[StealthRacer808]

Ok so my dad bought a Civic Si sedan a few months ago... I am currently a high school junior and he said he'll proabably give me the car when I go to college. For now, to get mods I can use my own money (I'd prefer not to) or I can get really good grades, do chores, etc. and wait 'til Xmas.

I was only planning to do about $5K in mods throughout the whole life of the car assuming that I'll be more or less broke most of my college life. So aside from all of the "appearance" stuff (wheels, hfp, etc.), I was only looking to get an intake/exhaust, since I heard that the stock headers are actually pretty good. Plus I'd rather the mods be something simple that I could install myself. I'm not much of a mechanic, yet.

YES, I have searched, but I couldn't exactly find the answers that I was looking for. If anything, I might get my first couple of little mods by summertime. But I'd figure I start asking questions.

First off, I wanted to keep the car classy. I am not like the typical teenager who wants an obnoxiously loud fartcan exhaust with a 5" tip. Nor do I want alteeza tailights or chrome everything or any other ricer crap. But I am a pretty aggressive driver and I do enjoy redlining it :vtec: most of the time I drive when the road is wide open (or when there's a stupid idiot going 5mph under the speed limit in the passing lane). So I want a meaner, but not necessarily that much louder sounding intake/exhaust combo. I was thinking Comptech Intake (when it comes out? or some kind of other IceBox?) and Tanabe Concept-G exhaust. Has anyone heard either of these systems? Are they aggressive but not that loud? Another question I had was how exactly will this affect my power? From what I've heard, this may give me ballpark 5-10whp, but of course this is the peak hp. Is this increase in power even noticable? And if I do the intake/exhaust with nothing else, will I noticably lose any power elsewhere in the powerband?

Also, I am pretty new to this whole modding business. I guess you could consider me a car nut, but when it comes to the nuts and bolts I am just starting. Are there any other inexpensive "performance" mods that anyone recommends? I don't want anything that could potentially cause a major (expensive) malfunction that would void the warranty and screw me over (the car was 100% paid for, not leased or financed so I can't do $#it if i lose the warranty). I would appreciate any help and/or (most) opinions on this matter. Thanks in advance.

 

[Hondacivicsi23]

To answer a few of your questions...the icebox most likely isnt comming out. And a 10 whp increase can surly be felt. The only inexpensive mod I can think of off the top of my head would be the throttle Body gasket and spacers. And keep you stock intake unless your going to get X's, which seems like the best route.

 

[shutter13]

hey man, im 17 too and have an Si coupe

ive done some work to my car and im really happy with the outcome of each mod ive done... i wanted a good base for the 3 aspects of my car (power, handling, looks)

so i got... greddy evo2 catback exhaust and injen cold air intake for power... eventually i will get the hondata reflash for some serious N/A power

progress rear sway bar for handling... and then nitto neogen tires on my new wheels for handling as well

for looks i got 18" wheels (enkei rpm2), probably my favorite mod because i really love the look of them on the Si... and i also installed a 6000k HID kit for looks and better lighting

so ive done minimal work, but i dont want to spend a rediculous amount of money and im happy with my car now

question though... its your dad's car and you may get it in a few years, but you're paying for the mods right now?

 

[2006BlackSi]

use the 5k n get hytech kit thats what id do, just keep saving n waiting till u get the car cuz in a year or 2 who knows what else could be out for the si's might be alot better

 

[Asif22]

hytech qill void the warrenty... I know it has to be a direct casue of the problem but...any engine issues they can blame on the hytech kit. and I doubt he can install that himself. Go with x's intake, best intake in my opinion. and get a greddy ti-c

 

[SiConvert887]

Consider an HID kit for your low beams, I love mine. xfactorwrx makes an SRI that people are going nuts about right now(looking to pick one up myself). Greddy EVO 2 might be a nice exhaust option for what your looking for. I'm personally looking at the Vibrant RH w/ HFC - cause catback is kind of pointless unless you get headers with it. Hondata Reflash or if youve got 2 years to wait, possibly something like k-pro if that ever comes out. Suspension upgrades you could do coilovers if you want a drop, a rear swaybar may be something you wanna look into as well. For now, a throttle body spacer, intake manifold gasket, and maybe a K&N drop-in filter.

Theres a start at least!

 

[GeezerSi]

Congratulations & welcome -> 8th

 

[Forklift352]

X-Intake 300.
DCRH 360.
or
RT highflow cat 475.
Your choise cat back 475.+
Ingles front camber bolts (2pr.) 50.
Skunk or SPC rear camber kit 250.
Your choise lower springs 200.+
Alinement(spell check;p) 80.
P2R spacer +2 gaskets 110.
IMG 50.
Reflash (Oh..the reflash!) 590.

