[bhuvan_prasad]

It is pretty obvious, given that I'm a part of T-BHP, that I am a crazy about cars. So, when i was done with my MBA and got my job, while my batchmates were out buying shoes, phones, clothes, expensive alcohol all I could think about was getting a ride.
My first year of the job was as a management trainee, and I was sent across various departments of the company to get a feel of how the company worked and so getting a car did not make any sense and wasn't even feasible as i was barely at a city/town for more than a month.
Second year of the job and I was posted in Mumbai. Good choice for buying/modding a car, very bad choice for driving a car during the day. So, me and my batch-mate took a flat, stones throw away from office and used to walk to work. The bug began biting me now. I badly wanted a car, even if just for the weekends. Following were my options at that time:
1.) Get the OHC from Hyderabad(home) to mumbai and do a B16 Swap. But then I realised my dad really loves driving the car and will miss it, so dropped this idea soon
2.) Get the Ritz Zxi from Hyderabad to Mumbai. It made perfect financial sense, and in all fairness the ritx is a terrific hatchback, but i wanted something that could do 0-100 in 10 seconds and nice and chuckable. So this was ruled out too. (Wagonr from Hyd to Mumbai was never considered )
3.) Second hand cars - I used to spend hours on carwale.com and mumbai has a huge selection of 2nd hand cars. I was looking at 2004-05 accords. And had more or less finalized on a couple when i thought hard and realised the accord is huge, i'm mostly going to be in it alone, it isn't very efficient, and isn't a sharp handler. I'd have to spend a lakh atleast on doing up the handling, tyres etc. Dad was against the Accord too as it was too big and 7km/l wasn't acceptable to him.

So here i was, with no particular budget, car in mind just trundling along when my really close Uncle who lives in Powai gave me a call and said he wants a new mid-size automatic as he was retiring soon and has had enough of changing gears in his pristinely maintained 1.8 S Civic MT. While I went alone with him and test drove all the automatics available below 12 Lakhs to finalize on the City V AT, I also wanted his car badly. I had recommended him to buy the Civic way back in 2006 when it was first launched and had borrowed the car a couple of times in Mumbai. He was more than happy to sell it to me, and he spent i think 20-25k on the final service/touch-up before handing it over to me. She was a November 2006 model with 40k kms on the clock. And I've known the car since day-one, so no issues, nothing. One engine mount being changed was the only non-service related cost.

So, November 5th 2011 I drove her into my parking spot in the Flat which so far was empty. And, hence begins my journey with her which i shall document below, in the coming few posts.

[revintup]

You know what? Am so damn jealous of you that you better hang on the lemon thingy to ward off 'evil spirits'. My mouth's watering and am thinking of when my uncle's going to sell his outlander.

Enjoy the vehicle. Its as good as new. You couldnt have dreamt of a better car.

Some guys just have all the luck in the world. sigh.

[bhuvan_prasad]

Even before I got the car I knew that the civic's low-end was poor and it was a pain to drive in the traffic.Initial few days I would stall it because of the poor low end torque. Even though my car was only a weekend/night car this was a painful trait. So, as soon as I got the car I asked Automech to make me a full length FFE for the civic in stainless steel. Vivek said it would take 10 days, and I was waiting eagerly.
During these 10 days I went to Delhi and with the help of manan(m4ugr8), got hold of eagle eye angel eyes headlamps (type2) for the civic. The left lamp of the civic had fine dirt inside it(dont know how) and instead of replacing it with Honda OEM's i thought these are cheaper and give it a more distinguished look.
So anyway, one fine morning I get a call from Vivek of Automech informing me that the unit is ready ,and i promptly head there after lunch and get the unit fitted.
The cat con- is connected to the output of the integrated header and this is removed. People looking for a cheaper option to address the civics poor low end torque can just get the cat-con removed and have it replaced with a straight pipe. Automech's FFE had all the various sensor fittings in the right place and within 3-4 hours the whole unit was welded and fit into place. On initial startup there was a problem of one of the pipes touching the metal of the lower engine part on revving and this was quickly fixed.

The car is so much more drive-able. I can happily trundle along in 20km/h in 3rd in traffic and accelerate away cleanly. Or say 12km/h in 2nd. There is NO stress on the engine. The free flowing exhaust has removed the low end fatigue. High end response, which was always good remained more or less the same.

1.) the header output where the FFE starts, and where the CAT-con used to be


2.) the cat-con removed


3.) the cat-con+old muffler


4.) Pipes from the old exhasut. New one is a much longer, single piece unit.


