Hey, I'm a 19 year old college guy who is madly in love with cars. Women, while satisfying, can screw you over, but a car is always faithful. I'm driving a '98 Civic EX Coupe SOHC and have a budget tighter than a squeezing into an undersized pair of pants($500 or less to spend). Does anyone have any suggestions for what power and/or handling modifications that will make a noticible difference? I was thinking a set of springs or saving for a decent set of coilovers. Oh, the kicker is...the car is an auto. Any help?

 

arent we all....

 

How about a 5 speed conversion.

 

yeah a 5 speed conversion is a good idea, but if you can't do it yourself, it will be pretty expensive.....

 

if he can not do the auto->manny conversion himself then obviously it wont fall under his budget. get a set of springs and struts. ebay has tokico springs/struts packages for under 500. if you have money left over, get youself a front strut bar or sway bar.

i just bought a set of aerospeed( :barf: )springs, ctr front strut bar, a rear upper strut, and a floor bar. suspension will make a huge difference in how your car handles at high speeds/quick acceleration.

 

Yea, the tranny conversion is a no go. the suspension is what i'd like cuz i drive on a road that goes down a river valley and back up the other side. any power adder ideas? i thought about an intake, strong ground wire and maybe new plugs and wires

 

ground wires, plugs, and wires wont get you any power. I/H/E would give you some pull but you wont be able to get all 3 for under 500.

 

Ya you can get all three but you cant buy like aem or injen stuff get an ebay intake and by a k&n filter. You could get a shop to make a custom exhaust for @ $200 and a nice header with the money left over. Just because its not all balla status doesnt mean its not efective. Just dont rice it out by just sticking a can (loud muffler) on the back.

 

i forgot about custom exhaust. i just think aftermarket exhausts sound better then 2.5" piping and a muffler

 

i hate to break you the news but a low budget enthusiast is the same thing as a ricer because they end up buying a whole buntch of cheap stuff for their car and it ends up being a huge piece of crap. if your going to do some work spend the extra money taht it cost to get the good parts and get the work done right if you can't do it yourself.