Instal of all said stuff 700-1000


Super charger + Instal 4500.
With this list you will have a Tiger turn'en super beast!!!!
OH! tint windows 250.
No wheels no body kit (you want a sleeper because your going to collage
and you dont want the wrong people eye ballen your ride.
I hope this helps.

 

[SiConvert887]

^^ very true, if your gonna be living on campus and parking outside during the night in the student lots be careful with how flashy you make it. I'm living at home w/ my parents and commute to school, so it makes the modding a little less nerve racking.

 

[k20beast]

sorry man im lazy i just glanced through all the post...but actually id go with dcrh,tb spacer/gaskets, x's intake... i wouldnt worry ab stock exhaust for now to be honest, bc its pretty good as is.

 

[StealthRacer808]

Thanks everyone for the responses


To answer/reply to some of the posts...

Yes, I won't get the car for a couple years, but for now I do drive it occasionally (maybe every other week) and I ride in it daily, so I would like it to be nice (I'm not actually planning on spending any of my money on it for now, but I might be able to get a couple things for Xmas, and since i don't really play video games anymore, I have nothing better to get).

I'm hearing a lot about this X's intake. It looks like a SRI. If so, wouldn't there be some kind of heatsoak? Anyways, I hear it's quite loud and I'd rather not have it that loud, so I probably won't get this, but is there really any aftermarket intake that isn't excessively loud? I'm pretty sure the Mugen Icebox has a sleeper sound but $700 for intake? Yeah, right. Damn, are you guys sure the Comptech isn't going to come out? I thought they came back...

I thought about suspension mods, but on some of the roads here in Hawaii I already get kinda beat up as it is... Plus there are alot of steep driveways and I see dropped people scrape all the time, and I don't want to scrape.

How easy is the throttle body spacer and the various gaskets to install? I haven't extensively been under the hood before, but otherwise I am decent at most DIY projects. Also another quesion on the aftermarket gaskets, such as Hondata heatshield, etc.: Is there anything negative about these? I mean there has to be a reason why Honda makes the metal gaskets as opposed to the plastic type. Is the metal one more durable or something? I will probably be driving this car for 10+ years and 100K+ miles so I don't want longevity to be an issue.

Is the high-flow CAT (RandomTech) loud? I know this noise thing of mine's might hinder my performance but I really would like it only moderately louder than stock (I don't mind it being loud on the inside, but here in Hawaii loud exhaust = super cop magnet). I want it to sound mean but not loud (good example = stock Nissan VQV6 on a '07 G35 - I know this doesnt sound anything like our cars but its an example of mean yet not disturbingly loud).

As far as the sleeper thing, I thought what I had in mind would be sleeper. I already have tint. I was thinking HFP front/rear, Mugen side skirts, slightly smoked taillights, and 17x7 +42mm Work Emotion XT7 in matte gray. Would this still attract alot of attention? I suppose because the wheels aren't cheap? How sensitive is our stock alarms anyways? As far as the whole car getting stolen, aren't we somewhat safe since we have immobilizers? Or is that just a gimmick? Also, I'm only going to get the car if I go to the University of Hawaii, in which case I'll probably live at home or in an apartment, not in the student housing. If I go to mainland college I won't have to worry cuz I won't have the car anyways lol. btw, just so you know my Si sedan is ASM.

Sorry for the longish posts, I just like to put everything all one time.

 

[k20beast]

well his intake isnt as bad with heat soak,u can compare a few things ab it to aftermarket sri and kno why his is a lot better.but tb spacer is very easy to install. hondata img(intake mani gasket) is kinda a pita but not to to bad. the HFC will make it a lil louder but im sure u wouldnt mind it at all. if your not worried ab losing your cat the dcrh is a great idea. and yes its a pita to install also...

 

[ErichPryde]

which island do you live on?

if you are going to buy the R/T cat, it shouldn't cost more than 370. you might be able to find it less, but the last time I looked that's about what it was. the R/T hi-flow cat will gain you some nice mid-range power. vtec might not be quite as noticeable. It isn't loud, but it is a tiny bit louder- I have it paired with a Tanabe medallion exhaust (which is fairly quiet), and I can tell that the R/T cat is there. a slight tone change.

if you are buying those rims and that combination of bodykits, your car will not be a sleeper. people will mess with you. It won't be absurdly "awake," either.
the X intake will make you good power, but it will be LOUD. I've never driven with X's intake, but I have driven with a K&N SRI. cabin noise is increased at least three times when vtec kicks in. X's intake might not be this loud because it is constructed of plastic, which doesn't resonate as well as metal, but I could be wrong. Someone who is driving with X's intake and has driven with a SRI (like X himself) would have to chime in, here.

finally, the throttle body and spacer is not a hard to do mod at all. in the DIY section, there is at least one excellent Do-it-yourself that will walk you through it, step by step.

