Reality Check - Any chance to make a sticky on this?

[JDMDriver]

Hi, I love CB7 a lot, however for the interest of new members, current members and our ability to receive future members i thought it would be good to start spreading this notion about the reality of our cars everytime we/they part, thrash, write off, or abuse our/their CB.

Our cars are no longer being made and the only direction the remaining numbers go is down (less and less). I just think we are slowly killing ourselves off everytime we abuse or kill off a CB.

Parting out cars do provide benefits of parts supply to remaining cars (as a last resort), but we forget that in reality it is one less car amongst our ranks. One less car in the registration statistics which oem manufacturers use in determining future support.

Besides in terms of percent wise less than 15% (if ever) is reused from the deceased car (most are destroyed).

From the Environmental point of view - I'm not a fanatic but yes we need to consider this as it is reality - although our cars are not hybrids but by keeping them on the road, it means one less new car is required to be made. A new Hybrid takes 8 to 10 years for its carbon footprint (not to mention the additional plastic and landfill it will create) to be EQUAL and only Equal that of a second hand - CB7 - used in the same time period since a new car introduces tons more Carbon (not to mention future land fill) to be emitted in the construction and transportation (from factory to docks of exporting country, docks of receiving country, docks of receiving country to dealer etc) compared to an already existing Car. That is if the new car survives that long and also if the hybrid owner keeps it for that long .

We can take pride we are doing our bit for the environment (carbon wise and land fill prevention wise by reusing parts from the Junk Yard) in keeping our cars.

We really do need to think about keeping our CBs (whole cars) last far longer and to keep them alive!

It would be a dark dark day when after market guys (looking at the registration and rolling stock statistics) decides to stop supplying CB7 products due to being classed as low in numbers and ruled out as no longer commercially viable.

Keep whole cars alive!

[h22sparkle]

That was a very interesting monologue if I spelled it right anyway its all a matter of time before if the owner decides to keep the car. Parts in america especially in the junkyards wont be that hard to find.

1 car gets trashed many people will keep them running as long as it balls down to 1 thing money!!!!!. If you got it parts will be available no matter how rare it is.

And the economy not going up only getting worse your gonna find even more stuff readily available because people are trying to bump up extra cash for anything. I do commend most of the cb members in keeping their cars up to par aswell as keeping them period I myself had to move I was meant for something much more. I still got that cb7 spirit.

[blackex]

reality indeed! one car down, but parts keep many other car running.
face it, its not gonna last forever. sad but true, enjoy it while you can.

[crazymikey]

I have a salvaged titled Accord in my garage that runs and drives. I bought it specifically for (body)parts to repair my car with because it was cheaper to buy the whole car and get everything with it, rather than buy the parts I needed sperately. I ended up saving myself money in the long run.

However, that being said, the car is worth repairing. If I repair it, I need the rear quarterpanel and door replaced, and then put it through a $400 write off inspection to make it road legal again.

Look how mint this car is,other than the damage. I can't bring myself to tear it down. One dent and this car is given a salvage title.

By the way,I paid $300 for the car at the junk yard and drove it home and drove it to work the next day.

[JDMDriver]

crazy mikey

Hey thats a good find and a good way of keeping your CB running.

With the small problem you have on that donor car (when/if you become financially better) you can even have the option of fixing it - since you know its history, solid engine and no major smash - making that your beater and the other car your weekend car!

That car is definitely a good car to restore. Its also a good car to practice body restoration on if you havent done body work on a car before!

[JDMajunior]

yup its sad.how many cbs are in junkyards around here....besides helping me out wit parts.and i agree keep appreciate the 4th gen lol

[HondaB18]

what is your point? that the cb7 are dying? it applies to others as well.

[JDMDriver]

what is your point? that the cb7 are dying? it applies to others as well.

What JDMaJunior meant is that for every CB in the junk yard represents one less CB on the road

One less CB on the road today means one less CB to be available in the junk yard tomorrow.

Hence the need for others to realise what all this thrashing, abusing our CB's ultimately mean for us in the future . That is it literally culminates to self extinction.

Yes other cars are on the road to exinction eg. Toyota Camrys but we dont really care and really we dont need to be.

Look at VW beetles for example, they should be extinct, yet they are not. Why? Because the owners in the last 15 - 20 yrs have stopped thrashing and started restoring and treating them with respect.

How much more plentiful those beetles numbers would be if they started respecting their car earlier (before it became classics as their prime source of motivation to respect their car).

This thread is to help us realise the fallacy of our current actions for a car we love and will regret its loss (aswell as the numbers on this forum) if we dont in some way have a Reality Check .

[HondaB18]

What JDMaJunior meant is that for every CB in the junk yard represents one less CB on the road

One less CB on the road today means one less CB to be available in the junk yard tomorrow.

Hence the need for others to realise what all this thrashing, abusing our CB's ultimately mean for us in the future . That is it literally culminates to self extinction.

Yes other cars are on the road to exinction eg. Toyota Camrys but we dont really care and really we dont need to be.

