay pretty cheap, just put it in, and the noise is gone.

-- John

 

Replaced the oil filter housing o-ring, new front sway bar end-link bushings, new valve cover gaskets, I have the distributor O-rings and the power steering rebuild o-ring kits and a new ignition coil.

 

Finished up the drain and fill X's 3 on the transmission. Had it rebuilt with 221k on the chassis and motor. Just passed 236k and she's running silky smooth. Next on the agenda is replacing ALL front end bushings, including motor and Trans mounts.

 

I installed seat rails, from extendmyseat, for the passenger seat of my wife's 2014 Accord.
I very rarely drive my wife's Accord but I quite often ride in the passenger seat.
For me ( at 6'2") I never had enough leg room in the passenger seat and after an hour of riding my legs would ache from being cramped up.

The rails from extendmyseat increased the leg room more than 4 inches.
Now I can stretch out my legs and they no longer ache on long trips.

Installation was straight forward, very quick and easy, however, from the day of my order to receiving the rails was just over 11 weeks.