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Ben's 2005 EP3 Civic Type AAAAAARRRRR!

Hey Pete,
Liking the sound of your plans mate, I have paid a deposit on my cams now so I might see you there in the spring :) I think the lead time is another 8-10 weeks so im probably looking at some time in May. Have you had any more thoughts on the wheels mate? Might be worth hanging on to your OEM set even if you do change and have a set for the winter & summer :). Those 24mm Progress Anti roll bars come with a nice Progress Tie bar mate so that might be something to consider, its basically a thicker version of the JDM ARB and is adjustable too, that coupled with a set of control arms will finish off the back end nicely.

You are in a good position with yours because its already producing good figures, you could easily extract another 10bhp NA by changing a few bits & bobs. 3" exhaust, De-cat, ported RBC with a 70mm throttle body would see you hit 265 mate but it would set you back around £800 plus a remap/tweak. Least you know you can get more power should you want it, you could also look at aftermarket valve springs too for a few more bhp & more revs.

Clearance is not brilliant mate, I will try and get a pic for you tomorrow when I give it a clean :)
I think 265bhp should be achieveable with the stage 2 cam & springs, the 3" exhaust should help matters to but I'm going to play it safe with 260 and anything else would be a bonus. That is realistically as far as I can take it power wise without spending thousands & thousands

Changing the final drive next would offer the best value for money but I will have to wait and see about that one haha

Ben :cool:
 
Hey Ben

Top job mate ;) bet you can't wait to get your cams and valve springs in, have you gone for the TDI North stage 2 drop ins? being developed from the stage 1's they are going to post really good gains especially with the benefit of your 3" exhaust system, let me know when you've got the date from TDI buddy and I will see if I can pop up for the day, be good to see you and really want to see the results of your re-map :)

Haha i'm still undecided about the wheels pal, having a mare trying to make a final decision, if I do go for a set of Rota Grids though I will keep the OEM wheels and swap them over each winter so they can soak up all the crap off the roads lol, I should really have the OEM wheels sprayed because I could probably get them done with the springs, lower tie bar and lower control arms all for the price of a new set of Rota's haha.

That's true mate I am content with the 255bhp (at the moment anyway) if the car sales through the MOT emissions test then I am likely to leave the tuning mods alone, if it does fail and I can negotiate with the MOT guy to turn a blind eye to the emissions (he owns a track set-up EP3 himself so good start) then I would probably look to get a custom 3" cat back system and port match the RBC with a 70mm throttle body.

Yeah try and get some shots of the clearance mate, the lowering springs you are running are the ones I will go for so it would be good to see what sort of clearance you are left with, bet its painfully close haha.

Good idea of giving yourself a target of 260bhp which lets face it would be plenty from an engine producing 197bhp stock but I can see you smashing that making 265bhp comfortably, dibs for coming out on the test drive with you haha
 
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Hey Pete

Sorry mate I missed your reply
It's all booked in at TDI for the 22nd of July for the Cams & Valve springs so i'm looking forward to that. The stage 2 cams were dropped by TDI because they didn't really yield very good gains over the stage 1's, it was only the economy cam that was slightly re-profiled and Paul said they produced an extra 1-2bhp pre-VTEC so due to the minimal gains they scrapped the idea :lol:. Stage 1's are £200 cheaper and offer the same top end power so they are the better option.


Just seen on your thread you sorted the wheels out :cool:very smart mate, get some pictures up when they are fitted.
I noticed your car got on well at the MOT station too, I think the general rule with sports CAT's is to get them red hot before they go in so when MOT time comes around i'm sure it will sail through. ABP passed mine with a 200 cell Piper sports CAT back in October so yours should be fine.

Have you got anymore power upgrades in the pipeline?
 
It's been a while since I updated this thread :eek:

The rear was stripped back in April just as a trial but I am liking it despite the increased road noise. It's fine on B Roads but on a duel carriageway it can get pretty loud doing 75/80mph (cracked exhaust doesn't help things)
I have bought 16 insulation foam tiles which will take care of the floor and then I need to buy some insulation foam for the side panels and finish it off with some grey carpet. The car is now 52 KG's lighter so for anybody wanting to know how much you can lose from the rear just check the weights below.

Passenger seat is out in the pics but that was purely just to weigh it, it's back in now
Rear Bench - 4.7KG's
Large Backrest - 11KG's
Small Backrest - 7KG's
Spare Wheel - 11KG's
Tool Kit - 2.5KG's
Rear Door Cards/Trim - 3.3KG's each ( x 2 - 6.6KG's)
Rear Seat Belts - 1.5KG's (x 2 - 3KG's)
Other bits included wooden wheel well cover, seat belt adapters, rear boot carpet, rear floor mat, parcel shelf, plastic pillar covers and all other trim weighed in at just under 12KG's
The OEM Pre-Facelift/Facelift Seats (Not Recaro's) weigh in at just under 19KG's so they are pretty heavy.

