04 Si Hatch and other project

[Hasbro]

I have an 04 EP3 and love it.

So far it has lost 250 lbs and will eventually lose 200 more (first 250=free, next 200=$$$). I plan on adding a six speed and several other mpg odds and ends. It gets between 32-37 mpg without highway use but my "around town is mostly 40-50 mph and traffic signals about every 2 or 3 miles. 40+ mpg doesn't seem unnattainable.

I'm also into performance (it will see Auto-x and track days) and weight is it's biggest problem. -450 lbs will also give it about 17% "free" whp.

Another handling weakness is the suspension system pretty much sucks by performance standards. I intend to modify it quite a bit. The suspension will be pretty stiff but I'm ok with that.

Why not get an old Crx? I intend to keep it for many years and as a dd this car has a huge cavern without the back seats, a great chassis, newer, and is super dependable. Plus there are only about 8 thousand of them around which makes them very uncommon and more so in the ensuing years.

[GasSavers_topher]

Project sounds sweet man I love the si hatches!!. So far what have you done to lose weight? So far i've lost 11lbs in my car and managed to keep full interior(97ex).

I don't think a six speed would help fuel economy much though it's more for performance. IIRC the FD would be about the same at cruising speeds adding the extra gear was equivelant to adding a gear between second and third.

Do love the car man,
Chris

[Rayme]

awesome!

Weird I JUST put a deposit on a used ep3 today! and going to pick it up shortly this week, I just love the car and hopefully will get nice 35+ MPG with little effort/mod.

PS: I want those headlights too, got them from ebay?

[Hasbro]

Topher, I would be fine with just changing the final drive instead of a six speed, and add Hondata (raises rpm) to get over 60 mph in second gear. Check out http://grassrootsmotorsports.com/pro...onda-civic-si/ for a lot of weight loss ideas. If you leave the interior in the rest of the weight will cost you. I'm even pulling the dash so i'm a bit on the extreme side.
Rayme, good luck with your new EP! Headlights are stock but I do intend to shave them back a bit as they bulge out too much, more than the 02-03s.
My other project is to build a 750 lb. single seat street legal ripper that uses a Honda D series motor with about 125 hp. They are very light. With the light weight and low Cda the mpg should be pretty crazy. It's looking to have about 1.3gs cornering capability. I'm just about to start building a scaled model version once I figure out what materials to use (don't want to use balsa, maybe pvc). After that a full scale mockup. Pic is not to scale but gives you the general idea. A lot of details such as triangulation are not shown. Scaled drawings are too big and I haven't done any CAD as I'm a computer dummy. I might try Google's SketchUp, although it's not a true CAD.

[slurp812]

Originally Posted by Hasbro

I have an 04 EP3 and love it.

So far it has lost 250 lbs and will eventually lose 200 more (first 250=free, next 200=$$$). I plan on adding a six speed and several other mpg odds and ends. It gets between 32-37 mpg without highway use but my "around town is mostly 40-50 mph and traffic signals about every 2 or 3 miles. 40+ mpg doesn't seem unnattainable.

I'm also into performance (it will see Auto-x and track days) and weight is it's biggest problem. -450 lbs will also give it about 17% "free" whp.

Another handling weakness is the suspension system pretty much sucks by performance standards. I intend to modify it quite a bit. The suspension will be pretty stiff but I'm ok with that.

Why not get an old Crx? I intend to keep it for many years and as a dd this car has a huge cavern without the back seats, a great chassis, newer, and is super dependable. Plus there are only about 8 thousand of them around which makes them very uncommon and more so in the ensuing years.

Nice car!

[slurp812]

Originally Posted by Rayme

awesome!

Weird I JUST put a deposit on a used ep3 today! and going to pick it up shortly this week, I just love the car and hopefully will get nice 35+ MPG with little effort/mod.

PS: I want those headlights too, got them from ebay?

I am around 35 average, and I only have a grille block, and a little air in the tires. 37psi front, and 42psi rear...

[Hasbro]

Originally Posted by slurp812

I am around 35 average, and I only have a grille block, and a little air in the tires. 37psi front, and 42psi rear...

Do you have a pic of the grill block? I'm running 50/54 psi.

Here's a frontal of other project:

[Loserkidwac]

The K series 5 speed trans can be converted to a 6 speed...if you really are interested in the 6 speed, I think it can be done for only about $170 worth of parts new from Honda/Acura...I mean if you are going to crack it open to change out the FD why not!!

http://elementownersclub.com/forums/...ad.php?t=25635

I found the info when i was doing some research on CRVs

Good luck with the projects!


Edit: I just read your post about making the single seater with a D series!! Lol I had that idea after I swapped my CRX...had the Si motor and trans left over and was very temped to weld up a frame and drop the motor in!! I determined I would probably kill myself...It was a boosted a6 and I converted to a boosted B18b...of a Turbo D16 go kart would have been fun...ahh, I can't wait to see that when you finish it!