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95 Vx / K20a2 tear down / Build UP thread! HUNDREDS of pics!!

168K views 1K replies 112 participants last post by  Thorgs 
#1 ·
:cheers: Welcome to my 95 Vx / K20a2 build thread :cheers:

Started: January 02, 2007
1st drive: September 15th, 2007.
Completion: When she's at 375+whp :wow

Major props to these 2 guys (SneezinCD5 & pipfrost) :bow:
Would of never made it to the 2007 ATL Nopi Nationals if it weren't for them :hug :w00tz :number1

pipfrost: My father who took 2weeks away from work and his life at home to help me build this hatchback in 11 days from the ground up. Yes, my dad is AWESOME!! :worship:

SneezinCD5: Responsible for laying the midori green paint. Also, helped the few days before the Nationals. A lot of you know him, his work, and reputation behind it all :ninja :number1 If you don't know him (Jason) or his work....check it out > > HERE!!

**Click the pics for larger view**

March 30, 2008 - Commerce, GA; ATL dragway Nopi show

Left to Right:
Fuster_Cluck - Best of Show (Honda)
1_fly_si - 2nd place (Honda)
SneezinCD5 - 1st place (Honda)
Brad - 1st place (JDM)






2007 Nopi Nationals ATLanta Motor Speedway

Me & pops Sept. 15th, 2007 - - - - - Me & Jason Sept. 16th, 2007 - - - - - - - - - - - - - 2nd place

:hugs: :hugs:



:ninja Updating the glossary as I get time :ninja

**Table of contents**
Page 1: (118 pics)
-- Bumper, hood, fenders, headlights, doors removed
-- Dashboard removed
-- Heater core, A/C blower removed
-- firewall mat removed
-- SRS unit removed
-- Windshield wiper system removed
-- Rear hatch interior wire tuck
-- Dome light removed,
-- Looking to relocate fuse box into dash
-- Some of sneezincd5's work (paint)
-- Door breakdown & glue removal w/ dry ice (failure)
-- Complete A/C system removed
-- Wire tuck begins
-- Disconnecting everything from the motor to pull shortly.
-- Motor pulled & Exhaust removed
-- Horn assembly removed
-- Hood latch and cable removed
Page 2: 40 pics)
-- Interior wiring removed
-- 1st K series part purchased --> Karcept's shifter kit plate
-- Charcoal canister removed
-- most brake lines removed
-- EGR valve removed
-- Master cylinder removed
-- Fuel filter removed
-- Clutch reservoir removed

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Page 55: 7 pics

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Page 57: 33 pics

Page 60: 11 pics

Here's what I am working with:



I took about 20 measurements of the hood to fender, fender to door, rear quarter panel to door, etc.... I want everything back the way it was before removal :p



Most bolts went back in the thread on the chasis and the rest will be stored like so:



It was tough at times, but I did it all myself. Well, me and buddy Jack....



How she sits at the end of day 1:
(Love my xenon house lights :number1 )



Thanks for looking :)
 
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#2 ·
$hit's dirty/nasty underneath :eek:



The car came with this security key thing. Caused me a headache one night last year so it's coming out!!

(Quick story about device) -- Went out of town last year and left the hatch in the employee parking lot at the airport. After riding the work bus back to the car from the terminal, could not find/remember what I did with the key. So, for several minutes I looked through the car in case I hid it and also emptied my luggage to not find it. So, then I had to push the car around the small parking lot and after the 4th time got it to crank by push start. PITA!!! Car is not daily driven so I should not need it. Maybe I'll put it on ebay since I can use every penny for the project.

This is the key that you take when exiting the car:



Not much security when all someone has to do is re-splice the wire :crook: If I were to keep it, I would try to move the splice further back out of the way:



This is inside the box for the device. The ground is NOT grounded (unless I pulled it out when bringing the box down).



Is it even wired correctly? Power / Starter is just splicing the wire??



All that crap is coming out:



Completion of Day 2:



Thanks for looking :)
 
#4 ·
Here we go Day 3:



Look at all those leaves. That entire system was disgusting!!



Looking better now:



On to the firewall mat. It was a PITA on the drivers side up around the steering column. I got very frustrated because I had to get my hand up in small areas with a razor blade to help cut parts of the mat

Fedex cheered me back up:





Long a$$ extension FTW :p



After the firewall mat was removed which BTW weighs 8 pounds, I started on the SRS system.

Couldn't "unscrew" the bolts so I drilled them out with my brand new drill:



SRS unit for those who've never seen it. My first time seeing one :p





Next was the windshield wiper system. Don't plan to drive in the rain and Rain-X works wonders :D

Just 4 10mm bolts holding it along with a wire harness to disconnect:





Cleaner and of course weight reduction is always good :number1



Day 3's work:



How she sits after Day 3:



Almost time to start prepping for interior paint :clappy
 
#6 ·
Day 4 is a wrap.....

