mojox20

i just picked up a 95 civic coupe ex as my new winter beater, so my tsx can sit the winter out. it needs some work so i thought i'd ask you guys for some help.

1.) the exhaust has a leak (loud) so im sure it prob needs a new muffler. should i stick with an oem honda or go el cheapo a la meineke?

2.) the check engine light is on......do you think it's becuz of the exhaust leak? or perhaps an o2 sensor, or something else?

3.) car shakes at about 80mph. im thinkin flat spots might have developed while the car was stored. plus it prob wouldnt hurt to get new tires and balanced.

4.) door handles are a little stiff, should a few sprits of wd-40 fix that problem.

5.) a litle rust on the body nothing major, should i just touch it up?

i think thats it for now. it was dark when i picked it up, so i didn't see everything. i'll add more if i can think of anything else.

thanks!

Dan Martin

Try the Car Talk section: https://acurazine.com/forums/car-talk-5/

mojox20

thanks for the tips

one more thing:

6.) power steering a little stiff but not totally dead. i think i heard some squeeling while turning.

JoesTSX

Sell it now, get out while you can!

jmathew34

1. if you can get under the car to make sure the leak is from the muffler, i'd check the whole exhaust system.

2. go to your local track auto / automotive shop and ask to borrow a odb/odb2 scanner tool, hook it up to the odb/odb2 port(usually right under the steering column) you should get the code that is being thrown out by the check engine light.

3. get the snow tires mounted and balanced, also check for alignment

4.

5. sand down the rust, and touch it up

jmathew34

might want to check the fluid level, and possibly get the belt inspected/tightened.

btw, how many miles are on the car? if greater than 90K i'd suggest getting the timing belt service done that way the mechanic will inspect the other major components and let you know what's up....

gdcwatt

I had a high-mileage 91 Si (which I kept for 12 years), which is a different animal, but there were things that I had to do to it every 6 months, when the car turned about 7 or 8, to keep it running smoothly.

The car would start running rough, and after a month or so the check engine light would come on. I think it was the O2 sensor, but I used to use 1/3-1/2 spray can of internal combusion chamber cleaner, which I would spray down the throttle body, with the engine running, and the car ran great for another 6 months. The original O2 sensor lasted all 290,000km, so try this cheap solution first. [It was also nice to clear up the crankcase-vented, oily mess that would build up on inside the throttle body, and I thought that it was probably similar crap that was getting by the aging rings, and messing up the O2 sensor.]

Concurrent with the above, I used to either check, or replace the rotor, or scrape the corrosion/build-up clean with sandpaper/screwdriver, and sometimes the 4 pick-ups inside the distributor cap, but I rarely replaced the cap.

Take a look at your spark plugs from time to time, but you can leave your wires if they're newer.

My Si hatchback was a lighter car, but frankly, I'd just delete that power steering belt, don't worry about the pump, and accept the added power as a necessary evil.

I used a 2" exhaust for years, and I never every considered an OEM exhaust as an option, for cost, or power.

TacoBellSauce

did you buy one for the wintertime to protect your TSX?
i jus bought a 2001 Nissan Altima GXE Limited Ed with 39k miles for $2500
i will be usin that as a daily driver and my shopping car during the wintertime
so now i got a TSX as a weekend/nice sunny day car
an altima as my everyday school/daily car
and a 2004 Honda Pilot EX-LNAV for those snowy days