Any noobie help,please?

[Don juan]

Sup everyone this is my 1st post here.I probrally started it out the wrong way opening a topic so for that ill go ahead and apologize.
I just have a few questions.What would someone 100 % new to car performance start? As far as parts on my car AND information.
BTW i drive a 98 honda civic EX 2 door coupe.
I drive an automatic.All my friends tell me automatics are sh!t and i shouldnt waste any money trying to supe it up.Is that true?
Im looking at getting a new engine right now im driving a stock 4 banger and its slow as dirt.Where should i look to go engine shopping?And what are the key things to look for?
I know i have a lot of questions but im so new at this and i just hope i can get as informed as all of you here.I read through everything here and im just confused as hell.Just wondering where did all of you learn all the info you know?

[white97ex]

ok..what kind of performance do you ultimately want to get out of your car? that will determine what kinds of mods you should perform. as for just having a stock four banger. that is all you will be able to fit. you cant fint anything larger than 4 in there. a six just wont fit. i have a 97 ex coupe. and will its no super car but its not a slouch either. i havn't got it to top out yet, cause i can't get enough open road to do it safely. but i can get it up to 110 without much trouble. that is pushing 6000 through every gear until i hit 5th. get some magazines. they will provide some knowledge. if you want to know how something works or what kind of performance you will get, start a thread. there are tons of knowledgable people one this board. there are a few "ricers" you need to watch out for. but hey. if you have jsut technical questions you might want to try the technical forum. they will be able to assist you. as will the people in this forum. it is just that we like to keep the posts as separated and int he right spot as possible. that way people with t/c and s/c questions can get help quicker. as for our knowledge, its kind of like football's school of hard knocks. we've learned from experience, education, these tech boards, work, etc. most of us are not afraid to dig in a get dirty. if you plan on doing a lot of work all by your lonesome, you should look into getting a helms manual (www.helminc.com), that is my next step. sur they are about 60 bucks but they are well worth the money. i guess i've rambled enough.

so welcome to Automotive forums (cough cough purehonda cough cough) and good luck in your quest for performance

[del]

Originally posted by white97ex
ok..what kind of performance do you ultimately want to get out of your car? that will determine what kinds of mods you should perform. as for just having a stock four banger. that is all you will be able to fit. you cant fint anything larger than 4 in there. a six just wont fit. i have a 97 ex coupe. and will its no super car but its not a slouch either. i havn't got it to top out yet, cause i can't get enough open road to do it safely. but i can get it up to 110 without much trouble. that is pushing 6000 through every gear until i hit 5th. get some magazines. they will provide some knowledge. if you want to know how something works or what kind of performance you will get, start a thread. there are tons of knowledgable people one this board. there are a few "ricers" you need to watch out for. but hey. if you have jsut technical questions you might want to try the technical forum. they will be able to assist you. as will the people in this forum. it is just that we like to keep the posts as separated and int he right spot as possible. that way people with t/c and s/c questions can get help quicker. as for our knowledge, its kind of like football's school of hard knocks. we've learned from experience, education, these tech boards, work, etc. most of us are not afraid to dig in a get dirty. if you plan on doing a lot of work all by your lonesome, you should look into getting a helms manual (www.helminc.com), that is my next step. sur they are about 60 bucks but they are well worth the money. i guess i've rambled enough.

so welcome to Automotive forums (cough cough purehonda cough cough) and good luck in your quest for performance

though the long version, well put.

Don Juan, you have to be a little more specific when you ask what you should do with your car so we can be more specific for you. but since you're a newbie, we won't hang you this time.:silly2: anyway, are you more interested in show or go? how much money are you willing to put into this? and how much do you already know about modifying cars? all these things you have to consider. the 4 cylinder in your car has a lot of potential. it's just a matter of how much $$ and what kind of driving you're gonna use the car for.

you're gonna get a variety of answers to your question of what you should start off with. some people start of w/ wheels, others start off with an exhaust system and others start off with an intake system. it's just a matter of what you personally wanna do. engine swapping is a serious modification and someone of your very basic knowledge of this scene should start simple and learn stuff first. that would be my suggestion. i can't tell you not to, but the more information you have about even the basics, the better off you're gonna be. the more you'll understand what exactly you're looking for and what you wanna do. i mean, if you want to do a swap go ahead. i'm jus tryin to offer some advice. you can't get a college degree before you apply to college can you? an aftermarket intake system, header, and exhaust system are pretty much the standard performance modifications and then from here you can branch out.

here's a tip. do a search on here before you post a thread. many times you'll find the answers to your questions much faster that way. if that doesn't work, find an appropriate forum, post your question in there and someone will help you out. if you don't know what forum to ask it in, i'd say ask it in the off-topic forum. a moderator such as myself will move it to the appropriate forum. good luck.:bandit:

[Don juan]

As far as my ultimate perfomance.This is my only car.I drive it back and forth to work on the weekdays.So i need something reliable but i also want it to haul ass when needed.
So i quess for now im looking for more go than show.
I know more about the show aspect of modding cars ive been into lowriders and euro cars since i was like 12.But ive never got around to looking under the hood :/ <-my own stupidity
I have a strict budget of no more than 200 dollars a month to blow otherwise i end up sleeping in a box cause i didnt pay my bills
.So im looking around 2,400 a year.Plus im thinking of taking on another job and that will all be excess money.You said some people
start with wheels.Id like some pirrellis or nitto.
Could racing tires stand the day to day driving i would be using it for?

hehe thanks for not hanging me del
Damn i really didnt know i couldnt fit anything bigger than a 4 cyli. in my car.Well at least now i know now
What is a "ricer"?
But is it true that my automatic is not worth fixing up?

