And the winner of dreamer of the year is... Part 2!

Wibbs

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118565500#Comment_118565500

I found the EK9's I drove gutless TBH. The engine was either doing impressions of a Kei car with asthma or screaming like a banshee but you had to work hard to keep it there. One example I drove with 1.8 transplant completely changed the car for the better. Handling wise the two are about the same. In fact on paper the EK9 with exactly the same suspension setup, a slightly longer wheelbase, lower weight and an actually seam welded chassis is/should be better. the DC2 is certainly not a much superior handling car. At best there's a blonde one between them. The DC5 is inferior to both on this score. The base integra feels more 'sporty', more coupe like and I reckon that's 90% of the perception difference, but that's all it is.

And nostalgia is in it that's for sure. I mean an E-Type Jag is slower than many SUV's but there's more to it than that. There's also feel and dynamics and a well driven EK9 would worry quite a few modern hot hatches and would blow hot Renaults five years either side of it into the weeds. Hell on the 'Ring, which is not exactly the place for a tinny NA 1.8 90's Jap car with a 130 odd mph top whack, a DC2 is faster than a Clio V6, GT86, 964 911 Carrera RS and a Clio RS 200 EDC.

The best rear wheel drive car I've ever driven was a 1960's Lotus Elan. Unreal levels of feel and pointability that made any modern BMW M car feel like a fat man dancing. Now the Beemer by every single other metric will be many many lightyears better, but I could 100% understand a BMW owner having an old Elan sitting in the garage for a weekend blast and paying for that.

cpoh1

Maybe im getting cynical in my old age (or hindsight is now 20/20) but after nearly a decade driving and owning a CRX mk2, CRX del sol (in hindsight one of my favourite hondas), EK9 (for only a few months), DC2 and DC5 I just dont get the fascination and associated high costs with them now.

On the ring or a nice circuit im sure theyre a great experience but honestly I have 15km of twisty backroads as part of my commute and my Passat CC GT 170 with DSG is just as enjoyable and as quick as any of them on that section of road. People will be shocked by a statement like that, but its true.

I pulled my DC5 out of storage after 9 years and had great intentions of making it mint and keeping it for weekends but after a few decent spins I just couldn't fall in love with it like i had before so i sold it. As a weekend car an N/A fwd honda just makes zero sense to me and in the 20k bracket its madness. They just dont feel special to drive.

cpoh1

Pointless post but my two favourite hondas were:

Best overall package: DC5. Faster and with some subtle tweaks better handling than the DC2. Used it as my daily for 4 years and put 100k on it flawlessly.

Most memorable: CRX del sol. Such a novelty with the rear window, clip off roof and unique styling. Didnt handle as well as the rest but roof off vtec made up for it.

Wibbs

I have noticed among mates as we've gotten older that in general torque becomes more prefered over horsepower and they prefer more comfort, especially when it comes to NVH. With those who like their pies low cars are not liked. The most extreme being one lad who once was mad for Lotus, where he had to grease himself up to get into the things, but who now loves big German iron with all the trimmings. And fair enough.

An EK9/DC2/5 would leave a Passat for dead(more torque, same power, 300kilos heavier with a meh chassis), but you'd be doing prison speeds and it would take a lot more concentration, but the thing is I would actually agree with you; for a bit of safe enough spirited driving without going nuts the Passat would be far easier to live with and clearly better day to day. There's a reason why the lairy JDM stuff nearly always has a dozen plus previous owners. People don't tend to hang onto them they way they would a classic Beemer for example.

Though I disagree with this; even with tweaks a DC5 isn't close to what can be achieved, or indeed out of the box with the superior unequal length wishbone setups of the earlier Hondas. Honda went costcutting, like they did with the replacement for the EP3. The rear setup is OK, but doesn't have the passive toe in under braking of the earlier stuff. The 5's are well known for bump steer and woolly feel and many make them even worse by lowering them, cos that's what you do for 'handling'. Not(or you have to know what the hell you're changing and doing). Keep the suspension stock, replace tired bushings, run more negative camber at the front and add a stiffer rear antiroll bar. That's about your lot. They are a much more modern car though, more comfort, better fit and finish, far less creaky and IMHO still look pretty current. The others are clearly products of the 90's and early 90's at that. The EKs and DC2 look like an old car, the DC5 doesn't to nearly the same degree.

As for popularity of the old stuff, there's a load out there that would sell their first born for Toyota AE36's and they go for strong money. The price of Supras has gone insane. BMW E30 M3's are what now, a hundred grand? It's a minority of guys into their model of older/classic car, but decent survivors of those old cars get harder and harder to find each year so prices naturally go up. It's just the nature of these things.

Less so with Ireland though, as that minority of guys involved are of an even tinier minority. In the UK you might have a couple of thousand petrolheads wanting an EK9 R/Skyline/E30 M3 and with the readies to hand over(in the US more like tens of thousands), here in Ireland you might have a couple of dozen and half of them likely already have something similar in a shed somewhere. Those guys selling 90's JDM stuff like the Skyline or the Civic are on a hiding to nothing especially at those prices. I'd reckon that Civic is actually 'worth' about 14-15k tops in the Irish market. That is you'd actually sell it at that, but even then your phone wouldn't be lighting up. Fashion comes into it too. 20 years ago with any trick JDM stuff you'd be lucky to be able to catch your breath before your phone would go nuts with calls and offers of cash. Since then the scene has moved on to RWD and German(mostly). And that's before we get to cheaper credit to buy new. So the market for the Jap stuff is older guys nostalgia for the most part and a current bubble in the market, much of it driven by the US and youtube. I've noticed quite the number of recent JDM imports showing up on donedeal at strong money. Guys thinking 'values' and what sells in the US or UK or Japan is what will sell here. Rude awakening time I reckon.

