Hi guys,

Just thought I would let you in on a couple of mods I've been playing with in the last month or so. I bought my 1998 3-dr EK civic last month, and the first thing I noticed was that it seemed really sluggish for a 1.4 16v engine. My old Ford fiesta 1.1ltr seemed to get up to speed quicker! After the first first few days a whistling sound developed, which seemed to get louder with the engine RPM. I first suspected maybe the Catalytic convertor had broken up and blocked the exhaust. I ordered a De-cat pipe frm Ebay for £30, and managed to persuade the local Kwik-fit tyre and exhaust fitters to fit it. As soon as the car was up on the ramps, we could see instantly that the back box was fubared. The car had been stood for about a year (only 1000 miles between MOTs), so the exhaust has obviously just disintergrated. A new back box and we were right as rain.

The de-cat pipe did fit, but it approx 1 inch longer than the stock cat. This means it wasnt an easy job to fit due to the back box needing to be forced backwards against it's rubbers. Not a problem, as it didnt foul anything once fitted.

Next up was the induction kit. Now, I was faced with a slight problem here, as my throttle body is the vertical type, as opposed to a horizontal type which seems to be more common. This meant I had to find a 90° adapter to allow it to fit. 10 mins searching on ebay and I found a 90° stainless intake pipe, exactly the right size, including some silicone hosing to fit it! Managed to get it for £10. A few days later and the kit was installed, and it gives the engine a much more raspy induction note. This mod alone gets heads turning when you open her up.

And finally, I told a mate to try some injector cleaner in his Pug 306 Diesel hatch as it was kicking out some pretty nasty looking fumes. He did this, and couldn't express how much of a difference it made to the power, MPG and overall response of the engine. With him claiming such good results, I thought I'd give some a try....I used Redex, but I'm sure all brands do a similar job.

I am now half way through the tank, and I cannot believe the difference. It feels like a totally different car to drive. Roundabouts have never been so much fun. Drop it from 3rd into 2nd on the approach, keep the revs up all the way around, and boot it on the exit. Never had so much fun in my life! It's unbelievable how well these cars stick to the road - and mine is still running on standard 14" steel rims and std tyres! Pound for pound, (or dollar for dollar in many cases for you guys!) this injector cleaner must be tried. Very good stuff.

Up and coming mods include some 17" Konig theory Graphite rims, possibly a twin-loop backbox, tints and maybe some different headlights/tailights. Also toying with the idea of putting a screen in each sun visor and hooking it up to an Xbox 360 or PS3, but we'll just have to wait and see...

take it easy...

=Chris=

 

sounds good man, lots of money getting put into it..my next expensive mod is going to be rims too

 

hehe, well I have just been fortunate enough to have finished with my GF, so now I can do a few bits and bobs to the car without anybody moaning at me!

So far I'm impressed with the improvements I have seen. The De-cat pipe actually makes the exhaust note slightly louder - to be expected really, seeing as the pipes have a pretty impressive bore size. Much more free-flowing than the Cat it replaced.

I'm wanting to go for a twin loop because apart from the cat-back systems found on ebay with 4" tail pipes, I'm pretty stuck for choice. The twin loop seems like an interesting design and the tail pipe doesnt look stupidly over-sized.

I've now won the Konigs on Ebay, so they should be with me in the next week or so. Will take some piccies once theyre fitted. Not lowering the car just at the minute - I'd rather wait till it dries up slightly to start playing with the suspension. Is it a difficult job to fit lowering springs to the stock shock absorbers? Is it something that I'd be better off getting a garage to fit for me?

=chris=

 

yeah, test pipes are louder, but the car should feel a little better when you drive it. Theres probably about 2 horsepower there and the exhaust will run slightly better.

Rims are so expensive, and the worst part is, I want them! Itll be one of the last things I do to my car, but Konigs are good.

And yeah, girlfriends can be a problem with a car. My girl tells me everday how she doesnt understand why I spend money on mine. "Its too expensive, and you dont need to go that fast anyway..."

 

i agree man, broke up with my g/f of almost 3 years about a month ago..and everytime i would get somthing for my car or go somewere for my car she would FREAK out at me telling me how i should be spending the money on here instead of buying "stupid" things for my car[:@][:@] man im glad i have no more of that crap to go through, and more money for me and my car

 

Well its a bit of a touchy subject at the minute for me really. I've known her for years, but there's never really been anything between us, although I've always had a bit of a thing for her. A couple of months back we sorta got together, and we were both really happy. Only problem was when we went to a house party at a friends house and all hell broke loose as her ex-BF was there. We didnt speak for the week afterwards. We've sorta made up tho now, but shes said that she 'might' be pregnant! [] Dodgy territory for both of us really as we're both still 18, and neither of us really wants to get tied down with a kid too early in life.

But anyways, thats my story. Until we're back together, I'll continue to spend as much on the Civic as possible to get it how I want it. I'm thinking another £200 on a Headunit, maybe another £150-£250 on a Sub/Amp setup, and then I'm wanting to tint my car (about £150 all in all). I'm thinking another £1000 will finish off my car for the time being.

=chris=

 

Ouch, good luck with the kid my man. Im just 17, so I definitely understand how a child can mess your life up. I hate how women say "I MIGHT be prenant." I really only need an update if you ARE pregnant. I can only handle so much stress.

 

Hey guys, Good News! Shes not pregnant! She text me this morning to say all was well as she had 'come on' (pardon the expression!). You guys have no idea what sorta weight this takes off my shoulders! Maybe I'll get more than an hours sleep tonight, unlike the whole of the past week. Nothing like this has ever happened to me before, and I hope I dont get a scare like this for a while to come!

Oh, and I'm glad I havent yet fitted my alloys - I nudged a curbstone last night in the dark and its really messed up my front wheel trim! Would hate to think what it would have done to a nice shiny rim. Spose I'll have to be more careful in future!

=chris=