[Ace F355]

Originally Posted by shk 8896

Wow !Your Civic is looking hot.Superb looking. Alloys in matte black is also nice but wished it was in 16 inchers with lower profile tyres.Also nice clicks.

Thanks mate. Why 16", I really wish I could put on 17" alloys on my car! Ah... if wishes were horses!

Originally Posted by cityvic

Woah.!
Looks sexy.

Tanku

Originally Posted by driving_smartly

Awesome Pictures a real treat to watch. The nights shots in particular are more appealing to me though the day time shots stands equally as well.

Glad you liked'em driving_smartly! I do not have appropriate glass for low light shots, so the quality suffers a bit without tripod.

Originally Posted by iTNerd

Looks great! I particularly like the OEM alloys on matte black! Is it a DIY, or did from a paintshop? Just wondering, how matte black on alloys would look like in white civic!

Thank you iTNerd. I got them painted at Phil's workshop. Costed me INR 1000/wheel. I am not a PS person myself but you can ask photoshop experts on TBHP to give you an idea how would these alloys look on your Civic.

Originally Posted by iTNerd

About the calipers, won't the paint come off after sometime? I have seen other putting covers (red and yellow) on it.

Could be the case but brake caliper paint can is for around INR 180. The time you feel the paint is coming off, re-paint them again!

Personally, I think it will become dull with time due to heat from brake disks and brake dust but won't chip off!

Originally Posted by dot

Nice, with capital N. Between the first set of night pictures and the next set by Pranav7, the front logo/badge has changed to red background isnt it? Smart with capital S.

Edit: Rears ones too!

Thanks dot and good eye for detail, there! Yes, India Gate pics were clicked a few days (and red badges weren't installed by that time) before Pranav clicked those pics.

[akshay4587]

Shark is Amazing,whoa,does it bite
Looks like a Devil in dark with those meanest projectors.
Nice ride you got there Rohit,it was nice catching up with you.
Hope to catch again sometime soon.
Drive Safe

[Ace F355]

Here is what has happened with my car, chronologically since this April 1st!

April 1st, 2011 – I arrived from New York late night and my dad picked me up. There she was, parked in IGI airport’s parking lot and I laid my hands on my beauty after a month. Even though I get chances to drive some really good cars abroad, driving my very own car is something special that can’t be described in words. Drove her home for a good 220 kms and loved the drive to the core, sitting into that silent cabin with some slow music being poured in!

Got to see a horrible accident on my way home, a crash between a bus and a Maruti 800! The car was completely crushed and was burning into flames with dead passengers still inside! Policemen and locals were trying to control the fire. Looked like Maruti driver was at fault but a really pathetic sight I must say. May their souls rest in peace…



April 2nd – I had to come back to Delhi for some personal work and I brought all the stuff along with me! Got K&N Typhoon installed later that afternoon at Phil’s workshop. They did good job with installation and charged me INR 400 for it, not bad.

After effects - Low end grunt has improved though I have no idea on BHP gains. The car pulls really cleanly and I love the deep growl/rumble of Air Intake in 2nd and 3rd gear @ 3500-5000 rpm.

Enjoyed India Vs Sri Lanka WC final at Promenade Mall, Vasant Kunj and thoroughly enjoyed the drive to India Gate later that night after India’s win. Amazing experience I must say. Not so many pics but I bumped into a Type 1 Honda City with a Got BHP! Sticker. I asked the guy and he identified himself a TBHPian with handle Bada**! Identify yourself here dude, I could not find you on this website! Nice ride you have got, with kinda bada** exhaust note! The Jat chick on roof of your car was cool too!



April 3rd - Despite the fact that I do not like them, sunfilms were installed on my Shark at Driven, Delhi. Llumar brand, 60% visibility on the front, 50% on sides and back! Total cost including installation = INR 7600.

Got new shoes from my ride too. Yokohama A Drive, 205/65/R15 on all 5 wheels. Sat me back INR 5000 per piece!

