Been searching for a while and can't find a good answer. What is the best bang for the buck on these cars?
I'm looking to pick up a 97 ex coupe auto for a dd. Just looking to give it a little more pep and get good gas mileage. I want to keep it quiet as well.
I was thinking to start off.
Header (not sure what brand and weather to keep the cat or not)
Stock Si muffler
Bigger mid pipe. What is common on these cars 2.25"?
Stock air box with k&n drop in.
I'm just looking for bolt on stuff for now, not going to bother with an safc or vafc (just yet)
I'm a big noob with these cars and these motors. All i know anything about is the 4g63 dsm. So please be nice

Some if someone can give me a good starting point or good direction to go I'll run with it.

 

You're best off leaving it stock. The '92-'00 civic auto trans's were a joke, they don't handle power well (they break easy under power) and there's a lot of drivetrain loss, so it's very hard to make power on an automatic transmission.

Also, do to their low displacement, they do NOT respond well to bolt-ons.

If you want to start getting power out of it, start with less drivetrain loss by swapping in a manual transmission. Though other than that, there is no best bang for your buck - they're not performance cars without $$. Obviously, like with any car, nitrous is your best bang for your buck, but the auto trans has trouble handling that much power, not to mention it's not continuous power.

There's no real difference between this and ur eclipse - they don't make a lot of power via bolt-ons, and since breathing room increments (which is why you use a bigger header, intake, and exhaust) has a direct correlation with displacement, the civic's 1.6L motor only responds ~80% as well as an eclipse's 2.0 for bolt-ons.

So obviously you know the best platform for an eclipse is to boost - hence upgrading the GS-T. Same with civics. If you want more pep, boost. Yeah you can throw intake/header/exhaust on it, maybe a cam and tune it, but even with all of that you'll be up over 1k and you won't even have 10more HP at the wheels. Plus since you're running an auto trans there's even more drivetrain loss.

I would just leave it stock, or swap a manual in there.

You can throw on basic bolt-ons (I/H/E), but that'll only give you noise, no real power, maybe like 5whp tops.

EDIT:
PS: You're not going to increase breathing room with a bigger exhaust and keep it quiet at the same time, if you get a very quiet muffler on a wide exhaust, it'll just muffle the sound and your power. You gotta pay to play.

 

Ha, well that sucks. My eclipse gets me in enough trouble for being loud and fast, kinda why I wanted something quiet.
I didn't know the autos were that lame. The dsm is stick and I enjoy it very much, but I'm looking at long term here, and auto is nice for daily driving, then I can do a remote start in the winter time and let the wife drive it.
I have a remote start on the dsm and it walked on me once in a empty parking lot, after that I disconnected it and said never again.
So at what point power wise does the auto tranny start to break? The car I'm looking at has 166k miles on it already.
Also, FYI, I have a zex dry nitrous kit in my garage just taking up space. lol

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Syndacate &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">You're best off leaving it stock. The '92-'00 civic auto trans's were a joke, they don't handle power well (they break easy under power) and there's a lot of drivetrain loss, so it's very hard to make power on an automatic transmission.

Also, do to their low displacement, they do NOT respond well to bolt-ons.

If you want to start getting power out of it, start with less drivetrain loss by swapping in a manual transmission. Though other than that, there is no best bang for your buck - they're not performance cars without $$. Obviously, like with any car, nitrous is your best bang for your buck, but the auto trans has trouble handling that much power, not to mention it's not continuous power.

There's no real difference between this and ur eclipse - they don't make a lot of power via bolt-ons, and since breathing room increments (which is why you use a bigger header, intake, and exhaust) has a direct correlation with displacement, the civic's 1.6L motor only responds ~80% as well as an eclipse's 2.0 for bolt-ons.

So obviously you know the best platform for an eclipse is to boost - hence upgrading the GS-T. Same with civics. If you want more pep, boost. Yeah you can throw intake/header/exhaust on it, maybe a cam and tune it, but even with all of that you'll be up over 1k and you won't even have 10more HP at the wheels. Plus since you're running an auto trans there's even more drivetrain loss.

I would just leave it stock, or swap a manual in there.

You can throw on basic bolt-ons (I/H/E), but that'll only give you noise, no real power, maybe like 5whp tops.

EDIT:
PS: You're not going to increase breathing room with a bigger exhaust and keep it quiet at the same time, if you get a very quiet muffler on a wide exhaust, it'll just muffle the sound and your power. You gotta pay to play.</TD></TR></TABLE>

I'm so GLAD I did my auto to manual swap last year. Lovin every bit of it (except for at first when you're learning to fully drive a stick shift.) My auto was a joke. Not only is the gearing shorter (especially with a SI/EX tranny) on the manual tranny, you have direct power transfer, AND the manual tranny is lighter than the auto as well. No torque converter there to soak/steal power.

