[SpareHangsOut]

Thanks for the response. Once I make some progress on mine, I'll have to place an order with some random CRV friend in Canada, that next time he goes to the pick-your-part, to grab me a pair of those cool bumper guards

I like that you've put a hitch on yours. I'm going to do that to mine as well, so that I can put the mountain bikes on the back. I see RockAuto has them for $180.

Interesting observation about how Forums are less active now. I've noticed that too, but I'm not on any social media platforms, so I wasn't aware. I started a thread for my journey also. Fun to document the learning curve, and the process.

 

[joggernot]

For a hitch, I bought a 2" Rigid hitch off the internet (through Walmart to save shipping costs) and had U-Haul install the hitch and wiring. Worked well for me.

 

[SpareHangsOut]

For a hitch, I bought a 2" Rigid hitch off the internet (through Walmart to save shipping costs) and had U-Haul install the hitch and wiring. Worked well for me.

They have Curt hitches on RockAuto for $180 right now. I won't tow a trailer with this, so I won't need wiring.

 

[Marty_Mart]

Thanks for the response. Once I make some progress on mine, I'll have to place an order with some random CRV friend in Canada, that next time he goes to the pick-your-part, to grab me a pair of those cool bumper guards

Next time I go, I'll pick up all the bumper guards I can find and let you know.

The worst thing is that I had some extra ones that I got rid of recently, not knowing that they were a wanted item.

 

[SpareHangsOut]

Next time I go, I'll pick up all the bumper guards I can find and let you know.

The worst thing is that I had some extra ones that I got rid of recently, not knowing that they were a wanted item.

Might look good on mine, either in the silver that the appear to come in, or in the "Silver Moss" body color.

 

[Marty_Mart]

Chapter 23: A first wash in 4 months

I'd been a bit careless with this, but it was more than necessary, especially as the floor repair had left a lot of dust and dirt. So I did a good indoor/outdoor wash that took several hours, and was very pleased with the results of my efforts.

Before:

After:

And I’ve put back my roof box:

 

[SpareHangsOut]

^^It really looks great. Nice job dialing it in.^^

 

[Marty_Mart]

Chapter 24 - All aboard!

I'm posting a little less these days as everyone at home is sick. Here's a little post tonight on a simple, but very important step for me.

Chronologically, it was in mid-October, 4 months after buying the truck, that I finally installed my children's car seats in it. I was waiting to finish major repairs like the floors before the CRV became my main family car. The kids were happy to finally be riding around in "daddy's big truck". It's a very different experience for them compared to my Acura CSX on coilovers.

And as a bonus, a photo I like of the truck during the first drop-off at the daycare:

 

[SpareHangsOut]

Splash shields on the backs of the front seats. Level 10 parenting, right there!! lol You've made great progress on it, and now I look forward to seeing it start to fill up with cheerios, broken toys, individual socks, and the insides of the windows "decaled" in sticky hand prints.

Don't worry, this only lasts for about a decade, and at some point during the following decade, you'll forget all about it during the big brain re-set.

 

[Marty_Mart]

Splash shields on the backs of the front seats. Level 10 parenting, right there!! lol You've made great progress on it, and now I look forward to seeing it start to fill up with cheerios, broken toys, individual socks, and the insides of the windows "decaled" in sticky hand prints.

Don't worry, this only lasts for about a decade, and at some point during the following decade, you'll forget all about it during the big brain re-set.

Hahaha! I can see you're also living the #DadLife

So much happiness with my kids, they're now 4 and 6 and starting to get interested in cars so I'm including them more and more in my little projects.

 

[Marty_Mart]

Chapter 25 - Sparco Terra

I said it earlier: I love wheels. I often buy them, sometimes to resell, sometimes to restore and resell, sometimes to use on my vehicle

One of my finds in recent weeks was a set of grey Sparco Terra. I love this model of wheels. I found a huge deal on Marketplace so I didn't hesitate to drive 3 hours round trip to pick them up.

Sorry to disappoint you, but they won't be going on the CRV. I think their specs are a bit too small to look good on the truck: 16x7 ET45. Since the wheels were in like-new condition, I didn't even want to run them 1km and risk reducing their value. I resold them a few days after purchase and made a considerable profit on them.

Worst of all, a few months before I got the CRV, I had gotten my hands on another set of Sparco Terra, this time in 17x7.5 ET45, and in white, my favorite color for this model. Anyway, they would have been perfect for the CRV, but I sold them (also at a good profit) before I even knew I wanted to buy the truck.

 

[SpareHangsOut]

The Sparco's look great, and that's pretty cool that you're making some good coin on them. Profit is not a dirty word! I think the bigger blades on your black wheels look better with how you have your rig set up.

