E V Roller

Pretty much a re-hash of a post i made in the introductions section, but it sets the scene i guess...

Been a 7th gen hatch owner for about 3 years, not a cool kid 3 door though, an old man 5 door (we all hate practicality, so uncool right?)

The tow hook and sticker mod crew in the UK despise the 5 door, but that is fine by me. Most of the UK 7th gen Civics apart from the Type R run D16 motors, but mine came with a K20A3 so it has a little more go, and potential for upgrades

Pics, first Civic:
















Wanted to upgrade this car, but unfortunately it came with a DBW throttle and VSA setup very like the CL9.
After trying to find ways of getting mappable engine management without compromising the cars features i basically gave up, there was not a way to do it without pretty much changing everything.

The earlier models did not have the DBW system, but looked even more like crap than the facelifted version.
However, it turns out that during the revisions, a few face lift cars were built with the old running gear and so i got me one!

Old and new (which is older, wth?!)






Needed rid of those dinky 15" wheels, and being on a tight budget plumped for some cheapo Meister S1R reps:






































As you may know, our UK climate is prone to the odd shower of rain now and again

This in mind, i got an RSX wiper switch off US ebay and after messing with a 7th gen in the local scrap yard, found a way to get to the all important X connector to wire it in.

Did make a half assed guide too, seen as there don't seem to be many 7th gen specific guides about on the net.

E V Roller

Aaaanyway, got hold of some of these:


Similar to some Megan produced in the US i believe, a sort of midrange model.

After talking with a local shop about fitting them, i saved enough to pay for the "worst case scenario" quote they gave. Dropped them a message and got no reply, so with no previous experience, i bought some tools and fitted them myself (After all, the wiper switch worked, so why not?)

Was pretty full on, one lower strut bolt on the rear was freed pretty easily. The other was going nowhere.
Ended up sawing through the base of the strut by hand, and cutting the bolt and bush out in pieces (I'm a hand model in my spare time )





Got replacement bolts for both sides from Honda just to be sure, and copper greased the shid out of everything for good measure.

The only other thing was one of the front corners had been knocking for ages. A replacement strut had not helped, but it turned out that the top mount had given up completely.

Quick thinking saved it from ripping the CV boot by using a welding glove to cushion it from the bottom of the strut as it was removed under load

So yeah, as a first experience of upping tools it had its challenges, but given me loads of confidence, looking to do my own motor swap as soon as i can

How the car looked after:















Has since settled some, so sits a little lower now.
Fun to look at maybe, but the goal is handling, not looks, and track rods at crazy angles and bump steer does not help. So with the money saved i am going to wind it up and hope that 225/45 tyres will fit without arch mods (the wheels are 7.5 ET35 so it will be close)

Also used the new found skills to fit some front brake pads:



Right! That's that then. Cheers!

joey1320

Cool wagon.

Nice to know you decided to do the work yourself - learn how to work on your own cars and hardly ever pay someone else to do so.

Looking at the brake pads, did you apply any type of grease/silicone to the mounting tabs? If not, go back and do so so they move freely. Same thing to the back of the pads and the sliders.

E V Roller

Hey there man!

Many thanks, definitely a work in progress, but nice have done things myself so far.
These 5 door cars/wagons are largely disliked in the UK scene, but having a K in there to start is a big help for mods. They have a longer wheel base too, more like a CL9 than a Civic/RSX, harder to rotate maybe, but hopefully smooth cornering when it's set up nice!

Thanks also for the advice on the pads, they do have a thin coat of copper grease on the pad and piston shim plates and mount tabs, the old ones were welded together!

Caoboy

I have never seen this car before. I like it!

E V Roller

Cheers buddy!
I think they would have sold okay in the US. Good old Honda and their crazy marketing ideas!

StreetLethaleg6

interesting, the 5 door doesn't look so bad. Need to eventually swap out the k20a3 for a k20a. The k20a3 came in the base rsx model and civic si ep3 in the usa, painfully slow i can't imagine that motor in a heavier car. coming along nicely, keep up the good work

E V Roller

Thanks once again, it's much appreciated, you guys are too kind!

Plan is to get hold of a K24A3 which is like pre '06 US K24A2, but with a K20A2 style oil cooler thing built into the water pump.

May upgrade the oil pump for future proofing, and a pinned RBC VTC gear will have to be added.

Might also have to run with the original 5 speed and RBB intake mani to begin with, but will be using a 6 speed ECU for KPro, just to keep the potential there...

98civichb

iTrader: (1)

Looks great. I, too, have never seen this car before! Good luck

DC4KiD

iTrader: (4)

First time I've seen one of these, have always wondered what a 5 door version of the EP3 would look like and here it is! Reminds me of the VW Golfs

E V Roller

They did make LHD versions for Europe if anyone wanted to go as far as importing to the US, can imagine that being a hassle though.

