Honda Civic Si Vs. Acura Integra SE

[Gotti]

This is my choice...

I've narrowed down my search for a new car to these 2. The integra has leather seats and its $1500 cheaper than the Si but its 2 years older and has higher mileage. And the Si has a better engine... 20 extra hp from the get go


Which would you choose?

[S2CorollaR]

Si hands down. Lower milage, you can change the seats for a lot cheaper than you would pay to make up the power difference from the B18B to the B16A's range.

[Gotti]

Originally Posted by S2CorollaR

Si hands down. Lower milage, you can change the seats for a lot cheaper than you would pay to make up the power difference from the B18B to the B16A's range.

Thats what i was thinking... but some people have been telling me the integras engine is better to mod. It has more torque, better to boost, and even going N/A is better if you do the LS/Vtec thing

btw the Civic is a '99 with 38,000 miles and the teg is a '97 with 57,000 miles

[NISSANSPDR]

I think the Civic Si is the smarter choice here...lots of options of what to do...just be careful where you park it

[kman10587]

I'd go with the Integra on this one. You have more usable torque, a better suspension (double wishbone front and rear), a more competent chassis, a nicer interior, and a lower price.

[Gotti]

Originally Posted by kman10587

I'd go with the Integra on this one. You have more usable torque, a better suspension (double wishbone front and rear), a more competent chassis, a nicer interior, and a lower price.

DAMN! you guys are making this such a hard decision! I was leaning towards the Si, now i'm back to the middle and i dont know. Cause i like the interior of the integra, but the Si is newer and faster


Somebodies gotta make this decision easier for me!

[kman10587]

Somebodies gotta make this decision easier for me!

Just get the Integra; it's cheaper and it handles better. Don't worry about straight-line speed, you can go LS/VTEC or LS Turbo if you want to drag race.

[NerveAgent]

If you are talking about the civic si with the k20. go with that. If you're talking about the civic si with the b16 get the teg.

[S2CorollaR]

If you don't have a ton of cash and/or automotive engine performance knowledge and experience, then don't go with the LS with intentions of going LS/Vtec.

LS/Vtec is a real bitch to get done right and a small thing like drilling the oil squirter in the wrong way/spot can cost you an entire block after a full build.

As far as handling, I would put money on the Si on a road course against the SE stock for stock. The money difference between the SE and the Si isn't enough for him to mod it to an Si's stock performance. He would need full bolt on's, changed out tires and the sway bars, and that's just to compete stock for stock.

His gas milage will also go to crap with all these mods too.

[S2CorollaR]

Oh and btw... As far as tuning better. That's total bull. The Si has a 1.74:1 Rod:Stroke ratio, meaning that if you get the right valve/air mods, you can rev it up in the upwards of 13,000RPM or higher. That's Formula 1 type revving. The B16A2 is great for Non-aspirated tuning.

The B18B is only good NA if you go LS/Vtec, and that's too hit/miss as far as reliability. Everyone here might say all this stuff about LS/Vtec, but when you talk to real Honda enthusiasts that have worked with it before, they'll give you horror stories.

[Gotti]

Originally Posted by S2CorollaR

Oh and btw... As far as tuning better. That's total bull. The Si has a 1.74:1 Rod:Stroke ratio, meaning that if you get the right valve/air mods, you can rev it up in the upwards of 13,000RPM or higher. That's Formula 1 type revving. The B16A2 is great for Non-aspirated tuning.

The B18B is only good NA if you go LS/Vtec, and that's too hit/miss as far as reliability. Everyone here might say all this stuff about LS/Vtec, but when you talk to real Honda enthusiasts that have worked with it before, they'll give you horror stories.

is the B18 really that much better to turbo than a B16 or are the differences minimal.... cause i might turbo in the future but that would be atleast 2 years away.

I'm still leaning more towards the Si cause its newer, lower mileage and quicker from the start.... but fuck! I love leather interior and the SE does look good

Which car is cheaper to turbo?

[MexSiR]

Put both cars at a track or a quarter mile strip and the Civic Si will outperform the Acura SE.

The Civic Si is a sports oriented car, while the SE is just a passenger hatch/coupe...the GSR or Type R are sports oriented but the SE doesent have what it takes to beat or stay with the Civic si.

[kman10587]

I realize that the Si is more performance-oriented, but the Integra SE still has a better suspension and a bigger motor that is easier to turbo. If you wanna keep your car N/A, then I guess that doesn't really matter, but turbocharging is the real way to get a ton of power out of your engine.

[Moppie]

Originally Posted by kman10587

I realize that the Si is more performance-oriented, but the Integra SE still has a better suspension and a bigger motor that is easier to turbo. If you wanna keep your car N/A, then I guess that doesn't really matter, but turbocharging is the real way to get a ton of power out of your engine.

Its this attitude that annoys me about so many Honda owners.

Cheaper and simple is NOT BETTER and NEVER WILL BE.

Now stop running down the suspension on the Si.
If its an older one, with the B16a, then it uses the same set up as the Integra, and is infact better. The Civic is lighter and the suspension was orginaly designed to work with the Civic, then adapted to work on the Integra. Since the Integra is wider and longer at the extreme limits it does not perform as well (its why the Integra Type R uses quite differnt suspension to the regular Integras).

If its a new model Si then its based on the Civic Type R sold in Japan and Europe but with a lower spec engine. Despite not having the double wishbone set up of previous generations the new Type R is the best handling Civic ever, and is regarded as one of the best handlng FWD cars ever made.


The B18b is only considered to be better for Turbo charging because of its low stock comp. ratio.
However if you want to get serious about Turbo Charging any Honda B series engine then you should be useing aftermarket pistons and rods for the added strength, and to lower the comp. ratio.
And while the B18 series engines have more torque and are able to make more power than the smaller B16 engines, in an Integra they also have a lot more weight to move around completely negating any advantage the extra capacity offers.


Now the biggest thing to take into consideration here is that he wants; a sports orintated car.
The Integra SE is not, and to make it so will require a lot more than simply turbo charging the engine.
A sports car also has to have sports orintated suspension and brakes, and they have to be tuned to work with the car. This means they have to be designed to be sports orintated to begin with.
While you can add a suspension package to the Integra to give it better handling, the Si comes with it stock and if added to will always be better.
Like wise the brakes, you can add bigger better brakes to the Integra, but why spend the time and money when the Si comes with big brakes from the factory.
Everytime you add parts to a car, or modifiy it beyond its orginal design you start to affect its reliablity and you start making sacrifices to how it handles and performs.
If you want a fast car then starting with a fast car, designed to be fast, will make for a more reliable nicer to drive base to work with than a car designed to be an economical grocery getter.


Of course if you are very knowledgable and want to build up a car exactly how you would like it to be, and all you need is a body shell and an engine block then buy the Integra. But then you wouldn't be asking questions on an internet forum, you would be answering them.

[Gotti]

wow great post Moppie... everything you said i've heard to be true. But some people on AF were confusing me.

I'm now 90/10 for the Si... (its the '99 B16 one btw) as long as the engine checks out and it doesnt get sold it will be mine