 

[Marty_Mart]

Chapter 26 - One of my other "cars"

This is not really CRV related but as you could it see slightly in the background of my last few posts, I decided to take this opportunity to tell you about one of my other "cars". It's actually a racing sim setup I have at home.

I bought a Logitech steering wheel almost 15 years ago, when I was still living at my parents', and since then I've never stopped developing my setup. Today, it includes an Obutto structure, a racing seat, a 40-inch screen and an Acura Integra dash.

I play strictly on PS4 (eventually PS5). The PC setup is used for teleworking and forum posts

 

[SpareHangsOut]

That's a fantastic setup!

 

[craig baconator]

Chapter 19 - Winter tires to complete the winter setup.

My freshly painted winter wheels wouldn't do much good without tires. So I started shopping for them. It wasn't too difficult, as I'm quite taken with what I consider to be the best winter tire for my needs: Nokian Hakkapeliitta.

So I made a few phone calls to find the best price and within a few days I had my new set of Nokian Hakkapeliitta 9, SUV, Studded, in 215-65-16.

I went and had these tires mounted on my wheels and also ordered OEM replica logos to embellish my centers caps.

At this point, all I have to do is wait for winter to install everything on the car.

You’re still waiting for winter in Quebec? It snowed today in Calgary and snowed before Halloween. 🥶

Chapter 24 - All aboard!

I'm posting a little less these days as everyone at home is sick. Here's a little post tonight on a simple, but very important step for me.

Chronologically, it was in mid-October, 4 months after buying the truck, that I finally installed my children's car seats in it. I was waiting to finish major repairs like the floors before the CRV became my main family car. The kids were happy to finally be riding around in "daddy's big truck". It's a very different experience for them compared to my Acura CSX on coilovers.

And as a bonus, a photo I like of the truck during the first drop-off at the daycare:

I like the seat back covers to prevent boot marks…

 

[Marty_Mart]

You’re still waiting for winter in Quebec? It snowed today in Calgary and snowed before Halloween. 🥶

We had 2 days of snow but only a few CM that melted the next day each time. Today it was 14 degrees Celsius.

 

[Marty_Mart]

Chapter 27 – Safety first

I regularly equip my vehicles with a basic but fairly complete safety kit. The CRV is no exception.

So here's what I've put together and stored in the space under the trunk floor (under the table):

• Complete tool kit
• First-aid kit
• Tie Wrap
• Dock Tape
• Wrapper tape
• Electric tape
• Rope
• Spindle
• Tire repair kit
• Booster cables
• Compressor
• All-in-one tool
• Motor oil
• Gloves
• Wipers
• Flashlight
• Batteries
• Hot pads
• Lock nuts

Not on picture

• Strength bar
• Shovel
• Lighter
• Jelly cooking fuel
• Fuses
• WD40
• Towing strap

 

[Marty_Mart]

Chapter 28 - A bit of modernity

Up until now, I'd been using an FM transmitter to play music from my cell phone in the car. I was due for a good upgrade to better technology. Even so, I wanted to stay within a certain budget. So I opted for a touchscreen Bluetooth radio that I paid just $87 for on Amazon. At that price, I'm well aware that this is the kind of radio you've got a 50/50 chance of getting right. I was willing to take the risk.

I've been using it for 1 month and so far so good. I'm pleasantly surprised by its functionality and especially by how well Android Auto works. The only fault I have is that about 1 time out of 10, Bluetooth doesn't connect automatically when I start the car. In this case, all I have to do is plug in my cell phone via USB and everything synchronizes.

I had trouble finding a dash kit that fit properly on the radio's contour. After returning my Metra kit (don't buy it, it's a terrible part) I finally finished it off with an old shoe string, lol. You can see it up close, but it doesn't look like it in the car.

Here's the radio in question:

Touchscreen radio on Amazon

(affiliate link)

 

[Marty_Mart]

Chapter 29 – Interior LED

I was tired of not being able to see anything inside the truck at night, so I decided to convert my interior lights to LED. It's very easy to do. Here are the parts you'll need:

Bulb DE3175 for the dome light and the trunk light on Amazon

Bulb 194 for the map light on Amazon

(affiliate links)

Before

After

 

[Marty_Mart]

Chapter 30 - Rustproofing

Winters are tough here in Quebec. Our cities spread a lot of salt on our roads, which causes calcium build-up on our vehicles and tends to make them rust faster. A good rustproofing treatment every year is therefore not a luxury.

A friend of mine does Krown rustproofing in his garage. He's very meticulous and applies product in detail to all the required areas. I had him treat 3 cars this year, including the CRV: