EP3 vs FN2 - recent ownership opinions needed
Discussion
HazzJC said:
have you considered a s2000? I've just gone s2000 to fn2 type R and I've got to say if you want a manual weekend car that's still reasonable on consumables, they're incredible cars
At 6ft 4 and 18 stone now; but still wide (wide back/arse/hips/legs etc) I'll have to wear an S2K as a backpack 
leemanning said:
I'm about to list my very nice condition FN2 with some great, sensible mods and 63k miles.
Let me know if it's something you'd be interested in!
ThanksLet me know if it's something you'd be interested in!
Please send me a message (click on my profile at the top right and select 'email me' or whatever it says along those lines...
leemanning said:
Your profile doesn’t have that on there, I think you need to enable it.
I’ve listed it for sale anyway, it’s up for £9,495 in the Civic Type R part of the classifieds if you want to take a look!
Thanks. Odd as 8t shows that members can email & I've received emails recently.I found your FN2, looks stunning and fabulous colour.I’ve listed it for sale anyway, it’s up for £9,495 in the Civic Type R part of the classifieds if you want to take a look!
Unfortunately it's more than I want to pay currently for an FN2
Good luck with the sale though, I'm sure it'll move soon enough
danb79 said:
Sat in an EP3 yesterday; not impressed...
Seat has you sat very high; at 6ft 4 this is no good for me. My head was nigh on wedged into the headliner...
Need to get a sit in an FN2 now...
There’s a mod - low position seat rail.Seat has you sat very high; at 6ft 4 this is no good for me. My head was nigh on wedged into the headliner...
Need to get a sit in an FN2 now...
Although the standard seats have the subframes welded on iirc. Hence the need for bride rails etc to fit Recaros or aftermarket seats.
danb79 said:
Thanks. Odd as 8t shows that members can email & I've received emails recently.I found your FN2, looks stunning and fabulous colour.
Unfortunately it's more than I want to pay currently for an FN2
Good luck with the sale though, I'm sure it'll move soon enough
No probs. I only mentioned it as you said you had a £10k budget to buy the car and do a few mods, so I thought it might be perfect for you as the mods are already done and it's one of the best for sale!Unfortunately it's more than I want to pay currently for an FN2
Good luck with the sale though, I'm sure it'll move soon enough
leemanning said:
No probs. I only mentioned it as you said you had a £10k budget to buy the car and do a few mods, so I thought it might be perfect for you as the mods are already done and it's one of the best for sale!
Hi LeeYes my budget can go that high but at a push and for the right car
I've got my eye on a few FN2s that are local to me and they've been looked after/maintained by my pals at Grinspeed etc and they're a good few £k less than yours (albeit higher mileage); but that doesn't bother me. The more looked after examples are what I'll consider
Just bad timing as I'm away to Dublin next week and possible San Fran the week after; so it's all on hold until I get back and have 5mins to think!
Biggest killer of these is rust.
On the fn2 the rear beam rot from the inside out and a ramp is the only way to check properly. Honda part is £1k a repro is now available for around £400. As you know Grinspeed do a lot of these.
More worrying is the boot floor and sills doing the same. By the time its viewable from the outside its too late. Unfortunately at the price these are now it’s beyond economical to repair them unless you are handy with a welder.
They also rust along the top edge of the windscreen where the rubber seal for the front window rubs through the paint and then rusts.
Red cars have issues with the paint failing.
Engine is bulletproof as long as it’s full of oil.
Valve clearances are 25k mile intervals and most owners don’t do it. It really wakes the engine up when they are done right.
Spark plugs are expensive but last a long time.
Gearbox has some issues with the synchro on 3rd. Should only affect early cars.
Don’t judge the gearbox until its warm. Its a bit of a pig when cold.
Clutch point can be low. Garages just don’t adjust them correctly after fitting a new one. Easy DIY.
Clutch master cylinder have a squeaky issue. There was a honda recall. Before throwing any money on it change the fluid to ate200. Mine was squeaking like mad. Flushed the fluid out and replaced with ate200. No more squeaking!
Interior wise they are pretty robust. The seat bolsters rub through, same as any heavily bolstered seat. Fabric is unavailable from honda now.
The tilt/slide mechanism fail meaning it will tilt forward but not slide. Easy fix with some bicycle parts.
The boot leaks water. The seam sealer honda used cracks over time letting water in around the boot hinges.
The rear seats are magic and fold down flat meaning you have a load space much larger than a car of its size should have.
I think a LSD is a must for these cars. I wouldn’t buy one without it or leaving enough in the pot to have one put in. Post April 2010 have them fitted as standard. Also the championship white and mugen have them fitted.
There are lots and lots of dogs out there. Buy a bad one and it will be a money pit. Buy a good one and they offer so much for very little outlay.
Pic of my old one.
On the fn2 the rear beam rot from the inside out and a ramp is the only way to check properly. Honda part is £1k a repro is now available for around £400. As you know Grinspeed do a lot of these.
More worrying is the boot floor and sills doing the same. By the time its viewable from the outside its too late. Unfortunately at the price these are now it’s beyond economical to repair them unless you are handy with a welder.
They also rust along the top edge of the windscreen where the rubber seal for the front window rubs through the paint and then rusts.
Red cars have issues with the paint failing.
Engine is bulletproof as long as it’s full of oil.
Valve clearances are 25k mile intervals and most owners don’t do it. It really wakes the engine up when they are done right.
Spark plugs are expensive but last a long time.
Gearbox has some issues with the synchro on 3rd. Should only affect early cars.
Don’t judge the gearbox until its warm. Its a bit of a pig when cold.
Clutch point can be low. Garages just don’t adjust them correctly after fitting a new one. Easy DIY.
Clutch master cylinder have a squeaky issue. There was a honda recall. Before throwing any money on it change the fluid to ate200. Mine was squeaking like mad. Flushed the fluid out and replaced with ate200. No more squeaking!
Interior wise they are pretty robust. The seat bolsters rub through, same as any heavily bolstered seat. Fabric is unavailable from honda now.
The tilt/slide mechanism fail meaning it will tilt forward but not slide. Easy fix with some bicycle parts.
The boot leaks water. The seam sealer honda used cracks over time letting water in around the boot hinges.
The rear seats are magic and fold down flat meaning you have a load space much larger than a car of its size should have.
I think a LSD is a must for these cars. I wouldn’t buy one without it or leaving enough in the pot to have one put in. Post April 2010 have them fitted as standard. Also the championship white and mugen have them fitted.
There are lots and lots of dogs out there. Buy a bad one and it will be a money pit. Buy a good one and they offer so much for very little outlay.
Pic of my old one.
sam.rog said:
Biggest killer of these is rust.
On the fn2 the rear beam rot from the inside out and a ramp is the only way to check properly. Honda part is £1k a repro is now available for around £400. As you know Grinspeed do a lot of these.
More worrying is the boot floor and sills doing the same. By the time its viewable from the outside its too late. Unfortunately at the price these are now it’s beyond economical to repair them unless you are handy with a welder.
They also rust along the top edge of the windscreen where the rubber seal for the front window rubs through the paint and then rusts.
Red cars have issues with the paint failing.
Engine is bulletproof as long as it’s full of oil.
Valve clearances are 25k mile intervals and most owners don’t do it. It really wakes the engine up when they are done right.
Spark plugs are expensive but last a long time.
Gearbox has some issues with the synchro on 3rd. Should only affect early cars.
Don’t judge the gearbox until its warm. Its a bit of a pig when cold.
Clutch point can be low. Garages just don’t adjust them correctly after fitting a new one. Easy DIY.
Clutch master cylinder have a squeaky issue. There was a honda recall. Before throwing any money on it change the fluid to ate200. Mine was squeaking like mad. Flushed the fluid out and replaced with ate200. No more squeaking!
Interior wise they are pretty robust. The seat bolsters rub through, same as any heavily bolstered seat. Fabric is unavailable from honda now.
The tilt/slide mechanism fail meaning it will tilt forward but not slide. Easy fix with some bicycle parts.
The boot leaks water. The seam sealer honda used cracks over time letting water in around the boot hinges.
The rear seats are magic and fold down flat meaning you have a load space much larger than a car of its size should have.
I think a LSD is a must for these cars. I wouldn’t buy one without it or leaving enough in the pot to have one put in. Post April 2010 have them fitted as standard. Also the championship white and mugen have them fitted.
There are lots and lots of dogs out there. Buy a bad one and it will be a money pit. Buy a good one and they offer so much for very little outlay.
Pic of my old one.
Cheers SamOn the fn2 the rear beam rot from the inside out and a ramp is the only way to check properly. Honda part is £1k a repro is now available for around £400. As you know Grinspeed do a lot of these.
More worrying is the boot floor and sills doing the same. By the time its viewable from the outside its too late. Unfortunately at the price these are now it’s beyond economical to repair them unless you are handy with a welder.
They also rust along the top edge of the windscreen where the rubber seal for the front window rubs through the paint and then rusts.
Red cars have issues with the paint failing.
Engine is bulletproof as long as it’s full of oil.
Valve clearances are 25k mile intervals and most owners don’t do it. It really wakes the engine up when they are done right.
Spark plugs are expensive but last a long time.
Gearbox has some issues with the synchro on 3rd. Should only affect early cars.
Don’t judge the gearbox until its warm. Its a bit of a pig when cold.
Clutch point can be low. Garages just don’t adjust them correctly after fitting a new one. Easy DIY.
Clutch master cylinder have a squeaky issue. There was a honda recall. Before throwing any money on it change the fluid to ate200. Mine was squeaking like mad. Flushed the fluid out and replaced with ate200. No more squeaking!
Interior wise they are pretty robust. The seat bolsters rub through, same as any heavily bolstered seat. Fabric is unavailable from honda now.
The tilt/slide mechanism fail meaning it will tilt forward but not slide. Easy fix with some bicycle parts.
The boot leaks water. The seam sealer honda used cracks over time letting water in around the boot hinges.
The rear seats are magic and fold down flat meaning you have a load space much larger than a car of its size should have.
I think a LSD is a must for these cars. I wouldn’t buy one without it or leaving enough in the pot to have one put in. Post April 2010 have them fitted as standard. Also the championship white and mugen have them fitted.
There are lots and lots of dogs out there. Buy a bad one and it will be a money pit. Buy a good one and they offer so much for very little outlay.
Pic of my old one.
Yes aware of a lot of that; Ste & Don have run me through the foibles etc (I'm fairly well out of touch with Honda now TBH). I've seen plenty of them through their doors; all with very similar issues and quite a few in for some major overhauls too
But that's why I'm considering the ones that they've looked after and they've both had the rear beam done as well as a few other bits etc, and, they've been looked after by mature enthusiasts rather than kids and their new toy, if you follow me...
There's also a few bone stock ones that have been looked after with plenty of paperwork to show, which interest me, just other side of the country
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