New CL9 owner

[graphicgoose]

Hey guys,

I'm not new to forums or cars, but I bought my first Honda last week. I've actually been through a few cars over the last couple of years (FG XR6T, FG2 GT, VF SSV-R) but work situation has become a bit unstable and I wanted to get rid of my debts and start saving hard. So sold the big expensive car and picked up a single owner manual CL9 Accord Euro Luxury with 60,000kms on the clock. Now have no debt and a few grand savings, plus still a nice car. Black with tan leather, looks nice.

Car is in fantastic condition and has been very well looked after, drives just like a new car! Bonus was that it came with a set of Pedders coilovers from the previous owner, SCORE! Admittedly, they wouldn't be my first choice of coilovers, but I'm not complaining, given they were free. Also came with some aftermarket 17" rims. Again, wouldn't be my first choice...but they look alright so I'll just stick with them until I get sick of them.

Very happy with the car so far. Currently in the shop having some creature comforts fitted (Satnav, connectivity etc), so that will keep me happy enough cruising around town. Goes in for its 60,000km service next week and will have the engine flushed as the previous owner only had it serviced every 10,000km...not every year/6months. Had a proper inspection done on it though and it came up trumps. Only suggestions were for the engine flush (very very minor amounts of black sludge sitting on top of the engine) and new rear brake pads. Thinking I might replace all the rotors and pads though, get something a bit better. What's the best options for rotors and pads all round on these cars? Want some more bite and pedal feel, coming from my previous cars the brakes feel a little lacking in the CL9. Ideally would like pads that don't produce a crazy amount of dust and last a decent amount of time.

Anyway, here's some photos (everyone loves photos!)...just excuse the Carsales watermarks...haven't had a chance to get my own photos yet.

http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/05/26/743f1a6a67271f27b1a2700ff03348b5.jpg

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[Squalled]

Welcome mate,

Quite a list of cars you've had.

[graphicgoose]

Cheers mate.

Yeah...wasn't initially my intention to swap cars so regularly (had my previous cars for 4 and 5 years respectively)...but I had a bunch of dramas with each of the Fords. The GT I got brand new and had nothing but bad luck and troubles with it from day one. The gearbox also had an issue, in that it would grind going from 1st to 2nd and going from 2nd to 3rd under high load...several friends and even the foreman at the dealership tested it and agreed there was something internally wrong with the gearbox. However, Ford came back and wouldn't approve the warranty work as they "weren't aware of any issue that would cause that problem"...at which point I was just over it so traded it for the VF. VF was a great car and lovely to drive, didn't really want to get rid of it but just put me in such a bad financial position that something had to change and with the series 2 VF coming out later this year I was only going to lose more money on it the longer I kept it. So sold it off for the CL9.

So far I'm really enjoying the Euro. Really nice little cars!

[Squalled]

Wow! That sucks man. I had a friend of my Dad's who had an XR5T and he had a lot of problems with that.

Hopefully the bad luck doesn't come back with the Accord :) Do you have any other plans for the CL9?

[graphicgoose]

Yeah, I lost all love for that car by the time I got rid of it hey! The motor was fantastic, as you'd expect from a supercharged 5L V8...but the rest of the car around it was crap. Same as my FG turbo really, had to get the diff rebuilt and the aircon never worked properly, not to mention the rattles inside and the passenger door trim would pop off when you shut the door...top notch build quality...:thumbdwn:

I'm really hoping this CL9 proves to be as bulletproof as I've heard they are! Not really any plans at this stage, other than the rotors and pads. I'm intrigued by a short shifter...but the factory shifter really isn't all that bad, so not overly fussed. To be honest, I've never owned a vtec before...so not sure what can be done to these CL9's really. Either way, the intention was to get this as a cheaper car and not dump lots of money into it...so probably won't end up spending much money on it at all if I can avoid it.

[Squalled]

Geez. That's absolute rubbish. Haven't heard to much bad about them to be honest but now, wow.

Good on fuel, has decent power and torque for its engine capacity.

Generally people would go headers (PLM seems to be popular), catback with high flow cat (Invidia is excellent but pricey), intake (custom made or something like Injen), Bigger throttle body (J35 also seem popular) different VCT cam, Hondata tune. All that does come at a price though.

I'd personally just put an exhaust to get a nice sound. VTEC engagement is quite high on the K24 engines (above or roughly at 6000 rpm).

[graphicgoose]

Yeah, Ford customer service is shocking! They're great cars to get power out of, both the turbo 6's and the blown 8's...but the rest of the car around it isn't up to scratch unfortunately.

