Hello brothers and sisters.

I am usually not the one to own any type of Acura, Honda, etc.

My main focus has always been on BMW's, and well, once I'm back from my deployment in Afghanistan that will continue.

I was recently in a car accident where a man ran a red light and T-boned my BMW M3 that I put a lot of money into. The military gave me 3 months leave and now I am home and I bought a cheap nice GS-R to get me around til I leave again.

It is a 1999 GS-R 3DR, 5 Speed, Eibach springs, and 2002 Si alloys are on here. Everything else is pretty much stock(Minus the crappy spectre intake I am getting rid of ASAP!). Love that it has leather seats.

It's not BMW, but my buddy in the Corps has one and he loves it, so I decided to give Acura a shot.

Only problems I have with it is the intake, I'm not a K&N fan, I love stock, it seems to work better and last longer and gives you less problems.

So here is my list of questions.

A. Where can I possibly find a website that has performance parts and well, possibly all parts for this car? I saw the OEM links but is there more options? Maybe better deals?

B. What are the major maintenance issues that I should look out for?

C. Whats a good way to make this car have more HP with all natural motor?

This morning I went to start it up, it was sparking up but wouldn't fully start.
I started messing with spark plug wires and it started right up so I'm changing those today.

What I need to know is what other components start this car, sorry I am so used to BMW's, Acura's look even more confusing!

Engine has 113k on it.

Thanks guys, Oorah.

 

Welcome to the Acura community, looks like you have a lot to learn. The GS-R can be a very reliable car if well taken care of. I had a 94 GS-R from 98' to 00' then replaced it with the 96 GS-R that I've had since 2000. So I do have a lot of experience with integras, having driven them for 14 years now. MY 96 now has 210,000 miles on it and is still going strong.

First off, regular maintainence is always a must. Some of the weak spots to keep an eye on are the radiator (plastic tanks), and the clutch (oem does not like hard shifts). I would wait till they fail to replace with an upgraded version. I really like the full aluminum PWR radiator I have. It has thicker walls that other aluminum radiators and was cheaper than OEM and most other aluminum radiators.

As for getting more NA hp, well, depends on a couple off things. These motors yield small gains for lots of money. You could spend like $5K on the nicest bolt-ons and maybe gain about 20hp. I would say to be realistic about your goals. If you want a little more sound and cosmetic upgrades then you could get some bolt-ons, but don't expect to get any really big hp gains going NA without spending a lot of $ and sacraficing comfort.

A good place for OEM parts is Acuraoemparts.com or Rockauto.com for some quality aftermarket parts for cheap. Theres lots of other aftermarket sites to go to depending on what part your looking for.

After owning a GS-R for over a decade, I would say that its a great car the way it was designed. Enjoy it the way it is and maybe put a little more $ in upgrades as parts wear out, unless you plan to go big like a full car build.

Good luck with the car and welcome.
You'll learn a lot just reading here.

 

Sukebei Oni - I appreciate all the info! I don't really want it to be a 300HP Acura. I love it stock, it gets you from point A to point B and it's fast enough to have some fun.

I know I will be asking you further questions in the future with your knowledge(If you ever buy a BMW and have issues, I'll return the favor haha).

I have the funds to literally do anything I want to this car, but it's a temp so I want to keep the budget around 1500 in performance costs.

Friends said with that much money I could turbo the thing properly, but that's kind of a last resort if I'm bored.

I really just want it to run perfectly, sound amazing and ride like a charm.


My Goals for this car-

I want the engine to look immaculate. I paint my own cars and do my own painting on most things.

I cannot find a chrome valve cover that says GS-R or anything that I've seen on some cars before, maybe there is a website that sells these things?

I don't know if it's burning oil or not, I do not know how to check it on these cars, any info on that would be cool.

Pretty much replace the old with new, replace the clutch master cylinder and the clutch(I forgot the other part of it, on the tip of my tongue but forgot) in due time.
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Few more questions I'm thinking on.

Should I flush the tranny fluid out and replace it? just for my own satisfaction?

I did change the antifreeze-coolant reservoir, is it necessary to get a new radiator or is that a personal preference? If it is necessary I will order one right now.

