[Nikhilb2008]

Aaaaannnndddddd it’s BACK!

Faster than ever! Better than ever!

I must say absolutely phenomenal work by Blackworks. Venkat, Joe and Chandru worked flat out for 6 days FLAT.

Our heroes dismantled the engine, got the head and block milled, got new head gaskets and put everything back together, then realised one ignition coil had gone kaput yesterday, immediately made arrangements to get one more temporarily then fired up the car and delivered it in 6 days FLAT


The reason one cylinder wasn’t firing was due to lack of compression. They removed the head and tried to find if the gasket had blown. There was no conclusive evidence in favour of that theory. Then they measured the block and the head and found a little bit of warping. This can only be attributed to pouring very cold (around 20 deg C) coolant into an engine which may have been many times hotter.

Probably the suddent change in surface temperature led to metal warping.

This is just a theory. If any of you guys have better ideas, please let me know your opinions.

More importantly, as this is my ONLY car, my daily drive, it was very important to me that the car is back on the road asap.

Blackworks worked non stop. Sunday, Independence Day, everything.

It is insane to see this kind of commitment in a world when people more often than not accuse tuners of involving in bad practices.

Having praised Blackworks enough, let me get back to my car.

The car post suspension rebuild feels absolutely phenomenal. The suspension soaks up bumps and ruts in the road like a high end European car. On the highway, lane changes and any turn of the steering results in an immediate response.

There is a sense of urgency and it feels like the car is ready to dance! It pivots around me and turns like a ballet dancer at 100 kmph!

I used to go orgasmic for my suspension before, but I cant believe how much better it is! Red Rooster have done a phenomenal job of tuning the Teins for Indian roads. Typically a “sports” suspension only means a hard ride but sporty handling. I’m blessed to say I have the best of both worlds.

Coming to the performance of the car itself, it feels as agile, tractable and amazing as before. Post the little of work that was done this week, it feels a little more explosive actually. Hitting the speed limit is very easy and with the suspension now doing it’s job even better, I have to keep an eye on the speedo to ensure I’m legal!

And it continues to be refined and easy to drive around the city. The clutch is nice and smooth (though a little harder than stock). It’s easy to drive in Bangalore’s notorious traffic.

We also changed the gearbox oil this time to Petronas Tutela Technyx 75W-85 GL4+ Fully Synthetic Gearbox Oil. https://www.pli-petronas.com/uk/prod...tutela-technyx

This was highly recommended to me by my good friend Sunnyboi. And boy! It makes shifting so much better. The gearbox clicks in with a precision that was missing earlier. Usually, shifting from 4th to 5th is a bit hard but now it’s like running a hot knife through butter! Actually, it’s far softer than that too!

Right now, my car is in peak condition. It’s in the best shape it has ever been. The suspension is fresh, the gearbox feels amazing and of course, the engine is a fresh engine rebuilt just a few months ago.

As of now, I’m very happy.

Issues have surfaced, as with any aftermarket turbo build, but the car has covered 50,000 kms in less than 2 years. I think that’s a testament to how long and how hard I’ve driven the car.

I still feel that no other aftermarket turbo car has seen the kind of driving and abuse that I have.

And for that kind of reliability, I must thanks Blackworks!

The picture below adequately sums up my feelings!

[Nikhilb2008]

A full report on my experience with Red Rooster Performance, now known as Arka Motorsports.

Today, there is some attempt to demarcate different businesses of Red Rooster. Their motorsports and tuning business is being rebranded Arka Motorsports. Red Rooster will continue as the brand under which the trading will happen for their products. The day we were there was pretty much the beginning of Arka Motorsports.

I had bought the Teins from RRP in 2015. 10th July to be precise. Odo reading was around 1,16,000 kms. This was my second set. My full thread can be accessed here:

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/modifi...nda-civic.html

Anyway, after 2 years and more than 60,000 kms, it was time for a suspension overhaul. I felt that the suspension had become a bit soft. This was especially evident on my last trackday in June. Read here: https://goo.gl/k1afcW


I spoke to Thambu of Red Rooster and he said I can come in whenever I want with some prior notice. I had some work in Coimbatore in August, so I fixed up a time with Thambu and landed up straight at RRP Coimbatore on Monday, the 7th of August. I drove directly from Bangalore and handed over the car. My colleague picked me up from there and we continued on our work.