Yeah, it was a shock jumping in the Accord and seeing 700km till empty hahaha! And you're right, for the size of the motor it's plenty fun enough to boot around town.

YEah, the vtec is really high...up around 6,000rpm...would be cool if it came in earlier, but from the reading I've done it seems like it would start getting pricey to mod these things...which defeats the purpose of me buying myself a cheaper car.

[Squalled]

Personally an intake will make it a little hesitant and laggy down low (personal experience with my H22 Prelude). An exhaust would open it up a bit and give it a nice sound. Even just a catback would work well and give a nice sound.

Some people do say remove the intake resonator to get louder induction noise (doesn't seem as laggy with a standard intake arm and box).

Install of a Mugen intake which does show the resonator removal: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ehzJRL2jrGM

[graphicgoose]

Cheers for that. I'll see how I go, but for now I'm happy to just enjoy the car as is.

[Squalled]

No worries man. Enjoy!

[Jasemas]

Hey man congratz on the car
Good to see you got a JAPANESE made car
You cannot beat that qaulity

A couple of heads up for you
-Rear brake pads wear prematurely - due to the hand brake being tightened too much (desgin fault)
Check handbrake tension accordingly (pun there)
-Power steering hose recall - sometimes they leak and fires may happen (there's a recall on this)
-Current TAKATA airbag fiasco (your car needs to have its airbag replaced) inform local dealer - but don't get overwhelmed
-The manual euro's tend to burn oil (not the autos) check em regularly. Look at changing the PCV valve.

Overall a great car to have!
On the brakes depo
Maybe look at some RDA/DBA rotors
Also i hear great things about QFM (QLD friction material) pads

[graphicgoose]

Thanks man. Yeah, I've read so many good things said about Hondas and their reliability...Not to mention what I've witnessed from friends and family who've owned them over the years.

Thanks for the heads up and tips, I'll be sure to discuss them with the dealership when it's in for its 60,000km service next week.

[amant02]

Welcome!

I love the euro's and cannot understand why honda is removing them from their line up.

Looks like good buy specially them KM's minty.

My tip for any honda is keep an eye on how much oil shes eating. Specially after spirited driving.

[graphicgoose]

Thanks. Yeah, seems a shame they're dumping the model.

Cheers, I paid $13,800 for it...which for Perth, the kms and the condition it's in seemed fairly reasonable. It's been very well looked after, feels and drives like almost like a new car!

That's a really good one to know, I'll make sure to keep an eye on the oil level. Is it just the PCV valve that's the issue with burning oil? Or is there something more to it? Or just inherent in the vtec engines?

[antony]

Its a great looking Euro,although the stock alloys look much better.

They are brilliant cars,and you will love it.

The reason that they are being discontinued is that the CL9 and CU2 were always built in Japan in both left and right hand drive.

The new one,called Acura TLX in American markets,is built in USA,and only in left had drive.

Its a huge pity,as I will have to source my next car from Toyota or Mazda...

[Squalled]

Generally any VTEC engine will burn oil. They're renowned for doing it.

Personally my H22 Prelude burns a lot, but that's just a common thing with with H22's anyway.

[graphicgoose]

Cheers for the info guys. All good to know. Definitely a shame they're discontinuing them! Ah well, if I have a good run with this car then I might try pick up a low km CU2 in a few years time...see how we go.

[Squalled]

They're awesome cars.

Just service them on time and fix any issues that arise as soon as possible and they'll last a long time.

[antony]

Everyone who I know that had a CL9 has upgraded to a CU2,so theres a very good chance that will be your next car...

[graphicgoose]

Ok guys, got a coupe of questions I'd like to pick your brains about.

Firstly, had the car inspected by a vehicle inspector before buying it and he gave it the all clear and said the little bit of sludge I noticed in the oil cap and engine wasn't anything to worry about, just get the engine flushed and change the oil. Another mate who's fairly familiar with these cars said the same thing, but just thought I'd throw up a coupe of photos and see what you guys reckon.

So this is AFTER having the car serviced by my local Honda dealer and they apparently did a flush. Would you guys feel this is worth being concerned about? Or just flush the motor and change the oil a few times over the coming months?