Also, I still was able to keep my remote start after converting from auto to manual. Only thing is, I don't have a clutch saftey switch.

 

Are there any ecu's that would be a direct swap for more power? I've heard of honda guys swaping ecus from car to car.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by 1sick4g63 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Are there any ecu's that would be a direct swap for more power? I've heard of honda guys swaping ecus from car to car.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Not any factory ones for SingleCams.

Best bang for your buck IMHO is a boosted singlecam. If you plan a budget and are patient with finding parts, you can safely boost your car for under or around 1000$

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by 1sick4g63 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Ha, well that sucks. My eclipse gets me in enough trouble for being loud and fast, kinda why I wanted something quiet.
I didn't know the autos were that lame. The dsm is stick and I enjoy it very much, but I'm looking at long term here, and auto is nice for daily driving, then I can do a remote start in the winter time and let the wife drive it.
I have a remote start on the dsm and it walked on me once in a empty parking lot, after that I disconnected it and said never again.
So at what point power wise does the auto tranny start to break? The car I'm looking at has 166k miles on it already.
Also, FYI, I have a zex dry nitrous kit in my garage just taking up space. lol</TD></TR></TABLE>

Yeah, this girl I know has a '97 LX, auto. I drive it whenever we go some place - It's fine for daily driving, around Henrietta anyways, which is on the outsides of Rochester, so it's cluttered w/ traffic 'n all, but no major freeway traffic or anything. I appreciated it more than any of my cars (all manuals).

Her car has like 200k on if I'm not mistaken. They don't usually break, it's not that I'm saying they're unreliable, but if you try to feed them power they become very unreliable, very fast. Like if you were to say...put that dry kit on it, then it would become very unreliable, very fast. Though as it is in stock form it's perfectly 100% reliable. They just don't handle more power well, not to mention they have a pretty big drive-train loss in terms of tq.

[quote=I'm so GLAD I did my auto to manual swap last year. Lovin every bit of it (except for at first when you're learning to fully drive a stick shift.) My auto was a joke. Not only is the gearing shorter (especially with a SI/EX tranny) on the manual tranny, you have direct power transfer, AND the manual tranny is lighter than the auto as well. No torque converter there to soak/steal power.

Also, I still was able to keep my remote start after converting from auto to manual. Only thing is, I don't have a clutch saftey switch.[/quote]

Yeah, if you put it on a manual you have to jump the safety switch, which is usually frowned upon. Though cars never had it until like late 80's early 90's anyways, so doesn't really matter.

Autos come in handy just fine if you have a lot of traffic, I've been driving manuals all of my driving life (~7 years) and as much of the control aspect that I like, autos do have their place too. Heavy traffic will change your mind real [freak]ing fast. I have no intention of getting an auto, but when ur sitting for 3 hours in traffic roasting ur clutch, you tend to think very different, very fast.

Luckily I don't have that problem by me. Though saying that all autos suck and are unneeded and bad etc. etc. is a bad statement in itself.

 

ECUs are usually swapped for tuning ability, that's it. Normally for B series swaps and such.

Best mod for performance imo is to swap it to manual and do a junk yard turbo set up.

 

OOO So if I understand this correctly. Civic's were all SOHC, integra's and 99-00 civic Si were DOHC?

Can you just swap heads or is there wiring and other stuff involved?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by 97Ej6mike &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

Not any factory ones for SingleCams.

Best bang for your buck IMHO is a boosted singlecam. If you plan a budget and are patient with finding parts, you can safely boost your car for under or around 1000$</TD></TR></TABLE>

Not sure if you've ever put together your own turbo system before, but very very rarely does it come out to under 1000 - you have to live in CA or another place where parts are very common. Sounds like you been listening to too much of that homemadeturbo.com crap. It rarely is done right & comes out to under a grand, much like a swap rarely comes out to its original price when it's all said and done and in the car. Then tuning, don't forget about tuning, that's usually good for 2-400 bux if u want it done right.

Also, if he boosts his auto single cam, he'll most likely roast the transmission.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by 1sick4g63 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">OOO So if I understand this correctly. Civic's were all SOHC, integra's and 99-00 civic Si were DOHC?

Can you just swap heads or is there wiring and other stuff involved?</TD></TR></TABLE>

For the most part that's a good assumption, there's a few exceptions, like the del sol DOHC VTEC ('93-'97 I do believe?) which had a B16A3 (DOHC VTEC) in it.

It depends on which heads you're trying to swap. You can't swap DOHC onto a SOHC, but often you can swap a VTEC head onto a non-VTEC block, or a VTEC head that flows better onto a different VTEC block.

