FN2 Help make my mind up!

[Ryster]

Hello everyone!

Basically, Im in the hunt for another hot hatch. I did have an EO Focus ST last year but sold it due to a baby and buying a new house, now everything is sorted Im allowed something else again!

Anyway, Ive got around £12k to spend, could maybe stretch a touch more if needed but would rather not. So I have been looking around and narrowed it down to a Type R. They seem to be a very affordable car for the year I can get, and they seem to have the equipment I want. I loved the xenons on the Focus and require these, but could perhaps live with the HIDs on a GT FN2.

So, a few questions. £300 in my Focus for a Dreamscience unit and I was flying, I know the Type R isnt a turbo but what are the options for remaps? I did have a Fiesta ST that I took down to Essex to have fettled with at Mountune to have the Mountune 185 kit fitted and that was immense. A hard shove at 3700rpm to the redline. Loved it, so what can I do with the FN2. I have already test drove one two weeks ago and LOVED the noise, however I did notice that the VTEC didnt come in until quite high up, which I can deal with but to get any power I was changing gear quite a bit. Is there any remap that can activate the Vtec lower down the rev range and make it more "turboey"?

Thats my main question as I loved the rest of it, not to sure the salesman enjoyed me working the LSD to the max round the lanes but I got a good feel for the car, and really enjoyed it. Especially the NOISE!


Also, how availiable are the GP Packs now they dont make the Type R anymore? I would love the kit fitted to a CW but not sure if I could get them anymore?

If anyone could give me some information on remaps/Vtec thingy bobs I would appreciate it as Im almost decided on one of the CW FN2s.



Thanks everyone,

Ryan.

 

[trickyteg]

Hey mate not sure about maps and stuff as I'm new to fn2 but the gp pack can be bought on eBay from Honda if you get a different colour like orange, blue or titanium it's a lot cheaper then you can just get it resprayed to your colour that's what I have just done

 

[peza]

Hello mate,

Unfortunately £300 wont get you very far. Remap its self is around £450+ depending on the route you take. To make the remap worth while you will need at least £1,000 in mods IMO.

Nothing like the turbo cars, but much more rewarding when you keep it above 5600 revs

GP packs as above.

How much more could you stretch, I currently own a FN2 CW. Part of me wishes I had held on for another 2-3 months and brought a FD2. But I got such a good deal on the FN2 I could not turn it down.

I feel for you with white wheels though, with the winter coming up. I have just resprayed mine satin black. You will need to be cleaning them every couple of days, otherwise they will go manky!

Pez

 

[Loxy]

Usual route for a remap is with buying a Hondata Flashpro module and then getting it custom tuned by a reputable tuner.

Have a look in the traders section for those guys. I use TDi-North as I believe Paul West is one of the best Honda tuners in the business.

Flashpro is around £550 new and it's basically what you need to be able to reflash the OEM ECU with a new map. A remap costs around £300-400 depending on where you go.

On a stock car you would benefit from more accurate fueling, optimum cam angles and ignition timing and the lower VTEC point as it isn't set optimally from the factory. The tuner will set the crossover point to where the high cam starts to make more power than the low cam profile. This is typically around 3,800 on a FN2 stock or with basic breathing mods, but can be different from car to car as the tuner maps to what the car is doing.

Like has been said to get the most out of it you'll want some basic breathing mods such as an intake and cat-back exhaust, and still then with the remap you'll only see around 220bhp (dependant on which rollers the car is measured on).

Peak power is only half the story though, the car will be much more drivable as you would probably have gained around 40bhp and a big lump of torque in the mid range, and lets face it you spend more time driving in the mid range than you do bouncing off the rev limiter.

You'll have spent around £2k by this point though.

In my opinion getting the geometry set up correctly, known as Fast Road Set-Up and maybe some Eibach Progressive lowering springs are always my first recommendation as mods on the the FN2.

Don't be fooled by the VTEC coming in later, a stock FN2, when driven properly, is quicker than a stock ST up to around 80-90 when the ST gains an advantage due to the turbo's extra ponies and torque.

I'd concentrate on learning to use the power the FN2 has to start with and improve the handling and brakes before you start adding power. The FN2 rewards you for ringing it's neck, it's a completely different style to the ST. When you get the hang of how to drive it, not being afraid to give it a hard time (the engines are bullet proof as long as they are serviced properly and the oil is kept topped up) they really reward you as the driver.

Cox Motors in the traders section for the GP kit. I used them for mine, top service and prices.

 

[Shoonk]

As above he's said all you need to know

 

[Ryster]

Cheers Loxy, quite possibly the most in depth reply to a post I have ever made on any forum!

Covered everything I needed to know. I don't mind ringing the neck of an engine, had it in my Fiesta so the
Type R won't bother me at all. I spent well over £4 on my fiesta, brembo's, mountune, coilovers so £2k on a Civic is good going.

Have been reading about the remaps, of I take it to TDI will they sort out all the key coding and immobiliser
bits out as this seems to be the only pain!

Thanks very much for the reply though, really appreciated.



Sent via my iPhone.

 

[Lottie]

Not sure what price FD2's have dropped to these days but im sure with a bit more in the pot which you have said is possible you must be able to pick one up.

Would certainly be my choice especially if you have a little one now to.

 

[Ryster]

Not sure what price FD2's have dropped to these days but im sure with a bit more in the pot which you have said is possible you must be able to pick one up.

Would certainly be my choice especially if you have a little one now to.

Never liked 4 door cars. One of the reasons I singled out the FN2 was the boot space and decent room in the rear. I think if I was open to a 4 door I would perhaps be going down the STI or 3MPS route.

Just out of interest what's the difference between the FD2 and FN2 other than doors?

 

[Lottie]

Never liked 4 door cars. One of the reasons I singled out the FN2 was the boot space and decent room in the rear. I think if I was open to a 4 door I would perhaps be going down the STI or 3MPS route.

Just out of interest what's the difference between the FD2 and FN2 other than doors?

The FD2 is a far better car all round (JDM import only), there is plenty of information on here about them to make your own mind up.

 

[Loxy]

Have been reading about the remaps, of I take it to TDI will they sort out all the key coding and immobiliser bits out as this seems to be the only pain!

No worries bud.

You don't need the keys recoding, you aren't replacing the ECU, just reflashing the OEM one, so the immobiliser isn't affected.

It's a really neat solution. Flashpro plugs into the OBDC port, tuner maps the car live, uploads the new map and the Flashpro can then be unplugged and kept in the house/glovebox wherever.

Hondata have thought about you trying to use it on a different car however, and the module gets software locked to the ECU meaning it won't work on another car until the car it is locked to has it's map returned to stock through the Flashpro Manager software.

 

[Lunar Tick]

To the OP: with your budget I would consider purchasing an FD2 and simply remapping it using Hondata Flashpro. Most standard FD2s make about 230bhp out of the box and handle better than a standard FN2. Add in the extra midrange punch of a remap and it'll fly. Then you have to factor in the lighter weight (they weigh 70kg less than FN2) - to match the performance of a standard FD2, you'll need to get an FN2 up to around 245bhp, which will cost £££££

 

[DEZIBOY]

To the OP: with your budget I would consider purchasing an FD2 and simply remapping it using Hondata Flashpro. Most standard FD2s make about 230bhp out of the box and handle better than a standard FN2. Add in the extra midrange punch of a remap and it'll fly. Then you have to factor in the lighter weight (they weigh 70kg less than FN2) - to match the performance of a standard FD2, you'll need to get an FN2 up to around 245bhp, which will cost £££££

+1


THE BITCH