Hey guys i have a 1998 civic EX coupe. I am looking to turn it into an autocross/race car/daily driver. I have a K&N cold air intake and a new muffler. I was given a AirMass header but it fits the generation civic before mine. I am prepared to buy a header for my car and buy new shocks and lowering springs. My car looks good as is so I'm not concerned with useless bodykits or things that make my car look like a racer. I personally like my car as an almost sleeper until i hit the gas pedal. I have a d16 y8 in there now and plan on leaving the stock motor in there so i can stay in autocross street touring class. I am looking for decent parts but i am on a budget. Any and all suggestions are welcome.

 

I'm assuming its a 5-speed manual? That's what I have. Well, You could easily remove any extra weight for free( Passenger seat, Spare Tire, etc.) This will allow your car to accelerate faster, but won't give it more horsepower necessarily. Get a short shifter. It will improve your timing for gear changes. You could remove the power steering to get a few horsepower. It will be harder to turn in speeds below 10mph, but that's no big deal. Shocks and lowering springs help a lot, so definitely get those. Get some performance spark plugs and some aftermarket spark plug wires. Headers are a good investment also. ;]

Well, hope that helps a little.

Short shifter only cost me around $20.
NGK spark plugs are around $6-8 each plug.
Option Racing Spark Plug Wires $20-30

 

May I suggest eibach. I have some eibach prokit springs on a 97 hatch and I was very impressed with everything.
http://eibach.com/cgi-bin/htmlos.exe...08276600017087
Here is a kit I would recommend. I know how it feels to be on a budget, so this should be a good compromise. I would say to not just get springs, but to drop a little more money and get the struts. This will help when you power out of those sharp turns. Also don't forget brakes! Buy a good set of pads and if you have the money, get new rotors. Slotted or cross drilled, try to stay away from slotted and crossed drilled... pick one or the other. In my personal opinion, tires are the most important thing to worry about. Make sure you use some track radials or some type of sticky tire... A bad case of understeer will not be good for you times...

 

I just put Tokico HPK201 ($400) suspension kit into my 99 EX along with upper and lower ties, h-brace, and C-Pillar tie bars ($100). Its like driving a different car in a very good way. I don't have experience with other suspensions, but I am very pleased with my Tokicos.

For braking you might consider replacing your rear drums with disks out of an Integra or Civic Si. You'll have more luck finding a smashed Integra you can salvage the rear brakes off of.

You can upgrade the brake lines to stainless steel braided, which will remove some of the mooshy-ness from the stock lines. Replace all the control arm bushings and get a good set of slotted rotors, not drilled.

Upgrading brakes is not cheap, but if your going to race it, it's a must. Stock rotors will warp, and drums are inferior to disks. Stopping power is just as important as horse power

 

Remove the A/C. I would like to do the same to my car soon.

 

Removing the a/c really doesn't make that much of a difference...

 

If you read the other post they talk about weight reduction, how does doesn't this make much of a difference?

 

i have racing tires on there now and i learned the hard way that stock rotors and brakes do not like to autocross as much as i would like them to but now i have some nice shiny glazed pads. i am having a hard time deciding between kyb agx adjustables or koni yellow and either eibach or h&r springs. i live in memphis so no AC is a death trap. what are some good inexpensive tie down and other bracing and stiffening bars to go along with it