I'm after a set of JDM Red Trendline Recaros next with JDM mats and a set of Harnesses.





It's booked in a Grinspeed on June 12th to have a M Factory LSD, M Factory Carbon Syncro's, Spoon 5.10 Final Drive and a Exedy Stage 1 Clutch. Took me 10 months to save up for all this lot so I hope it’s worth it :) you will also see a set of 440cc injectors and my new harness bar in the pics








Next after the gearbox work is TDI stage 1 drop in cams and toda valve springs so that should pump the power up to around 260bhp which is more than enough N/A that combined with the 5.10 Final Drive and stripped rear will make a huge difference. I have a replacement B-Pipe on its way from Solid Fabrications because my existing one developed a crack along one of the welds after just 6 weeks of being fitted



Sounds like a bag of nails on start up at the moment because the exhaust is rubbing against itself where the crack is so it will be nice when it's all sorted.
Finally got my private plate on last week so here are a few pics from the weekend after a clean





 
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Great updates Ben....

Really pleased that you are booked in at TDI for July to have the cams and valve springs installed mate, it will make a massive difference I wish I had put some uprated valve springs in when I have my cams done now so good on you for getting it all done at once. I don't blame TDI for dropping the version 2 cams due to the minimal increase in gains that were found, trust me the version 1 cams are brilliant you will love them haha.

Your EP3 is looking more and more like a track car every time you update the thread pal, I really do like the stripped out look if I could sell the wife and child I would do the same to mine haha, a bit of a ******* about the cracked exhaust mate especially with it only being on for a few weeks but at least it sounds as if Solid Fabrications have jumped on it to get it sorted for you.

Awesome list of transmission parts you have been collecting and saving up too, I hear great things about Grinspeed so I am sure they will make a cracking job of installing everything for you and what a difference all that should make too.
Nice touch with the private plate to finish it all off, will definitely have to pop and see you during the summer mate once its had all the bits installed, may even try and pop up to TDI the day you have the cams installed and say hello :)
 
Thanks Pete :)
Yeah I'm really looking forward to getting the cams done mate, I have had them on order since early Feb so it's been a long wait but I'm sure it will all be worthwhile when they are fitted.
I went for the Toda valve springs because they are one of few brands that can be changed in situ without having to remove the head which will save me a lot of money on labour costs, otherwise I probably wouldn't have bothered in all honesty.

Yeah Paul said the Stage 1 cams performed so well it kind of killed the market for the stage 2's because the additional cost was not justified with the minimal gains. They also said the Stage 2 cams made the idle slightly lumpy due to the economy cam having a more aggressive profile so I'm really pleased to be getting the stage 1's :). Driving with the rear end stripped out certainly makes everything a lot louder mate and it definitely wouldn't be to everybody's taste, it does feel quicker by dropping the 52KG's (especially when low on fuel) but it's not something that yields many benefits haha. Thankfully my current exhaust set-up is fairly quiet because I know for a fact I wouldn't be able to live with my old set-up now it's stripped out, the additional road noise and exhaust drone would be just too much. Yeah the exhaust crack was a bit of pain but thankfully I received a brand spanking new one by courier yesterday, fingers crossed this one doesn't give me any issues.

Yeah I went the whole hog with the gearbox really and I'm hoping it will be money well spent, I got good deals on everything thankfully so saved myself a few dollars overall.
I think the LSD will transform the car so I'm really looking forward to that being fitted along with the 5.10 final drive too. Like yourself I have heard nothing but good things about Grinspeed so I'm sure Stevie there will do a good job.
Yeah if you are about when the cams are being done pop in mate :) it's going to be a very long day at TDI North (possibly two) so it would be good to catch up if you are free

There is only so many games of Fifa I can play on the Xbox at TDI :lol: you know yourself how long the day goes when you are waiting around at TDI haha

What's the plans next for yours then mate? You hoping to get some carbon bits for it this year?
 
Few more recent updates :)

I finally got my Gearbox bits fitted at Grinspeed a couple of weeks back, really impressed with the set-up there and Stevie did an amazing job
I can't rate the service enough, got there and was instantly offered a brew :) which I needed after a 2 & half hour drive
I had to pop into my local ATS garage the day earlier to get a full set of tyres fitted, I supplied the tyres which were Michellin Primacy HP 215/45/17's (Full Set for £260)












Massively impressed with the comfort improvement over the 215/40's, I won't be getting a set of the Yoko Prada's again because they didn't last very long and are pretty dangerous in the wet even with light throttle. I gave the car a quick clean before heading to Grinspeed and fitted my JDM mats, I then loaded the car with parts :wink: I supplied everything bar the gearbox shim, fluids and gearbox oil plug. I got to Grinspeed bang on time and the lads instantly started on the car, the subframe was dropped and the box was out within 45 minutes :smile:












Rotrex Beast!