 

[ErichPryde]

the Hondata Heatshield Intake Manifold gasket (or any other plastic IMG) is going to be one of the most difficult installs, short of installing some FI stuff yourself.

As far as I know, the plastic gaskets don't have a downside, if they are well constructed. the gaskets on the intake manifold and throttle body aren't exactly metal- the throttle body gasket is almost like paper. the one on the intake manifold is like a thin sheet of metal... but I think they're there simply because they were cheap to produce.

 

[StealthRacer808]

which island do you live on?

if you are going to buy the R/T cat, it shouldn't cost more than 370. you might be able to find it less, but the last time I looked that's about what it was. the R/T hi-flow cat will gain you some nice mid-range power. vtec might not be quite as noticeable. It isn't loud, but it is a tiny bit louder- I have it paired with a Tanabe medallion exhaust (which is fairly quiet), and I can tell that the R/T cat is there. a slight tone change.

if you are buying those rims and that combination of bodykits, your car will not be a sleeper. people will mess with you. It won't be absurdly "awake," either.
the X intake will make you good power, but it will be LOUD. I've never driven with X's intake, but I have driven with a K&N SRI. cabin noise is increased at least three times when vtec kicks in. X's intake might not be this loud because it is constructed of plastic, which doesn't resonate as well as metal, but I could be wrong. Someone who is driving with X's intake and has driven with a SRI (like X himself) would have to chime in, here.

finally, the throttle body and spacer is not a hard to do mod at all. in the DIY section, there is at least one excellent Do-it-yourself that will walk you through it, step by step.

I live on Oahu. About your Medallion Touring / R/T CAT combo, how does it sound compared with stock? Is it more aggressive? I was thinking of doing the same thing, maybe the Concept-G instead of the Medallion Touring - do they sound different or is the only difference the look of the muffler and tip?

 

[StealthRacer808]

Oh yeah, another thing. Besides the not-in-existence-for-our-cars-yet Comptech and the way overpriced Mugen, are there any other Iceboxes available? They are the quietest of the 3 (CAI, SRI, Icebox) right? Should I even buy an icebox (I don't want a CAI - we just got 14" of rain today and that happens couple times a year...don't wanna worry bout it; SRI is too loud and I don't want to lose any midrange power) since the stock intake is kind of an icebox as it is?

Also, are there any specific throttle body spacer and gasket brands that I should be aware of? As in good ones? Thanks

 

[ErichPryde]

get a K&N drop in filter, the P2R throttle body spacer and 2 high temp gaskets. as for the Icebox, there isn't one yet. you can just hollow out your intake by breaking all of those fins in the airbox off, then sanding with a couple of grits of sandpaper. whatever you do, do NOT remove the guidance fins around the MAF.

 

[ErichPryde]

I live on Oahu. About your Medallion Touring / R/T CAT combo, how does it sound compared with stock? Is it more aggressive? I was thinking of doing the same thing, maybe the Concept-G instead of the Medallion Touring - do they sound different or is the only difference the look of the muffler and tip?

I think the concept-g is going to be slightly more aggressive than the medallion touring. mine is fairly quiet- it just has a nice, deep tone that is only slightly louder than the stock exhaust.

I just went to tanabe's website (here) and listened to the concept g- it does sound more aggressive. the only problem is that it's just an axleback.

 

[iomatic]

When I last lived on Oahu, the last thing I wanted to do was drive there; man that sucked. My advice: save the $5K and move to the mainland.

Seriously, some great N/A power could be had with spacers, exhaust, header; or just keep saving and drop a CompTech in; I'm sure you'd be pretty much the only one with a supercharged modern Civic in the islands.

 

[ErichPryde]

When I last lived on Oahu, the last thing I wanted to do was drive there; man that sucked. My advice: save the $5K and move to the mainland.

Seriously, some great N/A power could be had with spacers, exhaust, header; or just keep saving and drop a CompTech in; I'm sure you'd be pretty much the only one with a supercharged modern Civic in the islands.

I went to Maui a couple of weeks ago, and driving there sucked, too. there's no point in having a fast car on a tiny little island....

it was actually kinda funny to be there- what looked cool on Maui was different than what looked cool here. I saw one fg2 (nighthawk black) twice, but didn't see an Si other than that one.

if anyone on here lives in maui, get a picture of the black altima with gigantic supershiny chrome wheels for me. I saw it in Lahaina and up and down Highway 30 towards Maalaea.

back to topic:
your must have list should include:

throttle body spacer and gaskets (and if you think you can handle it, the IMG)
R/T cat + comptech header or race header
switching the transmission fluid to amsoil

the exhaust is optional. if you get one, get one for a sound you like and don't worry about power production too much.