My DC2R Ltd Edt, and some handy Type R tips :=)

[juzza]

Gday ;-)

All us noobs have to do this, so the room for improvement on some of the absolutely awesome posts isn't exactly massive, and certainly everything I would have to offer in terms of performance enlightenment is already covered.

So I've decided to simply give a recount of everything that I've gone through with her, and hope that I'm able to shed some light on one of the best handling front wheel drive cars ever to be made! I hope you guys like a story...

June 2010 I sold my SWEET Panther Mica 5spd VS Series II S-Pack Commy (The Whore!) for $10,000 and went on the hunt. My best mate (RPM BOY) convinced me that I could get a DC2R with that much. I didn't believe him and wanted to prove him wrong, so went on to carsales. Fortune favored me that day because within an hour I found her!

I picked her up from a fellow who'd just lost his job, and clearly needed to support a pot addiction (the insides of the car STUNK of stale hash!), and drove off with my very own Type R! I was smiling all the way home; the DC2R is a car I've always wanted to own since I first saw one, but never realised I might be able to afford one! A Black Pearl, 2 door coupe, with Recaro's, MOMO wheel, enkeis, sunroof...did I mention it has cruise control hence the Ltd Edt! I was smitten, and promised I wouldn't modify her...then got bitten ;-)

My mate said that the cars previous owner was probably a dealer, and that I should first send money to change the plates coz a Type R would attract enough Police attention without being associated with a criminal, and I ignored the advice...I would come to regret this (reply to thread for this story!)

So I get her home and Dad wants a blat, so I hand over the keys, and go into the house...this was a mistake. He parks her behind the Landcruiser and comes inside, "Nice car mate!". The next morning (12 hours after purchase), I'm about to get in her and go to work, and decide to, as I would normally, open the door and before I get in, warm her up. I'm standing outside the car and put the key in the ignition, but fail to see that Dad has "parked" the car by putting it in gear WITHOUT the bloody handbrake...the next part happens in slow mo... The gear engages, stalls, but jolts forward and continues to roll whilst I'm desperately trying to hold her back from face planting into the tow bar of the Cruiser...I didn't stop her.
Needless to say I woke the neighborhood with the "FAAAAARRRRRRKKKKKKK!!!!!" at 6:30am, and didn't go to work that day.
FORTUNATELY, (and here's the FIRST Type R tip) the R's front bumper is designed to take an impact of 5km without structural damage and without activating airbags.

Once I decided to mod her, I wanted to keep to the KISS method for street and occasional track day blats. The first thing was obviously a service.

The one thing that I buggered up in the service (SECOND Type R tip) was getting the correct plugs! Honda is so ingenious, that they went to the trouble of changing the dimensions/parameteres of parts of a Type R, obviously so as to monopolise on the spare parts sales...bet the salesmen never told THAT to the first buyers! How have I come to this analysis...well RE plugs, I went to Repco and asked for NGK's for a type R. The car was giving me trouble after a few weeks, and my mate said that it sounded like the plugs were fouled. I rang Honda to get new plugs, and they said that for a DC2R they had 4 different kinds of plug (2 different makes and 4 different heat ratings) and that they'd need the VIN of the car to determine the right part! I've got the right ones now and I tell you, the difference is amazing!

The next thing was to get her to turn properly! I didn't want to compromise the Type R handling so was hoping to leave it, but she juddered at high speed and kinda under steered to the right. SO I took her to Pedders and the $14 check revealed a $2600 problem...leaking shocks and some knackered bushes! Pedders said they had a coilover kit for the DC2R and so I got that over others (i know a lot of you are going WHY!?) because the word was that they were an ultimate product for everyday and "spirited" driving on Oz roads, so I forked over the $1600 and went to install. The front went on great, but the rear foot was for an VTiR, not a Type R. I rang them up and asked for the right foot...turns out Pedders Australia don't make them for a Type R! Fortunately the bloke fixed me up, and sourced the correct rear bases for the Type R LCA from the US, and fitted them for free! SO, atm I'm the only person rolling around with Custom Pedders Coils! But he also did the bushes and told me that he couldn't get Nolothane for some as Honda changed the sizes from year to year on the Type R (THIRD Type R tip); IE don't go off the shelf straight away if you own a Type R!

In the mean time, I've gone and got myself JDM folding mirrors, a new VAFCII, Fujita CAI, JDM 4-1's and CAT, and am waiting on a fairly new MUGEN twin-loop CAT back. I'm hoping to bolt it all up before Xmas (2010) and have it to TODA for a tune in January 2011...I'm hoping for at least 110kw/atw.

Near future mods include a Beatrush underpanel, Miracle x-bar, a repsray and interior clean (it still smells like smoke!), and maybe a Mugen CAI and angel-eye headlights.

Far future mods include K20 conversion, AP Racing brakes, 16" Enkei RPF01's, GT Rear wing, ARC winglets and TopOne Aero side splitters and rear diffuser, Cusco cage...The Power of Dreams hey ;-)

Anyways, hope you've enjoyed and look forward to the next meet!

Peace.

[DC2-PWR]

Nice read, liking the future mod lists!

Have fun and make sure get some pics!

[rpm boy]

Stop buying crap and put a k20 in it ffs -1 pq point for not doing it already

[THEEYA]

welcome, need to put some pics of her inbetween the walls of text to make it easier on the eyes :P

[juzza]

Stop buying crap and put a k20 in it ffs -1 pq point for not doing it already

Trust you! ;-D

[juzza]

welcome, need to put some pics of her inbetween the walls of text to make it easier on the eyes :P

THANKS!
lol...agreed but I want to wait until I've got her just right!

[michaelz]

Correct me if I'm wrong but I thought all DC2Rs don't come with a factory sunroof?

Could it be a OEM VTIR sunroof retrofitted?

[juzza]

dunno mate but from my log books, the sunroof was a factory option.
That said, I wouldn't have thought that Honda would make an engineering masterpiece and intentionally bugger it up by ruining its rigidity in cutting out the roof...it's one of the reasons why Im in the market for the x-bar...atm when I go up driveways you can actually here the roof twisting ever so slightly %-(...nevertheless, I love the sunroof...almost all the air of a most desirable drop top without the price tag or shitty insurance :-)

[MWAKU]

I think i need new spark plugs. How much did urs cost. My car runs rich and takes slightly longer to crank over 5% of start ups lol. Im hoping the spark plugs will fix this. When u say it made a world of a difference, what do you mean? Like in terms of how?

[dc2r-0636]

PICSS ??

i got my ngk plugs for $120 i think this time last year lol

[dougie_504]

Pics! And what's the story with your number plates?

[dc2r-0636]

dunno mate but from my log books, the sunroof was a factory option.
That said, I wouldn't have thought that Honda would make an engineering masterpiece and intentionally bugger it up by ruining its rigidity in cutting out the roof...it's one of the reasons why Im in the market for the x-bar...atm when I go up driveways you can actually here the roof twisting ever so slightly %-(...nevertheless, I love the sunroof...almost all the air of a most desirable drop top without the price tag or shitty insurance :-)

I believe the sunroof is a "dealer option"