Oil cap:
http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/06/06/efa6517b9e5039ca7dd075f7ab5b3266.jpg

Inside engine:
http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/06/06/0fdba600dad47f1d996dd21bd30c4a12.jpg

http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/06/06/aa38274868f0b2fcc66d654798f3d602.jpg

There's no sludge on the dipstick, the oil is nice and clean on there when I pull it out.

http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/06/06/a1e9064ebb5f197daa6c0a9eada11654.jpg

Also, had a stereo fitted to the car (coupe of digital amps) and have since had the battery warning light coming on on the dash, even after having my trickle charger attached to the car all night and battery being full in the morning. Is this most likely to be a dead cell/old battery in need of replacing? Any suggestions for a decent replacement (deep cycle?) battery for these cars?

This is the battery that's in it, if that helps:

http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/06/06/241f08da1152795509cb9c1346e06005.jpg

Oh and the front pulls to the right when I'm braking, which I've read elsewhere on here can be a symptom of screwed rotors, which mine look to be (big line/gouge in the middle).

Also need to replace the rear pads, so I figured may as well do all rotors and pads at once, give it a bit more bite. Ordered some slotted DBA T3's for the front and some of the older style slotted DBA 4000's for the rear (they were cheaper than T2's), now just need to sort some pads. From what I've read on here and elsewhere QFM HPX or EBC Redstuff are pretty good options? Does anyone know the part numbers for the HPX pads or the redstuff for my car and suggestions where to buy them online from?

[graphicgoose]

Well as some follow-up, honest mechanic mate of mine had a look today and reckons the oil isn't anything worth worrying about, still keen to hear what you guys reckon...but gives me a little more peace of mind at least.

New battery went in today also, Optima D51R-T2. Would have liked to get a D35 in there but not enough room unfortunately. See how this one goes anyway, hopefully it's up to the task.

[Squalled]

I would agree with your friend about the oil. Just keep on monitoring the level and also the colour change if it gets any darker or goes black (it shouldn't go black with the kms on it anyway).

[amant02]

I had the same thing when I bought my DC5R.

I just cleaned under the cap, flushed using Oil flush. I used liquid moly stuff.

It didn't come back.

[Zak]

I swear I've seen that somewhere before in Sydney.. Unless it was a twin of your car, haha.

[Fredoops]

So this is AFTER having the car serviced by my local Honda dealer and they apparently did a flush. Would you guys feel this is worth being concerned about? Or just flush the motor and change the oil a few times over the coming months?

Nothing to worry about, find a non-honda-dealer mechanic, use a good full synthetic oil, they are pretty good at cleaning out the engine.



Also, had a stereo fitted to the car (coupe of digital amps) and have since had the battery warning light coming on on the dash, even after having my trickle charger attached to the car all night and battery being full in the morning. Is this most likely to be a dead cell/old battery in need of replacing? Any suggestions for a decent replacement (deep cycle?) battery for these cars?

... or the alternator, which is a common failure point.



Oh and the front pulls to the right when I'm braking, which I've read elsewhere on here can be a symptom of screwed rotors, which mine look to be (big line/gouge in the middle).

or it needs a good wheel alignment


Also need to replace the rear pads, so I figured may as well do all rotors and pads at once, give it a bit more bite. Ordered some slotted DBA T3's for the front and some of the older style slotted DBA 4000's for the rear (they were cheaper than T2's), now just need to sort some pads. From what I've read on here and elsewhere QFM HPX or EBC Redstuff are pretty good options? Does anyone know the part numbers for the HPX pads or the redstuff for my car and suggestions where to buy them online from?

contact www.gslrallysport.com, they sell QFM's. I brought mine from them (pretty sure they are the same people that operates brakesdirect.com.au)

[graphicgoose]

Nothing to worry about, find a non-honda-dealer mechanic, use a good full synthetic oil, they are pretty good at cleaning out the engine.

Yep, won't be going back to Honda dealer anymore...was only more so as I wanted to get a new logbook all sorted at the same time (which still hasn't turned up) before I went elsewhere.



... or the alternator, which is a common failure point.

So turns out you were half right. After replacing the battery the battery light still came on. So went and saw an auto sparky mate who had a look and turns out when the stereo shop had tried to upgrade the cable between the alternator and battery they'd not done the nut up tight enough again on the connection and it'd fried the connection on the alternator.

http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/06/10/8aa35c62f7ed5ee22c1ebe05a4bf1e2a.jpg

Mate fitted a new alternator and connection on the cable and seems to be all better now. Hit the stereo shop up about it and they've been good about it and asked me to send through the invoice for the alternator and work I had done (I've been a long term customer over the years).



or it needs a good wheel alignment

Maybe, it does have asymmetric tyres also which could make it pull more. I want to wind the coilovers down a little anyway, so will get a wheel alignment done when I do that.


contact www.gslrallysport.com, they sell QFM's. I brought mine from them (pretty sure they are the same people that operates brakesdirect.com.au)

Cheers for that, gave them a call and had a chat about my options and ended up ordering some Remsa pads, as they reckoned they'd be the best suited to what I plan on doing with the car. I'll provide some feedback when they arrive and are fitted.

