Hello, all.

Recently purchased a black MT '98 Civic EX w/ 115K miles.

Love the car so far, and was really ticked when somebody threw a rock on the highway the other day that took a chip out of my paint, and left a small dent on the hood.

I'm not so much interested in tricking my Civic out. Mostly, I'm interested in affordable ways to increase HP while increasing mpg, or at least without losing mpg. I'm also not that in to appearance upgrades. I want my car to be fun to drive, but its main purpose is to get me where I'm going while allowing me to pay off student loans.

I have minimal experience with working on cars. Regular oil changes. I've changed brakes and CV boots. Most of that work was on my now-retired Nissan Sentra. And I probably shouldn't try any big projects, as I live in an apartment complex.

Problem:
My Civic makes an odd buzzing sound between 3700–4000 rpm. Does anybody have any idea what this could be? I've searched through threads here, and someone reported something similar, but nobody replied to his post. It doesn't sound like a bad buzzing, but it's odd. And it sounds like it's coming from under the hood, just beyond the dash.

Question:
Upgrading my air intake sounds like something that I could probably handle. When I go to eBay, there are a bunch of intake upgrades selling (or not selling) for about $8-10. Are these—as I might guess—crap? Based upon my needs (mostly mpg), what's a good intake to go with.

 

Hi and welcome to HCF....
The buzz...there is a heat shield on the exhaust manifold...take a look at it and see if there is a crack around the retaining bolt, or maybe one is loose. Lots of stuff can vibrate at certain RPMs causing the buzz....heat shields under the body along the exhaust path may also be touching and vibrating.

Air intakes.....
SRI = short ram intake or CAI= cold air intake. The SRIs are usually cheaper due to less piping, and yes you get what you pay for. I have a no name SRI and bumped 3mpg. I just got a smog and have a year to save up for something with a CARB sticker. I also have my old stock intake if I come up short at smog time. The CAI do seem to add a few extra HP and the cold air will help with mpg. A bunch of folks on here will suggest you stay away from these if you have heavy rains and puddles in your neck of the woods. The can suck water under extreme conditions.
Exhaust...this will be the next upgrade..catback or all at once with a header and catback system...again you get what you pay for.
Have fun...take pics...and ask questions

 

[quote]ORIGINAL: Dogmeat

Hi and welcome to HCF....
The buzz...there is a heat shield on the exhaust manifold...take a look at it and see if there is a crack around the retaining bolt, or maybe one is loose. Lots of stuff can vibrate at certain RPMs causing the buzz....heat shields under the body along the exhaust path may also be touching and vibrating.

nice way to put it. I'd definately check that heat shield thats what mind was.
and Welcome[sm=happybounce.gif]

 

An air intake is an air intake. They're all going to help you out with power. The brand name intakes are generally the ones that are going to allow you to extract the most potential out of your block. If you want a little extra kick, but aren't worried about brand name, just go for the cheap-ee. I bought an AEM so I could brag about it. Ha ha, Jk yall. As a matter of fact, I would steer clear of the V2, I've had mine for about a year and it's already broken a part off, which I will start another thread about soon.
Have fun tuning!

 

Welcome to the forum!!! Definately check all your heat shields first. Have fun and keep us posted.

 

[sm=welcomesign.gif] to HCF. [sm=groupwave.gif][sm=groupwave.gif][sm=groupwave.gif]

 

Thanks for the suggestions and warm welcome. The noise has turned from an almost pleasant buzzing to more of a popping, so now I'm even more interested in eliminating it.

On a side note, what's the best manual (I realize that "best" is pretty subjective) manual for late 90s Civics? I had a Haynes manual for my Nissan, and found it relatively easy to use and mostly helpful. I've generally heard better things about Haynes manuals than Chilton's.

As for finding the source of the noise, what's the suggested method for doing so? I was thinking of having my girlfriend rev the engine up to 4K while I check things out under the hood. This sounds dangerous, but perhaps only because I'm considering putting my girlfriend behind the wheel. Any alternative solutions?

 

Popping suggests a crack in the exhaust system...or a loose header (unlikely unless you just did some work on it)
Look for the taletail sign of black soot. Not wet oil residue, dry black powder. Otherwise..yes have someone rev the engine and watch out. If you're really worried block the tires so the car has a harder time "jumping" on you.