It's the same old story; worth is what somebody is willing to pay for something, but if your phone isn't ringing you've got the price and your market wrong.

Titzon Toast

https://www.donedeal.ie/cars-for-sale/honda-civic-2001/30298986

146k miles, 1.4, looks rough. €7.5k.

Wibbs

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118567194#Comment_118567194

Maybe the covid anti vaxxer types were right. There's something in the vaccines that causes madness... 😂

I seem to remember that particular car has been here before and for sale for ages.

passatman86

He had that silver ej civic, a wine ej civic and a surf board for sale on the one add i linked last year for something like €12k.

I do like a ej, ek civic but not at them prices for a 1.4

CianRyan

I know a rising tide floats all boats but that yoke is so full of holes that's it's not going anywhere.

CianRyan

wotzgoingon

That's madness for a 1.4i. He is off the head.

Wibbs

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118567306#Comment_118567306

I could understand 15 or 20 years ago when someone would get a 1.4 and then customise it, drop in a bigger lump, put a wing a jumbo jet would be proud of on the back, an exhaust that sounded like a flatulent elephant and then put a list of trick parts in stickers on the front wing to give thieves a shopping list. Though even then a guy like that would go that route because the 1.4 would be cheap. Today? I'm not seeing it. What would you do with it? Keep it bone stock and then what? If you tart it up whatever you spend won't be reflected in the value(very rarely is) and even if you went nuts and faithfully copied at great expense the top of the range model, it wouldn't be a real one.

passatman86

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118567555#Comment_118567555

Stop crushing my dreams with your real talk that makes sense. I can still hope to find a cheap ej9 and do it up, cant i - tell me i can.

I have a serious itch for civic number 10 now lol

Wibbs

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118568397#Comment_118568397

Oh you have it bad Sir. Stage 8 Jdmitis. I'm afraid it's incurable, but with proper treatment survivable. 😁

passatman86

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118568586#Comment_118568586

Thanks for the laughs

CianRyan

It's soul crushing, I'd love another MX5 or even an S15 but Christ on a bike, the prices for anything decent just don't make sense anymore.

Less so for MX5's but I don't want to spend 6k on something I'll use for going sideways.

Wibbs

Though MX5's are at least still reasonably priced and you're more likely to get what you pay for. In Japan you can bring your car back to Mazda and they'll restore it to like new(for a price) and I can see them extending similar to the rest of the world. America for a start where they're very popular. So spares should be more future proofed. Something like an S15 or a Civic that's going to be more of an issue as the years pass.

CianRyan

Nissan are still producing parts for most S Chassis cars, not sure on Honda though.

Yeah, Mazda and Suzuki are pretty much the only reasonable entry to a Japanese "sports" car these days. Even at that, I paid €1750 for my Swift and haven't seen once similar for less than €3500 in the last few months. They drive great but are as bare bones as they come, not exactly luxurious by anyone's standards. 😅

Titzon Toast

https://youtu.be/SK-wxJRWbs0

Nismo are running a similar scheme in Japan. They'll return your R32 or R33 back to factory fresh for big money. It's some job though.

EDIT.

There's a much more in depth video floating around of the rebuild process. I'll try and dig it out later. It's pornographic.

Working class heroes

https://www.donedeal.ie/cars-for-sale/toyota-avensis-2004/30310969

€5k lads, don’t get caught up in the stampede 😁

johndaman66

^^ Our favourite comedy show wheeler dealer Boyce from Only Fools and Horses is selling that one....Explains the high price tag. You'd be hard pushed to find as clean a 04' Avensis as most of them from that era seem to be beaten to a pulp by now. Still asking price is insanity of the highest order.

hoodie6029

The floor mats haven't even been cleaned! Christ on a bike...

MEGA BRO WOLF 5000

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118566683#Comment_118566683

I hear ya. Having had an eg and a delsol with the same b16a I thought the ek9 would be similar...it wasn't. It sounded nice and revs out to the same redline but it just didn't do anything for me. Really needed a bigger engine.

passatman86

Really

https://www.donedeal.ie/cars-for-sale/toyota-carina-1990/30177170

hoodie6029

He cut the price from 12k, it's almost 25% off now. Send this one over to Bargain Alerts

MEGA BRO WOLF 5000

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118592281#Comment_118592281

He either got zero phone calls or 100 telling him what a bell end he is.

dubbrin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118540420#Comment_118540420

Oogling bikes on FB market place and came across the Evo elsewhere.... feel like I'm investigating a crime. Warrants it with the asking price i suppose.

See the last photo in this ad https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/5045298982157025/?ref=browse_tab&referral_code=marketplace_top_picks&referral_story_type=top_picks

Titzon Toast

https://www.donedeal.ie/cars-for-sale/honda-accord-type-r/30348564

UK reg, no history, 10 previous owners, 173k miles. 9 grand.

passatman86

Accord gone at 9k. ?

@Titzon Toast did you pick up one of these.... Got me grandad one in dealz - he has the same car/colour as yours 2.2 vtec... Couldn't pass it when i seen it lol

Titzon Toast

I did indeed! They were selling them in LIDL last year and I went around scooping them up for myself and my kids.

Can you post a pic or two of your grandad's Lude please?

EDIT. Absolutely no way that Accord sold for that price!

passatman86

This is the only pic i can find right now - got it from my Facebook messenger . Its his car in Spain and it spends time under a car cover then a sun cover. Pic was taken about 6 months ago. Engine is 2.2 vtec, the grandad is 75 years young lol

Hes not sure who or where done the black stripe, was on it when he bought it