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Discussion in 'Introductions' started by DWils, Apr 27, 2018.

  1. DWils

    DWils Member

    Hey. I'm DWils. You might remember me from such forums as 9thgencivic and fitfreak. I just bought a 1992 Honda Acty SDX van. Well, it's either a SDX or SDX2. I'm still trying to learn the difference between the two. It has about 57000kms on it and I couldn't be happier. I've wanted an Acty ever since I discovered they existed back in 2012. Best part about my Acty? It is registered for on-road use! I look forward to contributing what I can and learning from the rest of you who have been around longer than me.
     
    zxrx likes this.
  2. DWils

    DWils Member

    Now for a list of some of my stupid questions (yes, I have tried searching):
    *How big is the gas tank? 8 US gallons?
    *How much oil is required?
    *Where is the battery located? Under the trap door inside the van or behind the front bumper?
     
    zxrx likes this.
  3. DWils

    DWils Member

    I bought an English Factory Service Manual written by James L Danko and it finally arrived today. It answered some of my questions, like where the battery is (in the middle of the floor [maybe under its own door?] just forward of the engine compartment), but did not answer the gas tank capacity, and actually had two different numbers for how much oil was required. Page 31 says 3.0L after disassembly, 2.7L with oil filter, and 2.5L just changing the oil without the filter. Page 48 says 2.7L without the filter and 3.0L with changing the filter. I guess I could always just dump in 2.5L and check and keep on filling until the correct level is attained.
     
    zxrx likes this.
  4. DWils

    DWils Member

    Is there an OBD1 port, and if so, where is it?
     
  5. DWils

    DWils Member

    So, since it seems like I'm just talking to myself in here, I'll probably just use this thread as my build thread or something in which to store all my notes to self.

    A few days ago I added a Battery Tender. I reversed the rear end up on some ramps and jacked the front end up and put it on jack stands. I played around under the van for a while and tried to figure out where I wanted the plug to poke out and where the best place for it was. I decided to run the wires down to the ground then towards the front of the van just above the gas tank then to the driver's side and I zip-tied it to the rear passenger step and made sure that everything was tucked up out of the way.

    While I was playing around in the Acty I figured I'd swap out the horribly dim festoon bulb in the rear cargo area for something brighter. I found 0.5m of LEDs that I had laying around and wired them all up. Now the rear cargo area is really bright! While I was doing that I found two wires that were cut (probably by the last owner before the van went to auction) and realized they powered nothing and ran all the way from above the rear driver's side sliding door along the door frames and down the A-pillar under the dashboard to the fuse box. I pulled everything out and had to remove the fuse in the process. A little while later I went for a drive and had zero lights - no headlights, no turn signals, no dashboard lights, no tail lights. I made it back home and whipped out the service manual. I figured out which fuse it was and went back out to the van, only to discover that all the lights worked again for some weird reason without me touching anything.

    My suspicions that the Acty had a tow package installed prior to coming to the United States was confirmed as I found the plug for a trailer tucked away under the rear bumper by the license plate holder. I think an extra wire soldered to a fuse in the fuse box which leads to a bunch of other rat's nests of wires is what powers it. I have yet to find a trailer with which to test it, but maybe one day I will.

    I also discovered that the front wheels have (probably) a 5mm spacer on them. I was looking at the front lug nuts and compared them to how seated the rear lug nuts were and wondered why there was such a notable difference. I can turn the front lug nuts about 5.5-6 revolutions when I tighten them before they torque to 80ftlbs, which, I assume, is what they're supposed to be torqued to. I bought a full-size spare tire (since the van didn't come with one) and swapped out the front tire for that. The spare tire appears to have less of a positive offset and doesn't rub against the front springs without the spacer like do the wheels I have now. It was only $122USD for the wheel and tire, so I might end up getting another 3 just so all four tires match and I don't have to use spacers. Or maybe I'll just get extended studs if I can find them. I would ask if anyone knows were to get extended studs, but, going back to that whole "I'm just talking to myself in here" part, I'll just find some on my own.
     
    AZmini-t likes this.
  6. AZmini-t

    AZmini-t Member

    Lol I wish I had a truck already so you didn't have to turn this into your build thread. Don't lose hope!! I'll get one someday ;)
     
  7. Jigs-n-fixtures

    Jigs-n-fixtures Well-Known Member

    I’d respond, but I’m a Hijet guy, and don’t know much about the Acty.

    For extended studs I’d try NAPA. I wouldn’t expect them to be vehicle specific.
     
