BauleyCivic

Okay little newbie, you've just purchased your first Honda Civic. You've obviously come on here looking for some help and direction on what modifications to perform. Well, i've wrote this little guide to help you figure out where you want to go first. There are three basic routes that you can take. Looks, handling, and speed. Many of the cars on HT are a combination of these three, but i'll break down each one for you.

I will go over some of the most common modifications that people perform on this site. I will also list a few websites where you can pick up these items, or a thread on Honda-Tech that goes over the basics. *Note, I am only going to go over the modifications that us HT'ers approve of. Body kits, stickers, 12" subs will NOT be on this list. Lets get to it!

<FONT SIZE="3">Looks-</FONT>
Alright, you've just got your civic and you wanna make it look really phat. Lets look at some of the more popular things that people tend to do to the exterior of their cars.

Headlights:
92-95 Civics - Replace stock corner lenses with either all clear or all amber corners ~$30

http://www.ebay.com

96-00 Civic - DIY or Purchase Black Housing Headlamps ~Free-$200

http://www.ebay.com
Good DIY black housing writeup: https://honda-tech.com/zerothread?id=396022

Tail lamps: Replace Red/Amber ones with Red/Clear ones (if applicable) ~$100

http://www.autodynamic.com
http://www.ebay.com

Rear spoiler (hatchbacks): Replace stock with carbon fiber duckbill ~$250

http://www.visracingsports.com
http://www.jdmshit.com
CF Duckbill Comparison: https://honda-tech.com/zerothread?id=773181

Hood: Replace with carbon fiber unit ~$400-$500

http://www.fiberimages.com
http://www.visracingsports.com
http://www.jdmshit.com
Carbon fiber hood comparison: https://honda-tech.com/zerothread?id=534161

Wheels: There are literally thousands of wheels available for one's car. Choose the wheel that YOU want. The most popular ones on Honda-Tech seem to be made by Rota. Rota makes inexpensive imitations of high end wheels from companies such as Mugen, Spoon and Gab. For their light weight, price, and look, Rota is extremely hard to beat. Here are some examples:

Rota slipstream:


Rota circuit 8:


Rota gt3:

http://www.machiii.net
http://www.modacar.com

Picture threads w/ many different wheels:
92-95 Civics: https://honda-tech.com/zerothread?id=594739
96-00 Civics: https://honda-tech.com/zerothread?id=594775

<FONT SIZE="3">Handling-</FONT>
Now that you have the hottest looking Civic in your town, you might want to think about lowering your car and getting it to handle better. The main components to handling are springs, shocks, and most important, tires!

Tires: Falken Azenis sport. No other tire comes close when it comes to dry handling. However, they wear out extremely fast, and are not very good in standing water. DO NOT DRIVE IN THE SNOW WITH THESE. ~$300

http://www.tires.com
http://www.vulcantire.com

Shocks: A good adjustable shock will do the job. Koni Yellows are some of the best ones on the market, but KYB AGX and Tokico Illumina will do the job as well. ~$500

http://www.shox.com
http://www.ebay.com

Springs: A good set of coilover sleeves will allow you to adjust the ride height, while reducing body roll. The two most popular sets of coilovers on Honda-Tech are Ground Control coilovers and Skunk2 Coilovers. ~$300

http://www.ebay.com
http://www.nopi.com
http://www.eibach.com

<FONT SIZE="3">Performance-</FONT>
Now that your Civic looks good and can handle, you need to make it faster. If you plan keeping the engine, the three most popular mods are intake, header, and exhaust (otherwise known as I/H/E).

Intake: Upgrading to a short ram or cold air intake with a high flow filter will be a great improvement over stock. The AEM cold air intake is the intake of choice among most enthusiasts. ~$50-$150

http://www.nopi.com
http://www.ebay.com
Cold Air vs. Short Ram Intakes:
https://honda-tech.com/zerothread?id=789418
https://honda-tech.com/zerothread?id=679224

Header: Adding a high flow header will increase HP. A 4-1 will improve top end, whereas a 4-2-1 will improve midrange. The DC sports line of headers is the most popular one on the market.

http://www.nopi.com
http://www.ebay.com

Exhaust: Upgrading to a cat-back exhaust will also improve power. For a list of people's experiences with their own exhaust, read here: https://honda-tech.com/zerothread?id=856670


These are simply the most BASIC upgrades one can do to their car. This does not include engine swapping, turbocharging, nitrous, or any of that. This is simply a guide for beginners who are new to the Honda scene. I hope that this thread will be of some use to everyone, and can be used as a reference for a some time.

<FONT SIZE="3">Useful Sites-</FONT>
DIY Repair (Shop) Manuals - http://www.helminc.com/helm/homepage.asp?r=
OEM Parts - http://www.slhondaparts.com/
OEM Parts - http://www.hondaautomotiveparts.com/
Performance Parts - http://www.dragracing.com/
Performance Parts - http://www.prostreetonline.com
Performance Parts - http://www.modacar.com

Alright, now I am going to need help from fellow members. This thread will be constantly updated so I will need help adding websites and other things that you guys feel should be in here. So PLEASE reply to this thread with things that I should change or add.

