NEW car

tensors22288 · 10-25-05, 02:30

alrite guys, i have to thank you all for your comments an advice in my last post. After my recent SAT scores and gpa, my parents are VERY happy and decided to pay for a large part of a new car (used of course) as a present. Im actually upset by this but im forcing them to let me pay for atleast 5k of it. OF course this won't be happening until the spring as long as i keep grades up before college, its never too early to start planning. Right now im thinking a 2004-2005 acura rsx type s. I've read reviews that loved it, and it came in first in serveral mutliple car tests in C&D. Also my dad has an acura and loves it so he sees it as a possibilty. Im planning to put about 5k-8k of mods into it.

----First question i Have is are bolt on exhausts any good? i've seen a greddy kit thats about 600. Are they reliable? i really don't know much about bolt on's so anyone can fill me in.

Intake is covered, i know plently about them. im guessing a cold air injen or something along those lines.

I also saw a turbo kit for about 600-800 that said (240) hp next to it. i dont know if that means it adds that much hp which i doubt, or if it takes it up to that much hp. again, anyone is welcome to fill me in.

Im not gonna touch cams or anything like that. I think i'll be satisfied with those three things. i believe the 0-60 is already around 6.

As for exterior i'm not gonna rice it out. I found a set of clean looking euro taillights that i think look really agressive with the carbon fiber ring around the bulb. also i'll probably looks for a spoke type wheel, maybe 17 or 18. Ill plan on tinting 35 or so because having any is illegal and i've heard 35 doesnt draw much attention. Ill also probably clear out the front signals and blinkers and call it a day.

So thats my ideal car in the future. any input on mods or ideas is greatly appreciated. multiple people suggested rsx in my last post and you guys picked a great car

SpoiledMan · 10-25-05, 03:37

Keep the stock tail lights. Get some black housing headlights or the JDM units. I'm partial to the HKS Hyper exhaust as I have one myself and like the tone.

tensors22288 · 10-25-05, 05:35

alrite, ill keep the exhaust in mind. did you notice a significant hp gain? and is it a loud ricey tone or just a deep "growl" lol. I dont want an obnoxious one. this page has some other tails.

http://www.2kracing.com/index.php/cPath/1_115_1270

i like the bottom one, especially on a black car. i saw a of a black rsx with it an it really looked clean. but its not 100% for now so we'll see. also describe those headlights too, any links?

Amused · 10-25-05, 06:30

a bolt on exhaust isn't going to give you any significant gains except on the butt dyno. the basic 3, header/exhaust/intake will net you about 10-15 hp, not very much for the amount of cash involved for the parts. if you want significant gains, you will have to work the engine...eg) new cams, valve springs, port polish, etc. tuning hondas for big gains isn't cheap, but it is rewarding to squeeze power out of an NA engine. i wouldn't suggest turboing the k20 unless you have access to a good tuner garage for maintenance. go visit superhonda.com, clubrsx, etc and read up on members' dynos with their mods. if you're set on getting bolt ons, consider Mugen or Spoon headers, and RS*R(Ex-Mag) and Mugen exhausts if you want a nice tame tone without sounding obnoxious. that's what i had in my old GS-R and Prelude Type-S.

oh yeah, check out icbmotorsport.com, inlinefour.com, importselect.com, kingmotorsports.com, and japanparts.com for some of the better JDM pricing/selection. that should give you a good feel for the cost of quality parts. BTW, stay away from greddy exhausts, they just look dumb...grapefruit launchers.

JohnnyDaJackal · 10-25-05, 07:09

I really hope the last C&D where the Acura RSX Type S took the prize didn't fool you. If your looking to get "cheap speed" as the competition was named, an RSX Type S really won't get you there. Even though some of the competitors lacked the design and luxuriousness as the RSX, they all performed the same if not better than the RSX. I really think C&D has their priorities mixed up and are a little Honda biased...

I love my car because it accomodates me very well, and the styling is great. I don't consider my car or even a Type S a really fast car though. Sure you can make them fast, but for all the money you drop in it you can get something to perform way better than it. Not trying to shy you away from the RSX, just letting you know there are options out there.
btw if your bent on speed and hp I would consider an 05+ over the previous styling because the Type S has 10 more hp over the 02-04. That is if you don't mind the styling, I personally like the older styling a little more than the redesigned, but thats subjective.

BlackSunshine · 10-26-05, 06:18

Quote:

Originally Posted by JohnnyDaJackal

I really hope the last C&D where the Acura RSX Type S took the prize didn't fool you. If your looking to get "cheap speed" as the competition was named, an RSX Type S really won't get you there. Even though some of the competitors lacked the design and luxuriousness as the RSX, they all performed the same if not better than the RSX. I really think C&D has their priorities mixed up and are a little Honda biased...

