Derbo's EX hatchback commuter

[derbo904]

#Update 09/06/2017
Today I had a little time and decided to install the CTR rear stabilizer bar on my EX hatch.
Mileage: 16,949

16.5mm EX Stabilizer ===> 20.5mm CTR Stabilizer


Top one is CTR, Bottom is Hatch EX

## Initial Impressions
The larger rear bar improved initial turn-in and reduced the amount of input required to make the car rotate. Stability under mid to high speed corner has also improved. The rear no longer gets upset under minor bumps and imperfections in the road during mid-corner. For about $100, this is an amazing upgrade!

I'm waiting on some HPF springs or something subtle to add to the car to further keep this car OEM+.

Thanks for reading

 

[derbo904]

Haven't done much to the car except drive it. It was able to haul my new rims for the M3 with no issues!

I'm almost at my 1 year mark with 32k miles.

Car has been great and hope to bring it to 300k!

 

[derbo904]

Not much to report here. I'm at about 40k miles right now and I found a thread regarding Infotainment updates!

#Source
https://www.civicx.com/threads/infotainment-software-update.16505/page-16

About page 16 and on, there is a TSB 18-001 bulletin displayed some updates to the infotainment that bugged me. (Apple Carplay disconnects, Trip MPG being blank, etc)
@ShakenPuma happily uploaded the file on Mega so we could all reap the benefits! THANK YOU VERY MUCH!!

I started off with F191, and ended up with F197 with the update. The process took less than 10minutes and was very simple. The PDF outlined just about all you needed to know. The USB is formatted to FAT32 and the file should be on the root of the folder.

Initial impressions feel like the head unit is a little speedier in the animations but it could just be a placebo effect I'm convincing myself of. With the fix for the disconnects on AppleCarplay, I will be happy with that alone.


Cheers!

 

[mystinbz]

Just ordered a bunch of OE parts.

where did you ordered them ?

 

[derbo904]

where did you ordered them ?

I ordered from HPU.

 

[Accordlayingkit]

Just ordered a bunch of OE parts.

Weird the 2 corner parts are like $90 bucks a piece of HPU now!

 

[derbo904]

Weird the 2 corner parts are like $90 bucks a piece of HPU now!

I'm glad I didn't wait then!


# Minor Update 2018-08-04

##Headlights Issue
One of my Morimoto 2-stroke headlights started dim and upon inspection, it was a bad LED. Luckily, TRS has a 3-year warranty and I submitted an RMA for the bulb. I suspect the headlight housing has poor ventilation and causing a heat failure.

## Long-term impressions
I am almost at 46k miles after 1.3 years of ownership. Outside of normal oil changes, filters, and tire rotations, the car has been wonderful as a daily commuter. Nothing much for this car but if I can find some touring rims or perhaps some Sport/Si rims for cheap, I'll swap them over.

 

[derbo904]

#Replacement Low-Beams
Since I never was 100% happy with the long distance coverage of the LED low beams, I decided to install Morimoto 5500k H11B with proper relays wiring while waiting for the replacement LED from TRS.


##Installation
The second picture shows the overall routing for the Morimoto relay lines. The Hatchback fender has a hole where I put a bolt and nut to mount the two relays. The slim ballast is velcro taped to the side of the frame rail on the fender. The passenger side wiring goes across the radiator under the plastic cover. Originally, I had the ballast set up at on the radiator support bracket because the ballast wire was too short. I was able to use one of the extra ballast wiring to extend the wiring and allow me to position the ballast next to the Windshield washer filler neck.

Old setup for passenger ballast

New position for passenger ballast

##Impressions
Overall, the output is significantly brighter and coverage is longer. The color is slightly green from what I can tell. While I enjoy the instant-on with LEDs, output is a higher priority.

#LED bulb replacement for Fogs
When my LED replacement bulb arrives from TheRetrofitSource, I sell them.

 

[wolfman987]

Hey, I'm thinking about swapping out the window trim to black but I noticed that your part numbers are different, hondapartsonline.net has yours listed to fit the sport/sport touring models and not the EX, I assume this is a sport touring then? The EX parts as far as I can tell should end in A01 with some containing TBA. Just need some clarification before I decide to get those. Thanks.

This is what I have for an EX in the cart:


MOLDING ASSY., R. RR. DOOR SASH
Part Number: 72925-TGG-A01

MOLDING ASSY., L. RR. DOOR SASH
Part Number: 72965-TGG-A01

MOLDING ASSY., R. FR. DOOR SASH
Part Number: 72425-TBA-A01

MOLDING ASSY., L. FR. DOOR SASH
Part Number: 72465-TBA-A01

GARNISH ASSY., R. RR. PILLAR CORNER
Part Number: 75424-TGG-A01

GARNISH ASSY., L. RR. PILLAR CORNER
Part Number: 75474-TGG-A01

 

[derbo904]

## 60k and counting!

I just had my 60k service this past weekend.

Stats:
Days owned: 677
Mileage: 60xxx
Avg mileage per day: 92

Car has been wonderful commuter.

I added a dashcam since it's been rather interesting on my commutes. It is a Blackvue 590S with a 64GB Samsung endurace pro microSD card.

 

[derbo904]

I'm up to 77k miles now.

Nothing special to report but normal maintenance. THe windshield has been taking a beating though..If somthing actually creates crack lines I'll get it replace.

 

[derbo904]

80k oil service and rotate tires.

The tires are still at 5/32nd. Are these tires made out of stone?!

 

[derbo904]

Since my tires were starting to go, I figured I start hunting for a set of OEM wheels. I always wanted a sport hatchback but I wanted the EX features. I posted a few threads up to WTB touring, Si or Sport wheels. Luckily a local member here just got an Si and was about to take them off. We setup a deal and I picked up a set of Si wheels!

I was pleasantly surprised that the wheels were made by Enkei.

I really like that it is the polished versions from the sedan/coupes instead of the gunmetal ones. This seems to brighten up my hatchback as pure black darkness was a bit much.

 

[derbo904]

I have to say, the Si wheels + sport window trim and clear RoW OE Corners makes the car look a lot more modern than day 1.

MPG has dropped 1-2mpg but not too bad so far. Definitely adding extra 12lbs of unsprung weight will do that!

 

[derbo904]

## 2019-10-21
I noticed the new updated cupholders have uniformed diameter for both holders and added extensions to adjust for smaller drinks. On my original cupholder, my water bottle only fits the larger cupholder and wobbles in it. I figured the additional "fingers" might help so I went ahead and ordered one from Majestic Honda.

Part number: 83446-TBA-AA1ZA

After adding the Si wheels, this kind of renewed my interest in throwing money at this car..LOL. There are a few items I'm eyeing at the moment: factory glovebox light, factory OE LED fogs, and OE filler cap cover.