Also, on the first start up of the day it squeaks by the belts and pulleys. Have you had any similar symptoms? I cannot figure which pulley or belt is making the noise.

 

If your looking for performance stuff you could try the marketplace. Lot of vendors there.
Flushing the trans is easy to do and probably a good idea if you dont know when it was done before.
Radiator should be fine and squeaking belts are normal. If they bother you hit'em with some belt conditioner.

 

squeaking belts can also mean its loose. and for radiator i wouldn't bother. if you are looking for one i have a mishimoto rad. i used for about a week. also i loved it with i put itr cams in my car made a night and day differencevand thatscwithout a tune with stock bolt on. if you do plan on upgrading engine performance stuff, do you plan on doing the work or paying a shop? cause if you pay a shop it will cost alot.also i would not suggest going turbo with a 1500 bidget. and the car is only abtemp car. at most do good headers intake and itr cams with a nice exhaust system and tune

 

Thanks man. It's only on the very first morning start up is when it squeaks. I just bought new belts.

And yes I will flush the tranny.


I can do it all myself typically. I just might have to hop on here a few times to see if I'm doing it right.

But what headers would go good with a b18c1?

And yes, I need to get the exhaust done, it's all stock but I kind of want it more rough sounding, little bit more growl.

 

you just had to throw that last oorah in there didnt you?

 

just a simple tri- y header will do . i like the look of a rmf narrow header. im sure both will be good . but then again i have not done any research on them since im boosted. but make sure you dont get a knock off one .and for the tri-y i believe theres a big tube small tube one big tube will be better for you.and for the exhaust you can just go to a exhaust shop . or if you want something legit you will probbly like the greddy sp2 or apexi ws2 . you can look in youtube to see if you will like the sound.

 

Oorah, yes I did.

 

Well, first thing you're going to realize coming from the BMW world to the Honda town is going to be the price difference. In your case, it will be a pleasant surprise.

As far as maintenance issues that you were wondering about, I would replace the timing belt, water pump, and tensioner unless you have documentation that is has been done recently (not just previous owner's word, saying, "yeah man, the belt's good" kinda thing). At least by doing that, you'll have peace of mind knowing it was done and when. If you didn't know, these engines are "interference engines" which means that if the timing belt breaks, the valves can be stuck in the open position and get mashed up by the pistons that keep going, resulting in big problems.


I agree on the stock radiators being ****, every Honda I have owned, I have replaced the radiator in due to crappy plastic to metal seals failing. I like Mishimoto as well.

Hopefully you enjoy it even though "it's no BMW", but they're definitely not bad little cars and have a huge following which leads to tons of parts being available for them. OEM parts from many different Hondas/Acuras will bolt right onto it.

 

yup you can also change the cams when you do your water pump and timing belt f you decide to go that route.and for the radiator minesvleak to thats why i gotva new ont . but now im getting a bigger turbo kit so thats why im getting a smaller radiator

 

Welcome to the honda world. Let me give you a bit of friendly advice...

-There are a lot of people that are very knowledgeable and even more that think they are knowledgeable, do yourself a favor and try to cross-reference what ever people tell you. It will pay off in the long run.

-You will come to find that your acura is much easier to work on than your bmw was. One reason why I love hondas is they are so simple a teenage girl could probably work on one with a little instruction.

-I would not dump a ton of money into trying to make more power. Look at it this way, hondas were not made for straight line speed, they were made to corner. You will get a lot farther and have a lot more fun with it if you put money into getting it to handle. You can go as fast as you want, but if you can't stop and turn then all that power is worthless unless your drag racing. This is just my opinion after having been around these cars for 12 years and having built a crx racecar. Getting 30mpg will also be nice when gas gets really high again if you do any amount of driving.

-If you ignore everything else I've said just pay attention to this...USE OEM HONDA PARTS WHEN EVER POSSIBLE. Reason being is that honda has to warranty all their parts and 95% of the time an oem honda part is going to be of superior quality to any thing else you could buy.

 

Very well said!

