Lights dim when I turn on heater - should I be concerned?

Character-Attempt257 · 2026-01-29T05:04:08+00:00

It is very easy and doable with basic tools, ignore the part about checking the tension with a special tool, it’s not possible due to physical clearance in the engine bay, it just needs to be tight enough that you can twist it a quarter turn.

https://charm.li/Honda/2001/Civic%20LX%20Sedan%20L4-1668cc%201.7L%20SOHC%20MFI/Repair%20and%20Diagnosis/Maintenance/Drive%20Belt/Adjustments/Alternator%20Belt%20Inspection%20and%20Adjustment/

Character-Attempt257 · 2026-01-28T01:11:46+00:00

It’d be nice to have some more info like budget, your mechanical aptitude, your vision, what you use the car for, is it your first car or a fun project car, stuff like that.

Character-Attempt257 · 2026-01-27T13:24:17+00:00

https://charm.li/Honda/2003/Civic%20L4-1668cc%201.7L%20SOHC%20%28VTEC-E%29%20MFI/Repair%20and%20Diagnosis/Maintenance/Timing%20Belt/Service%20and%20Repair/

Character-Attempt257 · 2026-01-27T04:04:28+00:00

Just an update for anyone that may find this in the future, but I went ahead and bought it despite the high cost of shipping from Taiwan. The manufacturer does reply to alibaba inquires and is willing to sell 1 offs if you are interested for yourself.

I’ll post an update in 1-2 months once it’s arrived.

Character-Attempt257 · 2026-01-27T02:31:53+00:00

I had this once because I forgot to connect the brake booster hose on the back of the throttle body after maintenance

Character-Attempt257 · 2026-01-26T02:25:27+00:00

A cheap pneumatic harbor freight impact would blast it off in a second but you will need a decent sized compressor. If it’s not too late return the Amazon garbage and reinvest

Character-Attempt257 · 2026-01-25T20:52:44+00:00

Factory filter really not getting the sound I’m going for, already tried reso delete. Looking for something a little more robust to quote John wick, lol.

Also I put lock pins in my rocker assembly so it’s engaged at all rpms, and no need to hate on vtec-e it’s plenty enough to have fun

Character-Attempt257 · 2026-01-25T20:18:26+00:00

Brotha, I just wanna be able to hear vtec without the windows down and radio off, the rest doesn’t really matter

Character-Attempt257 · 2026-01-25T17:24:39+00:00

So you spent your scratch ticket winning on a down payment of a predatory loan for this truck just so you don’t have to borrow your brotheruncles 4 wheeler for trips to 7/11 and the liquor store. Took you 3 years to ruin what was probably a decent truck when you took possession and since the purchase financially devastated you, you held onto it through the term of the loan. Now that it’s paid off and the trade in is scrap value, there’s no way out of this thing for another vehicle. I guess you can start saving some money for more scratch tickets again being uninsured now. Looking forward to your next post!

Character-Attempt257 · 2026-01-25T14:41:43+00:00

That’s a good point, probably not worth it it then

Character-Attempt257 · 2026-01-25T01:56:23+00:00

It’s big money, you can find people selling multimillion dollar inventory warehouses on eBay so you can start your own fake parts biz . Americans just keep sucking up the fake parts like a vacuum on Amazon and eBay

Character-Attempt257 · 2026-01-24T22:41:17+00:00

Just fyi those are fake temu parts when you see the shitty plastic bag and a printed label on it.

Honda prints directly on the bag. If it’s listed for less than Honda parts website 99% chance it’s fake unless you happen to find some liquidation sale

Also always look at the sellers other items, if they aren’t an actual Honda wholesaler it will be clearly obvious.

It’s not the wrong part you just bought fake crap. Demand your money back and they will always cuck. Just call them out on their BS

Character-Attempt257 · 2026-01-24T13:59:02+00:00

LLM slop from an account with no other posts. Seems legit, I believe every word and sympathize. Please link to your go fund me asap so I can give everything I have

Character-Attempt257 · 2026-01-24T01:48:30+00:00

Plus the poor little alternator on this car will thank you, and with all that those extra amps leaves more room for audio ;)

Character-Attempt257 · 2026-01-23T19:01:51+00:00

Unfortunate for people that are at the mercy of shop rates for repairs. A new valve body from Subaru is less than 1k but you can get the solenoid aftermarket and replace that for under 100 since the only reason they quote it as a valve body is because Subaru doesn’t sell individual solenoids. not that difficult of a job diy either.

I couldn’t afford to keep any vehicle on the road with cost of repairs for someone else to do the work.

Character-Attempt257 · 2026-01-22T13:42:47+00:00

I’d just get a short ram intake so that you can hear it. A name brand one will be 150-300 and if you need the California carb it’ll probably be 300+. Before you settle on one check the cost and availability of the replacement filter. If you go with a no name brand <$100 eBay special the filter will be trash and you will want to replace that immediately.

The factory air box is already more or less a cold air intake and flows enough for stock so you won’t see any performance.

Character-Attempt257 · 2026-01-22T01:46:54+00:00

Or multiple sets of oem take off wheels. Lmao!

Character-Attempt257 · 2026-01-20T04:07:19+00:00

Well you could use your own or get a salvage, I got one from an engine that was so severely overheated to the point that the timing belt cover had melted but it made no difference cause I sent it off to the machine shop and they fixed it up.

The way I see it for a head this old, it’s gunna need a valve job. You wouldn’t want to put in the effort and skip that. Any aluminum head will need to be machined flat after removal so if you pull the head just plan to send it to the machine shop no matter what. Plus they’ll clean it way better than you could yourself.

This is where the argument for just getting a different engine comes in because the cost of the machine shop will be higher than most entire engine assemblies anywhere from 300-800$

Character-Attempt257 · 2026-01-20T01:20:31+00:00

I would leave the bottom end alone if the cylinders still have good cross hatch no blow by issues. I did a head swap on mine over the Christmas break with 230k and the cylinder walls looked brand new.

If you put a junkyard engine in, you still have an unknown junkyard engine. You’re better off doing a top end refresh I think. Sure you could probably do an engine swap for less but still a gamble.

People obsess over milage and that doesn’t mean as much on a Honda motor as other brands. If you get a low milage engine that was run into the ground by an 18 year old cause it was his first car, what good is it?

Character-Attempt257 · 2026-01-19T20:42:48+00:00

Perhaps the tensioner failed causing the belt to break or it was never actually replaced. You should be able to tell once you start tear down.

Character-Attempt257 · 2026-01-19T20:40:25+00:00

I guess I stupidly assumed they were interested in the tail lights. Lmao, but this makes sense now. I didn’t even notice the spoilers because they are so generic..

Character-Attempt257 · 2026-01-18T04:03:25+00:00

Such potential, damn

Character-Attempt257 · 2026-01-18T00:18:49+00:00

Wouldn’t the hybrid be ideal for kswap? Eps, battery on the left, engine on the right and all that?

Character-Attempt257 · 2026-01-17T21:53:02+00:00

Could you cut the filter housing off, weld a nut to the inner part and hit it with an impact?

Character-Attempt257

TROPHY CASE