Dropping it off itself was so much fun. Thambu wasn’t there, but Jawad had been briefed and immediately ensured the basics were taken care of. Met Karna Kadur also and had a chat with him. Jawad was very attentive and asked me if I had any specific issues they had to look into. I told him I had no issues apart from the rear sagging too much. This is something I’ve always felt for a very long time, ever since I got my second set of Teins.

I explained to Jawad that I am very attached to my car and asked him to take good care of it. They worked on it on Monday and Tuesday and maybe a bit on Wednesday. I went on Wednesday afternoon and met Leela Sir. Had a long chat with him and really enjoyed it! He’s a guy who has lived through dozens of stories you may have read about in car magazines!

Then Thambu and I went for a quick drive to ensure everything was working well. I had interacted a lot with Thambu earlier on the phone/whatsapp. But this was the first time I was meeting him. Like everyone at RRP, he was very sweet and nice to talk to. I don’t know why, but generally everyone I’ve interacted with at RRP have been very nice! Even the guys who are no longer there like Niraj, Jinosh, Joe, Koman, etc.

Point to note is that RRP while

Once I was satisfied that the car was working fine, I dropped Thambu back at the workshop, said my goodbyes to everyone and left to my hotel.

Once I reached the hotel, I realized I had a coolant leak. IT seemed minor, so my tuners, Joe and Venkat decided to proceed with their Coimbatore travel plans. We had planned to go back to RRP the next day and dyno the car.

We went to RRP the next day and I requested them to give us a lift for a few minutes so we could find and if possible seal the coolant leak. Frankly, RRP needn’t have. Or at the very least, they could have charged me. But they didn’t complain, grumble or moan. They just made some space (not an easy task if you see how busy they are) and allowed us to lift the car and go under and check for leaks.

Once we identified the leak, we realized we couldn’t do much so we got the car down and proceeded to dyno the car.

We finished the dyno session and left. We realized we had forgotten my toolbox at RRP and so we returned and by that time the coolant leak had gotten worse.

Karna and Leela Sir very kindly helped us out with a 20 litre can of water.

This is a small thing. 20 litres of water may cost 200 rupees, the can may cost a few hundred bucks. But this small act of Karna and Leela Sir saved our asses that day. If we had known how valuable this simple act would have been, we would have gladly handed over all our worldly possessions to them to get that can of water. We were extremely grateful to them for their willingness to help us out of a tough spot. Being in the tuning business themselves, they know and understand these sort of situations very well!

Anyway, coming back to the suspension itself, we learnt a few things while speaking to Leela Sir.

The suspension sold in India is not the same as sold by Tein in other countries. Not even Thailand or Malaysia. The Indian suspension kit has a totally different part number and the differences are due to different springs, different mapping of the damper etc. All of these have been tweaked by Red Rooster in India to ensure that the suspension works well in India.

I believe the Indian kit also has taller dampers and springs to retain the stock ground clearance.

A 0-0 setting on the EDFC controller means the suspension is on the stiffest possible setting. Thambu made an offer to me this time that he can make it even stiffer! So, I immediately accepted.

When I got the car back, Thambu told me they have stiffened up by 4 clicks. So, the new 16-16(softest) is equivalent to the old 12-12. The new 4-4 is the old 0-0. So, now, at 0-0, the suspension is 4 clicks stiffer than earlier.

As soon as we hit the highway to Bangalore, we could feel a marked difference. Even at 16-16 or 8-8, the car feels so much tighter and agile. Lane changes are far more fun than they should be! The car feels like a go kart!

Even at higher speeds, the car is supremely planted, more so than earlier! Lane changes are just a piece of cake. Swerving suddenly at 100-120kmph while slamming on the brakes (thanks to a dog or a cow) is so undramatic, it is unreal.

The icing on the cake?

The car absorbs bad roads, expansion joints, rough patches, even better! I do not think I am exaggerating in saying that the car rides almost like a European car now.

This is what I would like to conclude.

There are many tuning houses. Red Rooster is run by professionals. That is one major difference. I have always had a great interaction with them. Prompt replies, professional service. Full bills and receipts. Professional setup and very professional workforce.

It’s no surprise today that they are ruling the race tracks and the rally scene.

I always leave Red Rooster with a smile. I hope it continues in the future as well. What makes it better is the near orgasmic feeling I get while driving the car with the rejuvenated Teins!

[Nikhilb2008]

You thought with the arrival of the new vRS, I had forgotten about this?




The Civic continues to occupy space at home and last week while the vRS was getting detailed, I logged about 900 kms on the Civic.

But let me start a month back.

On 25th August, the car completed exactly 7.5 years. Feb 25th 2010 to Aug 25th 2017.

And on that day, I made sure I completed a milestone of 1,80,000 kms.

90 months and 1,80,000 kms. A nice, even average of 2,000 kms per month.

On 25th, I went for a nice 200 km drive in the car and unfortunately lost the passenger side mirror cover. The mirror itself works fine and is still adjustable electrically. I made a mistake while overtaking a slow moving truck and the left mirror smashed into a barricade on the highway. Technically, it wasnt my fault as I never went off road and the idiots who manage the highway had placed this barricade smack bang in the middle of the left lane. But yes, I have driven a lot on the Indian highways and I should have expected the unexpected.












Anyway, mistake made, lesson learnt.

Next few days I continued to drive the car around as usual and gave it a proper wash and also used Sonax Brilliant Shine Detailer to give it an additional layer of protection over and above the ceramic coating done by Keystone in January.





On September 1st I got the new vRS delivered and my Civic finally got a break.





On September 16th, I gave my car to Sunny for detailing. So, 16th onwards, till the 23rd, the Civic was back to daily driving duties and I racked up another 900 kms or so in that one week which included a quick trip to Mysore and back. The return journey was especially fun!

Before the fun though, there were some problems. I tried starting the car on Saturday afternoon and realise the battery was dead. As dead as a dodo. I got my office to send someone to change the battery and I installed the new battery and everything was working fine.

Later that evening, I took the car out for a spin and it was running well. There was some sound from the brakes thanks to the heavy rains causing some rust to form on the rotors. A few kms of driving and everything was fine. I realised how much fun this car was!

A hundred metres from home, the car suddenly died. I tried cranking and nothing.... Got some help from a passerby and pushed it home and called Venkat. He was with Sunny and they both came home in some time. As soon as Venkat came, he checked the fuses and everything seemed to be fine. Tried starting the car again and half a turn of the key and it roared into life!

We were quite confused but just let it slide. Went for a drive that night and tried to reproduce the problem, but couldnt. Anyway, that drive was a lot of fun! I know that the Civic will never be a match for the vRS, but the Civic puts a huge smile on my face. The vRS simply doesnt do that. Probably because the vRS is so so so fast that it borders on scary!

Came home, parked the car and slept.

The next day I was supposed to go to the airport with my mom to pick up my sister. And the same problem re-occurred! The car would die at a traffic signal or in slow moving traffic and wouldnt restart immediately. It would start whenever it felt like.

We wasted a lot of time on this and finally abandoned plans of going to the airport. My mom took an Uber home and with her out of the car, I could calmly try to diagnose the issue. I realised that while installing the new battery, I had yanked the power cable a bit hard and that the positive terminal was loose which was causing a massive voltage drop. This voltage drop ensured the Ignition Coil was not producing enough electricity for the spark plug to work.

Once I figured out the problem, I did a temporary fix and drove straight to Blackworks. Venkat opened the workshop on a Sunday evening just for me and he took all of 5 minutes to fix the loose connection and we went for a quick spin around the block to ensure that the problem did not re-occur.

A really fast car was waiting at Blackworks!



I then drove home to a lot of abuse from my mother.

After this, the next few days, the car worked absolutely fine. My trip to Mysore was uneventful and peaceful. Thoroughly enjoyed the car on the return journey as it was early in the morning. Barely took me 2 hours from my Uncle's house in Mysore to NICE Road junction. I rarely shifted to 5th and thoroughly enjoyed revving the car in 3rd and 4th gear to make use of the open roads.

