just bought a 2000 Si

james_

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Hey, I just bought a 2000 Si, it's my first car, and I want to make it faster, while still maintaining reliability (within a budget of course). Ideally, I'd like my budget to be around $2000-$3000, but I can go higher, so, any specific parts or general upgrades you guys would recommend?
 

pmac193

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Welcome, share some pics when you have a chance.
 


Mr.Baker

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Hey, I just bought a 2000 Si, it's my first car, and I want to make it faster, while still maintaining reliability Ideally, I'd like my budget to be around $2000-$3000
It's your first car.
Leave it as is, learn how it runs and drives, fix whatever needs fixing or maintenance, then go from there.
How "fast" do you need to be, especially if it's your first car?
Save that $3k budget, put it away.
You're not going to do much of anything to make the car significantly faster with $3k.
Which to make it that way you're now heading into the world of boosting it, which is not cheap to have it done right and run reliably.
 

XpL0d3r

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It's your first car.
Leave it as is, learn how it runs and drives, fix whatever needs fixing or maintenance, then go from there.
How "fast" do you need to be, especially if it's your first car?
Save that $3k budget, put it away.
You're not going to do much of anything to make the car significantly faster with $3k.
Which to make it that way you're now heading into the world of boosting it, which is not cheap to have it done right and run reliably.
Fill turbo kits from Go Autoworks are much cheaper now than 5 years ago. The same quality kit that got me 250whp on stock internals has dropped to $2k. Of course, that doesn't include some smaller things such as a fuel pump, injectors, etc. Nor does it include tuning. I say when all is said and done he'd be in the $4k range.

My first car was my Civic that went from auto to manual to a mini-me to a B18 to a boosted B18. Would I do it again? Sort of. I'd skip right to the B18 turbo part, lol. That being said, I'd do it again *now* that I am out of college and have a good job. Before, I did when I was full time in college.. I ended up taking out a small loan and paying it back within a year. But I would not go that route again.

Also, I wouldn't touch a 99-00 Si if it's in great condition. Those are becoming harder and harder to find, especially unmolested. OP, I'm with Mr Baker on this one, if the car is clean and runs great, I'd leave it as is.
 


Mr.Baker

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Fill turbo kits from Go Autoworks are much cheaper now than 5 years ago. The same quality kit that got me 250whp on stock internals has dropped to $2k. Of course, that doesn't include some smaller things such as a fuel pump, injectors, etc. Nor does it include tuning. I say when all is said and done he'd be in the $4k range.
I didn't realize quality stuff like that had dropped that much.
I'm assuming that $4k cost didn't include labor if you're having a shop do it.
Budget will always vary depending on the mechanical aptitude of the car owner.
Also if the car is a daily, it makes it that much harder to get work done when your time is limited with having the car down.

Also, I wouldn't touch a 99-00 Si if it's in great condition. Those are becoming harder and harder to find, especially unmolested. OP, I'm with Mr Baker on this one, if the car is clean and runs great, I'd leave it as is.
Yup, especially if it is an Electron Blue Pearl color!
How good of shape is it in?
Mileage?
DO the preventative maintenance items on it first, get the car running and riding reliably before you start tearing into it and throwing money at it on "extra" stuff.
 

XpL0d3r

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I didn't realize quality stuff like that had dropped that much.
I'm assuming that $4k cost didn't include labor if you're having a shop do it.
Budget will always vary depending on the mechanical aptitude of the car owner.
Also if the car is a daily, it makes it that much harder to get work done when your time is limited with having the car down.
Yeah, I didn't factor labor in there either. A buddy of mine and myself installed my turbo setup over a weekend. Ran into issues that cost me over $1k in shop labor to fix though.. Tuner wouldn't tune it because my brake lines were rotted, then they claimed I had bad injectors, then said my ELD was bad, then they claimed I had a bad wiring harness... then they accused me of s**t talking them to Xenocron because I reached out to them for a second opinion on a rich issue at load. The tuner is no longer in business. Synapse Motorsports near Saratoga NY.. f**k 'em.

My car was a daily and we did the work almost 2 hours from my hometown. Wasn't easy but I managed.
 

james_

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Fill turbo kits from Go Autoworks are much cheaper now than 5 years ago. The same quality kit that got me 250whp on stock internals has dropped to $2k. Of course, that doesn't include some smaller things such as a fuel pump, injectors, etc. Nor does it include tuning. I say when all is said and done he'd be in the $4k range.

