Despite the lack of posts, the Project continues and has had some progress.
The donor car has been gutted and taken to that big recycling center in the sky. I pulled a lot more out of it than I should have and had to rent a small storage space to make room in my garage to work!
The Redhead still sits outside, but under a cover until I get time to complete the swap. I'll be working on cleaning up the engine compartment over the next couple of weeks.
Meanwhile the Dx has had the crash damage mostly repaired, some maintenance done, and a bunch of decent AutoX days. It's getting a new MC tomorrow (Friday) before a Saturday and Sunday double-header AutoX weekend. Nothing like waiting till the last minute...
At my last AutoX, I did the walk through with an experienced FWD guy and he reminded me that FWD cars can either turn well or brake well, but not both at the same time. I made a couple of mediocre runs then applied his advice by charging the bigger turns, braking hard late (in a straight line), then turning in hard. I knocked nearly a second off my previous times and continued that pace for the rest of my runs!
The car still doesn't have enough traction due to my 300 TW tires, and I still can't accelerate hard out of turns due to the Dx's lack of an LSD, but at least it was an improvement after weeks of none.
I can't wait to get the Si on the course (next year), but it's probably still not going to be competitive against the newer turbo cars in H Street.
Good run at the AutoX today. I decreased my time for the first 4 runs before I got greedy and put a wheel in the grass and got a DNF. The 6th run was slightly slower than the 4th, so I almost recovered from the off.
The MC install yesterday went well considering that so much has to come off of an 8th gen Civic to even see the thing. Wipers off to remove the plastic cowl shield, top of the filter box off to see the MC then the filter box bottom has to come off to actually reach it. Plus the tube to the intake and tube to the silencer box have to come off also.
The bad thing is that the brakes are still a little spongy even though they were rock hard after bleeding them with the engine off. The car has 169K miles, so it probably needed changing anyway, but I wonder if the booster is worn out also.
I'll do a complete fluid change and a thorough system bleed before I go down that rabbit hole though!
There's a MC in there somewhere!
The brakes worked well enough during last weekend's autocross sessions, after I pressed the pedal to take out the slack. I did not feel any fade as I pressed the pedal, but honestly other than a quick stab before making a turn, I was holding the gas down most of the time anyway. There was much tire squealing!
Afterwards I spoke to a fellow 8th gen Civic guy about the clunking in my Civic's front end that I had not been able to locate and he suggested that it was the strut hats.
So now I have some more work to do...
Strut hats, foam top isolators, and rubber spring bottom isolators from KYB to go with the KYB struts I put on 5 years ago.
Both the Dx AutoX car and the Si project are still ongoing.
The Dx is due for an oil change, front strut hats, and completion of the Si interior installation. I also have some 200TW tires on order in the Si size..
The donor Si is stripped ...
... and gone.
The Si donor engine and trans cleanup/refresh has started.
A little cleaner.
Next up: replace broken AC mount, water pump housing and pump, thermostat housing and thermostat, flywheel clutch and pressure plate, hoses and serpentine belt, check plugs, and clean Vetec screen. And look for more broken bits!
Back to the Dx for some autox prep...
I finally installed the stack of parts from the October post. Swapped the hats and boots on my KYB struts. Needs some testing which is delayed by installation of new front brake calipers.
I also cleaned up the Si wheels from the red car and had some 200 TW tires installed. Can't wait to try them at the next autox...hope the weather is at least 60 deg!
Calipers are on, but I'm unsure of the bleeding situation. The MC was changed in October of last year, but the brakes have been spongy ever since. Lots of the usual bleeding procedure, and a try with a Hammer Store vacuum bleeder. Lots of new fluid pushed through, but no bueno, brakes pump up, but are still spongy after a few stops. There is a bit of a 'honk' noise coming from the brake booster when pumping.
Anybody with any ideas?
It's good to see some updates on this. It's become relevant to me since you started posting.
Last winter a friend of mine let me codrive his 10th generation 2019 Civic sport hatchback in three events. I can see why it's the current ruler of the H Street class. The 8 inch wheels will take a lot of tire, and the broad torque curve of the 1.5 turbo really pulls.
A few months later I bought an 08 coupe with the 1.8/5 speed as a daily driver, but then the owner of the aforementioned 10th Gen sport sold me a set of koni shocks, a 24 mm progress rear bar, and a set of Enkie wheels. That transformed the car.
I have a 99 Miata sport for my regular autocross car, but I've driven my civic in a few events and it's a lot better than I would have expected.
I have only competed with used 200 treadwear tires, but I've managed to beat my friend's 10th generation sport a couple of times, aided by the fact that we mostly have small lots with tight courses here.
Tomorrow I'm picking up my Enkie wheels with a set of the latest autocross hotness, Bridgestone RE-71rs tires.
I also have an annoying rattle in the front suspension, despite having already replaced the strut mounts with new KYB parts. I've also replaced the front sway bar brackets and the steering rack. I have a set of new OEM strut mounts, but I don't like messing with springs so I have to pay shop rates for that. Although they aren't leaking, I'm worried that it might be the shock rattling. Let us know what you find out with yours.