I love my car because it accomodates me very well, and the styling is great. I don't consider my car or even a Type S a really fast car though. Sure you can make them fast, but for all the money you drop in it you can get something to perform way better than it. Not trying to shy you away from the RSX, just letting you know there are options out there.
btw if your bent on speed and hp I would consider an 05+ over the previous styling because the Type S has 10 more hp over the 02-04. That is if you don't mind the styling, I personally like the older styling a little more than the redesigned, but thats subjective.

I agree completely with DaJackal. The RSX is a very fun and rewarding car to drive, but there are others for the money that are faster than the Acura in a straight line. However, the interior appointments, exterior styling, reliability, and dealership experience with an Acura is heads and shoulders above any others in the same price range. I would look into the Type-S, and the new WRX, as they have tamed the bug-eyed styling that some loved, others hated, and increased the displacement this year. It's only got slightly more power, but it is more usable in daily driving than the previous iterations.

I would personally be all over a newer RSX Type-S, but if you're dead set on a turbo, why not go with a car already built around a turbo, like the WRX? Both are great cars.

SpoiledMan · 10-26-05, 08:12

Quote:

Originally Posted by tensors22288

alrite, ill keep the exhaust in mind. did you notice a significant hp gain? and is it a loud ricey tone or just a deep "growl" lol. I dont want an obnoxious one. this page has some other tails.

http://www.2kracing.com/index.php/cPath/1_115_1270

i like the bottom one, especially on a black car. i saw a of a black rsx with it an it really looked clean. but its not 100% for now so we'll see. also describe those headlights too, any links?

I'm not feelin the clear taillight look but it's not my car so....

My exhaust is deep with no hint of being raspy. The lights I'm talking about are here----->
http://www.optionsauto.com/prodinfo....mber=OAS-HLDC5

tensors22288 · 10-26-05, 04:37

yea thanx for the link spoil. i checked out clubrsx.com which is an awesome site and found every mod i could want on there. the ones in the pic on ur link are the amber ones, i think i like the clears a little more but they would look great on a black car so thanx for suggesting them.

also i live in NJ. i have a guy i go to for wheels and stuff but hes a bmw specialist and i feel weird taking a acura to the guy. he knows my dad well so he usually helps me out but are there any more shops that deal with more modern mods for all cars in nj? i know jackel is from jersey but anyone else who has suggestions are greatly appreciated.

and i really am leaning towards the rsx. yes there are cars with more power for that price as a first car i want one with everything sunshine mentioned in its post. I just don't no if i should go the NA route or FI. i see superchargers for the rsx that add about 50 whp for 3.3k. on the other hand, an exhaust, headers, intake, chip, and cams may be an alternate route. i just don't know how reliable SC's are.

G35stilez · 10-27-05, 09:30

Being an Acura owner, if I did it all over again, I'd do:

-OEM Lip Kit
-Eibach ProKit
-Type R Swaybars
-Comptech Icebox
-Comptech Header
-Carsound Cat
-Comptech Exhaust
-Forged 17's or 18's

Honestly, there is so much junk out there for these vehicles. I would stick to the big names and even OEM. There are a couple very clean looking RSX's on this site, start poking around.

SpoiledMan · 10-27-05, 09:46

Sean, I couldn't agree with you more on picking the "known" manufacturers of goods. There's truly tons of junk out there for these cars. I saw a short shift kit for like 19 bucks! Tell me that's a quality piece!

The OEM stuff like the lip kit are very nice pieces. I got the front lip for my car(same as the '98 Type R) and it looks very nice while still being factory. It's a rare sighting (GS-R's in general seem to be) and it didn't cost a whole bunch of money. Oh yeah, they also come painted so no need to get them matched.

HKS, Greddy, AEM, Spoon, Comptech and a few others will give you some long and trouble free miles. The only place I differ from Sean is that I would choose the H&R OE Sport springs instead of the Eibach's. They just seem to place the car just right. Think Type R with the amount of lowering or really how they all should have been done from the factory.

Enjoy putting it all together and driving a car that is lots of fun to drive!

G35stilez · 10-27-05, 09:55

I just prefer a little lower car than usual. Personally the ProKit doesn't look low enough for me, but its a nice mix between race springs and OE. Match it with a nice set of struts and your car will outhandle most vehicles on the road and have a great feel.

Accumulator · 10-27-05, 10:20

At the risk of sounding like real drag/old fart, I'd say to spend some time and money on a few driving schools before spending it on mods to a car that will already outperform the abilities of most drivers

But more directly on-topic, I'd *drive* a car that was modified the way you're planning before making up your mind. A lot of modified cars read a lot better than they actually drive if you get my drift. How often do you read/hear about somebody spending a few grand to modify a car and then admitting that they wish they hadn't done it? Nobody wants to 'fess up to making a mistake but if it were *that* easy to improve [any car] the factory would offer the upgrades as an option, as they sometimes do. Of the countless cars I've modified, maybe two-thirds of them were really improved. The others just stimulated the economy