My first car was my Civic that went from auto to manual to a mini-me to a B18 to a boosted B18. Would I do it again? Sort of. I'd skip right to the B18 turbo part, lol. That being said, I'd do it again *now* that I am out of college and have a good job. Before, I did when I was full time in college.. I ended up taking out a small loan and paying it back within a year. But I would not go that route again.

Also, I wouldn't touch a 99-00 Si if it's in great condition. Those are becoming harder and harder to find, especially unmolested. OP, I'm with Mr Baker on this one, if the car is clean and runs great, I'd leave it as is.
I'm not exactly sure if it's in great quality, it has about 184k miles on it, but the seller said he replaced quite a bit (Timing belt, water pump, tensioner, coolant, valve stem seals, upper control arms, ball joints, tie rod ends, front brake pads and rotors, power steering fluid, transmission fluid, valve cover gasket, thermostat, lower motor mounts, and spark plugs). So, I guess now I've decided to leave it alone and maybe wait a while before changing anything in the car.
 

ctag

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Hi @james_ welcome to Club Civic :hi:

Yeah, I'd recommend leaving it stock for a little while. Get a good feel for where the car is at and whether you want to do the wrenching yourself or not. At the very least it'll allow you to really appreciate any good work you do down the line :thumbs up

It sounds like the previous owner really tore into the basic maintenance before you bought it... Some of that stuff is pretty hard to inspect, and comes down to how much you trust that owner, but now is a good time to start building your maintenance schedule and keeping track of it.

Also, upload pictures! :ok:
 

james_

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I didn't realize quality stuff like that had dropped that much.
I'm assuming that $4k cost didn't include labor if you're having a shop do it.
Budget will always vary depending on the mechanical aptitude of the car owner.
Also if the car is a daily, it makes it that much harder to get work done when your time is limited with having the car down.



Yup, especially if it is an Electron Blue Pearl color!
How good of shape is it in?
Mileage?
DO the preventative maintenance items on it first, get the car running and riding reliably before you start tearing into it and throwing money at it on "extra" stuff.
It *is* the Electron Blue Pearl color, it's in relatively good shape, some small dents on the hood, but nothing serious, 184k miles. Here's a list of the things the seller said he replaced: upper control arms, ball joints, tie rod ends, front brake pads and rotors, power steering fluid, transmission fluid, valve cover gasket, thermostat, lower motor mounts, and spark plugs (at 180k miles), and
Timing belt, water pump, tensioner, coolant, valve stem seals, and valve cover replaced at 184k miles.
 

Mr.Baker

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It *is* the Electron Blue Pearl color.
'Nuff said, keep it as is, maintain it and drive it!

it's in relatively good shape, some small dents on the hood, but nothing serious, 184k miles.
Sounds like a lot of preventative maintenance has been done.
As long as it's not rotten and the interior is clean, complete and not beaten to hell smelling like wet cigarettes, then it sound like a nice find.
What'd you pay?
 
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XpL0d3r

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I'm not exactly sure if it's in great quality, it has about 184k miles on it, but the seller said he replaced quite a bit (Timing belt, water pump, tensioner, coolant, valve stem seals, upper control arms, ball joints, tie rod ends, front brake pads and rotors, power steering fluid, transmission fluid, valve cover gasket, thermostat, lower motor mounts, and spark plugs). So, I guess now I've decided to leave it alone and maybe wait a while before changing anything in the car.
Let's see some pictures of this thing! :cool:
 

civteck

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No pics, "fake car"... lol the anticipation is killin me...

Sent from my boujea ass phone
 

Mr.Baker

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With that mileage on it, i'm interested in how well it wore nearly 200k on it.
 

Drakon543

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x2 here almost 200k I see alot of them but unless it's modified probably 90% of the stockish one look more like parts cars. my 08 is at 171k now but different parts have been repainted a few times thanks to my wife. hopefully whoever decided to do that last chunk of maintenance wasn't just trying to bandaid problems. while your doing your waiting do your research. how much more umph are you after vs how much work and $$$ is involved. nailing down a game plan and building your parts list can be pretty interesting also.
 


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