My Car Project

[Jonald]

Hey guys and girls...

My names Jonald, live in Brisbane. I recently bought myself a 1991 EG Civic Sedan, 138,000km's, automatic, pretty good interior and paint still in pretty good nick. Car hasn't been in an accident and is also stock standard. I'm the second owner.

Now this is gonna be my first car project as you can see from the title :p. Anyway, i thought i'd post this thread to get some help from people as i've been reading the forums for a while now and alot of you are really clued in! I dont know a great deal about cars but from what i've been reading i've picked up a little bit but there's still alot more stuff i'd like to learn.

My aspirations for the car are more about making the car more comfortable to drive in and look good. I'm not to fussed about going 100km/h in 3.9s :eek: If you get my drift :p The first rule i've put upon myself for this project is that i'm going to do the majority of the work myself unless a professional job is required, but on that note... I'll be asking you guys on your opinion! And i think that's the only rule i've put on myself. Oh and apart from not going overboard on spending! haha

Anyway, i've been looking at the pictures of EG sedans in the appearances forum and i must say, they are some sweet rides! I wanna try get my car to that stage! So these are the things i want to do to the car...

Exterior:
Lowering the car - What's needed to lower a car and roughly how much will it cost me? Different options...

Window Tint - I've read a few threads on different forums and alot of people just say Tint a Car so i rang up on the weekend and they've got sale on for month of June for theyre Midnight Xpress $295. Anyone here had personal experiences with them?

Tyres - Well, how big can i go legally :p From what i've read the stud pattern is 4x100. Is this correct, how wide does the tyre have to be etc. I was thinking of going 17" Chrome but i've seen alot of different mags recently and theyre all tickling my fancy!

Body Kit - I've seen alot of people mentioning "OEM" what's that? Where are some good places to get some pictures of different kits? What will a full kit cost me roughly?

Paint - My car atm is silver. I wouldn't mind keeping it silver but i still wanna get a respray done. To give it that glossy kinda look... What do you call that kind of paint job? How much will that cost me to get that professionally done?

Exhaust - 3" Cannon is all i can say!

LOL, im half way through writing this and i've gotta cut it short but i'm sure to add more onto this tomorrow afternoon after work. That's for sure! Oh and im from Brisbane so local places would also be good!

Thanks alot guys/girls!

Oh and sorry for the big wall of text :p
http://www.mypicshare.com/thumbs/20070624/p7bbt5xy.jpg (http://www.mypicshare.com/p7bbt5xypic.html)http://www.mypicshare.com/thumbs/20070624/7o5w9h1t.jpg (http://www.mypicshare.com/7o5w9h1tpic.html)http://www.mypicshare.com/thumbs/20070624/651sgg21.jpg (http://www.mypicshare.com/651sgg21pic.html)http://www.mypicshare.com/thumbs/20070624/g9vk39wz.jpg (http://www.mypicshare.com/g9vk39wzpic.html)

[civicek4]

Exterior:
Lowering the car - What's needed to lower a car and roughly how much will it cost me? Different options...

Body Kit - I've seen alot of people mentioning "OEM" what's that? Where are some good places to get some pictures of different kits? What will a full kit cost me roughly?

Paint - My car atm is silver. I wouldn't mind keeping it silver but i still wanna get a respray done. To give it that glossy kinda look... What do you call that kind of paint job? How much will that cost me to get that professionally done?




hey there,
lowering your car - you need to clarify your aim for lowering - handling/looks etc. Here's a few options;
1. Springs - cost effective, mainly for looks. The lower you go the more your stock shocks will where out. You will be looking at from about $200 - up to about $600 depending on what brand you go for (Kings, Tein, Eibach, Whiteline etc) are some common brands.
2. Coilovers - ranging from $1g-$2g+ again. Most coilovers will be height/damper adjustable so you can adjust to suit your needs (daily, track etc.) Coilovers can improve handling but again by lowering your car you will sacrifice comfort. Have heard good things about Tein and Cusco..
3. Shocks + Spring combo - ranging from about $1g-$2g. Changing your stock shocks and springs with an aftermarket combination. Have heard that Koni Yellow shocks and Eibach springs are a sweet match.
4. You may have heard some people 'cut' their springs - this is not a good option very dangerous. Your stock springs are made to suit the orignal shocks and if you shorten it who knows what could happen.

bodykits - OEM - Original Equipment Manufacturer meaning the part is from Honda, the part is a stock item, or factory.
Look in the appearance gallery of this forum at the EG/EH threads for different styles of kits http://www.ozhonda.com/forum/showthread.php?t=14630. Ask on the thread if you wanna know what kit that is.
Cost will depend on how the quality of the job, where, who etc. Most likely looking at a couple of grand to paint and fit the kit.

