The_Honda_Guy

Hey guys, just finished doing the timing belt, water pump, coolant hoses, etc. etc. on the girlfriend's 97 DX MTX coupe. I'm looking to start gathering parts for the next big set of modifications. I know for sure that I'm going to replace the axle shaft seals and dipstick o-ring with OEM parts along with putting on my Gates Racing radiator hoses that came in late. Also, I'll be tying up a few ends from doing the timing belt and water pump (checking idle, ignition timing, etc. etc.). Now, here's what I'm looking at doing.

A while ago I looked around about different intakes. I had settled on the idea of just using a K&N drop in filter in the stock box. After a while I decided that the stock intake was kind of a bad setup. It's in the way of a lot of stuff and it's kinda ugly, not to mention it doesn't compliment the exhaust very nicely. I've decided that I would like to go aftermarket, but can't decide which intake to go with. I kinda like the K&N one since it's got the heatshield and comes in a nice plastic that won't heatsoak like metal will and it's got a great filter. I know for sure I want a short ram (cold air setups are pointless), so that's basically what I'm looking for. Suggestions?

After replacing the coolant hoses I did some more looking around at the engine bay. I decided that I wanted to replace the stock vacuum, emissions, and PCV valve hoses. Eventually they will wear out anyways and I'd like to do something with them. I was thinking of swapping them all to red silicone or rubber tubing. I know for sure this would work for those hoses since all they are are just rubber hoses from the factory. Who would sell rolls of red tubing and do they make them in different sizes?

eksedan98

I heard from a freind of mine that it really dosent matter what kind of intake tubing you have as long as the filter is good (AEM, K&N). i mean arent all tubes like aluminium if so just buy a ebay intake for 5 bux and swap the filter. just sayin correct me if im wrong.

The_Honda_Guy

I did some searching around and it looks like K&N doesn't make an intake for the 96-00 DX. The only other company I'd consider going with would be AEM since I've never liked Injen or those other companies. They do make a AEM short ram in blue, red, or polished for the car for around 130. I wish K&N make an intake for it, but doesn't work that way I guess. The only problem with buying the eBay intakes is that they generally use **** couplers and hardware and they're just built really cheaply. I was debating buying stuff from a hardware store and building one but it would most likely be very janky too.

z6hatchboy

some research somehwere showed that either a good drop in (k&n) or a cold air intake is the way to go. Short rams are not as near as effective.

The_Honda_Guy

Like I said, the stock DX intake is extremely ugly. That's the reason I want to swap it out. Also, the cold air intakes suck. I hate how they're setup and they don't work that effectively.

95jeremie

K&N drop in filter in the stock box
the stock box is cold air

and you can't use just any hose
they are vacume lines
as in a vacume
as in if the hose is not designed with that in mind it will crush
once crushed the vacume is lost

The_Honda_Guy

Holy ****, was that last post a poem?

fizik

LMAO

Just get an AEM one, they look great for the price and they're carb legal.

95jeremie

ha ha ha
ya i was wasted last night
regardless the point is the same
drop in filter and the correct hoses and you will be set

The_Honda_Guy

Well, at this point in time the only intake I've found for the 96-00 DX/LX that's worth a damn is the AEM short ram. I guess if I wanted to I could always swap the manifold, but that would be a point in futility. I can't imagine I'd gain any power without sacrificing gas mileage. I know for sure that I won't buy one of those eBay intakes because I've had friends that bought them and they extremely janky and the finish tends to fade fast on them, not to mention the hardware and couplers are quite cheap. I'd rather buy something quality that the company will stand behind. Now the only real question is what color to get.

As far as the hoses go I found out Gates Racing makes them and that they are multipurpose, but the problem is that they only come in blue from Gates. Also, I couldn't find the Gates hose anywhere. I decided to look on eBay to see what came up. I saw that OBX made some but it only came in 1 size and in a 10 foot roll. Also, I saw that Ractive made some too, but it was the same boat. I then found this auction:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Red-S...3A1|240%3A1318

It's from 3A Racing which isn't a super high quality thing but they are well known enough that I would trust buying silicone hose from them. Also, they include 3 sizes with 10 feet in two sizes and 6 foot in one which should be plenty for what I need and it's cheap too. I basically just wanted to get rid of the decaying OEM hoses and replace them with something bright and new. Also, for the connections that do require clamps I will be using Ideal screw-type hose clamps just like with my coolant hoses. They are very good quality for a good price and Ideal is the manufacturer of most hose clamps out there.

Now, moving on from there. I'm looking at picking up the magnetic drain plugs. It seems like Skunk 2 is the most popular brand to go with for these. I know Password JDM sells them for a decent price. Is there any other brands worth looking at?

The_Honda_Guy

Well, I'm going to go with the AEM polished short ram intake. Since I already have the valve cover, timing covers, and oil pan painted red and red vacuum/emissions hoses I didn't want to have more red. I figured the polished would be a nice compliment to the red. Also, I plan to pick up those 3A Racing vacuum hoses to finish off the intake.

I did some searching around about the magnetic drain plugs. It seems like the Spoon ones are super popular, but they're 50 dollars. A lot of people seem to like the ones you can pick up from the local parts stores but unfortunately they aren't as long as the Spoon ones. I'm leaning towards the magnetic ones from Password JDM since they're longer but are 30 dollars instead of the 50 dollar Spoon ones. Are there any other plugs worth looking at?

One last thing. I did some searching around about the reservoir covers. I saw Spoon, Mugen, and Password JDM ones. Are there any other places that sell these?

The_Honda_Guy

At this point I believe I'm going to go with the Password JDM magnetic drain plugs since they are a cheaper price as well as being the longer style magnets when compared with the local parts stores shorter styles. Even those they are slightly more expensive their quality far surpasses the parts store items. I can't imagine that the 50 dollar Spoon ones can be any better than the Password JDM ones. Are there any others I should look at?

As far as the reservoir covers go most likely I'll pick up the Password JDM ones. I really like their style and price and I actually do use Password JDM parts on the car whereas I have no Spoon or Mugen parts. Is there anywhere else that sells the covers?

The_Honda_Guy

Well, I decided that I'm going to go with the Password JDM magnetic drain plugs and the Password JDM reservoir covers. Their drain plugs look to be really high quality (I was extremely pleased with the oxygen sensor extensions) and the reservoir covers will match the car very well. I ordered the intake tonight, so hopefully that will be here soon. Most likely I'll order the covers and drain plugs tomorrow.

Another thing I'm currently looking into is cleaning out the A/C and heating system ducting and vents. I know that you can purchase sprays that will disinfect and clean out the system by spraying it into the fresh air duct by the cowl, so that's most likely what I'll do. I found a product made by BG called Frigi-Fresh that's supposed to work really well. I did have some stuff made by Mopar that seemed to work also, but it was like 40 dollars a bottle. Most likely I'll use the BG stuff. Anyone have anything else that works well?

The_Honda_Guy

Received the 3A Racing silicone hose kit and it was definitely worth the money. I can't believe how much hose you get for 20 bucks shipped. Most likely I'm going to have a shitload left over and will sell the leftover to a friend. I've only got a couple hoses left to replace and those are the purge valve and PCV valve hoses. The only downside to the kit is that they don't give you a big enough hose to replace the brake booster and the charcoal canister purge that comes out underneath the vehicle, but that's because those lines are 10mm+. Currently waiting for the intake to get here so I can install that and figure out what I'll need to run for lines for that. Also, I'm putting a list together for a few other things I need to clean up the engine bay some more. Not to much left and she should be done.