Hi, my name's Brent. I've been lurking around on this forum for a while now. I just hardly ever post.

I bought my Cordia from a user on here a few months ago for 400 buks. It has ac interior, ac turbo (don't know why), turbo timer (think it's the factory one), inter cooler, straight through exhaust with cannon, sunroof (apparently these are rare?), some cheap blow of valve (lol) and probably a lot of other things I can't think of at the moment.



Future plans: Finish the paint (it's going to be a dark metallic gun metal grey), clean it up a bit, get it registered, get some new suspension things (lower it a bit? get some new swaybars maybe? stiffen it up), fit a boost controller and boost guage, then just cruise.

I've been on school holidays for the past two weeks and I got bored so I decided I was going to paint the Cordia. This is my 1st ever paint job, I've been given free paint and been using my old mans tools/painting equipment so hopefully it'll turn out alright and not too costly.

These were taken the day after I got it home. The paint looks quite good but that's only because I had just given it a wash and it was still sorta wet.



This is it all prepped ready for some primer. When I pulled the bump strips off the side it ripped heaps of paint off the side with it so that made a lot more work for me grrr.



This is what it looks like now in primer.



Progress is going to be a bit slower now as I have to go back to school on Monday but I hope to have it all sanded back and fix anymore body problems I find by the end of next weekend and then get the top coat on by the weekend after that. Probably wont happen that soon but I'll try... Let me know what you think. Cheers, Brent.

hi brent, I owned this cordia for a couple of years prior to selling it to the guy you bought it from.

I'm glad to see this one hasn't ended up in a scrap yard somewhere. It was a great car to own, I bought it for $300 with a blown engine and i rebuilt the engine in my parents driveway. It was very reliable for a cordia. A couple of things you should know about the car:
- It had some pretty bad rust in the boot floor. I suggest repairing this as soon as you can as it'll only get worse.
- Replace the boot lid, it had some dodgy sheet metal rivetted to it by the previous owner. I have no idea why, not worth fixing just junk it
- It went pretty hard around the twisties, I used to set what I consider a fairly quick pace
- The drivers seatbelt won't retract if the car is facing downhill (it was annoying but i put up with it!)
- I had it in Airlie Beach for about 8 months when I was working up there and I drove it down to Melbourne, nothing went wrong it was v. reliable. It's also been camping in some fairly remote places in north queensland.
- I think it needs a new steering rack it had a shudder on braking not sure if the previous owner fixed it.
- It's a TC05 turbo on an AB with all of the AB injectors/computer/fuel setup, the block is also an import 1.8l (I think they're identical to the aussie 1.8litre). It also has the oil cooler setup that I pulled off an AC.
- The previous owner had a problem with it overheating, and he called me to take a look at it, not sure if it was fixed. I think the radiator was fvcked but I never got a chance to get a radiator pressure tester onto it. Be careful though if you drive it for long overheating it can blow the head gasket or crack the head.
- A couple of pet annoyances were also the fuel pump needed replacing (not sure if the new owner replaced it) and sometimes it would stick requiring you to hit it with a solid object to 'unstick' the brushes. I think the demister didn't work which was a massive pain in the ass.
- replace the fusable link for the MAIN with a proper fuse, I think we used the wrong type of wire for the link, potentially a fire-hazard if the wire is the wrong type. We wern't sure (yes I know that's dodgy, but you should know), suggest you replace it regardless just to be safe

Anyway, that's what it looked like when I picked it up


And this was what had happened to the engine:

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now a certified cordia owner....

some more pics. Oh btw the sunroof leaks when it rains hard...
oh, I wasn't responsible for the blow-off valve.... I think that's a new addition

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now a certified cordia owner....

Haha funny you should say that I picked up a new hatch for it today (thanks George). Does anyone think the Roadworthy place would notice if I didn't run a rear wiper and just welded up the holes in the hatch so it looks all smooth and stock??
And yer I'm aware of the boot rust.
I was thinking the brake shudder was the front discs? I'm gunna replace them anyways.
It also makes a clunk when you let your foot off the clutch and take off... Engine mounts maybe??
Lol I loved how the oil cooler was mounted... cable ties FTW!
I put a new thermostat in and it seems to have fixed the overheating problem.
I think the fuel pump was replaced as there was an old one just sitting in the boot with the jack and everything else and i haven't had any problems with the fuel system except for my leaky injectors grr.
And i put the blow of valve on one day when i was bored... it came up cheap so i thought id get it an chuk it on haha.
Also what do you mean when you say "the MAIN"?? The main wire going to the battery or what?? It also has a fair bit of dodgy wiring under the dash around the turbo timer and where the head unit was put in but oh well it'll keep me occupied for a while haha.

Thanks for all the info mate.
Cheers, Brent.

I'm glad you're not repainting it that yellow - most horrid colour ever! Haha!

Looks like a good base for a kick ass project so keep the pictures/updates flowing.

I love seeing Cordia's passed through forum members!

