Hey all. Im very new here and just starting out and I have a question. I barley got my 89 CRX HF and i have been having real problems finding any performance parts for it. i know its meant to have great gas mileage and if you modify the exhaust or anything it could decrease the gas mileage it gets. But im not worried about that. Im trying to find performance parts for it but am having real trouble finding them for the HF. Do they just not make them? Will parts for other models such as dx or si fit it? I will be posting pics later on. Im real excited. Any answers and information is greatly appreciated. Thank you all!

 

the hf is very similar to the other models other than the tranny. most the bolt ons like headers, exhausts, intakes should interchange, plus all of the suspension will work. your fighting an uphill battle with that tranny though. thats the biggest drawback to the hf chassis. the best part is its super stripped from the factory and very light.

another good thing is that the car is wired for multiport fuel injection and is easy to swap motors in and out unlike the dx/lx models that require wiring harness conversions/adapters (not that its hard, its just more money, etc). all d-series motors will bolt in relativly easily with proper mount combos, same with trannies as long as you stick with with a cable tranny.

theres lots of info documented, especially on this site. so familiarize yourself with the search function and do some reading

took me 11 years to get 100 posts here, lol...

 

Thanks man. I really appreciate it. Great info. sorry about the posting. im new and have yet to get familiar with the whole site. love it though. ill do some reading and get better. i plan to be a daily visitor here =D. another question. about the tranny, what are the drawbacks to it? just less power handling? lower quality? just wondering. pretty new in the honda game. im 17 going on 18 in a couple months, but im loving to learn more. thanks!

 

the drawback is the gearing of the hf tranny. its geared 100% for mpg's and nothing else. just putting a Si tranny in the same car will change the feel dramatically.

none of the 88-91 civic cars are really fast, but the gearing in the Si hatch/crx, EX sedan, and the RT4WD make them at least feel fast, lol.

 

Please place technical questions directly into the thread title whenever possible -- Title edited.

 

Hey thanks man. I know the guy we got it from put a new tranny in, now weather its the hf series or not I'm not sure. Also, he put a brand new factory replacement d15 in it. The granny and motor has less than 6000 miles on it. The body is in GREAT shape too.

 

first mods most people do are intake and exhaust which should be interchangeable i was going to say the first mod i did was swap in a b series but since you have a new motor scrap that idea but what are your plans for the car are really the questions you should be asking yourself cause i read an article in some magizine i dont remember where but it says if you plan on tracking the car or autocrossing the first couple of things you should do is get grippy tires to hold the car on the road and a racing seat so you feel more confident attacking the corners i know PWJDM makes parts for the hf cause ive gottten parts from them before they are alittle pricey but i feel for some items they are worth the cost

 

Ignore most of his above comment.

Step one: get your car back up to 100% reliability mode - like OEM stock
Step two: figure out what your goals for the car are... Speed reliability fuel efficient? You can only choose one w/ reliability included on either choice haha.
Step three: fuel efficiency? You've already got the best platform, HF's are awesome for mpg. Speed? Swap time - easiest/cheapest is sohc non vtec zc. B series is next easiest but more costly due to the performance increase over the d-series.
Step four: with your goals in mind go and explore your suspension set up possibilities
--coil overs for track cars
--springs/struts(shocks) for dailys due to price (much cheaper vs quality coil overs)
Step five: interior/exterior.

Best order IMO. Sticky this **** lol

 

wow. thank you guys. thats really helpful. i actually never thought to just start out slow. restoring to oem condition is a great idea. ill take it little by little. what i would really like to do is make it into a track car. but it will be my daily driver for a little while. for now anyways. any tips to restoring? just some basics but also the majors? also some tips for a guy just starting out. its my first honda. and id really like to get in to it. loving this site already. thanks all!!

 

Go slow with the build and keep in mind for those who wait. For example I wanted a b16a swap for my Del Sol. Waited for the price I wanted to pay. Ended up finding a ef with a ys1 tranny b16 swap for $400. Sold the car parts, made $600 and keep the swap + LS meshies and a MOMO steering wheel.

My suggestion on picking performance swaps. If buying used check guys/girls off this site. Its in there best interest to be honest rather than randoms in craigslist.

When working on the car and your stuck on something. Work on something else while your figuring it out. If you stay on that one problem it will slow down the process of your build.

 

Basically if you want performance, you want to swap. If I had to do it again, I would look for a cheap B18 or B16 swap/car. Then the sky is the limit. Suspension/wheels/tires would be next on my list.

 

Have you tried Rock auto

 

i just looked there. its got a lot of the oem parts. which is also great. not really any performance parts. but thanks. looks like a lot of oem things that will come in handy. thanks man.

 

I'd actually like to get it in 100% working order before performance mods. Interior and exterior etc. I think that would be best. I really need to start with the suspension. It hasn't been lowered but when I get in the right rear wheel comes very close to the fender. I believe its hit somewhat when I go over bumps. Is there a way I can fix that. New springs? I'd like to invest in some lowering springs. But I'm wondering if the lowering springs will make it worse or if they will be stiffer and newer than the springs now and still look nice.