Look at VW beetles for example, they should be extinct, yet they are not. Why? Because the owners in the last 15 - 20 yrs have stopped thrashing and started restoring and treating them with respect.

How much more plentiful those beetles numbers would be if they started respecting their car earlier (before it became classics as their prime source of motivation to respect their car).

This thread is to help us realise the fallacy of our current actions for a car we love and will regret its loss (aswell as the numbers on this forum) if we dont in some way have a Reality Check .

i do care and i do wanna be a toyota camry =(

the reality check is that this forum only accounts for a small percentage of the cb7 owners and that people see it as an old car. there are however some cars like the vw beetle that people buy at a premium but do you think the cb7 would live up to that spotlight? maybe if the cb7 dwindled to a very small amount and ages more

we drive and abuse our cars all the time, cold starts and the occasional redlines. things do go wrong. we can tell people to take good care of their cars but 90% of the people (guesstimated figure) wouldn't know the first thing to do. the way i see it is, if they trash their cars they can always get a new one. like if my friend was to total my car today (given that the friend is unhurt and insurance is in effect) i'll just get a new one

not sure what the demand for the cb7 is but less cb7 = more demand = more $$$

[JDMDriver]

i do care and i do wanna be a toyota camry =(

the reality check is that this forum only accounts for a small percentage of the cb7 owners and that people see it as an old car. there are however some cars like the vw beetle that people buy at a premium but do you think the cb7 would live up to that spotlight? maybe if the cb7 dwindled to a very small amount and ages more

we drive and abuse our cars all the time, cold starts and the occasional redlines. things do go wrong. we can tell people to take good care of their cars but 90% of the people (guesstimated figure) wouldn't know the first thing to do. the way i see it is, if they trash their cars they can always get a new one. like if my friend was to total my car today (given that the friend is unhurt and insurance is in effect) i'll just get a new one

not sure what the demand for the cb7 is but less cb7 = more demand = more $$$

This forum may represent a small percentage of the owners of CB7 but by communicating through it and perhaps passing on the message to similar forums (combined) it would go towards a long way of reducing the death rates at which CB7's are currently experiencing.

CB7's are old cars but in all intents and purposes the engines on these things will match a new car held for 7 - 10 yrs. As people have found these engines can far outlast the body if looked after. These engines lasts for 400,000 to 500,000 miles. So getting a high mileage car of 250,000 would still last a good 10 years at 25,000 mile a year. Hard to believe but being old is only a perception as far as these cars are concerned.

I dont know if our cars will become like the beetle but i hope it doesnt become extinct earlier than the beetle. If the numbers do dwindle i hope future treatement does become like the beetle. That is the remaining cars are treated with respect and remaining rusted shells are restored and bought back to running conditions.

Why should we wait for our cars to be rare and appreciate in market value (if ever as 3rd and 2nd or even 1st Gens haven't really appreciated to classic staus) before we change the way we treat our cars? Why should we let the market respect our cars before we do? Once the market starts to respect our cars (if it does) its really too late. It means the numbers dwindled - endangered.

Once our cars are endangered it means there is now reduced number on the road and likely the aftermarket guys making stuff for our cars will drop support for our CB7's earlier as we will no longer be a viable market (just see the support for 3rd Gens and 2nd Gens).

It would be good to give our guys a heads up on what our current actions would mean for us in 5 to 7 yrs time and to curb our current ways and treatment of our cars.

[HondaB18]

with the exception of a few, most members on this forum seems to be of a younger demographic and/or those with (no offense to anyone) a smaller spending budget

you can have an engine last forever but what good is it if starts rusting into pieces? one of the reason i got rid of my teg, it had the infamous rear quarter panel rust. it was much more cost saving to sell it then to repair it

[foamypirate]

I may be a CB enthusiast, but I honestly have no problem saying the following:

Who cares?

I really couldn't care less what others do to their CBs. I keep mine running and in good shape, and that's all I care about. Your thought train is flawed as well. If a CB goes off the road today, chances are it WILL be in the junkyard tomorrow.

[DJ metadelic]

I never beat on my car. I love CB's. Everything about them. I've had 10 Honda's now, I think that makes me an avid enthusiast, and one more person keeping them on the road in tailored shape, out of a junkyard, and parts from them out of a landfill. That is important, I do agree with the OP on that one.

On the other hand, I will play devil's advocate here. I can't impose on others, and lecture them about keeping CB's out of a JY. If they want to buy one for $200, beat the shit out of it, throw a rod and snap a wrist pin, and then sell it off for scrap for $100, more power to them. It's no one's place to tell another what to do with the junk cars they go through.

I bought a 94 Civic DX sedan in June 09, for $300. As you can see, it was in rough shape.



I then sold it, about 4 months later, to a kid who was going to continue driving it, with a "lick n stick" (an inspection sticker just handed over). While knowing this is illegal, I kept my mouth shut, and sold it to him. It kept one perfectly running Civic with a horribly rotted body and subframe on the the road for a little while longer. Should I have sold it for scrap to a JY or salvage guy? PROBABLY. So, it really depends on just how complete, road worthy/legal/safe these "whole cars" you refer to are.

