94 Honda Prelude Si... what can I do

[tetrahydro]

I bought a 94 Prelude Si (non-vtec) 5-speed like 3 months ago. I like the car and its pretty quick but I want to make it faster.. Only mod (besides 17" motegi rims) is full greddy cat-back exhaust. Im definatly going to be getting a CAI, but besides that, what do you guys suggest I do next... My part time job brings in about 400$ a month after I pay my insurrance. So I am on a budget.

by the way. can anyone help me put a signature with an image of my lude at the bottom? im new

[ludeguy]

Originally Posted by tetrahydro

I bought a 94 Prelude Si (non-vtec) 5-speed like 3 months ago. I like the car and its pretty quick but I want to make it faster.. Only mod (besides 17" motegi rims) is full greddy cat-back exhaust. Im definatly going to be getting a CAI, but besides that, what do you guys suggest I do next... My part time job brings in about 400$ a month after I pay my insurrance. So I am on a budget.

by the way. can anyone help me put a signature with an image of my lude at the bottom? im new

hey that's great, congrats on the new 94 si, I too had an si for a whole 12 days until a connecting rod gave - but now it's a 4ws vtec so i can't complain (; I have to say though I really enjoyed the h23 powerplant for the few days i had it.

It's good to see you have a budget and a plan. the only advice I can really give is research as much as possible - a lot of the quandries you will be faced with have been discussed in great details, and on some sites (as in forums not the MANUFACTURERS), the performance gains are given for bolt on parts - as proven by a dyno. By deciding now whether you want to go NA, or FI (whether turbo, or supercharged) you'll save yourself a lot of money - instead of deciding first one and then changing your mind later (because you'll need different headers different build up etc). If your planning on going NA, - the best thing you can do for your engine is help it breathe better thru I/H/E mods - and it sounds like you got the E part already solved. If you are planning on going FI, i'd definetley plan on spending some money on the h23's bottom end. all that stuff aside - just don't neglect your engine in your ambition for more power, make sure you set aside the funds to keep your engine in fresh oil/filter and running cool, keep it as clean as possible and nip any oil leaks in the butt. you're probably saying "this from a guy who blew an h23" - well in that case i had bought somebody elses problems - big time, and my preventative love was a lil too much a lil too late.

best of luck... welcome to the forums, as another aside - the reason nobody probably answered is because there are a lot of posts like this one where people are asking for the easiest way to get gains, search is up and to the right (: it's handy on forums I use it a lot myself.

ohh.. (not that you're going to but...) don't waste your money on an AEM CAI for fucks sake, it's a god damn pipe - there is no wonderous technology just buy any ebay CAI that is mandrel bent for the 92-96 lude - and stick a real K&N filter on it and you're good to go...

[tetrahydro]

hey what specific kind of intake should i buy from ebay and then where do i get the filter? and about how much do you think it will cost? one brand i see alot of on ebay for cheap is Mugen? is that good?

[ludeguy]

Originally Posted by tetrahydro

hey what specific kind of intake should i buy from ebay and then where do i get the filter? and about how much do you think it will cost? one brand i see alot of on ebay for cheap is Mugen? is that good?

My preference would be any cheap CAI with a filter - i'm not gonna list a specific because I think you are more than capable to make a descision yourself (:, mugen is a brand name - so you might pay more for that again, sometimes it's a cheaper brand "megan" disguised as a mugen so be careful for that too - i would avoid the short rams because the CAI will get the intake end further away from the engine heat, and you want the coldest most dense air possible. Whichever you buy on ebay should include a k&n "type" filter - which is fine for when you first get it - but i'd look into getting a real k&n when ever possible (although that might be a brand biased decision on my part).
if you are uncomfortable with installing it - make sure you get one that says that it includes instructions. look out for shipping costs too.. most are pumped up to offset the cheap price they are selling the intakes for.

that's about all the advice I can give - good luck.

p.s. one more thing - with teh CAI's be careful of hydrolock - if you get a lot of rain in your area - a lot of people have damaged their engines due to driving thru a puddle and having the intake suck it up - aem makes some sort of valve to prevent against it - it could be a wise investment depending on the precipitation in your area (: