it always bothered me that there was only a DIY for the rear 5-lug conversion (good job on it though jose!). i waited awhile for the front DIY but it never came. i am aware of the informal DIY done by f22a (sean) on the other board but i wanted to see pictures and details regarding the front conversion. when i received all the necessary parts i decided to take the initiative and write the DIY myself. from my experience i hope to clarify the details for you guys. i just wish i took more pictures.
parts list for the front:
-95-98 odyssey knuckles
-95-98 odyssey bearings
-95-98 odyssey hubs (i used 97 prelude hubs which i'll explain later why)
-95-98 odyssey rotors or similar (i used 97 prelude rotors which are exactly the same)
-95-98 odyssey calipers or similar (i used 97 prelude calipers with 25T brackets from the odyssey)
waiting to be installed along with the rear hubs and rotors.
luckily i had access to a 97 prelude hence why i used its parts. at first i planned on using the odyssey rotors and calipers which came on the knuckles i got from the junkyard however they were in poor shape. there were very rusted and corroded. this made me question the integrity of the bearings so i replaced them along with the ball joints.
in the process of replacing the bearings and ball joints, the shop ruined the hubs! those bastards used an air hammer instead of a press! i had to find a replacement so i looked into the 97 prelude. either i spend $130 each for the hubs (which cost almost 2x more than the bearings) or try and experiment with the prelude hubs. which did this poor kid choose?
and to my surprise they fit! although there is a slight difference, they work. i'll go into detail about the difference later in this DIY. first let's get started.
step:1
unstake the axle nut (36mm) and loosen it. i used a center punch and a BFH to unstake it. loosen the lugs as well. it is best to loosen them while the car is on the ground so the wheel does not turn.
step 2:
jack up the car, secure it on jackstands, remove the wheel, and say goodbye to the old setup.
step 3:
remove the brakeline bracket (2 10mm bolts) from the knuckle and remove the caliper (2 17mm bolts) from the knuckle. hang the caliper to one side with piece for wire.
step 4:
remove the cotter pin from the steering arm ball joint and remove the castle nut (14mm). with a ball joint remover, separate the ball joint.
remove the cotter pin from the lower arm ball joint and loosen the castle nut (17mm) half way. with a ball joint remover, separate the ball joint.
remove the upper ball joint cover (2 10mm bolts) from the knuckle and remove the cotter pin and the upper ball joint castle nut. with a ball joint remover, separate the ball joint.
NOTE: i do NOT recommend using a pickle fork to separate ball joints. they damage the ball joint boots. use a ball joint puller pictured above or similar. also spray penatrating lubricant to help ease the job.
step 5:
with all the ball joints loosen or removed, pull out the axle from the knuckle using a plastic hammer. plastic is used to lessen the chance of damaging the axle nut threads. then remove the knuckle. your car should look like this now.
step 6:
prep the odyssey knuckle for installation. here is a comparison of the two. i opted to remove the dushshield since it was all banged up from the junkyard.
SIDENOTE:
with the stock knuckle off the car and an extra odyssey hub, i wanted to see the differences between them and see if the hub can work with the accord bearing. i found that the height looked almost the same.
now is the diameter the same? it looks almost the same too!
let's look at the numbers. here is the odyssey hub.
now the accord hub.
the numbers show that they are the same! yeah i know i should have measured across the outer circumference though. this may be good news for those who want to do this swap but can't find odyssey knuckles. anyone willing to see if odyssey hubs fit into accord bearings?
i know prelude hubs fit the odyssey bearings. there is a slight height difference here though. the prelude hub is a bit on the shallow side. take a look.
though this is the case, i found that it still worked. remember i had use these hubs anyway since the shop raped my odyssey hubs.