The only slight problem we had is that the Syncro's Tegiwa supplied were for a pre-facelift EP3 which meant 5th & 6th were slightly different.
Fortunately Stevie had a set of Syncrotech Carbon lined syncro's in stock so he traded me my 5th & 6th for his set.

The car feels amazing now, the LSD makes such a difference and the 5.10 Final Drive gives it a bit more punch!
At the moment my throttle body is sticking so that's letting the car down badly but once that is resolved it should be a treat to drive.

Cams are next on the list and I'm also after a set of JDM Recaro's
 
Great write up Ben :) I have heard nothing but good things about Stevie's work.

How much of a difference has the LSD made?
 
Cheers Pete :) yeah it was my first visit to Grinspeed but I was amazed at the service

Stevie and his mate Lee are both top blokes and their attention to detail is brilliant, I will definitely be going there again in the future.

As for the car it now feels amazing mate, it's difficult to describe how much difference the LSD makes but to put it briefly it totally stabilises the car. Coming out of corners you can now plant down the throttle and it just grips perfectly whereas previously it was a bit jittery and was sometimes all over the place. The traction when doing a standing start is also greatly improved with the LSD, makes the overall acceleration and driving experience much smoother.

Its one of those must have modifications and if I was to start my car from scratch the LSD would be first on the list ahead of any power mods.
 
Glad to hear everything went well buddy :) I have not been to Grinspeed myself but will definitely use them for any transmission work the car needs after the reviews from the likes of yourself and Loxy.

The LSD really does sound the business mate its a shame the UK Type R didnt get one as standard, its one of those things on my imaginery shopping list but they are not cheap and I would probably add an uprated clutch and lightened flywheel at the same time.

I haven't read much about the 5.10 final drive what benefit does that add Ben?

On another note I saw on FB that a few of you had been on a little trip around Europe bet that was a laugh and a half :)
 
Yeah Grinspeed certainly is the place to go if you go down the LSD route :) very good prices too and the attention to detail is fantastic

I agree it's a shame they didn't fit the LSD on the UK Civics like they did with the JDM, I think once you up the power on the car it becomes even more import/useful to have one. It's definitely worth adding to the list mate :cool: expensive modification but overall well worth it.
The only thing I didn't upgrade on mine was the flywheel but that would be another good thing to change if you go for the LSD. even a facelift lightened Exedy flywheel would do you nicely. Fidanze and Clockwise motion make good flywheels too.


The 5.10 Final drive shortens the gearing on the car allowing faster acceleration but lowering the overall top speed, it's a great modification and worth doing if the box is being taken apart to fit a LSD or syncro's etc. The 5.10 is standard in the FN2/FD2 whereas the EP3 has a 4.7, it's basically how Honda managed to get the performance figures of the FN2 (0-60) the same despite lugging around an extra 150KG's of weight. You can get a 5.46 Final drive too but that one was a little too extreme for my driving style :)

Yeah our Euro trip was fantastic fun mate, we travelled 2700 miles in 6 days visiting France, Italy, Austria, Germany, Holland and Belgium :) stopped at some lovely places too including the Nurbergring and we also went to the Ferrari Musuem in Maranello, although it was shut being a Sunday :lol:
 
wicked update :D I was the same as you, couldn't believe the difference a LSD makes, ... I think its essential for a 200+bhp FWD car anyways, so god knows what Honda were thinking :)
I was tempted by the 5.1 FD also, but lack of funds stopped me :(


6N2 GTI 00 said:
Yeah our Euro trip was fantastic fun mate, we travelled 2700 miles in 6 days visiting France, Italy, Austria, Germany, Holland and Belgium :) stopped at some lovely places too including the Nurbergring and we also went to the Ferrari Musuem in Maranello, although it was shut being a Sunday :lol:
Click to expand...

would love to see the route for this :) we have a similar mileage trip planned for next year, so could combine the 2 and nick some off yours :p
 
Cheers Bowman :) yeah mate I couldn't agree more about the LSD, Honda were silly not to put it standard on all EP3's.
They made the same error with the FN2 and then corrected it for the later models. 5.10 Final drive was a good investment too, although I wish I would have waited a little longer and added a clockwise motion flywheel :lol: ohwell maybe next time

Here is a picture of the route we took, although as it turned out that changed ever so slightly as we ended up passing through Holland before heading into Belgium. We were in holland for around 20 minutes at best :lol: slight detour but the route was essentially the same.



Euro trips are great fun though, I think we are going to organise another one for next year
 
Nice route mate :D
You should deffo sort that one out with your mates :) I wish we could have stopped for longer because we didn't get much chance to take in the sights

Toll roads in France are pretty costly though, it cost us around 120 euros to get from Calais to Marseille
 
Is it just me, or does your car change colour & wheels in one of those pics? :lol:
 
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