The Top 10 Hondas of 2009…A retrospective…Part 2…
4-1…here we go…
4. Big Mike’s Honda Prelude…
What he’s up to now: Big Mike has been out in full force this year. He’s out there almost at every event trying to make his sponsors happy and to talk with people who have questions about his build. The guy has just been doing big things this year. The car is finally dialed in and he’s been able to drive it everywhere and as you can see, he finally decided to put his blinkers on…haha. The new Advan RGs are a great look as well but the last time I talked to him, he’s already got something new up his sleeve and will most likely debut it at this weekend’s Spocom event. I think he’s finally at a point where he’s happy with the car and just trying to enjoy every moment of 2010…
3. Arnel Ortiz and the Phaze2 EG…
What he’s up to now: Arnel’s Civic just continues to evolve. He generally keeps to himself and every time there’s an event, he comes out with some new shit. You just never know what this guy has up his sleeve. Like Steve Kwan and S2kJay, all the accolades and mag features has not changed him in any way and he just continues to work on his car. At Eibach he debuted a sick new tucked radiator set-up, air ride, and ITBs. There are rumors floating around that he’s actually building another Honda so the Socal Honda community has been anxiously waiting to see when he’s gonna bring it out. With his ability to always out do himself, the sky’s the limit for Arnel and we couldn’t be more excited to see him succeed…
2. Alex Soto aka Sheepey’s Acura Integra…
What he’s up to now: Not entirely sure what the Integra is up to these days. Most likely it’s sitting under a car cover in Sheepey’s garage. As you’ve seen on this site and in the upcoming issue of Honda Tuning magazine, Sheepey has been hard at work on his hatchback, which sat under a car cover while he campaigned his Integra last year. Hopefully he brings the DC back but in the meantime, we get to enjoy all 800+ horsepower of his race car. Studio shoots, mag covers, and some seat time at the track in the near future, Alex Soto has the world in the palm of his hands. Everything car this guy touches turns to Honda gold…
1. Sportcar Motion’s Acura Integra Type R and Honda Civic…
What he’s up to now: The Integra that was so dominant in 2009 is now taking a break from the rigors of time attack competition and sits dormant in the garage of Sportcar Motion. The feature for this DC is actually in the same issue that’s upcoming with Sheepey’s so make sure to go check that out. As you can see from the updated picture, it has taken on more of a subtle appearance without all the stickers and sponsor logos. Even so, you would be crazy to think that Loi would take this out and use it on the street as a grocery getter. The Civic is also currently stored away in the shop. That’s because the Sportcar Motion crew has been busy campaigning the KraftWerks supercharged Civic in 2010 and the hatchback recently took home it’s first win in competition. Loi had issues with cooling and minor things here and there that prevented the supercharged K-powered Civic from running correctly but it’s all dialed in now and looks to take home more awards this year. Loi is another one of those guys that continues to evolve in the community and who knows what he’ll build next. Of course the car will be white though because Loi apparently, is color-blind and won’t build anything that isn’t white…=P…
That’s all 10 (11)…hope you guys enjoyed taking a look back at last year’s top Hondas. With so many crazy ass builds coming out in 2010, who knows who will end up on this year’s list. Hell, even I don’t know. I haven’t even had time to even think about it. There are some cars that have caught my eye though but there’s still plenty of time for new builds to appear and impress…
A Big Mike update and a visit to Bisimoto…
I’ve actually been sitting on these pics for a little bit now but I just haven’t had time (as you can all tell) to post them up lately. Work had me distracted all week and I actually went out and shot some pics this past weekend…Anyways, many of you have been asking me for an update on Big Mike’s Prelude. Well he’s still in the process of tying up the little things but it should be out and about for Wekfest in February. I took these pics when I went over to Bisimoto’s to grab a pic of Mike’s Prelude for the Top Ten list. It was the first time I had ever been over to Bisi’s and I’m happy to say that I’m gonna go back there real soon to grab some more shots of his turbo Civic Wagovan. That thing is pretty ridiculous and I can’t wait to go back and get a closer look at it. I didn’t stay long that day because he had another shoot to go to and it was pouring rain that day so I couldn’t really do much anyways. These are just random shots I got while we were standing around talking….Enjoy…I’ll be back in full force this week since I finished my actual work stuff last week….
The rest are just regular size…
Big Mike and Timmy getting the car ready…
Big Mike Edition interior…
Kinsler ITB set-up…
That’s it for today.
