Hello everyone,

I am new to forums and to car modifications (not a gearhead) so if I am posting this thread in the wrong area, I apologize, but please bare with me for I am still wet behind the ears.. :dunno:

My Story/car history:
I recently came to own a 1996 Honda Accord Sedan, manual transmission 4-cylinder 2.2l vtec engine with 156k miles. It has an old, rusted CAI filter (that I need to replace) and duel exhaust tips that came with the car.

I have owned it for a little less than a month now and have already put a little work into it. I replaced front/back brake pads, both control arms, tie rod and attempted to fix the gauge cluster (it stopped counting miles the other day) so I know a LITTLE bit about the car and even less on what I am doing. But I have gotten my hands dirty and yes I like the feeling of fixing my own car, not to mention that it's cheaper too :thmsup:

So I like the whole DIY aspect, because it helps me learn more about my car and how it works, not to mention that it makes me be less dependent on mechanics that could tell me that I am in need for new exhaust system and 4 new tires because there is a unicorn in the muffler... (that was a joke)

But anyway, the whole reason for this thread is that I want to pick your guys' brains to see what you guys would recommend for me who has about $500 that I can put into my car now for upgrades/mods and where should I start.
I am thinking that I work from the bottom up, so suspension first? Is that a good place to start with modifications?

I don't want my car to have a loud roar when idling so I am trying to stay away from exhaust work.
I am more interested in a quiet sleeper if that makes sense....

This car is my only car as of now, so it's my project and every day car. I want this car to last me another 156-200k miles (if possible) but I would also like it to have some sort of performance upgrades for speed...

My goals:
- To 'build' a new CAI from scratch
- To eventually have a quiet sleeper car (natural aspiration) if that is even
possible I don't know if that defeats the purpose of a performance car


Sorry for making this an extremely long thread and being all over the place. I am just new to the world of performance mods...
Thank you guys in advance for all of your input and wisdom. :D

 

I'm trying to do the same thing, I don't run tracks so I'm not looking for a high performance car right now. Personally I think if your trying to keep it a "sleeper" then just work on the suspension, maybe you could change the intake just so the car breathes better. You don't need a new brake system other than stock if your not trying to speed around and you don't really need an exhaust if your not putting a whole bunch of hp into the engine the you need to release.

In the end though, it is inevitable to run from what will naturally come, your probably going to want to add this and that and maybe that just because.

 

Yeah, very true bullitz361 it's bound to happen soon or later with more upgrades.
I need to go to a local auto store and buy parts to replace my current CAI.

What have you done with your car?

 

Welcome aboard! Sounds like you are diving right into this thing head first.

Post up some pics of your car or this thread is useless!

As far as a sleeper N/A car, Yes, it is possible to have a performance car without a fart can loud exhaust. However, the sound of a nicely modified naturally aspirated engine will usually give it away. And the exhaust will usually be a bit on the loud side when you stomp on the gas.

 

Yeah I am ready to hit the ground running! lol

I am fine having loud noise when I stomp on the gas, it's expected. However, I would prefer not having that same loudness while in idle. You know what I mean?

And I will post some pictures up in a couple of hours.

 

Oh I know exactly what you mean. I like having more intake and engine noise coming from under the hood than I do exhaust noise at the rear bumper.

 

Yes! Exactly!
If I ever do exhaust work, it will more than likely be after I finish doing all that I can for under the hood.

 

Right now just scrapping the engine bay, took out headers, intake, thinking about getting rid of a/c. My plans are new manifold and header, exhaust. Swapping auto to manual. Still researching what manufacture I want to get the parts from.

 

bullitz361,

I might as well take out my a/c too, doesn't even work.
You have some busy work ahead of you, especially with the conversion. Have you ever done it before? switching auto to manual?

 

Welcome to HT! Personally, I would do basic routine maintenance to start off with then go from there. Nothing worse then spending money on mods only to find out there's oil leaks or deficient components. Good on ya for doing that work yourself, it's a rewarding feeling doing it yourself.

 

Thanks CD5B2! It definitely boosted my self-esteem doing the work myself.

In fact I will take it to get looked at soon and tell you guys what was found or not found.

 

This cannot be stressed enough. Make sure it's 100% up on maintenance before you start modding. These cars are pretty simple(mechanically) and you can spot pretty much most of what goes wrong with them without ever turning a wrench. The big ones that you'll have to look at are all under the timing covers(belt, tensioner, waterpump, etc). Start by getting everything as spotlessly clean as possible(after you've identified where the crud/schmutz buildup is), and keep an eye on where you noticed where you could have potential leaks/crap buildup.

 

Never did the conversion before but I have a few friends who have and I have a service manual. My thoughts are "how hard can it be", pretty much how I tackle anything because people have done it before so why can't i.
Obviously I do the proper research first.

 

Thanks Chrisnick.
I think that, that is what I am going to do. I am going to take the car to get it looked at if I can't find anything obvious. Maybe I can get some pictures of underneath the car.

bullitz361
I have the same mentality lol but I also add the "what's the worst that can happen" mentality as well hahah.

Hey... so um... How do I put pictures up? Is the only way through a link? or can I upload them from my computer?

 

I was planning on doing the same and making mine a stick instead for performance reasons and better control but im doing a k swap in the near future so im not going to bother as of right now but I wish you the best of luck if you can post plenty of pics of the transition id love to see them