5.) What replaces the cat-con


6.) the flexi-pipe from cat-con straight back replacement to main exhaust pipes under the body.


7.) The longer exhaust pipe. single unit


8.) fitting in the engine bay. this is after 6 months


9.) the end-can

[bhuvan_prasad]

Now that the FFE was done, the other power mods without going FI was a new air intake. Got my friend from the US to get the K&N Typhoon for around 10k. This adds around 6HP in the mid range according to dyno results, and with an FFE it can get only friendlier.
Now post the FFE and while I ordered this, I was told in Dec 2011 that from january I'll have to move to Chennai in a new role. I barely had a month to shift and since this was my uncles car we never bothered to change the registration etc. since it was no big deal. In a hurry, making various rounds of Andheri RTO, agents etc. I managed to get the insurance changed to my name and the RTO challan and book. 27th December I drove her down from Mumbai to Hyderabad where i would leave her at home for a few days, while I finalize my house etc. in chennai and then drive her from Hyd to Chennai.
Mumbai to Hyd, point to point, 800kms, was dismissed in 12 hours with me being the sole driver. Highpoints were obviously the Mum-pune expressway and Hyd outer ring road. got an avg FE of 14.5 Km/l over 800kms.

Got the K&N fitted in hyd. mid range seems to have improved, sound can't be heard that much because of the roaring FFE .

January 10th 2012, Dad and i drove her down to Chennai from Hyd. Poin to point around 780 Kms done in 11 hours. Similar FE of 14.5 Km/l.

Since then she has been in Chennai with me, doing the regular home -office commutes, with weekend Mahabalipuram trips thrown in. Not that much of running. Done around 4k in Chennai in 4 months.
I keep getting around 11.5 Km/l, using tank-full method. One service at Capital Honda, in chennai cost me 4.9k. 3k was engine oil. They said brake pads are due for a change in another 2k so ive ordered ones from the US that are less than half the cost here at Honda.

Also, got the front two doors damped. I'm not that much of an ICE enthusiast, as I prefer having high end audio equipment at home, rather that in my car, as it adds to the weight, cost etc etc. Also with my FFE, i so many times just forget to turn on the stereo. So i just wanted the doors to stop rattling at high volumes and so put in a whole roll of Focal damping. here the post - http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/chenna...ml#post2769498

I've been toying with the idea of getting a turbo kit. Have gone through tons of threads on 8thcivic forum and it seems very expensive and not that reliable. 2Lakhs was my budget, but seems like 3.5-4 is a more realistic cost for the project. RRP gave me quote of 3.3 Lakhs. So i've kinda put this on hold.

1.) Front 3/4


2.) front view


3.) rear 3/4


4.) profile


5.) the headlamp


6.) headlamp at night


7.) K&N typhoon


8.) drivers view


9.) projector main beam with the corona ring

[Shreyas Aterkar]

Congrats for your ride Bhuvan! Another addition to the long list of preworshipped civic owners. Best way to buy a preowned car, lucky you, to have got a known car in such a pristine condition and with the mods you have done should have made a world of difference to the ride. Also, your story is similar to mine in terms of the itch to get a car as soon as out of campus. 8 years back when I started working, the first thing I did was to buy a car (less than 6 months into the job), difference being I bought a new esteem which is still with me.

Congrats once again and do post some more interior pics.

[SmartCat]

For a 6 year old car, the paint finish still looks good. Good choice of projectors/xenons. The next step would be working on the interiors - converting the car from S-MT to V-MT (basically leather interiors & the fogs). The "towel-like" fabric seats on S-MT would look a bit worn out after so many years.

[sameerg001]

Congratulations for the car, she looks damn cool with those angel eyes. For a 6 year old car, the paint still feels fresh.

Do change her shoes, get some HOT alloys + tyres combo for her and do post some video's of FFE.

Wish you wonderful miles ahead, drive safe.

Cheers
Sameer

[bhuvan_prasad]

Originally Posted by Shreyas Aterkar

Congrats for your ride Bhuvan! Another addition to the long list of preworshipped civic owners. Best way to buy a preowned car, lucky you, to have got a known car in such a pristine condition and with the mods you have done should have made a world of difference to the ride. Also, your story is similar to mine in terms of the itch to get a car as soon as out of campus. 8 years back when I started working, the first thing I did was to buy a car (less than 6 months into the job), difference being I bought a new esteem which is still with me.

