2002 RSX with blown motor - what would you do?
 

my friend's RSX died yesterday.. towed to mechanic and they tell her they need to dig deeper to find out what's exactly wrong. From what she passed on to me (she is defo not a car person), they think one of the piston's done... thrown rod? Something about timing chain teeth (cam?), fluid in cylinder (head gasket)?

I really can't tell from our conversation how severe the damage is, but she just wants to walk away from the car (maybe donate to Kidney foundation or wrecker) instead of fixing/putting in any money. She wants to lease a new car now.

BUT... I figure her RSX has to be worth salvaging. It's a 2002 RSX Premium, auto, ~125k km, loaded including leather and in decent overall shape otherwise. She's the original owner. What do you think it's worth as a roller as is? What are options for engine swaps? Anyone interested? It'd be a shame to see an ok car just be scrapped 'cause she's fed up and doesn't want to be bothered doing anything with it.

To do a motor swap...I found a k20 here JDM Honda Acura RSX DC5 K20A 2 0L DOHC I vtec Engine Honda Civic EP3 02 04 | eBay for 1k. Then you gotta account for labour...parting it out, she may be able to get 3-5k for it but it'll take a while

buy a new car?

if it were my celica though id go for a 3sgte swap


Frankenstein a k24a2?

TSX K24 + Supercharger

http://www.jdmchicago.com/images/zack/850/2.jpg

but realistically though, I would just sell it as a parts car
maybe just fix it, swap the engine from another RSX

I would not mod it since your friend doesn't exactly sound like a car enthusiast

pm'd

Wow, that's it? I wonder how that happened so early.

Pm'd
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cheaping out on maintenance?

its not hard to throw a motor in from the wreckers... dont scrap the car. hell if its a decent price id buy it, throw a motor in and use it as a daily.

actually even though it's "lady owned" haha, she actually did all regular oil changes and scheduled maintenance. Not sure exactly what went with the motor (I'm actually very curious to find out) but she just wants it gone since this the first problem she's had and just wants a new car asap... women :fullofwin:

If I had the time and space I'd take it on as a project (even if just to flip).

There's your answer. :troll:

Fix it! it's a simple little engine and parts aren't that expensive for it. If you really don't have any auto experience part it...but PM me first I want the rear sway and five lug swap =D.

I'd buy a engine and drop it in.

:suspicious: blow motor at 125k on an rsx...?
my last rsx had 200k and I sold it for $7,000 several years back
the engine was running as good as new...
these cars are generally very reliable and that's why they have great resale value..

kinda makes me question what sort of maintenance work did she do on the car (if any) to end up with a blown motor at 125k.
and reminds me not to buy a used car from a girl... :fuckthatshit:

Anyway..i think she can get at least $1-2k on kijiji selling it as it.

This is exactly what I would do. I'll buy the car if she wants to sell it as is.
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Save it!

I have a k20A2 with tranny for sale..
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get a second opinion?
cant tell you how many misdiagnosed cars we have seen.

Save it! Turn it into a track car or something. Or as a daily.

i believe the 02 rsx's have timing belts not chains. 05+ ran with chains if im not mistaken... so if the mechanic told her that theres a problem with the timing chain teeth i would not believe that mechanic.

low kms, but old age = plastic timing belt dried out and snapped?

possible?



turn it into a timpo OP, we had a car with a blown engine, turned it onto a timpo and now look, he's awesome.

I'd get a second opinion
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K20A3 (base RSX motor) uses timing chain

Correct. All k series Honda's use timing chains. I don't think I would ever buy a car with a timing belt again.
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I wouldn't go that far. Just cause chains are less likely to break, they still stretch and tensioner/guides may need to be replaced. Plus, replacing a chain/guide/tensioner is usually more costly than a timing belt, although with a lot longer interval.

Ideally, waterpumps would driven by the acc belt and the cam(s) would be gear driven.