There comes a point in time when "goodbye is goodbye". Every CB has it's day.

[JDMDriver]

with the exception of a few, most members on this forum seems to be of a younger demographic and/or those with (no offense to anyone) a smaller spending budget

you can have an engine last forever but what good is it if starts rusting into pieces? one of the reason i got rid of my teg, it had the infamous rear quarter panel rust. it was much more cost saving to sell it then to repair it

Yes I do concur most owners are from the younger demographic due to the CB's financial affordability for low income earners (young and old i guess). Nothing wrong with that as it is a really excellent car!

I could afford and reallycould have bought 2 new cars but decided on having 2 cb accords as they are really better than alot of the new cars! (im getting off topic i know )

Rust is a killer and in general the external BODY CONDITION is essentially what dictates the life of the car.

This leads to an important point which all of us older guys know (but does not get enough mentioning and a well worth practical knowledge for our younger owners) and that is to prioritise body repairs and maintenance higher up - if not 1st - in the repair chain rather than focusing on the go fast exhaust and rims etc.

Fixing a small rust patch today will cost far less than fixing a bigger one tomorrow (they grow faster than you think believe me). Trust Me on this, but you WILL get more satisfaction seeing your clean straight rust free car (with less mods) than if you spent that money on more mods (but with more rust). Im sure the experienced guys will back me on this.

I know we all want/ed the instant improvement over oem, go fast parts and bragging rights that go with them (i know the temptation is strong - because ive been there) but a focus on body repairs first will be the biggest investment in terms of protecting your car which you will or have already placed mods on.

Nothing more painful than to know your beloved modded car is rusting (rust removes alot of the ownership satisfaction) and may need to be replaced. Even if you salvage the mods to be refitted to a newer car it would cost more $$$ and time than if the mods didnt have to come off at all.

Body Repairs/Maintenance in my opinion is a very overlooked aspect of maintenance (frequently resulting to Rust) and deserves more emphasis.

This kind of mind shift and realisation is what I had wished this thread to be. Not so much a plea for the impossible.

Let me know what you think.

[JDMDriver]

I never beat on my car. I love CB's. Everything about them. I've had 10 Honda's now, I think that makes me an avid enthusiast, and one more person keeping them on the road in tailored shape, out of a junkyard, and parts from them out of a landfill. That is important, I do agree with the OP on that one.

On the other hand, I will play devil's advocate here. I can't impose on others, and lecture them about keeping CB's out of a JY. If they want to buy one for $200, beat the shit out of it, throw a rod and snap a wrist pin, and then sell it off for scrap for $100, more power to them. It's no one's place to tell another what to do with the junk cars they go through.

I bought a 94 Civic DX sedan in June 09, for $300. As you can see, it was in rough shape.



I then sold it, about 4 months later, to a kid who was going to continue driving it, with a "lick n stick" (an inspection sticker just handed over). While knowing this is illegal, I kept my mouth shut, and sold it to him. It kept one perfectly running Civic with a horribly rotted body and subframe on the the road for a little while longer. Should I have sold it for scrap to a JY or salvage guy? PROBABLY. So, it really depends on just how complete, road worthy/legal/safe these "whole cars" you refer to are.

There comes a point in time when "goodbye is goodbye". Every CB has it's day.

Hi Dj Metadelic

Thanks for your input dude, appreciate it. This car is beyond a simple repair and is financially unsalvageable (unless you have access to tools and knowledgeable in fixing it yourself). You not being able to repair and forced to sell to another is beyond your control

This is what we wish to prevent on our CBs. See my previous post above.

This is largely preventable or at least maneagable. Letting it get to this stage is just plain neglect and sad. A dab of rust converter or a spray of urthane rock chip or even fish oil without fixing the rust would have halted or prevented this.

These rust prevention and protection items are also not expensive (under $10) and doesnt take a rocket scientist or experienced body repairer to apply (just a brush and spray on). Yet are largely unused due to more emphasis on mods and high profile glory stuff, not the real basic and practical items that counts or should count.

This kind or rust does not happen in a day. It is an accumulation of neglect and one we want future CB owners to realise and prevent to keep more CB's on the road. Its an easy fix or at the very minimum easy way to halt the rust cycle till you can fix it good.

I realise we can't impose on others, and do not wish to lecture them (if they want to beat the shit out of it, throw a rod or snap a wrist pin) but i think a little guidance will not go astray.

A little hint or tip or suggestion from experienced drivers/members shouldnt be taken as a lecture. We are after all in for the common purpose of enjoying our CB's without the few taking unecessary risks with $$$ and lives.

The disctiction between a suggestion and lecture can be blurry (and misconstrued easily by younger members as they get lectured from parents already - i know) which is why any kind or discussion on our forum (on how we should do things) is avoided or not mentioned.

However i think it is a distinction worth making and important. A distinction I hope to impart and make on this thread by various discussions that should not be viewed offensively.

I think a thought process RESET and rejuggling of EMPHASIS on our forum and members is required. To assist us all in our interest of keeping these CB's on our roads longer (before more preventable losses are made )