We’ve put together some information to help potential buyers in choosing an ATR. As you can see from the “How Many Left” banner linked on this site, they are getting rarer on the UK roads so there will only be limited numbers for sale at any one time.
First and foremost it should be considered that even the youngest ATRs are now over 20 years old; they could have led a life being pampered and polished, or neglected and abused, or a mixture of both!
Prices
Due to it’s low numbers, the ATR is difficult to value and often a bone of contention within the club, perhaps more so from ex-owners regretting a cheap sale. However, recent accolades in the motoring press, and the general increases in the used car market, have seen the value of ATRs increase in the last couple of years with good examples demanding strong money. At best the following price guide is an indicator; the true value can only be what the seller is happy to sell for and the buyer is willing to pay.
| Condition | Price |
|---|---|
| Poor | Up to £3,000 |
| Average | £3,000 to £4,500 |
| Good | £4,500 to £7,000 |
| Excellent | Upwards of £7,000 |
General Buying Advice
These days there are handy tools at your finger tips to assist buyers, and one of these is a past MOT check https://www.gov.uk/check-mot-history. Of course failures aren’t necessarily a bad thing if issues have been fixed and receipts can be shown.
Taking things a step further, a full car history check can be had for less than the costs a couple of pints of import lager from the likes of https://www.vcheck.uk
If you are not mechanically minded, take someone with you who is. The likes of the AA & RAC can carry out used car inspections, but these tend to be quite expensive.
Check the overall condition of the car, wheels and tyres will show if there’s any suspension issues, look out for rust or damage. Varying panel gaps can be an indicator of previous accident damage. Check the interior for damage and check all the dash warning lights come on and disappear at start up. Check all the buttons work, including the windows, fans, air conditioning (if it has it), electric mirrors, interior lights etc. Check the condition of the oil and check for signs of head gasket failure. Take the car for a test drive, listen out for any knocks or bangs from the engine or suspension, gear changes should be nice and smooth and the car should brake in a straight line.
Ask to see previous service history and check the car has been well maintained with things like cam belts and filters changed at the correct intervals.
Be happy and that the car feels right for you. If you have any doubts, walk away before they turn to regrets.
Specific ATR Buying Advice
Bulkhead Rust
Unfortunately this is a common problem that can affect even the best kept ATR’s. Over time, water can seep into the bulkhead seams causing rust. This is generally not picked up during an MOT.
A visual inspection can be carried out from inside the car, looking up to the bulkhead above the accelerator pedal and in the same place on the passenger side up behind the glovebox. However, we would always recommend jacking the car on each side and peeling back the inner arch liner.
These are pictures of the bulkhead rust found above the drivers foot pedals. The image on the left shows the area had suffered from rot previously and a new plate added (potentially covering over a rust patch), but the rust came back due to an incomplete first fix. A proper fix should be made and the area sealed to protect it from future rust.
Any rust on the bulkhead seam will be apparent. What may look like surface rust normally means much worse lies beneath as the bulkhead is double skinned, so the rust could already be much worse inside. This is generally fixable though, but can cost in the region of £700 to £1500 to cut out, weld in new metal and treat properly depending on the amount of work needed and hourly rates, so would need to be taken into consideration in the car’s sale value.
Here we have a further example of bulk head rust, seen from inside the driver’s side wheel arch. What appeared to be a small patch was ground back to reveal the extent of the rust. The pictures show the process of a decent repair, with the rusty area cut out and new metal welded in, then treated with a rust killer and inhibitor, and finally protected with underseal. A repair of this nature should last a number of years. Credit to Performance Autoworks, Honda specialists based in Fairford, Gloucestershire, for carrying out the repairs.
Upper Chassis Arms
Another common problem area that again can only be assessed by removing the front arch liners and looking up into the wing with a torch. Also fixable and the price of the welding should be taken into account. Like the bulkhead rust, this also may not be picked up on an MOT.
Lower Sills and Subframes
These should be inspected for rust, although surface rust is expected on some parts and not usually an issue. Rust issues on visible components should be picked up by MOTs.
Body Rust
The ATR shell is galvanised and generally doesn’t suffer from rust although there may be some cosmetic rust around the arches, more often the rear than the front. Bizarrely the top of doors, under the door rubber by the wing mirrors is also prone to rusting, although this shouldn’t cause any issues.
Spare Wheel Well
Many ATR’s suffer from a water leak in to the boot and this pools in the spare wheel well (open the boot, lift the false boot floor and remove the spare wheel). The water can be getting in from behind the rear light clusters, the boot seal, or the aerial mount (on pre facelifts). Removing the lining from the boot floor should give you a good idea of where the water is getting in. Water can also get in the boot by permeating through the rear window sealant as it gets older and more porous. A few owners have found “Captain Tolley’s Creeping Crack Cure” (great name isn’t it!) can help greatly.
Fuel & Brake Lines
Another area where rust can cause an issue is the fuel and brakes lines. This should be picked up on an MOT but a visual inspection should be carried to check the condition of these. The pictures show the corroded lines and new replacements.
Engine
The H22A7 engine in the ATR is known as bulletproof, but the reality that is sometimes not the case. Due to the way VTEC works, the engine burns oil, so oil levels need checking regularly (once a month is a good routine to get in to). Listen out for any knocks or bangs that could be an early sign of big end failure. The engines tends to be “tappety”, so don’t be put of by a ticking sound from the top end, unless of course it is excessive. VTEC should engage at 5800rpm with a noticeable change in the engine note and power delivery. The VTEC solenoid, EGR valve and EGR plate should be cleaned as part of a maintenance schedule.
A “gutteral rattling” noise from the right hand side of the engine at around 2k to 3k revs could be from “belt slap” from a failed auto-tensioner and is something else to also listen out for.
Gearbox
Gear changes should be smooth without crunches. There is a common fault with the 5th gear/reverse gear shared syncros which result in not being able to select reverse when it eventually fails. Be sure to test 5th gear and reverse work properly, and if there is some hesitation in getting in to those gears, use the double-de-clutch method to see if the issue is syncro related. Often a change of ownership is enough to bring on problems due to a different driving style.
Honda revised the 5th gear/reverse shared syncro when the facelift ATR was released in 2001, and many owners in the past have said it was “uprated” and “fixed” the issues. Overtime, this revised part has still been proven to fail, so as a buyer if you’re being told the gearbox has the revised syncro you should not ignore the issue. If the syncro has been replaced, make sure the seller shows you a dated receipt, and match the date to the mileage on previous MOT’s to get an idea of how many miles it has done. Always plan for a potential failure in the future and budget circa £800/£1,000 for a gearbox rebuild.
Automatic Headlight Levelling
The ATR is fitted with HID lights and as a result have headlight washers and automatic headlight levelling. Automatic levelling and headlight washers are required by law in the UK, and is a pass/fail on the MOT.
There are know problems with the headlight levelling, often as a result of a broken sensor bar on the rear offside suspension, especially on lowered cars. Replacement sensor bars are relatively inexpensive as they can be DIY made from a threaded bar and two right angle flexible ball/socket joints.
There is also a known issue of random headlight aim dropping which Honda have never addressed. As far as we know, the cause has never been discovered.
Headlights
ATR headlights also tend to oxidise and become foggy, and again, due to having HID’s, this is an MOT failure as this can fragment or scatter the HID beam and temporarily blind oncoming road users. Foggy lenses can be wet sanded, polished using a machine polisher and UV sealed to bring them back to life. Keeping the lights clean and protected will reduce the fogginess in the future.
Headlight washers are also known to stop working or the covers to them get brittle and break. The pump for the headlight washers is situated next to the pump for the windscreen washers, both mounted to the washer fluid reservoir which is behind the arch liner ahead of the nearside front side wheel. Sometimes these pumps can fail, and although it’s not a big job to replace them, finding the part can be difficult.
Other
Like most Hondas, the ATR can be prone to broken anti-roll bar links and worn suspensions bushes, but these are generally considered service items.
As mentioned before, a well documented service history is important on these cars. Don’t be put off by a history of specialist or independent garage servicing, they can actually be more knowledgeable than a Honda main dealer. However, not all independent garages have seen or serviced/repaired ATR’s, so finding someone near to you that knows ATR’s is a good thing.
Aim for an example with a low number of owners, but don’t be too put of by the number of previous owners. A 20+ year old car is likely to have seen a few in its time and the overall condition and history of the car is generally more important.
Modifications
Most ATRs still on the road have some form of aftermarket modification or another, so don’t let this put you off. If you want a 100% standard ATR, you may be waiting some time for one to come on the market. Many modifications can be reverted to standard and some owners will include the standard parts in the sale if they still have them.
On the other hand, if you are looking to modify an ATR, then there are options, but they can be limited.
Being UK/EU only, there is nothing available from the US or Japan, although some parts from other models are compatible. Be wary though as many parts from the USA are listed as compatible, but are not.
Common upgrades are exhaust (Solid Fabrications, Powerflow, Infinity Exhausts) and cold air intake (typically the K&N Typhoon is the best) as the ATR responds very well to these. Brakes, suspension, wheels, flywheels, final drives and engine tuning are all paths to improving the car. Keep in mind though that the ATR’s ECU cannot be mapped, so if you’re wanting to go that direction you’ll want to factor in the cost of a programmable ECU and mapping to make gains.
The ATR also has a factory fitted front strut brace, but you can also purchase a Tein version which tightens up the front even more, and is a good investment if one can be found. They sometimes come up for sale on the ATROC Facebook page. A rear strut brace was also made but is extremely rare to find.
There are very few styling options, so you’ll never see a Veilside ATR, although that’s probably not a bad thing. Fibreworx (in the UK) make a few items for the ATR, such as vented front wings, and lightened boot lids.
Parts
With the ATR only ever being produced in small numbers and with so few now left on the road, the Honda parts back catalogue is diminishing in availability. There are usually alternatives available, but as time goes on parts may be more difficult to source so this is worth bearing in mind when considering buying an ATR. With car values increasing, less are being broken for parts and instead being brought back to their former glory. Some parts are compatible with other Honda models, although mostly parts are specific to the ATR.
Catalytic Converters – Original OEM cat’s are extremely desirable for selling to metal merchants due to the high amount of precious metals inside, and sadly, the ATR’s cat is easily accessed from under the car and can be stolen in 60 seconds by a seasoned thief. The ATR can be very picky about it’s Lambda sensors (O2 sensors) so if you’re looking to use an after-market cat (sports or standard cell count) you will more than likely need to fit an O2 spacer to the cat so it doesn’t throw off the sensor readings. This is the same if you de-cat an ATR, a spacer is required to stop the EML being lit and storing an error code for the sensor being faulty.
Community
There’s a great community of owners on the ATR Owner’s Club Facebook page, willing to help with problems, parts and modifications, and of course to have a bit of banter and show of their ATRs.
After a break due to Covid and life getting in the way of things, 2023 has seen new energy within ATROC members with the introduction of this website, merchandise and of course arranging ATROC stands at Japanese car shows. New owners of ATRs are always welcome into the club.
For more information on the ATR, please visit our info page: