okay well here it goes:

i bought an 03 Civic coupe EX 5 days ago. In that 5 days I've learned to drive a 5-speed by myself (still getting better) and put about 400 miles on it already (most of it from driving around learning stick shift). I like the look of it, though some mods will be made this summer (better paying job). I bought it mostly for fuel economy, which is something i'm not used to. I just sold my first car a few months ago, a 1967 Ford Mustang. coming from the vintage muscle background, i like speed and power (don't we all?), costly as it may be. with this car and it's measly 127hp at 6800rpm, i'm not quite satisfied. so herein lies my challenge: building a car that still gets 30s in mpg, but that can still kick *** when i want it to (which is...well...all the time). are there any basic, no-brainer steps to take first and foremost, and what can i do to up performance without turning it into drag material or anything?

thx in advanced for any help you can give/suggest!

~Will Z~

 

cold air intake is always an option, and u could get a performance cat. and muffler.those are some cheaper options without sacrificing fuel economy. but with the cold air intake and mufflerur car will be louder.

 

Intake header and exhaust is a good start, or if you wanna step it up and waste a little more gas but have some really good performance, you can turbocharge it

 

alright, thx! do you have any suggestions for brands on that stuff? also, i was told recently not to use cold air intake in the town i live in. we tend to have a lot of deep puddles in the roads when it rains bad, and that the water will be picked up by the cold air intake and sucked into my engine. fact or myth?

 

sucking water into your engine is always possible with the CAI, if your worried, get a Short Ram Intake.

 

AEM sells a little filter thing that goes higher up into thee pipe and its designed so the engine will stop sucking air from the bottom and let the water get back down. I think its like 30 bucks.

 

That little filter device supposedly negates any gains you might get by installing the CAI. If you're worried about puddles that much, definately use a SRI and get a decent heat shield for it. If you're inclined, like many of us, to be more reserved in our car's loudness, please look at the WS2 and ex mag exhausts. Many of the members of this forum will tell you about how wonderful they are to have on these cars. Good luck, and have fun.