Today I only had a few hours since I went over to a friends house to help move some sheets of wood to his attic from garage. I did manage to tuck the hatch wires, remove the dome light, and took a look at relocating the fuse box.

Not only will a wire tuck make the interior look better, but also easier on me when I paint the interior.

Here's what I started with today:





Panel tool really helped out with a lot of the clips:



Handy little mirror allowed me to easily squueze the rear of the clips with angled pliers for an easy removal:



These 2 wires were just tucked in the hole :hammer: Any idea what they were for??



I ended up cutting that part of the harness since I don't need the 3rd brake light or defroster:



This is what was removed when I made the cut above:



There was no need to cut the driver side defroster harness, so I tucked it back out of the way:



For the gas/trunk lever located inside the door sill remove the (2) 10mm bolts:



With pliers just grab the wire and rotate downward toward the little gap. The wire will just come out:



And the completed rear interior tuck:





I removed the dome light harness.

This is where the dome light wires lead to.
Disconnect and the dome light harness is good to go for reinstall:



Had a little bit of time left, so I took a close look at relocating the fuse box under the dash.

My first time seeing the back side of a fuse box:





A closer look at them:



 
#8 ·
Some of my bro's work. He will be spraying the interior, engine bay, and exterior of the Vx:







The EK I traded for the EG I have now:





Wettin' her up:



 
#9 ·
Removing the rubber that surrounds the perimeter of the door was pretty easy. Just need to pull the rubber to one side which then slips off that side of the banana clip. Then back toward the other side and the rubber slides off the banana clip. Repeat 17 or so times:



Banana clip:



Removing the glass:

Remove the (2) 10mm bolts





Carefully angle the forward part of the glass downward and raise the rear to remove the glass:



When removing the molding that runs along the top of the door some clips may remain on the door. Just push as shown and lift off the door:



Prying out that copper colored pin to remove the door handle was a PITA!!! :bash



Once said and done with removing the moldings and window crank , this is what's left:



Yeah, nasty a$$ glue that is a PITA to remove :bomb So, first I try some ice cubes to hopefully make the removal easier:



It worked ok, but not the results I wanted especially with the mess from the melting ice. So, then I took the door out in the 30 degree weather and worked on it there for a few:



Getting better, but still a lot of glue left :cry

On the way back in the house snapped a pic of my DIY neighbors fence. Hope my project turns out better than theirs :lmao



Today was time I did the 2nd door:



Didn't want to go back outside to work on the door, ice cubes suck!!! ....so I went to the local grocery store and picked up 4 lbs of dry ice:



This is really a PITA. But, I just keep telling myself it's got to be done so DO IT :rolleyes



Ended up crushing it down and feeding the door like a little baby:



Heard some noise from the back of the house. The DIY'ers are back at it and I took notes (on how not to install a fence) for a few minutes:



Here's what I ended up with at the end of the night. I'm hoping the glue that is left will harden over the next few days / week which is much easier to work with than the soft stage:



And my $hithole living room :hehe



Thanks for looking!!
 
#10 ·
Session 6:

The Accord was due for an oil change and tire rotation. I knocked that out and thought I'd be ready to get back in the house since it was 40 degrees out. But, the double layer of clothing had me feeling good. So, I put some new gloves on and went to work.....

From this:



To this:



From this:



To this:



Just pinch the clips and the harness came loose:



What was removed today:

 
#11 ·
Session 7:

My main goal today was to disconnect everything from the motor so I can pull it very shortly and start the cleaning, prepping, and tuck. On to the pics:

Started with this:



Removing the wire harnesses from the metal support brackets:



I took pics of ALL the lines I disconnected so I know what is what:





Coolant drained, clutch line and ground disconnected:



B.A.M.F.B.B.FTW: :D



3 bolts / 1 nut removed :giggle Most likely going to remove the entire exhaust since I am thinking about removing the motor from the bottom:





Looking at where I want to mount the fuse box:



Will water come into the car with that large opening?



Which hole should I use to run my wiring for the tuck?

A = approximately 1 1/4"



B = approximately 1 2/3"



What it looks like at the end of today:

 
#12 ·
With what little time I had Thursday I tried working on removing the 32mm axle nuts.

Drained the tranny:



Spent 30+ minutes working on the 2 axle nuts that were dented in from a mad man (other nut was worst) :bash



Damn:



I also read that the metal on the axle nuts is so soft that a strong impact can remove the nuts with the indention intact. So, I'll give it a try next round....