Exclusive Content…Big Mike’s Prelude Build…Part 25…
Starting to get a little worried about this one,….Today was the first time I texted Big Mike and he didn’t text me back and/or call me and talk to me for like 2 hours haha….Shit is coming down to the wire and it’s starting to get real. So much more stuff to do before show time. I’m hoping that he’s got more done then he’s leading on and gonna surprise the shit out of all of us. If you’re reading this and you’re nervous, welcome to the party…
So many people showing up to help….Here’s Ryan with Timmy, who is usually doing the commenting on alot of the Big Mike posts. He’s actually there lending a helping hand now which is cool because it shows everyone how close we all our out here. Sure competition is fierce but people help eachother when needed you know…
Here’s Jimmy and Linda from Team Praxis helping out as well…
Last shot of the interior before the carpet goes back in…
Shot of the interior harness…
Brand new OEM Honda carpet installed…
Rear panel reinstalled. The hole there is for the roll bar…
Ryan and Timmy doing the Walbro fuel pump install. Probably was a bitch to do too. I remember when I had to do mine and drop the tank…fuckin pain in the ass…
Speaking of fuel, here’s one of the fuel connections…
…Fittings for the fuel filter and regulator…
…and here’s the custom chrome dipped brackets for the fuel filter and regulator.
Mocking up the lines…
“Big Mike Edition” mil-spec harness!..haha…
…made by Rywire of course…
The ground for the harness…
Somewhere along the way a bolt fell into the timing belt area and had to be pulled out…
Big Mike’s friend Ralph putting in work as well…
Shots of the header after he got it jet-coated and a pic of it on the car…
Sunroof is all coming together…
For those of you like me who have been anxious to see how the seats came out….
Oh man, with so much left to do, it’s definitely gonna be interesting. 25 parts, over 500 pics, I sure hope this thing gets done by Saturday. Would be a bit of a waste if it didn’t but I’m confident in saying that Big Mike wouldn’t let that happen. Can’t believe it’s almost time…oh man…kinda nervous now…
Exclusive Content…Big Mike’s Prelude Build…Part 24…
Running a little short of time today but thought I’d get this up since we only have a few days left before Nisei. Pretty crazy how quickly it came up, but I guess that’s just how it usually is with these type of shows. Can’t really comment on every single picture but this is basically what’s going on….The motor is basically all finished and ready to go, axles went back in, as well as fluids. After Big Mike finished up with that, the car was sent back to the bodyshop where they cut, buffed, and polished the new paint. Big Mike got ahold of some brand new OEM carpet as well as his new clutch kit. At the end you’ll get a preview of Big Mike’s front seats…Enjoys guys, I am out.!
Heading home…
Foglight bezels all painted and ready…
Rywire doin work…
Brand new Honda OEM carpet…
A preview shot of Big Mike’s seats…
…And this guy showed up, moved the broom around a little bit just so he could get on The Chronicles…
Exclusive Content…Big Mike’s Prelude Build…Part 23…
Finally…part 23. Before we get started though, I just want everyone who was inquiring about our friends condition to know that he is doing much better now. He looks to be returning to good health but will be in there for a couple more days just for observation and what not. Only thing that bugs him is being in there with a bunch of tubes strapped to him and not being able to move around. I’m sure it get’s irritating being stuck like that all day, but he shouldn’t be in there much longer…
On with the updates…
Today we’re gonna be focusing more on the custom fabrication side of things as well as the tucked radiator…
Here’s the custom made radiator that will be tucked away in the Prelude. I think the only time you’ve probably seen one of these is on Rywire’s personal car…
Here’s the mock-up of how it’s gonna sit, just need the fabricator to fab up the mounts and shit…
Before I show you that stuff Big Mike wanted to say a few things about his fabricator…
“The name of my fabricator’s company is True Berserk Fabrication. He has been a welder and a fabricator for well over 10 years, and his work and work ethic are second to none. This man can design and build virtually anything one could ever want/need out of metal, and do it in a beautifully crafted, structurally sound manner. All of which is evidenced by the work that he has and will continue to put out. If anyone is interested in having work done, contact me directly. Thank you.”