On Friday, in anticipation of the return of my vRS from Sunny, I took my car to a local car wash place and got it washed nicely.

A small video showing the water beading....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yDOfplD0XVY

Since my car will be parked outside my house for long periods of time, I didnt want to compromise on the car cover.

A lot of people highly recommended TPH Covers and I ordered their top of the line Pilot 373 car cover for the Civic.

It comes in a nice carry-bag and is quite heavy. It is supposed to be 4-layered and the layer that touches the car is a soft-touch material. It has the Under Armor branding on it which surprised me. Whatever it is, it is as soft as a good microfibre cloth so I am confident that even if some dust gets trapped there while covering the car, it wouldnt cause major sscratches or swirls on the clear coat.









You can see the Under Armor branding on the innermost layer.


The entire cover is tailormade for the car and fits like a glove. It feels really nice when there are no loose edges or parts hanging off the side of the car.







This car cover is marketed as a fully water proof cover. I had my doubts as the top most layer does absorb some amount of water. It has a very nice hydrophobic layer, but I feel with a consistent burst of water from a hose, it does absorb some of it.

However, the insane rains Bangalore, and especially my area, received on the evening of September 8th clarified my doubts. It rained like I've rarely seen before and the car cover really did it's job. When I removed it the next morning to check on the car, the car itself was dry as a bone.



Later, just as a test, I turned on a water hose and pointed it direclty on the hood of the car. The car cover seemed to repel most of the water and after a solid 60-75 second blast of water, I lifted the car cover and saw that the hood was dry as a bone! Very impressed.


I am thoroughly impressed with my initial observations of this car cover and highly recommend it to anyone who has the budget for this. This car cover cost me Rs 11,000/- including free shipping to Bangalore.

Now that my vRS is back after a detailing session, the Civic will again go into hibernation. I think it deserves a nice break given how hard I've been on it for the past 7.5 years and especially the last 2 years.

[Nikhilb2008]

About 2 weeks back I drove the Civic for a bit. Not much, just 400 kms or so. This was after covering 8,000 kms in the vRS. My observations are obviously subjective. No other moron would have loved the Civic the way I have and actually think of comparing the two. However, here I am!

The Civic’s interior still feels special. I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again. The Octavia’s interior is very nice, but it’s routine. I can marvel as much as I want at the red stitching and the flat-bottomed steering wheel and the seats, but the lovely two-tiered digital display of the Civic along with that perfectly sized steering wheel, the tacho smack bang in the centre of the dash is just PERFECTION. I seriously wonder if I will ever drive or own a car better than this when it comes to the dashboard.

The low seating position, the perfectly placed pedals and the soft plush ride feel absolutely amazing coming from the vRS.

End of the day, just sitting inside the Civic is a special feeling. Every drive feels like an occasion. Not so in the vRS.

The ride comfort of the Civic is also better. However, with the vRS now without the suspension blocks and with MRF Perfinzas, the difference is far lesser than I’ve felt earlier. At higher speeds, obviously the vRS’ ride comfort is better as it rolls lesser. The Civic rolls a lot more leading to more movement inside the cabin and reducing comfort.

The handling of the Civic with the Teins in the stiffest setting is as good as the stock vRS suspension. That itself must show how good the Teins are. The extra body roll is due to the rest of the chassis which isn’t as tight as VW’s latest MQB chassis.

Let’s nor forget the beautifully weighted Hydraulic Power Steering. The vRS’ steering cant hold a candle to the Civic’s steering.

What I find while switching brtween these two cars is that the vRS steering seems heavier at highway speeds. I think it’s artificially weighted to give the driver more control. However, I still prefer the slightly more natural feeling of the Civic and I cant explain it in words, but somehow the Civic’s steering just feels more pleasurable.

The Civic is of course, slow compared to the vRS, but it’s not due to lack of trying. And sometimes, that effort is what wins it bonus points. Usain Bolt clocking a 10-second 100m sprint is considered routine. But an aging athlete with creaky knees and arthritic joints doing a 10.5 is considered a serious achievement.

