For Sale: 1988 Acura Legend L Coupe
Odometer (Legend): 527,770
Odometer (ILX): 59,042
“Classic car restoration.” If you’re like most people, these words conjure up images of a barn find 1968 Camaro in a couple decades worth of dust, undergoing a transformation to a chrome-laden hot rod with a souped-up, thundering V8 motor. For me, a recent restoration effort took a completely different route. It’s hard to believe that the earliest Acuras from the 1980’s are now considered historic vehicles.
The Legend coupe, which debuted in 1987, was an iconic car that launched Acura into the front lines of a competitive luxury car battle. It offered the complete package: All the amenities that the German luxo-brands were offering, but with Honda reliability. It soared to the top of the sales charts and was widely praised for its technology and driving demeanor.
Over the last couple of months, I took a non-running, low-mileage Persian Red 1988 Acura Legend and put it back on the road where it belongs. After sitting unregistered and non-driving for over two years, the car was in dire need of some critical maintenance when I took ownership of it on Labor Day weekend. It was mechanically overhauled and brought back to running, driving, & braking condition. My extensive “Build” thread on the Legend forums has amassed over 7,800 views and 250 responses since I started it in September. Now it’s time to find this orphan Legend a new, worthy owner since I don’t have the space for it.
If anyone you know is looking for a clean classic Legend coupe, please have them give my Ebay ad a look. The car has only about 98,800 miles on it and is barely broken in by Drive to Five standards.
Here’s the link to my Buy-It-Now (Or Make Offer) listing on Ebay.
Getting the key back in September:
After hundreds of hours of effort, it’s looking like a nice ride again:
Thanks to my friend John for his photography work, and to my many other friends who helped me along the way with sourcing parts and completing this project! Hope it goes to a good home.
A few screen shots from my Ebay ad:
drivetofive 
November 11, 2013 at 2:55 pm
Wow.
This car looks beautiful.
I love the color.
November 11, 2013 at 5:37 pm
Thanks Carlos! It’s rare to see a G1 Legend with < 100k miles on it. The body of this one is pretty nice – for being 25 years old, it sure cleaned up nice. "Persian Red Metallic" definitely does the car justice. I've received an awesome level of response to my Ebay ad in its first 24 hours. Got a couple dozen watchers, about 400 views, and at least one person who is already researching shipping expense to transport the car. We'll see what happens!
November 11, 2013 at 7:18 pm
Very professional Ebay ad. Maybe the best Ebay ad for a car I’ve ever seen.
November 11, 2013 at 7:33 pm
ha! my response also!
November 11, 2013 at 7:37 pm
Haha, thanks Eric. Pics, video, Carfax, service records, I think I covered all the bases. My pet peeve is a seller who’ll put just one measly (cell phone, nighttime) picture of their car up and expect it to sell. Bleh!
November 11, 2013 at 7:35 pm
Thanks Duane. I really went overboard on the level of detail with the ad, but I figure it’ll save me time in the long run because I won’t have to field the same repeated questions, plus it’ll make someone feel more at ease about buying a car out-of-state. I have a guy in Florida who might buy sight-unseen. Had a blast putting the write-up together. I think every car has a story that deserves to be told. This one definitely still needs some work but will make a good ride for its next owner.
November 11, 2013 at 7:48 pm
Tyson, correct me if I’m wrong , but you do have a Legend Sedan in your fleet of cars, right? Maybe you have answered this before, but how come you rarely drive it? Is it just to preserve it? Or do you not have it?…..
November 11, 2013 at 7:57 pm
Hey Todd, yes. There are 5 Acuras in my fleet right now. 1988 Legend (for sale), 1994 Legend coupe (high miles), 1994 Legend sedan (in storage), 1992 NSX (weekend toy), and the 2013 ILX.
I’ve had the 94 sedan since 2008 but only put about 12,000 miles on it in 5 years. It has 144,000 now. It’s stored in a garage about 25 miles away from my home. I go drive it once every 2-3 weeks for at least 10 miles to keep the fluids going and the tires from flat-spotting, and I have the oil changed every 6 months. It’s really in nice condition – in fact, it hasn’t seen rain since May 2008. I bring it out for Legend meets and other special events, or when I feel like it needs a little more exercise. It’s a 6-speed manual which is really tough to find in the sedans, so that’s why I’ve hung onto it for so long.
There are pictures of the car in this thread from April when we had a get-together with Arizona Legend people. I took my 94 coupe, a friend drove my NSX, and another friend drove my 94 sedan. I didn’t have the 88 coupe back then.
http://forums.acuralegend.org/arizona-legend-meet-4-t28730.html
November 11, 2013 at 8:09 pm
lol Where have I been! Didn’t even know you had an NSX. Also, wasn’t expecting you to respond so quickly! Appreciate it!
November 12, 2013 at 4:38 pm
Absolutely gorgeous, Tyson! And I don’t think I’ve seen such a detailed eBay listing. The photography really showcases the condition of it. I bet that will sell really quick. This is a prime example of how far a little scrubbing and buffing will do. Great job!
November 12, 2013 at 5:43 pm
Thanks Jason. The car has undergone hundreds of hours of work, but it sure did turn out nice. The ad has paid off, too. I’ve had multiple offers and just awaiting a call back from a potential seller – the sale might be pending later tonight. We’ve already agreed upon a price, just talking through logistics! Crossing fingers.
November 12, 2013 at 5:44 pm
Potential ‘buyer’, rather.
November 12, 2013 at 9:52 pm
Great restoration Tyson. Too bad a handful of us can’t get together and begin a Legend resto shop like those Grand Wagoneers we were discussing a few years back.
Keep me posted on the potential sale!
November 13, 2013 at 5:55 am
Thanks Dave! I loved the work that guy was doing for Grand Wagoneers. Talk about attention to detail. The 88 Legend has already sold! I got over 650 views, about 40 watchers, and 6 offers in a matter of less than 48 hours. I accepted PayPal payment last night for the purchase, and the car will be shipping to Florida in the next couple of weeks.
November 12, 2013 at 11:28 pm
You’ve done an awesome job with this beautiful G1. I didnt know about the NSX, where can I read more about it?
November 13, 2013 at 5:59 am
Dominik, I haven’t posted much (anything, really) about it on here because I have always wanted to keep the focus the Legend and the ILX. I have a draft blog post ready though with all the details about the NSX, just haven’t published it yet. In the meantime, I have shared pictures in various places online, such as the NSX Prime forums and the Legend forums.
Here’s a photo gallery thread from AcuraLegend.org from September 2012 when I hit 90,000 miles in it. Hard to believe, but next month marks the 2 years anniversary of owning it. It’s just a bone stock 1992 Formula Red with black interior 5-speed. The only thing I’ve done to it was add the 2002-05 17″ wheels.
http://forums.acuralegend.org/1992-nsx-90k-milestone-t26555.html