2005 Civic EX (auto) options

SeBreeze9000

New Member
I do apologize in advance if I'm not placing this in the correct thread or if I've done something incorrect to begin with. Sooo I have limited information regarding Hondas, my brother was a devout Honda fan before he died. Had a Acura RSX Type-S & a Honda S2000 (ap2) he poured large amounts of money into his mods and never held back his type-s was supercharged and the s2000 was flawless imo.

Let me get back on topic, I just purchased a 2005 Honda Civic EX (auto) here in Texas on Friday with 148,000 miles and I honestly cannot explain how much fun I've had just driving it down the road and the Fuel Economy is mind boggling. Always hearing how good the gas mileage is and now being inside one and driving it for dirt cheap is heart warming lol.

I've read about 12 threads so far and skimmed over the Before You Post Thread I'm 100% fully aware that the automatic isn't the OPTIMAL choice and modding is incredibly limited. I'm willing to live with that for some time right now I would like to focus on as many performance upgrades and replacements before I consider a swap. Also I looked around and saw that there is a specific spot that shows the Engine Code but I am having the hardest time locating it due to grime and dirt around the bay. I've included a picture so everyone can see.

Basically this thread is me trying to get any and all suggestions regarding an automatic what to do and what not to do. That could be replacing this replacing that adding this adding that, I truly just want a nice looking DD I'm not looking to cheap out on parts I work full time and my payments on this car are a joke stupid low so my pockets are a bit more free. Along with everyone else I have big plans for my civic. I'm not super super crazy about the speed it's a Civic after all but it wouldn't hurt to have that occasional neck break from a nice IHE setup and my little vtec.

Please feel free to give any constructive criticism.
 

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lunder03

Respected
I do apologize in advance if I'm not placing this in the correct thread or if I've done something incorrect to begin with. Sooo I have limited information regarding Hondas, my brother was a devout Honda fan before he died. Had a Acura RSX Type-S & a Honda S2000 (ap2) he poured large amounts of money into his mods and never held back his type-s was supercharged and the s2000 was flawless imo.

Let me get back on topic, I just purchased a 2005 Honda Civic EX (auto) here in Texas on Friday with 148,000 miles and I honestly cannot explain how much fun I've had just driving it down the road and the Fuel Economy is mind boggling. Always hearing how good the gas mileage is and now being inside one and driving it for dirt cheap is heart warming lol.

I've read about 12 threads so far and skimmed over the Before You Post Thread I'm 100% fully aware that the automatic isn't the OPTIMAL choice and modding is incredibly limited. I'm willing to live with that for some time right now I would like to focus on as many performance upgrades and replacements before I consider a swap. Also I looked around and saw that there is a specific spot that shows the Engine Code but I am having the hardest time locating it due to grime and dirt around the bay. I've included a picture so everyone can see.

Basically this thread is me trying to get any and all suggestions regarding an automatic what to do and what not to do. That could be replacing this replacing that adding this adding that, I truly just want a nice looking DD I'm not looking to cheap out on parts I work full time and my payments on this car are a joke stupid low so my pockets are a bit more free. Along with everyone else I have big plans for my civic. I'm not super super crazy about the speed it's a Civic after all but it wouldn't hurt to have that occasional neck break from a nice IHE setup and my little vtec.

Please feel free to give any constructive criticism.
Unfortunately our mod options are kinda limited in comparison to B and K motors. You have the d17a2 just so you know. 127hp at the crank and about 99hp at the wheels. :-) They're still peppy if you ask be, just kinda slow in 3rd gear...lol...however, my Civic an 04 Ex an automatic as well, does really well in 3rd gear after a racing exhaust from the header back and a K&N air intake. It moves the speedo from 40-55mph much faster than it had before.

I had read recently by another member that a stage 1 Cam can net you an extra 50-60hp, which to be honest is astounding! I think I'm going to do a bit more research in that regard because I had also discovered you can go a stage 2 cam without upgrading the heads internals...i.e. springs and retainers...no word yet on the expected amount of hp increase, but I will tell you stage 1, 2, and 3 cams are the same in price! Nice, I say. Other than than that turbo is an option, but very pricey and requires a y8 intake manifold because our little d17a2's have a plastic intake manifold...lol...go figure. The plastic manifolds cannot take the pressure from the boost of a turbo and Will crack. The y8 intake manifold is from a little bit older honda. I want to say 96-00, but I'm not certain, but I do know if installing the y8 it requires some slight modification with the fuel rail. There are other mods, like .20 thousandths over pistons, which require that you bore out your cylinders. Bigger injectors, racing springs and retainers, etc.