A few folks get hold of the EV1 Type S here with a view to modifying, but most of the facelift versions (which IMO look way better) are VSA models and use drive by wire, which makes KPro a no go

It might be possible to use a dual ECU setup, but VSA and (unlike the EP3 Si) cruise are both ECU controlled. I would think it would be tough to get everything working properly between two control units.

Was lucky to stumble on the fact that a few of these cars were built in late '03 with a cable operated TB. A few other throwbacks from pre-facelift too, like 15" wheels, 4x100 hubs, and smaller 262mm brakes.

Sorry to go on anyway, thanks for the interest

bbarbulo

to me, any 5 door with fixed rear side glass is technically a 'wagon'. only real 5 door hatch (that we have in north america) is the VW Golf/Rabbit and Toyota Echo/Yaris. Everything else marketed as a 5 door 'hatch' is actually a wagon.

that said, nice lookin wagon

E V Roller

Haha! Thank you bud Wagon is waaaay cooler IMO anyway
Like the definition too

Passed the MOT roadworthiness test for another year today, no advisory issues, just over 102K miles on the clock, but running fine overall

A new aux belt and a IACV cleanup would not be a bad idea, but happy over all.

Cheers guys

E V Roller

Found another pic:

ChadB

Very cool

E V Roller

Cheers Chad

SK8ER B0Y

I like it ! I knew about the 3door Type S over there (which is basically a USDM Si with the K20A3) but I didn't know they made a 5door version.

Good to see something different on here. Good luck !

E V Roller

Hey thanks bud May be a while until anything really big happens, but funds are tight

Odd as it seems, there is a lot of confusion between the Sport and Type S names over in the UK. The 3 door Sport only comes with a D16 motor, but it gets called a Type S a lot!
The only car with a K20A3 is the 5 door, many (rightly) think it should have come in the 3 door too like the Si. Insurance is very heavy on new drivers here though, so a 1.6 is much easier on the wallet to run than a 2.0.

Anyway, please don't think me a douche for pointing that out! Owners over here mix up the names all the time, which is not exactly helpful for peeps elsewhere trying to figure things out

SK8ER B0Y

I knew some of them had the K20A3, I just assumed the Sport had it too. Good to know!

E V Roller

Haha! Sorry to go all geeky on you there bud! It's an odd thing with the names, but there you go

Suffered a setback this morning

My dear old Dad drove my car for about 30 seconds while i was dropping my Daughter in school, and managed to curb one of the wheels beyond repair Poor old fella thought it would be curtains for him, but can't be mad after all he has done for me

So anyway, being forced to run the old ones in winter had killed the clear coat. Was going to strip and polish them, but ordered another full set, and a set of 225/45 Hankook Ventus to wrap them in.

Sigh. Bye bye money

bbarbulo

bah, it's just money. gotta have love for pops above all else

BTW, i got love for wagons too, here is mine

Bently_Coop

Interesting build.

E V Roller

QFT there Family comes first. Love the wagon btw buddy, that is a beast

Thanks man

Next plans are to get a Gruppe M rep intake, a cheapo 2.5" mid pipe and maybe a twinloop muffler.
Thinking of an OBX with a 3" inlet, and step it up from the 2.5 as a temporary measure.

Once the K24 is in, run to the tuner with a KPro base map and a get a 4-2-1 header fitted, and a dyno tune all in one session.

Hope eventually to fix up a custom 3" oval midpipe, ditch the 2.5 and get another mapping sesh.

The best laid plans etc... Just got to wait a little longer and keep saving.

Thanks for reading anyway

E V Roller

Circumstance forced my hand a little recently.
Stiffer suspension and our awful roads took their toll on the ancient stock exhaust which snapped just in front of the resonator

Booked in today for a custom stainless replacement, likely just be a 2.25" for the moment just to get back on the road. Need something easy to fit to the stock muffler as it is a tucked tip and can't run to the cost of a new muffler right now.

Have also begun to experiment with sanding and polishing on the damaged rim. Could not afford winter wheels, and road salt wrecked the clear coat despite good sealant and regular cleaning.

Need more practice to improve technique but you can see a definite contrast on the small section that i worked on:










Definitely saving for winters this year, and a full sand and polish should be easier with the wheels off the car.

E V Roller

Weeell not ideal, but they were about to fit a stock diameter mid pipe on the car when i burst in and asked for at least a 2.25"

Unfortunately they had not got much piping in stock, so ended up with 2" but not too disappointed, sounds better, no losses down low on the stock map, and it seems to breathe easier up top. It will do for now at least.