Congrats once again and do post some more interior pics.

Thanks Shreyas!! Will post some interior pics. Since this is the S variant and comes with fabric it is nothing to write home about. The dashboard is nice with its multiplex meter etc. will try and get some good night shots. and post

Originally Posted by smartcat

For a 6 year old car, the paint finish still looks good. Good choice of projectors/xenons. The next step would be working on the interiors - converting the car from S-MT to V-MT (basically leather interiors & the fogs). The "towel-like" fabric seats on S-MT would look a bit worn out after so many years.

Thanks. I clean the car myself. Honda's paint quality is stellar. My OHC is 10 years old and still shines like new. Have got the Meguiars car care kit, so shampoo her once in 2 weeks with a water magnet towel to dry her, and use the touch up-spray with micro fiber cloths on normal days. Bird poo is immediately dealt with. The towel like fabric seats like you have said are pretty soiled and need to go. Just havent had the time for changing it.

[iTNerd]

Congrats Bhuvan! The car looks in pristine condition and that too, for a 6 years old. The FFE mods, how much did you spent?

[bhuvan_prasad]

Originally Posted by sameerg001

Congratulations for the car, she looks damn cool with those angel eyes. For a 6 year old car, the paint still feels fresh.

Do change her shoes, get some HOT alloys + tyres combo for her and do post some video's of FFE.

Wish you wonderful miles ahead, drive safe.

Cheers
Sameer

Thanks Sameer. Tyres are new. My uncle changed them just before selling them, so i really don't want to upgrade the tyres and alloys to 17" now.

Originally Posted by iTNerd

Congrats Bhuvan! The car looks in pristine condition and that too, for a 6 years old. The FFE mods, how much did you spent?

Thanks. I've spent around 23k for the FFE, 10K for the K&N typhoon.

[bhuvan_prasad]

Hey, guys.
Please find the link for the FFE video. It is really short and taken from ground up so quite poor. Also, i did not rev the car beyond 4k RPM as my watchman was sleeping in the building and I didn't want to wake him up.
Please do listen to it on good quality speakers with the Bass turned up.
Civic R18 with FFE and K&N Typhoon Intake - Video


Will post an extended version soon.

[shuvc]

Wonderful looking lights on a very well maintained car. Congrats !

14.5 is pretty good FE .. was it with 100% AC and at moderate RPMs?

Originally Posted by bhuvan_prasad

They said brake pads are due for a change in another 2k so ive ordered ones from the US that are less than half the cost here at Honda.

Which pads did you order for and from where?

[mayankjha1806]

Another Civic lover, its a wonderful car which is reliable at the same time. The FFE and K&N typoon would make the drive even more pleasure. 14.5 is a amazingly good figure, was it with sedate speeds?

Nice work on the headlamps, how much did it cost to change them? and was it simple pullout/replace job? More details please.

[bhuvan_prasad]

Originally Posted by shuvc

Wonderful looking lights on a very well maintained car. Congrats !

14.5 is pretty good FE .. was it with 100% AC and at moderate RPMs?


Which pads did you order for and from where?

Thanks. It was with 70% AC. I'm 25 and was driving alone from Mumbai to Hyderabad, so the RPM's and speeds were definitely not moderate
What is more surprising is the 11-11.5km/l get in Chennai city runs. The FFE has negated the need to rev in traffic to get moving, so that helps.

I've ordered these pads from the US. a friend of mine is getting them - http://www.amazon.com/Akebono-ACT537...ype=automotive

Originally Posted by mayankjha1806

Another Civic lover, its a wonderful car which is reliable at the same time. The FFE and K&N typoon would make the drive even more pleasure. 14.5 is a amazingly good figure, was it with sedate speeds?

Nice work on the headlamps, how much did it cost to change them? and was it simple pullout/replace job? More details please.

The headlamps cost 17k total. They come with halogens and are a direct fit on the indian civic. Mind you, removing the headlamps/changing bulbs on the civic is painful . The whole bumper etc needs to come out. There is no space to change a bulb also.
I later upgraded the low beams to 4300K P8 HID Xenons and high beams to 4000K Philips Crystal Vision.
14.5 km/l involved quite a few high speed runs and lot of overtaking as its a single lane highway. I'm sure a sedate 90-100km/h will return around 16km/l.

[sumeethaldankar]

My my now that is a how a Habanero red or habbi red car should look.Seems like i may have to send my habbi red civic for a detaling job.

Great car man.Congrats.