There are however, plently of mods for suspension and handling while also brake upgrades available.

Lastly, I read on here that there was a gentleman whom was able to achieve 489whp out of our little d17a2, but I imagine he most likely had all the things I listed above, plus nos...not real sure on the nos...just my guess.

Final note: there is a gentleman on here whose screen name is "CHILD" and he really knows his stuff, he could tell you a lot more than myself, but be prepared for this individual to tell you to go with a k20 engine swap. I would and will should the right deal ever come along.

Good luck to you sir and enjoy your Civic!

P.S. please excuse any typos. ;-P

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SeBreeze9000

New Member
Unfortunately our mod options are kinda limited in comparison to B and K motors. You have the d17a2 just so you know. 127hp and the crank and about 99hp at the wheels. :-) They're still peppy if you ask be, just kinda slow in 3rd gear...lol...however, my Civic an 04 Ex an automatic as well, does really well in 3rd gear after a racing exhaust from the header back and a K&N air intake. It moves the speedo from 40-55mph much faster than it had before.

I had read recently by another member that a stage 1 Cam can net you an extra 50-60hp, which to be honest is astounding! I think I'm going to do a bit more research in that regard because I had also discovered you can go a stage 2 cam without upgrading the heads internals...i.e. springs and retainers...no word yet on the expected amount of hp increase, but I will tell you stage 1, 2, and 3 cams are the same in price! Nice, I say. Other than than that turbo is an option, but very pricey and requires a y8 intake manifold because our little d17a2's have a plastic intake manifold...lol...go figure. The plastic manifolds cannot take the pressure from the boost of a turbo and Will crack. The y8 intake manifold is from a little bit older honda. I want to say 96-00, but I'm not certain, but I do know if installing the y8 it requires some slight modification with the fuel rail. There are other mods, like .20 thousandths over pistons, which require that you bore out your cylinders. Bigger injectors, racing springs and reatainers, etc.

There are however, plently of mods for suspension and handling while also brake upgrades available.

Lastly, I read on here that there was a gentleman whom was able to achieve 489whp out of our little d17a2, but I imagine he most likely had all the things I listed above, plus nos...not real sure on the nos...just my guess.

Final note: there is a gentleman on here whose screen name is "CHILD" and he really knows his stuff, he could tell you a lot more than myself, but be prepared for this individual to tell you to go with a k20 engine swap. I would and will should the right deal ever come along.

Good luck to you sir and enjoy you Civic!

P.S. please excuse any typos. ;-P

Sent from my SM-G360P using Tapatalk
Thank you so very much for replying to my thread! I would absolutely love to to swap out cams if it would benefit me that much why not? I'm literally open to any and everything I absolutely love my civic as I previously mentioned. With that being said I'm definitely open to the idea of any type of upgrades to my d17a2 as you've informed me. Whatever modifications that need to be done I'll do so, I would like to get as much as I possibly can out of this engine before I consider swapping. Swapping is not out of the realm of possibility but it's just a bit pricey I figure might as well purchase a new vehicle if I wanna spend will over 5k for a k20. But thank you again for your feedback it is greatly appreciated.
 

lunder03

Respected
Thank you so very much for replying to my thread! I would absolutely love to to swap out cams if it would benefit me that much why not? I'm literally open to any and everything I absolutely love my civic as I previously mentioned. With that being said I'm definitely open to the idea of any type of upgrades to my d17a2 as you've informed me. Whatever modifications that need to be done I'll do so, I would like to get as much as I possibly can out of this engine before I consider swapping. Swapping is not out of the realm of possibility but it's just a bit pricey I figure might as well purchase a new vehicle if I wanna spend will over 5k for a k20. But thank you again for your feedback it is greatly appreciated.
Not a problem, we are few...by that I mean d17a2 owners. Not many on here like to discuss modifying our motors because the return in power and torque is quite a bit less than B or K motor owners. By that I mean...a simple racing exhaust upgrade in a K20 would probably give a k20 owner upwards of a 15hp increase, but for us...most likely less than 10hp.

