Super Saturday – NALM Announcement
Odometer: 508,245
A sunny Saturday and 73 degrees in Phoenix – what more could you ask for?
I was grabbing something at the parts counter this afternoon at Acura of Tempe and made a new friend who’s every bit as much of an Acura fan as I am. “Mario” flew all the way to Florida and drove home this super clean 2007 Acura TL Type-S in rare Kinetic Blue Pearl. He’s made some upgrades both cosmetically and mechanically and he told me he’d like to get this car to 300 hp at the wheels.
This past weekend I swung by the local Chandler, Arizona Pick-N-Pull junkyard to see what kind of fun inventory they had to scavenge through, since the selection of cars seems to be constantly evolving. The $2 entry fee was well worth the chance to see as many Legends as I did. In all I ended up counting 8 Legends of the 1991-1995 bodystyle (only one of them coupes), and 5 Legends of the 1986-1990 bodystyle. The highest mileage Legend there was this 1992 Cassis Red Pearl L model sedan with just under 280,000 miles on the odometer.
And the lowest miler was this 1995 GS sedan automatic in Cashmere Silver Metallic with just BARELY under 120,000 miles on it. The staff had incorrectly labeled the car as an Integra with a marker on the driver’s rear quarter panel.
I also happened to spot a 1983 Honda Accord equipped with an automatic transmission. This car was in remarkably good (and complete!) shape for being about 30 years old. It is identical to one that was on display last month at the Honda booth of the Detroit Auto Show. The one pictured here had only 105,000 miles on it. I snagged a neat little how-to brochure from the glove compartment with instructions on how to operate the original equipment A/C unit.
Comparison with a picture I took of the 1983 Accord on display at the Detroit Show:
I managed to also make a friend while I was at the junkyard. “Torr,” who drives a 1993 Legend L 6-speed coupe (black on black) happened to be there working to dismantle some parts from this Rosewood Brown Metallic 1992 coupe.
I struck up a conversation with him and ended up taking a closer look at his car in the parking lot later. It had 194,000 miles on it. I invited Torr to an upcoming Legend meet & cruise, a couple Saturdays from now on March 10th. Always fun to meet a fellow Acura enthusiast!
Speaking of Acura enthusiast meets: Last week, it was announced that the host city for the 8th Annual National Acura Legend Meet (NALM) will be Milwaukee, Wisconsin. NALM 2012 will be held July 26 – 29. NALM is a multi-day event each year that brings Acura Legend owners and enthusiasts together from around the country to one location where they can participate in performance activities (autocross, dyno, track days), become acquainted with the local Acura dealerships, enjoy the sights and sounds of the area on scenic drives, and network with other individuals who share their same passion for this great car.
Click here to see where NALMs have taken place for each of the last seven years.
Congratulations to the Milwaukee ground team for their efforts in building a winning bid!
I’m still 1,495 miles away from my next scheduled oil change in the Legend coupe but someone sent me a link a few days ago to an article about a guy who’s gone 409,000 miles on a SINGLE synthetic oil change. Wow! I think I’ll stick to my 3,000 mile intervals with conventional 5W30 oil just because it’s served me so well this far…
drivetofive 
February 26, 2012 at 4:27 am
On the outside, that poor Accord looks like it could be just a wheel and a wash away from being roadworthy again. Loved that one on display in Detroit!
February 26, 2012 at 3:11 pm
You’re right, Tyler! That Accord was in amazingly great shape. And one great “plus” to Arizona cars is that they have zero rust. It didn’t seem like it would take much to get that one back on the road. Sad to see it get parted out. I have a weakness for old Hondas. Someday I would like to get the very first model year Prelude (1979)….
February 26, 2012 at 6:34 am
W00T! Thank you from the Milwaukee ground crew and myself for the shout out! Looking forward to seeing you, the DMM beauty and all of our fellow Legend enthusiasts in July! Were working full steam ahead to make this years event filled with fun times and memories to be discussed for years to come! Keep up the excellent work Tyson!
February 26, 2012 at 3:13 pm
Hey Chris thanks for stopping by the blog! Yeah I had meant to post the NALM information sooner. I love showing Acura that the Legend community is alive and well and we have great things in store. Thanks for all you’re doing to keep the event going. Good luck with the planning stages – I know how much work that can be. Hope your weekend is going well!
February 26, 2012 at 9:49 pm
If our 94 GS automatic, well… weren’t automatic, then I would consider the drive! I can’t last more than an hour behind the wheel when I am cruising at 3500 rpms and watching the fuel gauge tick down faster than the odometer ticks up!
February 27, 2012 at 2:25 am
It’s a good thing that car will never see a speed faster than 80 in Idaho Falls, ID! Or is Nat a speed demon?
June 11, 2012 at 7:31 pm
How come the 83 Accord is in a yard? Has no rust?
June 11, 2012 at 8:25 pm
It had zero rust. I’m not sure why it was in there. Could have been some catastrophic engine failure that someone just didn’t want to deal with? At any rate, seems like it would have been a worthy one to keep on the road. I pulled an old Factory Honda A/C operator manual and ancient road map out of its glove box.