Worthy Upgrades
 

So, we have a lot of people on here with plenty of knowledge of not only 7th gens. but cars in general. I have been on this forum for a while (eventhough I don't post much) and I always read people saying "don't do i,h,e" (intake, header, exhaust for you newbs out there). So I was just curious: what, in everyones opinion, upgrades to our 7th gens are well worth the money and make the car that much more fun?

P.S. Please do not post turbo or swap, we all know those are worthy, but expensive upgrades

Depends on what you like, I've allways found that cornering was alot more fun then accelerating... SO I've pretty much spent my time fine tuning the suspension and running open track days/autocrosses. but if you like drag racing, 99% of what I've done with the car would be worthless, and some of it dangerous. :shrug:

Everyone's gonna say suspension mods. Coilovers, upgraded sway bars, front upper strut bar, x-brace, tie bar, some lightweight 15x7 or 16x7 inch rims. Other than that turbo or swap.

I/H/E isnt a bad idea for starters..... perhaps not the most cost effective.... Honda D-series engines wont make much power without some serious financial investment.

the fun per $$ quotient with suspension modding is MUCH higher than engine modding. The civic is a piss poor drag platform, so power mods are pretty much $$ wasted. The guy with the cybernation K20a2 on here was pretty badass, but I'd hate to have that much HP to the front wheels in a daily driver.

If i had to do it all over again id do this Suspension => I.C.E. => Rims => & Headers to axle-back (Complete Exhaust, custom that is) and when u have the money just get a turbo swap the header for manifold and bolt up ur turbo.

here is the way im doing it

repairing the car after accidents :_doh:
Finally a suspension upgrade (tokico D-specs w/ H&R springs)
Exterior upgrade (fog lights, new bumpers, headlights and emblems)
99 si wheels (hopefully if vandejr93 actually sent them otherwise im gonna have to go medevil on his ass)
next is probably ICE
than engine swap

hmmmmm...well in my case, I'm planning on having my car for a very long time. I'm taking my time to do upgrades and i started simple because everyone was once a so called "noob" I replaced my bulbs with some nice cold blue bulbs, then cleared my headlghts, then i did my intake, then exhaust, an exterior mod which is a flush mount spoiler and next i'm gonna work on getting rid of as much body role as i could, and slap on some sweet rims before summer. taxes anyone...right around the corner...anyone..???

i find that the only upgrades i enjoy the most are suspension ones. my car is sooo slow lol

ICE is always worthwhile unless ur not a music fan. I love music, thats one of the biggest parts of my day is to decide what to listen to.

suspension mods make driving a LOT more fun. exterior mods are nice if you want it to look better.. if you take long trips maybe replace the seats. or even if you just want the feel of aftermarket seats (or RSX)

IHE is nice if you want sound.

you could always try the small performance mods.. cams, clutch/flywheel, etc.

eventually I still want to get an intake, oem lip kit, and upgrade my ice.

Expense lowest to highest that are worth it.
1) rsx-s rear sway
2) neuspeed upper strut bar
3) Front or rear speakers
4) Short Shift adap
5) Springs (should really only buy with #10)
6) Window Tint
7) Head unit
8) X-brace
9) Subs and amp
10) Struts/shocks(only if you have #5 )
11) RSX Leather
12) Nitrous
13) Coil Overs
14) In dash DVD player
15) Turbo
16) Swap

I am no pro but in general those are all worth having

well from what ive read everyone has different plans and things they did/ are going to do ..

what ive done to the car

1. Cd Player
2. Short Ram
3. Subs & Amp
4. Short Shift Adapter
5. Elegante By TYC Black Projectors( ignore the sig.. lol those were some chrome ones i bought on ebay for 40 bucks and took em off and now i got the black ones and i love the black ones )

thats all thats done right now..

plans i wanna do and will do

1. K20A or A2 Swap
2. suspension
3. primer , fix dents, repaint
4. more involved motor work ( cams, cam gears, pistons )
5. Turbo
6. maybe a kit or just leave it sleepered out..

most worthy would be suspension just for the handling.

if you like music, go ice. i think civics are pretty nice for show cars.

I never had the idea of drag racing, or even autocrossing. Just making my manual ex more responsive, more fun. I wanted to be able to climb the Grapevine in fifth gear - no downshifting. I put on an AEM V2 intake, DC Sports 4-1 header, Neuspeed front upper strut brace, rerouted the coolant line to the intake manifold, (this cancels out intake preheating), put in denso irridium plugs, and put an insulating wrap over the intake. I also changed from dyno oil to synthetic, and got wider tires on the original rims. I just ordered AEM pulleys. My car is definitely more fun than it used to be, and I can go up the Grapevine in 5th gear. Also it sounds sooo good when you rev it. V2 has a unique and excellent sound. The intake and header have been on for a year, and I'm very happy with them. Also the wider tires made a very noticeable difference in handling and comfort. I'm thinking about Eibach Pro springs to lower it just a bit. No plans for exhaust because exs already have a decent one, and I won't spend $500 to gain less than 2 horsepower.

Dadawads

Just installed AEM pulleys. It took me longer than I would have thought, but I like the results. Smoother, quieter, a bit more pull and better throttle action. I expect slightly better mileage along with the 3 scavenged horsies. Here's a tip... an electric impact driver from Kragen for $22 worked great in taking the nut off the alternator. For a good comparison to other mods, remember that a header adds only about 3 hp (if you're lucky), so this mod should not be sneezed at. Be careful that you don't make the belts too tight...it causes premature failure of the components.

Update: I just installed the AEM pulleys, one for the power steering, the other for the alternator. Excellent mod. More power per dollar than almost any other mod; $150 including shipping for about 3 Whp.

Dadawads

and if you got a cam for 300 bucks it would net you 15hp.

^^ you forgot about tuning and installation

provided you did it yourself. yea i should have made that clear

Its been proven that the pulley for the alternator ruins your alternator. So i would consider taking that one off. Just ask gearbox, he'll tell ya his experience.