[del]

Originally posted by Don juan
As far as my ultimate perfomance.This is my only car.I drive it back and forth to work on the weekdays.So i need something reliable but i also want it to haul ass when needed.
So i quess for now im looking for more go than show.
I know more about the show aspect of modding cars ive been into lowriders and euro cars since i was like 12.But ive never got around to looking under the hood :/ <-my own stupidity
I have a strict budget of no more than 200 dollars a month to blow otherwise i end up sleeping in a box cause i didnt pay my bills
.So im looking around 2,400 a year.Plus im thinking of taking on another job and that will all be excess money.You said some people
start with wheels.Id like some pirrellis or nitto.
Could racing tires stand the day to day driving i would be using it for?

hehe thanks for not hanging me del
Damn i really didnt know i couldnt fit anything bigger than a 4 cyli. in my car.Well at least now i know now
What is a "ricer"?
But is it true that my automatic is not worth fixing up?

ok, that's not a big budget i'll have to tell you. fixin up these cars isn't cheap. an AEM intake alone cost $200. but you can do a custom intake for much cheaper. a header can cost about $450, and another $400-500 for a cat-back. so you figure in about 5 to 6 months you'll have a decent i/h/e setup with that budget. a set of lowering springs cost about $200. good shocks anywhere b/w $400 to $600. these are all brand new. you may wanna look into second hand parts. just be careful of what you're getting into. there are a lot of crooked people out there looking to take advantage of anyone they can. and dont' let anyone tell you it's not worth fixin up an automatic. there are many automatic racers out there. hopefully you can srcounge up some extra money to throw into your ride. some people go through $2400 within a few minutes. i, myself just dropped about $4000 a couple weeks ago on my supercharger and a couple other things.

and about the term "ricer" well different people have different definitions. we tend to think one way while other people think another. here's an example, a phony intercooler on a non-turbocharged car. or a type r badge on an integra gsr. something like that other people think anyone who fixes up a honda or nissan (anything japanese) is rice. nissan people think all honda people are rice and vice versa. so the term's very relative. just depending on how you look at it. but the term is usually used to ridicule or make fun of someone else.

[Marc-OS]

Automatic Trannies can be very good if built up correctly. Check this out: http://www.levelten.com/ These guys specialize in beefing up Auto's to perform at or near the performance of a manual. Just think of having an automatic as another way to surprise anyone who thinks they can beat you because you don't have a manual tranny.

[Rgacke]

I recomend removing your resonator first, its free and you can take a pipe and route it from the wheel well to the air box. You have to remove your bumper and then in front of your passenger tire is a nasty looking black box, chuck it!! Of course you'll know how to remove your bumper when you buy a book for your car::::hint hint::::::: other wise read every thing you can and subscribe to a good magazine!!
i/h/e= intake header exhaust
TC=turbocharger
SC=supercharger
IC=intercooler
TB=throtle body
BOV=blow off valve
IM=intake manifold
heres just a few abriviations (sp?) that are used around here

oh and we typically view "ricers" as people who put stickers/spoilers/big tips on their cars, act like their the street racing king but know NOTHING about cars.

[Don juan]

hehe i already know how to take my bumper off!
let me GF drive my car again haha.
She put a huge crack in the back last time she drove.
It doesnt bother me because even i want to buy a bodykit that would replace the bumper anyway.
What will removing my resonator do?

[jOYRiDe]

you're from texas? u should go to the big import weekend thats happening at houston or dallas (??) on march 8 weekend and talk to the people there...

removing the resonator doesnt do much in terms of performance but it does make the engine sound a bit louder when u floor it....

[Rgacke]

removing the resonator doesnt do much in terms of performance but it does make the engine sound a bit louder when u floor it....

it basically puts you in the mood to drive, and other cars can head it, thats how it can be some times

[Don juan]

Houstons too far away from where i live.
Dallas is about 45 minutes away.
Wheres this import weekend at exactly?

[white97ex]

hey don juan. whats the name of the town. i live about an hour or so from dallas. i live in a little town called wolfe city, its by greenville..i drive a 97 civic ex coupe

[Don juan]

Mckinney TX its about 15 minutes away from allen,where i work.

[jOYRiDe]

import weekend in houston TX is at the reliant and/or astrodome
theres 2 shows that weekend
www.importrevolution.com
www.worldimportchallenge.com

[white97ex]

cool i bought my car in mckinney. at signiature motor cars. i live about an hour from there.....depending on traffic. i'm 30 from greenville and 30 from there to mckinney. nice to finally see someone close to me on here.