OK back to the DIY.
step 7:
reinstall the odyssey knuckle and the axle. i found it easier to put on the lower ball joint first then the axle then the upper ball joint. then reinstall the steering arm. bolt down all the castle nuts to spec and replace the cotter pins.
i removed the rotors and calipers from the odyssey knuckle prior to reinstallation.
step 8:
install the 5-lug rotor onto the hub and fasten them using tappered screws. i used an impact driver with a hammer to secure the screws. install the 25T caliper bracket to the knuckle (2 17mm bolts).
step 9:
here comes the caliper swap. have a catch can ready to catch the dripping brake fluid. remove the banjo bolt (14mm) from the accord caliper. there are 2 sealing washers on the banjo bolt; one on each side of the fitting. the dealer recommends to replace these just like the oil drain plug washer (i just cleaned them off and reused them). then remove the fitting from the caliper and set the caliper aside.
step 10:
bolt on the fitting, banjo bolt, and washers to the new caliper. install the brake pads and install the caliper. you may need to compress the piston to accomodate the pads. use a c-clamp or similar device. install the brakeline bracket back onto the knuckle (2 10mm bolts). this is what it should look like now.
step 11:
bleed the brakes, reinstall the wheel, and tighten the lugnuts when on the ground. DO NOT forget to tighten the axle nut to spec also (181 ft-lbs). stake it so it does not walk off.
here is the final product.
as for the cars equipped with ABS, i believe it's just a matter of swapping over the sensor and wiring from knuckle to knuckle. just make sure to get the ABS odyssey knuckles, which have the holes for the sensor and wiring.
this pretty much took all day (9hrs to be exact). i ran into braking problems due to a bad master cylinder and bad proportioning valve. i continued to fixed it during the week. this converison is very straightfoward if you have all the right tools and parts.
my price breakdown for the conversion overall:
-knuckles (used junkyard) $260
-front & rear hubs and front calipers (used 97 prelude) $140
-front rotors (new generic) $52
-rear rotors (new generic) $40
-bearings (new OEM) $120
-ball joints (new OEM) $30
-MC (rebuilt stock LX) $48
-40/40 proportioning valve (used 91 integra) $20
-misc (new brake fluid, cotter pins, brake cleaner, etc) $20
-labor for installing bearings, hubs, and ball joints $100
-front & rear pads (new OEM) $40 *waiting to be installed*
TOTAL: $870 w/o wheels
disclaimer: i am not responsible for your actions.
parts list for the front:
-95-98 odyssey knuckles
-95-98 odyssey bearings
-95-98 odyssey hubs (i used 97 prelude hubs which i'll explain later why)
-95-98 odyssey rotors or similar (i used 97 prelude rotors which are exactly the same)
-95-98 odyssey calipers or similar (i used 97 prelude calipers with 25T brackets from the odyssey)
waiting to be installed along with the rear hubs and rotors.
luckily i had access to a 97 prelude hence why i used its parts. at first i planned on using the odyssey rotors and calipers which came on the knuckles i got from the junkyard however they were in poor shape. there were very rusted and corroded. this made me question the integrity of the bearings so i replaced them along with the ball joints.
in the process of replacing the bearings and ball joints, the shop ruined the hubs! those bastards used an air hammer instead of a press! i had to find a replacement so i looked into the 97 prelude. either i spend $130 each for the hubs (which cost almost 2x more than the bearings) or try and experiment with the prelude hubs. which did this poor kid choose?
and to my surprise they fit! although there is a slight difference, they work. i'll go into detail about the difference later in this DIY. first let's get started.
step:1
unstake the axle nut (36mm) and loosen it. i used a center punch and a BFH to unstake it. loosen the lugs as well. it is best to loosen them while the car is on the ground so the wheel does not turn.
step 2:
jack up the car, secure it on jackstands, remove the wheel, and say goodbye to the old setup.
step 3:
remove the brakeline bracket (2 10mm bolts) from the knuckle and remove the caliper (2 17mm bolts) from the knuckle. hang the caliper to one side with piece for wire.
step 4:
remove the cotter pin from the steering arm ball joint and remove the castle nut (14mm). with a ball joint remover, separate the ball joint.
remove the cotter pin from the lower arm ball joint and loosen the castle nut (17mm) half way. with a ball joint remover, separate the ball joint.
remove the upper ball joint cover (2 10mm bolts) from the knuckle and remove the cotter pin and the upper ball joint castle nut. with a ball joint remover, separate the ball joint.