Thanks everyone!

North_Texas

This is a good sticky.

Mr. Choi

is this thread telling us to rice out our cars first? very little info on suspension.

ABK

azenis are not that expensive
at least 15's are not

good write up the stuff that most people are looking for.

rukawa1one

Look no furthur newbies! Good thread to keep this forum clean of stupid questions

Yeung

wow.. that sums up everything i learned from honda-tech over the last 2~3 years..

btw.. i did learn a lot from here

Snail Tuning

if u have a d16z6 a cheap upgrade is the y8 intake manifold.

also i hear the Edlebrock is the Best bolt on hp gain intake manifold on the market for the Dseries.

I also recomend the Falken Ziex 512s for anyone running VX 13" rims this gives u a good summer tire. and good traction at only 37 bucks each, and the total combo wieghs in at 24lbs or 33lbs i can;t remember. also i think they have a 370 tread wear. look great. and they come in a 175/60/13 and a 185/60/13 but they will be smaller in diameter than the stock setup, so your gearing will become slightly shorter.

also B&M makes great short shifters for the honda civic.

Ingals cheap knockoff camber kits on ebay work great!!! and their only 80 shipped.

Rear camber can be adjusted by using longer bolts and placing washers between the innerersupension mount and the body of the car.


Modified by bmcc72 at 1:56 AM 5/21/2004

d0nkeyxPunch

Bauley's version of MTV's "Pimp My Ride."

Luserkid

Truthfully i dont like this thread because it leaves no originality to the owner of a car. If someone comes in here and reads this and gets everything you listed then they get a car that you would make to look like.

But then again this would leave the forum alot less clutered with stupid **** like "what *whatever* should i get?" and such, so this is a good idea.

And if someone is so pathetic that they cant build there own car the way they want then so be it, and let this help those unoriginal bastards.

Civiclx

**** yeah bauley brush them hatas off brush them hatas off

veggiemaster

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Mr. Choi &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">is this thread telling us to rice out our cars first? very little info on suspension.</TD></TR></TABLE>

what? where the **** did that come from. not one item he listed has anything to do with rice. I think this is a great post, i read 2 today that were "I hate civics, what should i do to mine" and "just got an ex, what to do first?" so yes, this is a great starter for the n00bs that come on lookin for basic stuff.

menkio

nice write up,
for me... i just don't think we need to cater to people getting into our hobby, for the most part they are all ricers. Some are good, and will do good.. yet for the most part anyone getting into a honda will have a list of mods like this, they will be racing light to light, and making all of us look bad. imo.

Revolver

Good post, but I bet someone will still ask either way.

playAho

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by DewMota &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">nice write up,
for me... i just don't think we need to cater to people getting into our hobby, for the most part they are all ricers. Some are good, and will do good.. yet for the most part anyone getting into a honda will have a list of mods like this, they will be racing light to light, and making all of us look bad. imo.

</TD></TR></TABLE>

nice write up I think there should be some sticky threads that explain the most commonly asked (?)

you have to learn to crawl before you can walk think about the first car you built I will bet it wasn't perfect or even close you have to learn from trial and error so the ricers are the future 8 second civics help noobs learn what is good and what is bad instead of turning them off be for they get started. you love "your hobby" so don't shut other people out that are trying to learn about it and enjoy it to!

NatedoggAZ

That is a great write up Bauley - I think you should keep this as a *sticky* for a while. It is great that you took the time to write this up for all the newbies because we all know that some people for some reason get annoyed when these questions get asked - I for one would not get annoyed because ...hey, that is what forums are for...

N8DOGG

Also, you may want to include some reputible places where they can get some engine swaps....just a sugestion...

137

best post ever.

BauleyCivic

I need help from you guys! List additional websites where people can buy this stuff or tell me what I should add and then list some websites where they can buy it.

Cam79

Good write up.

EGinNY

Looks Good to me
Perfect for the tru newbie

Maybe end it with a link to the search function....

slammed_93_hatch

great place to buy things


https://honda-tech.com/zeromain?id=6

and if your on a budget look for stuff in here

https://honda-tech.com/zeromain?id=4

great deals all the time

93Civic_hb

One Step at a time... Don't do everything at once becasue you will realize that your taste for somethings may change.

Do what you want not what others may like, but we are always here to give you our 2 cents.

96hb

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

what? where the **** did that come from. not one item he listed has anything to do with rice. I think this is a great post, i read 2 today that were "I hate civics, what should i do to mine" and "just got an ex, what to do first?" so yes, this is a great starter for the n00bs that come on lookin for basic stuff.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Don't you know? JDM is the rice of the future. LMAO!

CunninLynguist

We need this topic to aid the noobies on how and what is needed to make there car look kool.

Thats sad.

Fix it up how you like.

RaYnE

this is a great idea for ppl starting to get into tuning

DOHCfanatic

niice post and write up