Former Hater
 

I just got my first civic a few days ago, 2001 dx, 5 speed power windows, cloth seats, It's got that beautiful gold/tan paint job. It's as stock as a rock right now and i'd like some insight as to some basic builds. I'm not a buyer i'm a builder. My first task will be a cold air intake but i'm not sure i want to relocate my battery. But at the same time i'm not afraid to cut a hole in the hood and make a real ram air... okay I might buy a header and exhaust, but i'll probably just buy a header and build the rest out of tubing. it's amazing what you can order from your local Acklands.

I say go with suspension mods first :D An intake and exhaust will not net you much more than 1-3 hp.

BTW, what did you drive previously?

I traded my civic straight across for an 87 GMC Suburban. It was a family deal. But I also own a 2005 Impala with a 3.4L it's also stock as a rock.

So you traded the Civic for the Suburban (which you own now)?? That's how you make it sound.

Just wondering what you drove/also drive in order to figure out why you were a former hater. :D

Ram air isn't worth it on a little 4-banger econo-box.

What are your goals? Do you want a good looking daily driver? Or a faster, more powerful car? Or a mix of both?

Ram-air isn't worth it on anything. From a physics/aerodynamics standpoint it just doesn't work at speeds you're actually going to be driving at. Not to mention the fact that, if you actually did manage to get the ram-air set up, the incoming air's velocity would be lost in the turns the air has to make in the intake tubing, not to mention the throttle blade disrupting airflow and the right-angle turn the air has to make in the intake manifold. Basically, the only benefit will be colder air, which can be accomplished with a much more aesthetically-pleasing cold-air intake.

And like previously said, an intake, header, and exhaust won't net you much power over stock at the wheels, especially on the D17 engine. Unfortunately, you have one of the worst Honda engines as far as extracting extra power goes; they don't respond well even if you throw a turbo at them. If you want more power with much more potential (and have $5k sitting around), look into a K20a2 swap. It's the stock RSX-S engine, should come with a 6-speed transmission, and can make retarded amounts of power as far as I4s go.

Oh, and welcome to the forums :D

^ anywhere specific that you got your information on the ram horn intake from?

Several places, but the general gist of it was from a Wyotech instructor.

Think about it, though. The idea behind ram-air is that the air gets pressurized beyond 14.7psi (approximately atmospheric pressure). To do that, you have to be moving at speed. Those speeds are high enough that you won't legally see them on any US street. Beyond that, the only other benefit would be a colder air charge, and there's much easier ways to do that than to chop up a hood.

Also, unless you're going to design an NACA duct into your hood, any scoop would have to stick up past the car's boundary layer, meaning the scoop would have to be 1-2" tall just to get any real amount of air into it.

hmm, well i'm not interested about the street, i'm thinking more road racing track...

i was just wondering because several of the local track guys that i've talked to at swear that it helps. i guess i'll do some research on the benefits since i've never really thought about it

just some pics of a track day of k20 integras that i went to the track with, and the last pic is the yellow integra's bro who just finished a new setup that you might have seen. :D

notice the headlights... sorry i didn't get a pic of the yellow integra's front but it was the same
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http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a51...m/3065227f.jpg


edit: btw, sorry for the off topic op

On a track, I could see it doing better than it'd do on the street (as the speeds are higher), but I'd still think the gains would be negligible. I still don't see it actually compressing the air higher than 14.7psi all the way into the combustion chamber.

And I spy an S2000 CR in the second pic :D