Here’s the fabricator mocking up some mounting tabs for the radiator that will utilize the stock mounting holes on the car…
The center support had to be cut and smoothed-out to fit the radiator properly…
Here’s the ARP bolts that Big Mike will be using throughout the entire bay…
Big Mike’s fittings and his to-do list for Rywire…
All black -AN fittings and lines…
This next part is pretty cool for me since I always wanted to do it when I shaved my valve cover back in the day. Big Mike’s doesn’t need to run the PCV system since he’s on ITBs and gonna run a catch can/breather system so he had his fabricator weld a piece over the cover where the PCV used to go…
So much cleaner with that part filled in and filled correctly. It’s gonna look really smooth once it’s all plated or whatever Big Mike plans to do with it…
While that was going on, Big Mike was busy removing injectors from Bisi’s engine because his weren’t in yet. He’s not gonna run them in the car or anything, he just needs them for the mock-up process…
Big Mike’s custom chromed clutch slave cylinder with stainless braided soft line…
S2000 clutch master cylinder side to side with the stock unit. If you remember in an earlier update, the S2k unit was sitting a little too close to the firewall, which was causing fitment problems so Big Mike had his fabricator create a spacer for it…
Came out perfect…there should be no problems mounting it up now…
This is the fabricator’s drawing of how the fuel filter will come out…
Finished product compared to the drawings…
Final product mounted up to the fuel filter and fuel regulator…
A washer was all fabbed up for the battery terminal to add structural ridigity…
Thats it for now. Don’t know what’s going on but the car is back at the bodyshop once again….it’s nearing crunch time and hopefully everything comes together and it’ll be able to make it’s Nisei Import Showoff debut….
Exclusive Content…Big Mike’s Prelude Build…Part 23…A Preview…
Haven’t had a chance to go through all the stuff that Big Mike has sent over to me but it will be up later today. I was super tired yesterday and KO’d the fuck out. I’m actualy still sleeping while I’m typing this. I just got it like that. Anyways, here’s a preview of what’s to come for today….
Is that tucked radiator? And why does it look like Big Mike is scooping up his nuts like Raisin Bran Crunch? All this and more, later today….!!
Exclusive Content…Big Mike’s Prelude Build…Part 22…
22′s son, do work! Oh man, we are starting to cut it really close… I haven’t been too worried about it at all as I’ve been following the progress along with you guys and everything seems to be in order. Well, Big Mike text me today to let me know that the Prelude was back at the bodyshop again and I was like “Whatttt? What now?” Big Mike then told me that this was the plan all along. Get the thing painted, get it back, drop the motor in, and then send it back so that they can cut and buff the entire car. Okay, that makes sense…only problem is, the Prelude was already at the bodyshop longer than expected. Because of the time lost, we’re starting to cut it really close to finishing this thing. Like paper-thin close…whatever that means. There is just so much that is left to be done. All the parts are in and that’s what we’ll be focusing more on today, but just the other little things add up you know? It’s not like everything is just gonna bolt up the first time in or there won’t be little mistakes here and there. I’m confident that Big Mike will get it done though, and hopefully he does, because I’m not really all that excited about having to sit here the day after Nisei and explain to you all why the car wasn’t there.
Anyways, today we’re gonna be spotlighting some gangster shit. Not gangster bowel movements, but some new custom one-off shit that is most certainly 2 major factors of this entire build…
First would have to be the new Bisimoto header. I know you guys got to see a small preview of it when the build first began but this is the actual completed header that will eventually find it’s way onto Big Mike’s F20B…
Let’s let Big Mike tell you more about it…
“This Bisimoto header is 304 stainless steel, has tri-stepped primaries, built-in venturi, BURNS collector, and these pictures are off the unit before it was sent out to be Jet Hot coated.”
If it doesn’t look impressive enough already, just imagine seeing this thing in person. According to Big Mike, he swears to me that this header is “re-damn-diculous”…
Pretty crazy right? The work and quality of this header is incredible…excuse me…”re-damn-diculous”…
So while the Prelude was off getting buffed at the shop, Bisi gave Big Mike a call about a package that showed up…
Kinsler Fuel Injection? What could that possibly mean?…Well…One of the original plans for the engine going into this rebuild, besides the header of course, was a new set of individual throttle bodies. Not just any ITBs though…This new ITB set-up would be created by Kinsler, built to Bisimoto specifications, and with a custom finish…A “Big Mike Edition” ITB set-up. A set-up that was to be specifically created for this build.
The following pictures are pictures that were taken by Kinsler Fuel Injection. Big Mike felt that the only way to truly present this product to the world was to use the pictures that Kinsler took. These pictures aren’t for any catalog or anything of the sort. They were taken by the guys at Kinsler, sent to Bisi, who sent them to Big Mike, and now they are in my hands. This is the first time anyone will see these ITBs and the pics are of the actual individual throttle bodies that will go on Big Mike’s Prelude…
The first thing you’ll notice off hand is the top feed/direct feed fuel set-up…
The primary fuel rail and injector set-up is in its “normal” position and the secondary rail and injector is a top feed set-up which delivers fuel directly into the throttle body…
So what exactly makes these the “Big Mike Edition” ITBs? Here’s Big Mike to tell ya…
“From powdercoating, to mirror polishing, to machine finishing, I had these units aesthitically customized to my specification. Bisi worked with them on designing them internally, and the outcome is ridiculous. They are quality man, QUALITY. You can tell immediately upon looking at them. If anyone is wondering, try to find another set of KINSLERS that are like these. These are completely one-off BIG MIKE edition Kinslers.”