  8. Ohkei Dohkei

    Ohkei Dohkei Active Member

    I hate electrical gremlins that fix themselves... They usually un-fix themselves at the worst possible time. So does it have a trailer hitch, or just wiring to plug in a trailer?
     
  9. DWils

    DWils Member

    Thanks. I've just been looking around online and it seems like a lot of the studs are vehicle-specific. I guess the only way to find out is to pull one out and take it to an auto parts store. It's looking like the studs are going to be a lot less expensive to replace than buying 3 new wheels and tires, but also a lot more time consuming.
     
  10. DWils

    DWils Member

    It doesn't still have a hitch or anything on/in which to mount the trailer, but it has the electrical connector thing bundled up underneath the rear bumper. I would take a picture, but I can't just upload it to the site because I have to upload it to somewhere like Photobucket then link to it here. Pain in the butt.
     
  11. Ohkei Dohkei

    Ohkei Dohkei Active Member

    If you can find out what size your current studs are, there are tons of them on ebay, just search "long wheel lug stud" but I agree, it would be a heck of a lot less work (not to mention safer) to find 4 wheels with the correct offset.
     
  12. DWils

    DWils Member

    I finally filled up for the second time and was able to calculate my fuel consumption. I drove 308kms/191miles since 05/04/2018 and filled up with 24.22L/6.4gal, which, according to my math (which could totally be wrong) means I got 12.71kpL/29.84mpg. Seems about right, considering about 129km/80miles or so were right around 100kph/62mph with RPMs possibly hovering in the 6000 range. Most of the time I had the windows cracked or down all the way without using the air conditioner. I only had a passenger for a negligible amount of time and distance without anything else in the van but a full-size spare tire.
     
    AZmini-t likes this.
  13. AZmini-t

    AZmini-t Member

    This is great. Thx for the actual data. Everything else on her was just speculative. 30mpg pretty much as good as any non-hybrid passenger vehicle, let alone a truck! Good news
     
  14. DWils

    DWils Member

    SeattleActyVan said in this thread: https://minitrucktalk.com/threads/miles-per-gallon.18302/ that his gas tank is 8USgal (30.28L). I still don't know if that is how big the Acty SDX2 van's gas tank is, but I'd imagine that the gas tanks would be the same size on all the vans from the same generation. Unfortunately, http://www.automobile-catalog.com/ does not have specs for the 1992 Actys just yet, only the first generation from 1977-1988, not the second from 1989-1999.

    I still have no idea how to independently verify that what I have is a 1992 edition. I know that the trim level is SDX2 based on chassis and engine codes, but have no idea how to tell what year it is since all Actys in my van's generation have the "HH3" prefix. If anyone knows how to identify the year, please let me know.
     
  15. DWils

    DWils Member

    Over the weekend I went to Home Depot and bought an air hammer and some chisels to attack the front wheel issue. I jacked up the Acty and pulled the front driver wheel off and started poking around. In theory, all I'd have to do is break off the two bolts hilding the brake caliper to the hub, then remove two screws on the front of the hub, then remove the four studs and replace them.

    But, I quickly learned I had no idea what I was doing under there, so I put the wheel back on and decided to start looking at Discount Tire's website to replace the wheels and tires with something that will fit and won't need spacers. I think the wheels are only being held on by about 10mm of stud and would like to use the other 5mm.
     
  16. Ohkei Dohkei

    Ohkei Dohkei Active Member

    Yeah, those studs don't come out easy. I think you are on the right track.
     
  17. DWils

    DWils Member

    What did I do to the Acty today? I finally got all the wiring done for the third brake light. I thought I mentioned it before, but I guess I didn't. I have the third brake light from my 2007 Honda Fit Base that I replaced with a JDM LED brake light assembly. The stock third brake light assembly consists of: 34302-SAA-G03 (assembly) and 34271-SAA-G01 (cover) with 33515-SAA-003 (light bulb receptacle) and a 7440 light bulb.

    My issues were 1. Figuring out how to mount it to the rear window of the microvan and 2. Figuring out which connector I needed for the light bulb receptacle. Turns out I needed 04321-SH2-307 for the connector and 04320-SP0-A00 for the wires. I ordered both parts and patiently waited for them to get to my local Honda dealership earlier this week. I put two wires in a connector and then test-fit it in the light bulb receptacle and it was the correct fit! I fished wires from the fuse box all the way back to the rear tailgate and found out that the "Stop light" fuse was always hot. So running an add-a-circuit to that fuse wasn't an option. Instead I tore the wires out that I had painstakingly run from one end to the other, and decided to attack the problem at the source: the tail light. I decided to pull the rear bumper to have better access to everything.