Initial impressions -

Road Noise - reduced to almost zero.
Comfort - improved significanty.
GC - improved significanty, Haven't scraped the under-belly so far and I am a happy man.
Handling - Haven't tried pushing my car into corners hard enough. Will keep you guys updated but A Drives aren't very good handlers I have heard!
Looks - A Drives look just fine to me, nothing special to mention.



April 4th – Alloys painted matte black at Phil’s workshop after considering the quotes from others. I got a quote of INR 1750/wheel from Pandit & co. and INR 1500/wheel from BK Tyres. Phil quoted INR 1000/wheel with full warranty in case the paint starts chipping off! I found his offer to be the best and asked him to go ahead with painting my stock alloys matte black. The result speak for itself!



April 6th – Brake calipers were painted red (for INR 300 @ BK Tyres) and I got HS number plates on my car (for INR 800)! Red H logos were also installed. Pranav clicked my car the same day.



April 7th and 8th – I attended a cousin’s marriage and my shark did a lot of off-roading (quite literally)!!! Good workout for her suspension, I must say. She was covered in few mm layer of dust and children wrote their names on her! She also got a bruise on her LHS door guards while my father was trying to squeeze her into a really tight parking place! It will be taken care off soon, I promise!



Yesterday, April 9th – I was in Chandigarh (for my personal work) and also got to attend Chandigarh Team BHP meet during evening. Met with some real cool people, Akshay4587, SumitBahl, yc.baleno.chd, Nikhil, Chiragh, Shresth, Abhi and others! It was a pleasure to see you all in person, guys! I enjoyed the meet a lot. Thanks so much to all for organizing. I will be posting meet pics soon.

I and Nikhil stayed for a little late and clicked his and my Civic! Today, I bumped into SumitBahl again and had some interesting chat. Also clicked his Abarth and my Type R together ! Pics coming in next post!

[Ace F355]

Originally Posted by akshay4587

Shark is Amazing,whoa,does it bite
Looks like a Devil in dark with those meanest projectors.
Nice ride you got there Rohit,it was nice catching up with you.
Hope to catch again sometime soon.
Drive Safe

Thanks for the kind words, Akshay. I will keep you guys updated when ever I am coming to Chandigarh again. I will post meet pics in CHD meet thread as well as here. Do post the meet pics clicked from your cellphone too.

I got a chance to stretch the legs of my car this evening. Found a newly built 2 lane highway completely deserted and I kept her between 5500-6000 RPM in 4th gear for quite a while. Drive was really enjoyable, but I should admit, the best part was the smell of rubber after the spirited run. Heavenly....

I am a 90 kmph cruiser most of the times and these runs happen only and only when the conditions are good enough! She seemed happy after such a warm up!

[hiren.mistry]

Well well well. First things first welcome back ace!!
And your car is just like your name, ACE!!!

Loved the way you're treated your car, its just fabulous. Seeing the way your car looks on it powder coated wheels, I am tempted to go for the same, along with painted calipers. Imitation, they say, is the best form of flattery!

Got one question for you regarding your headlights, how is the throw and quality of the beam with your after market lenses? I've not heard good things, hence the question.

Why did you opt for A-drives? S or C drives are more sporty na? I don't think any tires are as quiet as the A-drives, have them on my Esteem and they are fab. The grip is not bad as well.

Did you get the starter button installed?

Cheers

[Ace F355]

Here are the pics...

1st set - The Shark on its way to Chandigarh and on Punchkula roads!

[Ace F355]

2nd Set - Pics from Chandigarh Team BHP meet.

The cars belong to:

White Civic - Nikhil
Red Punto - Sumit
Grey Civic - Me
White Scorpio - Akshay
White Alto - Taran (I think?!!)

Most of these guys are complete ICE freaks and I hate them all for having such awesome ICE in their cars!

@ Nikhil - Dude, your Civic's ICE is superb. I had no clue that ICE can sound so awesome in a sadan with cab forward design! And the IDs give some real good back massage through your seats! lol...

The alloys too, on your Civic look nice! Good choice...

@ Sumit - Ah, what to say about your ICE'd Abarth! Too good, dude.

I wanted to audition Chiragh's Gets too but couldn't! May be next time!