Pretty crazy ain’t it? How many builds do you know that feature custom one-off ITBs build specifically for the owner? Damnnn….With all this crazy one-off stuff, I really hope that it’ll be finished up by Nisei so everyone can get a chance to see all this stuff in person….Stay tuned.
Exclusive Content…Big Mike’s Prelude Build…Part 21…
It’s crazy to think that Nisei is pretty much 2 weeks away. Things are really starting to come together though as far as this build goes. Kinda reminds me that I need to start working on my own car soon. By working I mean, actually cleaning it and maybe even driving it around. Big Mike and his league of extraordinary gentlement went to work this past weekend and got the engine back in. Plus brake and clutchlines should be completed. Big Mike has been telling me how crazy all the new Bisi stuff is so I can’t wait to see it. Time for pics…
This is how the evening began for Big Mike…
Engine set to go back in…
Polishing up the rear engine mount bracket before it goes back in…
Bracket re-attached. Take note of the Greddy relocation pancake adapter because it’s coming off and being replaced by…
…this Bisimoto pancake adapter.
Work dragged on into the evening and they were basically putting this motor in with just a single work light providing visibility…
Rywire happily putting his life on the line to get this thing in…
Engine in…
After that, they began to work on mounting up the fuel system components…
All set up with the filter and regulator…
Ryan also bend and fabbed the hardline for the clutch master cylinder…
The line required an old fashioned hand-bend before it would line up perfectly with the fitting …
Another shot of the hardward being used to mount the cylinders…
Distributor cap no longer need and replaced with an AEM unit that controls the individual coil packs…
Back with more very soon. Time to start grinding and getting this thing done. Should be seeing all the custom Bisi stuff too, can’t wait for that…
Exclusive Content…Big Mike’s Prelude Build…Part 20…
I’ll be at the Super Street FF-Battle today so if you guys wanna stop by and chill, you know where to find me…Anyways, back with more of Big Mike’s Prelude rebuild. Basically just assembly of new engine pieces and maintanence here and there before the F20B goes back in…
Brand new Bisimoto cam gears…
Timing belt, windshield clips, grommets, spark plug seals, cam seals, valve cover shit, cowl clips, etc…
Big Mike’s homie Ejay came by to help out…
Old Skunk2 cam gears and timing belt coming out…
…and replaced by the Bisi cam gears, orange of course to match the custom orange exterior,…
…and new OEM timing belt…
Fitting for the custom clutch lines…
Mocking up the clutch master cylinder…
Bit of a minor set-back with the reservoir being too close to the firewall…
ARP 12-point stainless steel mounting hardware…
More stuff being mocked up for fabrication…
By the next update the motor should be in the car. While that’s stuff is going on, here’s some shots of the wheels that are getting refinished…
If you guys are wondering, no these won’t be like super aggressive low offset wheels. That’s not Big Mike’s style really. We tried to convince him but he’s more of a old school guy and he doesn’t want to do crazy fender mods to get wheels to fit any what not. What can I say, it’s not for everyone. Definitely shouldn’t take away from the build though….
Back with more as it comes in…
Exclusive Content…Big Mike’s Prelude Build…Part 19…
Dammmmnnn…part 19 already. Before I begin though, I thought I’d mention that I make my writing debut in the new issue of Super Street that’s out on newstands now. I’m grateful for the opportunity and happy to expand my horizons in the industry. If you see it make sure to pick it up. My homie Chris also makes his debut in this mag too, but as a photographer. I’ve known the guy for awhile now and he’s also one of the few guys in the Accord community that doesn’t hate me. Haha, I don’t blame them though, I guess, success usually tends to breed contempt. Just how it is. Anyway, Chris is a hell of a photographer and I’m happy I convinced him to come out to Socal cuz it kinda helped him get his foot in the door. How fitting that we both make our debuts at the same time. I’m still freelance of course so I continue to do work for Honda Tuning as well so if you’re wondering, no, I’m not jumping ship. I’m like a hired gun, so to speak… So far so good over at SS though, Jonathan Wong is a cool dude…
What better way to kick off the start of my work over at SS then to show a picture of me drinking while sitting on top of a toilet. It’s almost poetic…Damn, I almost miss that ridiculous hair…
On with the build shall we?…
This will be the 19th of the series so far…which will be dubbed…”The Rywire Section”. Black and white for dramatic effect, and obviously to hide the fresh orange paintjob. I also made it black and white because Rywire doesn’t see the sun much with all his wiring duties, so he has an unusual pastel white glow about him when photographed. B&W is the only way to make him blend in. He’s so white he glows is what I’m trying to say. He’s doing all the work and it’s much appreciated. Anyone who’s willing to drive back and forth from Norcal to Socal week-to-week to do work is a down ass mofo. Gotta give him props for doing that…I can’t even stay awake walking from my car to my apartment so I can’t imagine driving almost 15 hours round trip all the time…
Rywire surveying the filthy interior after it came back from paint, trying to figure out where to start…
The mess….
