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[nemo_wolf]

I just bought my first car, a 91 civic LX.

I was never into cars until i bought one. Now that i got it, i wana put some money into it. Problem is, i dont know enough about cars or my car specificaly to do much with out getting ripped off. I was wondering where i can find more information about the specs, what mods i can do, ect for my car. Im still in college so i dont have much money to do much, but i wana do something to make it my own car.

I was talking to a friend of mine and he said to get an intake to start. I was talking to my mechanic who is into honda's and he said to go with the exhaust manifold. which if either should i start with?

I know this must all be newbish, but im just starting out. Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

Nemo the Black Wolf

[Setanta]

My order of priority would be as follows: Exhaust system, headers, cams, cam-wheel(s), intake. Follow that with headwork and bump the compression. Intake sounds nice, but doesn't come into its own without other real mods as you need the cam profile to really suck more air in and the exhaust to cleanly scavenge the piston bores.

Just my $0.02 though

[EightOhOne]

I dunno...id suggest either exhaust or intake to start, because a header or cam isnt going to be working to its fullest potential until the air is flowing in and out of the engine freely...what do i know though?

[ricodemus]

congrats, nemo. Setanta has a nice plan, but I'd say look around and price that out. It may be in your best interests to get a ZC engine swap. The lx is a 1.5l, right? If so, you can only get so much out of her, especially with high mileage. But if thats out of the question, I may bump intake up on the list because it is quite a cheap mod and easy to intall. And if you decide to swap later on, the exhaust and intake can carry over. There are tons of things to read on the net, do some searches and see whats available.

[mellowboy]

I don't think he wants to spend that much money. Go for the suspension works first. Thats what i did. Then if your not goin "all out" then go for intake, headers , and exhaust ( cat back). Oh and get a short shifter

[ricodemus]

but my point was that if he actually bought all that stuff new, your looking at nearly $1k, thats if you figure Greddy SP exhaust ~500, DC header ~250-300, and AEM CAI ~175. Now if you use www.thepartstrader.com and ebay, you can probably do better. Thats why I suggested shopping around, maybe you can find some deals.

[4GZChatch]

I guess my thinking is different from most people, but I would say do suspension and wheels first. I like my car to ride and handle nice before I make it fast. I would say a set of springs, front shocks to start, wider tires on rims, and a strut tower brace or rear suspension tie. Just my opinion though....

[nemo_wolf]

"strut tower brace " ... what exactly is this and what will it do for my car.

As for the high milage, yea its nearing 200k miles. Second problem, its automatic. I know i dont get the same kinda car if its a auto compared to a stick. But i needed a car to learn how to drive, and as soon as possible. I got a buddy of mine gonna teach me how to drive stick when he gets his new RX-7.

As for the ZC engine swap. I been at a couple retailers, and they dont even give a conversion chart for my engine, which i believe is a D15, so what kinda engine should i be looking for? Whats the diffrence between the ZC and the B16, any advantages one has over the other?!

Nemo the Black Wolf

[spy54]

um zc compared to b16 to true question
B16 is more powerful has v-tec and will smoke a zc but will cost you
a zc is cheaper has more power than stock and will be cheaper than a b16

b16 160hp 111lb-ft torque ZC 128-136hp 109lb-ft of torque
engine 1200-1600 -400-800
mounts- 400 - 0
shift linkage-125 - 0
install-1000 - 300-600

Winners
economy-ZC
power-B16

[nemo_wolf]

If i do do an engine swap, what would i need tool wise to get the job done. Im not much of a mechanic but some of my friends are, and i dont think they have done full engine swaps before. How long would this all take too?

[Phat_Si]

Originally posted by spy54
um zc compared to b16 to true question
B16 is more powerful has v-tec and will smoke a zc but will cost you
a zc is cheaper has more power than stock and will be cheaper than a b16

b16 160hp 111lb-ft torque ZC 128-136hp 109lb-ft of torque
engine 1200-1600 -400-800
mounts- 400 - 0
shift linkage-125 - 0
install-1000 - 300-600

Winners
economy-ZC
power-B16

I don't know about that maybe most the time, but I can smoke and have before a 4G hatch w/B16 with my boys crx w/Zc!!! Zc's not that bad of a motor!!!

oh, and nemo if you know what your doing you can do a b16 swap in a day if you have the correct tools and know what you are doing. Get a Haynes manual!!! Me and my boy never took an engine out of a car b4 and we took a Gsr out of a Gsr and put an Ls in it in 2 days, with many breaks along the way!!! BTW for all of you thinking LS in a GSR it's b/c he cracked a piston and was running on three cylinders on the gsr!!!
HIH

[4GZChatch]

A strut tower brace is a bar that goes between your struts to stabilize the car and reduce body twist and roll for improved handling. The good ones attach to the top of the upper control arm and drastically stiffen the cornering response of the vehicle. I would definitely recommend one. The rear suspension tie does the same thing, but to the rear struts at the bottom where they come together. This one does the same, but it reduces understeer, and can allow you do drift like you're driving a RWD vehicle.

Also, I have a DX hatchback, which is a D15 motor stock, and I put in a ZC. I happen to think that for the price and the simplicity of the install, you can't go wrong. It makes for an easily modifiable (is that a word??) motor, and a zippy car. If you want to do 10 second quarter miles, its not the motor to choose, though. It has a chronically weak bottom end, and I have hear of lots of broken rods and cracked pistons from turbocharging and N2O... But for the street and daily driving its great. Plus the added benefit of using your stock tranny, clutch, axles, and everything else. The only pain is that you have to do a very small amount of rewiring to set up the fuel injecting. Overall, it's a great motor and a quick, fun setup. There is my 2 cents on the subject.