"MonkeePuzzle" (monkeypuzzle)
06/01/2020 at 10:35 • Filed to: BexTheTSX
4
14|
"MonkeePuzzle" (monkeypuzzle)
06/01/2020 at 10:35 • Filed to: BexTheTSX | 4
| 14 |
not shared much about my TSX after acquiring it cross-country in Feb; mostly because it’s an excellent car with no need for mods (or money) and just works and is already good. so not a project. I did spend my weekend making it shiny though
over two days I did all the sort of cleaning that a used car deserves. intricate cleaning of all the buttons and grooves in the dash. removed all the decals on the windows that have been there since delivery (does anyone think thieves actually stop and read that little sticker an think “gorsh, better not steal this one, it has fancy keys and an alarm!”, vacuumed properly in and behind things, treated the leather, etc etc etc.
Most evident (to me) in the above picture is that the wheels are silver again. The paint is ok, so I don’t think the previous owner/s ran it through a brush auto-wash, but it clearly never got any actual attention. The wheels were well caked in brake dust and were noticeably (to me) orange when you looked at the car. Removing brake dust is something the auto-wash is just never very good as as it requires special products and some diligent agitation.
Went that extra step and even gave the tyres a shine, which I usually forget to do.
Suckered my daughter into washing the cars by letting her do all the pressure washing. Which meant I got well soaked as I did all the agitating with foam and brushes and such while she essentially continuously soaked the car/me. But it did actually speed things up.
but back to the TSX, it’s not a real new-to-me car until I’ve removed the seats and found the truth that a typical lazy pre-sale vacuum had hidden.
In this case I found some lost poker chips (of no value), 1 dime in the rear seats, a quarter in the trunk, and two dimes up front. 55cents!
A small collection of Detroit diamonds were scattered between the front seat and beneath the centre console/arm rest, so I assume a broken driver’s window at some point. Happily no other surprises presented themselves.
But this is still easily the cleanest used car I’ve taken apart. I suspect an older and kidless prior owner.
I dislike leather seats, they are too hot in summer, too cold in winter (although I have seat heaters because I’m the bourgeoisie); but at least partially I dislike them because they look tired more quickly than fabric, and don’t hold up to the daily abuse, and require more diligent ongoing maintenance than fabric seats. Mine are in great shape, again I think because no one ever sat in the back seats, and the front passenger is essentially new. So the previous owner was likely an older, kidless, loner? The driver’s bolster is of course showing the most wear, and the driver’s seat sucked in at least three times the conditioner of the other seats. Thirsty and dry. But looking better and feeling nicer after some love.
Removing the seats and bringing them to my living room really allowed my to luxuriate some time on rubbing them down as my family watched The Hobbit, so I had a free 9 hours or so to massage my leathers.
Also we modded nerf guns: out with the air restrictor
in with an extra spring
and now they suitably hurt when we nerf battled.
And that is all. Carry on with your lives now.
avalonian
> MonkeePuzzle
06/01/2020 at 10:52 |
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I conditioned my leather seats this weekend also on my GS and it looked way better. I hadn't done it in over 10 months so I figured now would be the best time, with that said maybe some tints would help with your leather not cracking in the future and what not. In the Georgia sun that has seriously helped preserve mine. I do wanna get in the habit of cleaning the leather every month to prevent cracking at all.
Svend
> MonkeePuzzle
06/01/2020 at 11:03 |
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Looking good.
Also, bonding with the lil’one is always good.
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MonkeePuzzle
> avalonian
06/01/2020 at 11:05 |
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indeed. as my far cheaper and crappier 93 Civic gets the garage spot (becuase thieves steal them like candy) the TSX will re quire some tint, and a sun shade for the rear and front windows me thinks.
the car certainly gets insanely hot after only a brief time in the sun, and conform aside, that can’t be good for the leather.
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MonkeePuzzle
> Svend
06/01/2020 at 11:07 |
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she was reluctant to join me, but I offered pocket money. she’d previously helped me wash cars before I got the pressure washer. with the pressure washer the thought it was legitimate fun, and less of a chore.
So I think she’ll be willing to bond wiht me during future washes far more readily
Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
> MonkeePuzzle
06/01/2020 at 12:00 |
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Wait, when did you buy that? I must have missed it. Looks like a fantastic deal. What's the year/mileage? And what you paid for it if you don't mind? You would be hard pressed too find one with a better interior anywhere I think. So glad you aren't worrying to death about giving a car more attention than it deserves because you paid only X amount.
Future next gen S2000 owner
> MonkeePuzzle
06/01/2020 at 12:01 |
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Does that washer hose thing work better than a bucket? Seems like it wouldn’t be able to really get the sticking asphalt booger things or a really caked on bug off the front end.
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avalonian
> MonkeePuzzle
06/01/2020 at 12:07 |
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Yyeah, you could tint the windshield like 70% and that would help keep the car tremendously cooler. And also protect the dash cause I know they can crack. So an idea, plus it's not really expensive and absolutely helps with appearance. You can't fit 2 cars in the garage?
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Svend
> MonkeePuzzle
06/01/2020 at 12:40 |
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Lol.
Have you got a snow foam lance? She’ll absolutely love that.
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MonkeePuzzle
> Svend
06/01/2020 at 12:44 |
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we do! and she does!
...but now I didnt get to play with it. AND TH
ATS THE BEST PART!
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MonkeePuzzle
> avalonian
06/01/2020 at 12:45 |
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I can, but the wife’s daily takes precedence
over me getting two spots for my addiction.
particularly in winter when snow scraping is involved
.
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MonkeePuzzle
> Future next gen S2000 owner
06/01/2020 at 12:49 |
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it’s used in tandem with bucket and sponge.
the foam sprayer just does a better job of getting the whole car soapy so it has some time to dwell and loosen some things. but it doesn’t replace a need to agitate (and sometimes scrub, i.e. bugs after a road trip) with a sponge or towels or whatever.
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MonkeePuzzle
> Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
06/01/2020 at 12:57 |
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I got this at the beginning of the year
https://oppositelock.kinja.com/monkee-acquired-a-thing-1841243084
I spotted it on cars.com out in Chicago. It was the best combination of colours available (black exterior and interior), it was the slight revision of 2007/08, and of course manual. So it was worth flying out from Denver to go pickup.
Miles wise, it’s jsut over 90k, so very low.
condition wise, it still have protective
blue plastic on the door sills, so, excellent
https://oppositelock.kinja.com/i-hope-you-find-this-video-appeeling-1841790114
It was listed
for
~$6500, but it was a dealer so fees, and of course taxes, plus some air miles to get it.
The bank says it’s 110% of it’s actual value, but I’ve not seen anything
even similar (manual, 100k miles) for less than 7-8K. So I’m well happy.
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Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
> MonkeePuzzle
06/01/2020 at 13:40 |
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Oh yeah now I remember the thing about the blue plastic. I’m surprised those are real links actually.
https://oppositelock.kinja.com/1843827100
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avalonian
> MonkeePuzzle
06/01/2020 at 14:03 |
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Oh understood lol. I digress