Hey I just got my 5 speed 98 civic the other week. I was just wondering, what are some cheap(not crappy cheap) upgrades I can do on my car that will increase the acceleration and hp? Other than a cold air intake, which I already plan on buying in the next week or so. A link or brand name would help a lot too!

 

If you're thinking you're going to get noticible differnces with a CAI, then I am sorry to burst your bubble, but you're not.
It's about 3-4 tops.
If you're looking for real hp then you need to consider Forced Induction.
But that is an expensive road but you definitly get results in the end, where as bolt ons such as intakes can only go so far.
Now if you add the header and exhuast with the intake, you may see a slight difference with hp. But nothing beats F/I

 

On another note, what exactly will a cat back exhaust system do for me? I have heard that if you are going to get a cold air intake, you can maximize it with a better exhaust. But what is a "cat back exhaust" specifically, how is it different from any other?

 

Catback exhaust is just an exhaust from the Catalytic converter back.
Axel back an exhaust form the axel back.

 

The cheapest bang-for-the-buck is probably nitrous injection. I hear wet injection is the safest way to go. That being said, I must add that I went with intake and exhaust (Cat-back) for a projevted gain of at least 5 HP. My engine revs better when passing 4000 rpm and that undeniably means acceleration is better. It only makes sense that more air going into the engine allows for more air going out. To get it out without increasing backpressure, you must open up the pipes and muffler. Plus, instead of sounding like a sewing machine, my car now sounds like a sportscar - mo betta!

 

go turbo!!! WOOT

 

So another question. Is there any real difference between brand names? I was looking at a more upper brand intake(I guess you could say) Injen, or also a mid priced intake from Tenzo and finally a lower priced intake from option racing. Here are the links:
http://www.andysautosport.com/honda/...e00128435.html
http://www.andysautosport.com/honda/...z00127903.html
http://www.andysautosport.com/honda/...i00147869.html

Tell me what you think would be the right choice.

 

If you don't have the resources to mess with forced Induction, wanna keep it Naturally aspirated and still want some power, i can tell you what you need.

1-Convert to OBD-I electronics (conversion harness and a few other minor things needed including OBD-I ECU for appropriate model)

2-Get an Ebay 4-2-1 Header as they can give you good gains for the money. Have a 2.25" exhaust made up to go with it, use muffler of personal choice (i like magnaflow)

3-Buy an AEM CAI intake, V2 or any real CAI not a short ram. Preferably i would go with the Iceman intake, Password:JDM intake (whale ***** as they are commonly referred as)
Most CAI's are created equal in terms of piping, but the filter is what is making the difference. A pricier intake (such as whale *****, ice man, AEM V2) have some great theory backing up their intakes and that is where you will see some noticeable gains. But it's a small increase for more money, so it's up to you and your power goals.

4-Buy a Bisi camshaft, preferably stage 2. with springs and retainers. It cost a pretty penny but is entirely worth it. I know of plenty of people running bone stock D15's and D16's with just the bisi stg.2 cam getting 120+ actual wheel horsepower just from the cam. Which will benefit alot more from increased breathing on both the exhaust and intake sides.

5-Get a Tune, a real good ECU tune, preferably by a hands on tuner or one that can tune on the dyno to give you a custom tune that will maximize power, fuel economy and reliability (over an untuned engine that is)

I hope that helps or answers some questions for you.