Had the car detailed today. Basically an entire days polishing and Modesta Glass paint protection put on it and, considering its age and a few little blemishes aside, it's come up fantastic!

http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/06/10/aad14c72a76dc4a57fd4170e864fc137.jpg

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[Addictions]

Good work, I've also just picked mine up on Sunday. Seems like yours came with a few bonuses where mines dead stock.

[graphicgoose]

Good work, I've also just picked mine up on Sunday. Seems like yours came with a few bonuses where mines dead stock.
Cheers mate, I'm really happy with the work Dale (OCDetailing in Perth) did on the paint. I've been a long term customer and he always does an amazing job!

Sometimes it's better getting a stock car, that way you can do the things you want yourself, rather than potentially having to settle as a result of what a previous owner has done. In my case I'm fairly happy with what's been done...although I think I'll change the rims to something like Vossen CV3 style, wind the coilovers down a bit and throw on some darker tint.

What are the details of your new car? The few little issues I've had aside I'm actually really enjoying this car, fun little thing around town...and much cheaper to run than my previous cars.

Also, could a mod please move this thread to the Accord Euro specific section, figure it's turned into more than a simple introductory thread now.

[Fredoops]

theres a facebook group specific for Accord Euro's in WA

search "WA Accord Euro Club" if you wish to join.

PS: I do ecu reflashes

[graphicgoose]

theres a facebook group specific for Accord Euro's in WA

search "WA Accord Euro Club" if you wish to join.

PS: I do ecu reflashes
Great, thanks for that. Have sent a request to join the Facebook group.

Could you please PM me some details about the reflashes you do? Cheers bud.

[Squalled]

ECU Reflashes. Yay! Now we're talking :D

Cars looking really good! A detail works wonders.

[graphicgoose]

Thanks Squalled, yeah the car came up mint! Again, considering the age and the fact that the bodywork isn't 100% perfect, I'm pretty stoked with how it's turned out! The thing is like a mirror! And the best thing about the Modesta Glass paint protection is how easy it makes to clean the car! I've had this stuff on my last few cars and it's generally just a case of hitting it with a high pressure cleaner and it's mostly clean. Quick foam with a foam lance on the pressure washer, a rinse and she's pretty well clean. Great stuff! And obviously the less rubbing you can get away with the less likely the paint is to get swirls etc. So that's a win in my book.

Seriously considering the ECU reflash haha...forums are a bad idea for me!

[Squalled]

Thanks Squalled, yeah the car came up mint! Again, considering the age and the fact that the bodywork isn't 100% perfect, I'm pretty stoked with how it's turned out! The thing is like a mirror! And the best thing about the Modesta Glass paint protection is how easy it makes to clean the car! I've had this stuff on my last few cars and it's generally just a case of hitting it with a high pressure cleaner and it's mostly clean. Quick foam with a foam lance on the pressure washer, a rinse and she's pretty well clean. Great stuff! And obviously the less rubbing you can get away with the less likely the paint is to get swirls etc. So that's a win in my book.

Seriously considering the ECU reflash haha...forums are a bad idea for me!

It came out great! I'd love to get my Prelude detailed but the paint isn't the best :(

Yeah the forums did the same thing when I first joined them. So many ideas and temptations.

[RenzokukenJ]

Cheers mate, I'm really happy with the work Dale (OCDetailing in Perth) did on the paint. I've been a long term customer and he always does an amazing job!

Sometimes it's better getting a stock car, that way you can do the things you want yourself, rather than potentially having to settle as a result of what a previous owner has done. In my case I'm fairly happy with what's been done...although I think I'll change the rims to something like Vossen CV3 style, wind the coilovers down a bit and throw on some darker tint.

What are the details of your new car? The few little issues I've had aside I'm actually really enjoying this car, fun little thing around town...and much cheaper to run than my previous cars.

Also, could a mod please move this thread to the Accord Euro specific section, figure it's turned into more than a simple introductory thread now.

I saw this car on their FB page I think?


Great, thanks for that. Have sent a request to join the Facebook group.

Could you please PM me some details about the reflashes you do? Cheers bud.

ootz do you do fn2 reflash too heheheehehehheheh