 

For a good engine sound with some HP gains the typical AEM cold air would work. The cold air gives a deeper growl, but the short ram will be a little louder at peak RPM. I've owned both on both the stock motor and modified. Don't get the bypass filter on the AEM cold air though. If you want more sound, then I would get an muffler next. Yes a good header and full catback system would be nice, but ask yourself what you want from it. If your looking for HP, not going to really gain much. People like to get excited about their 10-15hp gain from full raced out headers test pipe and catback systems, but it would be a very slight difference in actual speed. Talking 1/10s of a second. Just a good muffler will get you a nice sound your looking for and maybe a slight gain in HP. Save the money on a header and put it toward other things.
If I had $1500 to put into a used teg I would put it towards the maintainance of the car first, then put a good set of tires on it. A set of really sticky tires will make your car faster than any intake and exhaust.
For GSR's, bolt-on are more of a cosmetic change rather than performance change.
Don't get me wrong, if you continue to add mods to the engine they do add up. But it aint cheap to do it right.

 

USMC what kind of BMW did you have? also where are you stationed?

 

M3, apparently

 

AHH thank you, I missed that

 

Sorry to hear about your BMW. GSR was a great choice!

 

If you need to check your oil there should be a dip stick coming out of your headers.

 

Too funny that you said Acura is MORE complicated then your BMW. You'll quickly see how not true that statement is.

Post pics Of your RIDE!

 

 

apexi ws2 catback exhaust on your gsr will make you happy.
I'd skip oem intake box, pick up an AEM SRI or cold ram.

Right in front of your engine is a orange circle ring, thats the oil dip stick. Leave your car on a flat surface for 10+ minutes and check the oil level. Lower dot is 1 quart low, top dot is perfect. Best is to check after an hour, that's more than enough time for the oil to drain to the pan to get a good measure of how much oil is in the engine. 4 quarts is typically required for an oil change.

 

leave the car stock. it will be easier to sell when you want to get off of it and less cash. there are more buyers for stock gsr's than their are for those with bolt ons.

as for the air intake. you can usually find them on craigslist or a wrecking yard. the whole box assembly is expensive from acura. filter wise? the K&N flow a bit better but if you want OE style paper that's fine too.

drive the car and if you have to do anything replace the shocks, springs and brake pads. hp is just too expensive for the minimal gains you get with that car. if you really wanted power you change out the engine or boost it. it literally costs about 2k for 10-15hp with a stock gsr engine. as for shocks the koni str.t is the best value shock and the koni sports the best mid priced shock. spring wise the tein h tech is a direct copy of the type r spring with 15% more rate. ground control coilovers are also popular if you want adj ride height and spring rate. as for pads the hawk hp+ stops well if you don't mind dust. the axxis ult is probably the best street pad i've ever used but PBR discontinued them in the states. that means you're left with hawk and carbotech and the hawks are a better value. almost forgot, do a tune up. a new oem pcv valve, cap, rotor, fuel filter and NGK spark plugs and spark plug wires. your engine uses a heat range 6 plug in NGK and the wires are specific to the type r / gsr. usually 50 bucks online or there about

also keep an eye on the oil level. burning a quart every 1500 miles is fairly common

 

Megan racing catbacks sound nice and are decently priced and there headers are nice as well, itr or ctr cams make a difference on your top end power... Hondata s300 is a good upgrade for your p72 ecu and with that you can get a dyno tune.. Tune and chip will run about 1000.00 but would be the best upgrade you could get after the few bolt ons

 

I have a Megan catback and am happy with it. I like that it has a silencer for when I go on long trips or when I'm tired of driving a loud car. With the silencer in the exhaust is not much louder than a stock exhaust. Without the silencer the exhaust is louder than the Greddy SP I had. It also has a nice back fire pop sound sometimes when I let off the gas.

As for spending 1K on a for a tune and chip to get you maybe 5HP depending on the bolt-ons you have, I would have to pass, especially if you don't plan to keep the car. I'd instead suggest putting 1K into some wheels that would really change the look of the car plus a set of really sticky tires. Sticky tires is one of the best upgrades for the money. Think about it, bolt-ons give you power for acceleration, suspension upgrades help you turn faster, and brake upgrades help you stop faster, but tires can improve acceleration, handling, and stopping.