@ Akshay - Please post Chiragh's ICE BUG sticker!

You guys tried hard contemplating me to go for ICE upgrade in my Civic, BUT I will not.... NO NO NO! hahaha....

[Ace F355]

3rd Set -

belongs to Punto Abarth and Civic Type R

[Ace F355]

Originally Posted by hiren.mistry

Well well well. First things first welcome back ace!!
And your car is just like your name, ACE!!!

Loved the way you're treated your car, its just fabulous. Seeing the way your car looks on it powder coated wheels, I am tempted to go for the same, along with painted calipers. Imitation, they say, is the best form of flattery!

Thank you again hiren.mistry. If you like the matte black alloys, go for them. They are real VFM if you do not want to upgrade the alloys. My single concern would be regarding paint quality. Go with the best painter available, othervise you will ruin your alloys.

Originally Posted by hiren.mistry

Got one question for you regarding your headlights, how is the throw and quality of the beam with your after market lenses? I've not heard good things, hence the question.

haha... I will let Nikhil and Akshay answer this! Nikhil has regular angel eye projectors on his Civic and he was quite keen to test the throw of my projectors.

His first comment after testing them was, and I am quoting it "seriously, these projectors have better throw than Skoda Laura's stock projector setup".

I have heard the chinese projectors do not have good throw! Nikhil was complaining about his setup too. But the light quality on my pojectors is really awesome indeed.

Originally Posted by hiren.mistry

Why did you opt for A-drives? S or C drives are more sporty na? I don't think any tires are as quiet as the A-drives, have them on my Esteem and they are fab. The grip is not bad as well.

Life of the rubber was an important criteria. S Drives are sporty no doubt, but wear too soon due to soft compound and so do the C Drives!

Originally Posted by hiren.mistry

Did you get the starter button installed?

The button is installed and the LED inside it glows! I am yet to figure out the relay connections on it to make it work though! Spent 5 hours at Retro Rides, Delhi trying to figure it out but could not get it to work!

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Wow!!! What a beauty! My jaw dropped seeing the pics! I somehow dont fancy the alloys that much, but the overall package is nothing short of jaw-dropping.

Nice set of alloys on the white Civic too!

[hiren.mistry]

Originally Posted by Ace F355

Thank you again hiren.mistry. If you like the matte black alloys, go for them. They are real VFM if you do not want to upgrade the alloys. My single concern would be regarding paint quality. Go with the best painter available, othervise you will ruin your alloys.

Yep, valid point. Will explore the options in my area. BTW, have you powder coated your alloys black or they're grey?

Originally Posted by Ace F355

His first comment after testing them was, and I am quoting it "seriously, these projectors have better throw than Skoda Laura's stock projector setup".

I have heard the chinese projectors do not have good throw! Nikhil was complaining about his setup too. But the light quality on my pojectors is really awesome indeed.

Thats super. So where'd you get your projectors from?

Originally Posted by Ace F355

Life of the rubber was an important criteria. S Drives are sporty no doubt, but wear too soon due to soft compound and so do the C Drives!

Ah ok! What tires did you car come shod with originally? Goodyear GT3?

Originally Posted by Ace F355

The button is installed and the LED inside it glows! I am yet to figure out the relay connections on it to make it work though! Spent 5 hours at Retro Rides, Delhi trying to figure it out but could not get it to work!

ah! So as of now its just ornamental. Retro rides, aren't these the guys that retro fit projectors and HID's? Did you get your projector set up from them?

Geez! Way too many questions I see. Promise I will cut down.

[SumitBahl]

It was really nice meeting you rohit.

The pictures came out really well. Although, the one with all of us in the frame is blurry.

I loved your civic, its very nicely done.

BTW, the last 2 pictures in "1st set - The Shark on its way to Chandigarh and on Punchkula roads!" is right on the road in front of my house.

[dot]

Originally Posted by Ace F355

The button is installed and the LED inside it glows! I am yet to figure out the relay connections on it to make it work though! Spent 5 hours at Retro Rides, Delhi trying to figure it out but could not get it to work!

