engine mods to 1998 honda civic EX 2dr

[jdeville]

i just bought a 98 civic ex from my uncle. car runs great, no problems whatsoever. but i want to make some modifications.

i have already found a nice exhaust system complete with headers and all.
id like some ideas for more upgrades that wont completely empty out my wallet lol

also, the engine is pretty dirty, not much rust, but definately dirty. is there any products that would help cleaning that up or is a wet rag going to clean her up fine?

sorry, i am pretty new to cars. this is my first one and i want to learn as much as i can. any information would be greatly appreciated

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[jdmfreak92]

Too broad of a question. What will you be using the car for? How much money do you have? Last but not least what is your overall horsepower goal of the car?

[3SheetsDiesel]

For a decent daily driver that’s not going to see any track time, the header/exhaust combo you’ve got is fine. You also may want to look into a cold air intake. I’ve had good luck with AEM, but they’re a little on the pricey side. Injen also makes a decent CAI. Also, if you’re going to use an intake like that, which will locate the air filter down low to the ground, make sure that you get a bypass valve that goes onto the intake piping under the hood some place. AEM makes one that they sell with their CAIs for an additional fee. It’ll stop your car from sucking in water should the air filter get submerged in a puddle.

As far as cleaning the engine goes, a wet rag will only get you so far. What you may want to do is cover the alternator and and other sensitive electronic part that you don’t want to get full of water and then use some Simple Green cleaner and a hose, or some of the foaming engine de-gunking sprays that are available commercially. Gunk Engine Brite is a good one to get, but the SuperTech Engine Cleaner from Wal-Mart is the exact same stuff but it’s cheaper.

That said, when it comes to modifying a car I believe that modifications should be made in this order. Make it turn, make it stop, then make it go. Granted, engine mods are fun to do and they make all sorts of cool noises, but a Civic with 200 horsepower and stock suspension will be slower around a twisty track than a stock powered Civic with correctly done suspension modifications (meaning lowering springs as opposed to just heating up the stock ones to make them sag), drivers being equal. Power is nothing if you can’t put it to the ground. That’s just my opinion though.

[Author]

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