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agreed! the colour was not one of the car's strong points.... Actually, I care little about the looks of a car and you'll have loved the fact that bits of the trim were a different yellow than the rest of the car, and also one of the side mirrors was yellow and the other one was black (the paint guys stuffed up and gave me the wrong paint and I'd already prepeed and started spraying when I realised so I just kept going...)

yes the oil cooler I had to cable tie on because when I put the intercooler in the piping got in the way and I couldn't mount it with the bolts any more. I was really p'd off about it not sure if the new owner fixed it or not. I don't know about the head unit wiring it wasn't like that when I had it. I don't remember a clunk when you take off. I would say it sounds like driveshaft.

The MAIN, is the fusable link in the fuse box in the engine bay. I discovered in the shed the other day that the wiring i'd used to replace the link wasn't proper fuse wire (I thought it was but I was mistaken). Take it out and replace with a fuse, you just need to get some spade terminals and wire it together. I can't remember what AMP the main fusable link is meant to be.

The turbotimer wiring should be good, I used the stock wiring loom so it just plugs straight in. I think i took the head unit +12v off the turbo timer loom from memory and installed a separate fuse. I *love* the BES turbo timers so simple and good!

When I got the car, i'd wired in a head unit with the existing wiring, and whoever had done the wiring hadn't installed a fuse and just wired it straight into the IGN. anyway I was driving along (tom /madrx2 was in the car) and the car died and a huge cloud of smoke started pouring from the dash and under the bonnet. It melted all the wiring to the head unit and blew out the MAIN fusable link which is why I had to replace it. I shat myself when it happened as I didn't know what it was, but luckly it was all smoke no fire.

Leaky injectors are common, I replaced all of the injector seals with a full kit but obviously it hasn't lasted longer than a couple of years!!

I'm sure you'll come across other dodgy backyard mechanic things I did to that car... though I've mentioned everything that I can remember from the top of my head. Feel free to post or PM me with any questions.

As blackGSR mentioned, it good to see cordia's staying in the 'family' rather than being sold to some idiot or crashed or wrecked. I hope you enjoy the car.

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now a certified cordia owner....

Nice job mate, this sort of progress on a car like this is good to see.
Keep us posted.

nice work mate good to see another cordia not lost to the wrecking game..


P.S wat is it with cordia cruises always ending up with bonnets open lol..

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Now rolls in a gti-R...

just making sure the engine didnt fall out... and everyone always has theories on how to up performance

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Quench my thirst with gassoline!

Noooooooooooooooooooooooo BUMBLE BEEEEEEEEEEEEE

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"hahhahahhaa its good its got straw for a pipe frontn.... the bigger that hole gets the more money falls out of ur wallet... "



Epic i must say.

yeah i'm surpised the engine didn't fall out with all the fire coming from your brakes jimi!

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now a certified cordia owner....

hahahha and from sicgsr

Seems to be a white cordia thing breaks + cordia + twisties + white paint = flames under breaks into that roundabout

Oh and the front rotors are pressed in so check every thing else is ok b4 changing rotors can become a costly exercise if you break the wheel bearing when taking the rotor off

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"hahhahahhaa its good its got straw for a pipe frontn.... the bigger that hole gets the more money falls out of ur wallet... "



Epic i must say.

hehe... i wish i could see it.. lol... would have been kinda cool... was very weird how the brake fade came one all of a sudden... corner before taht the peddle felt a bit weird and i figured it was getting close.. but then at that next one i nearly had my ass off the seat i was pushing that hard.. lol.. not this time tho.. vr4 engine and twin pots FTW (as long as i get my ass into gear that is.. hehe) if not i'l just have to have another go at cooking those stock aa ones again... i must admit.. i was pushing the old girl VERY hard to keep up with sicgsr.. oh yeah.. and with the rust between the tower and firewall on the old white girl i wouldnt be suprised if the engine falls out myself

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Quench my thirst with gassoline!

haha yeah, incidently... the bumblebee cordia was the pace-setter in that cruise.....

I ran that cruise route in the skyline and managed to get brake fade (I was suprised because it has 4-pot brakes and much bigger rotors), though it has more power than the bumblebee had so I was having to brake from higher speeds

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now a certified cordia owner....

He left out i had to change my pants twice and leave my lunch somewere at the round-a-bout >.<
....atleast i didnt break the shit grip lol

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"hahhahahhaa its good its got straw for a pipe frontn.... the bigger that hole gets the more money falls out of ur wallet... "



Epic i must say.

A rear wiper is not a roadworthy requirement. Its deemed as a luxury.

that was a great cruise

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GT Legacy - AWD turbo shagin wagon
Swift GTi - new boy racer daily
Gen4 JDM Honda Prelude VTiR - FS $6K. pm me. vtec yo!

Thanks for all the comments guys I'll hopefully have this thing finished soon and get it out on some of the cruises. Haven't had much progress since my last post but that's good to hear about the rear wiper as I have a day off today so I might get stuck into it and weld up the wiper holes in the hatch.

have been in this car. from what i remember it was SMOKIN lol cant wait to see it after the spray

for a pretty much stock ac it set a great pace for the cruise... i'm sure it will serve you well i hope your bringing the new rig for a spin tom and as for cruises.. i'm going to be living/working around northern melb outskirts soonish so i'l be up for a cruise every month or 2

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Quench my thirst with gassoline!

oh sweet ill bring it along if im allowed