That’s the thing with the Civic. It’s not as fast as the Octavia vRS but it feels like it’s faster. It’s louder, the engine is a bit more audible, the vibrations are more, the turbo whistle is louder and it’s not tuned by an OEM. So, when the turbo kicks in, it kicks HARD. I can feel the kick in my spine unlike the vRS which is very linear and undramatic.

Even after the abuse we’ve put the Civic through, it still brings a HUUUUGE smile on my face.



I floor the A pedal, initially there’s nothing much and then suddenly the turbo wakes up, makes a lovely whining noise and the car’s front end lifts a bit and the car is off! Depending on the surface, there may be some wheel spin as well. Slam into second and there’s no let up in torque or power, keep flooring it, allow the engine to use all the revs at it’s disposal and at 7k rpm, shift into 3rd and yet again, no let up in torque.

Usually by this time I would have reached the end of the closed off road and I’ll have to lift off. I lift off, brake and start giggling like a little girl at this rush of emotions and feelings.

Once the initial rush dies down, the smile stays. It’s changed from a manic grin to something else. It’s evocative of all the good time with this car. The long road trips, the business trips, the fun drives with friends and family, trackdays at Buddh and MMST, an epic trip to Leh, a memorable trip to Kanyakumari and at no moment has it let me down badly. When it did choose to let me down, it ensured that I was safe. Instead of the battery dying on Rohtang Pass as it was snowing lightly and raining, it died outside my hotel in Delhi. Instead of the head cracking and failing on a business trip, it died on a Sunday when I was with 4 other cars and 12 people who were there to help me. The smile widens when I remember images of my car at various major milestones in it’s life.


the LOC near Turtuk,




At one of the world's highest fresh water lakes next to the Chinese border.


The More High altitude plains in Ladakh.


Driving at Buddh International Circuit







Surviving a fire and a brutal trackday at MMST and getting me back home the same evening.





Driving on India’s only Drive-In beach at Muzzhapillangad beach, Kannur




Going to Leh and returning safe and sound








Going to the Southernmost Tip of India




Crossing the Pambam Bridge to attempt to get across the Palk Strait to Sri Lanka!



After an accident on a TBHP drive in 2015.




Sharing a parking lot with an Lamborghini. At this point, after the drive I had had to this hotel, I wouldnt have traded my Civic in for that Lambo!



An absolutely classic timeless design. Something I couldn’t dream of tinkering around with ridiculous wings and body kits. There’s also a certain charm in a sleeper. Looks stock but goes like stink!


This thread has gone on for almost 2 years and innumerable posts. I’ve cribbed, I’ve moaned, I’ve been ecstatic, I’ve been heartbroken, then bounced back to delirious happiness.

We as humans make decisions based on emotion and feeling. That is what distinguishes us from robots. Some of us are more sentimental than others. I probably fall in the crazy category. Two years back, when I decided to Turbo the Civic, the logical thing to have done was to sell the Civic and get a stock Laura TSI. Even a sane logical person would have done this. Not me.



I had already developed a strong attachment to the Civic which defies logic. I do not treat the car as a family member, give it names, gender or whatever. However, I respected the Civic as a machine and loved it totally. With all it’s quirks and faults, I loved it unconditionally.

After the way the car has put up with the abuse heaped on it over the past 2 years, that love has only grown stronger and deeper. Sometimes it’s with love that we have to make hard decisions. It is time for me to make mine.

It's good to go out on a high, when everything is working well. And now is that time.

Like all things, it’s time for this build to come to an end. The sun has set on the Civic in it’s current avatar.




The Civic is Dead. Long Live the Civic.

[Vik0728]

Originally Posted by Nikhilb2008

The Civic’s interior still feels special. I seriously wonder if I will ever drive or own a car better than this when it comes to the dashboard.

Lovely write-up Nikhil, and though I have still not got the luck of sitting in a vRS cockpit, I think I agree completely with your view here

I still remember the complete awe with which I had gaped the interiors of the 8th Generation Civic in 2005-06. It truly looked like nothing else on the Indian soil.

