Im planning on buying a new civic EX in the near future and i wana put some more power in the engine. Its stock 127hp SOHC VTEC just wont cut it. I dont wana do anything extreme to the engine, (supercharge or turbo). This is what i was thinking:

1) AEM Cold Air Intake with a K&N filter

2) DC sports Headers ( Not sure to go for the 4-1, or 4-2-1,
Suggestions would be helpful here)

3) Cat-Back exhaust... (here i have no idea what to go for. I want the most hp/torque gain but at the same time something not too loud.. smooth would be a good description.. nothing farty at all )

Also, any guess on the hp/torque gain i would recieve with these mods would be appreciated, thanks.

 

3 whp if you're lucky.



spend the money torwards a turbo kit.

 

if you're lucky. no minus whp.

there's no cost effective turbo out yet for the 7th gens. they run from anywhere to 4-5 grand for custom ones. and these only pus 5-6 psi with stock internals.

there are a few fast 7th gens out there.. mainly highly NA tuned ones that costed 8+ grand... or custom turbo ones costing 5 grand+... and a few RSX Type S swaps... a current Type R engine swap project is going on...

those I/H/E wont yield much, if any at all. they're just noise makers and waste of money IMO.

but if you want power, replacing the stock ex's upper header section and lower downpipe w/ welded on cat WITH a HP 4-1 Race header with "high flow cat" will yield some result.

there's no DC 4-2-1 header for the 7th gen. the 7th gen ex's comes with a stock 4-1 header with a downpipe thats welded on to the cat convertor.

replacing that entire stock setup and removing the cat seems to yield the best hp to money ratio in any aftermarket parts thats out for the 7th gen (except for nitrous I suppose)

here's the cons of the header: installation isnt easy. you will either have to lift the engine or cut a motor mount for the header to fit. it replaces the stock cat with a "high flow" cat (basically a straight pipe), so you're putting out pollution, and you're going to get a check engine light eventually. a solution is to get an o2 simulator which runs for another 50 bucks (250-300 bucks for the header)

the K&N FIPK (Fuel InJection Performance Kit) seems to be another favorite money to horsepower ratio bolt-on thats out. People say it doesn't lose too much low end like other AEM, InJen SRI/CAI.. and its more practical and functional than those mentioned.

as for cat-back exhaust, the Apexi WS just came out, and its known for quality, through out all generations of Civics and Integras.

at the end, you're better off spending money on the much needed improvement in the area of suspension. the stock tires, springs, shocks/struts gotta go. throw a few (depending on ur preference on handling...) strut/tie bars on front and back, and a RSX 19mm rear sway bar, and you're good to go.

thats the low down on the 7th gen.

EDIT: I just realized u haven't bought one yet. LOOK FOR OTHER CARS! the 7th gen civics aren't bad. but if you want power, look elsewhere. Go test drive a few more different cars.

 

hmm alright. so its bs that AEM's dyno charts have a max hp gain on the CAI?

 

oops 8.9hp gain

 

the 7th gens are ok cars..better than the Sis...anyhow, look into getting a 6th gen, must nicer car, and a hell of a lot more shiit that you can do to it,

 

oh yea, I was sooo close to buying a second hand 99 Si (SiR), but i decided against it at the last moment. It had over 100k Kilometers, not sure how many miles that is, anyway that and it got rear ended once.. I dont reallly want a second hand car even though i love the model 10x more =) go figure...

 

they are trying to sell their product. to find out what it really yields is by dynoing your car with their stuff on.

 

yeah its pretty much BS.

even InJen didn't bs that much. their dyno shows a gain of 4 hp from their CAI... heh.

 

What about Just CAI and Cat-back then.. would probably make a nice deeper sound if anything (tell me if im wrong, i dont want anything even remotly abnoxious and farty) ... and with those 2 things, would i even see a 10hp gain?