The only time the words “Big Mike” and “scrubdown” will ever be used and used in a non-creepy or prison-love context…
Ryan puttin’ in work…
Break-time…
After the under-dash wiring was cleaned up, it was time to move on to the engine…
AEM CDI Pencil Coil conversion…Basically used as a type of individual coil-pack for each plug, like newer models that are DIS, or distributorless ignition systems…These are used for better spark delivery and to run in conjunction with AEM engine management. Big Mike tells me that he basically ordered the entire AEM catalog….
Ry-wired up…Using only the best stuff of course. Gotta have the DR25 Raychem stuff…
Booster delete to manual brakes…. After Ryan finished up the coil pack wiring, next up was custom brakelines…
The results…
Big Mike also managed to find an OE Prelude car cover…
…Here he’s demonstrating the Big Mike Scrubdown after clubbing Rywire in the head with a dumbbell…sick.
More to follow as it comes in…thanks for looking…
Exclusive Content…Big Mike’s Prelude Build…Part 18…
Ahh…time for part 18 of the ongoing Big Mike Prelude rebuild…
So Big Mike decided to clean up some suspension stuff before putting the pieces back into the car and rolling it out of the bodyshop…
Gotta have the new toothbrushes so that the steering rack doesn’t get cavities…?
Post-cleaning…
Also, cleaned the control arms, coilovers, etc…
Crossmember was pretty dirty too so that was also cleaned up…
Steering rack re-installed…
More OEM stuff…
Random stuff that came back from chroming…
After all that cleaning was done, it was time to head back to the bodyshop to get the Prelude home…
Officially done with paint and flawless…
Before getting the car out, the steering rack had to be re-installed to be able to roll out of the shop…
Rack and crossmember back in…
Since the car is semi-back together, here’s a shot of the chromed door hinges…nice touch…
Ryan aka Rywire guiding the car out and onto the trailer…
…and finally back at home…
Now is when the real fun begins…full reassembly, motor work, installation of the lines….stay tuned.
Exclusive Content…Big Mike’s Prelude Build…Part 17…
Back in the paint booth for the last time….welcome back to Big Mike’s rebuild…part uhhh….17…
After Big Mike looked over the car for the final time, the bodyshop went and repaired all spots Big Mike deemed to be “unsatisfactory”…
You can see from the discolored sections that they’ve been sanded down and primered…
He wasn’t happy with the way the doorjambs came out either so he had them take the hinges off and repaint that section…
And here it is fresh out of paint:
Both seats are now done as well. After the paint work was finished, Big Mike even brought the Prelude home so it’s sitting at his place now ready for reassembly…
Glass has gotta go back in too, so of course OEM glass pieces were ordered as well as moldings…
Back next time with more updates. It should be sitting at home now with Big Mike and the homies putting it back together. Paint was quite an adventure but I’m sure the reassembly won’t span another 17 parts. Everything should be straight forward from here….