In general, D to D, B to B, H/F to F/H - you can swap a lot of parts, heads included.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Syndacate &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

Not sure if you've ever put together your own turbo system before, but very very rarely does it come out to under 1000 -

Also, if he boosts his auto single cam, he'll most likely roast the transmission.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Thats true bout the tranny.

As for the price of a build, i must be in that rare catagory, my current part collection is running me out at 540$, and all i need are a few more parts (already have the main ones, looking for small knick knacks). Im aiming for under 1000.

 

Best bang for the buck without sacrificing reliability of the drivetrain or a drastic decrease in MPG or cash in the bank while giving her a little pep? Drop in a K&N air filter and call it a day.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Syndacate &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

Yeah, this girl I know has a '97 LX, auto. I drive it whenever we go some place - It's fine for daily driving, around Henrietta anyways, which is on the outsides of Rochester, so it's cluttered w/ traffic 'n all, but no major freeway traffic or anything. I appreciated it more than any of my cars (all manuals).

Her car has like 200k on if I'm not mistaken. They don't usually break, it's not that I'm saying they're unreliable, but if you try to feed them power they become very unreliable, very fast. Like if you were to say...put that dry kit on it, then it would become very unreliable, very fast. Though as it is in stock form it's perfectly 100% reliable. They just don't handle more power well, not to mention they have a pretty big drive-train loss in terms of tq.

Yeah, if you put it on a manual you have to jump the safety switch, which is usually frowned upon. Though cars never had it until like late 80's early 90's anyways, so doesn't really matter.

Autos come in handy just fine if you have a lot of traffic, I've been driving manuals all of my driving life (~7 years) and as much of the control aspect that I like, autos do have their place too. Heavy traffic will change your mind real [freak]ing fast. I have no intention of getting an auto, but when ur sitting for 3 hours in traffic roasting ur clutch, you tend to think very different, very fast.

Luckily I don't have that problem by me. Though saying that all autos suck and are unneeded and bad etc. etc. is a bad statement in itself.</TD></TR></TABLE>

When I made the drive from FL to my hometown in Queens, NY, I still had my auto. Going through manhattan during that rush hour would have sucked with a stick.

I wouldn't count on the reliability of an auto tranny with any kind of boost but like The G2 Racer said, boost coupled with a manual tranny will make you very happy compared to what you have now. The autos have the thinnest clutch packs ever. Ever seen an open auto tranny compared to an open manual tranny? The difference in amount of moving parts on each tranny is HUGE. Ohh and I forgot to mention, 5-speed = a bit better gas mileage.

Honestly, if it were me, I'd leave it auto and stock just for the sakes of being able to either choose a auto or manual whenever you want (civic or eclipse.) I can't say I don't miss my auto sometimes (when in traffic) but the choice is up to you.

Edit : Ohh mahhh gad! Like 5 people posted as I was typing out this response. Now it looks like I just copied everyone's words.. AHH!

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by King V &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Best bang for the buck without sacrificing reliability of the drivetrain or a drastic decrease in MPG or cash in the bank while giving her a little pep? Drop in a K&N air filter and call it a day. </TD></TR></TABLE>



Whoa.. my post count just scared the hell out of me. That number follows me everywhere!

 

If you haven't bought it yet seriously look around for a manual, if you have bought it seriously think about swapping in a manual tranny. Honda automatics suck, i know, i used to have one. honda manuals shift so slick and have such nice clutches your grandmother could drive one. On the driving in traffic thing, personally i much prefer a standard in traffic. I hate that automatics creep when you take your foot off the brakes, I really can't say i've ever found it a chore to drive in traffic, i just don't really think about it all, i just drive.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by 94EG8 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">If you haven't bought it yet seriously look around for a manual, if you have bought it seriously think about swapping in a manual tranny. Honda automatics suck, i know, i used to have one. honda manuals shift so slick and have such nice clutches your grandmother could drive one. On the driving in traffic thing, personally i much prefer a standard in traffic. I hate that automatics creep when you take your foot off the brakes, I really can't say i've ever found it a chore to drive in traffic, i just don't really think about it all, i just drive.</TD></TR></TABLE>

HAHA good point. Which reminds me of the time my brake master cylinder on the civic was going bad. At a red light, no matter how far I mashed the brake pedal, the cylinder would start to lose pressure and my car would start creeping. Neutral was my only solution until I was able to replace my brake master cylinder later that week. Same EXACT crap happened to my Explorer as well.

Sorry for going off topic... Carry on

 

Doesn't look like it's going to happen. The dealer won't give you a loan because of the amount of miles on the car.