where do I start?

[jordanfitted]

I want to mod my ride.... where do I start? engine swap, new filters plugs???? any help please. and keep in mind tha car needs work anyways, any ideas are helpful. Thanks....DEUCE

 

[evilrilla2]

deuce, keep one thread. then post pics of your car, front side,back, engine bay. then we will start from there. also post your wants and goals, and your budget. $$$.

 

[jordanfitted]

k cool. im not home right now but i will start takin pics when i get bacc. Thanks evil

 

[jordanfitted]

I haven't had time to take pics yet but I'm thinkin about gettin a JDM 4-2-1 HEADER? any good?

 

[SGGilmo]

here's the things. don't bother with engine mods unless you plan on keeping the engine that's in there. first thing i always do is fix the car as is. make sure all of your suspension, body, interior, engine, and trans are all complete and functioning properly and not leaking everywhere. If the engine has lots of miles (over 150k) then maybe look into a swap. (same goes for the trans). If you need to replace some ball joints and struts, and other suspension parts then you can decide what your plans for the car is. if you just daily driving the car but want a better stance then you can go with a good shock and some lowering springs. if your going to race then maybe some coilovers. it really all just depends on what your going to be doing.

 

[barrett]

1) type of car (DD, track, all around, etc)
2) budget (how much do you have to throw into the project?)
3) do you want to run boost (NOS, turbocharge, supercharge)
4) would you look into an engine swap?
5) research parts for your build based on above 4 criteria
6) have at er. go wild.

its basically personal preference and how much you wanna spend. you can make 400hp on a D engine, you just have to be prepared for boost and replacing every internal component. if you want to just make your daily driver a little more peppy, intake, header, exhaust, will help a lot. coilovers or struts/lowering springs and a decent set of rims can also completely change the look of your car.

 

[jordanfitted]

Eventually I want an engine swap but for now I'm lookin more for a peppy everyday driver. Headers exhaust etc.... I don't have A LOT of money but don't want super cheap either. I do want to make this a racer car but not yet. So what should come first headers? I've always been told do exterior last? Thanks guys.

 

[SGGilmo]

simple bolt ons will do nothing to the stock d-series engine you currently have. if you just wanna make it a little peppier i would suggest doing a mild cam. it will only cost a few hundred dollars and you will notice a difference. just dont go too crazy with it unless you plan on building the head.

 

[jordanfitted]

What's considered a "mild cam?" I researched a lil and found out my engine is an SOHC but vtec has another camshaft ... did I understand that right? So do I need to buy 2 cams?

 

[barrett]

SOHC => single over head cam.. single meaning one.. so no. there are vtec and nonvtec versions. vtec versions get a vtec camshaft and nonvtec versions get a non vtec camshaft.

 

[jordanfitted]

K thanks tha vtec part was confusin me.... any advice on cam choice?

 

[purpej1]

i say start of by fixing all the little bugs

 

[jordanfitted]

What would cause my car to idle rough? When I turn tha heater on it smoothes out a lil and when I'm stopped my subs make it idle harder too what tha fucc?

 

[r03ld4v1d]

What would cause my car to idle rough? When I turn tha heater on it smoothes out a lil and when I'm stopped my subs make it idle harder too what tha fucc?

can't understand you sorry

 

[Mr.Baker]

I want to mod my ride.... where do I start? engine swap, new filters plugs???? any help please.

The old saying, "Measure twice, cut once..." applies.

One thing that should be a necessity is the actual, physical hard copy of the Honda factory service manual or the Helms shop manual. It literally breaks your car down to every nut and bolt. You can get them off eBay or download it on the web, or buy a reprint directly from helminc.com, but there's nothing like good bathroom reading and flipping through the pages to fully understand the proper steps of how to work on your car.


First, get it running as best as possible in its current stage. A basic tune-up is in order.
Replace:
-Distributor cap and rotor
-Spark plugs & wires
-All filters (air, fuel, oil)

Fix anything broken, replace and maintain EVERYTHING as much as possible, spark plugs, brakes, bushings, belts, bearings, ball joints, & fluids. Replacing what needs to be maintained gives you a certain point of reference of what exactly has now been done and shouldn't have to be worried about for a while, instead of guessing or waiting for something to break unexpectedly. It also gets you to know and understand various parts of the car, knowledge that will help you for the rest of your life.

Get used to the way it drives, the way it handles, the way it performs... after you get used to it, then go for something bigger, IE; engine swap, rebuild, turbo, etc.
Be patient and start reading, searching, planning and saving for whatever project you come up with. Don't cut corners or cheap out. Most importantly, there is a lot of false information running around on the World wide web, be careful and do lots of searches to compare answers.

Come up with a realistic power goal and what you can realistically afford.
Your budget ultimately dictates what you can build.

Do not fall into the "well if I'm replacing it, i might as well 'upgrade' it" mentality. This could be a waste of money, until you figure out what you want to do EXACTLY with your car. In MOST cases there is nothing wrong with OEM/stock, so stick to stock replacement parts.

 

[jordanfitted]

M

The old saying, "Measure twice, cut once..." applies.

One thing that should be a necessity is the actual, physical hard copy of the Honda factory service manual or the Helms shop manual. It literally breaks your car down to every nut and bolt. You can get them off eBay or download it on the web, or buy a reprint directly from helminc.com, but there's nothing like good bathroom reading and flipping through the pages to fully understand the proper steps of how to work on your car.


First, get it running as best as possible in its current stage. A basic tune-up is in order.
Replace:
-Distributor cap and rotor
-Spark plugs & wires
-All filters (air, fuel, oil)

Fix anything broken, replace and maintain EVERYTHING as much as possible, spark plugs, brakes, bushings, belts, bearings, ball joints, & fluids. Replacing what needs to be maintained gives you a certain point of reference of what exactly has now been done and shouldn't have to be worried about for a while, instead of guessing or waiting for something to break unexpectedly. It also gets you to know and understand various parts of the car, knowledge that will help you for the rest of your life.

Get used to the way it drives, the way it handles, the way it performs... after you get used to it, then go for something bigger, IE; engine swap, rebuild, turbo, etc.
Be patient and start reading, searching, planning and saving for whatever project you come up with. Don't cut corners or cheap out. Most importantly, there is a lot of false information running around on the World wide web, be careful and do lots of searches to compare answers.

Come up with a realistic power goal and what you can realistically afford.
Your budget ultimately dictates what you can build.

Do not fall into the "well if I'm replacing it, i might as well 'upgrade' it" mentality. This could be a waste of money, until you figure out what you want to do EXACTLY with your car. In MOST cases there is nothing wrong with OEM/stock, so stick to stock replacement parts.

Thanks man! As simple as that seems I didn't think about a tune up lol...... maybe you got the answer to my question, what could cause my car to idle so rough?