Exclusive Content…Big Mike’s Prelude Build…Part 16 1/2…
Might as well make it a 16 1/2. No major progress and since I already updated earlier today, kinda seems like a shame if you missed the other stuff. Before you view these pics and judge, I just wanna say one thing…Big Mike is the homie. You’ll never find another guy that’s more geniune and compassionate. He just happens to be incredibly meticulous. Some would even say that he’s downright picky. But guess what? It’s his car so he can choose to be as picky as he wants to be. The guy is a perfectionist and it shows. Just dropping all that money on brand new OEM parts should show you that he’s not taking any short-cuts in this build. Hell if you look at the update before this one, you will even see that he had the inside of his fenders painted. Who’s gonna see that, really? With that said, the following pics may lead you to see “man, this dude is picky as hell”. Yeah, he might be, but he wants his shit done right. And if he was building your car for you, he would probably react the same way. I also want to say that if I was the paint guy, I would hate my life and drink myself into oblivion. But that’s just me. Okay that was a joke. But man, Big Mike just isn’t your average dude. He went over the engine bay and used masking tape to point out each and every mistake or flaw that he wanted to be fixed. Are these major mistakes? Ehhh, it can be left to interpretation. I had similar mistakes on mine after paint as I’m sure you all have. It’s just one of those things where you say “Oh, it’s not that bad, no one will ever see it” and move on. Big Mike had the inside of his fenders painted. He had a dolly fabricated so that the chassis could be painted correctly. He hand washed his heater control unit. He eats sandwiches with a side of bread. He’s a very unique guy. The inside of his fenders are painted. That’s the automotive equivalent of like, a human asshole. Only one or two people will see your’s in a lifetime. Hopefully. And only one or two people will have their hands in that area. Hopefully. Big Mike just isn’t a “oh it’s not that bad, no one will see it” kind of guy. In terms of cars I mean, not assholes. On with the pics shall we?….
Here’s the bay during Big Mike’s inspection…
I actually had to look at the higher-resolution version of these pics at full size to be able to spot some of the things he was pointing out but I do see where it would need correction…
You guys see what I’m saying? It’s a very “not that obvious and most would let it go” kind of mistake. But that’s just where Big Mike stands in terms of details…
Moving on…
More OEM parts came in and other parts came off for cleaning before reassembly…
Brand new hood hinges from the dealer…
Hood latch that needs some tlc…
Other assorted parts that need cleaning…
Alternator and Innovating relocation bracket coming off…
Crossmember, suspension, and rack&pinion disassembly… And a big fucking brick.
Hopefully all these paint issues are figured out. Back with more as it comes in…
Exclusive Content…Big Mike’s Prelude Build…Part 16…
Busy week but back with more from Big Mike’s Prelude rebuild…Today we get a chance to take a look at the two racing buckets that Big Mike is having color matched on the back side…
Sanding down the seat to smooth everything out before paint…
Primered and ready for paint…
Crappy shot of the bottom of the seat after paint. Obviously you can’t see the color but it’s matched to the exterior of the Prelude…
Big Mike also had them smooth out the hole he cut for the JDM foglights so that it looked OEM-spec as possible…
He also wanted you guys to see that he had the inside of the fenders painted as well. No short-cuts taken in this build….
Back with more later as it comes in…
Exclusive Content…Big Mike’s Prelude Build…Part 15…
Went to the Inline Four “Expo 2009″ today. I’ll have pics up tomorrow. I wasn’t impressed I’m sorry to say, but I’ll tell you more about it tomorrow. Back with part 15 of Big Mike’s rebuild since he had people calling him today asking when their would be updates….which is a bit puzzling because he doesn’t run this site…but whatever…haha…
As mentioned in a previous post, Big Mike had discovered that his front bumper had more damage to it than previously thought so he actually went out and got ahold of an OEM Honda front bumper. How? I think he went to that gypsy fortune teller machine in the movie “Big” and wished for one….I don’t know….
$$$
None of that “Certi-fit” garbage…
Big Mike needs to open up the slot for the JDM fogs so he quickly went to work and started cutting up his brand new OEM bumper…
Meanwhile, back at the bat cave….I guess Big Mike wasn’t very happy with how the engine bay came out after it was painted. He’s a very meticulous guy, as you should have noticed by now, so he had them repaint it a couple (yes, a couple) more times until it came out to his liking. I’m sure those guys will be very excited when he goes over the rest of the car….haha…
Doors painted inside and out…
Paint came out good huh? Color is nice and crisp haha….
Exclusive Content…Big Mike’s Prelude Build…Part 14…
Back with part 14 of 1,656,495 of Big Mike’s rebuild…shum on (RIP MJ)….Billie Jean is not Big Mike’s lover, she’s just a girl that thinks that he is the one, the kid is not his son…alright that’s enough…moving on…
Here’s the frame dolly completed…Big Mike will tell you more about it:
“This is a dolly that I had my friend Ron Warkentin of True Berserk Fabrication create for the Prelude to rest on so that the entire front end from top to bottom to underside could be prepped and painted.” -Big Mike
“This dolly has casters that support 900lb/wheel. The style and strength of the tubing is far beyond what I needed for this car, but that just means that it can and will be used for other vehicles. In fact, the body shop just might keep the dolly after all is said and done.” -Big Limpin’
Coulda used it to wheel in Michael Jackson’s gold-plated casket…it looked heavy…what, I’m just sayin…
Subframe, crossmember, suspension, traction bar all had to come out to ensure that the front of the Prelude was completely painted, even the underside…
All loaded up….Big Mike actually just picked the shit up and threw it on his shoulder and put it gently on the dolly. He was gonna just hold it up while they painted it but he had to go to work. He also used a black and white camera to take the pics too so blame him if you can’t see the color of the car…
So glossy…
Stay tuned….