This is basically due to our engines compression ratio. However, Japan did bear that in mind and gave us awesome gearing for 1st and 2nd gear, even 3rd with the right mod.

You'll notice if you top out your motor you'll get to roughly103 mph whereas a k20 tops out around 130+...

There are a few d17a2 owners on here so don't get discouraged if you don't get an immediate response.

I love my car, it looks really cool with a front lip and rear spoiler with side skirts and a nice set of rims and tires. I imagine it would look even cooler with coilovers...my next upgrade on the list. ;-)

As she is currently.

Have my side skirts to put on...mock fitted them...kinda on the fence...will post photos of the mock fit a bit later...haven't taken a photo of the mock fit. Also want to tint the rear windows.


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lunder03

Respected
Not a problem, we are few...by that I mean d17a2 owners. Not many on here like to discuss modifying our motors because the return in power and torque is quite a bit less than B or K motor owners. By that I mean...a simple racing exhaust upgrade in a K20 would probably give a k20 owner upwards of a 15hp increase, but for us...most likely less than 10hp.

This is basically due to our engines compression ratio. However, Japan did bear that in mind and gave us awesome gearing for 1st and 2nd gear, even 3rd with the right mod.

You'll notice if you top out your motor you'll get to roughly103 mph whereas a k20 tops out around 130+...

There are a few d17a2 owners on here so don't get discouraged if you don't get an immediate response.

I love my car, it looks really cool with a front lip and rear spoiler with side skirts and a nice set of rims and tires. I imagine it would look even cooler with coilovers...my next upgrade on the list. ;-)

As she is currently.

Have my side skirts to put on...mock fitted them...kinda on the fence...will post photos of the mock fit a bit later...haven't taken a photo of the mock fit. Also want to tint the rear windows.


Sent from my SM-G360P using Tapatalk
Oh, that's carbon fiber wrap on the hood, upgraded fron grill, headlight and tail lights. Headlights are led surround with halo projectors. Tails are led's as well and so is the rear spoiler. :-)

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SeBreeze9000

New Member
Oh, that's carbon fiber wrap on the hood, upgraded fron grill, headlight and tail lights. Headlights are led surround with halo projectors. Tails are led's as well and so is the rear spoiler. :-)

Sent from my SM-G360P using Tapatalk
My apologies for the lack of replies I've had an interesting couple of days since my last update. Was gonna take a few photos of the car but it seems like I'm experiencing some overheating issues. After reading over a few post I'm led to believe it may be a head gasket issue, as I get into traffic and slow down the gauge will rise. Accelerating reaching around 65-75+mph the gauge will lower and steady out, it's really a pain to be completely honest. Loving the car but experiencing issues already it's truly a let down, taking the car in for service tomorrow morning hopefully it's not the head gasket and maybe something a bit more minor.
 

lunder03

Respected
My apologies for the lack of replies I've had an interesting couple of days since my last update. Was gonna take a few photos of the car but it seems like I'm experiencing some overheating issues. After reading over a few post I'm led to believe it may be a head gasket issue, as I get into traffic and slow down the gauge will rise. Accelerating reaching around 65-75+mph the gauge will lower and steady out, it's really a pain to be completely honest. Loving the car but experiencing issues already it's truly a let down, taking the car in for service tomorrow morning hopefully it's not the head gasket and maybe something a bit more minor.
I will help you with that...no worries on the lack of replies...lol.

To check for a bad headgasket wait for your car to cool and remove your radiator cap...if it's not full fill it until it is. Then start the car, in doing so you may see a fluid drop, if this occurs fill it until full.

Then let it run, if the heasgasket is bad you'll notice bubbles coming out. It may be constant or intermittent...if no bubbles or the bubbles stop, it could mean two things. One, bad thermostat...simple easy fix. Or two, bad water pump...cheap to do on your own, but expensive at a shop. There are other reasons too like clogged lines, (highly unlikely), let's see...little to no fluid...usually caused by a bad thermostat.

If anyone else can think of anything I haven't, please feel free to add to or correct anything I may have missed.

Let me know what you find out.

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