Like Hiren, I am also keenly waiting to hear about the start stop button fixture. As you may know, there is a DIY thread with a circuit diagram on this installation, in the 8thcivic forum.

Originally Posted by Ace F355

Got to see a horrible accident on my way home, a crash between a bus and a Maruti 800! The car was completely crushed and was burning into flames with dead passengers still inside!

Eugh. What a thing to witness. That too right after a long flight home. May they rest in peace.

[jatinpatel]

@ACE

Nice work

Your shark is now looking complete and strikingly unique.

I have also a few plans for my Silver Rocket but since its moms car cant do anything so soon. But first order of action would be De-cat and K&N

Any specific reason for which you went for A-drives?

[Ace F355]

Things in pipeline -

1. Planning to go with Modulo body kit
2. Make the engine start button work!

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

Wow!!! What a beauty! My jaw dropped seeing the pics! I somehow dont fancy the alloys that much, but the overall package is nothing short of jaw-dropping.

Nice set of alloys on the white Civic too!

hmmm, finally a distinguished BHPian in my thread! Thank you CrAzY dRiVeR for praising my car. I agree, Nikhil's Civic wears really nice looking alloys. Stock alloys can never look as good as zeroed down 17 inchers, but they work for me (for now) none the less.

Originally Posted by hiren.mistry

Yep, valid point. Will explore the options in my area. BTW, have you powder coated your alloys black or they're grey?

I could not find anyone to powder coat my alloys. Manan told me he could help me powder coat pure aluminum but not the alloys! He showed me an alloy that was powder coated, and results were not inspiring. I have painted my alloys matte black.

Originally Posted by hiren.mistry

Thats super. So where'd you get your projectors from?

I have answered this question in the very first post of this thread. Pranav custom built them!

Originally Posted by hiren.mistry

Ah ok! What tires did you car come shod with originally? Goodyear GT3?

Bridgestone B250.

Originally Posted by hiren.mistry

ah! So as of now its just ornamental. Retro rides, aren't these the guys that retro fit projectors and HID's?

Yep, they do all kind of modifications including projectors and rest! IIRC, Noidaboy's swift was modded by them!

Originally Posted by hiren.mistry

Geez! Way too many questions I see. Promise I will cut down.

No worries buddy. I am always ready to answer (if I know it)!

Originally Posted by SumitBahl

It was really nice meeting you rohit.

The pictures came out really well. Although, the one with all of us in the frame is blurry.

I loved your civic, its very nicely done.

BTW, the last 2 pictures in "1st set - The Shark on its way to Chandigarh and on Punchkula roads!" is right on the road in front of my house.

Same here Sumit and am glad you liked my car. I had a good time too. At the moment, I do not have glass that is fast enough during low light conditions. Now you know, why do I carry my tripod with me all the time!

Originally Posted by dot

Like Hiren, I am also keenly waiting to hear about the start stop button fixture. As you may know, there is a DIY thread with a circuit diagram on this installation, in the 8thcivic forum.

Yep, I know that and I used the same wiring diagram to connect engine start button in my car! Unfortunately, it didn't work and I think I might need some expertise help! My only fear is, what if the button is faulty!

Originally Posted by dot

Eugh. What a thing to witness. That too right after a long flight home. May they rest in peace.

These terrible sights make me a bit more cautious and a better driver, me thinks!

On a lighter note, (16 hours flight + 4 hours drive) - (3 hours sleep + 5 hours drive back to Delhi)! I surely have a thing against fatigue!

Originally Posted by jatinpatel

@ACE

Nice work

Your shark is now looking complete and strikingly unique.

I have also a few plans for my Silver Rocket but since its moms car cant do anything so soon. But first order of action would be De-cat and K&N

Any specific reason for which you went for A-drives?

Thanks jatinpatel. Good planning for your rocket!

The main reason for going with A Drives was the price. My primary criteria (in order of preference) was low road noise, comfort, tyre life and the price!

195/65/R15 Michelin Primacy LC was for INR 6100/piece and C Drives were expensive too. A Drives seemed to fulfill all my requirements to the T.