NOTE: i do NOT recommend using a pickle fork to separate ball joints. they damage the ball joint boots. use a ball joint puller pictured above or similar. also spray penatrating lubricant to help ease the job.
step 5:
with all the ball joints loosen or removed, pull out the axle from the knuckle using a plastic hammer. plastic is used to lessen the chance of damaging the axle nut threads. then remove the knuckle. your car should look like this now.
step 6:
prep the odyssey knuckle for installation. here is a comparison of the two. i opted to remove the dushshield since it was all banged up from the junkyard.
SIDENOTE:
with the stock knuckle off the car and an extra odyssey hub, i wanted to see the differences between them and see if the hub can work with the accord bearing. i found that the height looked almost the same.
now is the diameter the same? it looks almost the same too!
let's look at the numbers. here is the odyssey hub.
now the accord hub.
the numbers show that they are the same! yeah i know i should have measured across the outer circumference though. this may be good news for those who want to do this swap but can't find odyssey knuckles. anyone willing to see if odyssey hubs fit into accord bearings?
i know prelude hubs fit the odyssey bearings. there is a slight height difference here though. the prelude hub is a bit on the shallow side. take a look.
though this is the case, i found that it still worked. remember i had use these hubs anyway since the shop raped my odyssey hubs.
OK back to the DIY.
step 7:
reinstall the odyssey knuckle and the axle. i found it easier to put on the lower ball joint first then the axle then the upper ball joint. then reinstall the steering arm. bolt down all the castle nuts to spec and replace the cotter pins.
i removed the rotors and calipers from the odyssey knuckle prior to reinstallation.
step 8:
install the 5-lug rotor onto the hub and fasten them using tappered screws. i used an impact driver with a hammer to secure the screws. install the 25T caliper bracket to the knuckle (2 17mm bolts).
step 9:
here comes the caliper swap. have a catch can ready to catch the dripping brake fluid. remove the banjo bolt (14mm) from the accord caliper. there are 2 sealing washers on the banjo bolt; one on each side of the fitting. the dealer recommends to replace these just like the oil drain plug washer (i just cleaned them off and reused them). then remove the fitting from the caliper and set the caliper aside.
step 10:
bolt on the fitting, banjo bolt, and washers to the new caliper. install the brake pads and install the caliper. you may need to compress the piston to accomodate the pads. use a c-clamp or similar device. install the brakeline bracket back onto the knuckle (2 10mm bolts). this is what it should look like now.
step 11:
bleed the brakes, reinstall the wheel, and tighten the lugnuts when on the ground. DO NOT forget to tighten the axle nut to spec also (181 ft-lbs). stake it so it does not walk off.
here is the final product.
as for the cars equipped with ABS, i believe it's just a matter of swapping over the sensor and wiring from knuckle to knuckle. just make sure to get the ABS odyssey knuckles, which have the holes for the sensor and wiring.
this pretty much took all day (9hrs to be exact). i ran into braking problems due to a bad master cylinder and bad proportioning valve. i continued to fixed it during the week. this converison is very straightfoward if you have all the right tools and parts.
my price breakdown for the conversion overall:
-knuckles (used junkyard) $260
-front & rear hubs and front calipers (used 97 prelude) $140
-front rotors (new generic) $52
-rear rotors (new generic) $40
-bearings (new OEM) $120
-ball joints (new OEM) $30
-MC (rebuilt stock LX) $48
-40/40 proportioning valve (used 91 integra) $20
-misc (new brake fluid, cotter pins, brake cleaner, etc) $20
-labor for installing bearings, hubs, and ball joints $100
-front & rear pads (new OEM) $40 *waiting to be installed*
TOTAL: $870 w/o wheels
disclaimer: i am not responsible for your actions.
Really thorough pics and detail. I can't believe I actually spent this much on my 5 lug conversion, I gotta go get my bank statement and make sure, yiiiikes! 
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