I purchased this 98 EK Honda Civic Cxi from my mate Andrew in Sep (2011) for AU $2500 on the same day that he purchased his white DC2R. The EK1 was lowered with pedders springs & had some decent old school ICE. Paint was quite faded on the roof and rhs. Other than that the car was how it left the factory. My mate had it for 10 years and I had vowed to have it for a decade too..
I loved this car, this thing handled perfectly through the hills and the little single cam d16y4 just loved a hiding.
This thing was low, as low as legally permitted. Being a 98 it had the pre-facelift moulded front and rear bumpers.
Initially the plan was just to get the EJ coupe front bumper, facelift rear bumper, gli cluster and fix the paint.
It didn't take long before I slightly deviated from the plan... Andrew sent me an ad with S2000 seats, they were the first purchase and completely transformed the interior and vibe of the car. Back on plan I had a guy come out and respray the roof, rhs, f/r bumpers.
Next in was a Gli Cluster that I picked up, I was able to swap this over and keep the original km's. Picked up four clean OEM hubcaps, cup holders, armrest and black door trims with power windows & sent it in for a major service. Sadly in my time with her I never got around to installing the power windows.
After scouring for what felt like an eternity I finally managed to obtain (seperately) a mouldless pre-facelift front bumper, facelift rear bumper and facelift tail-lights... finally the USDM OEM look was complete.. if I didn't buy this off a mate and have the emotional attachment to it I would just buy a facelift EK hatch to start with.. the Adelaide Honda scene isn't as big as the eastern states so getting specific parts isn't always easy and becomes a waiting game on the classifieds.
Eventually the little D16y4 ran out of puff and Andrew told me about a motor/gbox package that was for sale. It was a mildly built B16a and a S80 w/lsd ITR gearbox.. see below for specs on the motor.
After having the motor & gearbox installed by Garage 91 they then had the gearbox rebuilt by Neat Gearboxes as the gearbox was f#cked. G91 also installed a worn DC5R s/wheel I had lying around.
The car had a VTEC issue that Garage 91 couldn't solve. Basically VTEC wouldn't work until the car was warmed up and restarted. In the end they suggested taking it to Garage 7 who installed a Link ECU. This solved the issue.
My mate Andrew got me a genuine CTR gear knob for Christmas.
The car was awesome to drive and with the stock exhaust attracted no unwanted attention. The car was almost exactly how i wanted, I only wanted to get a false floor subwoofer installed to replace the Kicker Sub and Box that took up way too much real eastate in the little hatch.
One afternoon on my way home from work VTEC wouldn't engage, I pulled over, restarted the car and still no vtec... but now a knocking noise... I was heartbroken... got home and the car was starved of oil... I ended up selling the EK to another Honda enthusiast (due to COVID19 and a lack of funds) who has since installed a B18c7 into it. 9 years I had the car, 1 year off my intended ownership. So many fond memories and what a surprise that an NA 1.6L could perform like that. I look forward to the next toy car..
Comentários