Picked these up today for $20 (going to need them; broke one above is an el cheapo):



Went by Harbor Freight for a few things:



I'm anxious to get the D series out so that will be coming up next week. The heat gun should finish off the glue on the doors :number1

Not much time lately to work on her. Guess it has worked out good since the weather has been really cold this past week. Hopefully will be warming up next week. If not, I don't give a damn..... motor will be coming out
 
#14 ·
Here we go with Session 9:

Fooled around with these axle nuts for about an hour the other day and still they did not come off. Fired up the air compressor and after 15 seconds had the following results:



Last fluid to be removed:



Time to remove the axles. Castle nut:



Cotter pin on the way out:



Beat on the drivers side but for about 3 minutes with a rubber mallet. Then it clicked in my head that this tool was in my tool box from years back with the old EG. (Still miss you :eek: )

Mushroomed the threads :bash Supposed to leave the nut on :wow



Prying the axle out from the tranny:



Time to remove the exhaust:



But, first I took a break:



Back to work and exhaust is out of there:



Removed (2) 12mm bolts and dropped the shift linkage:



Only line left to disconnect:



Disconnected:

 
#15 ·
Sitting on the Harbor Freight dolly :D



Farewell to the D series:



Had to make a trip to Wal-Mart when I realized the Harbor Freight engine hoist did not come with chains:



On one wheel :eek2



Bent my radiator bracket, but I straightened it out after wards. Got to remove them anyhow to relocate:



Here she is with no heart:



Can someone tell me what I will not need for the K20a2. Want to get the unnecessary things out:



How do I remove this clip? It's holding the clutch line on the firewall:



This is a picture of the hood release cable. How do you remove the clips without damaging them?



Here's what they look like. I was able to remove this one because there was access to rear side. The rest are covered on the backside with sheet metal:



Hood latch removal. Remove (3) 10mm bolts:



Pretty straight forward to remove the cable:



Horn is held on by a 12mm bolt:



How she sits at the end of tonight:

 
#16 ·
Here we go with Session 10:

Since my balljoints are screwed I decided to get inside and work on the wiring. I want to start prepping for the interior paint.

Started with this:





First I removed the radio antenna since my hatch has a giga mp3 player :clappy :



Then it was time to remove the clips that hold the fuel pump, optional rear speakers, and seat belt warning wires. Never did figure out how to properly remove them, but the panel tool got them out (some in pieces):



Is it ok if I remove the seatbelt wiring? I'm actually just going to hide it when I reloom the wiring inside. I put the seat belt on without thinking so I don't need the indicator on the cluster.



4 screws hold the fuel pump cover:



Once removed disconnect the 2 harnesses:



Using the butt end of a screwdriver push the grommet out:



It started raining so I put some dirty parts outside for a free wash:



Washer screwed on the seat belt. Don't plan to use them again so it's all good:



Onto the parking brake. Pretty straight forward to remove:



I'm a picture whore so here is a close-up of the e-brake indicator wire:





At each end is tape that you can slit:



Then you split 'er open:



Once you remove both harness covers you'll have some red clips left behind. The panel tool pulled these out without damaging them (yeah the ones I won't need) :bash



Got to remove the rest of the center console:



Disgusting ECU holder. I'll have to clean that up if I am to reuse it:



Reminder to get some more dry ice:



Got to see about removing the right stalk since I won't have a wiper system:



Bag of gold:



The gold:



About ready to sand for paint. Still got to get the glue on the floorboard up:





I couldn't work in the back area of the car because the rain was blowing into the garage. Shouldn't take too long to remove the rear hatch wiring:

 
#17 ·
A = Opening for A/C lines to enter cabin
B = Opening for coolant lines to enter cabin
C = Fuel filter (keep unless running an inline filter)
D = Charcoal canister (can be REMOVED)
E = Brake booster vacuum line (REMOVE: will need new hose w/k20a2)
F = (2) EGR valves (only found in D15Z1 / VX bays) (REMOVE)
G = Fuel return line (REMOVE: will need new hose w/k20a2)



I did get my first K series part :number1

Order placed on Wednesday, shifter kit plate at the door Saturday :)



Quality / Craftsmanship is top notch:

 
#18 ·
Ok guys, you have seen just under 2 months of work. The following is from today. I will be updating this thread as I make progress. You may have seen the work on HT, K20a, or IA..... it's also here now for you guys who don't venture out from SHO ;)

Today was 70+ degrees and not a cloud in the sky. So I spent some time in the garage :w00tz I removed the GC/Koni's from the rear and installed the OEM suspension. Once the suspension was installed I rolled her outside:



Time to start removing $hit so I can start prepping for paint :clappy

Charcoal canister OUT:



To bring the wire harness back into the car you'll need to remove the grommet by pushing or pulling it from the hole:



Everything fit through the hole to get back into the cabin:



Most likely going to remove this dead weight and rewrap the harness:



Push the drivers side grommet into the cabin and reel the harness in:



Back of the EGR valves:



I had no intention of removing the brake lines, but after easily breaking the first line.... there was no turning back:



Removing the master cylinder:



I need to figure out how to remove these lines that go to the rear of the car:



How she sits at the end of today:



What I removed today (yes the brake lines are labled to where they go) :eek2 :



I didn't get a chance to clean her up :hug Got to get the brake booster out, rest of the lines, and slave cylinder. Then I'll start prepping the bay for paint :love :number1
 
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