Ok, so I read all the stickies here-and have talked with the friends I have that know anything about cars. So if I ask something here and its been covered its most likely because I am pretty much a novice when it comes to anything besides driving a car, and please forgive me.

I have an 06 Civic Coupe LX-all stock. I am wanting to get a bit better performance/mileage without paying huge bucks. I live in Southern California (where the laws and cops are strict). I want the car to sound as stock as possible, and to not look anything but stock. It also needs to meet all legal requirements (its cheaper paying for expensive hardware then paying the fines).

What I was thinking of doing was getting a new intake, header, and cat-back. Due to the warranty I think thats all I can really do at this point anyways.

What I had found that I though would be good and legal is:

Intake: K&N Part #69-1013TS
Cat-Back: Magnaflow Cat-Back Part #16687 (my only problem with this is that the tip is 4'-I'd really like it to just be the 2.25' so that it looks less like it's been modded)
Header: I know the sticky said DC sports headers were street legal in CA, but the only ones I've seen say "may not be CARB legal", etc. So I am a bit confused. Also, am preferring a 4-1 over a 4-2-1. But I've drawn a blank. Any help please?

Ok, there you have it. Please let me know what you think. If theres any more information that you need just ask.

Oh, also-I'm not going to be putting the parts in myself. I do not do well with mechanics. I did find (by checking shops in the area) that it is much cheaper to buy the parts online and then pay someone to put them in. So ease of installation isn't an issue-unless the mechanic will have to charge me several hours more to purt a certain part in. And also, at some later point (most likely when my current warranty expires) I'll look at putting in a turbocharger (I don't know if any of this affects that).

Thanks in advance for reading and replying!

EDIT: forgot to note that it is a stick shift (manual). I don't know if that changes anything-but more information can't hurt.

 

What I would do is check with a shop that inspects cars or the DMV to know exactly which parts are acceptable. I'm pretty sure DC sports will be fine, the reason they say may i'm guessing is because you can have one on and may not pass due to going over the emmisions standard cause of another reason i dunno.

If you turbo your going to have to remove the header cause that will be replaced by the turbo manifold. But you could resell the header and get atleast half back for it if there is no cracks and dents, just polish it up first befor you resell it. Used dc sports headers sell quick.

Exhaust you could put a silencer on the end which will make it a little quieter and look more stock. But also what you could do is get custom pipeing done at a shop (lot cheaper and just as good), get a nice resonator like a magnaflow, then buy a stock looking muffler tip. You got yourself a quiet cat-back exhaust and a little performance gain.

 

cyberblade definitely my vote goes for Magnaflow Cat-Back Part #16687 for better perforamance and mileage. You see I have the magnaflow just installed and I love it, they are cheaper on ebay but I wanted a warranty (the salt on the roads here in winter kills an exhaust) so I got it here magnaflow 16687, or you can try one of the vendors here, they are always running sales/specials. either way its a great system and very easy to install. how's your car doing so far?

 

That intake looks good, although I prefer the AEM Dryflo filter (never needs to be oiled). If you still prefer the K&N, Amazon has a good price:
http://www.amazon.com/K-N-69-1013TS-.../dp/B000NKCM2Q

I have a Magnaflow with the 4-inch tip. It is a great cat-back and should be the last you will ever need (all-stainless steel). Any muffler shop can replace the tip with a smaller one. I bought my Magnaflow via Ebay after shopping around.