Exclusive Content…Big Mike’s Prelude Build…Part 13…
Today’s update will consist of pics of a dolly that Big Mike’s fabricator is putting together. The dolly will be used to get the car in the air so that the painter can properly prep and paint the front end, subframe, suspension, and crossmember. May seem a little crazy for most but when it comes to Big Mike, it’s all in the details….
The rest are just OEM parts that Big Mike bought recently. Pretty much replacing EVERYTHING imaginable…
You might look at the huge box in the back and expect like a radiator or trunk mat or something large…
…but uhh..yeah…kind of a waste of a box Honda. The environment and general space-saving is important to you I see…
Fuck-a junkyard…
Like if anyone had just ever questioned how much quality Big Mike was trying to incorporate into his build, just this post alone with all the OEM shit should say it all…
Seriously…who would buy this….
Plenty more to come….
Exclusive Content…Big Mike’s Prelude Build…Part 12…
Make sure you guys scroll down after you read this if you happen to miss the mid-day update yesterday. Alright after much debate and argument, a consensus decision has been made….we will be saving the debut color of the paint until the build is complete. It actually wasn’t even so much of a consensus decision, nor was their really much debate about it. Big Mike and I just both agreed that it would be best to debut the paint when the build is complete….
For me, I came to this decision because I honestly was a bit iffy on the choice of the color. It took a second look at it for me to really “get” the color, you know? I didn’t not like it, but it kinda threw me off. I just feel that if I show you the paint now and if you don’t agree with the choice or like it, you won’t look at the rest of the car the same. Like if you don’t see what you like, it’ll take away from the hardwork that was put into the rest of the car you know? It’s definitely outside the box. I would rather have you guys go through the rest of the build first and then see the paint later, because the paint is probably the least important part of this build. Big Mike is excited about how it came out too and I’m sure he can’t wait to show you guys. He feels that it would just be in his best interest to debut it at Nisei. And I gotta respect that decision. Even if I wanted to show you guys, it would really be his decision and it’s his to make…
If you’re wondering, no, the bay will not be a different color from the rest of the car. It’s just not Big Mike’s style. He loves the creativity with the two-tone bays but it’s just not for him. I believe they were waiting on something else before the bay is painted and the next time you see shots of the car, it should be all complete and in one color….
I really hope you guys take the time to read these captions. I see guys on forums ask Big Mike questions when the answers have been clearly laid out in the commentary that I make. No, that is not primer and the car will not be “battleship grey”, the color has been cut out of the picture.
It’s hard to tell (obviously), but from what I saw, the paint came out great…Just needs another color sand and buff…
Just some of the front end and doors that still need to be painted…
This is only one of the real problems that have presented itself so far. I guess the front bumper was more fucked up than Big Mike initially thought and he was not happy with it. He ended up ordering a brand new bumper from Honda because the current one is garbage to him with all the cracks and what not…
Almost there…
Exclusive Content…Big Mike’s Prelude Build…Part 11…
Back with part 11 and yes, the Prelude is indeed painted as I type this but here are some more pics of it prepaint. This is actually right before it went into the spraybooth…
Firewall ready to go…
Here’s a preview shot of the paint….and noooo, it is not gray. I actually cut the color out. Big Mike and I had a long discussion about this and I honestly feel that the paint is so “out there” that you guys might be distracted by it and it’ll take away from the rest of the build. Still up in the air whether or not to reveal the color to everyone or to debut it at Nisei but for now, you guys are just gonna have to wait for it…;)
Exclusive Content…Big Mike’s Prelude Build…Part 10…
Back with part 10 of the Big Mike rebuild. More bodyshop stuff and a sneak peek of what’s to come for the interior. For those of you that don’t know, I recently discovered that some other site was blatantly plagiarizing my shit and basically copying what I’m saying word for word. A big “fuck you” to the guy that thought it was a good idea to do that. You picked the wrong guy to bite off of. I’m not gonna mention the site because I don’t feel it’s necessary to send traffic that way, but let’s just say that it’s been handled accordingly. Fuckin irritating to know that there are sites out there trying to make a name for themselves and can’t even produce an original thought. Sad…
On with the build…
The Prelude is still at the shop. It’s only been like 4 days or so though so it hasn’t been that long, and for 4 days, alot of shit’s been done already. Should be ready for paint in no time, maybe even by the time you guys read this…
List of things to be completed…
Firewall basically finished up and ready to be primed…
Exterior almost finished up…
Oh for those that haven’t noticed, all glass is out…
Next up is the interior…Big Mike, speak on it…
“I commissioned one of my homies from back in the day to do my interior while the car was at the body shop.Black leather, black suede, and black bandana. West Coast. Big Mike. Ask somebody.”
