Lots of Parts from Japan

[Kaz-kzukNA1]

Hi, all.

Over the past few weeks, I was helping many NSXCB members with their CCU (Climate Control Unit) control board.
Several members visited my place to have their CCU installed after the service and at the same time, I was offering the NSX Health Check service when I had spare time. It would take about 3 hours and I would list up the recommended future services with the priorities.

I’ll try to post something regarding this service in the future.

Some of the members decided to go even further and left the car with me to work on their NSX during my spare time or placed the orders for the parts based on the result of the health check.

Followings are some of the parts that I ordered recently for my friends and for myself.

Now I need to find some spare time to fit these parts….

1. CCU light bulbs

I already replaced all of the light bulbs on the instrument panel (meter/gauge) and that made huge difference during the night driving.
Looking at the CCU, it looked quite dark around the two big dials so decided to replace the light bulbs. There were two light bulbs and one of them was actually dead and the other one was almost black. Replaced both of them and now I’m happy to drive the car in the dark.


2. Passenger knee panel under the glove box

Not sure the correct English name for this part but long time ago, when I tried to install the key-less entry system, I accidentally broke off the small tab sticking out from this part. It was there to prevent this panel to rattle. It started to rattle recently so I decided to replace it with the new one. I saw lots of NSX with the same damage to this panel and after replacing it, the rattling noise was gone.


3. Type-R Clutch pedal and Damper-less joint

If you don’t like the height and feeling of the clutch pedal at the bite point, this is one thing you can try. These are the clutch pedal and damper-less joint from the Type-R. It will provide you with more direct/solid feeling and due to the clever angle of the pedal, the pedal height at the bite point will be lowered without any bad side effect.


4. Clutch slave cylinder and the clutch hose + O-ring

If you find a leakage at the Clutch Master or Slave cylinder, replace both of them at the same time. Also, if you haven’t done so, please replace the clutch hose and O-ring as some of the owners experienced burst hose due to the aging.


5. Coolant hoses – 23 of them

These are the regular maintenance items. There were several reports on the burst hose especially at the ones under the header tank, the small/short one at the Oil cooler and the one in the middle of the body under the floor.

[Kaz-kzukNA1]

6. Coolant hose clips – 45 of them

I know there are lots of options for this but I prefer using the OEM style clips even they are not user friendly especially when trying to remove them.


7. Header tank, thermostat, cap

Another regular maintenance items.
The tank is famous for getting crack after several years but I prefer using the OEM one as I know how much effort was put into this design for the air/water separation under load. The cap and thermostat are not that expensive and best to be replaced at the time of coolant job.


8. O-rings when replacing the coolant hoses

You will need this figure of 8 O-ring when you are going to replace the coolant hoses. It is much easier to replace the short hose just behind the Engine Oil cooler by removing the oil filter base. Also, it is best to replace the tiny O-ring at the lower and upper radiator drain bolts.


9. Type-R Header tank rubber cover/jacket

During the winter period, I removed the engine cover/tray so that I can see the engine room through the glass hatch. However, it is a known fact that this will allow UV ray to affect the plastic and rubber parts inside the engine room. In order to minimise this effect, Type-R uses a rubber cover/jacket over the standard header tank. So, decided to get one but why it is so expensive…
Now I need to think about lightly smoked film on the rear hatch glass to protect the rubber hoses….

[Kaz-kzukNA1]

10. Weather-strip

After long years, all the rubber parts will be tired and deformed. Replacing the weatherstrip is one of the most cost effective maintenance that you can do. At the same time, it would be best to re-align the window glass if you haven’t done so yet.


11. Tie-rod and Rack end

This is another common maintenance items on our car. Quite often, you will find the NSX with tiny movement (up/down or forward/backward but not left/right) at the tie-rod/rack end. Obviously, this will affect your handling so needs to be checked regularly and best to replace them immediately if you found a play otherwise it could cause further damages to other parts of the car.


12. Type-R toe control arm

Due to the aging, most of the rubber bush will be tired and I wanted to replace them very soon.
Ideally, I wanted to try the pillow type but decided to get the Type-R bush first.


13. 2002 Type-R steering wheel with horn button, metal rings, bolts, etc.

I already got the Type-R steering boss but couldn’t decide what to do with the steering wheel design. One thing I really didn’t like was the weight/design of the original steering wheel with SRS. I knew it will cost more to get OEM steering wheel than the aftermarket one from Momo and others, I decided to go for the OEM.

I don’t know when I can fit all of these parts but then it is best to get OEM parts in advance as Honda will normally increase the price in spring and autumn.


Regards,
Kaz

[Sudesh]

Great post as always Kaz!

One of things on that list I need to get is the NSX-R header tank cover. If anyone has one to want to sell let me know.

[AR]

Kaz that looks like a lot of Yens on those pictures.

How do you ship your parts?

Cheers,

AR

[NSX 2000]

Great post as always Kaz!

One of things on that list I need to get is the NSX-R header tank cover. If anyone has one to want to sell let me know.

I'm after one of these as well. Group buy any one?

[Kaz-kzukNA1]

Kaz that looks like a lot of Yens on those pictures.

How do you ship your parts?

Cheers,

AR

Hi, AR.
As you know, it all depends on the urgency, the purpose, the weight, the size and so on.

If it is urgent, then I tend to use Japan Post EMS service. Normally it will arrive at Heathrow within 2 days and then a few days to clear the custom. With EMS, the max weight limit per package is 30Kg so I try to combine several orders to achieve 30Kg in order to save the delivery charge.

For smaller items less than 2.0Kg, it is best to use Air mail small parcel service. In fact, if you can devide big orders in 2.0Kg each, you may be able to save even further than using EMS.

Once a year, I have an opportunity to ship huge items at low cost through my business as it involves several cargo planes.

If I’m on business trip to Japan, I’ll try to use British Airways as their baggage allowance is based on the number of luggage and not by the total weight. Also the extra weight charge is flat rate and not based on each extra Kg like other airlines. It is best to pay to get 32.0Kg allowance per luggage. On business class, you can carry 3 pieces plus cabin luggage. The weight restriction for the cabin luggage is 'as long as you can store it in the overhead compartment without any assistance' so guess how much I carry…

Also, from time to time, I used unaccompanied luggage service when I visited Japan. As long as the items are for personal usage and not brand new, you don’t need to pay the duty tax. The package won’t leave Japan until after I left Japan but if I use this service, I’ll only pack up my personal belongings that are not urgently required.

There are other methods available and I’m fortunate enough to have good friends helping me on this.

Regards,
Kaz

[AR]

The weight restriction for the cabin luggage is 'as long as you can store it in the overhead compartment without any assistance' so guess how much I carry…

That would be me trying to fit a gearbox!


Thanks for the detailed reply. I have used EMS before. Is there a reason why most people on Yahoo Japan are reticent to ship internationally? Once in a while there are interesting bits, but language and shipping put a stop to it.

Cheers,

Ary

[Sudesh]

I'm after one of these as well. Group buy any one?

Sorry to go off topic but that sounds like a good idea if we can get the numbers, and a good price. SOS do them for around $153 which is around £105

Are there any other suppliers that sell these? Or if Kaz doesnt mind, could you possibly get us some prices from Japan?

[vtecdirect]

I can supply NSX-R expansion tank covers at a good price £104 delivered to nsxcb members. If a few of you want one I will do even better price , cheers