alright, i got the 97 dx coupe. runs great without the ac on. when i turn the ac on, the performance is HORRIBLE. is the ac supposed to reduce that much power? all the gears lag pretty bad and after a few minutes of driving, it makes a weird noise (kinda like your driving over a puddle) until u shut the ac off, then its normal. another question, but this time its about the manifold. would i be better off keeping the y7 manifold or should i go ahead and go with the y8? keeping in mind this is a daly driver and am looking for better gas mileage (drive 30 miles to work and 30 miles back home everyday). thanks for the help.

 

your ac... dont worry about it. every stock civic i've ever driven does that.
and if you're talking about the intake manifold, go ahead and swap it if you want. it'll flow better and give you a bit more power.

 

would it help with anything economical wise or would it stay the same, switching out the intake manifolds?

 

nah, gas mileage should not decrease. easiest things you can do on the intake side or a y8 manifold, a b-series throttle body, and an intake. When I put an intake on my car, my gas mileage actually improved. And yes, with the ac on your car will be slow(er).