Paint -I'm guessing that's just called a respray. Correct me if im wrong. Cost again will vary.

oh yeah. for your info - your car is not EG Sedan, better known as EH Chassis code.

Cheers

[destrukshn]

no, there are EG sedans.

[Drew]

destrukshn is correct

EG does come as a sedan

[civicek4]

oh thanks for correcting.

[Red_EG4]

Hey Jonald.
Nice car, looks like a pretty good buy.
Here's my opinion on a few things;

Wheels & Tyres - I don't know anything about Queensland registration laws but in Victoria the combined size of Wheels and Tyres cannot exceed an inch larger than what the vehicle rolled out of the factory with.
So generally the larger the rim the lower the profile you will need to go. The lower the profile you have the higher the cost of the rubber.
Going together with a lowering job, Im not sure how close you will come to scrubbing. Other members will have greater experience in thi area.

Paint - Im not sure what you mean by glossy... maybe you mean a mettalic or pearlescent look

Exhaust - Do you intend to do anything to the whole exhaust system, or just the big cannon at the end?

[Sydsyd]

i'd say 3inch is too big for exhaust...u might lose back pressure hence lose power...i think 2.5" would be much better...

as for rims n tyres...it also depends if u're going for looks or performance...if u're going for looks, then chrome would be ok, although u might want to consider some of the JDM racing rims (genuine or replicas) that would look good on ur car...that doubles as for performance too...if u want speed, then don't go bigger than 16inch rims...17s and above and u'll get slower and it also affects ur fuel consumption a bit...

bodykit...u can either get a full lip kit - front and rear lip plus side skirts (cost can vary), although it's pretty hard to find a full lip kit for EG/EH sedan...or u can get a full bodykit set (front and rear bumper and side skirts) which of course will cost more than the full lip kit...if u want lip kit, maybe try www.jdmshit.com...they have lip kits for EG sedans too i think...or u might want to try Jetspeed (i think there should be 1 in QLD)...

that's my 2cents:p

[Kiz_EG6]

i'd say 3inch is too big for exhaust...u might lose back pressure hence lose power...i think 2.5" would be much better...

as for rims n tyres...it also depends if u're going for looks or performance...if u're going for looks, then chrome would be ok, although u might want to consider some of the JDM racing rims (genuine or replicas) that would look good on ur car...that doubles as for performance too...if u want speed, then don't go bigger than 16inch rims...17s and above and u'll get slower and it also affects ur fuel consumption a bit...

bodykit...u can either get a full lip kit - front and rear lip plus side skirts (cost can vary), although it's pretty hard to find a full lip kit for EG/EH sedan...or u can get a full bodykit set (front and rear bumper and side skirts) which of course will cost more than the full lip kit...if u want lip kit, maybe try www.jdmshit.com...they have lip kits for EG sedans too i think...or u might want to try Jetspeed (i think there should be 1 in QLD)...

that's my 2cents:p

As he said man, three inch cannon, i don't think he wants a full cat back or anything.

I think though dude you will be hard pressed to find a cannon whth a tip under about 4 inches, but yeah, plenty of cheaper options on the market, plus if it's only the muffler you are changing, then it's nopt going to make much differnce whether you spend 250 bucks or one of the $59 Autobarn specials!!

[Jonald]

Lowering - Well i'm looking for good quality stuff but nothing outrageous in price. What's my best bang for buck? I wanna go for looks but also want it so its a nice drive.

Tyres- Is it best for me to go 16" then? Because i am looking for comfortability but looks also. 17" doesn't give that nice drive does it?

Exhaust - I'm just doing it for looks but want it to sound nice also. What's my best bet? 2.5"? I don't know jack about exhausts, what will give me a nice drive + look good and sound good? Cat back or just putting a tip? What?


http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v491/trust8383/Project%20civic/fabc3f94.jpg (http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v491/trust8383/Project%20civic/fabc3f94.jpg)

What front bar is that?

[Jonald]

I was just reading a few things on the suspension. Sway bars? What are they?

What am i looking at spending if i were to get coilovers+swaybar?

[Jonald]

I've been doing some more reading and i've noticed alot of people are asking about weight of tyres... Why does this matter?

[teaseR]

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v491/trust8383/Project%20civic/fabc3f94.jpg

im sure that is the OEM bumper with a lip and a FRONT MOUNT!!!
hehe

[Jord]

dont go anythingn larger than 2" wit your exhaust.. 2.5" is way to big and will sound shithouse. coilovers are often quite hard.. for more of a cruiser id say go some nice low springs and new shocks, get a bushes kit sway bars. will be sweet then. for a cheap lowering job u can always get your springs reset... this cost me about 100 bucks a set and makes the car lower and is legal. but it doesnt do much for handling. i also noticed u have a d15b4 motor... make sure u set aside a few $$$ to spend on oil.. those things chew it!!

[55EXX]

have a talk to corey at tint express at virginia he can do any darkness you want in tint and does unbeatable deals pm me for more info.

suspension wise i would definately get sway bars as you can greatly decrease body roll without too much of a sacrifice of ride comfort.... have a search and a read...

wheels... 215/35/18's are legal. many civics are slowly popping up with 18's. it wasn't to hard to fit them under the guards of my ek. have a talk to shaun from stylish wheels and auto for the best wheels in bris. www.stylishauto.net

exhaust 2.25" tops man

a little mod i did that had great effect was change all my interior dash and guage lights to red led's and it looks a 1000 time better than that crap amber that it came with.

[TheSaint]

things i would do

1. buy a descent set of honda fat fives (pre 98 vti-r integra wheels)
2. buy a gli wing (i have one and it just makes the eg sedan sit better)
3. put a stereo in it (at your own preference)
4. SRI (short ram intake) buy a desent intake from the trader section on here or just a k+n one, it will give you some induction roar when you put your foot down and may give u a little better fuel econ OR a descent panel filter and leave the lid off your filter box
5. get an ITR or vti-r integra front strut brace (or any good brand - spoon, cusco, mugen even)
6. get some integra, crx or prelude front seats - they are more comfortable (my eg seats are pretty comfy but the ones in my teg are comfier and look better)
7. whiteline rear sway bar kit!! this is one of the best mods u can do to a teg or a civic, get the swaybar - tiebar and lcas beefed up
8. vti brake upgrade package, get some discs and calipers on the back, from there u can upgrade the rotors pads etc on all four points
9. engine swap, if theres one thing i learnt about my civic is to not touch the motor because there is no point lol, get a b16a2 or something (budget willing)
10. if you leave the motor stock, to beef it up a bit put an x-force twinloop on it =)

the above is just my opinion based on my own experience with my gli eg sedan i hope it helps

i used 3m legal tint for my windows, its good stuff, legal and comes with a lifetime warranty

[55EXX]

3m is an ok brand. just stay away from those super cheap ones etc. you can go as dark as 18-20% tint and never have trouble from the cops. it is illegal but is only just darker than legal so many police cannot really say your tint is too dark. the test they do is put a piece of paper against the other side of the window against the glass and if they can read the paper the tint is fine which can easily be done through 10% tint. but it is taking a risk they could get you but hey if you wanna be different thats the risk you take.

[Jonald]

What type of motor do i have? Is it wat jord said? a d15b4?

What kind of engine mods could i possibly do? Make the car run smoother?

[Drew]

wheels... 215/35/18's are legal.

Unless the original wheels were 13" 14" or 15"

[TheSaint]

1.5carby sohc, theres REALLY not much point in spending money on these motors, id save up for an engine transplant - b16a, b18c, at least something efi and dohc

i mean, iv got the efi version of that motor and it still aint that great, maybe with a turbo setup, but id rather spend the money putting a b16a in it, i leave it for fuel economy though, my integra is for going fast =)

[Jonald]

Sweet. I may just clean it up then....

The cars more of a daily/cruiser.