hey guys,

so the story is that i just bought a 1997 honda civic Ex sedan 5spd and am getting it tomrrow and basically i HATE how the rims/hubcaps look. here are 2 pictures:



so i think they suck terribly/look like **** and i would MUCH rather have the upgraded 1998-2000 ones... which look like THIS:



so how hard would it be to switch them around? just bolt off old ones and bolt on new ones right? and instead of going on hubcaps.com or whatever and spending a 100 bucks, I was thinking of going to a salvage yard or something....

so what do u guys think? and ya, im doing this b/c i really dont want to spend 600 bucks on rims...

 

as long as they are the same size, just take off your lug nuts, pop off the hub cap and put the new one on.

 

i thikn they are the same size... 14 inches...
cool thanks

 

I have the exact same vehicle and know what you are saying about the ugly hubcaps. I got rid of mine and every few years bought Target or K-Mart hubcaps for $20 a set.

Keep your eye on Craigslist several times a day and you'll eventually find someone selling better looking hubs cheap. Any four-bolt pattern Civic hubcaps in 14" should fit just fine.

For a few hundred bucks you might even pick up some HX wheels.

 

can i see some pics of those kmart hubcaps or target hubcaps?

I just got back from my mechanic.. my exhaust manifold is cracked.. therefore the ragged engine noise. [ALL CAPS] ALWAYS GO TO A MECHANIC BEFORE BUYING A USED CAR [/ALL CAPS].

anyways i was walking around the lot and saw a really messed up 99 civic which have the hubcaps i want.. so maybe i'll try and trade em in or buy em if i can...

craigslist is an excellent idea, thanks

and whats so great abt hx wheels?

 

I don't have any pics of hubcaps (but I'm going to try to sell or give awaymy old ones on Craigslist). The main problem with aftermarket hubcaps is they tend to bulge out a bit where the stock hubcaps fit the stock honda steelie better.

Here's another idea - for awhile I ran just the steelies, painted fresh satin black, with chrome lug nuts. I thought it looked pretty good.

HX wheels are nice because they are 1) stock, 2) attractive in my opinion and 3) very lightweight. I'll try to post a pic of one. Sometimes they sell for about $200 on Craigslist when someone doesn't know what they are worth. Usually they go for about $400.

 

Here's a stock HX wheel. I've seen them painted and powder coated and they look even better.



Craigslist is great - go into auto parts, search for "Civic" and you'll get a lot of hits. Do a search for "HX" and "HXs" if you want to keep checking for the wheels.

(edit) here is a link to other HX wheels:

http://www.honda-tech.com/zerothread/1252875 (apparently, there is a bit of cross-forum jealousy here - take that link and where the *'s are, type in "h o n d a - t e c h".

 

re: cracked exhaust manifold....this is a common problem on civics...mine's cracked too, but not leaking YET *crosses fingers* I just hope I can save enough pennies to do a full header/exhaust before it blows on me

 

kincaid, thanks, but im not really intersted in the HX wheels...

silver... ya, noise was so ragged, barely any pick-up, felt liek driving a 50hp car lol.

headers/exhaust.. dont feel like modding yet - only once i have enuff money.... for doing a lotta stuff at once, not bit-by-bit.

 

This is my favorite stockHonda Civic hubcap, FWIW.