Hello from a VX owner!

[1993CivicVX]

Yeah, thanks for reminding him Sigifrith.

[Danronian]

Originally Posted by Sigifrith

Tom shouldn't he do the water pump at the same time?

And the timing belt tensioner should also be replaced. Sometime you can get away with not replacing them, but if it ends up making noise later, you will regret it.

When doing the timing belt it's also a perfect time (if you're willing to take the time) to adjust your valves since having them adjusted correctly will help with the engine's efficiency at least slightly.

I also generally inspect and/or replace the accessory belts at this time (since they need to come off).

As for the brand of the timing belt...

If you will be paying a lot to get the timing belt and water pump replacement done, I would go with Honda parts since they will last the longest. If you're doing it yourself, I would go with something cheaper (since any other brand will be cheaper) But if you do pick the other brand, I wouldn't push off replacing it next for 100k miles, but instead replace it around 70 or 80k mi just to be safe it won't snap on you. I never hear of the Honda belts snapping or the water pumps going bad at anything less than 100k miles, but the off-brands seem like they tend to do it sometimes.

[Sigifrith]

Dan you have my car!

I tried to buy a Teal 95VX when they were new. Never could find one. My red 94 will soon be back on the road.

[1993CivicVX]

I found my car on craigslist again. Identical with 165,000 miles, a new o2 sensor, passed inspection, $2000, same blue as mine! Couldn't believe it. Posted not ten days after I first looked at mine (which was the day after it was posted on craigslist)

The guy at Advance Auto Parts came out and looked at my car when I asked him how much a timing belt was. He says "let's go look at your car" Of course he couldn't see the timing belt but he saw another belt and said "looks very new to me, can still see the lettering-- if it ain't broke, don't fix it!" basically he discouraged me from replacing my timing belt! Thought the guy would be happy to sell me a timing belt but I guess not....

[Danronian]

Originally Posted by Sigifrith

Dan you have my car!

I tried to buy a Teal 95VX when they were new. Never could find one. My red 94 will soon be back on the road.

I wish I would have been the first owner of my VX. From starting it's like in NY state, to later being owned in northern PA, this VX has quite a bit of rust repair already. The frame is very solid, with no rust anywhere, nor do the floors or doors have any, but when I get back to the US, and when the paint decides to bubble off of the car, I plan to buy some repair panels and make the car 100% solid and straight in the quarter panels like it was from the factory.

Other than the rust, the car seems to have been taken very good car of for having SO many miles on it. The suspension is tighter than any other Honda I've owned so far (most of it has been replaced), and the old motor ran pretty smooth (smoked a bit, but didnt take much oil at all), got great mileage, and I continue to use the old 242k mile tranny that only has one strange noise (which doesn't happen all the time, so I'm not worrying about it for a long time). But when the tranny does go bad, I have another two cx/vx trannies sitting at my house that both need some bearings to be good replacements.

There is one thing I was always wondering about the the VX when it was new...

How much more were they compared to the other hatchback trims?

[Danronian]

Originally Posted by 1993CivicVX

I found my car on craigslist again. Identical with 165,000 miles, a new o2 sensor, passed inspection, $2000, same blue as mine! Couldn't believe it. Posted not ten days after I first looked at mine (which was the day after it was posted on craigslist)

The guy at Advance Auto Parts came out and looked at my car when I asked him how much a timing belt was. He says "let's go look at your car" Of course he couldn't see the timing belt but he saw another belt and said "looks very new to me, can still see the lettering-- if it ain't broke, don't fix it!" basically he discouraged me from replacing my timing belt! Thought the guy would be happy to sell me a timing belt but I guess not....

I used to think people who worked at those places knew something about cars, but after dealing with them for many years, I've concluded that they know pretty much nothing.

The VX does seem the easiest to find in teal. Thankfully I found mine in my favorite 1995-only bg33p shade...though I also do like the lighter teal too.

With the timing belts on Hondas, you pretty much never want to leave one go beyond the 10 years or 100k mile limit. The best practice is to assume it was never replaced unless you have a valid receipt given to you by the previous owner. Good luck with your VX, and if you have any questions about any repair work your considering, just let me know. I've worked on all kinds of Hondas, so I should have advice on just about any question you have.

Good luck with that "new" VX.

[1993CivicVX]

Thanks Dan. I'll probably have many more questions.