Old leather coming off…
The OG machine…
The lighting makes the bandana look blue but it’s actually black… Other than that, that’s about it for today. I’m excited to see how the interior is gonna come out…straight west coast shit right there…
Exclusive Content…Big Mike’s Prelude build…Part 9…
So as you all know, the Prelude is now at the bodyshop and unlike most shops, they’re actually working on the car the first week it is there. You know how it goes, normally when you drop a car off for paint, it just sits outside with the windows down for a week until you go back to realize that they haven’t touched your car. Then you go and bitch at them and they finally work on it another week later. Typical bodyshop etiquette but this shop is different. The moment they got the car, they began work on it…
Apparently, there was a huge dent on the door that I didn’t even notice when I used to see the car all the time…
The OE trunk getting worked on. Looked pretty good compared to how it was before…
Fender getting some love…
Here’s the stuff that they’re using to shave the bay and what not. Basic tools of the trade you know, not regular bondo of course…
Hole for where the mil-spec plug will go…
Bay getting some heavy work…
This dusty mess will be ready for paint in no time…Stay tuned…
Exclusive Content…Big Mike’s Prelude build…Part 8…
Is it part 8 already? Seems like only yesterday Big Mike was tearing this thing down and now it’s already ready to be shipped off for paint. Today we got coverage of Big Mike curling axles, washing his car again, and then strapping it up to the trailer so that he can get head to the bodyshop…
Bodyparts layed out, some new, some not…
JDM BB4 front bumper…
C/V halfshaft removal…
Tools of the trade…
Big Mikey doin work…only guy to curl with a bluetooth headset on…
All marked up for the bodyshop…
All-gutted up…
Masked up and ready to go…
Final wash and probably the last time we’ll ever see this paint…
Big Mikey with the scrub down…
Ready to go…
Loaded up…
Off to the shop!…
At the bodyshop getting unloaded…
Ready for prep and paint…The new look will definitely be a departure from it’s current state…
Not really sure what’s going on here haha…Big Mike having a Flinstones moment…
Exclusive Content…Big Mike’s Prelude build…Part 7…
Yup yup, back with some more coverage of Big Mike’s Prelude rebuild… The infamous Donut showed up to help out along with Big Mike’s homie, Jimmy. Today saw more work on the bay. Rywire was still busy cleaning up the harness inside the car and Big Mike and Donut worked on the bay. Jimmy was holding the sunroof and holding the sunroof some more but I’m sure he did other things to help out, haha….
Rywire going through schematics…
Donut cuttin’ and grindin’…
Rywire coming up for air…
Jimmy sunroof holding…
Positive battery terminal installed…
Mil-spec plug mock-up…
Uhh….that’s not good…
Even more good news… =P
Break time…
Bisimoto sock upgrade…
Rywire adamantium harness clips…
…and finally, the product of Donut’s hardwork…
What’s next? Off to the shop for bodywork and paint…stay tuned.
Exclusive Content…Big Mike’s Prelude build…Part 6…
Back with part 6 of the ongoing Big Mike Prelude rebuild series….I hope everyone enjoys the new look and thank you everybody who had input on how to make it better. The little touches make a huge difference. On with the build, shall we?…
Last time we checked in with Big Mike, he was still continuing teardown and custom linework had begun. Today we’ll focus more on some of the new parts that will make their way onto the car…
New parts started rolling including a bunch of new fuel components and a new set of Defi gauges….
Aeromotive fuel pressure regulator…
…fuel filter…
Defi gauges…
New seat…
Big Mike decided that it was time to ditch the carbon fiber trunk and return to OEM…
In the process Big Mikey dug up all this random shit out of his trunk…
OE trunk mock-up…
Dashboard finally made its way out…
Wiring harness that needed some cleaning up…
…by the infamous Rywire himself…
Harness cleaned-up…
Defi harness also cleaned up…
Pile of crap…
Meanwhile, Big Mike even took the time to wash his heater core…talk about meticulous…
Don’t you love it when new parts come in and you get to tear apart the packaging and play with your new toys?….it’s like Christmas everytime…
Back tomorrow with some more goodness…
Preview for the next update…some of the homies stop by to lend a helping hand on the bay…