The next gen India bound Civic already looks boring to me:

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/indian...ml#post4270961

Hell, I think even the HUD's (Heads Up Display) of some of the current premium cars cannot match that cockpit view of the Civic.

In my eyes, Honda Civic will always be the ONLY CAR IN INDIA that resembled a Lamborghini Countach so closely. And with a 1.8 I-vtec engine that revved to oblivion, it truly brought the Need for Speed character alive !!

The Civic is Dead. Long Live the Civic.

So is the Indian Lambo gone? With the vRS raking in miles like no tomorrow, can we expect a small hatchback review soon for city run abouts?? LOL

[deepfreak15]

I was reading this thinking it sounded like a Eulogy and then I reached the end! What happened?

[mjumrani]

Originally Posted by Nikhilb2008

The Civic is Dead. Long Live the Civic.

I see what you did there .

[audioholic]

Fantastic write up Nikhil! What a tribute to the car. Even I have to agree on the looks part. Personally my favorite in the <20L bracket.

Originally Posted by Nikhilb2008

Like all things, it’s time for this build to come to an end. The sun has set on the Civic in it’s current avatar.

The Civic is Dead. Long Live the Civic.

I appreciate this idea but

[supertinu]

Originally Posted by Nikhilb2008

The Civic is Dead. Long Live the Civic.

Lovely write and great stories and pics. I am amazed that you have managed to take Civic to leh and beyond with its ground clearance. Hats off. Civic owners get the frights driving in Bangalore city itself

[Nikhilb2008]

Originally Posted by Vik0728

Lovely write-up Nikhil, and though I have still not got the luck of sitting in a vRS cockpit, I think I agree completely with your view here

So is the Indian Lambo gone? With the vRS raking in miles like no tomorrow, can we expect a small hatchback review soon for city run abouts?? LOL

My vRS is a daily driver and will handle all duties. Just like the Civic did.

Originally Posted by deepfreak15

I was reading this thinking it sounded like a Eulogy and then I reached the end! What happened?

Hehe.

Originally Posted by mjumrani

I see what you did there .

Of course you did!

I dont think anyone missed it!

Originally Posted by audioholic

Fantastic write up Nikhil! What a tribute to the car. Even I have to agree on the looks part. Personally my favorite in the <20L bracket.


I appreciate this idea but

Thanks Audioholic!

Originally Posted by supertinu

Lovely write and great stories and pics. I am amazed that you have managed to take Civic to leh and beyond with its ground clearance. Hats off. Civic owners get the frights driving in Bangalore city itself

Thanks! IT was tough but not impossible.

[dracul]

Don't let it go. You have top of line parts with a great suspension and brake. Swap the engine with a k24 and boost the hell out of it.

[Nikhilb2008]

I just sent the thread link to a friend and I re-read my own thread from start to finish.

What a journey it's been.

I've now decided to start hounding Venkat to get my car running asap again. May god give him an extra dose of patience to deal with me now!

I miss this car terribly. It was a special special car. It was something epic and I wonder if I will ever feel this way about a car again.

[balenopower]

Originally Posted by Nikhilb2008

I just sent the thread link to a friend and I re-read my own thread from start to finish.

What a journey it's been.

I've now decided to start hounding Venkat to get my car running asap again. May god give him an extra dose of patience to deal with me now!

I miss this car terribly. It was a special special car. It was something epic and I wonder if I will ever feel this way about a car again.

Im sure you felt special in the AMG GT at the chennai track. . Superb thread buddy.

[Nikhilb2008]

Well well well.....






It's back! With a heart transplant and it sounds better than ever!

https://youtu.be/2zljjbUWEMw

https://youtu.be/VZ-2WFf1zB0

[dhanushs]

Originally Posted by Nikhilb2008

It's back! With a heart transplant and it sounds better than ever!

Oh man.. Shows how much attached you are to the car or how jobless you are sometimes! LOL.

Nikhil, can understand the feeling of making the most loved car better every time and in all aspects. I hope this time, it's better than the best! (Not that last times it wasn't great )

Wish you and your tuners all the best for a great performer. If you iron out the nitty bitty and small issues, the car should be as reliable as any.

Would appreciate some technical specs of the engine.