    In so doing I opened another can of worms and found the trailer hitch wiring that was hiding behind the rear bumper. Turns out most of the wiring was still there. I say "most" because I could tell that some of the wires had been cut and otherwise removed. There was a wiring harness with some wires sticking out of it that didn't go anywhere, so I figured I'd just remove the whole thing and figure out later where the wiring was coming from the front of the van.

    Back to the brake light. After pulling the bumper and removing the trailer hitch harness I decided to tap into the green/white wire for power and the solid black wire for the ground. I tested it a few times to make sure I had the correct wires for the brake light and not the tail light and then I taped everything up and put the bumper back on. Then I took the bumper back off and decided to vacuum the decades of dirt then put the bumper back on. I tested everything a few more times and mounted the brake light temporarily to the top of the window using double-sided tape. I need to get some self-tapping screws to better secure the brake light to the metal just above the window because the double-sided tape doesn't hold it for very long in the Arizona heat.
     
    AZmini-t likes this.
  18. BIff

    BIff New Member

    Sounds good. I have a 1990 carry dump, for about 2 months. I love it and work the crap out if it.

    Have fun.
     
  19. DWils

    DWils Member

    I bought some self-tapping screws and drilled into the hatch and installed the third brake light. No issues... yet.
     
  20. DWils

    DWils Member

    Still no brake light issues. I went to Discount Tire yesterday and had them pull off the old tires and put them on the new wheels. $343.64USD later for four Unique 83 13x5.5 wheels, no more spacers in the front! Today I went around and loosened all the lug nuts, then properly torqued them down to 80ftlbs. The guy who drove the Acty off the lift said that he thought the front wheels might be rubbing on something and suspected it was on the mudflaps when turning the wheels all the way to one side or the other. I only had 3 right turns and 3 left turns and a big roundabout on my way home and didn't hear anything I shouldn't have. Today I bought a 20-pack of Gorilla 45138HBC lug nuts that should be here sometime next week.
     
  21. DWils

    DWils Member

    I fueled up again for the third time on 07/23/2018. I drove 372kms/231miles since 05/31/2018 and filled up with 25.12L/6.636gal, which, according to my math means I got 14.79kpL/34.81mpg. A little better than my last tank of gas at 12.71kpL/29.84mpg. Temperatures are blazing hot this time of year in Arizona, so I have had the windows rolled up more, but at the same time, I'm also running the air conditioner too. So who knows! I'm just thankful that the fuel efficiency gods smiled down upon me for this last tank.
     
  22. zxrx

    zxrx New Member

    I have a '91 Acty and it's carbureted. I don't think they did the PGM-FI until '93 so I could be wrong. I don't think there's an OBD1 port.

    Glad you're having fun!
     
  23. DWils

    DWils Member

    Thanks! I'm still slowly learning things about the Acty and just thankful that I haven't hit any major snags yet that I don't know how to remedy myself. It's probably time for an oil change and air filter and probably some other stuff that I don't know how to do, so I'll just wait until I'm stuck on the side of the road somewhere and have it towed to a mechanic that'll charge me way more to fix the problem than preventing it would have cost.
     
  24. DWils

    DWils Member

    A few days ago I installed a Fumoto valve and replaced the oil filter with a genuine Honda filter (15400-PLM-A02). The van only had about 53705kms on it and I don't know exactly when/how many kilometers it had on it when it was last changed, so I decided to change the oil too. So far no leaks. Well, at least not from the oil filter or drain plug area. It took 2.5L to fill up the oil pan to about halfway on the dipstick. Since I have a slow leak from somewhere I'll have to watch the oil level since I don't think the Acty has a low oil pressure light.

    I also fueled up again for the fourth time today (09/16/2018). I drove 335kms/208miles since 07/23/2018 and filled up with 27.44L/7.249gal, which, according to my math means I got 12.20kpL/28.69mpg. I spent a lot of time running the air conditioner and sitting in stop-and-go traffic for the last few kilometers.

    Next project is getting ceramic tint on the front windows. I was thinking about tinting them with the regular black tint, but then that would take away from the joy of seeing people look at the only passenger in the vehicle on the right side of the van. I enjoy seeing people's faces and reactions when they realize they're looking at a right-hand drive vehicle because they aren't too common around here.
     
  25. shogun

    shogun Active Member

    As for technical questions better post in the Honda forum here, not all members read here in the general introduction forum. But as you now have the workshop manual, that will help to answer most of your questions.
     

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