I've posted a lot about the yellow Civic, which part of it was a success (having a cheap car with just enough mods to be fun on track) and which part was a failure (the car was surprisingly unreliable for a Honda). Well, that car has a new head gasket, and logically, should be usable for 2026 track events. I mentioned that the project was essentially "finished", because I had no more plans to make changes, apart from installing the race seat I had bought from JS.
Indeed, the next steps to make the Civic better would have been pretty involved: swap in a K-series engine to have 160-200 hp, which would have necessitated a brake upgrade. All these parts would come from a newer Civic Si or an Acura RSX. Ideally, I would have found a donor car and got everything from that car. Such a donor car would have cost about 2000 $ (for a base RSX) to 3000 $ (for a Civic Si or RSX Type S) and I would have had to pay JS a few hundred dollars to put it all together, then again try to make the car reliable.
Even though this plan was not ideal, I couldn't help but keep an eye on the Facebook marketplace classifieds. I was mostly looking at RSX's, because they would include all the parts needed for the upgrades (engine swap and brakes). While perusing these ads, I came across an add for a 2005 RSX Type S for 3500 $. In my mind, all Type S's had the big rear wing, but I didn't know that this was not the case for the 2005-2006 "facelift" version. The ad listed some problems (cracked windshield, exhaust leak, ripped driver's seat, ball joint, a bit of rust), but it did not look like a rust bucket, unlike most of the other cheap 20-year-old Hondas for sale. I called the seller to make an appointment to see it the next day. The ad had been up for 52 minutes at that point.
I brought my jack so I could attempt to look under the car and hoped there would not be too much snow on the ground. When I arrived, I was excited to see that the car was in a giant garage (the seller installs custom lighting on big rigs) and I was able to take a very good look at it including under the car. There appeared to be some rust-proofing goop all over the underbody and engine bay, but it seemed effective at minimising rust. The car was as advertised, and apart from a rust hole in one of the rear quarters, the body was in decent shape. The windshield crack was straight across, so it was technically not illegal to leave it as is. The ripped seat was going to come out anyway. There was no ball joint issue, he had meant to say a sway bar end link needed changing. On the plus side, the car had a recent clutch, alternator and front calipers, and the air conditioning even worked.
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| The ad |
I asked for a test drive and the seller came along with me. We hit the highway and the car felt nice and tight on the road, despite having 300 000 km on the odometer. The engine power was not "wow" fast, but it was quite a bit faster than the yellow Civic. The owner was wincing as I floored it on the highway, undelining that he never drove it like that. The interior was in surprisingly excellent shape, except for the driver' seat. Everything I tried worked (power windors, sunroof, horn, cruis control, heated seats, etc.). It even had a bluetooth stereo system. By this point, I knew I would make an offer. When we got back, he showed me the 17-inch OEM summer wheels (in almost mint condition). I asked him if the price was negotiable, and he said it wasn't, given the large number of people who called him after I did. I agreed to pay the 3500 $ and the car was mine. Just like that, all in the space of a few hours from the ad being posted!
So what is the plan? Simple: I want this car to replace the yellow Civic as a comfortable, reliable and economical track-ready car. The plan is to take the excellent coilovers from the Civic and put them on this car, then put other suspension on the Civic and sell it. I will also take the 4-point harness and use the race seat and mount that I got for the Civic in this car (or put the new seat in the black Civic and take the more basic OMP seat for this car). The only other items I would need at first are some brake pads and track tires (although I am tempted to take it on track as-is first to see if there are any other issues). I will sell the winter wheels, which are clean and have nice tires. I will either use the OEM wheels or buy something lighter if I find something really cheap. I will get brand new tires from Carl, who says I can get a good deal on Nankang CRS's. I'm pretty sure the seat mount from the 2001 Civic will bolt it with minimal modifications. I have already repaired the rust hole (not perfect, but better than my work on the yellow car) and done some touch ups. I also replaced the destroyed shift boot with a nice no-name Ebay suede-looking one (14$!). I had the exhaust repaired at a local shop (300$, not cheap, but there were 2 separate leaks).
I have driven the car a bit on the road, and it's really a pleasant car to drive. My only criticism is that it feels heavy compared to the Civic (it's 300 pounds heavier). I think I can adress this over time. Just changing the driver's seat should save 30 pounds, and I can remove a few more bits (spare tire with integrated sub-woofer) when I head to the track. I think that if I remove the passenger seat for events away from home, I will be able to shave off another 45 pounds and have place to sleep in the car (it's a real hatch back).
I have already sourced some pretty decent suspension for the Civic for 300$ (Koni + Ground Control) missing only a pair of springs, and I have some adequate springs lying around. This means that I can sell the Civic as a track-ready car, for around 3500 $. The upgrade to the RSX will have cost very little once the Civic is sold.
Could I have spent this money on something even better? The only car that would come close would be a 2006 and up Civic Si, which has about the same power and weight, plus a limited-slip differential and a better rear suspension design. Still, I would have needed suspension for such a car, so the over all package would cost more. Also, subjectively, I just think the RSX is cooler than the Civic Si... it's rarer (especially the 2005-2006 facelift version) and it looks better. Not much can be done about the rear suspension, but a used Civic Si diff is only 500 $.
Anyway, I am really quite excited this project, and I hope it will end up being a better version of what the yellow Civic was supposed to be.
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| The car when I first saw it |
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| It's been parked in my driveway for a few weeks |
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| Interior is really quite nice |
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| New shift boot |
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| Waiting for Spring |
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| Drove the car a bit |
- Better brakes (12-inch discs in front, rear discs instead of drums)
- 6-speed transmission
- It's a real hatch-back
- ABS brakes
- 330 pounds lighter than the RSX
- Uses regular gas instead of Super
- Uses 15-inch tires, like my other Civic
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